Tripp-ing over friends

The Clinton-Lewinsky story has been full of strange twists and turns, and has
had a good deal of "stand-out" moments (other than the alleged act itself).
One such moment occurred recently, when a teary-eyed Linda Tripp told us all
what a terrible ordeal this has been for her.
I nearly shed a tear myself.
And it is terrible. The way the media have hounded her. The way every late
night comic has taken great pleasure making jokes about poor Ms. Tripp
(including Craig Kilbourn's "Linda Tripp is a man, baby!").
But wait, you say, didn't she bring all this attention on herself? Wasn't it
she that came forward with the information that blew this story wide open,
giving Ken Starr a second (or is it third or fourth?) wind?
Well, yes, it was her. But she's still the victim. She was only trying to get
"the truth" out. Well, that, and a lucrative book deal.
So she took a recorder with her when she talked to her "friend," Monica
Lewinsky, apparently at the suggestion of her publicist.
And with friends like that...
Just think (especially you fellas), if every time you bragged about one of
your sexual conquests, your friend was taping it to be used against you at a
later date. Imagine waking up one morning to the phone ringing, and it's a
reporter for a major daily on the other end of the line, asking you if you
really slept with so-and-so.
It's almost enough to make you feel sorry for Monica.
Sure, she was a little infatuated with the President (and hey, he is the most
powerful man in the world). But she didn't ask to be part of a media circus,
she just wanted to brag to a friend that she had rocked the world of the
President of the United States. I mean, really, how many of you girls can say
that? 
And let's face it, as far as conquests go, that's a pretty big one (so to
speak).
So she bragged to her friend.
And, sure, she's not the first person to have one of her friends spread gossip
about her sex life. But not many of us have had our indiscretions displayed on
every front page in the country, or every thirty minutes on CNN. For months.
Constantly.
It has gotten so bad, that she had to wear a wig to avoid the media so she
could meet with Ken Starr to work out the immunity deal.
That sounds more like a victim than some sleazy bitch with a tape recorder.
Though, to be fair, she put herself in that position (pun definitely
intended). She's the one that had sex with the President (allegedly), and then
lied about it in sworn testimony. And then, to top it off, she bragged to
someone about it...to someone with a tape recorder.
Which, not coincidentally, brings us back to Ms. Tripp.
Linda Tripp is a cheap, opportunist trying to capitalize on someone else's
misery. She doesn't care any more about "the truth" than Bill Clinton does.
She is a poor friend, and an even worse actress. Her blubbering display
doubtfully gained her any support (although I'm sure it provided the late
night comics with a great deal more material).
Ms. Tripp brought every ounce of negative publicity on herself. She wanted to
be famous, but, like most politicians, she couldn't control the path that fame
took. And as her lips trembled as she whined into the microphone, I was hoping
that one reporter in the group would have the good sense to just reach out and
slap her across the face. 
Reality check time, Ms. Tripp. Your 15 minutes are up.
The worst part of all of this is that she will likely be rewarded with a book
deal, and will make a tidy sum off this tawdry affair.
And if her feelings are hurt in the process, well, I believe that's what they
call karma...