Wilkerson has a long and sad history of bucking the system, but in this case the bucking is alleged to be in the form of dollars.

The timing of her arrest is something I view with great suspicion. It may be another example of a politically-oriented "Justice" department pulling the trigger at just the right moment: a few days before Wilkerson faces the voters for re-election. The excuse is that the arrest waited until it was determined that no other lawmakers were involved. Pure baloney. I don't buy it.

Wilkerson represents a community that has long been subjected to oppression, repression, and one in an almost-constant state of depression. I can understand the attitude that comes out of this area of Boston which can be expressed simply as "the system sucks". However if Wilkerson did the crimes alleged, then the attitudes and sense of privilege has surely gone to her head. She had a great opportunity to speak for her community and better their lot. I have not seen much evidence that she has in her "legislative career".

Lots of conservative types up this way would wish to see her gone. Probably a lot of mainstream democrats, too. The damning photos - as in our "Justice" department trying a person by media - rather cinches the deal.

I'm not defending what she is alleged to have done, but there are laws to protect the accused, right? I should think the front page of the Boston Globe (and most certainly the Herald, with a catchy tag line), represents a total violation, if not of the law, then certainly of ethics by the "Justice" folks. Particularly a few days before an election.

How ironic (appropriate?)..!!!

GOVERNMENT EXHIBIT "D"

Dear EasyT,

You're right that it's not _just_ that we don't have severe sentences for out-right political corruption and that this is only a shadow of the "wink-wink-nudge-nudge" corruption that has become solidly institutionalized in lobbying behavior at all local, state and federal levels of the system, but you come down too harshly in seeming to dismiss the value of citizens' demands for severe sentences for political crimes.

I for one have long been advocating the death penalty for a variety of political crimes, just as a form of propaganda for places like the break room where I work.

I'm old and wily enough that I can do this even though I'm perfectly open to the various reality-based arguments against the death penalty for most if not all crimes, and even though my spiritual principles allow that waves of popular feeling in most any population-group will seldom be stopped by any spiritual principles besides their own. Which spiritual principles will, of course, bend to accommodate feelings of mass vengeful murderousness when these become overwhelming.

So returning to the point, I've long called for the death penalty for being either a briber of a Congressperson or a Congressperson who is bribed. Sure, there's only one William Jefferson and only one Ted Stevens -- and yet how much alike in basic ways they are !! -- and the big, bogging-us-down problem is the 533 others who take 5 and 6 figure donations from the ownership class in their district or state, while agreeing with a wink to vote for the specific corruptions demanded by their donors against the 98% of the rest of the public.

We Will, in good time and with good will, find ways to monitor and punish that behavior too -- I do like the idea of 24 video-taping of all elected officials, you can go into a closed bathroom after a monitor verifies their is no exit or communications devices enclosed, and conspiring to violate that carries a whopping penalty.

In the meantime, it is absolutely salutary for us to publicly demand whopping penalties on overtly corrupt behavior, just as a talking point to get the attention of the many, many corrupt "mules," carrying corrupt corporate water, who populate our current media, PR/advertising and political "elites."

FYI, Wilkerson was the NAACP lawyer who led the desegregation of Boston's primo whites-only housing projects in the late 80s.

Under conservative Dem legislative leadership in the 90s, she was one of few who reliably stood up for the poor and powerless on every issue.

She also risked part of her black community base by coming out full throttle for gay marriage in the last few years.

There's no defending her now, but people are complicated.

And yes, releasing the photos was gratuitous humiliation. But she's been getting the same treatment from suburban "progressives" for some time now.