Now that had to hurt...
Friday, March 03, 2006
Thursday, March 02, 2006
Oh We're off to see...
So, yesterday the AP released a bunch of video and transcripts that depicted conversations leading up to the mishandling of Katrina. On the surface, it seems to paint a picture of a President who was well informed of the possibility of a disaster in the making.
This would be quite different than the “Oh, Golly, were we ever taken by surprise!” pitch the White House tossed out in the days following the devastation of the hurricane.
The following is the response from the Bush folks after the release of the tapes and so on.
The White House and Homeland Security Department urged the public Wednesday not to read too much into the footage.
"I hope people don't draw conclusions from the President getting a single briefing," Bush spokesman Trent Duffy said, citing a variety of orders and disaster declarations Bush signed before the storm made landfall. "He received multiple briefings from multiple officials, and he was completely engaged at all times."
So you there was that part in the “Wizard of Oz” when Dorothy and her crew were going to meet the great and powerful Wizard dude. And the curtain blows back and they see the brains behind the whole deal. “Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain.” was the line as I best recall. Call me an idiot but I see a bad remake of the Oz flick happening more and more in the Oval Office.
Let’s recap shall we…
Let’s discuss why a good PR person is worth their weight in Crude Oil.
Karen Hughes was GWB’s 1st spokesperson: she was golden. You wanted to believe everything she told you and she came across as believable, even in the worst-case scenario. She left after the 1st term to go back home to Texas.
One of the best examples of leadership not really seeing the strength of the folks that help hold up the tent around the three rings. Sometimes, you might not want to believe your own press clippings too much and think about the folks who actually do the work and make you look good.
Luckily, for the Bush camp they were able to bring Hughes back prior to the last elections. “Luck” is being very subjective, of course.
The new PR dude is Scott something or other. He leaves a bad taste in your mouth like cheap wine that comes in a box. He is simply defensive and reminds you of the kid who would always “narc” you out to the teacher at school.
I loved the ‘spin’ on the hunting accident a few weeks back. To hear ole’ Scott tell it, it seems the old lawyer guy snuck up on Cheney, jumped up and yelled, “Boo!”
After, old lawyer guy told a press conference that he was very sorry to have caused Cheney any problems because of the incident.
I saw a great media “op” for my man, Scott. Instead of ‘suicide by cop’ (this is where a bad guy will try to get the police to kill him so he doesn’t have to pull the trigger himself); this could have been spun as “Suicide by VP”.
But, I have to admit to date, nothing seems more incredibly stupid than Port Security. To steal a line from myself, “He ran for the Port Security position because he thought he got to be in charge of cheap wine.”
For crying out loud, Batman, did you just finish reading Orwell’s 1984?
This is not about whether this company is qualified? Race and so on is not an issue? Hell, cost is not even on the “smart buy” radar screen.
Could you even pretend you are aware of what it looks like? You missed the lecture about 1st impressions didn’t ya? It’s the guy behind the curtain all over.
You might want to reconsider who is in charge of the other poles holding up this three ringer. Arrogance is not a good thing in a leader; denial makes it seem even less attractive.
This would be quite different than the “Oh, Golly, were we ever taken by surprise!” pitch the White House tossed out in the days following the devastation of the hurricane.
The following is the response from the Bush folks after the release of the tapes and so on.
The White House and Homeland Security Department urged the public Wednesday not to read too much into the footage.
"I hope people don't draw conclusions from the President getting a single briefing," Bush spokesman Trent Duffy said, citing a variety of orders and disaster declarations Bush signed before the storm made landfall. "He received multiple briefings from multiple officials, and he was completely engaged at all times."
So you there was that part in the “Wizard of Oz” when Dorothy and her crew were going to meet the great and powerful Wizard dude. And the curtain blows back and they see the brains behind the whole deal. “Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain.” was the line as I best recall. Call me an idiot but I see a bad remake of the Oz flick happening more and more in the Oval Office.
Let’s recap shall we…
Let’s discuss why a good PR person is worth their weight in Crude Oil.
Karen Hughes was GWB’s 1st spokesperson: she was golden. You wanted to believe everything she told you and she came across as believable, even in the worst-case scenario. She left after the 1st term to go back home to Texas.
