The Man Gene’s Helper

The Man Gene raised its head again several days ago in connection with Nevada Republican U.S. Senator John Ensign. It seems that Ensign had a months-long affair with a member of his staff and long-time friend. Further complicating this predicament is the fact that the female staffer’s husband and son were also members of Ensign’s staff and also long-time friends. The husband finally blew the whistle and claims that he, his wife (Ensign’s paramour), and his son were dismissed once the husband confronted Ensign. (Click here, here, here, here, here, here and here.)

A couple of other allegations make this look even worse for the senator. First, after the dismissal of the female staffer and her family, the husband landed two good jobs with companies closely tied to the senator. Second, while the affair was in progress, the female staffer’s salary doubled.

Posts on The Man Gene have become a staple of this blog. The Man Gene causes problems like Ensign’s every day. When the Gene’s carrier is high-profile enough and his inappropriate conduct comes to light, all hell breaks loose. Senator Ensign has had to resign his position as Chairman of the (Republican Party) Policy Committee, the fourth ranking position in the Senate Republican leadership.

As news of the Ensign affair has continued, the senator is being called a Christian conservative, a born-again Christian, a member of Promise Keepers, and a hypocrite (he advocated for the resignations of President Bill Clinton and Senator Larry Craig when they were experiencing similar sex-related problems). At a minimum, his star as a Republican “family values” man has been diminished.

The Man Gene doesn’t discriminate among Christians, Jews and Muslims — or between born-again Christians and just plain Christians — or between hard-core monogamy advocates and moral relativists. The Man Gene can make any man do what he knows isn’t right. It can make him forget, at least temporarily, about the spouse and family he genuinely loves. It can make him hurt them, his mistress and her family.

Which brings me to The Man Gene’s helper, the person with whom the disgraced man has had a fling. In Ensign’s case, the helper wasn’t a call girl, a prostitute, a fluzy, a young bosomy temptress, or a sexy intern looking for stories to tell her friends back home. She was a 46-year-old wife and mother. She and her family were friends of Ensign and his family.

When The Man Gene incites havoc, its helper can be anyone. But it’s never the helper who gets vilified. It’s the man. And maybe he should get a heavier dose of vilification than the helper, because if he hadn’t let The Man Gene get the best of him, the helper would have, in most cases, not helped out. Most women can control irresponsible, devastating sexual behavior in a way that most men can’t. Women don’t possess The Man Gene.

But should the helper receive a pass? In Ensign’s case, his paramour’s husband has gone after Ensign, not his wife, even though everything indicates so far that the relationship was consensual and welcome. The husband has threatened to sue Ensign. For what? Although he claims he was dismissed from his job, with his wife and son, there wouldn’t appear to be any kind employment lawsuit here. Unless the wife changes her story, her relationship with Ensign was welcome. That means no sexual harassment. The husband can’t claim he was fired for opposing unlawful activity under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, because there was no unlawful employment activity.

Even a man who has The Man Gene himself shows no mercy toward another man who has wronged him and his spouse by succumbing to The Man Gene’s menace. The cheating helper begins to believe that she was taken advantage of (and maybe she was). The public turns its scorn on The Man Gene’s victim, who was, it could be argued, merely a co-cheater (though a more powerful one).

As you’re reading this, The Man Gene is having its way with other men and The Man Gene’s helpers. No one knows what will ultimately happen, but it probably won’t be good. Has a man no self-control when the ravage of The Man Gene is unleashed? Usually not.

So, where does this leave employers that have both male and female workers? In a bad spot. You can have a policy against dating, romantic relationships between bosses and subordinates, and office hanky-panky. You should have a policy against sexual harassment. Unfortunately, The Man Gene can’t read, and its men are weak and vulnerable.

So what then? Cold showers? Fervent prayer? Self-satisfaction? Chemical castration? Exorcism? An anti-MG vaccination? Numbing medicine? Daily therapy? A bodyguard authorized to protect, maim, even kill? I’ll bet that Senator Ensign wishes he’d done them all. And so does The Man Gene’s helper.

1. 

   E. says:

   June 24, 2009 at 5:52 pm

   And then there is the internationally traveling governing man gene himself, Mark Sanford. E.
2. 

   John Phillips says:

   June 25, 2009 at 12:27 pm

   E,

   Thanks for your comment. I just put up my first post on the Sanford situation.

   John