Bush is Disturbing

The quotes attributed to Bush were taken from My Way.com’s coverage of Bush’s Presidential Press conference on 03/21/2006

Dubbya’s Disturbing Presidency

Because I don’t smoke, I take a ‘net break. For ten minutes (ten internet minutes = 30 actual minutes) I graze news sites. Normally I ignore headlines regarding Iraq and Bush because nothing changes. Iraq 101 works like this: 1) There were no WMD’s there. 2) Rumsfeld’s plan didn’t quite cut the mustard (big shock). 3) There has been less American Soldiers killed in this war than most previous ones, which buys Mr. Bush lots of tolerance from Americans. 4) Saddam really is evil so, good riddance. 5) Whoops, Saddam’s skill set as a dictator really aids him in prolonging his trial and therefore his life. 6) Bush’s two wars look like his college transcripts: two incomplete C-minuses. 7) Bush will never admit he’s wrong, probably because he’s always wrong. Nothing changes.

But this article mentions something has changed: Bush finally took a question from Helen Thomas. Mrs. Thomas is a seasoned gladiator of the Presidential Press Corps from the Days of Old. Her age, looks, and wit give the impression that she could deftly rap Mr. Bush’s knuckles. However, the headline was more smoldering net-jive. The article barely contained a squib of Mr. Bush’s volley with Helen Thomas, but since I was there I finished the article. Now I remember why I avoid these articles: Mr. Bush’s style of quasi-competent presidency is extremely disturbing, so much so that I think, “Why should I have to continue to work when this is our Commander In Chief?”

The most disturbing trait of Mr. Bush’s presidency is the desperate way he tries to get American People to have confidence in his decisions by trying to prove that HE has confidence in his own decisions. In regards to Iraq, Mr. Bush stated, “If I didn’t believe we could succeed, I wouldn’t be there. I wouldn’t put those kids there.” Mr. Bush’s equation works like this: If the troops are in Iraq, then you can be sure that I believe America will win. If I didn’t think we could win, then there would be no troops in Iraq. Because I believe we will win the Iraqi War, the American people should believe we will win the Iraqi War. This freshman logic only proves that Bush has convinced himself that we’ll win the war. Mr. Bush’s belief in the war’s success was seriously undermined in 2003, when he landed on an aircraft carrier in a jumpsuit under the famous banner “Mission Accomplished.” If Mr. Bush cannot recognize when a job is finished, then how can he be so sure that we will finish as winners?

In regards to Mr. Bush’s assertion that he believes we can still win the war, so what? Every American believes we can win the war. Americans know that given enough time, money, and lives, American power could steamroll Iraq into a Wal-Mart parking lot. That’s not the point. The point is: most American’s don’t feel the cost of the war is fair. The war in Iraq is overpriced for a couple of reasons: 1) It takes too long to deliver. 2) The product was poorly designed. 3) The product’s guarantee does not look like it’s backed up by the manufacturer. 4) Diverting resources to a second costlier war has compromised the quality of the Original War: Afghanistan. In short, American’s are not buying what Mr. Bush is selling because the price-point is too high.

Mr. Bush refuses to understand that American’s don’t care what he “believes” anymore because we now have evidence. Before, when the Iraq War was a theory, what Mr. Bush believed would happen was important because that’s all the info we had. Now we know “what would happen” because it’s happening. It’s happening in an ugly way. When Bush calls a Civil War “Sectarian Violence,” Americans see he’s no longer “in the loop” on reality. He has moved into the CYA phase of a bad decision: shoe horn the results into the wrong shoe and try to make it fit—no matter what. That’s the type of middle management that most Americans recognize and deplore. American’s loathe bosses who will not take responsibility for bad decisions. It is no wonder that Mr. Bush’s approval ratings are really low.

But when Mr. Bush defends Rumsfeld by saying, “I don’t believe he should resign. He’s doing a fine job. Every war plan looks good on paper until you meet the enemy,” the wind in my sails gets outsourced overseas and I drift in the very American Malaise. American Malaise is something Timothy Leary talked about when he said, “Turn on, Tune In, Drop Out.” But the drug of choice is American Idol where your voice matters. It is more fun to watch bad singers get rich than to watch bad decision-makers get rich. This is why I avoid the headlines.

Finally, I end with a Poem by President Bush:

Civil War is Sectarian Violence,
Public Disapproval is Certain Unease,
Complete Withdrawal From Iraq is a Timetable
No more questions.

By George W.


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