One of the best examples of leadership not really seeing the strength of the folks that help hold up the tent around the three rings. Sometimes, you might not want to believe your own press clippings too much and think about the folks who actually do the work and make you look good.
Luckily, for the Bush camp they were able to bring Hughes back prior to the last elections. “Luck” is being very subjective, of course.
The new PR dude is Scott something or other. He leaves a bad taste in your mouth like cheap wine that comes in a box. He is simply defensive and reminds you of the kid who would always “narc” you out to the teacher at school.
I loved the ‘spin’ on the hunting accident a few weeks back. To hear ole’ Scott tell it, it seems the old lawyer guy snuck up on Cheney, jumped up and yelled, “Boo!”
After, old lawyer guy told a press conference that he was very sorry to have caused Cheney any problems because of the incident.
I saw a great media “op” for my man, Scott. Instead of ‘suicide by cop’ (this is where a bad guy will try to get the police to kill him so he doesn’t have to pull the trigger himself); this could have been spun as “Suicide by VP”.
But, I have to admit to date, nothing seems more incredibly stupid than Port Security. To steal a line from myself, “He ran for the Port Security position because he thought he got to be in charge of cheap wine.”
For crying out loud, Batman, did you just finish reading Orwell’s 1984?
This is not about whether this company is qualified? Race and so on is not an issue? Hell, cost is not even on the “smart buy” radar screen.
Could you even pretend you are aware of what it looks like? You missed the lecture about 1st impressions didn’t ya? It’s the guy behind the curtain all over.
You might want to reconsider who is in charge of the other poles holding up this three ringer. Arrogance is not a good thing in a leader; denial makes it seem even less attractive.
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
No Miracle on Ice here
I see the NHL is getting ready to resume play following the closing of the Olympics. My question here would be why did they bother to take a break in the 1st place? Based on the play of the pro’s for teams Canada and the USA, I suspect going back to using college players would have been a better deal.
The hockey was very good in the women’s division, not so much in the men’s. My oddest memory of the men’s games was a player from Latvia. I think that’s the right country. Regardless, this dude’s name was Sivalis (pronounced syphilis). I never tired of hearing “and here comes Sivalis up the ice” and “man Sivalis just nailed that guy into the boards”. Well you can see where this is going. Maybe I imagined it, but it seemed no one really wanted to hit Sivalis. I’m sure this was only funny to the English speaking fans, ok maybe just to me.
Sports I don’t get are as follows.
The skeleton. When did someone decide that throwing yourself down a mountain on a plank, qualifies as a sport? What is the difference between the facedown versions as opposed to the flat on your back thing? Either way it seems a bit more a study in physics and a case of Molson’s then it does a sport.
The 2-person luge. This is not a sport. It is, at best, something you should do in the privacy of your home.
Figure Skating. Other then giving Dick Buttons something to do every 4 years, I simply don’t see the appeal. It is at best subjective, and in the worst case, a running audition tape for the Ice Capades.
Well it’s over. No more tape delayed evenings.
WWE comes on Live.
The hockey was very good in the women’s division, not so much in the men’s. My oddest memory of the men’s games was a player from Latvia. I think that’s the right country. Regardless, this dude’s name was Sivalis (pronounced syphilis). I never tired of hearing “and here comes Sivalis up the ice” and “man Sivalis just nailed that guy into the boards”. Well you can see where this is going. Maybe I imagined it, but it seemed no one really wanted to hit Sivalis. I’m sure this was only funny to the English speaking fans, ok maybe just to me.
Sports I don’t get are as follows.
The skeleton. When did someone decide that throwing yourself down a mountain on a plank, qualifies as a sport? What is the difference between the facedown versions as opposed to the flat on your back thing? Either way it seems a bit more a study in physics and a case of Molson’s then it does a sport.
The 2-person luge. This is not a sport. It is, at best, something you should do in the privacy of your home.
Figure Skating. Other then giving Dick Buttons something to do every 4 years, I simply don’t see the appeal. It is at best subjective, and in the worst case, a running audition tape for the Ice Capades.
Well it’s over. No more tape delayed evenings.
WWE comes on Live.
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