LOGO: Truthdig: Drilling Beneath the Headlines. A Progressive Journal of News and Opinion. Editor, Robert Scheer. Publisher, Zuade Kaufman. Winner 2013 Webby Awards for Best Political Website
May 20, 2013

 Choose a size
Text Size

Trending:     chris hedges     economy     elizabeth warren     politics     robert scheer
Most Read

Rise Up or Die

The Lotto Symbolizes the False Promises of Barracuda Capitalism

Obama Unscathed by Scandals, Mayor Denies Smoking Crack, and More

Truthdigger of the Week: Sen. Angus King

'SNL': Stefon's Farewell Features Anderson Cooper

Most Comments
Most Emailed

Reports
 * NEW! * Rise Up or Die

Ear to the Ground

A/V Booth

Arts & Culture
Act of Congress
Daily Rituals
The Girls of Atomic City

Digs

Truthdig Bazaar more items

 
Ear to the Ground

Bush’s Sacrifice for the Troops

Email this item Email    Print this item Print    Share this item... Share

Posted on May 14, 2008
Bush
commons.wikimedia.org

George W. Bush gave an interview to The Politico and Yahoo News on Tuesday, the result of which is a must-read study of obtuseness. Among other gems, the president insisted that a withdrawal from Iraq would lead to another terrorist attack against the U.S. He also revealed that in order to honor the soldiers his foreign policy has killed or maimed, he has given up golf.


The Politico:

“I don’t want some mom whose son may have recently died to see the commander in chief playing golf,” he said. “I feel I owe it to the families to be in solidarity as best as I can with them. And I think playing golf during a war just sends the wrong signal.”

Bush said he made that decision after the August 2003 bombing of the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad, which killed Sergio Vieira de Mello, the top U.N. official in Iraq and the organization’s high commissioner for human rights.

“I remember when de Mello, who was at the U.N., got killed in Baghdad as a result of these murderers taking this good man’s life,” he said. “I was playing golf—I think I was in central Texas—and they pulled me off the golf course and I said, ‘It’s just not worth it anymore to do.’ ”

Read more

More Below the Ad

Advertisement


New and Improved Comments

If you have trouble leaving a comment, review this help page. Still having problems? Let us know. If you find yourself moderated, take a moment to review our comment policy.

By hippy pam, May 15, 2008 at 6:19 am Link to this comment

I hope ALL PEOPLE WATCHED and LISTENED to the soldier phone call on YouTube[or was it MySpace]-The soldier who was under fire and as he backed up against the wall-hit the speed dial[by mistake] to his parents-and his brother put it on line-I DO NOT HAVE a link-...

Report this

By Ron, May 14, 2008 at 9:48 pm Link to this comment

That’s beautiful. I’m really impressed…NOT!

If Bush were serious, he would have given up his two daughters, and made them go to Iraq to fight alongside poor and working class people who always die on the frontlines for wars that the rich prosecute.

In fact, it should be mandated that all children of members of Congress are required to fight every war they sanction. Then we will see how many wars Americans fight.

Additionally, all of you that support this war should go to Iraq and fight it yourselves. Since you want to go on and on with your rhetoric like you really know of what you speak, why don’t you back it up with your actions. Suit up and go.

I didn’t think so. It is much easier to sit behind your computer and blog about war. There’s no flag waving and music playing when you die in combat. And if you manage to make it through and come home, you suffer, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.

There’s veterans right now who are homeless, in veterans hospitals dealing with inadequate healthcare, suffering from PTSD. They will never be the same.

But we sit back with our fucking Starbucks coffee and our DSL hookups and wax politically about winning the war on terror.

How about the terror that our soldiers and our veterans deal with everyday?

Until we actually walk in their shoes, and feel what they feel, we should all shut the fuck up - AND LISTEN TO THEM, not our own jaws flapping.

War has never been the answer. Take it from those who have suffered and died from it.

