Put a quarter in the jukebox and “play another somebody done somebody wrong song,” it looks like we may be taking it on the chin again. We finally have a progressive majority on the San Diego City Council, a chance to right some wrongs (need I even mention the words Boy Scouts lease again?), to make San Diego’s political climate and human rights policies “deserving of our affection,” a chance to actually lead the city (kicking and screaming if necessary) into the 21st century and what happens? That same old bugaboo – political bribery.

Ralph Inzunza, Charles Lewis and Michael Zucchet have been indicted for wire fraud and conspiracy – with extortion thrown in for good measure for Inzunza and Zucchet. Pow! Right in the kisser.

As if it weren’t difficult enough to retain faith in the political system. What a disappointment this has turned out to be, particularly given all the money, time and energy our community expended on their campaigns. If these three are removed from office, that wonderful, hope-inspiring progressive majority will disappear, and to regain that majority will involve even more time and money – if it can be done. It could be a serious challenge preventing district two from going back to a conservative Republican, district eight to an anti-gay, anti-choice candidate and district four to a homophobic, divisive, bible-thumping religious fanatic. Even if all three councilmembers were to be miraculously cleared, their political liability would be seriously tainted.

What a waste.

Though most politicians are generally viewed as getting pretty cozy with various special interests, the difference in this case is that it seems pretty clear now from wiretap transcripts made public that these three acted illegally and did it under the radar screen.

It's one thing to take money within legal campaign contribution limits and have business owners expect something in return, but quite another to accept it from questionable sources, specifically in return for promised favors.

Don’t misunderstand, this isn’t about taking money from strip club owners – they’re legal businesses, entitled to lobby on behalf of their own interests just like everyone else. This is about circumventing the law. Whether it’s developers, Qualcomm employees, Padres staff or lap dancers, the legal guidelines for political donations – hazy though they may seem at times – remain the same. And don’t even try the old “I didn’t know” excuse, that’s what campaign managers and staffers are for, among other things – to track donations and make damn sure they’re legal before accepting them.

Whatever happened to avoiding even the appearance of impropriety? It’s a pretty good bet that if you don’t do anything that even hints at crossing the line, you’ll be fairly safe from crossing over to the dark side and spending the rest of your brilliant political career in the slammer.

And for what? A few thousand dollars? A couple of trips to Vegas? You can’t even reluctantly admire it for its sheer audacity. It’s just a cheap, sleazy, low-rent little exercise in dirty politics.

Of course, all three councilmembers are saying they didn’t do it, and we all want to believe them. Yes, they’re innocent until proven guilty. Sure, it could turn out to be part of some vast right-wing conspiracy, as some have claimed, but really, what are the odds? Unless this whole sorry mess turns into a plot straight out of Mystery Theatre, we’ll be seeing more headlines, with more details of greedy little transactions. As much as we cry out, “Say it ain’t so,” life experience shows that it probably is. And we’re entitled to feel angry and disappointed.

American politics is, by its very nature, a dirty game. There are many opportunities to stray from an originally noble purpose, and plenty of people ready to make that detour as easy as possible. It is every politician’s responsibility to be the bigger person, to actively watch for those opportunities in order to avoid them.

Holding political office is a tough job, but it also holds many privileges, and along with privilege comes obligation. When we elect someone to political office, we expect them to keep to a higher standard because they are, in theory, meant to represent the best in us as a community. They no longer get to say, “Hey, I’m only human,” because we are relying on them to be better than “only human.”

We in the GLBT community are used to subsisting on crumbs from politicians. While Inzunza, Lewis and Zucchet have admittedly been more generous to our community than most, it shouldn’t make us blind to the fact that a three-year investigation has led to their indictment. We deserve better. While we will be delighted if they are somehow cleared, the very fact that they allowed themselves to be put in a position that led to such an investigation and indictment in the first place, whether it is upheld or no, means that they have failed us. And we are likely to suffer the repercussions for a long time to come.