A big ole group of high New Jersey officials, including Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano were arrested this morning, for charges including corruption and money laundering.

Dramatic, I said to my coworker.  Yes, he replied with a giggle.  There’s something about political corruption that brings out the “tsk” in us, and the busting up of a crime scene by the FBI feels kind of oddly satisfying.  Is it because we revel in justice served and corruption revealed?  Is it because we identify with the sweaty and hard-working FBI agents, pacing around yellow-lit rooms until 4 in the morning, rearranging pieces of evidence until the truth puzzle is solved?  Should we actually be feeling the gravitas of the persistence of corruption and compassion for the families of those arrested (whose lives probably feel pretty ruined right now)?

Last night at Hardcore Dharma Ethan advised us to try and note how many times this week we had the thought “People are unreliable and the world is screwed up.” In minute ways from 9pm in the evening (leaving the class) until 11:07 in the morning (writing this post) I’ve probably thought that about 74 times, not including thoughts about this scandal in my homestate of Yerz. 

Sometime I wonder if we collectively use these kind of political-corruption-reveals to reinforce our generalizations of “us against the world.” How should a dharmic person react to this kind of sensational news?