Wil Wheaton is furious - and understandably so.
Earlier today Reuters published a story about how George Bush is a "fan" of the "Iraqi Information Minister". In his interview with Tom Brokaw, Bush said: "He's my man, he was great," and "I did watch some of his clips. I get a lot of things secondhand, but in the case of the statue or Sahaf, somebody would say, he's getting ready to speak and I'd pop out of a meeting or turn and watch the TV."
When I first read the story, it struck me as odd, but not something to be upset about - but after reading Wil Wheaton's entry on the subject, I have to agree - this is simply unacceptable behaviour on the part of our President.
What?He's my man?
HE'S MY MAN?!
HE IS THE ENEMY, MR. BUSH!
You know who Bush's MAN should have been? Every American soldier who was in Iraq fighting his immoral, illegal, and totally unnecessary war. Every child who is without a father or mother, every husband or wife, son or daughter who isn't ever coming home . . . they are "your man," Mr. Bush.
Wheaton also comment on Bush's comment that he'd "pop out of a meeting" when told that the Iraqi Information Minister was going to be on TV.
I'm glad the President of the United States, during a war, is jumping out of meetings to watch his "man" on TV. I'm glad Mr. Bush didn't let a silly thing like running the country interfere with his watching his man on TV.
Re-reading Bush's statement, I'm reminded of when I was in college and would find a way to arrange my class schedule so I could watch my soap operas or would occasionally leave a class half-way through so I could go on an afternoon shopping trip with my friends. Its the kind of thing a kid, newly freed from the restraints of his or her parents does - not something an adult - even if he is the leader of the free world - should be doing.
Article comments
1 - Eric Olsen
K, great post, although a "manchild" may be exactly what we need. Just for fun, look into the concept of "neoteny": "childlike" isn't the same as "childish"
2 - Tom Johnson
You're right - some of us, hopefully a lot of us - see this as nothing to get upset about. There's nothing "petty, indulgent and juvinile (sic)" about it. The DisInfo Minister was an important example of what Iraq was about, and a hilarious break from the seriousness of the war.
And once again, I see we're giving more credence to a "celebrity's" view than is warranted. Why not link to some other random blogger who thought something similar? You obviously picked Wheaton because, somehow, this cements your point. If Wheaton says it, it must be right. Right?
My God, this is so dumb. Bush successfully carried out the war on Iraq, and all you anti-Bush people can do is nitpick. It really does make you all look very small, paranoid, and childish. What will you do when Bush gets elected again? Oh, that's right, more childish nitpicking.
3 - kriselda jarnsaxa
Maybe he was a "break" from the serousness of the war, but for the President to be leaving meetings or putting a meeting on hold so he could watch the guy is pretty pathetic, really. I'd like to think that the business of the country is a bit more important to the President than whether or not he gets to catch an idiot on TV.
As for my linking to Wheaton, if you read the first part of my post again, you might notice this statement: "but after reading Wil Wheaton's entry on the subject, I have to agree". I linked to Wheaton, not because he's at all famous, but because it was his comment that led directly to my looking at the story from a different perspective. If it had been Joe Schmoe who was furious and who's comment had prompted my own reaction, I'd've written my entry the exact same way, but with Joe Schmoe's name and link in it instead of Wheaton's.
4 - Eric Olsen
K, I have no problem with the Wheaton link and I think bringing the idea up was important, just saying "immaturity" in some forms isn't necessarily bad.
5 - kriselda jarnsaxa
Sorry, Eric - my comments were in response to Tom Johnson, not you.
And yes, there are times when a bit of immaturity can be helpful, I'm just not sure that it's necessarily a good quality in a President - or at least not to the extent in which it seems to exist in this particular President.
It's one of those "time and place for everything" things, you know? I wouldn't have a problem with him wanting to watch this guy and have people telling him when he was going to be on when he was, say, just working in his office, or between meetings, or other times like that. In this case, however, he specifically said that he'd "pop" out of *meetings* or "turn" to watch the TV - and that's just not something I think is necessarily appropriate.
6 - Tom Johnson
I understood fully what you said. I think you're overreacting and looking for things to jump on Bush for. The people in his meetings probably "popped out" with him to watch, too, and had a good laugh with him about it. Really - this isn't a big deal. It's not a small deal - it's not a "deal" at all. It's nothing.
7 - Eric Olsen
I've been thinking more about this - another positive aspect of Bush's reaction is that it shows he hasn't dehumanized the Iraqis, the enemy in time of war, and that he has the capacity to see humor, and apparently even feel soem affection for someone emblematic of the other side. This is about as far away as WW2 propaganda against the "yellow peril" and the "evil huns" as it gets.
8 - Phillip Winn
Kriselda - Perhaps your initial instincts should be trusted rather more than how easily you're incited to anger by reading a weblog post.
I'd worry more about real actions than off-the-cuff anecdotes without an audio record to provide context and nuance. The entire outrage seems to be over a three-word sentence "Hes' my man," which is exactly the sort of thing that carries a cultural connotation well beyond its literal meaning.
And frankly, I was horribly fascinated with the guy as well. He was fascinating to watch as I tried to determine why on earth he was saying what he was saying. As far as levity in the midst of war goes, he was indeed my man as well. 8^)