Schreiner’s Media Landscape

“These are tough times. We, as legislators, live in a fishbowl down there. It’s hard to hide anything.”

- Utah Senate Majority Leader Scott Jenkins, R-Plain City

Yup, “tough times”, Scotty. Remember the good, old days when you could take lobbyist money, romp with teeny boppers, drive around drunk and not have to WORRY? Anti-Mormons, religious fanatics, and media watchers alike are in a feeding frenzy over one of Utah’s top politicians and an LDS church leader confessing to molesting a 15-year-old girl, paying her off, then getting the help of the church, corporate media, fellow legislators and others to cover up the whole thing. This is one place where the comments to articles about it are more interesting than the facts as they come to light. They tell the bigger story here.

Because the victim is an adult now and has decided $150,000 wasn’t enough to stay silent forever, it begs the question “Why wasn’t there an investigation?” especially when the incident was reported by the victim to the LDS church but apparently never reported to the police by either party. There’s evidence local media also knew about the incident but didn’t report it even once.

It also is bizarre that Kevin Garn, the perpetrator, makes his confession in front of all his colleagues in the legislature with his “good wife” sitting beside him, after the statute of limitations for any crime possibly committed runs out, and receives hugs and a standing O. An incredibly disturbing show of support for someone who might otherwise be doing time. Truly, exploitation of women is cultural out in Utah. But this was way beyond creepy. It’s as if Garn was being congratulated for getting away with it.

Which begs the final question: how many other Utah politicians are doing the same thing? If they’re that sympathetic with Garn, you know what their mentality is: it’s the GIRL’S FAULT. But if it is, why must it be HIDDEN. If they’re finding it all out from Garn, you know they either didn’t investigate him deliberately, didn’t care about the victim, or are even more ignorant than their crazy, social-engineering legislation (though there’s already lots of evidence to confirm that).

We’ve already seen institutional abuse inside religious corporations with the Catholic church’s priest-boy abuse scandal. We know these monoliths should not be trusted regardless of their power, wealth and self-appointed moral superiority. Combined with the state senate’s leader resigning earlier in the session for a DUI, the continuing defeat of any campaign or legislative ethics reform, the ongoing contempt for voters by government leaders, and the meddling of the LDS church in the affairs of another state’s social issues- California’s Prop 8 banning homosexual marriage- it’s clear that Utah’s leaders are out of touch with morality as well as reality while trying to tell the residents of Utah and the rest of the world how to live.

But don’t take my word for it. Read the comments.