Hypocrisy??

I must admit I had to look up the definition of a hypocrite to be absolutely certain. A hypocrite is a person who indulges in hypocrisy. No surprise. According to Merriam Webster hypocrisy is defined as “behavior that contradicts what one claims to believe or feel.”

In a bitter recall election, Newsom handed ammunition to his critics when he dined mask-free at the French Laundry restaurant, owned by Thomas Keller, the chef, in November, just as he was publicly urging citizens to stay at home. Republicans had failed five times to get a Newsom recall effort off the ground, however, the pricey dinner (see below) did the trick.

“The French Laundry really created a sense of detachment” around Newsom, said Fernando Guerra, a professor at Loyola Marymount University. “It was politically tone-deaf, where you say one thing and do something else yourself.”

Through the purely political lens, Gavin Newsom is clearly caught maskless and enjoying the finer things in life. A boldly bad political move. As a bit of a foodie, my sympathies lie with the Governor. Good food is essential to the human experience. In my humble opinion, life is too short to eat bad food or drink bad wine. As a proud Texan, Newsom is not my governor, so I don’t give a rat’s ass how he chooses to lead. The old adage bears repeating, “we get the government we deserve.” All the media-driven public uproar did pique my interest. I love a good mystery.

For all the dire warnings about the pandemic’s lethality, Gavin Newsom is clearly not afraid of COVID. If he was, he would have heeded his own warnings. Behavior doesn’t lie, but politicians do. What are the big picture implications of Gavin Newsom’s behavior? I will let you decide.