The American leader, who has been condemned throughout his presidency for failing to tackle climate change, ended a private meeting with the words: “Goodbye from the world’s biggest polluter.”
He then punched the air while grinning widely, as the rest of those present including Gordon Brown and Nicolas Sarkozy looked on in shock.
Heh.
h/t Tim Blair
Yeah, I’ll miss him too. Seen him a few baseball broadcasts, clumsy, not PC … real person. He is what he is.
Here we go with CO2 as pollution again. How did we get to such a silly place?
History will be far kinder to G.W. Bush than it will be to Clinton, just as history is far kinder to Truman than it is to Carter.
GW is not the sharpest knife in the drawer, and that’s a bit part of what makes it funny, that he’s no Kissinger. For me, it would be enough for him to say “Goodbye from the world’s biggest polluter”, but the image of him punching the air grinning wildly — I can picture it. I know what you mean about missing him already. I suspect George Sr. missed him too, probably from around the time he first saw Jr. in the nursery.
It’s like “Being There”, where everyone needs to be brought to ground for inspiration. Years ago National Lampoon had fake news-zine report written in the aftermath of the assassination attempt on Ronald Reagan. The “I forgot to duck” line that he’d uttered to Nancy had been widely presented as evidence of his wit and courage, but unfortunately, solid investigative journalism took the air out of that particular tire: seems that on numerous occasions in the past, going back decades, he had uttered those exact same words, only adjusted for context — for example, in one instance he approached the family of a drowned boy and said “he forgot to put on his lifejacket.” On another he’d approached the mother of a toddler who’d just been hit by a bus and said, “he forgot to get out of the way”.
Hence, “I forgot to duck” — a hoo ha ha.
I think as Ed points out above history will look favourably on GWB. Mind you if he doesn’t start bombing Iran soon I think the outcome will be less favourable.
I concur with Ed & LT, history looks a heck of a lot different once you get a chance to look at it from afar. It always seems that critics have all the answers when only given the facts that they want to hear or have been fed. I just watched a documentary on the Cuban Missle Crisis and it seems we were a heck of a lot closer to “button” time than everyone ever imagined. Kennedy had taped all the strategy meetings and it proves to be interesting listening. Same goes for some WWII British documents that only recently have been declassified. Time will tell.
flyboy: “blurring the lines, blurring the lines…a right wing trait”…
How about ignoring the lines/reality altogether…a left wing/socialist trait?
Here’s a neat article about an aspect of GWB’s legacy.
3w.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/07/were_not_leaving.html
The only “lines” the left seem to have much knowledge of are the thin white powdery ones usually arranged with a razor blade on a piece of glass…
George, giving the assembled twits the political finger. Good for him. While their nations crumble around them, the US remains strong and free, at least for now.
Even with all of Bush’s faults he is still 10 times better than Monica’s Boyfriend.
,
If Bush really said that to those pompous hypocrites, my opinion of him has risen 100%. Screw the “international community”. I am tired of hearing my country criticized by those who cover their own self-interest with a veneer of moral rectitude.
flyboy:
first off in the FDR, HST, and eisenhower years such a private incident probably would never have made it to print.
FDR managed to die practically in his mistress’ arms yet it never got a mention in the press.
HST wrote a very scathing and low-class letter to a music reviewer (after his daughter sang in public) that got published.
Eisenhower, like both of the above, had very poor judgement at times in private but the press in the 50’s just didn’t report it.
GB sr. was once head of the CIA so perhaps he was better trained…
Um, isn’t China now the world’s largest emitter of CO2, and I’m sure far and away the biggest true polluter?
“Say goodbye to the U.S. as the world’s biggest polluter, and say hello to China!”
Good thing the CHRCs don’t have jurisdiction over GWB: we even have a few people here whose feelings are probably so disturbed, they’d file a complaint if they could. And then the HRCs would take the poor little greenies’ side against the nasty “denier”. (When I first saw that word, I thought it was French! What’s a “den-yay” I wondered?)
I’d say the fact that Mr. Bush hasn’t done this before now is a sign of remarkable restraint. Yee-hah!
Yes, I think that history will review Bush in a very favourable light and acknowledge his tremendous accomplishment in opening up the ME to democracy, enabling it to move away from tribalism and thus, deflate Islamic fascism.
After all, in Europe, fascism wasn’t stopped; it was treated with the same leftist sophistry of multiculturalist relativism. The perspective that encourages ‘living a fiction’, the perspective that encourages a complete rejection of reality and instead insists that you can live your dream of purifying the world. We know where that fictional world led.
