In Virginia, Susanna Gibson, NP, a candidate for the state legislature, was discovered to have had livestream sex acts with her husband. "Susanna Gibson encouraged viewers to send her tips—“raising money for a good cause,” she told them—in exchange for performing whatever sex acts the tipper desired. The couple had more than 5,700 followers on Chaturbate."
"The district is one of the few true toss-ups in November's election . . . No matter how the residents of Virginia's 57th District feel about their would-be delegate doing sex work on a public platform, this revelation sure does complicate the election campaign Gibson, a nurse practitioner, is currently running against Republican David Owen, a retiree and former homebuilder . . . What's worse, Gibson dramatically outspent her Republican competitor in their respective primaries, putting her at a major financial disadvantage going into the general election. In the Democratic primary earlier this year, Gibson spent $300,000 of the $377,000 she has raised to beat rival Democrat Bob Shippee, while Owen, the Republican, spent just half his funds, since he had no primary opponent."
Regardless of Ms. Gibson's politics, this shows an appalling lack of judgment. Part of me finds this funny, but it also is upsetting, as NPs have been fighting so hard for respect. She can do what she wants, but to think this would not be discovered if she ran for office? Unbelievable.
Specializes in NICU, PICU, Transport, L&D, Hospice.
djmatte said:
If they drop the "I don't mean to judge, but…” I can see the correlation. But people can live a life and not choose to outwardly judge. Maybe they make different choices personally, but just articulating that people shouldn't outwardly cast judgment doesn't make them a hypocrite. I personally wouldn't make the choices these people made but I don't personally get that lifestyle. I also wouldn't suggest it's not conducive to their professional life. That would be casting judgment suggesting their personal not harmful proclivities reflect on their job. The problem here is the person is running for public office which opens you up to an array of public ridicule; right or wrong. Which is another life choice I couldn't imagine anyone wanting to make in this age
I ride motorcycles and hang out with an array of folks from both questionable to professional backgrounds. If someone saw me at a motorcycle rally around a bunch of scruffy looking degenerates, it doesn't make me a bad nurse practitioner. It also doesn't change the way I practice nor open me up to influences that are worse than any other vice an average person could get into. It just means in have a thicker immune system than many. ?
IMV the premise of the OP was judgement of the woman running for office. There is no discussion of work performance or political agenda, just a smear campaign against a candidate. Maybe she is making her republican opponent feel sufficiently challenged that the attacks need to be personal.
Specializes in Psychiatric and Mental Health NP (PMHNP).
toomuchbaloney said:
IMV the premise of the OP was judgement of the woman running for office. There is no discussion of work performance or political agenda, just a smear campaign against a candidate. Maybe she is making her republican opponent feel sufficiently challenged that the attacks need to be personal.
I am the OP. The NP in question, Susan Gibson, demonstrated poor judgment. That is my opinion. Here is why: When someone runs for political office, the opposition is going to do everything they can to dredge up dirt. That is called "oppo research." While it is highly unlikely that someone who is a saint is not going to run for political office, a normal person running for political office with any political acumen at all would be aware of this. Candidates can take steps to "clean up" any issues and they should also be prepared to address any issues likely to come to light.
I don't care what party Ms. Gibson is in. I happen to be a Republican. I just hate to see stupid candidates. If you look at my original post, I remarked that Ms. Gibson could cost the Democrats control of the VA state legislature. If Ms. Gibson was a Republican, I would say the same thing, with the parties reversed.
What makes Ms. Gibson's behavior especially egregious is:
1. She posted live sex videos AFTER she became a candidate and asked for donations!
2. When her sex streams came to light, reported by her opposition, Ms. Gibson then started whining about dirty politics. Well, honey, hate to break it to you, but all politics is dirty. As they say down South, "bless her heart." In other words, she is an idiot.
So, yes, I am judging her. I am judging her to be a moron. I would say the same thing if she were a Republican.
Specializes in Psychiatric and Mental Health NP (PMHNP).
Update on Ms. Gibson's race:
"Susanna Gibson, who is running to represent the 57th District in the Old Dominion's House of Delegates, trails Republican David Owen by 49.5% to 38.9%, a Cygnal poll exclusively obtained by The Post shows.
Owen, a businessman, held a 4% lead among those voters when Cygnal conducted a previous survey of the race in August — before the Washington Post broke the news of Gibson's online sex shows.
