Thoughts from #Scandal - Good people do bad things, do they deserve second chances?


A few weeks ago on Da Twittahs, we were discussing how long someone has to wear a scarlet letter. In other words, if you are someone who once did a bad thing, how long should that really be held over your head? My answer? It depends on how bad it was and how long it's been. Biblically sin is sin but to me, I can let slide a lie or two as opposed to a dead body or two buried in the basement. I'm just saying. If you stole a snickers in 6th grade, we're cool. If you're still robbing folks fifteen years later, we have issues. 

I do believe that people should be allowed to evolve past youthful transgression. Even not so youthful transgressions. I believe that unless you've shown a willful disregard for any measure of "do-right" you have a chance at redemption though not necessarily with the person you've wronged.

This popped back into my mind as I watched #Scandal Guess Who's Coming to Dinner with wide eyes and slack jaw last night.[Again, my warning for those of you that haven't seen it. Stop reading. Hie thee to a DVR and then come on back] The list of transgressors on this show is quite lengthy but I'll deal specifically with the men in Liv's life.

Fitz is a cheater and a murderer but for some reason (perhaps the hotness helps or the fact that he's married to a raging sociopath monster and Verna needed killing was dying anyway) we tend to forgive him. Huck is a scary super-sleuthy killer but he has a heart of gold so even though he almost choked Olivia to death on the side of a car, we were left saying "Poor Huck" and kept it moving. Daddy Pope is Lucifer above ground. I can't find his redeeming qualities except that he provided the sperm to bring Olivia Pope into the world. The fact that he does bad things in the name of freedom doesn't really help his cause when he's too happy to blow up his daughter's life, have Cyrus thrown into trunks and chucks grown men into dark holes all before breakfast. Mostly because he can. 

My real issue comes with Jake. We don't know what the hell his motivation is. We know that he's a stalker but he appeared to be under orders? We know that he's kinda pervy and a sore loser but when you see a woman you slept with welcoming her married lover (who happens to be leader of the free world) into her apartment, you might be a wee bit bitter. He did save her life though. Yet when Jake appeared all frazzled and in great need of a shower outside Liv's front door, my first thought was "Girl, watch your back." Is that fair? Probably not.

I have an ex-boyfriend who is genetically incapable of doing right by me. Ever. Like if he tried, he would self-destruct. I spent years assuming that because he asked for a second (15th) chance and apologized for the shiggity he did before, he should get to take off the scarlet letter and start fresh. No. He shouldn't. The scarlet letter is who he is. With me anyway. So having been burned by that fire,  I tend to veer on the side of "sure I'll forgive but I'll never forget cuz mama didn't raise no fools."

What say you, BnB? In the bigger scheme of things, are you able to forgive and give second chances to the good people in your life who just happen to do bad things? Why or why not? And do we believe in #GoodJake or #BadJake? Do share...