Farren

This is less of a topic for discussion and more of a newflash from the bottom of Africa.

Madiba (Nelson Mandela) turned 85 and had a party yesterday. The guest list included Bill and Hillary Clinton, Naomi Campbell, U2's Bono, Africa's first (only only) astonaut, Mark Shuttleworth and Oprah Winfrey and hubby (who's name I forget). Does this guy have cool friends or what?

Anyway the reason I posted this on PD is that Bill came down here a week (or two?) after Georgie. The contrast could not have been more stark.

I watched both the former and current presidents of the US on telly and, even had I never heard of either, on the basis of those appearances I would be forced to conclude that Clinton is a charmer and Bush an inarticulate fool.

I've said it elsewhere but watching Bush blunder his way through an un-media-worthy cludge of words convinced me that the US press protects this man from his own mouth at every turn by self-censorship.

If there are any Bush supporters left on this board I implore you to see reason. The man is an embarrasment to the US.

Nog

Sooo the man is not a great public speaker or good looking? your point? Dont judge a book by its cover.

Yea sure Clinton was a good speaker and charming, i disagree with the charming part. Hilter was also both of these, did that make him a good leader??

Bush has his good/bad points, and im no more embarrased of him being my president then clinton.

Zephyrus

What about the facts that Bush has made a laughingstock of the USA internationally, that he has engendered distrust and division between our allies and us, that he has either deliberately lied to the American people in order to wage an unjust war or was simply too stupid/intellectually lazy to bother reading footnotes with relevance to the lives and wellbeing of tens of millions, that he thinks Jesus is the world's greatest philosopher, and that he has no understanding of economic and public policy?

Clinton had a ton of faults, and he did very little in the White House except Lewinsky, but at least he never even came close to the level of Bush in creating embarassment among good citizens of the United States for their country and disgust towards us from everyone else.

Farren

Nog,

some of the greatest minds of the last century were inarticulate or ineloquent. But there is a lack of eloquence that conceals hidden depth and a lack of eloquence that betrays stupidity.

The distinction isn't difficult to make. In the latter case, the shallowness of speech is matched by a shallowness of meaning and content, in the former, a coherent and intelligent worldview emerges when the speaker has stumbled through enough public speaking.

While Bush may have articulated your anger and desire for vengeance in the wake of 9/11 (I'm addressing this specifically to you, Nog, because I've read your hysterically patriotic arguments elsewhere), he has yet to reveal a view of the world that is deeper than the shrinking deep end of America's swimming pools (Wild Palms, anyone?)

I'm sorry, but the man is a fool. You can rant and rave and call for a retrial, but the rest of the world has judged him and found him wanting. Right now, there is no other place on the planet where he would win an election, and several where he would be facing charges.

Ruy Lopez

Farren;

I saved your last post in my files. Very well said

jman0904

I'll second that!

slept2long

I'll agree with Ruy and jman0904. Nice post Farren.

DoubleDutchy

:notworthy

Aquila ka Hecate

What can I say old bean?

I've taken to avoiding what little TV I was watching, for fear of elevating my blood pressure over this nasty little man.

His arrogant approach is all the more galling when he betrays, the the gaping orifice in his face, that he is literally a fool.

Yeah, that was a nice post, Farren.