Contorting "freedom"
President Bush will make a speech in the UAE promoting "democracy" and villanizing Iran. Check out the contortions necessary by Dana Perino to make the foreign policy fit into the "freedom agenda."
Did you get that? We're promoting democracy, but not elections.
As a reality check, compared to the Gulf States, Kuwait, UAE, and Saudi Arabia, Iran is very democratic with far freer elections and much more openness towards women.
Now, Iran is not good and right in all things, but it takes some pretty serious contortions to claim that Saudi Arabia and the UAE are the more free democracies.
"He will talk about how democracy and advancing freedom is the core of our country's foreign policy, and that he believes it is in our interest to have security through democracies," White House press secretary Dana Perino said.
Perino said Bush's speech will make the point that "in a free society, elections are important, but they're not the only thing that's important." She said the speech will note the contributions of universities and other institutions to a free society.
Did you get that? We're promoting democracy, but not elections.
As a reality check, compared to the Gulf States, Kuwait, UAE, and Saudi Arabia, Iran is very democratic with far freer elections and much more openness towards women.
Now, Iran is not good and right in all things, but it takes some pretty serious contortions to claim that Saudi Arabia and the UAE are the more free democracies.
posted by mikevotes at
6:39 AM
6 Comments:
The speech Bush eventually made was pretty startling - not because of the doubletalk about democracy, but because it reminded me of the way he talked about Iraq in 2002 and 2003.
As for the democracy doubletalk, it strikes me how well served Bush is by his own stupidity. He can say the most outrageously dumb things that fly in the face of reality, but his stupidity allows him to say these things with a straight face.
By
Anonymous, at 10:23 AM
Bush: the most unAmerican of American presidents.
If you look at Bush's disdain for common individuals and individual right, his belief in a ruling class and his obsession with unary power, I have no doubt that if GWB lived in the 1770s he'd be a staunch loyalist. Bush is no patriot and no lover of freedom... or democracy.
By
-epm, at 10:29 AM
Appearance is everything.
By
Anonymous, at 11:09 AM
Abi, So, maybe you think it's a Reaganlike strategy? Reagan had Alzheimers but Bush can claim true ignorance?
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EPM, The thing no one ever talks about is that the President when he is inaugurated doesn't swear to defend the country, he swears to defend the constitution, and within that framework, yeah.
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Anon, At least for the majority that don't know how to critically read, and they're the mass you need to go to war.
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mikevotes, at 11:21 AM
This comment has been removed by the author.
By
-epm, at 12:20 PM
That was my point. Bush has, in one manner or another, turned the vision of the Founders on its head. Of course he and his loyalists will argue that up means down, white means black and We the People means Me the President. If you get my meaning.
By
-epm, at 12:20 PM
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