The new and improved (?) George W. Bush

[Eli]

Originally posted by Ninot
Hahahaha, oh sure, put the link to the Onion at the bottom of the OP.

And there I was thinking... "Maybe he's just pretending"

[Stefu]

Originally posted by Ben Kenobi
With whom? The intelligentsia?

Give me ol' dubya any day.

With Europeans, at least. I hold that if America had a president who had the same policies and fought the same wars as Dubya has but who didn't seem like he's trying to fit into almost every stereotype that the world has about Americans, he'd be more popular here. Not super-popular, of course - there's always the crowd who hates every American president no matter what's he like - but he wouldn't be hated to the degree that he is now.

[GePap]

Originally posted by Ben Kenobi
With whom? The intelligentsia?

Give me ol' dubya any day.

Please, take him and keep him with you, far away from the halls of power.

[Az]

Originally posted by rah
In real news, this was the front page headline in the chicago tribune this morning. It took a second to realize it wasn't the Apolyton edition.

Shrub poisoned zoo monkeys



Yes, it's all Shrub's fault no matter how obscure.

It took me about 15 seconds to realize the true meaning of the headline!

[Ming]

Originally posted by rah
Shrub poisoned zoo monkeys

I saw that headline as well... and thought it worth posting on Apolyton, but never had the time this morning...

[Az]

With Europeans, at least. I hold that if America had a president who had the same policies and fought the same wars as Dubya has but who didn't seem like he's trying to fit into almost every stereotype that the world has about Americans, he'd be more popular here. Not super-popular, of course - there's always the crowd who hates every American president no matter what's he like - but he wouldn't be hated to the degree that he is now.

It's really quite an interesting question: If you'd had an American president that followed the same, or even harsher foreign policies than Bush, but would be an "old european gentleman" stereotype in his ways, would the european public love him, or hate him? or just hate him less.

[Imran Siddiqui]

The freaking zoo monkeys deserved it

[Ben Kenobi]

With Europeans, at least. I hold that if America had a president who had the same policies and fought the same wars as Dubya has but who didn't seem like he's trying to fit into almost every stereotype that the world has about Americans, he'd be more popular here.

Who's fault is that then? The perception of Europeans, or Dubya for just being an American? I don't see him as trying to fit into the general stereotype, why that would presuppose that he isn't what he appears to be. He might be the brilliant fellow, but he just dumbs himself down to appeal to modern America. By gosh, you've got it!

[GePap]

Originally posted by Ben Kenobi


Who's fault is that then? The perception of Europeans, or Dubya for just being an American? I don't see him as trying to fit into the general stereotype, why that would presuppose that he isn't what he appears to be. He might be the brilliant fellow, but he just dumbs himself down to appeal to modern America. By gosh, you've got it!

He most certainly does fit the stereotypes of a dumb hick. And Bush is no genius. He simply can;t be an utter dullard, but genius he is not. Intelligence is not the only value that will get one power.

LBJ was also a plain spoken southern guy, but he did not come off as an idiot like Bush does.

[Stefu]

Originally posted by Ben Kenobi


Who's fault is that then? The perception of Europeans, or Dubya for just being an American? I don't see him as trying to fit into the general stereotype, why that would presuppose that he isn't what he appears to be. He might be the brilliant fellow, but he just dumbs himself down to appeal to modern America. By gosh, you've got it!

Well that's certainly a possibility.

And it's not just the dumbness angle. Let's see:

Stereotype 1. Americans are dumb: BUSH IS DUM LOL
Stereotype 2. Americans think they're cowboys: All that Crawford stuff
Stereotype 3. Americans are fundamentalists: Bush talks about his best buddy Jesus and in general comes off as the most religious president in ages
Stereotype 4. Americans are arrogant: Bush foreign policy
Stereotype 5. Money rules America: Bush is a rich man who has appointed an administration full of rich people
Stereotype 6. Americans don't know their geography: Grecians and Slovenians I mean Slovakians
Stereotype 7. Americans are really into lawsuits: Election 2000, anyone?
Stereotype 8. Americans love guns a bit too much: aircraft carrier stunt, Star Wars, the whole war thing
Stereotype 9. America is one big Texas: see Stereotype 2

The only way Bush could be more complete a stereotype if he gained a few hundred pounds more. I mean, it's the equivalent of Chirac prancing around in a striped shirt and a beret, with a basket filled with red wine bottles, french bread and frog legs, smoking a cigarette and going "Zur alors! La France surrenders! Oh la la!" while not having bathed for a week. Or Italy getting a prime minister who looked like Tony Soprano and was really corrupt and impulsive and autocratic in a kinda buffoonish way and thought he was the God's gift to women. No wait

[Winston]