MSNBC's website published an article today featuring the following headline:
White House admits fault on "Mission Accomplished"
Anybody in America with a tenth of a human brain understands the reference to "Mission Accomplished" – they are the two words on the prominently positioned, self-congratulatory banner hanging on the USS Abraham Lincoln, where President George W. Bush gave his speech marking the "end of major combat operations" in Iraq on May 1, 2003 (I guess the ensuing five years have been nothing more than minor combat operations, though I wouldn't dare say that aloud near anyone serving in the military right now).
There is one very peculiar problem with this article: the White House never actually admits its true mistake! Back in 2003 White House administrators claimed that the crew of the battleship USS Abraham Lincoln ordered the sign and then claimed – as if the entire U.S. population were as stupid as themselves – they had no knowledge of the banner before the speech! Then, in keeping with a common Republican theme, the White House created its own second reality in which the crew of the Lincoln put in a request for the banner to the White House, which then paid a third party to create it.
Now we have the latest White House-created reality involving the "Mission Accomplished" banner. According to Press Secretary Dana Perino, the banner "should have been much more specific" in regards to which mission it was referring because – I hope you're near a toilet bowl – it was really referring to the mission of the battleship itself, not the mission of the entire U.S. military in Iraq! Yes, folks, you read that sentence correctly: the White House now wants us to believe that a huge banner declaring "Mission Accomplished," hanging on the battleship upon which the President of the United States of America was announcing the "end of major combat operations in Iraq," was referring only to the mission of the battleship where the speech was given, not to the erroneous content of the speech itself. Wow. Again, one must wonder: does the Bush Administration think we're every bit as earth-shatteringly stupid as they are?
If Ms. Perino had left the matter there, it would have been bad enough; but the Bush Administration has never been good at knowing when to say when. Ms. Perino goes on to say, "And we have certainly paid a price for not being more specific on that banner. And I recognize that the media is going to play this up again tomorrow, as they do every single year." What exactly is this price of which she speaks? Being the butt of numerous jokes on "The Late Show" and "The Colbert Report" – is that the price to which she is referring? Or perhaps she was referring to Bush's being the butt of numerous jokes on "The Late Show" or "Real Time with Bill Maher"? Whatever! Here's the real reality, Ms. Perino: President Bush hasn't paid the price for anything, sweetie. Paying a price for the things he's done to this country and its citizens – not to mention to other countries and their citizens – would include his being impeached and then sent to prison for war crimes. That would be "paying a price," toots – being mocked by every comedian in the country is mere foreplay in this situation. Of course, the Bush administration has made lying to the public a habit, so why should we expect even a drop of truth to invade its ocean of bullshit?
As if the White House's habitual lying weren't bad enough, there's also the problem with the media's presentation of this habit. This article presents a bigger problem, in particular its completely misleading headline "White House admits fault with 'Mission Accomplished.'" The thing is, MSNBC, the White House didn't actually admit the true error. No, like an elementary school student who just got caught trying to pull one over on the teacher, the White House simply came up with yet another excuse – and a horribly pathetic and completely unbelievable one at that. Ms. Perino may as well have just come out and said that the dog ate the memo about the banner's true meaning, which in turn caused everyone to mistakenly believe the banner was referring to the entire "Operation Iraqi Freedom" rather than the USS Abraham Lincoln's mission in carrying out its part of "Operation Iraqi Freedom." Despite the obvious transparency of the White House's mea culpa, MSNBC's headline suggests that the White House offered an honest admittance of arrogance in the shameless public relations stunt that was "Mission Accomplished." This decision by MSNBC is extremely puzzling given the seven and a half years of habitual bullshitting on the part of Bush & Co; at this point, shouldn't it be routine for any and every media outlet to pass on the words of the White House with a reality translator? Apparently not, as we are subjected to the reporting only of White House spokesperson Dana Perino's flimsy explanation and ensuing whining about the effects of the White House's "mistake" on President Bush's reputation. If the media were performing its true service to the American public, MSNBC's headline would have looked more like this:
White House offers impossible-to-swallow explanation of that ridiculous "Mission Accomplished" banner
White House admits fault on "Mission Accomplished"
Anybody in America with a tenth of a human brain understands the reference to "Mission Accomplished" – they are the two words on the prominently positioned, self-congratulatory banner hanging on the USS Abraham Lincoln, where President George W. Bush gave his speech marking the "end of major combat operations" in Iraq on May 1, 2003 (I guess the ensuing five years have been nothing more than minor combat operations, though I wouldn't dare say that aloud near anyone serving in the military right now).
