If there's anyone out there who reads my The Oliopolis but not Pat Mixdorf's Avagadros Number, please check out his wonderful essay on the differences between him and our president.
Most progressives in this country are well aware of the path of destruction left in the wake of Bush's trademark intellectual laziness, Pat covers the topic with great clarity and wit (though, not to misrepresent Pat's characterization, he does also believe The Prez to be an evil turd). I would really like to see how Pat would take on a deconstruction of perhaps an evil more unconscionable type of character, epitomized by our Senate Majority Leader, Bill Frist.
Where in Bush, we have this sort of willful ignorance and pretty simple arrogance, in Frist we have a man who by all counts is highly educated and intelligent, yet purposefully champions a number of misguided or evil causes through deliberately deceitful means. A wonderful example is his video diagnosis of Terri Shiavo (sp?). A HEART SURGEON making a NEUROLOGICAL DIAGNOSIS after WATCHING VIDEO in order to appeal to a radical social conservative group of voters with whom he hopes to curry favor (a diagnosis-that she could respond to visual stimuli-by the way, which has now been proven to be erroneous). He is trying to alter Senate rules in order to confirm a fringe element of conservative judges (and a fringe element to be our UN ambassador), supports numerous White House initiatives that do not pass ethical or intellectual muster, and actually went so far in his pandering to the radical right that he refused repeated requests for a roll call vote that would have put senators on the record in a FAILED (you read that right-failed) attempt to pass legislation to apologize for our nation never having passed anti-LYNCHING laws. Thus, of course, protecting identities of the mostly southern, all-conservative senators that shot fillibustered and eventually killed the bill. What an absolute bastard-and one I believe could be considered to be far more evil than George W Bush. Which is worse-to never have a soul or to sell it?
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4 comments:
Actually the legislation DID pass. Just not by roll call, it was a voice vote. I don't think it was filibustered, and it wasn't killed.
Oh, and Frist is absolute scum.
Thanks for your kind words.
As far as Dr. Frist is concerned, anyone who has not seen the video of him talking to George Stephanapolous (sp?) on one of those Sunday morning political shows and wonders whether he's evil, needs to.
GS asks him point blank whether he believes AIDS/HIV can be transmitted via tears - those watery secretions that flow liberally during up close and personal stories during the olympics. There is literally a 5 second pause while you watch him (A MEDICAL DOCTOR) consider how to answer this question in a way that will most satisfy the "religious right'. In the end he is too chicken shit to tell the truth and essentially evades the question altogether. It's disturbing and disgusting all at once.
While I think Dr. Frist (about as much of a doctor as Dr. Pepper)is evil as well, I'v come to believe that Bush could not possibly be as big of a rube as he wants us to believe. If you listen to his debates for Governor in TX against Ann Richardson you'll hear a man completely capable of pronouncing difficult words and answering questions off the cuff. His persona has been created in an effort to deflect criticism.
I don't see Bill Frist as the same sort of threat as Bush, relative to his presidential ambitions. He may have a burgeoning religious right on his side, but he will alienate far more people than Bush ever did, and can't fall back on his lovable dopey frat guy image to get him through. People expect doctors to be well reasoned and intelligent. His first bizarre answer to a question on a national stage and he'll lose all credibility.
We progressives need to be wary of the likable Republican that says one thing and does the other. We shouldn't fear the unlikable Republican for they've proven they can't win national races.
It was done by voice vote in the middle of the night and required the presence of no senators rather than the unanimous vote that was intended by those that offered the legislation.
What kind of person can't come out and say 'we were wrong not to criminalize lynching, and we're sorry?' How 'Christian' is that? Jesus!
Thanks for the correction, Aaron, I totally heard that wrong. But Jesus.
You may be right on the unlikable Mr. Frist, Pat, but I honestly would have a hard time putting nearly anything past Americans these days.
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