Why dont our politicians say sorry ?

Is it just my imagination or is it that Indians generally don’t like to say they are sorry if they have made a mistake or done something wrong. I am not talking here about children. I am talking about adults and particularly politicians who are always in the public eye.

In America whenever a politician or a bureaucrat or a public figure ( Elliot Spitzer or Tiger Woods and even President of Obama,who said " he screwed up " in one of his appointments) does something wrong and I don’t mean just their sex lives.They dutifully appear on television generally supported by their families and teary eyed say how they are sorry that they have let everybody down. It is a public version of a Catholic confession, but instead of a hidden priest listening in, it is the world media. The American public generally is very forgiving and the individual is given a second chance, without the " Hail Mary's". There are numerous instances of that. As you will notice Elliot Spitzer is now slowly creeping back into the media.

In India the politician will first try to brazen it out, even where there is photographic or other recorded evidence. They will claim these were all doctored or that it was a part of a conspiracy against them, even when they are seen in the photographs with bundles of cash in front of them ala the Duchess of York.She at least had the grace to plead poverty as the reason for influence peddling. To claim poverty might be difficult for some of our politicians – might not get a ticket to stand for election next time.

Perhaps it might be easier for them to do it the American way and go public and acknowledge it. Recently a senior politician was filmed in bed with three women one of whom was reportedly pregnant. He did what all Indian politicians do. Denied it, said the photographs were doctored and so on.

Instead he should have admitted it. He should have said " even though I am eighty five years old, I have needs which one women cannot satisfy and hence I was in bed with three women or a holy man said that I needed to go to bed with three women and one of them had to be pregnant because of my health ".

He could have become the male icon and probably be forgiven. George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Hritik Roshan would all have to stand aside. He could probably even get advertising endorsements from Viagra with the slogan " You keep going when everyone stops " like the Eveready battery operated bunny who still keeps going when bunnies with other batteries stop.