Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Bush's farewell tour

...and the sniping at Obama

George W Bush has embarked upon his farewell world tour. More redolent of those dead-horse-flogging bands (i.e. Human League doing that "re-wind" thing yet again) than it is of a world-respected politician, most would like to see the back of him as soon as possible.

Yes, it is overly simplistic to argue that the President of the US alone is truly responsible for the course of world politics.

And in fact the Bush years shouldn’t be merely considered as the time when a gaffe-prone idiot became President.

Bush's eight years in power marked a seismic shift in world politics because of a whole neo-con Republican cabal (with a very specific political agenda) that lurked behind his cheeky-chappie simpleton-like ways.

Most amazing is the fact that they still stand a very good chance to snatch another four years in the White House. Someone as dodgy as "Geronto" McCain is the Republican candidate. The American economy has hit an insidious slump. The credit crunch is biting. The Middle East is in a much bigger mess than it was when Bush took over. U.S. soldiers are still dying in Iraq and Afghanistan. But just witness how effective the Republicans' sniping at Barak Obama has turned out. Also courtesy of eight months of vicious charges at the hand of a dreadful Hillary Clinton, Obama is now forced to tiptoe around in fear of upsetting the dominant forces.

Catapulted to the elections by a combination of devastating Republican policies and yearning for a new approach to politics, Obama is now hemmed in by redneck thinking on one side and Clintonite grudge on the other. A rock and a shit place, as they say. Not to mention the perma-contrarians (read: the Nader voters), those who still believe Al Gore and George W Bush are basically two faces of the same coin. They won't vote for Obama.

In which case, there's an extra reason to support him.

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