A college professor in Albany recently floated a proposal to start a Museum of Corruption, but the museum will have the unique twist of practicing what it preaches (against). The ticket takers at the door will solicit bribes instead of admission fees. Visitors, moreover, will be permitted to wear a wire and trick their friends into admitting a crime. Just like the real lawmakers in New York.
And it’s not a joke. Bruce Roter, who teaches music at the College of Saint Rose and came up with the idea for the museum, has formed an advisory board that will now include Zephyr Teachout, Governor Andrew Cuomo’s recent opponent in the Democrat primary.
Via the Times Union:
Former New York gubernatorial candidate Zephyr Teachout has agreed to sit on the advisory board of the embryonic Albany Museum of Political Corruption.
“It’s all very exciting. … Her expertise and her energy will be invaluable to this project,” said … Roter….
Roter, who also spearheaded the successful campaign to bring Trader Joe’s to the region, worked for Teachout’s Democratic primary campaign last year. He said he met her at an event in Albany and later asked her join the board. After assuring her office that her contributions would take up only as much time as she had to spare, he was told that “she’s on board.”
Zephyr, author of the recently released “Corruption in America: From Benjamin Franklin’s Snuff Box to Citizens United,” has lately called on Hillary Clinton to answer questions about her private email usage during her tenure as secretary of state.
Whether it’s bilking taxpayers out of hundreds of thousands of dollars, funneling money into non-profits so that pet poodles can get spa treatments, trying to rig the New York City mayor’s race, serially harassing women and then covering it up, perpetually sexting pictures of one’s junk, or committing extensive and persistent voter fraud, the Empire State has certainly had more than its fair share of political corruption.
Roter is determined to turn lemons into lemonade and has already set up a website for the effort, as well as a Facebook page.
There would of course, be serious matters to discuss, according to Roter. The museum “would offer real lessons on political history and could host lectures on civic issues.”
However, while corruption is a quite serious matter in New York state politics, Roter is approaching the project with an incredible sense of humor. According to reports, the museum will serve pork as a main menu item in the cafeteria.
Roter explains that kids under 12 will be allowed to visit for free “but parents are encouraged to lie about the age of their children.”
Cross-posted at the Mental Recession
