Politics: A new beginning

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by Greedy,Greedy,Greedy
Face it - photo ops are part of what a President does. It is important symbolically that there be a photo of the President , bird in hand or not, and troops together. But this part of the job isn't exactly heavy lifting.

and photos ops are staged for a reason... to convey an emotion. here the emotion was, cool Bush went to Iraq and saw 600 soldiers. It might make some people feel more positive at home, and might make the troops feel a little closer to home. did he deserve some additional credit? not my beef here.
did he deserve to have politically motivated reporters question who ate some turkey? I think this was the point of the fight. I vote no.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally posted by sgtclub
Come now, do you really think the administration brought the turkey with them?

No. In the spirit of bipartisanship and comity, I think we can all agree on that one. Even fringey. But I would hope that Air Force One is well stocked with food and realistic-looking food-like props, as well as Kevlar and guns and gimme caps.

Sorry, but this was an AMERICAN story, and a great one at that (as you correctly recognize). The fact that a turkey slipped into a few frames does not alter that.

There are a number of great American stories:

• (a) Boy meets girl. Initially separated by class/racial/ethnic differences, they overcome these obstacles and fall in love. [For what happens next, go to the FB.]
  
  (b) Man tames wilderness.
  
  (c) Road trip!
  
  (d) Man chases whale. Things end poorly, unless you're an environmentalist.
  
  (e) Woman named executor, or, she supposes, executrix, of an estate. Hillarity ensues.

There are others, too. But President Dispenses Fake Turkey is not a great American story, let alone a great AMERICAN story.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally posted by Hank Chinaski
um.....Didn't Washington Post break this trukey-gate story?

Yes. One tip-off is that "washingtonpost" appears in the url posted by sgtclub.

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by Tyrone_Slothrop
Yes. One tip-off is that "washingtonpost" appears in the url posted by sgtclub.

then I don't get your "the media is ignoring it" rant. Your house organs are churning, aren't they? If you're wanting even more, call comrade editiors at the SF papers and get the story out man!

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally posted by bilmore
Were you speaking of opening a library in Akron, I would be agreeing with you. One seldom worries about Stingers and RPGs in Akron.

I have this picture in my mind of your brain, and how it stores information. In the top front left corner are the ideas that the reconstruction of Iraq is going well, and that media reports about the dangers there are overstated, partisan hype designed to embarrass the Administration. Over on the other side, behind and below your right ear, is that idea that the President braved perils like Stingers (more an Afghan thing, since we gave them to the Taliban's antecedents to fight the Soviets) and SA-7s and RPGs to fly into Baghdad to give a little solace and turkey to our men and women in uniform. The important thing is that these respective ideas be kept in their separate places, not to come into contact with each other.

Now, if I could find the right graphics, say from a 50's science film, this would be a really fun post.

[bilmore]

Originally posted by Tyrone_Slothrop
(a) Boy meets girl. Initially separated by class/racial/ethnic differences, they overcome these obstacles and fall in love. [For what happens next, go to the FB.]

(b) Man tames wilderness.

(c) Road trip!

(d) Man chases whale. Things end poorly, unless you're an environmentalist.

(e) Woman named executor, or, she supposes, executrix, of an estate. Hillarity ensues.

(a)Actually, an Italian story. And, they both die.

(b) Middle East. Specifically, Red Sea.

(c) Two words: Ghengis Khan

(d) Siberian story originally.

(e) Think Katherine the Great.

See, in truth, there are fewer True American Stories than you might think. We just steal from others.

[bilmore]

Originally posted by Hank Chinaski
Your house organs are churning, aren't they?

Okay, now take this to the Fashion Board. Way too personal for Politics.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally posted by Hank Chinaski
then I don't get your "the media is ignoring it" rant. Your house organs are churning, aren't they? If you're wanting even more, call comrade editiors at the SF papers and get the story out man!

I don't get my "media is ignoring it" rant, either. I don't even remember it! What did I say? I'm a veritable Charles Barkley!* I could be the next governor of Alabama! I thought I meant to agree with sgtclub that the story has just about had all the attention it's worth, and then some. If I posted otherwise, it's probably because of problems with the Alta Vista translator. I like to translate my posts into Portugeuse and back to keep bilmore on his toes.



