George W. Bush at a press conference Aug. 8, 2006:
“You know, nobody likes to see innocent people die. Nobody wants to turn on their TV on a daily basis and see havoc wrought by terrorists.”
Barbara Bush on “Good Morning America” March 18, 2003:
“Why should we hear about body bags and deaths? Oh, I mean, it’s not relevant. So why should I waste my beautiful mind on something like that?”
It has been said that George W. Bush takes after his mother. I am not a psychologist and I won’t pretend to understand this strange lack of empathy that they share for others.
But read President Bush’s quote again: “You know, nobody likes to see innocent people die. Nobody wants to turn on their TV on a daily basis and see havoc wrought by terrorists.”
What he does not say is “Nobody wants innocent people to die.”
He does not say it because the loss of innocent life apparently is not important to him. What is important is that nobody sees it.
This is more than just semantics. Tens of thousands of Iraqis who never had anything to do with the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks, Saddam Hussein, terrorism, crime of any sort, have died in Bush’s illegal, unjust and unnecessary war.
It is the loss of innocent lives that is appalling. Americans should see the results of this tragedy. Then perhaps people would be less eager for war, less eager to seek military action against Iran. If people saw the results of war on their televisions — not the far off drifting smoke from distant explosions, but the horrific results — perhaps people would support diplomacy and negotiation at every opportunity and war would be seen only as a failure of effort and not a cause to support.
Despite the war not being seen in all its graphic horror, Americans have turned against the war. Of course President Bush (nor his mother) does not want us to see the casualties. Because if we did, we’d see how much of their blood covers George W. Bush’s hands. And the stain of innocent blood can never be washed clean.
To his crimes, we should all bear witness.
I am available for jury duty should Bush ever stand trial.
but we’d both be disqualified as too knowledgable. The only jurors allowed would be those fed on a steady diet of “American Idol” and news reports from Rita Cosby, MSNBC’s Designated Reporter In Charge Of White Women In Danger.
And of course Bush does not want to think about innocent people…because what if some of those folks executed in Texas under his watch were innocent? It’s easier to make fun of the Karla Faye Tuckers than it is to consider the ramifications of his actions…
What is really striking is that Ms. Bush is so in love with the concept that she has a beautiful mind that reality will never rear it’s ugly head and bite her in her behind.
The sound you hear is a billions of people puking thier guts out at the horror created by the Bubble Clan of Beautiful Minds.
Thanks for finding this one Carnacki.
To quote a character in Jasper Fforde’s The Eyre Affair, these folks aren’t guilty of crimes, they are “differently moraled”.
When I feel pity for george and wonder why, I think about his mother and then about my own. Imagination almost fails me.
I think this “bearing witness” is a huge deal right now. Anyone remember the line Beverly (Susan Sarandon) spoke about marriage in the movie “Shall We Dance?”
We need a witness to our lives. There’s a billion people on the planet… I mean, what does any one life really mean? But in a marriage, you’re promising to care about everything. The good things, the bad things, the terrible things, the mundane things… all of it, all of the time, every day. You’re saying ‘Your life will not go unnoticed because I will notice it. Your life will not go un-witnessed because I will be your witness”.
I remember it because my brother and sister-in-law just had “I will be your witness” engraved on their wedding rings a little over a year ago.
I see so many US citizens (including me at times) wanting to look away from the pain. Sometimes when I feel hopeless about changing things, I do know that no matter how hard it is, I CAN at least bear witness. And the pain of that is only a minescule fraction of the pain others are feeling in real life. I do think its important that we give each other at least that. And it is the only way we will ever be motivated to go beyond it and actually do something to lessen the pain.