September 07, 2003
What's Patience Got To Do With It?
Just as the pre-news reports said, Bush II’s brief speech tonight really contained nothing new. The $87 billion price tag was new. But pundits were already in the ballpark.
The primary question tomorrow will be the speech’s impact on campaign 2004 - and where the $87 billion will come from. It’s pretty simple really since Bush has made clear he wants to make tax cuts permanent. And would some enterprising journalist do me two favors: find the captain who wrote that letter and more importantly verify who exactly is attacking our soldiers in Iraq. Simply stated, Bush isn’t all that credible when it comes to citing such facts in his speeches.
What continues to trouble me is the subtle - and sometimes not so subtle as in tonight’s speech - insistence that the war with Iraq is about terrorism. When did Iraq become the “central front” of this war that started after 9/11? If that’s the case, his military advisors aren’t doing a very good job.
Tonight’s speech was just another example of the rhetoric of fear that the Bush administration continues to pedal in its misguided attempt to silence anyone who questions it by labeling dissent as unpatriotic. It’s a rhetoric that I for one reject as soundly as I hope the American people reject Bush II next year. We’ve met the enemy at the gate - and it’s GWB.
Posted by 9thwave at September 7, 2003 09:43 PMI agree with you on the question of where the eighty-seven billion dollars will be coming from. I give Dean supporters hell about Dean’s funny math on “Meet the Press”, but this Bush math is ridiculous.
For those with a cyberpunk bent, I’m currently starting “Interface” by Stephen Bury (Neal Stephenson). The initial catalyst is that the current president decides that the national debt should be forgiven. This prompts a group of well-financed individuals to run a candidate of their own. Now, I don’t know about the tin-foil hat aspect of the story, but the rest of it thus far has been deja vu. Scary.
Find me the line in the speech in which he states dissent is unpatriotic.
Posted by: CJ at September 8, 2003 02:27 AMCJ-
“You’re either with us or against us.”
I realize this line is from a previous speech and targeted at foreign governments as opposed to citizens, but as a person against the war in Iraq I have definitely felt this attitude amongst my fellow Americans - the attitude that not supporting the war and not supporting the president is somehow not supporting America.
Posted by: Joe Stewart at September 8, 2003 09:47 AMI find it deeply disturbing that our President has lied to us time and again and no one in power seems to care. Where are the calls for investigations, for special prosecutors, for impeachment? Since the war started we have gone from going to war to stop production of WMD, to stopping production of illicit weapons programs, to now fighting the terrorist in his own backyard; the same terrorists we attracted to Iraq in the first place like rats to a newly docked ship. Where is the truth in this ever changing mosaic of lies?
And I find it deplorable that the Republicans leadership, almost to a man (and woman) fall in lockstep behind the Accidental President eager to reap the spoils of war for their blind trust funds. Have they lost all proportion of right and wrong?
He (Bush) has asked us to sacrifice, but I do not see his children, or the children of ANY Republican leader on the front lines of this war. Bush may just as well have said he expects the average American family to sacrifice their children so mine can continue to pursue higher education and drink illegally.
This man, and the puppeteers who control him need to go! Shame on us if we elect him and his neo-conservative rabble to yet another term at the helm of a country mired in a lies and deception, and fast becoming the laughing stock of the world community.
New poll shows 7 out 10 Americans believe there was a link between Iraq and terrorists who attacked US on 9-11, despite any evidence to support such a link. The dumbing of America continues and Bush’s educational program will only exacerbate the dumbing of the American public.
Posted by: David R Remer at September 8, 2003 11:53 AMThe propaganda lies of 2004 have started
Rumsfeld: Criticism of Bush Strengthens U.S. Foes
Posted by: Jake of 8bitjoystick.com at September 8, 2003 01:52 PM“You’re either with us or against us.”
Puh-leeze…
1) It wasn’t even in last night’s speech.
2) It has nothing to do with speaking out. In context, the message was clearly meant for foreign governments interested in supporting terrorists.
Just because you think it was meant for you doesn’t make it so. Liberals delight in putting words in the President’s mouth to try and bolster their own weak arguments.
Posted by: CJ at September 8, 2003 02:51 PMI stated your 2 points in my post.
Posted by: Joe Stewart at September 9, 2003 11:31 AM