* That was my fault. I should have read it before it came out. --Charles Barkley on being misquoted in his autobiography. linky

[bilmore]

Originally posted by Tyrone_Slothrop
I have this picture in my mind of your brain, and how it stores information.

In a string - nay, a book - of posts in which you consistently ignore reality in favor of some dim picture of how you'd like things to be, this was one of your least insightful posts ever.

And I say that in a friendly way. Please seek help.

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by Tyrone_Slothrop
I don't get my "media is ignoring it" rant, either. I don't even remember it! What did I say?

you said:

The story has no legs and little inherent interest, except as a barometer of the press's willingness to continue to be used to transmit the Bush campaign's, er, Administration's stories.

now that is kind of long so I'll cut it to the part where I thought you were saying the "media is ignoring."

that was this part:

the press's willingness to continue to be used to transmit the Bush campaign's, er, Administration's stories.

I guess I misread

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally posted by bilmore
See, in truth, there are fewer True American Stories than you might think. We just steal from others.

I was thinking of Homer and Pynchon for a few of those, but sure.

• The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.
  Is there any thing whereof it may be said, See, this is new? it hath been already of old time, which was before us.
  There is no remembrance of former things; neither shall there be any remembrance of things that are to come with those that shall come after.
  I the Preacher was king over Israel in Jerusalem.
  And I gave my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all things that are done under heaven: this sore travail hath God given to the sons of man to be exercised therewith.
  I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit.

Ecclesiastes 1:9-14

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally posted by bilmore
In a string - nay, a book - of posts in which you consistently ignore reality in favor of some dim picture of how you'd like things to be, this was one of your least insightful posts ever.

My friend, surely we are holding different parts of the same elephant. I am at the front end, looking the elephant in the eye, and holding the trunk. You think you have the trunk, and yet you're at the opposite end of the beast. I post links to the trunk all the time, and I invite you regularly to link to the part of the elephant you are groping, but you are content simply to tell us all how wonderful your end of the elephant is. Which is your birthright, because you are an American. But don't kid yourself that you have some special revealed wisdom -- you may find yourself standing at the wrong end of an elephant.



Likewise, I say this in a friendly way.

[The Larry Davis Experience]

In a perhaps futile attempt to divert the Board's attention from turkey-related bickering, does anybody have any thoughts about this Geneva Accord Isreali-Palestine peace agreement?

The earlier articles I had read described it as a "complement to" the GWB road map, but this article seems to characterize it more of a stand-alone thing (thus Powell's insistence that the road map is still on the table).

http://www.msnbc.com/news/999819.asp

While I was discussing this over a snifter of port in the Ivory Tower Club the other day I was saying that at least from the outside the process that gave birth to these Geneva Accords seemed to me to have the most promise of success, in that by taking the talks outside the realm of the elected leaders they somehow can short-circuit the limitations that politics seem to impose on every other effort to address the conflict.

In other words, since the delegates didn't have to worry about how the agreement would play with the true believers back at home, they could perhaps have more latitude to create a more equitable agreement. The points summarized in the article appear to be good building blocks from where I'm sitting.

I found the letter from the former Shin Bet heads interesting as well. Well, not the letter itself. Just the fact that it was sent.

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by The Larry Davis Experience
While I was discussing this over a snifter of port in the Ivory Tower Club the other day I was saying that at least from the outside the process that gave birth to these Geneva Accords seemed to me to have the most promise of success, in that by taking the talks outside the realm of the elected leaders they somehow can short-circuit the limitations that politics seem to impose on every other effort to address the conflict.

you need to read little green footballs for about a week

http://www.littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/

[Gattigap]

Originally posted by Hank Chinaski
The most interesting theory that I've heard so far - which is nothing more than a theory, it can't be proved - is that he was warned ahead of time by the Saudis. Now, who knows what the real situation is?

Could someone add $0.25 to Hank's meter, please? Or give it a good kick to the side? It's hanging up again.