Bush effectively threw a wrench into the Islamic fiction of tribalism and the Al Qaeda attempt to live ‘as we did in the 7th century’. Now, it’s up to the West to continue to reject tribalism, to continue to reject any people who wish to live within a fictional world – and to insist that we live, together, in reality.
He was just referring to China taking over on his watch, then the MSM’s twisted the quote around because they can’t give the poor guy credit for anything.
I’m sure going to miss him, too. He’s shown consummate class and humor through some very difficult times and through relentless attacks from the professional pissants who constitute the MSM and the “progressive” (hah!) branch of politics.
Who would you rather share a beer with? Brown, Sarkozy or GWB?
Now that is awsome. A leader who doesnt constantly read from a script and says whats on his mind once in awhile.
Our PMSH could take a few notes from that rather then putting his finger to the wind as much as he does.
Jay-mo..PMSH does NOT govern by polls.
If he did, he would have embraced Kyoto, never started the build up of our military, withdrawn from Afghanistan, never apologized to the Chinese Canadians or natives, never would have condemned China, or supported Israel..
He often makes very tough principled stands on what he believes, and does not always do what everyone else thinks he should, because it was the ‘popular’ thing to do..
Yukon Gold,
Sarkozy, his wife is really hot and so are her friends. Bush is/was a born again christian so he probably does not party excessively anymore.
Cheers,
Jon
Flyboy: to speak of confusing wishes and reality in the context of Hopeful Warming displays a penchant for irony far beyond the grasp of most of us mere mortals.
The stature of the architects of Tehran, Yalta, and Potsdam moves me to dewy-eyed idolatry. Roosevelt’s crude witticisms at Churchill’s expense, in order to ingratiate himself with Uncle Joe, revealed such dignity. And isn’t Keelhauling fun?
Boy George admirers: will you please explain why he caved to the AGW fanatics, going even so far as to list the polar bear as threatened?
Remember that just before last year’s G8, Bush said:
“The United States takes this issue seriously… The United States will work with other nations to establish a new framework on greenhouse gas emissions for when the Kyoto Protocol expires in 2012. So my proposal is this: By the end of next year, America and other nations will set a long-term global goal for reducing greenhouse gases. To help develop this goal, the United States will convene a series of meetings of nations that produce most greenhouse gas emissions, including nations with rapidly growing economies like India and China.”
Maybe it’s only a finesse (which would be dishonest), but that’s the sort of talk that can jump up and bite you where it hurts.
I was talking to a friend yesterday, who doesn’t pay much attention to politics, about her impression on GWB. She thought he seemed to be incompetent and stupid as this is what the MSM headlines and broadcasts always say. She could think of nothing positive Bush had done. Geobbels would have been proud of this successful propaganda.
Watching Leno, Stewart or any of a myriad of the MSM and it is a constant pounding of this theme. It gets so tedious. Remember Mercer asking Bush about PM Crouton of Canada when Bush was beginning his campaign to see if he knew his correct name and getting a laugh because he didn’t. Imagine how tough Bush and his family have to be to weather these unrelenting attacks.
As noted the early MSM was much kinder to our leaders and allowed us to look up to them and at least respect the office they held.
When I asked my lefty friends, when they criticized and belittled Harper, who would you rather lead Canada when it is faced with a major crisis, Harper or Chretien…crickets.
The bigger laugh is that the times showed bush between the leaders of Japan (sending their whaling fleet out soon to rape the seas of all the endangered species they haven’t already killed,) and China whose record is obvious to anyone not polluted with stupid (which apparently means all leftard and most media schleps.)
Ramon Daley:
Bush’s “caving in” to AGW fanatics was indeed an act of finesse, and I believe it was understood as such by most conservatives. As for it being “dishonest”, it was no more dishonest than the concern that liberals interminably show for “the poor” or “the Palestinians” or for any other object of their phony “humanity”. True altruists are relatively rare. My own wife, a liberal, happens to be one of them, so I know they do exist. Most, however, cover their own greed with specious sanctimony, either consciously or otherwise.
That’s hilarious! One thing you can never accuse GWB of is being stiff and awkward.
I didn’t agree with “W” on every major point, but he proved to be a man who stands on principle. That resonates with me. He’s going to be greatly missed but certainly has earned some lengthy downtime at Crawford.
As for beer buddies, I’d drink with any of those three. Gordon is a Scot so would be a distant countryman and would certainly drink something; Sarkozy is an egoist AND French who would share a wonderful French wine; and finally “W” who might not drink but wouldn’t mind if I did. We had a large barbecue at the house Saturday night. Suspect “W” would have felt right at home and we would be comfortable with him.
