George Bush book-what do you think

[gwd-scouter]

Just curious. President Bush has been out on the show circuit touting his book. Oh yeah, he comes across as very affable, friendly, just did his best, kind of thing. Most of what I've heard from pundits is that he is rehabilitating his reputation.

 

But, just because he comes across as friendly and affable in the interviews, does that excuse the things he admits he did and approved? Waterboarding for instance?

 

 

[Eagle732]

"does that excuse the things he admits he did and approved? Waterboarding for instance? "

 

IMO no excuse needed.

[Scoutfish]

NOPE! No excuse at all.

 

But that's how it works, no?

 

A wink-wink here, a "But we are buddies" there and soon everybody forgets the bad and only remember that we are friens.

 

Afterall, if he was such a bad guy, why would we like himn so much?

 

It's a " But not me " world : It's wrong if they do it, but not if it's me!

 

Oh, by the way...was it a pop-up book?

[packsaddle]

Some of my favs. Wish they had made it into the book...

On the bright side, if he keeps doing the book tours we might get some more really good ones.

 

"My plan reduces the national debt, and fast. So fast, in fact, that economists worry that we're going to run out of debt to retire." radio address, Feb. 24, 2001

 

"The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa." State of the Union Address, Jan. 28, 2003, making a claim that administration officials knew at the time to be false

 

"The most important thing is for us to find Osama bin Laden. It is our number one priority and we will not rest until we find him." Washington, D.C., Sept. 13, 2001

AND THEN...

"I don't know where bin Laden is. I have no idea and really don't care. It's not that important. It's not our priority." Washington, D.C., March 13, 2002

 

"But all in all, it's been a fabulous year for Laura and me." summing up his first year in office, three months after the 9/11 attacks, Washington, D.C., Dec. 20, 2001 (pretty much does sum it up)

 

"Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we." Washington, D.C., Aug. 5, 2004

so true, so true

 

Just a few of the treasure trove of such quotes. I'll pick up the book next month for 50cents at a yard sale.

[Lisabob]

Those book interviews confirmed my belief that the world would have been better off if the Supreme Court, rather than giving "W" a country to run, had given him a major league baseball team. I bet he would have gone for it, too.

 

Affable and folksy he might be. Those are fine qualities in a neighbor (whose political views can be taken and discounted at will) or a baseball team owner.

[GernBlansten]

I was a bit surprised and disappointed when he admitted to ordering torture. I know desperate times require desperate measures. But some things are best left to speculation.

 

I hope Obama sees fit to pardon him, and soon, before this explodes. Our country just needs to move on from that lowpoint in our history and heal.

[packsaddle]

I agree Gern. As with Nixon, it is best for those we elect to power to know and understand with great confidence that they can't be brought to justice if they commit crimes. It helps to protect all of us and our way of life.

[83Eagle]

People will see what they want to see in this book. Fans and detractors of GWB interpret things through their particular prism of viewpoint.

[vol_scouter]

Former President Bush is typical of most former presidents who try in some way to justify or explain decisions made, though not always via a book. They usually are able to bring out their some of the various facets that affected decisions which makes them more human. People always tend to see former presidents in a better light with time. Former President Bush is no different.

 

For me the water boarding issue is that from what I have read, the Allies tried belligerents for war crimes of water boarding. I have not read the original transcripts. I suspect that if the only thing done by an individual in WWII was water boarding, they were hardly worth pursuing considering the atrocities at the hands of the belligerents. Still, how could the attorneys who reviewed that procedure have ignored that history? Perhaps, the reports that I have read in the MSM were biased and wrong as is often the case now. If former President Bush did as he said and asked his attorney advisors whether water boarding was legal and they said yes, how could anyone hold him responsible. Though water boarding would clearly be a very unpleasant experience, I am not sure if it is torture (not sure that it is not either - seems to be a borderline technique to me).

 

Bush should have avoided Iraq and expended more resources on Bin Laden, He should have said no to the TARP. All presidents make mistakes, He is no exception. I think that if the country survives the current problems (likely) that he will be judged much more positively in history.

[Woapalanne]

"The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa." State of the Union Address, Jan. 28, 2003, making a claim that administration officials knew at the time to be false "

 

I can't believe anyone is still touting that story. The subsequent British investigation into the intelligence showed it to be the best anyone had at the time. Period. The Administration did NOT "know it to be false". It wasn't and they didn't.

 

 

[packsaddle]

Yeah, I guess in that particular case, we were hoodwinked by the poodle. I'll try to make that distinction in the future.

[acco40]

Have not read it. Would like to read it but my cheapness will make me wait until I can get a copy from my local library.

 

George Bush has stated that he believes waterboarding was legal (US Law) and provided valuable information and has recently shown no regrets. One can argue the morality of that decision just like another - Truman okaying the use of the A-bomb on Japan - until the cows come home.

 

I did not care for Bush but his waterboarding position was the least of my worries about him.

[BDPT00]

 

 

** And to what are we referring here?

First there would need to be a crime. Then it would have to be committed. Then someone would need to be charged, and then convicted. Then we could revisit this pardon notion.

Anybody bothered to read the book yet?

BDPT00

[vol_scouter]

I am certainly not a fan of Truman but after reading history and being an invited guest at the Radiation Effects Research Foundation (RERF) which was the successor to the Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission (ABCC), Truman made the most moral decision at the time and it has been shown to even more correct as more information has come out. The total loss of life in the invasion of Japan would have been more on the order of 1 million rather than the ~200,000 killed in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Even elementary school age children had dug fox holes and were prepared to fight to the death. Operation Olympic assumed that there was no longer any Japanese air force but that was not true. They had a hundred or more planes in caves ready to attack the landing. Fire bombing of Tokyo and other cities had killed hundreds of thousands. The atomic bomb is a terrible weapon but in a moral sense, it is just more efficient than dropping hundreds of conventional bombs. It can be argued that having dropped the bombs prevented them being used again. The level of worldwide war deaths from war dropped significantly after WWII and has remained relatively constant since. Thus, those bombs may have prevented worse loss of life. Truman made the correct decision. Bush is questionable.

[JoeBob]

On one hand we have a couple of hundred lives spared by thwarting a terrorist attack at Heathrow Airport. The inteligence used to prevent that bombing was the direct result of a water-board interogation.

 

On the other hand we have the comfort of three, count 'em, THREE bad guys that were waterboarded.

 

If you would prefer killing an estimated two hundred innocents to waterboarding THREE fanatics; well, then I probably can't help you.