Scott Brown Can Do It But Miss America Can't

Scott Brown, the new senator from Massachusetts, is handsome, charming, and Republican. The press has made much of the fact that because of his election, the Democrats have lost their super-majority. Of course the dems weren’t making any use of it, but that's not what I want to write about today.

My question is, how can Scott Brown get away with having posed nude?

In case you missed it, Senator Brown did a centerfold for Cosmo in 1982 when he apparently wasn't running for public office. Beyond some guffaws on programs like the Daily Show and Wanda Sykes, this, well, exposure, has barely been mentioned.

Why, when a good looking Republican politician is "revealed" in uncovered repose, is it basically laughed off? But when a nude picture of Miss America surfaces, she is forced to step down.

Can you imagine the Republican outcry if a nude picture of Barack Obama surfaced from 1982? Like Scott Brown, he's handsome and charming. But I'm sure the GOP would be apoplectic with outrage, decrying the President's values and judgment.

Naturally, I got online to find the photo of Scott Brown for research purposes and I have to say, he's pretty naked (read that any way you like).

Because of the internet, it is easier than ever to turn scandalous photos loose on the world. When a video surfaced of Olympic champion Michael Phelps smoking a joint last year, all hell broke loose. College students are cautioned today not to be photographed drinking beer for fear it will be published on a social network and potential employers will find it. Yikes, I’m wondering what embarrassing moments of my youth were documented and may surface online.

It's awfully easy to get into trouble for an indiscretion caught on camera. Why does Scott Brown, who actually went to the trouble to pose, get away with it?