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10.28.2003
A Willful Ignorance: "Muslims are completely wrong to think that the U.S. is engaged in a war against Islam. But that misperception flourishes in part because the domestic political strategy of the Bush administration, no longer able to claim the Iraq war was a triumph, and with little but red ink to show for its economic plans — looks more and more like a crusade. 'Election Boils Down to a Culture War' was the title of Mr. Fineman's column. But the analysis was all about abortion and euthanasia, and now we hear that opposition to gay marriage will be a major campaign theme. This isn't a culture war, it's a religious war. " Political maneuvering makes Paul Krugman angry. Its easy to understand this anger. As a man of theories and science he has a difficult time understanding why we should ever put truth and reason on the backburner simply because it might mean bad consequences. But that is sometimes the heart and soul of politics. To get elected you pander to the perceptions of the voters. You also try to manipulate the perceptions that the voters hold about you, the elected official. You might think that I dislike Bush out of some partisan responsibility to attack Republicans at all costs. But that's not the case. I, like Krugman, dislike politics as a practice, making claims that are not true, denying responsibility for any bad effects of policies, and claiming victories where none exist. All in the service of fickle public perception. Worst of all, I dislike politicians that pursue bad policy simply for the sake of political gain. This means Democrats and Republicans alike. My dislike of Bush stems from his political persona. In my eyes he represents the epitome of political fakery. OK, so "epitome" might be a little hyperbolic, but it almost fits. Bush presented himself as an outsider, a man of convictions, and a new kind of politician that would put his personal values before political manuevering. In fact he even poked criticism at the Clinton administration for relying to heavily on polls and being "wishy washy". The reality drifts pretty far from that illusion when you take a closer look. Bush represents the ultimate insider, the son of a president who has worked on campaigns and in the Whitehouse. His path to glory was not fueled by a grassroots movement of people that propelled him through the lower ranks of public service into the Whitehouse. No, Bush's backers saw a horse with a pedigree and figured the name was worth a governship and a few bucks as well. Then, his presidential campaign was custom designed by the master of political gimmickery, Karl Rove. Once elected, we saw his administration puishing to enact policies that would favor his political backers and strengthen his political capital. The operatives hit the airwaves spinning the image and parsing the phrases. Its been reported that the Bush Whitehouse takes more polls than the Clinton Whitehouse ever did. Politics as usual. But isn't that to be expected? Yes, but its still makes me angry. | |
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