libertango | Entries tagged with rhetoric

I must admit I'm a bit confused by the "it's just his oratory" meme that circulates about Obama.

Thoughts occur in words. If you can't speak well, that frequently (though not always) implies you can't think well.

By this argument, one could say Cato, Cicero, Lincoln, Churchill, and Reagan -- conservative icons all -- gained their status through "just their oratory."

For a criticism about the lack of substance, it's remarkably insubstantial.

When Reagan debated Carter, his first question was picked up a lot.

But I think looking at all of Reagan's questions shows just how disastrous the Bush administration has been for this country.

I agree with Reagan that it's time for, "another choice."

*^*^*

"It might be well if you ask yourself are you better off than you were four years ago? Is it easier for you to go and buy things in the stores than it was four years ago? Is there more or less unemployment in the country than there was four years ago? Is America as respected throughout the world as it was? Do you feel that our security is as safe? That we're as strong as we were four years ago? And if you answer all of those questions yes, why then I think your choice is very obvious as to who you'll vote for. If you don't agree, if you don't think that this course that we've been on for the last four years is what you would like to see us follow for the next four, then I could suggest another choice that you have."

I was watching the streaming video of Questions for the Prime Minister in Parliament (as you do). The set for 30 Nov. is a fair amount of fun -- Michael Howard is bowing out as leader of the Tories, and much fun was had at his expense.

But the line that sticks out for me -- almost Sorkinesque, really -- was the last line of this reply by Blair to Charles Kennedy of the Liberal Democrats. Here's how Hansard transcribed it:

"...I have to say again to the right hon. Gentleman that whatever proposals any party comes up with have to be properly costed and affordable. For example, I have looked at the Lib Dems' pension policy and it is true that in terms of its commitments everyone would cheer, but when we come to how they would pay for it they say that they want to shift public spending priorities. I do not know what that means, so at least that is one thing we have in common."

It's a shame you don't see the pauses. They're what made it, and Blair is very good at waiting for his audience to laugh all the way through.

I was always ambivalent about Reagan. As a small-c conservative, I never thought replacing "tax and spend" with "spend and borrow" made much sense. On the other hand, he did have that famous line from the debates:

"(A)re you better off than you were four years ago?"

But an awful lot of current day "conservatives", when they bother to pay attention to Reagan at all, tend to quote that line by itself. In the recent rush of Reagan articles, I saw the whole paragraph Reagan said at the time, and you can readily see why supporters of the man I call the Anti-Reagan, George W. Bush, tend to avoid it:

"Next Tuesday all of you will go to the polls... and make a decision. I think when you make that decision, it might be well if you would ask yourself, are you better off than you were four years ago? Is it easier for you to go and buy things in the stores than it was four years ago? Is there more or less unemployment in the country than there was four years ago? Is America as respected throughout the world as it was? Do you feel that our security is as safe, that we're as strong as we were four years ago?"

As far as I can tell, Dubya is 0 for 6 on Reagan's checklist.

S	M	T	W	T	F	S
		1	2	3	4	5
6	7	8	9	10	11	12
13	14	15	16	17	18	19
20	21	22	23	24	25	26
27	28	29	30	31

Hal O'Brien

Slipping on the fatal floor.

Entries tagged with rhetoric

Words, words, words...

Reagan's questions

It's a barn burner

Late comment on Reagan

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March 2022

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