After watching a few youtube.com video’s of Eliot Spitzer’s speech at the Harvard ethical center yesterday, I have to say I’m greatly disappointed.

Spitzer drawing the line between public policy and personal ethics is blatantly un-American.  Public Officials are elected, in part, on their personal ethics. There entire past and any blemish on their character are brought to the public light for us to scrutinize and determine whether or not they are “fit” for leadership. Their families campaign with them to show us that they have the type of values that Americans respect and support.

To discuss public policy while promoting the stance that personal ethics aren’t important and that its ok to cover up who you are- only promotes a political atmosphere where lying to the public is not only encouraged, it is supported.

Professor Lawrence Lessig stated that Spitzer was invited to speak “because he has an extraordinary breadth of experience as both a governor and prosecutor involving institutional corruption issues in the financial sector”.

With that said – I’d like to know how Mr. Spitzer, the prosecutor, would treat Mr. Spitzer, the John?

Would Mr. Spitzer, the prosecutor, have let Mr. Spitzer the corrupt Governor & John off the hook? I doubt it.

For the record, I am not saying that I see no value in hearing what Mr. Spitzer has to say. I see a huge amount of value in talking to a public official who fell from grace by committing a crime and covering it up for years. I’d love to hear from a man who held the highest political office in the state of NY on how we can better evaluate our public officials to ensure they are not corrupt.

I think we can learn a lot from having this discussion. However to act as if real ethics aren't important completely undermines everything America stands for. There is much MORE value in learning how our voices can be heard to question those who abuse power rather than discuss public policy from a man who spent a lifetime disrespecting it.

Mr. Spitzer was a vigilant crusader against Wall Street. He was also a vigilant crusader against prostitution yet a hypocrite of the highest level since he went around arresting the same agencies he frequented.  I have to wonder if that hypocrisy bled into other areas of his life? Especially since the biggest Ponzie scheme in the history of the world happened right under his nose as both AG and Governor.

Harvard has done a severe injustice to their students by allowing a man without ethics to influence the ethical future of their students. – all to sell tickets (and the event sold out). This is pimping by one of our countries finest educational institutions.

I have received an overwhelming level of support from my letter on Spitzer's lecture. However, NO response from any of the Harvard faculty.

At this point, I am wondering if anyone is going to be able to ask the REAL questions??

We have enough dirty politicians and blind trust has led our country into its current economic condition. Now, Spitzer is lecturing on ethics because he was a vigilant crusader against Wall Street? Why his advice on anything ethical, on any subject, is valuable- boggles the mind. The biggest Ponzi scheme in the history of the World happened right under Spitzer's nose.

Now, I wonder why Harvard would choose such a speaker other than for pure monetary reasons. The ticket sales from the lecture will increase the deep and conservative pockets that line Harvard's considerable halls. Are we teaching Harvard students how to ethically break laws while pretending to uphold them? Will there be a special Q & A session on how to ethically abuse women both physically and financially by making them the criminals for choosing to sell their bodies?

The lecture is today at 4:30pm - it is sold out at this point.
Presented by Edmond J. Safra Foundation Center for Ethics
Location: Emerson Hall 105
25 Quincy St.
Cambridge, MA

$100 to any student who asks one of my questions to Mr. Spitzer.  I've listed them again below:

1.    Is it ethical to take a total of $9M in illegal loans from your father for your two campaigns for Attorney General and lie about it to the NY Times, NY Post and NY Daily News?

2.    Is it ethical to wire money to an Escort Service in the form of two five thousand payments to evade federal cash transfer regulations and detection?

3.    Is it ethical for you to tip off your favorite escort service days before a bust so that they may disappear?

4.    is it ethical to try to book an assignation with a escort under a fake name after you were banned by my agency for being abusive to women?

5.    Is it ethical to blackmail Marsh McClennan Insurance into hiring your best friend as their CEO before you will to agree to a settlement of charges against them and require them to buy your friend’s business for $1B when it is worth $250,000?

6.    Is it ethical to use the New York state police to spy on your political opponents, fabricate documents and lie about it repeatedly until e-mails released after you left office show you personally approved the dirty tricks against the Senate Leadership?

7.   Is it ethical to "traffic" a woman across state or country lines for the sole purposes of engaging in prostitution?

As a side note - I vow entry into the race if Spitzer seeks state-wide office next year.

In response to Spitzer's lecture at Harvard tomorrow, November 12, 2009. I know I've done alot of speaking out regarding Spitzer and it may seem that I have some personal vendetta against him, I do not. I do however feel that injustices and inequalities are worth repeating over and over again until they are actually addressed. I have talked about him repeatedly but no one is asking him the HARD questions. Now, this man, is lecturing at Harvard on ethics?

http://www.ethics.harvard.edu/news-and-events/lectures-and-events/current

November 11, 2009

Professor Lawrence Lessig
The Edmond J, Safra Foundation Center for Ethics
Harvard University
79 John F. Kennedy Street, Taubman,
Cambridge, MA 02138
Via email: lessig_from_web@pobox.com

Dear Professor Lessig:

I have been informed that you are having former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer speak on ethics this Thursday November 12, 2009. This sounds fascinating and I would love to attend but the restrictions of my probation won't allow me to travel out side New York City.

For nearly 5 years, I supplied Mr. Spitzer with high priced escorts while he was both Attorney General and Governor.  For this crime, I served four months on Rikers Island, had all of my assets confiscated and am now considered a sex offender on 5 years probation. Mr. Spitzer broke both state and federal laws and walked away free.

I am greatly intrigued as to what Mr. Spitzer could contribute to an ethical discussion when as Chief Executive Law Enforcement Officer of NY he broke numerous laws for which he has yet to be punished. As Attorney General he went around arresting and making examples out of the same escort agencies he was frequenting.

I believe strongly in the legalization of prostitution and have no issue with his choice to use call girls. However, I deplore hypocrisy and abhor public officials who use their power to commit and cover up their own crimes and to lie and deceive the same public they have promised to protect.

In any event, since I wont be able to make this lecture, I thought it imperative to ask the former Governor and Attorney General his stance on corruption committed by public officials through some direct questions:

1.    Is it ethical to take a total of $9M in illegal loans from your father for your two campaigns for Attorney General and lie about it to the NY Times, NY Post and NY Daily News?

2.    Is it ethical to wire money to an Escort Service in the form of two five thousand payments to evade federal cash transfer regulations and detection?

3.    Is it ethical for you to tip off your favorite escort service days before a bust so that they may disappear?

4.    Is it ethical to try to book an assignation with a escort under a fake name after you were banned by my agency for being abusive to women?

5.    Is it ethical to blackmail Marsh McClennan Insurance into hiring your best friend as their CEO before you will to agree to a settlement of charges against them and require them to buy your friend’s business for $1B when it is worth $250,000?

6.    Is it ethical to use the New York state police to spy on your political opponents, fabricate documents and lie about it repeatedly until e-mails released after you left office show you personally approved the dirty tricks against the Senate Leadership?

7.   Is it ethical to "traffic" a woman across state or country lines for the sole purposes of engaging in prostitution?
 
Please let me know what Mr. Spitzer, a man without ethics, says.

Sincerely,
Kristin Davis
Kristin@manhattanmadam.com