Since then, Gibson's unfavorability rating has increased from 12.5% to 45.2% among likely district voters. Meanwhile, her favorability rating has declined from 28.1% to 27.3% between August and September."
Evidently, many prospective voters also think she demonstrated poor judgment.
Specializes in NICU, PICU, Transport, L&D, Hospice.
FullGlass said:
Update on Ms. Gibson's race:
"Susanna Gibson, who is running to represent the 57th District in the Old Dominion's House of Delegates, trails Republican David Owen by 49.5% to 38.9%, a Cygnal poll exclusively obtained by The Post shows.
Owen, a businessman, held a 4% lead among those voters when Cygnal conducted a previous survey of the race in August — before the Washington Post broke the news of Gibson's online sex shows.
Since then, Gibson's unfavorability rating has increased from 12.5% to 45.2% among likely district voters. Meanwhile, her favorability rating has declined from 28.1% to 27.3% between August and September."
Evidently, many prospective voters also think she demonstrated poor judgment.
That's what smear campaigns aim to do; adversely affect a political opponent's approval ratings with personal attacks rather than policy discussions. It happens in politics all the time and is the go to strategy in the era of Trump.
Do you wonder if this political nastiness affects her ability to practice as a health professional?
Specializes in NICU, PICU, Transport, L&D, Hospice.
FullGlass said:
I am the OP. The NP in question, Susan Gibson, demonstrated poor judgment. That is my opinion. Here is why: When someone runs for political office, the opposition is going to do everything they can to dredge up dirt. That is called "oppo research." While it is highly unlikely that someone who is a saint is not going to run for political office, a normal person running for political office with any political acumen at all would be aware of this. Candidates can take steps to "clean up" any issues and they should also be prepared to address any issues likely to come to light.
I don't care what party Ms. Gibson is in. I happen to be a Republican. I just hate to see stupid candidates. If you look at my original post, I remarked that Ms. Gibson could cost the Democrats control of the VA state legislature. If Ms. Gibson was a Republican, I would say the same thing, with the parties reversed.
What makes Ms. Gibson's behavior especially egregious is:
1. She posted live sex videos AFTER she became a candidate and asked for donations!
2. When her sex streams came to light, reported by her opposition, Ms. Gibson then started whining about dirty politics. Well, honey, hate to break it to you, but all politics is dirty. As they say down South, "bless her heart." In other words, she is an idiot.
So, yes, I am judging her. I am judging her to be a moron. I would say the same thing if she were a Republican.
Yes, I'm aware who the author is and what your feelings and beliefs about this woman include.
Your personal disagreement with her behavior is well documented. Whining about her sex tapes is somehow better than her whining about dirty politics? I mean, whining is whining but only one person making a splash about this is actually being personally attacked in the press and has something to whine about.
Yes, this is a thread that is all about judging this political candidate on a personal attack that was intended to titillate the "morality police" among the current conservative culture war voters. It has nothing to do with nursing.
I rather think that Republican voters should be more consistent in their moral outrage. I mean, some current political figures in the republican party are pretty challenged on the morality and good judgement front. I'm sure you could think of a few.
Specializes in Psychiatric and Mental Health NP (PMHNP).
toomuchbaloney said:
Your personal disagreement with her behavior is well documented. Whining about her sex tapes is somehow better than her whining about dirty politics?
Yes, this is a thread that is all about judging this political candidate on a personal attack that was intended to titillate the "morality police" among the current conservative culture war voters. It has nothing to do with nursing.
I rather think that Republican voters should be more consistent in their moral outrage.
Why do you insist this is only about politics? I have repeatedly said I don't care what party Ms. Gibson is in.
I am not whining, but it seems you are. I thought this was an interesting topic. Given how many people have responded, I am not alone. You are the one trying to make personal attacks on me, as well as on conservatives/Republicans, because, evidently, I disagree with you. That indicates a lack of self-confidence in your argument, lack of an argument, or a lack of ability to defend your point of view. Make a reasoned argument to defend your point of view w/o making personal attacks if you want people to respect your intellectual and argumentation abilities.
I am very clear that I think Ms. Gibson is a moron. I would say the same if she were a Republican. I've made that statement several times. Am I somehow not making myself clear?
I also provided evidence that Ms. Gibson's lack of judgment has negatively affected her poll numbers.
