In latest New Yorker article about "Dog Whisperer" talks about Bush

[beingthere]

- I do not have the issue, but a friend told me that the author, after discussing the dog expert, segues into talking about Presidents and disparages Bush. If anyone saw this, could you please give us the quote (article's not online). Thanks

[BrklynLiberal]

1. I believe it was a comment about Bush's body language.

I will check the article again.

EDIT: Here it is
It is during a discussion of Cesar Milan's body language, and how he uses it to communicate with the dogs and the people he works with. Milan's body language is described as having beautiful "phrasing".

"Movement analysts tend to like watching, say, Bill Clinton or Ronald Reagan; they had great phrasing. George W. Bush does not. During this year's State of the Union address, Bush spent the entire speech swaying metronomiclly, straight down through his lower torso, a movement underscored, unfortunately, by the presence of a large vertical banner behind him. "Each shift ended with this focus that channels toward a particular place in the audience," Bradley said. She mimed, perfectly, the Bush gaze - the squinty, fixated look he reserves for moments of great solemnity - and gently swayed back and forth. "It's a little primitive, a little regressed." The combination of the look, the sway, and the gaze was, to her mind, distinctly adolescent. When people say of Bush that he seems eternally boyish, this is in part what they're referring to. He moves like a boy, which is fine, except that, unlike such movement masters as Reagan and Clinton, he can't stop moving like a boy when the occasion demands a more grownup response.

BTW; This issue of The New Yorker was filled with excellent articles.

[madame defarge]

3. Karen Bradley knows...

Her credentials are long & strong. Not only that, she's a DU member! I sent her this thread, so maybe she'll come comment about Clueless Georgie's body language.

[BrklynLiberal]

4. Wow. That is so cool.

[madame defarge]

6. I emailed her & told her you guys were talking about her...

Check back every once in awhile to see if she drops by...

[idgiehkt]

10. "a little primitive, a little regressed"

lol, that's the understatement of the year.

[donco6]

2. I despise Bush's speaking style.

The "tuck the head slightly while roving the audience with your beady eyes" thing just makes me want to hurl.

[applegrove]

5. Someone said body language is 70% of communication. And I believe

it. What works for sales works it seems for Presidents.. at least in the USA.

Very sad.. when we cannot be more discerning. What people do - what their policies are - who they are - is more important. But seeing as how that is all packaged in presidential races.. I don't see how you can undo that. Unless you go to a Parliamentary system where day in day out.. the leader has to talk to all elected members.

[karendc]

12. Body language

is often garbled! The example of Bush is interesting: he winks and has that smile--the tight-lipped, slightly fluctuating smile that is accompanied by his tense shoulders. (Is this cause-and-effect? Or Effect-and-cause? Or merely coincidental?). But his eyes will twinkle at the same time. His eyebrows will narrow and rise, as if he is worried. What is he saying?

Well, if you like him, you may respond to the twinkling eyes and the wink. You may feel included in his inner circle, and therefore, you are "special". You may think everyone else who is repulsed by him is just jealous.

Or you may notice the hunched shoulders and the furrowed brow and feel sorry for him.

Or you may see the smile as inauthentic.

Movement analysts look at all of the patterns and decide which ones predominate, which are subsumed in challenging social situations, which ones prevail despite contextual changes. What I saw in Cesar looked authentic (true to his baseline patterns, AND adaptable; an unusual combination--one I see most often in my colleagues in dance-movement therapy-- and masterful.

I have watched Pres. Bush for a long time and so I tend to comment on what's new, what's left over from before, how comfortable he seems to be, who he addresses and who he ignores. My comments to Malcolm Gladwell had to do with his phrasing--how he organizes all of that stuff I talk about up there at the top of this comment. Bush's phrasing is mixed and does not always match what he is trying to say.

The American people deserve to understand what movement patterns are within a candidate's repertoire, if only so they can judge for themselves if they see behavioral patterns that will bother them if that person represents them.

I voted for Bill Clinton even though I saw things in his movement that concerned me. I also saw his love of people and social situations, his adaptability, and his caring; I was banking on his love of all that to keep him away from some of the riskier behaviors we all saw. Oh well. The economy was good...

