Suspension of disbelief can help Tom Corbett

LET'S TALK about suspension of disbelief and cognitive estrangement.

Wait, wait don't go. I think they're part of a major political plan.

Perhaps you've noticed Tom Corbett can't catch a break.

Maybe you sense he needs some help.

He just lost another top aide, William "we hardly knew ye" Harner, his acting education secretary, axed after less than three months.

The Patriot-News reports Harner's former employer, a large Harrisburg-area school district, was not renewing his contract after investigating 15 to 18 allegations of, um, "awkward comments" to co-workers.

Odd that nobody caught this before naming Harner. Worrisome that Harner (presumably) didn't say "there's something you should know" before being hired.

This comes after the June firing of Richard Allan, state conservation secretary, for sending out a racially charged email.

One could ask, aren't these good things proof that Corbett won't tolerate bad behavior? One could also ask, hey, who's hiring these jokers?

Past Cabinet members proved problematic. Seven, counting acting Harner, are gone; as are two chiefs of staff, two legislative directors, a director of communications and (I'm pretty sure) a partridge in a pear tree.

Don't believe Corbett picked the right people for these jobs?

Suspend that disbelief and you'll see they (a) were set up by critics and punished by politically correct media or (b) wanted to spend more time with their families.

See how this works?

Take Corbett's Hilton Head condo that he failed to disclose ownership of because - even though he's a lawyer surrounded by lawyers and was twice elected the state's top lawyer - he was "confused" by language that says "list all in-state and out-of-state real-estate property interests."

Don't believe he was "confused"?

Think a gaggle of lawyers knew exactly what that language means?

Not if you employ cognitive estrangement.

Separate yourself from your senses, and it all makes sense.

I think that's what's in play here.

It came to me after receiving a copy of a Corbett-signed fundraising letter that a major, now former, Corbett donor sent me.

"Sometimes during the late hours of nights like tonight," the letter dated only Wednesday at 11:52 p.m. says, "I sit in my study and think about the big challenges we face in Pennsylvania."

See. Right there, that requires suspension of disbelief. You, as a donor, need to lose the notion that you don't believe the governor actually is sitting in his den writing you a midnight missive.

It also requires cognitive estrangement. You know he isn't. But in order to send "your most generous contribution of $5,000, $3,000 or $2,500," you need to separate yourself from your own cognitive powers.

Then you get to the part of the letter that says, "It's now very late, and I've got a full day of working for Pennsylvania families ahead of me. I must get some rest."

See where I'm headed?

The governor, his administration and campaign are, like sci-fi writers or magicians, counting on suspension of disbelief and cognitive estrangement to make a case.

For example:

We're headed in the right direction (suspend your disbelief by not looking at our bottom-of-the-barrel job-growth rate).

We've created a "remarkable" number of new jobs (use cognitive estrangement to ignore that every other large state created many more jobs than Pennsylvania).

The technique is portable. It can be used to talk about a failed legislative agenda, a lost NCAA lawsuit, a well-managed Sandusky investigation, recruiting first-rate aides or a top-notch talent for vetting.

All that's needed from voters is some suspension of disbelief and a little cognitive estrangement. Bet that would give the guv a needed boost in the polls.