Monday, October 02, 2006
MORE ON APOLOGIES
This morning’s news is pretty interesting for anyone interested in the art of the apology. As previously noted, this wonderful essay sets forth the gold standard. With that in mind, here’s a couple of apologies to consider.
Congressman Mark Foley, after getting caught sending sexually suggestive electronic communications ("suggestive" may not be the right word for these, actually -- yipes) to underage male pages:
"I strongly believe that I am an alcoholic and have accepted the need for immediate treatment for alcoholism and other behavioral problems."
Is there such thing as an F-minus? It’s not even an apology! "Other behavioral problems," indeed.
Okay, here’s Tennessee defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth, after he stomped on Dallas center Andre Gurode’s face, causing injuries requiring stitches.
"I apologize to Andre. What I did was disgusting. It's something that should never happen. I mean, I'm not a dirty player. I don't play dirty. I have respect for the game. What I feel like is I disgraced the game, disgraced my team and disgraced my last name."
Not bad. Not bad at all.
Congressman Mark Foley, after getting caught sending sexually suggestive electronic communications ("suggestive" may not be the right word for these, actually -- yipes) to underage male pages:
"I strongly believe that I am an alcoholic and have accepted the need for immediate treatment for alcoholism and other behavioral problems."
Is there such thing as an F-minus? It’s not even an apology! "Other behavioral problems," indeed.
Okay, here’s Tennessee defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth, after he stomped on Dallas center Andre Gurode’s face, causing injuries requiring stitches.
"I apologize to Andre. What I did was disgusting. It's something that should never happen. I mean, I'm not a dirty player. I don't play dirty. I have respect for the game. What I feel like is I disgraced the game, disgraced my team and disgraced my last name."
Not bad. Not bad at all.
1 Comments:
Great comparison!
By 
Tony Garcia, at
3:49 PM