[BrklynLiberal]

16. Loved what you said in the New Yorker article. Thanks for the additional

comments. :thumbsup:

[Suich]

7. How funny!

:rofl:

I just saw Cesar Milan on TV today...I love watching him work.

[karendc]

8. Movement Language

Yes, that's me in the Gladwell article. I have done a number of analyses of Bush's movement--also have commented on Dean, Kerry, Lieberman, Edwards...

What fascinates me about GWB is how much people project ONTO him--those who support him see a very different man than those who do not.

For the New Yorker article, I did not say whether or not I was supporter of his; I merely described the movement. The same goes when I describe the others. I think it lends support to whatever people already believe about those people; whenever I say something that runs against a belief that someone holds about a leader, (like when I say that Howard Dean was much more comfortable close up to people than he was in a large filled room or when I say GWB's winking connects him directly to individuals) I am easy to dismiss!

As for the dog whisperer, I am NOT a dog person, but I loved watching Cesar interact with the dogs and the owners. He is a masterful observer and analyst.

[magellan]

13. Hi Karen

I think you nailed Bush**, and Cesar! After watching one of his shows (Cesar's, not Bush**'s) I always find I can lift some of his body language and use it with my dogs. Works like a charm every time. And I agree, he is absolutely riveting to watch.

I just read the article in the New Yorker. Kudos to you for the mention and the insight!

[proud patriot]

14. My mom just recommended the Dog Whisperer to me

we don't get the channel but will watch the tapes my mom
brings over .

[karendc]

15. I agree

We can all learn a lot from Cesar. When you get the tapes, watch to see when he provides a bridge to the dog or provides a boundary around the dog or gives the dog the center of the space and waits for the dog to work through whatever is going on...

Notice how carefully he does the same with the owners! He is often different with the owners than with the dog, because he is getting different information about where they are at. But he is watching them the same way he watches the dogs.

When Malcolm and I first met to look at the tapes, he thought there was one way to move in order to be effective and that Cesar had cracked the code. I did not see that Cesar had decided one way was best and what I saw him doing reminded me of the video I had seen the night before of my friend and colleague Suzi Tortora working with an autistic boy. I thought she would be able to show him how movement analysis works in practice when a conscious therapist uses it.

I wish all our leaders and candidates could learn to be so in touch with themselves and with their audiences. Then we would really know what was going on and how they felt about it!

[BrklynLiberal]

17. I watch Cesar Milan every chance I get. I have always had dogs, and I

have learned so much from him and his attitude toward dogs and their owners.
He is fascinating to watch. It is almost magical.
It is always wonderful to see how amazed the owners are to see how Cesar deals with their dogs. I love watching how he deals with THE OWNERS. He uses psychology on them without them even knowing most of the time.

Did you by any chance see the "South Park" episode that did a takeoff on him? They had Cesar Milan come in to deal with Kyle. It was perfect. They had his stance and attitude down to a tee. He dealt with Kyle exactly as he deals with dogs.

[paparush]

9. Like when all the dogs try to pee on Bush..they just sense his Evilness...

[meow2u3]

11. Commander Fire Hydrant?

:evilgrin:

[Buns_of_Fire]

18. Odd, boosh* elicits that same response in a lot of PEOPLE, too... (n/t)

[TahitiNut]

19. Here're some old (and good) discussion on DU re: Smirk's body language

http://www.democraticunderground.com/cgi-bin/duforum/duboard.cgi?az=show_thread&om=2720&forum=DCForumID38&archive=
http://www.democraticunderground.com/cgi-bin/duforum/duboard.cgi?az=show_thread&om=17365&forum=DCForumID35&archive=

[BrklynLiberal]

20. Thanks.

Great threads..included a post by Kephra.

Love this line by you....
Faith and spiritualism are like food. It's tragic that some use it not for nourishment, but to have a food fight.

[TahitiNut]

21. (grin) Thanks... it made me happy to have that brain fart.

Sometimes I start a thought like that and actually don't know what the end is until I type it. That was one of those times. :silly: :dunce:

[catzies]

22. Wish he commented on *'s relationship with Barney...who hates him

Every time * picks up Barney to use him as a prop Barney does his goshdarndest to get away from him.

It is a very good issue of the New Yorker & the Cesar Millan article was insightful & worth another read (read it last night).