Joseph Wilson's war

Skybird · 10-10-06, 08:43 AM

http://www.spiegel.de/international/...441697,00.html

Quote:

[...] "I never said that I was perfect," says Wilson. "But it wasn't about me, damn it. It was about a war. They just made it look like it was about me. That's the way Karl Rove operates. He attacks people's character."

It is as a result of these character attacks that everyone now knows that Joseph Wilson wears Hermes ties, and that he loves Cuban cigars, surfing, skiing and golf. We know his handicap and that he has been married several times. We know that he likes to quote Thomas Jefferson and George Orwell when he talks about his case. We are familiar with his penchant for forceful language and celebrities. All of this combined doesn't produce a likeable image, and that was precisely the point. When someone on the street asked columnist Robert Novak about the yellowcake affair, Novak's only response was: "Joe Wilson is an *******." That was his only answer.

Karl Rove, Dick Cheney and Lewis Libby went after the man. They made him seem less significant, taking the same approach Republican candidates have frequently taken in dealing with their adversaries. When Texas Governor Ann Richards ran against George W. Bush in his first political campaign in 1994 and won, the Republicans told Texan voters that she was a lesbian, and when Vietnam veteran John Kerry ran for president, they made him out as a coward and traitor to his country.
"They throw **** into the wind and hope that some of it sticks," says Wilson. And it worked. Plenty of **** has remained stuck to the walls of their respective adversaries.

When Valerie and Joseph Wilson filed a civil suit against Cheney, Rove and Libby this summer, CNN reported it as a sort of joke and ran James Bond music in the background. Three years after Joseph Wilson and his wife were the hottest news in Washington, they've now become open targets for every reporter's jokes and disparaging comments. The Wall Street Journal called him Joseph "Yellowcake" Wilson, as if he were a comic figure. [...]

Yahoshua · 10-10-06, 05:27 PM

Yep......it seems all sides have resorted to such slanderous mud-slinging that it's pushed me to avoid even going to the polls anymore.

Both sides get disgusting during election season.

Skybird · 10-10-06, 06:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yahoshua

Both sides get disgusting during election season.

And stay like that between elections.

August · 10-10-06, 08:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skybird

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yahoshua

Both sides get disgusting during election season.

And stay like that between elections.

Is there a point here Skybird? I could dig up some of the things they said about Lincoln that would curl your hair. Wilson played politics and got burned. boo hoo.

Skybird · 10-11-06, 03:49 AM

Ah, good to hear that there is nothing to be criticised in such an understanding of politics, then. I always thought of mudthrowing as the failure of political culture, and the degeneration of democratical self-understanding...

Immacolata · 10-11-06, 03:55 AM

There is only mud slinging because there are people who earn money on it. Mudslinging is great news stuff. Blame commercial media really. They are the ones who benefit the most. They are like lawyers, they don't care who win or lose because they make a buck anyway.

FIREWALL · 10-11-06, 11:52 AM

Want to see a really good fight? Watch 2 lawyer's chaseing the "SAME" ambulance down the street.:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

kholemann · 10-12-06, 12:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skybird

http://www.spiegel.de/international/...441697,00.html

Quote:

[...] "I never said that I was perfect," says Wilson. "But it wasn't about me, damn it. It was about a war. They just made it look like it was about me. That's the way Karl Rove operates. He attacks people's character."

It is as a result of these character attacks that everyone now knows that Joseph Wilson wears Hermes ties, and that he loves Cuban cigars, surfing, skiing and golf. We know his handicap and that he has been married several times. We know that he likes to quote Thomas Jefferson and George Orwell when he talks about his case. We are familiar with his penchant for forceful language and celebrities. All of this combined doesn't produce a likeable image, and that was precisely the point. When someone on the street asked columnist Robert Novak about the yellowcake affair, Novak's only response was: "Joe Wilson is an *******." That was his only answer.

Karl Rove, Dick Cheney and Lewis Libby went after the man. They made him seem less significant, taking the same approach Republican candidates have frequently taken in dealing with their adversaries. When Texas Governor Ann Richards ran against George W. Bush in his first political campaign in 1994 and won, the Republicans told Texan voters that she was a lesbian, and when Vietnam veteran John Kerry ran for president, they made him out as a coward and traitor to his country.
"They throw **** into the wind and hope that some of it sticks," says Wilson. And it worked. Plenty of **** has remained stuck to the walls of their respective adversaries.

When Valerie and Joseph Wilson filed a civil suit against Cheney, Rove and Libby this summer, CNN reported it as a sort of joke and ran James Bond music in the background. Three years after Joseph Wilson and his wife were the hottest news in Washington, they've now become open targets for every reporter's jokes and disparaging comments. The Wall Street Journal called him Joseph "Yellowcake" Wilson, as if he were a comic figure. [...]

Yea, call him crazy! Looks like Greenpeace didn't get any press when "Yellowcake" was actually found in Iraq. Imagine that...

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/0624-09.htm

Sailor Steve · 10-12-06, 04:05 PM

I love that bit about Bush and Kerry. Yes, the "Swift-Boat Veterans" thing was over the top, but the Dems were comparing Bush with Hitler before that. When Kerry demanded that Bush disavow the Swift-Boat guys, Bush said he'd do exactly that if Kerry would disavow Moveon.org. Kerry said nothing after that.

10-10-06, 05:27 PM	#2
Yahoshua The Old Man Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 1,493 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Yep......it seems all sides have resorted to such slanderous mud-slinging that it's pushed me to avoid even going to the polls anymore. Both sides get disgusting during election season. __________________ Science is the organized unpredictability that strives not to set limits to mans' capabilities, but is the engine by which the limits of mans' understanding is defined-Yahoshua

10-11-06, 03:49 AM	#5
Skybird Soaring Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: the mental asylum named Germany Posts: 42,611 Downloads: 10 Uploads: 0	Ah, good to hear that there is nothing to be criticised in such an understanding of politics, then. I always thought of mudthrowing as the failure of political culture, and the degeneration of democratical self-understanding... __________________ If you feel nuts, consult an expert.

10-11-06, 03:55 AM	#6
Immacolata Grey Wolf Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 798 Downloads: 3 Uploads: 0	There is only mud slinging because there are people who earn money on it. Mudslinging is great news stuff. Blame commercial media really. They are the ones who benefit the most. They are like lawyers, they don't care who win or lose because they make a buck anyway. __________________ "The power of the executive to cast a man into prison without formulating any charge known to the law, and particularly to deny him the judgment of his peers, is in the highest degree odious, and the foundation of all totalitarian government whether Nazi or Communist." - W. Churchill

10-11-06, 11:52 AM	#7
FIREWALL Eternal Patrol Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: CATALINA IS. SO . CAL USA Posts: 10,108 Downloads: 511 Uploads: 0	Want to see a really good fight? Watch 2 lawyer's chaseing the "SAME" ambulance down the street.:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: __________________ RIP FIREWALL I Play GWX. Silent Hunter Who ???

10-12-06, 04:05 PM	#9
Sailor Steve Eternal Patrol Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: High in the mountains of Utah Posts: 50,369 Downloads: 745 Uploads: 249	I love that bit about Bush and Kerry. Yes, the "Swift-Boat Veterans" thing was over the top, but the Dems were comparing Bush with Hitler before that. When Kerry demanded that Bush disavow the Swift-Boat guys, Bush said he'd do exactly that if Kerry would disavow Moveon.org. Kerry said nothing after that. __________________ “Never do anything you can't take back.” —Rocky Russo