Q&A #6: Corruption-Fatigue

 What's your over/under on number of Massachusetts Democrats to be indicted in Probation Dept. scandal?

 And relatedly, "MAGal" asks:

I'm a proud MA Democrat in many respects, but I get really embarrassed by all the corruption in state government (a la the McLaughlin/Murray story).  Any chance the up-and-coming younger generation of MA pols are better on this front?  Lots of them are great and progressive on issues, but so were Wilkerson and DiMasi...do you see this problem lessening in the next decade or two?  What could actually make it so, besides wishing? 

For Brad, if we're talking Democrats currently holding elected office, I think the over/under line is at 3.5.

As for MAGal's broader question, I do think that slowly but surely we're getting a crop of electeds who get that the old ways -- the common practices and attitudes that allow the nonsense to happen -- don't fly anymore. And I think it's worth pointing out that the Patrick administration, and the Romney administration before it, were both remarkably free of criminal activity. Not everything is ever going to be purely kosher and clean, and you (and I) can find plenty of fault there, but I think that's worth noting.

As for what you can do, a good start is speaking out about your level of disgust and distrust. It is very good for them to know that it's coming not just from the right-wing talk-radio yakkers (no offense Brad!) but also from their own side.

Also, we should get rid of the Massachusetts House of Representatives, as I wrote a while back. Seriously.