[NYPOST] Sunday's New York Times...which still proudly displays Walter Duranty's Pulitzer prize...
magazine features an interview with disgraced former Rep. Anthony Weiner, which Weiner granted in a bid to gauge if the public is ready to accept him back in public life.
The Weiner piece comes in the wake of the arrest of state Sen. Malcolm Smith for trying to buy his way onto the Republican mayoral primary ballot. His indictment left many asking, "Why is New York so corrupt?" The answer may lie in the careers of people like Weiner and Smith.
Both the ex-congressman from Queens and the state senator are part of an expansive and expensive political culture which affords them a lifelong job as a New York politico, with virtually no experience doing anything else.
It's no wonder that many elected officials seem willing to do just about anything, like Smith, to preserve and advance their careers -- while others, like Weiner, grow arrogant, egotistical and out of touch with everyday norms after spending years in the New York political bubble.
It's not like that everywhere else, believe it or not.