Bob Herbert: A strange disconnect in Washington

[Robbien]

Bob Herbert, New York Times
December 20, 2004 HERBERT1220


The White House seems to have slipped the bonds of simple denial and escaped into the disturbing realm of utter delusion. On Tuesday, there was President Bush hanging the nation's highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, on George Tenet, the former CIA director who slept through the run-up to Sept. 11 and then did the president and the nation the great disservice of declaring that it was a "slam-dunk" that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction. It was a fatal misjudgment.

Another Medal of Freedom was given to Paul Bremer III, the chief civilian administrator of the American occupation, who made the heavily criticized decision to disband the defeated Iraqi army and presided over an ever-worsening security situation. Thousands upon thousands have died in this unnecessary and incompetently conducted war, yet here was the president handing out medals as if some kind of triumph had been achieved. If these guys could get the highest civilian award, what honor is left for someone who actually does a good job?

A third medal was given to Gen. Tommy Franks, who led the invasion of Iraq, which Bush, in his peculiar way, has characterized as a "catastrophic success." It's an interesting term. Some people have applied it to the president's run for re-election.

By anyone's standards, terrible things are happening in Iraq, and no amount of self-congratulation in Washington can take the edge off the horror being endured by U.S. troops or the unrelenting agony of the Iraqi people. The disconnect between the White House's fantasyland and the world of war in Iraq could hardly have been illustrated more starkly than by a pair of front-page articles in the New York Times on Dec. 10. The story at the top of the page carried the headline: "It's Inauguration Time Again, and Access Still Has Its Price -- $250,000 Buys Lunch With President and More."

The headline on the story beneath it said: "Armor Scarce for Heavy Trucks Transporting U.S. Cargo in Iraq."

more:
http://www.startribune.com/stories/1519/5143515.html

Herbert even mentions Kerik and many of his slick deals none of which included the word nanny. Hmmmmm

[The Backlash Cometh]

1. Isn't it obvious to everyone? Bush has lowered the standards for

everything. He's lowered the standards for integrity, for knowledge, for accountability. And that's why the right-wing like him. Because he's just like them.

[Skittles]

2. hanging medals on those incompetent assholes

and promoting other incompetents - like Condi Rice. It's Bush's way of revising history and it stinks to high heaven.

[The Backlash Cometh]

4. We are now in an era of mediocrity and the U.S. stands to lose its

world's superpower status because of one spoiled slacker.

[Vitruvius]

5. This is how it's done in big business -- and the Rethugs are the party of

big business. The big boss is never wrong, nor are any of his favored fast-track toadies; every one of their foul-ups is always declared a big success, with promotions & raises & bonuses all around.

Hence terms like "FUMU" -- pronounced foo-moo -- which stands for fuck up, move up.

Which is why one of the best ways to get fired in all-too-many Fortune 500 companies is to make a breakthru that's big enough to be featured in the annual report. You'll be out-the-door & blacklisted in the industry, and some fast-track white-bread Rethugnican junior management bum who flopped on his last project will have his picture in the annual report -- along with a glowing thumbnail about how he made your breakthru.

Incidentally, AT&T Bell Labs became particularly famous for this. And AT&T's stock is down to less than 3% of what it was; they had to do a 10-to-1 reverse stock split (turn in 10 shares & get one new share) to avoid becoming a penny stock. And they've been downsizing & laying off for almost 20 years. But management salaries have done real well; and management graft continues unabated; they ran the company into the ground but they've done well by themselves -- which, to any Rethugnican, is the only thing that matters.

And the Bu$h gang is doing to the entire United States what incompetent self-rewarding management did to AT&T and so many other companies. Ruin a once-great operation -- but plenty of rewards & graft for themselves.

[texpatriot2004]

3. Pharisees, the lot of 'em. How repulsive that they honor

thieves, sloths, liars, murderers and worse.

You are so right about them being beyond denial...they ARE, like you say, delusional. They make up their own reality as they go along and they are the only ones who live in it. Be ye not deceived!

Anyone got more peanuts for this pink elephant circus?

Someone else said it first, Nothing succeeds for this "president" and his administration like FAILURE, complete and utter FAILURE! Your post proves this so very well.