“Let’s not, but let’s say that we did.” *UPDATE*
Bookworm on Jul 19 2009 at 7:47 pm | Filed under: Afghanistan, Barack Obama
Rusty Shackleford is spitting bullets about the fact that the Taliban have kidnapped Pvt. Bowe Bergdahl and are parading him for propaganda purposes. Although it’s easy to get all tangled up about international law and whether the Geneva Convention should extend to these people, Dr. Shackleford gets to the core point, which is the fact that America’s enemies have an American — and we should do something about it, dammit!
As for me, I hope that the Obama administration doesn’t take its default position and fall back on words as the primary way to deal with the situation. Both Daniel Henninger and James Taranto opined on Obama’s continued belief that the thought equals the deed. Here’s Henninger:
Here’s the problem: Mr. Obama is not the nation’s Speaker in Chief. He’s not a senator, and he’s no longer a candidate. He’s the president. A president’s major speeches are different than those of anyone else. That high office imposes demands beyond the power of a podium. Inspiration matters, but the office also requires acts of leadership. A U.S. president’s words must be connected to something beyond sentiment and eloquence. Too much of the time, Barack Obama’s big speeches don’t seem to be connected to anything other than his own interesting thoughts on some subject.
And here’s Taranto giving the perfect example of this practice in play:
On his trip to Ghana last weekend, President Obama delivered a well-received speech. He also gave an interview to CNN, in which he discussed slavery and its legacy, as the network is reporting today:
On his trip in Ghana, Obama said the nation and the world should never forget the scourge of slavery because it’s still relevant in today’s world.
I think that the experience of slavery is like the experience of the Holocaust. I think it’s one of those things you don’t forget about. I think it is important that the way we think about it and the way it’s taught is not one in which there’s simply a victim and a victimizer, and that’s the end of the story,” he said.
“I think the way it has to be thought about, the reason it’s relevant is because whether it’s what’s happening in Darfur or what’s happening in the Congo or what’s happening in too many places around the world–you know, the capacity for cruelty still exists.”
“So trying to use these kinds of extraordinary moments to widen the lens and make sure that we’re all reflecting on how we are treating each other, I think, is something I want my kids to think about and I want every child to think about.”
This whole comment underscores one of the things that bothers us most about Obama. He says that slavery is “relevant” to today’s humanitarian crises in places like Darfur and Congo. For the sake of argument, let’s accept that this is true. What are we supposed to do?
Well, we’re supposed to “never forget” slavery, to “think about it,” to improve “the way it’s taught,” to “widen the lens,” to “make sure we’re all reflecting.” Oh, and he wants “every child to think about” it.
By Obama’s lights, then, it would seem that understanding slavery is important because it yields an endless supply of endless abstractions with which to respond ineffectually to contemporary humanitarian crises. While every child is thinking about this stuff, is the president of the United States doing anything?
We need to believe that the military can push Obama into acting, not just talking. It’s impossible to govern a nation by falling back on a teenager’s snarky comeback to the effect that “Let’s not, but let’s say that we did.”
UPDATE: I used Bowe Bergdahl as the springboard to riff about Obama’s reliance on words, not deeds, despite the fact that he holds the nation’s chief executive position. I stand by what I said about Obama (and am thinking that perhaps we should be grateful that he’s not acting on everything he talks about), but the Bergdahl thing might prove to be more complicated.
Michelle Malkin posts at length about hints that Bergdahl may not just be a POW, but may be a complicit deserter. Given the current factual vacuum, now is probably the time to withhold all judgment one way or another. I’ll be interested as more news comes out.
Cross-posted at Right Wing News
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16 Responses to ““Let’s not, but let’s say that we did.” *UPDATE*”
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. . .”I hope that the Obama administration doesn’t take its default position and fall back on words as the primary way to deal with the situation.”
We all know that words are the only type of “doing” that a candidate has to deal with. This is because/why Obama has only been a candidate; never a true elected-office holder who was held accountable.
So, let’s all agree that Obama is in over his and, even, his advisors’ heads. (Have you seen the “latest” from economic advisor Larry Summers – one of the statistics that he used to show that the economic freefall is over is that the number of people searching for “economic depression” on goggle is down to normal levels? Seriously, where do these people think they are – in some sort of academic discussion group, a book club’s meeting, or maybe just a coffee klatch? Book, you so hit the nail on the head about that teenager’s snarky comeback – “let’s not, but let’s say we did.”)
