Frat Boy meets Minister's Daughter

W tried his hand at loosening up the leaders of the free world (and Russia) at their recent meeting. The new German leader, Angela Merkel, is a strong ally of Bush. But when W tried to give her an uninvited back rub, her body language said “get your hands off me now, creep”. This is probably not the first time W has encountered such a response, but hey, it's also “worked” pretty often. Only this time, the cameras were on and there were no other “girls” around for him to shift his attentions.

Loosen up, Angie! Are we having fun yet?
If this is how clueless W is among friends, imagine his missteps among our enemies.

In football, the ridicule now being heaped on W would draw a “piling on” penalty. Your humble, bruised blogger takes solace in being near the bottom of the pile. Half the ridicule in this blog is aimed not at W, who is anyway oblivious, but at us and our favorite news media. Here's one more (can't help myself). Bush said, "See, the irony is what they need to do is get Syria to get Hezbollah to stop doing this shit, and it's over". For swearing, Bush was criticized but also applauded (for his “passion”). But what about his use of “irony”? He apparently does not know what irony means (incongruity between expression and meaning). Where's the irony? He sounds like a college sophomore who just learned the word in Composition or Criticism class and thinks it makes him sound smart.

Maybe instead of building a new Presidential library, W should spend some of his retirement in a couple of the fine libraries he never visited as a student at Andover, Yale and Harvard.

WMD = Worried, Mad, and Disgusted

For those incurable optimists still driving around with "W" stickers, may I suggest this replacement?

Worried was an appropriate response in 2000, so at least you'll be caught up to the millennium.

For those technically savvy who wish to express their anger and dismay, this may convey their feeling in instant messenger code (what the 'heck'):


Scale, print and apply. I welcome any suggestions for the "disgusted" among us.

Desk Warriors, Bunker Bullies

For the first time in decades, Israel's leader has relatively little experience in war. This inexperience might be one reason Mr Olmert has responded so aggressively to the kidnapping of 3 soldiers in Gaza and near Lebanon. In short, he is afraid of being a wimp. This is a legitimate concern, since confidence is crucial for a leader. But an effective leader has to distinguish resolution from reflex.

Sharon, a former General, withstood the “friendly fire” attacks as he planned and executed Israel's withdrawal from Gaza. Olmert does not have the standing to lead a partial withdrawal from the West Bank in the face of Palestinian hostility. In a futile attempt at appeasing his domestic critics, he ordered a wide attack in Gaza and Lebanon. Sadly, the response is an overreaction, disproportionate, and a miscalculation. The punishment of Palestinian and Lebanese civilians will only produce more misguided martyrs.

We Americans have also suffered from such misguided compensation. Bush Jr. was convinced by his (similarly) inexperienced buddies that the war in Iraq would be quick, easy, cheap, and practically bloodless. (These wonkish advisors named themselves the 'Vulcans'; choosing an ominous name is a particularly childish compensation.) Compare this with (former General) Eisenhower, who as President balanced competing interests of Allies in the middle east. He used American power to help Israel and stop European meddling but also demonstrated sympathy and support for the Arabs and Palestinians.

I am not suggesting that we elect only former Generals as leaders, though Clark or Powell (before he was co-opted) are both incalculably superior to the miserable failure currently posing as leader. We'd do much better if we just avoid male former cheer leaders, like G.W. Bush, Tom Delay, and Trent Lott. At the risk of oversimplification, just avoid Republicans until their Reagan-inspired infatuation with style over substance abates.

Catch 22, take 2

The US Army managed to discharge Private First Class Steven D. Green a month or so before he was indicted for murder and rape. The discharge was honorable, even though the reason was "severe personality disorder", which approximates to sociopath, a person with a "disregard for the consequences of their actions, and their lack of empathy with the suffering of others". Why wasn't this a dishonorable discharge? Wouldn't you think that the Army might warn people that something wasn't quite right with their former soldier? It looks disturbingly like the Army just wanted to move the problem along, ship him back home and out of the Army.

Catch 22 is the title of Heller's novel, which has become shorthand for the absurdity of any sanity tests in the Army. Briefly, anyone who could recognize their own craziness was sane enough to remain in the Army. With an all-volunteer force, the question is who would want to remain in the Army? Those who aren't on the front line, exposed to kill-or-be-killed conditions, might rationalize their re-enlistment. But how about those carrying guns through hostile neighborhoods? It's a situation custom made for "severe personality disorders" and to drive the borderline into full blown cases.

This issue threatens the public support for our soldiers more than anything else. Americans do not hold soldiers responsible for the dismal failures of politicians and diplomats. As in Vietnam, the reputation of the entire Army is at risk due to the actions of a few soldiers and the failure of their superiors to punish them and impose discipline. The Army reports that it is ahead of schedule in recruiting, in part because it has reduced its requirements. Fortunately for the Army recruiters, an estimated 3% of men have some sort of anti-social behavior.

The Education of George W. Bush

Even the mainstream press, perceptive but reluctant to bite hands, is now commenting on how Mr. Bush has changed. They won't settle on "matured", or "educated", or "tempered" because that would mean he was immature, ignorant, or intemperate. (The label "moderate" is insulting unless it's the opposition.) I'd say he's learned some painful lessons. His rhetoric has improved. He is less sweeping in his claims, less certain of his capability. Now, he says that solving the problems of North Korea and Iran will take time and international diplomacy, not simply them bowing to solely American pressure or force.

The painful lessons were taught mostly at the hands of the our two toughest foes: Iraqi insurgents and al-Qaeda terrorists. Osama bin Ladin remains "at large" and dangerous despite Bush's "dead or alive" sheriff talk of nearly 5 years ago. Maybe one day we'll get lucky with an airstrike and kill him instead of more innocents - Clinton's maligned cruise missile strike was as close as we've come. The Iraqi insurgency is a deeper and self-inflicted wound.

In the depths of the Vietnam war, around when LBJ decided against running for re-election, he developed a philosophical bent. In speeches, he posed rhetorical questions that revealed the uncertainties and complexities he was considering and trying to balance. He asked how a country could help another - and themselves - though the sacrifice be almost unbearable. These speeches are for an ally in a civil war what Lincoln's speeches are to a nation in a civil war - framing the moral and practical questions. We cannot expect any such clarity today. However, the parallels with Iraq, especially how the Iraqis themselves must take responsibility for their own country, are striking and ominous. The most depressing fact is that over half the American combat deaths occurred after Nixon replaced Johnson as president.

You can teach an old dog (Bush turned 60; ~10 dog-years) some new tricks but he'll still salivate to the bell. He reflexively claimed that our missile defense shield would've intercepted the North Korean missile, ignorant or ignoring the fact that these interceptors have rarely worked even under ideal conditions. This is $100 billion that could've been better spent, or saved. Maybe it could've helped educate the next generation, who will need it's wits to solve all the problems this "me" generation is leaving behind.