Personally, I don't want a moron for a healthcare provider. Stupid people generally don't make good healthcare providers. But hey, to each their own.
For any RNs or NPs considering running for office, Ms. Gibson provides a good lesson on what not to do.
As a U.S. citizen, I count my blessings to live in this wonderful country. Sure, we have our problems, but millions of people are literally willing to die to come here. I value our representative democracy and want us to have good elected representatives. It's good for us to have at least 2 political parties and multiple points of view. That means we need to have high quality candidates for political office, and that goes for all parties.
Specializes in NICU, PICU, Transport, L&D, Hospice.
FullGlass said:
Why do you insist this is only about politics? I have repeatedly said I don't care what party Ms. Gibson is in.
I am not whining, but it seems you are. I thought this was an interesting topic. Given how many people have responded, I am not alone. You are the one trying to make personal attacks on me, as well as on conservatives/Republicans, because, evidently, I disagree with you. That indicates a lack of self-confidence in your argument, lack of an argument, or a lack of ability to defend your point of view. Make a reasoned argument to defend your point of view w/o making personal attacks if you want people to respect your intellectual and argumentation abilities.
I am very clear that I think Ms. Gibson is a moron. I would say the same if she were a Republican. I've made that statement several times. Am I somehow not making myself clear?
I also provided evidence that Ms. Gibson's lack of judgment has negatively affected her poll numbers.
Personally, I don't want a moron for a healthcare provider. Stupid people generally don't make good healthcare providers. But hey, to each their own.
For any RNs or NPs considering running for office, Ms. Gibson provides a good lesson on what not to do.
As a U.S. citizen, I count my blessings to live in this wonderful country. Sure, we have our problems, but millions of people are literally willing to die to come here. I value our representative democracy and want us to have good elected representatives. It's good for us to have at least 2 political parties and multiple points of view. That means we need to have high quality candidates for political office, and that goes for all parties.
Your motives and feelings are likely much better communicated than you comprehend.
It's OK if you think someone is a moron because of their personal conduct. It's just not clear what that has to do with nursing. Is there some evidence that her nursing practice is moronic or would that just be speculation?
Specializes in Psychiatric and Mental Health NP (PMHNP).
toomuchbaloney said:
Your motives and feelings are likely much better communicated than you comprehend.
It's OK if you think someone is a moron because of their personal conduct. It's just not clear what that has to do with nursing. Is there some evidence that her nursing practice is moronic or would that just be speculation?
It is obvious you just have some ax to grind, but I have no idea what it is. I have made my opinion on this matter very clear.
Specializes in NICU, PICU, Transport, L&D, Hospice.
FullGlass said:
It is obvious you just have some ax to grind, but I have no idea what it is. I have made my opinion on this matter very clear.
Yes, your opinion is very clear.
I don't have an ax to grind. I just don't agree with the topic or it's inclusion on this side of the platform, as I've pretty clearly stated. I'm judging the intentions of this thread (online content), if you will.
Discussion means that opposing views are allowed. That means that I can talk about political smear campaigns masquerading as moral concern in the nursing realm in relationship to this topic. That's not an ax to grind, that's a different opinion and point of view.
You see her sex life as a real concern and I see the sharing of the information as dirty politics.
Maybe this candidate's sexual preferences and choices would have translated into substandard or unacceptable professional performance, but maybe not. This political "outing" of her legal and consensual sexual activities may well adversely affect her professional relationships as people like yourself worry about her morals and judgment out loud and in public and professional settings. You have no idea what you don't know about the sexual preferences of any of the health professionals around you, right?
What we do know is that her sexual choices were broadcast to a very broad audience, without her consent, by her political opposition and you characterized her response to that as whining while very clearly sharing your feelings about her conduct.
Lots of Republicans have have sexual indiscretions used against them. I remember one guy from Idaho or Colorado who was associating with male prostitutes, and meanwhile in bed with the Evangelical movement and vehemently anti gay marriage. Classic homophobia by someone with those inclinations. Pretending to be happily married with the perfect family...?
I personally would never vote for someone who was having sex online for money. I find it disgusting.
toomuchbaloney
16,096 Posts
IMV the premise of the OP was judgement of the woman running for office. There is no discussion of work performance or political agenda, just a smear campaign against a candidate. Maybe she is making her republican opponent feel sufficiently challenged that the attacks need to be personal.