Corruption Fatigue

Not only have I not blogged about the latest scandal involving the White House and the destroyed CIA tapes, but I haven't even been reading about it. Oh, I've read some cursory stories. But the moment I do, I get this overwhelming feeling of "so what?". Put another way, "same shit, different day".

I applaud those who continue to follow the scandals with enthusiasm, passion and vigor. We really can't stop being outraged by such behavior. But I'm not sure I can personally keep up the energy just now.

Let me give you a short version of my take on the scandal. The CIA interrogation tapes showed:

1. the horrors of torture that would be shocking if shown publically,
2. that CIA torturers were really really good at it, smiles and all,
3. that the victim would say anything to get them to stop,
4. that the information provided was useless,

and finally

5. that the White House had meetings, including Bush, where the decision was made to destroy the tapes because of their potential for criminal legal liability by everyone involved.

It's really that simple.

And the investigation will go nowhere because fundamentally, everyone has corruption fatigue.

Added: Dana Perino's faux outrage at the NY Times is typical Rovian strategy to divert attention from the reality, and a joke. Stage left, enter Claude Rains from Casablanca.