Tuesday, August 11, 2009

It's Official!

The Wall Street Journal has now joined the "not an American" chorus. Birth certificate follies coming soon?
The president has a problem. For, despite a great election victory, Mr. Obama, it becomes ever clearer, knows little about Americans. He knows the crowds—he is at home with those. He is a stranger to the country’s heart and character.
And why would that be? WSJ typist Dorothy Rabinowitz's understanding of "the country's heart and character."
He seems unable to grasp what runs counter to its nature. That Americans don’t take well, for instance, to bullying, especially of the moralizing kind, implicit in those speeches on health care for everybody. Neither do they wish to be taken where they don’t know they want to go and being told it’s good for them.
Were the American character a little more mature, Americans wouldn't need to be taken where they don't want to go, even if it is good for them. According to Ms. Rabinowitz, the national character is that of a wilful six-yr. old child. The little brat doesn't care if vaccinations are good for him, & he doesn't want you telling him that, because it will hurt!
Americans don't like "implicit" ("Well, it's implicit! But I heard it!") moralizing bullying? What, then, of the rabid right's perpetual & explicit moral bullying? Have the finger-waggers suddenly understood that Americans don't like that crap; will they keep their biblical/moral drivel to themselves, now that they've acquired this new comprehension of America's character? It's about time, but we suspect it may not happen.
We won't open (much) the worm container of Ms. Rabinowitz's opinion, just note that it's beyond us how the President, "despite a great election victory" (when his opponents were a man & woman who, we imagine Ms. Rabinowitz believed, had their fingers on the very red pulse of America) is a stranger to America's heart & character. Unless of course it's something to do w/ his not being a Real American, if you know what we mean. Hey! Speaking of fascism (& we always must, it seems) what can we call appeals to this mythical national character (& suggestions that the current Prez doesn't "understand" that character) but fascism?
But what the fuck, let's open her can of squirming horror: What of Rabinowitz's understanding of the national heart & character? W/ that sort of name, how can she understand anything about our Christian nation? Really, it would be irresponsible not to speculate. (And it's pretty damn irresponsible of her to speculate on relationships to the national whatever when many of those who'd agree w/ her on the President's non-relationship to it will be quick to question her own American bona fides.)

7 comments:

Another Kiwi said...

So he's "good with crowds" but doesn't unnerstand the common folks. I guess they weren't in the crowds.
Somebody who works for the WSJ is, naturally, more in touch and can opine about it meaningfully.

ifthethunderdontgetya™³²®© said...

Neither do they wish to be taken where they don’t know they want to go and being told it’s good for them.
===================================

But that war on Irackeystan is just swell!
~

Substance McGravitas said...

Americans would never vote for a guy like that.

M. Bouffant said...

Election Expert Observes:

Real Americans didn't.

J said...

BO can be a fairly annoying speaker, really, regardless of what you think of the WSJ broad.

Like most lawyer types, Obama's an excellent manipulator of rhetoric (at least with a teleprompter around). He also relies on a sort of phony optimism which probably irritates locals (at least the caucasian ones). Alright, compared to Bushco's stammering, he's Demosthenes hisself, but eloquence is not always a plus.

M. Bouffant said...

Presidential History Editor Notes:

We (almost physically, certainly to the point of changing the channel) haven't been able to stand the content or the voices, accents, inflections, smirks, timbre blah blah of every Prexy since LBJ (Eisenhower no prize either, but neither he nor Kennedy occupied too much of the Bouffant brain at the time); Obama hasn't made us sick w/ anything but content yet.

TelePrompTer? Please. How about W(orst) Bush (MBA type) radio under his coat, piece in his ear, receiving his talking points or pronounciation guidance from whomever offstage?

TelePrompTer. Honestly?

Another Kiwi said...

Teleprompting is theft.