25
Apr
08

Should politicians apologise when they get it wrong?

How often is it you hear a seemingly heart felt apology froma politician?  How about this one earlier this month from American Congressman Geoff Davis of Kentucky. Admittedly what he had prevsiously said was generally thought to be out of line. But it is pretty rare to get an apology from a politican. Should our politicians be ready to hold their hands up and say sorry a little more often?

Bill Clinton famously failed to use the sorry word (while Monica Lewinsky did a little better). Tony Blair failed when pushed. Which politicians should have apologised but didn’t?


11 Responses to “Should politicians apologise when they get it wrong?”


  1. 1 Robert, Canada
    April 24, 2008 at 17:51

    What done is done. Quality is to do, think and speak correctly the first time. More often than not, after thoughts from politicans are spins to minimize the mistakes to fool the public. Unfortunately, we are political animals as well and are willingly to be fooled. C’est la vie!

    The only desirable things can be have is for the more intelligent public to differentiate and choose the lesser of the evils. Certainly, the fools will defend religiously with the spin while the silent majority don’t give a damn of what they do or don’t do.

  2. 2 Scott Millar
    April 24, 2008 at 20:19

    Yes, they should say sorry! For some reason they must feel it won’t work. I assume they think saying “sorry” is the equivalent of saying “I was wrong.”

    What’s wrong with being wrong? We are all wrong so often. Perhaps if we admitted to being wrong more often, the “rights” would mean more.

    -Portland, Oregon

  3. 3 selena
    April 24, 2008 at 20:23

    An apology from a politician is akin to an apology from an abusive spouse. It is a manipulation tactic designed to insure that the politician/spouse can continue to do as s/he pleases.

  4. 4 Nick in USA
    April 24, 2008 at 21:12

    This is a great topic, where are all the posts? It might not be flashy, but it’s interesting. I’m wondering if the people even know what their politicians are saying and doing though. Do people know how their elected officials are voting? I think if they did, then we’d have a much higher turnover rate. In my opinion, every politician should be made to account for their voting record. If they made a mistake, then they didn’t do their job properly. If I make a mistake, I lose my job, so the least they could do is own up to mistakes instead of spinning them.

  5. 5 Shakhoor Rehman
    April 24, 2008 at 22:15

    Only when their electorate ask them to.

  6. 6 Xie_Ming
    April 25, 2008 at 04:52

    The key word in the example was “BOY”!

    In addition to “youth”,

    in Kentucky, it is the white supremicist put-down of a black male,
    no matter of what age.

  7. April 25, 2008 at 09:56

    It is very sad to see politicians in Nigeria come out in the public to tell lies without feeling remorse even when the truth is very glaring.

    e.g Iyabo Obasanjo-Bello (daughter of former President Obasanjo) in an interview recently with BBC.

    2. Former Lagos state governor saying he will build a bridge to link a larger part of Lagos just because he is seeking a re-election.

    Lagos, Nigeria

  8. 8 Miss Gnimia
    April 29, 2008 at 14:53

    Pretty much depends on culture of the state.
    In more reserved states where where is less room for erroe, apologies(especially one too many times) might wound up being seen as tactics to get the public to forgive them. Like, we’ve already said sorry, what more do you want us to do?
    But if used sparingly, it could actually reflect the honesty and transparency of the politician. Definitely qualities we want to be governed by.

  9. 9 Dennis Young, Jr.
    May 7, 2008 at 06:50

    I think it doesn’t hurt anyone when a politicans says sorry for when they did something that was wrong.

    Thanks,
    Dennis
    Madrid, United States of America

  10. 10 Amey thomas
    October 14, 2008 at 21:55

    I want to know.
    what is wrong with the world?
    answer me that!

  11. 11 Jens
    October 14, 2008 at 22:07

    Dennis,

    Madrid, USA???? Is it the one in New Mexico?


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