Bush wants to convene a panel to investigate causes of violence in schools. Is he disingenuous? Or just stupid?
(Remember kids -- I never pretended to be objective.)
Or maybe neither. The late Howard Gossage used to say -- when explaining what Marshall McLuhan meant by extra-environmental and why seemingly bright people never seem to see it coming:
"I don't know who discovered water, but it sure as hell wasn't a fish."
So.
The Resident of the United States, a man who will be remembered in the history books for one thing -- totally destroying the Republican Party -- wants to know how come schoolkids are getting more and more violent. Well, to start, he might look in a mirror at the man who says things like "He can run but he can't hide" or "Dead or alive."
Or walk down the hall and peek in on Karl Rove who so happily engineered a campaign of fear and terror, that anyone who disagrees with their point of view is a traitor, a supporter of terrorism, and an advocate for terrorists winning (whatever it is they would win).
And once you make up a deck of cards as if this so-called War on Terror was made up by Lewis Carroll, and put the names and faces of supposed Al Qaeda biggies on them, and cross them off one after another as they're killed, and oh, those video-game-playing kids who are 8-10-12 years old start to get the idea -- put me down and I'll kill you.
Although a deck of cards is kind of apropriate since this administration is even more Through the Looking Glass than most.
"OFF WITH THEIR HEADS."
They just get curiouser and curiouser.
Except we've got a black queen instead of a white or red one.
NOT JUST REPUBLICANS
As piss-poor a campaign as John Kerry ran in 2004, when he tried to show "tough" he kept saying "I want to find Osama ben Ladn and kill him." Even as a couple of people who despise everything the Bush family has stood for since both grandpas financed Hitler, my wife and I were appalled and offended by that statement.
So the video-game kids all get the idea -- if he or she gives you any crap, kill the principal (and get on TV, too).
And the success of Karl Rove teaches all the other politicans of every wing of every party -- kill all your principles and you can get elected.
Point to the other guys and tell the public if THEY get elected, the world will end.
NEWS FLASH -- the OTHER GUYS are the same guys as you, whether you're Republican, Democrat, Green, Libertarian, American Independent, Socialist Workers -- whatever.
The old country cliche is applicable here -- "When you point a finger at someone, there are three fingers pointing back at you." All you guys will do "whatever it takes" to get elected -- and the bizarre thing? You think "doing whatever it takes" is a virtue instead of a crime against morality.
Will Rogers said it: "There's a big difference between Republicans and Democrats. The Republicans skin you from the neck down. The Democrats skin you from the ankles up."
Back to the violence.
Fred Friendly, long time TV network pioneer, made an observation more than 30 years ago, and I quote from memory so the words may not be exact:
"The biggest industry in America is not oil or steel or automobiles. It's induced anxiety. The only logical conclusion of that is a national nervous breakdown."
Bad breath? Car too sissy-ish? Body odor? Too fat?
It's not ONE PERSON or ONE PARTY or ONE CAUSE -- TV, movies, video games, books, cars, whatever... it's everyone going along with it and trying to top each other with more and more violent heroes and TV shows and movies.
Check out Showtime's Desperate attempt to top HBO with DEXTER -- CSI blood spatter techies by day, Serial Killer (but only of "bad" guys) by night.
Ultimately, Walt Kelly's Pogo said it loud and clear:
"We have met the enemy and he is us."
****************
Or maybe neither. The late Howard Gossage used to say -- when explaining what Marshall McLuhan meant by extra-environmental and why seemingly bright people never seem to see it coming:
"I don't know who discovered water, but it sure as hell wasn't a fish."
So.
The Resident of the United States, a man who will be remembered in the history books for one thing -- totally destroying the Republican Party -- wants to know how come schoolkids are getting more and more violent. Well, to start, he might look in a mirror at the man who says things like "He can run but he can't hide" or "Dead or alive."
Or walk down the hall and peek in on Karl Rove who so happily engineered a campaign of fear and terror, that anyone who disagrees with their point of view is a traitor, a supporter of terrorism, and an advocate for terrorists winning (whatever it is they would win).
And once you make up a deck of cards as if this so-called War on Terror was made up by Lewis Carroll, and put the names and faces of supposed Al Qaeda biggies on them, and cross them off one after another as they're killed, and oh, those video-game-playing kids who are 8-10-12 years old start to get the idea -- put me down and I'll kill you.
Although a deck of cards is kind of apropriate since this administration is even more Through the Looking Glass than most.
"OFF WITH THEIR HEADS."
They just get curiouser and curiouser.
Except we've got a black queen instead of a white or red one.
NOT JUST REPUBLICANS
As piss-poor a campaign as John Kerry ran in 2004, when he tried to show "tough" he kept saying "I want to find Osama ben Ladn and kill him." Even as a couple of people who despise everything the Bush family has stood for since both grandpas financed Hitler, my wife and I were appalled and offended by that statement.
So the video-game kids all get the idea -- if he or she gives you any crap, kill the principal (and get on TV, too).
And the success of Karl Rove teaches all the other politicans of every wing of every party -- kill all your principles and you can get elected.
Point to the other guys and tell the public if THEY get elected, the world will end.
NEWS FLASH -- the OTHER GUYS are the same guys as you, whether you're Republican, Democrat, Green, Libertarian, American Independent, Socialist Workers -- whatever.
The old country cliche is applicable here -- "When you point a finger at someone, there are three fingers pointing back at you." All you guys will do "whatever it takes" to get elected -- and the bizarre thing? You think "doing whatever it takes" is a virtue instead of a crime against morality.
Will Rogers said it: "There's a big difference between Republicans and Democrats. The Republicans skin you from the neck down. The Democrats skin you from the ankles up."
Back to the violence.
Fred Friendly, long time TV network pioneer, made an observation more than 30 years ago, and I quote from memory so the words may not be exact:
"The biggest industry in America is not oil or steel or automobiles. It's induced anxiety. The only logical conclusion of that is a national nervous breakdown."
Bad breath? Car too sissy-ish? Body odor? Too fat?
It's not ONE PERSON or ONE PARTY or ONE CAUSE -- TV, movies, video games, books, cars, whatever... it's everyone going along with it and trying to top each other with more and more violent heroes and TV shows and movies.
Check out Showtime's Desperate attempt to top HBO with DEXTER -- CSI blood spatter techies by day, Serial Killer (but only of "bad" guys) by night.
Ultimately, Walt Kelly's Pogo said it loud and clear:
"We have met the enemy and he is us."
****************
posted by Saintperle at
11:10 AM
