Once again, Bush speaks Badly
Well dear readers,
The March 20 Gail Collins column made me laugh. She describes the ineptitude of George Bush as he is speaking to Economic Club of New York. Once again, when speaking to a room full of informed professionals, he appears to be making up things as he goes along. Not that this is news to anyone who has heard his baseless drivel over the last 8 years. But I still cannot believe he is president. People have said on the news and to my face that despite his shortcomings and tragically wrong decisions, the country has not seen an attack since 9/11. I seriously doubt the man who can barely put a sentence together has had much to do with keeping America safe, if you can call it that. I feel less safe with the Republican knee-jerk foreign policy and dangerous fiscal plan. He has no business being president of the Dick Cheney fan club, much less the United States.
Whenever I hear him speak I find myself asking, why hasn’t he been impeached? Other presidents have been impeached for less offenses than lying to the public about nuclear weapons and spending trillions of dollars on a needless war. It really is a wonder that some of the most profitable companies globally are Exxon, Shell, BP and Conoco. Energy plan anyone?
Yet I feel a complacency on the part of the populous to actually do anything other than jump on the Obama bandwagon of hope and no action.
In any other setting, surely Bush would have fired by now. Aren’t we judged in our own job performance by our ability to understand the scope of our work, articulate problems, and contribute to solutions? Bush is judged on folksy charm and gets a free pass from his Republican colleagues and many Americans. The Bush approach is to “believe” everything he is saying, despite facts and evidence to the contary. The emporer has no clothes on. Or as husband likes to say, they emporer is on drugs.
Keep or take back?
Well dear readers,
I made quite the impulse buy the other day. This is what happens when Saks and Barneys are in the same building as the conference I attended. The marketing is brilliant. Husband refers to my shoes and purses as my 401K. My defense?
Classic pieces that never go out of style are worth the money. And they aren’t made in China, Malaysia, or Guatemala.
Prostitutes and Presidents
When will politicians, especially those who proclaim to care about women, ever learn? You will never get away with infidelity, especially when you are paying for it. You are under the microscope of the media and, as I learned from NPR this morning, the banking system. The monetary transactions, big or small, of a political person of interest is constantly monitored by the banking institution. So everything from Mr. Spitzer’s eating habits to extra-martial spending is under scrutiny. The kicker? As AG of New York he championed this system to monitor money laundering, prostitution rings, and Wall Street. So, he knew better. Which makes me think, in some way, he wanted to be caught. Or he enjoyed the thrill of not getting caught.
Most lawyers men in power are egomaniacs in constant search of things or persons to reaffirm their masculinity. Yes you are smart, yes you are influential, yes people know who you are and kowtow, and yes you can pay someone to sleep with you.
The thing is, no you are not a proponent of womens’ rights when you hire a prostitute. I am never surprised that Republicans have affairs because they do not care about women. But Democrats are supposed to know better, right? Wrong. Gender roles are deep, entrenched, and infused in practically everything. Male leaders will agree that women should have equal rights, pay, and opportunities. So why then does prostitution flourish? Why is that a legitimate way for women to ever consider earning a living. Why is it more reasonable for a woman to be a prostitute than the president?
And should a woman try to be president, how do we treat her candidacy? We focus on her looks, her femininity, and refer to her as a pimp for involving her daughter in her campaign. These sexist comments are considered fair play. I would wager that if these comments were made about Michelle Obama, or in terms of race, there would be outrage not arugement over whether it is sexist or racist.
