It's a myth that the press loves a sex scandal. To most of us, those things are the clogged kitchen sink of the news business. We try to ignore it as long as we can until it overflows, because nobody wants to reach into the garbage disposal and fish around for the slippery chicken-bone details.

Besides, the political plumbers will eventually show up with Roto-Rooter rumors and monkey wrench ads.

Nearly all of us in the press "knew'' about Pat DeWine's clogged sink long before his Hamilton County Commission opponent, John Dowlin, made a big splash with an ad saying, "DeWine left his wife and children for the Convergys lobbyist whose company received the tax breaks DeWine supported.''

The whispers were strong enough to fly a cast-iron kite. So why didn't we do anything about it?

As far as I know, most reporters left it alone because there was no clear proof of a conflict. DeWine insists the woman only did public relations work for a company that represents Convergys, so he had no problem voting for a Convergys subsidy.

The rest of the story falls into the "strictly personal'' file. I can't speak for everyone in the press, but mucking around in private lives gives me the creeps - unless it's unavoidable.

I know, I know: Fanatic Clintonistas still insist he was impeached for moral misdemeanors that were "only about sex.'' But that's fiction from the Bill Clinton library. He obstructed justice and lied under oath. His own reckless stupidity forced even his friends to cover Wild Bill's Scandal Outlet.

And let's face it, there are two sets of rules. Most of the press had no problem ignoring a rumor about Democrat John Kerry's "intern scandal." That turned out to be bogus anyway. But the slimy accusation that President Bush was AWOL from the National Guard was just as bogus - and big media recycled that sack of dirt in breathless headlines for a month.

Some of DeWine's City Council opponents urged me to expose the story because the party that is married to family values is obligated to walk the talk. "Character counts,'' they said.

It's a good point. But, call me Wimpy, I couldn't bring myself to reach into that sink.

Now Dowlin makes the same point. He says DeWine has campaigned on family values - but is not living up to it.

DeWine said, "The whole thing is disgusting. You know going into politics that it's a rough business. But I didn't think they would go this far. It just shows they are willing to do or say anything to win.''

I asked DeWine if he wishes he had abstained from the vote that opened the doors on his private life. He said he checked it out and found no legal conflict of interest, so he felt duty bound to vote on the Convergys package.

But voting for a corporate bailout while having a relationship with a woman who has any connection to the company sets off bells and buzzers on my conflict detector. He should have abstained.

And Dowlin may need to be more careful with his facts before turning loose his attack-dog ads.

Politics ain't touch football. It's more like no-rules, no-pads "kill the guy with the ball.'' And sometimes, innocent families on the sidelines get hurt.

Tuesday night, a group of voters discussed the story at the Green Township branch library. One woman said, "I just wish I could vote for someone else besides those two guys.''

The sink is unclogged, but respect for both men is going down the drain.

E-mail pbronson@enquirer.com