Posted on 01/21/2005 4:19:45 AM PST by Mikmur
PEGGY NOONAN
Way Too Much God Was the president's speech a case of "mission inebriation"?
The inaugural address itself was startling. It left me with a bad feeling, and reluctant dislike. Rhetorically, it veered from high-class boilerplate to strong and simple sentences, but it was not pedestrian. George W. Bush's second inaugural will no doubt prove historic because it carried a punch, asserting an agenda so sweeping that an observer quipped that by the end he would not have been surprised if the president had announced we were going to colonize Mars. A short and self-conscious preamble led quickly to the meat of the speech: the president's evolving thoughts on freedom in the world. Those thoughts seemed marked by deep moral seriousness and no moral modesty.
The president's speech seemed rather heavenish. It was a God-drenched speech. This president, who has been accused of giving too much attention to religious imagery and religious thought, has not let the criticism enter him. God was invoked relentlessly. "The Author of Liberty." "God moves and chooses as He wills. We have confidence because freedom is the permanent hope of mankind . . . the longing of the soul."
And yet such promising moments were followed by this, the ending of the speech. "Renewed in our strength--tested, but not weary--we are ready for the greatest achievements in the history of freedom." This is--how else to put it?--over the top. It is the kind of sentence that makes you wonder if this White House did not, in the preparation period, have a case of what I have called in the past "mission inebriation." A sense that there are few legitimate boundaries to the desires born in the goodness of their good hearts.
(Excerpt) Read more at opinionjournal.com ...
OUTSTANDING speech about the reality of LIFE Peggy, and man's greatest concept...FREEDOM.
Those of us who have experienced dictatorships in our lives, and were once desperate in our frustration to get rid of it, not only welcome President Bush's eloquent words, but applaud them as an overdue decision by the strongest nation on earth! The theory was first heard by me through words expressed by Ms. Rice at her senate committee hearings earlier in the week, and I thought this was a wonderful idea! While it was once very difficult to intervene in other nations' internal affairs, the world today is a different ball game and little thugs (like Fidel Castro, Hussein, the North Korean drunkard whose name I've forgotten, the idiotic silk-clad clerics in Iran, etc.) have become few and isolated little criminals that this country should be able to blow away with a little snort!
I also loved all the references to God after the recent "Seasons Greetings" Holiday we just had. you know the one, the Holiday that occurred right before the "After Christmas" sales!
I have always looked forwaqrd to reading Peggy Noonan's articles, but it looks like I will have to look for other writers in the future. I much prefer Dick Morris' assesment of the Second Inaugural Speech. Truly one of the 5 Greatest Inaugural Speeches which Challenges America.
RamS
I like Peggy a lot and have bought several of her books. But she's wrong here and I'm disappointed she's given the Lefties some talking points.
The ONLY reason Sissy Matthews liked the speech is because it contained so much red meat for his sniveling liberal pea brain to drool over.
I watched Matthews instead of Fox because (loser) Scrum was on with him. Shrum was listed as a Kerry adviser? Right!
Sissy was completely pissing over himself just waiting to get his DNC talking points.
Peggy is part of the elite. And many of those elites helped reelect GWB. James Baker is our elite!! And what is it about staying in an expensive hotel that gets your goat. Heck, anyone with the money could do it and be in the "camp of the elites". Rich people aren't the problem. Unless you are a communist or something.
"Afraid of losing your place in the Speech writing hall of fame?"
LOL, that's exactly what I was thinking! I have always said that Peggy Noonan can be so purple in her prose that if the word maudlin did not exist it would have to be invented just for her. I mean I like her well enough, but for her to say someone is "over the top" in their florid writing is just a great example of the pot calling the kettle black.
I didn't see too much of the inaugural, but I saw enough to know that W just basically gave the back of his hand to his leftist critics, and good on him for doing so. I wish I could have watched the whole thing, but the one part I did see that was great was the pipe & drum band playing "when the saints come marching in", oh how the godless commies must have HATED that.
Poor Pegeen, I'd respond to this, but I'd just be mean about it; and her strange turn of contrariness is just kind of sad.
Peggy is not listening.
We in this country are in a fight to keep our religious roots and values. I don't think the President goes overboard regarding his beliefs and I don't think the people of this country do either. I do believe most of us including the President believe in God and I am comfortable with that.
People have a funny habit of rooting out the liars especially when they have the freedom and I believe that is what the President's speech is about. FREEDOM.....
Peggy Noonan is exactly right.
"i agree, i heard her on Foxnews right afterwards and she didn't react this way at all. she said she had to "think about it" awhile, but there was no negative reaction."
Got to wonder who she talked to from that point to the point of writing this? Interesting how she names, names from the night before but not from the instant she heard the speech until she wrote this.
When she was speaking on FOX right after the speech, she liked it. What happened when she sat sown in front of her keyboard?
She sure changed her mind!
Peggy is not bashing. She is a true friend to this administration and a true conservative. This is what the ancients have called "criticism". If you cannot take criticism from Peggy Noonan, you cannot take criticism.
"Mentioning...James BAker...in the hotel lobby..."
I gotta say, it sounds like Mr. Baker knows how to dress for an evacuation!
bump for later read and likely comment.
"Way Too Much God"
When your creation, existence and everything that you have is a gift from God, then how can there be too much?
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I agree with you. I do not like that statement. To the contrary, there is "not enough God" in society and the world today. People need to acknowledge and give glory to God more often.
I disagree. After all, the American slaves were African, weren't they?
I have no problem with Noonan's wealth. I do have a problem with her elitist attitude and name dropping. Buffet is a Dim Bush hater and James Baker is part of the old school that supported the foreign policy that GWB cast aside in his speech. So I wouldn't call him "our" elite. Rich people are not the problem. It's her name dropping that's a problem. Weasels that fawn praise on a speech then huddle with their cronies and dump on it are the problem. Noonan loved the speech, then shmoozed with her media huddle and trashed it.
Ooooohhh
you got in trouble
LOL
I agree that the President of the United States has many powerful options at his disposal, but there's no doubt that an energetic geopolitical strategy requires that an indomitable military be one of them. Our forces are stretched too thin for the task at hand, and have been overextended irregardless of whatever additional tasks they may need undertake on short notice.
I don't think we are genuinely capable for a two-theater operation right now (say, Iran and North Korea) and I think we should be. That's my basic point and if we want to legitimately export freedom throughout the world - a mission I have no problem supporting - then that needs to change as swiftly as possible. Then the only thing we'll have to fear is fear itself! ;)
The problem that she has is not with the prose but with the point of the speech. This speech was effectively a declaration that GWB plans on recasting the entire philosophy behind our foreign policy. This is extremely worrisome to some even within the GOP. I suspect that Peggy had a few drinks with them and came up with this critique.
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