George Bush: Still trying, Real Hard, to Get It!

"There is some who say that perhaps freedom is not universal. Maybe it's only Western people that can self-govern. Maybe it's only, you know, white-guy Methodists who are capable of self-government. I reject that notion."
-- George W. Bush, London, June 16, 2008

Good idea George. Rejecting that notion is a Really Good Idea. Blatant racism is probably an idea that the only leader of the free world we currently have ought to reject. I applaud you for being able to do so. Unfortunately, I can't just leave it there.

The idea that only white Methodists are capable of self governance is probably not even an idea that the President of the United States needs to give voice to. It's too late now, but maybe you should give some more thought to what notions you bring to your bully pulpit. There are just too many racist half wits out there who will now read between the lines and "know" that you meant the opposite of what you said. We don't need more racial unrest in this age; we need to calm the hatreds and work towards relieving the causes. The debate over people of color leading mixed communities, like, say, the United States has been over for decades.

The rest of us have moved on to next steps, like electing a black man to the Presidency here. Try to catch up, even if it's just to try and prevent that from happening. You can try to write off to party politics. That's fine. A lot of people will read between the lines and identify it as your innate racism revealing itself.

If only this were the biggest kvetch I had about the past 8 years of your stewardship. What a relatively wonderful world we would be living in. Does George W. Bush hate black people? Does George W. Bush hate white people? Does George W. Bush hate wet people? Does George W. Bush hate all poor people? Does George W. Bush hate insufficiently wealthy people? Does George W. Bush hate all people?

I don't know, but I am certain you can read between the lines.