There is one very peculiar problem with this article: the White House never actually admits its true mistake! Back in 2003 White House administrators claimed that the crew of the battleship USS Abraham Lincoln ordered the sign and then claimed – as if the entire U.S. population were as stupid as themselves – they had no knowledge of the banner before the speech! Then, in keeping with a common Republican theme, the White House created its own second reality in which the crew of the Lincoln put in a request for the banner to the White House, which then paid a third party to create it.
Now we have the latest White House-created reality involving the "Mission Accomplished" banner. According to Press Secretary Dana Perino, the banner "should have been much more specific" in regards to which mission it was referring because – I hope you're near a toilet bowl – it was really referring to the mission of the battleship itself, not the mission of the entire U.S. military in Iraq! Yes, folks, you read that sentence correctly: the White House now wants us to believe that a huge banner declaring "Mission Accomplished," hanging on the battleship upon which the President of the United States of America was announcing the "end of major combat operations in Iraq," was referring only to the mission of the battleship where the speech was given, not to the erroneous content of the speech itself. Wow. Again, one must wonder: does the Bush Administration think we're every bit as earth-shatteringly stupid as they are?
If Ms. Perino had left the matter there, it would have been bad enough; but the Bush Administration has never been good at knowing when to say when. Ms. Perino goes on to say, "And we have certainly paid a price for not being more specific on that banner. And I recognize that the media is going to play this up again tomorrow, as they do every single year." What exactly is this price of which she speaks? Being the butt of numerous jokes on "The Late Show" and "The Colbert Report" – is that the price to which she is referring? Or perhaps she was referring to Bush's being the butt of numerous jokes on "The Late Show" or "Real Time with Bill Maher"? Whatever! Here's the real reality, Ms. Perino: President Bush hasn't paid the price for anything, sweetie. Paying a price for the things he's done to this country and its citizens – not to mention to other countries and their citizens – would include his being impeached and then sent to prison for war crimes. That would be "paying a price," toots – being mocked by every comedian in the country is mere foreplay in this situation. Of course, the Bush administration has made lying to the public a habit, so why should we expect even a drop of truth to invade its ocean of bullshit?
As if the White House's habitual lying weren't bad enough, there's also the problem with the media's presentation of this habit. This article presents a bigger problem, in particular its completely misleading headline "White House admits fault with 'Mission Accomplished.'" The thing is, MSNBC, the White House didn't actually admit the true error. No, like an elementary school student who just got caught trying to pull one over on the teacher, the White House simply came up with yet another excuse – and a horribly pathetic and completely unbelievable one at that. Ms. Perino may as well have just come out and said that the dog ate the memo about the banner's true meaning, which in turn caused everyone to mistakenly believe the banner was referring to the entire "Operation Iraqi Freedom" rather than the USS Abraham Lincoln's mission in carrying out its part of "Operation Iraqi Freedom." Despite the obvious transparency of the White House's mea culpa, MSNBC's headline suggests that the White House offered an honest admittance of arrogance in the shameless public relations stunt that was "Mission Accomplished." This decision by MSNBC is extremely puzzling given the seven and a half years of habitual bullshitting on the part of Bush & Co; at this point, shouldn't it be routine for any and every media outlet to pass on the words of the White House with a reality translator? Apparently not, as we are subjected to the reporting only of White House spokesperson Dana Perino's flimsy explanation and ensuing whining about the effects of the White House's "mistake" on President Bush's reputation. If the media were performing its true service to the American public, MSNBC's headline would have looked more like this:
White House offers impossible-to-swallow explanation of that ridiculous "Mission Accomplished" banner
Actually, sources tell me that was the original headline . . . until one of President Bush's dogs ate it, that is. Unfortunately, neither Barney nor Miss Beazely seems ready to offer any confession at the moment.
