George Bush Accused Of Grieving Wrong
A dear friend of mine who is a liberal, David Wallis, takes on the accusations that George Bush was swaying to the music at the Dallas memorial for the slain police officers.
This was after Bush gave an impassioned speech at that memorial -- but that's not where the attention went. It was, as David puts it in the New York Observer, for "his boisterous, joyful swaying and singing while the church choir belted out 'Battle Hymn of the Republic.'"
The title of David's NYO piece:
He Can Dance If He Wants to: A Liberal Defends George W. Bush at the Dallas Memorial
David writes:
As the video of the memorial goes viral, and many commentators scold Bush for inappropriate behavior, this proud liberal must say...enough.I agreed with few--really none--of George W. Bush's policies; he must live with himself for lying the country into the Iraq war and his economic malpractice led to the great recession. But the attacks on his method of mourning strike me as cynical and churlish--the general mood in the country right now. I felt the same way when the conservative media lit into Bill Clinton for laughing at the 1996 funeral of his Commerce Secretary Ron Brown, who tragically died in an airline crash while serving his country.
We all grieve in different ways. Many people cry. Some bow their heads in silence and reverence. Others have sex with fellow funeral attendees. Apparently, George W. Bush publicly rumbas to "Glory Glory Hallelujah." Mr. President, sway all you want. Pay little mind to the bitter, petty critics who want to police our public servants' every move.
David, I'm almost positive, has not read the work of George A. Bonanno, but what he's saying -- about how people grieve differently -- is one of the things I got out of Bonanno's research and his book, The Other Side of Sadness: What the New Science of Bereavement Tells Us About Life After Loss.
Grieving -- or even feeling very sorry about someone's loss -- does not necessarily mean being wall-to-wall somber.
You can have a moment where you enjoy the music at a memorial. You really can.
I had a lot of problems with George Bush as president -- as I do with Obama.
But I get the sense this lady in the tweet below does from him. And I like her for not feeling compelled to hate him or put him down just because he's on the other side:
@mrsdianek
@amyalkon @nicolegelinas @observer Absolutely. He's a joyful gospel kind of guy. Leave George alone! BTW, enthusiastic liberal here.
Here's Bush's speech from the Dallas memorial -- which the people sneering at him seem to have ignored:
For a famously inarticulate man, that was some good work.
Crid at July 14, 2016 1:04 AM
It would be inappropriate to focus on the fact that he gave a much better speech than Obama. So the media has to focus on something else.
Partisan hacks, all.
Isab at July 14, 2016 2:47 AM
Well, George didn't get the same stink eye from Michelle that Barack got at Mandela's funeral for flirting with the Danish prime minister. But, yeah, it did look a little odd, swaying on the stage while everyone else stood still; the bright blue suit, too. And we've seen George stand stock still during memorials, so this was kinda new, and a little off.
That said, this is just silly. It's retaliation for criticism of Obama politicizing his speech. If Obama had stuck with the first 25 minutes of his speech and stopped there, he'd have had a great speech, a presidential speech hall of famer. But no, he had to go and extemporize. Now, the Left needs something to take the focus off of how poorly the speech was received.
For a guy whose supporters would have you believe is a master communicator and great orator, Obama has given no truly great speech. He's like a tent revival preacher. He's got the cadence and pitch down pat, but the words themselves don't carry the impact, the delivery does.
Martin Luther King, Jr. also used a preaching speech delivery, but his words carried the message, even if delivered in a tent revival manner. His speeches could be printed in the newspaper the next day and still have a powerful impact.
Bush followed the rules of great speechifying. He kept it short and strictly on topic (Lincoln at Gettysburg gave a master class on that). He kept the tone appropriate for the occasion. And he let his words carry the message, not his delivery.
Conan the Grammarian at July 14, 2016 5:54 AM
Partisan hacks, all.
Democrats with a byline.
I R A Darth Aggie at July 14, 2016 6:03 AM
I did not like Bush as a President, but he's been a great former President. This is just BS. I find myself swaying unconciously all the time.
momof4 at July 14, 2016 7:32 AM
I love music and that music, and I get into it, too.
Amy Alkon at July 14, 2016 8:06 AM
I think it is much more appropriate to give your standard political stump speech as a eulogy. Can't let an opportunity to score some political points pass you by. /sarcasm
Shtetl G at July 14, 2016 9:10 AM
One thing I've always wondered about: what was Bill Clinton laughing about at Ron Brown's funeral? Maybe it was a nervous-laughter kind of thing, or maybe whoever he was walking with (Panetta?) told him a joke to try to break the tension. But I've never heard the explanation.
Cousin Dave at July 14, 2016 10:41 AM
Cousin Dave: "...or maybe whoever he was walking with (Panetta?)..."
That was Tony Campolo, a well known, left wing, evangelical preacher and spiritual adviser to President Clinton.
His politics suck, but his preaching is great.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frfZQVEEOwY
Ken R at July 14, 2016 11:36 AM
Yes, I got video of Bush dancing and smiling and Obama not Boeing his head during prayer on my Facebook feed. Can you guess the political affiliation of the posters? It infuriates me. Will people quit nit-picking and looking for fault in the opposing party?
Jen at July 14, 2016 1:03 PM
Ju's curious...
Is there anyone reading this who *didn't* read Jen's "Boeing" comment as a mis-translation from smartphone voice recognition software?
Crid at July 15, 2016 1:29 AM
That was fat fingers on a smartphone and a lack of proofreading! (At least I hope so - right after my last stroke, I would type something such as truck. When I re-read a couple of minutes later something totally different such as book-case would be written down. It was so puzzling. I wonder if I spoke like that too!)
*bowing his head
Jen at July 15, 2016 9:35 AM
Jen, it was rather ironic, considering what's going on with Boeing lately.
Cousin Dave at July 15, 2016 1:09 PM
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