"An Exaggerated Public View That They Are All Thieves."

The British official in charge of policing charged taxpayers $14 for two pornographic films.

Jacqui Smith... said it was "a mistake" that the adult movies, which her husband watched, ended up on her expense report. She apologized Tuesday, saying she was angry at herself for the slip-up, and has returned the cash.

No word yet on whether the $800 sink and $1,400 fireplace and the $1.30 bathtub plugs that Smith expensed were also mistakes.

Expense accounts are a necessary evil for holders of high office in public or private life. Some expenses are legitimately incurred in the fulfillment of an office, and should be reimbursed. While extreme scrutiny can lead to unfair "gotcha" moments, public officials deserve, even require, this oversight. They are, after all, spending other people's money, which can lead to a certain cavalier attitude. Clearly, the standing regulation for the House of Commons that only required receipts for expenses exceeding $370 was insufficient.

Abusing expense reports is not news, but FatCratz finds interesting the point of view expressed by the opposition Conservative Party:

Ken Clarke, a member of Parliament from the opposition Conservative Party, said the bad publicity has been "dreadful." "People should be skeptical about their politicians -- don't regard them as heroes -- but now we have an exaggerated public view that they are all thieves, they are all rogues, they are all lining their own pockets," he said.

Clarke seems to suggest that we can know too much about the misdeeds of government officials who hold the public trust, that a full airing risks creating an unhelpfully negative stereotype.

Can we have too negative a view of our public servants? Of course, all are not crooked, and it is natural to form stereotypes about groups based on partial evidence. But the alternative to full transparency is disregarding some minor or localized misdeeds, less they tarnish the whole. The result is a protection racket, where we all look the other way lest our colleagues flaws reflect poorly on ourselves.

Small sins hide bigger ones. Any crime hidden encourages more, and greater, offense. If I knew a colleague shorted me change when buying me coffee, I wouldn't trust them with my money anymore. Taxpayers deserve the same chance to police their funds.

Drawing a crucial distinction between private sins and those that are reflected in the workplace, FatCratz respectfully disagrees with Mr. Clarke. FatCratz is a venue whereby small misdeeds may be aired for the general public, those bound to be disregarded by an overburded ethics officer or Inspector General. And this, we believe, is a valuable service to the people paying the bills.