A reminder to us all
Posted: 11/29/2003, 1:32 am
November 28, 2003
When discussing the war in Iraq and all of its dirty avenues many Americans take offense to being painted as having been in favor of it or supporting it. The same goes for the invasion of Afghanistan for that matter. Many feel that Americans, as a whole, cannot be so easily lumped into one single category. And they’re right, of course, it is highly unfair.
Unfortunately, just as unfair is how unbelievably easy is it to sway public opinion in the United States and how the national short-term memory seems so easily erased by the most pedestrian of accomplishments.
BBC-President Bush has arrived back in the United States after a surprise trip to Baghdad, where he spent two hours with US troops celebrating Thanksgiving Day. The trip - 30 hours from start to finish - was kept secret until Mr Bush left Baghdad due to security concerns. Correspondents say the visit has caused ripples of patriotic fervour in the US. The news came just as Americans were eating their own Thanksgiving dinners.
Mr Bush told troops the US would not be swayed by ongoing attacks in Iraq. "We did not charge hundreds of miles into the heart of Iraq, pay a bitter cost of casualties, defeat a ruthless dictator and liberate 25 million people only to retreat before a band of thugs and assassins," he told 600 US soldiers. The BBC's David Bamford, in Washington, says that politically speaking, this was a spectacularly well-planned event, one year ahead of presidential elections. In America the visit is being hailed as a public-relations coup that was a central topic of conversation around the nation's Thanksgiving dinner tables.
The Washington Post described it as the third key image of the Bush presidency - alongside Mr Bush with a loudhailer atop the rubble at Ground Zero, and the president declaring the war on Iraq a "mission accomplished" on board the USS Abraham Lincoln in May. But it adds that "it is too soon to know whether the image of Bush in his Army jacket... will become a symbol of strong leadership or a symbol of unwarranted bravado".
The New York Times also refers to "mission accomplished", suggesting "Mr Bush may have managed to supplant what has become the single most problematic image of him in this war". Since 1 May, 70 more US soldiers have been killed in hostile action than during the war itself - and November has been the worst month for casualties so far.
This is the same man that did not attend any of the funerals of soldiers who fell in the Iraqi invasion despite the fact that only a river separates his residence and their final resting place.
As I pointed out, how is it so easy to influence people to forget about bad decision making (in regards to both foreign policy and the economy) by launching a well executed publicity stunt?
Where has American’s short-term memory gone?
This is the very same man that lost the popular vote, the vote of the people, by 500,000 votes. The same man that set a new American record for the largest annual deficit in the history of the USA. The same man that during his first year in office spent more time on vacation than any other President in US history. The same man that slashed more unemployment benefits for American workers than any other US President. The same man whose invasion plans led to just over 15 million people taking to the streets in protest, the most people worldwide to at one time and for one purpose do so.
At no time in recorded human history have so many people protested against any one person at the same time. Now that is a feat. No wonder people from other parts of the world have made the mistake of painting all Americans with the same Bush (I meant brush of course).
Let’s forget for a minute that the current membership of the cabinet are the wealthiest in the history of the country or that during his Presidency Mr. Bush has dissolved more international agreements than any other President. Let’s forget for a minute that Mr. Bush is the first President in history to see the United Nations remove the US from their Human Rights Commission and is the only President to withdraw the US from the world court. Let’s forget for a moment that Mr. Bush is the first President to disallow UN election inspectors, which he did during the 2002 elections.
Forget all of that and remember that Mr. Bush flew secretly to Iraq so that he could spend two hours with troops for a photo opportunity. The same Mr. Bush that is the only President in US history to go into hiding when the United States was attacked, using the now known lie that terrorists had the “codes” to Air Force One.
After September 11th the outpour of world sympathy was unprecedented. At no time have so many nations come together to offer assistance or their sympathies than after September 11th.
Think about that for a moment and then read this…
(are you thinking about it?)
In less than one year after that massive outpouring of sympathy the United States became the most resented and disliked nation in the world, making that year the largest failure in diplomatic relations in recorded world history.
How’s your turkey Sergeant?
Americans should know that the majority of the world, nearly 75% of us, consider the President of the United States, George W Bush, to be the single largest threat to world peace and the stability of nations. That’s right, even more than al-Qaeda, Saddam Hussein, and all their buddies combined.
More gravy on your potatoes?
It’s ironic that by appearing in a tent at an airport for two hours one man can make his countrymen forget the fact that during his time in office more of their freedoms and liberties have been removed than at any time. Or that he has prevented an investigation of his office concerning the attacks of September 11th.
Taking all of this into consideration you can see why many people around the world tend to lump Americans together into a single group. Because who in their right mind would stand for this man to be in office? Why, when your last President was nearly driven out of the Whitehouse on rails because he got a blowjob while at work, hasn’t the catastrophe that is George W Bush been impeached?
Next fall the people of the United States have a chance to gain back some of their dignity. Those Americans who dislike being lumped into the same category as their blindly patriotic countrymen by foreigners should remember to register to vote and then go out and pick a new leader. If not, the commentary of the world and the stereotyping of Americans might be more justified than they think. And that’s not to say that a Democrat is going to make everything all right. But as it stands now Mr. Bush has anchored the United States to rock bottom.
All the rest of us can do is hope that showing up to dish out some stuffing doesn’t make the American public forget as easily as they seem able to.
