[The Toronto Star,
Canada]
Nachrichten,
Switzerland
The George Bush Years: 'Not According to
Plan'
"Bush sees no fault in his actions - things just
'haven't gone according to plan' ... If one wished to credit Bush with
anything, it might be this: He has finally demonstrated that grandiose plans
with no basis in reality cannot succeed, even if all the resources of the
world's greatest power are put at their service."
By Patrik Etschmayer
Translated By Patrik Etschmayer
January 15, 2009
Switzerland - Nachrichten -
Original Article (German)
A week before the inauguration of President-elect
Barack Obama, still-President George W. Bush gave his last press conference. As
expected, the entire event was a rather flippant affair with lots of laughter
and just a few tough questions.
And when these difficult questions were posed, Bush
very skillfully beat around the bush or made excuses, which in and of
themselves have the potential to go down in history. So although he admits that
the "Mission Accomplished" sign on the aircraft carrier was a mistake,
it was only because, "It sent the wrong message. We were trying to say
something differently, but nevertheless, it conveyed a different message."
What "incorrect message" these two words may
have conveyed (if this is indeed possible at all), Bush didn't comment on. But
he did describe the torture scandal at Abu Ghraib and the failure to find
weapons of mass destruction in Iraq
- the official reason for the invasion in the first place - as "a
disappointment."
[The Ottawa Citizen,
Canada]
These were simply things that "didn't go
according to plan." With this remark he pushed those disasters aside and
that is where they stayed, although of all that he said, this was likely the
key sentence. "Things didn't go according to plan." Just let that
sentence melt in your mouth.
Bush's presidency was indeed one with a plan - it had
been planned by neo-conservative think-tanks. The Plan was to establish
the United States as the dominating world power for centuries to come. To this
end, nations would be toppled, new regimes installed, natural resources secured
and opponents eliminated. And the name of one of the leading neo-con
organizations behind the Bush-regency was "The Project for a New American
Century," or PNAC for short 
.
Yes, Bush was to herald a century of America
dominance and perhaps usher in a Republican Party reign of similar length. The
structure of American Empire and the establishment of friendly democracies
would be organized by these geniuses, primarily with brute force and military
confrontation. Diplomacy, negotiation and, indeed, understanding other nations
and people, were considered completely unnecessary and even harmful.
Posted by WORLDMEETS.US
After all, to allow such an approach would likely have
replaced wishful thinking with the complexity of reality, and hence a
determination that these messianic visions weren't achievable. When even the
most secret intelligence began to contradict the intentions of the neo-cons in
Bush's Administration (particularly Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Paul
Wolfowitz and Scooter Libby), they began to generate a reality of their
own.
[The
Independent, U.K.]
Thus they blithely continued with their game of "U.S. world
domination," although the longer they played, the clearer it became that
their plans were impracticable, unfeasible and, especially, unaffordable. While
in the United States - according to the neo-con gospel - the rich paid lower
and lower taxes and the military budget skyrocketed, with dramatic consequences
for the federal budget. To say the least, this has also contributed to the
current financial crisis. But Bush sees no fault in his actions - things just “haven't
gone according to plan” ...
If one wished to credit Bush with anything, it might
be this: He has finally demonstrated that grandiose plans with no basis in
reality cannot succeed, even if all the resources of the world's greatest power
are put at their service.
Posted by WORLDMEETS.US
P.S. Nothing has been seen or heard from The Project
for a New American Century for three years now … it is likely yet another thing
that "didn't go according to plan" ...
CLICK HERE FOR GERMAN
VERSION
[Posted by WORLDMEETS.US
January 17, 5:55pm]
