Scandal is a distraction

Hollywood could not have written a juicier story with a more appealing menagerie of players than this real-life Gen. David Petraeus sex scandal [“Petraeus resigns as CIA chief, admits to affair,” page one, Nov. 10]. But this whole affair is a red herring. It is a simple, effective diversion of the public’s attention away from the Benghazi debacle.

How coincidental (and politically convenient) that the one follows the other right after the president’s re-election is assured. As the various shenanigans unfold and are drawn out in the press every day, we Americans will sooner or later grow disinterested in what really happened in our embassy in Libya.

Surely, it is more fun to read about a titillating sex scandal than to slog through a lengthy who-knew-what-when investigation of a grisly terrorist attack. Ultimately, we will turn our attention back to the “fiscal cliff.”

No one will be held accountable for the security breach in Benghazi because by the time the truth is finally revealed, we will once again be more concerned with our own troubles until the next sensational story makes headlines.

In the meantime, my sympathies go out to Gen. Petraeus and his family, who do not deserve such public scrutiny.

— Steven Lequire, Des Moines