South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford’s affair with an Argentine woman continues to make waves in U.S. political circles.

But it’s not the sex that matters.

Sanford’s major mistake was to abandon his post as governor. He vaporized, lied to his staff, which then misled the public unintentionally as to his whereabouts, only to be revealed as being in Argentina.

The Republican governor’s sexual misdeed is bad enough. He has proclaimed himself to be a born-again Christian. He excoriated a one-time president, Bill Clinton, for his own transgressions and then lying about it. Sanford has held himself up as a paragon of virtue; he now stands before us as a major-league hypocrite.

But the real problem with Sanford now is that he has to explain how he can continue to govern when he has demonstrated an ability to walk away from his job — and then reportedly spend public money to help pay for his romantic misadventure.

If it were me, I couldn’t look at myself in the mirror, let alone ask my constituents to keep paying my salary.

The world has no shortage of Canada geese.

A recent letter to the editor complained about how Amarillo Animal Control officers sought to round up the feathered visitors near Duniven Lake, between Olsen Boulevard and Interstate 40. Seems the geese are congregating there lately.

A couple of days later, I was driving east on Olsen when, lo and behold, I had to stop to allow about three dozen geese to cross the street. Among the birds were several goslings not yet big enough to fly.

I was heartened to see other motorists yielding to the birds as well.

But the sight of the birds did bring to mind the complaint that the letter writer made, which basically was: What were the Animal Control officers thinking? You can’t round up these birds, which aren’t domesticated.

Frankly, I don’t mind slowing — or even stopping — for these birds. It gives me a nice diversion from the hustle and bustle of getting somewhere.

Do you know how to build relationships within your neighborhood?

Turn out the lights.

How do I know this? My house was one of several hundred in southwest Amarillo that went dark for several hours Thursday evening while crews worked to restore electrical service. An automobile wreck cut service in much of that part of the city.

How did many of us on our street spend the time when our homes were dark? We went outside. Some of us worked in our yard. At the west end of our street, perhaps three or four households all had poured onto their front yards, with the young children playing with each other as dusk settled in over the Panhandle.

Air conditioning and rear-entry driveways have helped damaged neighborhood fellowship. The AC keeps us cool during these hot summer days and early evenings. The rear-entry drives mean we don’t have much interaction with neighbors when we get home after work.

So, when someone blows out the power for any length of time, go outside and enjoy your neighbors’ company. At least we will all have something to talk about.

Enough, already.

South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford’s announcement today that he cheated on his wife brings down yet another high-profile Republican politician who once stood foursquare in favor of “family values.”

He joins Nevada Sen. John Ensign, who admitted to something similar just the other day. Then we have Louisiana Sen. David Vitter, who consorted with a hooker in Washington, D.C. Florida Rep. Mark Foley embarrassed his party when he sent lurid e-mail messages to young male pages in the U.S. Capitol.

I agree that Democrats are guilty as well of this foolishness. Former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer took a tumble with a hooker; former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards admitted to cheating on his wife, Elizabeth, while she was battling breast cancer and then we have that former president who messed around with the intern while serving as Leader of the Free World.

But pardon me for sounding extra harsh on these latest announcements. Sanford and Ensign have held themselves up as paragons of virtue, only to be exposed as anything but. And that’s the problem with the party under which they serve.

Can we now call a halt to these lectures on morality?

Potter County Judge Arthur Ware wears his patriotism on his sleeve, right next to the Marine sergeant’s stripes he wore while serving in Operation Desert Storm.

Ware doesn’t want to remove the M-60 tank that’s been parked next to the county courthouse since 1993. He calls it a memorial to those who have served, and fallen, in defense of the country. The tank, which Ware said is on loan from the Department of Defense, might have to move to another location. Where? That’s not clear.

The county is restoring the courthouse, largely with money obtained from the Texas Historical Commission. Ware doesn’t like being dictated to by the THC about what he believes is a local matter — namely the tank. But if the THC digs in its heels and orders the county to relocate the tank, then it will cost money that Ware believes should be spent on restoring the courthouse. Ware doesn’t want to spend the money on tank removal. He wants the tank to stay where it is, as a testament to those who have defended the nation.

Ware sent me an e-mail this morning, which he said included an inscription on a C-ration box found at Khe Sanh after the heroic Tet offensive siege of early 1968. “Freedom has a special meaning for those who have fought for it, that the protected will never know,” the message said.

I get that.

But it’s worth wondering whether this is a battle worth waging. Wherever the tank goes, it should stand as a fitting memorial.

Potter County commissioners are meeting these days at the top of the Santa Fe Building, while the county courthouse is being restored down the street. The new digs — in the refurbished auditorium on the 11th floor of the Santa Fe Building — are nice.

But, man, the acoustics in the room are terrible.

Commissioners chatted among themselves, and to staff members Monday — and the audience was left in the dark. And when County Auditor Kerry Hood — she of the soft voice — spoke to County Judge Arthur Ware about a matter under consideration for county action, members of the public couldn’t understand a word she was saying.

“Speak up, Kerry. We can’t hear you,” came a plea from the audience.

The room is a giant echo chamber. Add to that echo the incessant hum of the air conditioner, you get a situation that needs improvement if these public meetings are going to conduct business in the open.

Commissioners will be meeting at the Santa Fe Building until mid- to late 2011, when the courthouse project is expected to be completed. There’s time to fix the acoustics, gentlemen of the commissioners court.