[Het Parool, The Netherlands]
Financial Times Deutschland, Germany
Why Bush Won’t Get Recognition He Deserves
"As long as Bush is incapable
of admitting that his mistakes were mistakes - blaming God knows who but himself
- he will never receive the recognition for being the president who, despite
enormous pressure, the advice of many important advisors and the resistance of
Congress, decided to massively raise troop levels in Iraq."
By Hubert Wetzel
Translated By Ulf Behncke
January
17, 2008
Germany
- Financial Times Deutschland - Original Article (German)
Even in his
farewell address, George W. Bush would not admit mistakes. As long as he
refuses to acknowledge them, he will never receive the recognition that he
deserves - at least on one point.
Just look at how major
American newspapers have covered George W. Bush’ farewell address and you’ll
get the idea. For the final time, the U.S. president is addressing his people -
and no one is the slightest bit interested! On the Web site of the Washington
Post, the Bush article received a third-place ranking. Meanwhile at The New
York Times, you had to have been looking under the heading "Other
News" to find a link to the president's speech. Bearing in mind that in
the United States the utterances of the head of state are usually treated as “Breaking
News,” this qualifies as nearly barefaced contempt.
But Bush shouldn’t
complain. The policies he has adopted have long lacked the support of the
American public. The vast majority of Americans just want the man to go. Bush left
with nothing more to offer than that despite appearances, he had done
everything right. And no matter how controversial his decisions, he had in mind
only the best intentions for the country. That may well be, but the fact that
he had good intentions doesn't mean the U.S. president doesn't have the duty to
take responsibility for the foreign and economic policy disaster that his successor
Barack Obama now has to assume. That is something that Bush did not do in his speech.
Posted by WORLDMEETS.US
For as long as Bush is incapable
of admitting that his mistakes were mistakes - instead of “setbacks” or
“disappointments” - blaming God knows who but himself - he will never receive
the recognition he deserves for at least one important action. He was the
president who, despite enormous pressure, the advice of many important advisors
and the resistance of Congress toward the end of 2007, decided to massively raise
troop levels in Iraq in order to break the downward spiral of violence sinking
the country in blood and terror.
According to almost every
expert, this decision is the main reason that Iraq is on its way to becoming a relatively
stable country. One can and must criticize Bush for heading blindly into war without
a plan, possessed by the naive idea that democracy would follow the tanks. But we
must also respect him for not abandoning the country at a time when,
panic-stricken, all of Washington and the rest of the world vocally demanded the
withdrawal of American troops.
CLICK
HERE FOR GERMAN VERSION
[Posted by WORLDMEETS.US
January 10, 2:45am]