When discussing the war in Iraq and all of its dirty avenues many Americans take offense to being painted as having been in favor of it or supporting it. The same goes for the invasion of Afghanistan for that matter. Many feel that Americans, as a whole, cannot be so easily lumped into one single category. And they’re right, of course, it is highly unfair.
Unfortunately, just as unfair is how unbelievably easy is it to sway public opinion in the United States and how the national short-term memory seems so easily erased by the most pedestrian of accomplishments.
BBC-President Bush has arrived back in the United States after a surprise trip to Baghdad, where he spent two hours with US troops celebrating Thanksgiving Day. The trip - 30 hours from start to finish - was kept secret until Mr Bush left Baghdad due to security concerns. Correspondents say the visit has caused ripples of patriotic fervour in the US. The news came just as Americans were eating their own Thanksgiving dinners.
Mr Bush told troops the US would not be swayed by ongoing attacks in Iraq. "We did not charge hundreds of miles into the heart of Iraq, pay a bitter cost of casualties, defeat a ruthless dictator and liberate 25 million people only to retreat before a band of thugs and assassins," he told 600 US soldiers. The BBC's David Bamford, in Washington, says that politically speaking, this was a spectacularly well-planned event, one year ahead of presidential elections. In America the visit is being hailed as a public-relations coup that was a central topic of conversation around the nation's Thanksgiving dinner tables.
The Washington Post described it as the third key image of the Bush presidency - alongside Mr Bush with a loudhailer atop the rubble at Ground Zero, and the president declaring the war on Iraq a "mission accomplished" on board the USS Abraham Lincoln in May. But it adds that "it is too soon to know whether the image of Bush in his Army jacket... will become a symbol of strong leadership or a symbol of unwarranted bravado".
The New York Times also refers to "mission accomplished", suggesting "Mr Bush may have managed to supplant what has become the single most problematic image of him in this war". Since 1 May, 70 more US soldiers have been killed in hostile action than during the war itself - and November has been the worst month for casualties so far.
This is the same man that did not attend any of the funerals of soldiers who fell in the Iraqi invasion despite the fact that only a river separates his residence and their final resting place.
As I pointed out, how is it so easy to influence people to forget about bad decision making (in regards to both foreign policy and the economy) by launching a well executed publicity stunt?
Where has American’s short-term memory gone?
This is the very same man that lost the popular vote, the vote of the people, by 500,000 votes. The same man that set a new American record for the largest annual deficit in the history of the USA. The same man that during his first year in office spent more time on vacation than any other President in US history. The same man that slashed more unemployment benefits for American workers than any other US President. The same man whose invasion plans led to just over 15 million people taking to the streets in protest, the most people worldwide to at one time and for one purpose do so.
At no time in recorded human history have so many people protested against any one person at the same time. Now that is a feat. No wonder people from other parts of the world have made the mistake of painting all Americans with the same Bush (I meant brush of course).
Let’s forget for a minute that the current membership of the cabinet are the wealthiest in the history of the country or that during his Presidency Mr. Bush has dissolved more international agreements than any other President. Let’s forget for a minute that Mr. Bush is the first President in history to see the United Nations remove the US from their Human Rights Commission and is the only President to withdraw the US from the world court. Let’s forget for a moment that Mr. Bush is the first President to disallow UN election inspectors, which he did during the 2002 elections.
Forget all of that and remember that Mr. Bush flew secretly to Iraq so that he could spend two hours with troops for a photo opportunity. The same Mr. Bush that is the only President in US history to go into hiding when the United States was attacked, using the now known lie that terrorists had the “codes” to Air Force One.
After September 11th the outpour of world sympathy was unprecedented. At no time have so many nations come together to offer assistance or their sympathies than after September 11th.
Think about that for a moment and then read this…
(are you thinking about it?)
In less than one year after that massive outpouring of sympathy the United States became the most resented and disliked nation in the world, making that year the largest failure in diplomatic relations in recorded world history.
How’s your turkey Sergeant?
Americans should know that the majority of the world, nearly 75% of us, consider the President of the United States, George W Bush, to be the single largest threat to world peace and the stability of nations. That’s right, even more than al-Qaeda, Saddam Hussein, and all their buddies combined.
More gravy on your potatoes?
It’s ironic that by appearing in a tent at an airport for two hours one man can make his countrymen forget the fact that during his time in office more of their freedoms and liberties have been removed than at any time. Or that he has prevented an investigation of his office concerning the attacks of September 11th.
Taking all of this into consideration you can see why many people around the world tend to lump Americans together into a single group. Because who in their right mind would stand for this man to be in office? Why, when your last President was nearly driven out of the Whitehouse on rails because he got a blowjob while at work, hasn’t the catastrophe that is George W Bush been impeached?
Next fall the people of the United States have a chance to gain back some of their dignity. Those Americans who dislike being lumped into the same category as their blindly patriotic countrymen by foreigners should remember to register to vote and then go out and pick a new leader. If not, the commentary of the world and the stereotyping of Americans might be more justified than they think. And that’s not to say that a Democrat is going to make everything all right. But as it stands now Mr. Bush has anchored the United States to rock bottom.
All the rest of us can do is hope that showing up to dish out some stuffing doesn’t make the American public forget as easily as they seem able to.
Too bad he didn't realize that heat waves kill people sooner. He may have saved thousands of elderly people too.