The UN Speech: Why It Was Bad

[maha]

The Morning After: Are We Waking Up Yet?

As speeches go, Bush's effort at the UN yesterday was remarkably bad. And this was not because Bush's delivery failed, although he had all the enthusiasm of someone about to get root canal.

The fact is, the speech itself was a mess. There was nothing fresh or compelling in it. As Fred Kaplan wrote in Slate, "The speech seemed cobbled from the catchphrases of last year’s playbook." It was the same old rhetoric and the same old half-baked ideology and the same old lies, and it was clear by the UN's "polite" reception that he wasn't foolin' anybody.

You'd think, given the importance of the speech, the writers would have made an effort to swing for a home run instead of taking the walk. And so the question of the day is, what's wrong with these people?

To find out what's wrong with those people, read more.

[LiberalVoice]

1. TheProblem...

...is he had ABSOLUTLY no point to his entie stupid ass speech. One second he's talking about other countries and there responsibilities to support the war on terror and the next second he's talking about stopping the world sex trade markets. It seems to me he gets dumber and dumber everytime he makes a speach. There is a god damn war going on thats destroying the american economy and he doesn't plead with the U.N. for support? Apologize for being wrong you schmuck...If he gave a rats ass about Americans, Iraqis, or human life in general he would shut his damn mouth and say he was wrong.

[maha]

4. He's caught in his own web

The point (which I finally get around to in the article) is that Mr. Flight Suit got himself boxed in. In the September 7 speech in which he asked for the $87 billion, he partly covered his ass by promising to get help from the UN so that other nations would be paying to clean up the mess. But in order to get help from the UN he's got to relinquish some power as well as admit that things are not going as well as he's been pretending. However, if he does this, he risks losing his Hard Right/neocon base.

So what he had to do yesterday was go to the UN and pretend to ask for help without really asking for help, and hope Colin Powell can work something out later. For this reason, the speech was really, really stupid.

[edzontar]

2. Planet of the Apes comes to the U.N.

He looked even more like a monkey than usual in that speech--a little cap and a cup for coins would have completed the scene....

"Please you ingrates give me money and troops because I was right and you are wrong and the Taliban and Saddam are no more and and sex with minors is bad, etc. etc...
OOO-OOO-AAA-AAA..."

He's on a real roll of bad speeches--hope it continues into the fall.....

[Cha]

6. Ouuuuch! That hurts cause it's so True!

bush is definetly "on a roll" ...that we like!

[Cha]

3. It's like What were they thinking? It's not like bush writes a damn

word...what were all the rah rah nazi speech writers doing that day?


I like what you say, maha..."The Bushies built this box; let them figure out how to break out of it."

:kick:

[maha]

7. I don't think he can get out of it.

Right now the Bushies are hoping they can keep shuckin' and jivin' and that nothing else really bad happens before November 2004.

[Cha]

9. That image is so accurate! "Shuckin' and jivin'"..

But the economy is just going to get worse and People are starting to pay attention with their wallets again!

[maha]

11. I think this is an example of

... being "hoist by his own petard."

He's made himself a big proglem in Iraq, and the only (partial) solution to that problem is something he will not be able to do, namely allow the UN or NATO to take over.

[muriel_volestrangler]

12. Iraq is in fact a Monkey Trap for Bush

He's put his hand in to grab the tempting goody, but is now trapped there. To get out, he has to let go of his prize, but the UN speech showed how unwilling he is to do that.

See http://nsinte1.moe.edu.sg/project/wt/readroom.nsf/0/fdb87a6c467a73ad48256708000dd60f?OpenDocument for a description of a monkey trap.

[maha]

13. You're right.

The monkey trap is an excellent analogy. I'll have to use that sometime. :think:

[Cha]

5. YOu have a Great Blog!

:kick:

[maha]

8. Thank you! Tell your friends!

:toast:

[Cha]

10. I remember seeing your Blog in the past, vaguely...but so much happens

around here that important things get "lost" sometimes!

I'm bookin' this right now! :toast:

[7th_Sephiroth]

14. I only hope

That the next president can repair the damage done by the chimp and imprison him for his war crimes. Heart Attack Dickie, too.

[skypilot]

15. The next president

That's what I keep thinking. Especially, if it starts to look as though a Democrat might win I can see these assholes trying to leave him with the biggest possible mess to clean up.

[maha]

16. History of the 20th century.

Republicans get in power and make messes; Democrats take over and clean up messes; citizens forget how badly Republicans screwed up last time and put them back in power; Republicans make messes; Democrats take over ...

and on and on.