Report this

By Trisha, May 14, 2008 at 8:57 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

If you think Bush’s exit on January 20th, 2009 will change anything - assuming he doesn’t orchestrate a false flag operation and suspend the election if it looks like McCain won’t win the presidency - you’re all living in cloud cuckoo land! Trust me! These neo-con sons-of-bitches have been salivating at the prospect of this global chaos for thirty years or more. They have slaughtered millions and they are not done yet… Nor will they ever be brought to justice. They’ll simply invoke their dual Israeli citizenship and walk. Time to emigrate! The dream is over.

Report this

By JimM, May 14, 2008 at 8:10 pm Link to this comment

After his appointment ends. I am turning purple waiting for it to expire

Report this
thebeerdoctor's avatar

By thebeerdoctor, May 14, 2008 at 1:10 pm Link to this comment

A recent interview on Democracy Now!, Gore Vidal explained that after Nine One One, the republic has been destroyed. He mentioned the Magna Carta, but how many Americans even know what he is talking about?
Vidal, who is not a believer in the death penalty, made an exception for Dick Cheney, who said should be taken out to face a firing squad.

Report this

By don knutsen, May 14, 2008 at 12:51 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

After 8 miserable years under this would be dictator he actually thinks this will be seen as a true sacrifice ? How impressed do you suppose are the familes who have lost their sons & daughters in his war for oil are ? This meglomaniac idiot will never grab a clue…Perhaps the sacrifice of sitting in a jail cell replacing the batteries in Cheney pacemaker would help him understand the depth of disdain the majority of this nation and the world feel towards him. He and the whole of the republican party have shown us all what a corrupted political system we now have, incapable of doing anything meaningfull for the bulk of america. Hopefully this era will spell the decline of a party that more resembles the mafia then apart of america. But the larger question is, can america crawl back up outa the hole these traitors have put us all in. We will be paying for the bush administration for along time to come. What I myself hope more then anything else, is that one day these criminals will be held to account.

Report this

By Trigger finger, May 14, 2008 at 12:06 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

How can you not love this man who would give up something so crucial to every man’s manhood, his love of golf, in honor of the 4000 plus American kids he has killed in IRAQ. How honorable! Now I understand why it has not been necessary to attend any of the kids funerals, he has already shown enough respect!

Report this
thebeerdoctor's avatar

By thebeerdoctor, May 14, 2008 at 11:38 am Link to this comment

“We are speaking today of the wipe-out gang. The wipe-out gang owns and operates the insanity factory.” Bob Dylan
Shock and Awe was on the front nine.
The bombing of Iran? That is on the back nine.

Report this

By Sue Cook, May 14, 2008 at 10:53 am Link to this comment

He sacrifices golf for the troops dying left and right in Iraq?

I guess I’ll take back all negatives I’ve ever said about him.      They’re not negative enough to satisfy my jaw-dropping reaction to what I just read.

Anyone help out here?

Report this

By purplewolf, May 14, 2008 at 9:13 am Link to this comment

So when they pulled him off the golf course and he commented, “It’s just not worth it anymore to do,” should have been about prolonging this illegal war and not his damn golf game. Also, in his typical screwed up version of what he calls English, perhaps he meant the war and not his golf game, but it has not registered in his non-existant brain as of yet. Also, I am certain I have seen this liar since with his golf clubs,(since 2003), as well as his chain saw, in his blood soaked hands.

A real sacrifice would be to send in the twins, the new son-in-law, and himself, as he never served when he claimed he was enlisted the first time. Now that’s a true sacrafice and not this bullshit he still spoon feeds the public.

Report this
Purple Girl's avatar

By Purple Girl, May 14, 2008 at 8:44 am Link to this comment

Is this thing even REALLY Human??
Are we sure Cheney has not just hooked up a Remote control to this Life sized Puppet?Looks like he’s already body Santched McCain and replaced him with a Drone.
Worse is His model with the headlights and Tail Fins cruisng around Honking ‘total obliteration’.
Frankly they should all Be RECALLED due to Safety Concerns and past poor performance Records.

