bush's "credibility" gap widening; American Emotionalism

[LynnTheDem]

Great article! Excerpts:

President George W. Bush's inauguration speech Thursday left most people in the Middle East unimpressed and unmoved, and more concerned than ever about U.S. foreign policy directions. The prevalent reaction in this region was that he has merely raised the level of American double standards in the world to a new level of incredulity, given the massive gap between America's rhetorical commitment to democracy and freedom and the reality of its often whimsical foreign policy priorities. Five specific problems in Bush's speech stand out starkly in the eyes of observers in the Middle East.

Once again, he reflected the neoconservative tendency to allow peculiarly American emotionalism and triumphalism to prevail over the more sober dictates of global realism. Linked to this is the fact that most people in the Middle East—and probably the rest of the globe—reject the idea that the United States is either divinely mandated or formally certified by any global authority to promote freedom or any other value around the world. The world sees Americans' own sense of the universal power of their fine national ideals as both presumptuous bombast and unacceptably predatory aggression.

Instead of flamboyantly—almost childishly—summoning divine inspiration for an American global 'calling', as Bush did in his speech, the United States would do better to craft practical foreign policies that are consistent, undiscriminating and based on working with like-minded partners around the world.

Bush will hear a great deal of skepticism from around the Middle East—and other parts of the world—in the next few days. The gap between the rhetoric and the policy is simply too wide, and has been for many, many years.

http://www.tompaine.com/articles/bushs_widening_credibility_gap.php

[Kota]

1. Good article. Makes alot of sense.

[NVMojo]

2. a very REAL article, for sure ...

[CBHagman]

3. This paragraph is very telling.

"The fifth concern about Bush's second inaugural speech reflects a fear that Washington will now pursue more regime changes in lands beyond Afghanistan and Iraq—both of which are deeply troubled and unstable since the American-led wars in those places. Iran, Syria and others will be concerned that Washington will use its diplomatic, economic and military assets to pressure them and perhaps change their regimes and governance systems. Pre-emptive warfare has become official policy for Washington in the past three years, and Bush's speech Thursday frightens many in the world that we will see much more of this strategy in the years to come."

Bush never approached other lands with anything resembling respect for the safety and dignity of their people. The rush to war, with inadequate planning, staffing and execution, has resulted in horror for millions of people.

But the administration and its lackeys, such as the Southern Baptist Convention leadership (yes, really), refuse to address that incompetence, choosing instead to remind us all that "we're there already" and to claim that there are all these good news stories in Iraq that the media isn't paying attention to. That's like responding to the WTC attack by saying there were 47 whole states where people didn't get killed by the 19 hijackers.

[Crankie Avalon]

4. The world knows Bush is full of it...

...but, unfortunately, too large a segment of the American people don't. And that's who Bush was really talking to in his coronation speech--the dupes and suckers here in our own country.

The rest of the world sees firsthand what these policies are really all about, but they don't decide whether Bush & Co gets to keep running America. The American people do that, and we are kept in a bubble where we really have to go out of our way to even hear about what's actually going on in the larger world.

Bush only needs to keep enough of us here in America fooled.

[BrklynLiberal]

5. The rest of the world knew all along he was full of crap. They did not

need this speech to convince them. Of course Bush was preaching to the choir.
I still think that the "choir" is a very small percentage of the Ameican public.
A little more than half of the eligible voters actually voted, and maybe HALF OF THEM voted for Bush (depending on whether you believe the votes were counted accurately). That still leaves about 75% of the eligible voters in this country who did NOT vote for Bush.
The people who support Bush are a vey small, albeit vocal minority. The media gives them a much louder voice than they merit. That is why it is up to us to make sure our voice gets heard. It represents the vast majority of the people in this country. And as time goes on, and Bush's policies are revealed for what they are, that majority will be growing.