I get the feeling GWB is enjoying the exit ramp…he seemed very bouyant at the G8 summit…no fearabout the next election, his legacy is in place…relax and enjoy the ride!
I loved the ‘Yo, Harper’ line…and can’t wait to PMSH’s response to the media when they question him about it.
Also agree with dinosaur.
I like PMSH Dave, but your convenient and vast conspiracy that has thus far been able to hide George Bushes brilliance for 8 years straight is a little tough to swallow.
At least with Harper I can see his political plays and grin at the clever little ploy he’s used against his opponents, whereas with Bush the only trait common to him is using a hammer to solve all problems (i.e. Veto power).
I think George was just taking a dig at the E.U.
they have failed to cut emissions. While the u.s.
did manage to cut “greenhouse gases” by 3% and actually grew their economy. I love seeing hipocrates like the E.U. choking on their own lies.
The U.S. outperformed the most of the E.U. countries in carbon emissions reductions.
Reminds me fondly of the hey day’s of King Ralph. Its exactly something he would have said lol.
ha! Ha! Dubya puts those Euroweenies in their place and the Libs are left to cry into their hankies! Love it!
As someone who’s benefitted from GWB’s tax cuts, I shall miss him too. He’s stayed committed to his principles, and as this last incident shows, he’s never lost his wit or good humor.
Let the Jon Stewarts and Michael Moores ridicule him as an ‘incompetent’. GWB is dumb as a fox – he knows what he’s beeen doing all along.
For folks like me, he’s enabled us to keep more of our wealth and to make more. The Libs can cry all they want about casualties in Iraq and the aftermath of Katrina. GWB knows what’s important and what his priorities are – keeping more money in the hands of people like him and myself. Gotta love him!
barjebus, I didn’t say there was some vast conspiracy hiding GWB’s brilliance or that he even is brilliant. He is far from stupid and seems to be a decent man in a very difficult job as leader of the free world. I was just pointing out the constant humiliation and viciousness he is endlessly subjected to. He was hated by the left from day 1. The MSM has painted an unfair picture of GWB that is taken as true by a massive amount of people. We see a similar slant taken on PMSH.
I just admire Bush’s courage in the face of this continual assault.
Too true, Dave!
GWB is indeed a decent and courageous man in the face of the continual assault he’s faced.
When the Libs went after him when he told the insurgents in Iraq to “Bring it on!” I was sickened. He was merely expressing a Churchillian brio in the heat of battle, yet it was made to seem he was in the safety of Washington exhorting terrorists to kill young Americans in Iraq.
I hated how Garry Trudeau who draws ‘Doonesbury’ offered $10,000 to anyone who could prove GWB lived up to his obligations in the National Guard. The fact that no-onehas yet claimed it proves how mindlessly trivial the Libs are about Republican’s past military service.
People are always looking at the fact that the rationale for the Iraq war has proven to be non-existent, or the scandal at Abu Gharib, or the fact that the war has lasted longer than the US involvement in WW2, to show that somehow Bush is incompetent.
How Bush himself manages to put up with such abuse is beyond me.
Likewise, the American public as a whole abandoned him largely in the aftermath of Katrina (his poll ratings fell to 30% then and haven’t raised above that since). What ingratitude! That they are able to level that much abuse at him after all he’s done for them is incomprehensible.
He’s a decent, God-fearing, Christian who has cut my taxes and increased my wealth significantly. Let those grieving mothers, war widows, Katrina survivors, and 75% of the public whine all they want. They shall never match the greatness of GW Bush!
Yukon Gold- “Who would you rather share a beer with? Brown, Sarkozy or GWB?”
I would love the opportunity to introduce myself to Bush.
I don’t mind Sarkozy or Brown but Bush and I just don’t get along.
I would love to reunite with Bush but I think his good friend cocaine might get jealous.
“Yes, I think that history will review Bush in a very favourable light” – some reich wing idiot
I don’t know about history, but the future is gonna be pissed.
Ooh anonymous poster called conservatives Nazis! I guess he wins the argument then. We sure never saw that coming.
Just in case you are interested, before the last election they did a study. It showed that if you exposed a potential voter to “Bush = Hitler” type images then asked them who they supported, Bush’s support went up, and not because the voters supported Hitler either, but because they rightly percieved his opposition as a collection of hopeless whack-jobs.
Why do you think the “reich wing” blogosphere never gets tired of pointing out, bringing attention to, and repeating comments like that. I thought you leftards were supposed to be the smart ones, yet time after time the evidence shows otherwise.