Report this

By C Quil, May 14, 2008 at 8:25 am Link to this comment

You know what would work a lot better than giving up golf?

Giving up war.

Well - duh!bya.

Report this

By DennisD, May 14, 2008 at 8:21 am Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

I’ve got news for Bu$h and anyone else still drinking the Kool-Aid - the terrorists are already here - we call them Democrat and Republican politicians.

Report this

By hippy pam, May 14, 2008 at 6:43 am Link to this comment

Every one who has lost a LOVED ONE to “BULLSH*T’s
FIASCO of LIES” needs to file a WRONGFUL DEATH LAWSUIT against “shrub and co.”...Emperor BULLSH*T also needs to be held accountable for the INJURED SOLDIERS..and should have to PAY FOR ALL CARE[and it should be of the HIGHEST QUALITY-and MONITORED]
that they may need FOR THE REST OF THEIR LIVES….
Since it was all a LIE-It should come from their OWN POCKETS..[I can see the BEAUTY of “shrub” having to sell his properties so as to pay the medical payments for a hospitalized soldier/soldiers.CAN YOU?]

Report this

By Rodger Lemonde, May 14, 2008 at 6:15 am Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

The shrub confuses of and for when sacrifice is in the room.
You are too gentle in your recommendations.
First they should be interrogated by some of their own experts. Then their incarceration should be outsourced to some place where their true soul mates rule.

Report this

By Jim Yell, May 14, 2008 at 6:00 am Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

The national cheer leader, failed businessman, failed sports team owner, failed pilot, the man who chose not to serve in war zone when he had a chance, the man whose stupidity and ignorance unleashed a war that had nothing to do with 9/11, but everything to do with greed, arrogance and religious stupidity—-he gives up “golf” as a sacrifice to people mutilated, tortured and murdered for his ego. Lovely. That he goes about believing he is right, is clear evidence that there is no God and now thanks to the Republican Party, Democratic Enablers and greedy corporations, there is no nation either. Lovely.

Report this
thebeerdoctor's avatar

By thebeerdoctor, May 14, 2008 at 5:43 am Link to this comment

Poetry can not do this justice. If Hunter S. Thompson was alive today, he would probably mention: “that’s why it is called gonzo journalism”.
What is remarkable about the President’s sacrifice of the links remark is how wholly unaware he is of its stupidity. He actually believes that putting his golf clubs away is his way of showing solidarity with families have who loved ones being destroyed by these occupations.
When will this insanity ever stop?

Report this

By nrobi, May 14, 2008 at 4:36 am Link to this comment

I, for one am glad that this “commander-in-chief” has finally shown his true colors.  To say that giving up “golf” is a sacrifice, is the true essence of the mindlessness and inanity of the whole administration for the past 8 years.  The shrub will not give up being president, this would be a true sacrifice, which he should have done from the very beginning, never truly elected by the people, GW was and is the worst president in history.  We cannot underestimate the damage that this administration has caused for America around the world and for him to say that giving up golf in a time of war is a sacrifice is truly obtuse. G-d help the poor men and women who will never walk again, never see again, nor ever live again because of the avarice and maliciousness of the power base of the Republican Party. When they give up being politicians, give up their fancy homes and multi-billion dollar trust funds and give these things to the people that have been most hurt by their petty mindedness, then I would truly believe that they are sacrificing for the people who are actually paying the price for the illegal and immoral acts of the neo-cons. The Neo-cons in power today and throughout this administration need to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of international law and then put away for the rest of their natural lives so that they could no longer hurt anyone with their thinking. If that happened I would shout from the housetop, that justice has been served, but I foresee that this will never happen. Truly these men and women will pay the price in the next life.

Report this
Newsletter

sign up to get updates


 
 
 
 
Join the Liberal Blog Advertising Network
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A Progressive Journal of News and Opinion. Editor, Robert Scheer. Publisher, Zuade Kaufman.
© 2013 Truthdig, LLC. All rights reserved.