So we now have "former president Clinton". Man, that's just sad. Bush talks about bringing his "small town" values to Washington. The thing is, he says that like it's a good thing. When I think small town, I think closed-mindedness, prejudice, intense conservatism (in the non-political sense of the word), lack of interest in the arts, unwillingness to compromise, hurtful gossip, etc etc.
Looking at how the country voted-- more urban areas for Gore, more rural for Bush-- it's pretty clear Bush might not get us city folk, in more ways than one. I love his refusal to bring up any hint that he didn't win the popular vote in his speech Saturday. Salon.com has an article on W's speech. It pointed out the 14 references to God in his speech, as well as the impressive return of "Jesus". This bothers me a lot. "Jesus" of course excludes millions of Jews and other non-Christians. And it seems like no politician can resist bringing up God in general. It's such pandering. The assumption that as a nation we can't share morality without sharing faith is ridiculous and ultimately harmful.
And then there's the whole cowboy boots and women in furs thing. Gah. I
don't want our national discourse to look some rerun of Dallas.
Quote of the Moment
"Now the opera gets a subsidy from the National Endowment for the Arts, but, by and large, Willie Nelson and Garth Brooks don't. Those of us who drive our pickups to those concerts don't get a subsidy, but the people who drive their Mercedes to the opera get a subsidy."(More small town wisdom, I guess.)
Quote of the Other Moment
I tried to give as good as I got.