Baghdad Turkey Was for Show
In some ways it’s a ridiculous thing to even be talking about, but then again, the fact that such ridiculous things keep coming up is significant in and of itself. Anyway, from the Washington Post: The bird was perfect but not for dinner. It turns out that the most-widely-circulated image from Bush’s Baghdad airport photo op, in which he holds a big turkey on a platter, was staged, in the sense that he wasn’t actually serving anyone the turkey. It was a centerpiece meant to adorn the chow line, rather than being for eating; he just grabbed it for a few seconds while a pool photographer snapped the photo.
So, chalk up another one for the image-over-substance team: Bush in front of the extravagantly-illuminated Statue of Liberty. Bush framed just so against the faces on Mount Rushmore. Bush’s (augmented?) private parts hiked up and delineated by his flight-suit harness. And now Bush the selfless server of Thanksgiving cheer for our brave young men and women in harm’s way.
White House officials do not deny that they craft elaborate events to showcase Bush, but they maintain that these events are designed to accurately dramatize his policies and to convey qualities about him that are real.
Yeah, whatever. I find myself longing, though, for a leader who doesn’t have to be so carefully dramatized and showcased in order for his “real” qualities to come through. One whose actual statements and actions and policies could do that sort of thing for him.
December 4th, 2003 at 8:52 pm
At this point it should be difficult for anyone to believe that any picture of Bush hasn’t been carefully scripted for maximum 2004 election usage.
December 5th, 2003 at 8:09 am
I long for the days when his dad’s photo-ops consisted of him puking in the lap of the Japanese Prime Minister. But now you’ll probably tell me that was staged to show his …ummm… our …ummm… our willingness to rely on Japan in our darkest hours and most troubling times of need. Yep, you’re sure to burst that bubble now.
December 5th, 2003 at 8:30 am
You know, not to beat yet another dead horse, but this is sort of what made the whole confederate flag debacle make me like Dean even more. The guy says something really dumb in public, realizes (perhaps belatedly) that his statement, while well intentioned, is indefensible as it stands, and so he recants and appologizes.
He made a mistake, then he admitted his mistake.
Meanwhile, the Bush team is trying to distract the American public from their various deceptions by having Bush zip over to Iraq and PRETEND to serve turkey to soldiers on Thanksgiving.
To give due credit to our troops, it doesn’t look like they’re taking the bait on this one:
http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1070493010535&call_pageid=968332188854&col=968350060724
December 5th, 2003 at 5:09 pm
HOw many hours did Herr Bush spend in the air on Thanksgiving? He spent a total of TWO hours in Iraq. TWO. With over 100 thousand troops there, you would think the guy would take a full friggin’ tour. THAT would have won me over.
Instead? I was lying in a hospital bed coughing “Karl Rove” when I saw this newspiece over and over again on Thanksgiving. Manufactured bullshit.
Everything with Bush is manufactured – his press conferences (anyone remember the WHite HOuse briefing room? Where everyone would actually have a press conferences? Including the Prez? What happened to it?), his holidays, his public events…. If Jenna gets picked up for another crime, will they have a special event if Dad has to take the stand as a character witness? “Bush the Concerned father?” Just curious….
You got a point on the Dean comment with the Confed flag. That remark scared me but it wasn’t manufactured, even though it was bullshit. People (his supporters) knew what he was trying to convey and those who don’t support him still understood what he was trying to convey – though they laughed and pointed at the screw up… Well, at least it was genuine and not a manufactured moment, marketed to the voters. I have this sense that someone from the Nixon campaign (Dick Nixon was HUGE on being camera likable – though his profile didn’t allow him to accomplish that much) is busy working for the GOP to make sure Herr Bush has plenty of canned photo opportunities and nothing of genuine interest to his name (Besides playing to special interests) in 2004 to secure the election….
December 5th, 2003 at 11:25 pm
Well, seeing as how by the 2004 election I won’t be able to vote, my comment at that time are useless. However, until then, I will heap as much anti-bush fuel on the fire as I can.
Not because he does bullshit public appearances like this, but because he’s costing the lives of American citizens for NO REASON.
December 9th, 2003 at 11:15 am
I wasn’t sure if the Iraq trip was a good idea or not at the time, but have since come to the conclusion that it must have been a pretty good move on Bush’s part. If it hadn’t done him some good, so many people on the other side wouldn’t be pissing and moaning about it. Was the bird real? Who gives a shit?