Romantic Or Traitor...Or Both?

After a week where it seems like I’M the only person who hasn’t had an affair with Tiger Woods (oh, you too?), the thought struck me that it’s becoming increasingly clear that NOBODY has a squeaky clean record, despite what their public image may be.

Woods successfully cultivated a public persona that was ideal for the buttoned-down and staid world of golf—and crafted also for the corporate universe that attracted hugely lucrative sponsorships. All of this façade vanished with a small fender-bender.

Such is the fragility of a double-life, especially from someone so much in the public eye.

While we won’t know the extent of Tiger’s indiscretions for some time to come, it is clear that he is not the exception to the rule. In fact, more serious offenses by others have gone either undetected, ignored or dismissed.

Such MAY be the case with King Edward VIII, who abdicated the British throne on this date in 1936. The prevailing sentiment is that Edward gave it all up for love—and he has since been revered by many for choosing the woman of his dreams over the trappings of royalty.

The Readers Digest version of this story is that Edward voluntarily chose to exit the throne after the British Government, the public and the Church of England condemned his decision to marry American divorcee Wallis Warfield Simpson. Edward had been King for less than a year. Popular with his subjects, his affair with the then-married Simpson was reported widely in the U.S., but kept out of English newspapers.

So, end of story, right? Romance won out over power and wealth—and lovers of love the world over have elevated Edward to the throne as Ultimate Romantic.

It seems that there may be more to the story, as evidenced on this documentary. Part 1 is below—if you are interested, you can pull up the other segments-fascinating stuff:




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-bVcRB7CF0

So, was Edward a philanderer, a traitor and a Nazi sympathizer?

We may never know, but one thing is for sure. Prevailing sentiment that Edward gave it all up for the woman he loved has dominated the public image for so long—that the truth—whatever it may be---will likely not replace the storybook version that people desire to believe.

It may be the same with Tiger. There will be those who will stubbornly cling to the image of what they WANT him to be, regardless of what the truth may eventually reveal.

What is the truth?

People are complicated—and people of wealth and power are MORE complicated, if only because those within the inner circle around the rich and influential create images that belie the facts.

It’s likely the truth about King Edward VIII and Tiger Woods lies somewhere between the sordid allegations portrayed as facts---and the crafted façade. And most of us will choose one extreme or the other.

As for me, I’m glad that I am not a King….and that I suck at golf.

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