I’m not holding out for Obama to do anything – I just hope he doesn’t prevent the military from doing what they need/want to do.
And I do love that part of Henninger’s article:
“Too much of the time, Barack Obama’s big speeches don’t seem to be connected to anything other than his own interesting thoughts on some subject.”
To which I want to add – interesting only in his own head.
Obama has never said anything that has inspired me or even caused me to think about things. The only time he said something that I agreed with was when he said that a candidate’s children were off limits in reference to attacks on Palin’s family – although, he was several days late in coming out with that announcement.
I don’t hate Obama (or at least I don’t think that I do) the way Bush-haters hated Bush and Cheney; But I think I have a better understanding of how frustrated they must have felt as I so want to scream at Obama and his advisors’ ignorance and incompetence. I so often finding myself asking: how far into the Obama administration are we? How many more months until the next Presidential election?
Many of our problems are related to the ascendancy of what I call the “word people”…those who earn their living by the manipulation of words and have lost the understanding that anything really matters *outside* the universe of words. The word people include journalists, writers, lawyers, professors outside of the hard sciences, certain types of consultants.
Of course, there are many people in the above professions who are grounded enough to realize that words aren’t everything…but there are plenty of the other type.
I’m afraid we now have a “word person” as President of the United States.
“…Obama’s continued belief that the thought equals the deed.”
This is interesting from the aspect that for the year my husband was stationed in Saudi Arabia, his experience with the Arabs he dealth with was frustrating because of this exact attitude. He said they’d make promises to do things, then walk away and the promises were a past and forgotten thing. If something wasn’t completed, then the response was “insha’ allah” – It is the will of allah. Not that they hadn’t done it, but allah obviously didn’t want it done, since it wasn’t.
It built up in my husband a tendency to be a constant over-your-shoulder checker to get things done. Drives me nuts!
I think that the technical term for this is “poseur”.
[...] Room – “Let’s not, but let’s say that we did.” Sphere It Share and [...]
I think it’s one of those things you don’t forget about.
Since you weren’t alive during those times, it’s rather hard to forget something you never remembered in the first place. Contrast this with the Holocaust, who have real people with real experiences.
This is exactly why I don’t like Senators running for President — they don’t develop an appreciation for both the responsibility and limitations of executive power, having insulated themselves from the reality of cause and effect. In that category you can add academics, lawyers, and, um… “community organizers” and such. Obama is a perfect intersection of this type of mentality, and his brand of “leadership” is the natural result.
“Let’s not, but let’s say that we did.”…
Rusty Shackleford is spitting bullets about the fact that the Taliban have kidnapped Pvt. Bowe Bergdahl and are parading him for propaganda purposes. Although it’s easy to get all tangled up about international law and whether the Geneva Convention sh…
his brand of “leadership” is the natural result
Point well made. In fact it’s quite a generic brand. It doesn’t jump off the shelf and it certainly doesn’t make me want to “buy” it no matter how many CNN Specials they continue to serve.
The entire campaign was one of marketing like Coca Cola did many years ago (Things go better with Coke). Fast forward…we are stuck with ZERO Coke.
I believe that phrase is a bit grammatically complex for a teenager ; )
Michelle Obama posts at length
Oh, bookie, bookie. That’s heresy ; )
Or maybe just blasphemy heh
Oh, my gosh! Thanks for the catch, Y. That was a true “fingers detached from brain” moment.
You know…I’ve been “bothered” by your title, but couldn’t quite figure out why…
It finally came to me…
We used to say “Let’s _don’t_ – and say we did!”
Not very different, but it’s one of those things that just stick in the back of your mind – and if it isn’t right…well, it just isn’t quite right!
Ouch, suek, you are making me reach way back into my childhood for the east coast variation….
“Let’s not and say we did”
When I was released on parole from that medium-security federal facilty, I recall saying to my wife as she greeted me at the gate, “Honey, maybe ‘Let’s not and say we did’ probably was the wrong way to deal with the IRS.”
FOTFLMAO …you sure know how to turn a phrase, Charles.