Monday, March 17, 2003
A COUPLE OF THINGS ABOUT THE SPEECH
This gets very political. You have been warned.
"The United States of America has the sovereign authority to use force in assuring its own national security."
That line just gave me chills. The very act of using the terms "United States of America" and "sovereign" in the same sentence is a political statement, a raised middle finger to the U.N.
"That duty falls to me as commander of chief by the oath I have sworn, by the oath I will keep."
It's a very straightforward statement of intent, but the part about oath-keeping, as it will be for every President from now on who talks about honor and fidelity, cannot but amount to, subtextually, a raised middle finger to Clinton. The rumors about Clinton being the next UN Secretary General, by the way, make perfect sense; WJC would be a perfect fit at the temple of sanctimony on the East River.
"The tyrant will soon be gone. The day of your liberation is near."
Simultaneously a prediction and a plain statement of fact.
"...the American people can know that every measure has been taken to avoid war, and every measure will be taken to win it."
A veiled warning to Saddam.
"No act of theirs can alter the course or shake the resolve of this country. We are a peaceful people -- yet we're not a fragile people, and we will not be intimidated by thugs and killers."
Simultaneously a declaration and a challenge.
"Terrorists and terror states do not reveal these threats with fair notice, in formal declarations -- and responding to such enemies only after they have struck first is not self-defense, it is suicide."
The sound you hear is the horrified, collective clucking and tut-tutting of the Kofis and Hanses and Jacqueses of the world, who are sounding more and more like Margaret Dumont in a Marx Brothers movie.
"The security of the world requires disarming Saddam Hussein now."
Another blasphemy. For the UN apparat, security is utterly nonjudgemental.
"And when the dictator has departed, they can set an example to all the Middle East of a vital and peaceful and self-governing nation."
Interesting that this belief now gets ridiculed by members of what was at one point the party of Wilson. Clinton really did change everything for the Democrats.
"That is the future we choose."
The resolve and decisiveness of this little statement are so American, so dismissive of the passivity and complacency which are the hallmark of socialism, I can easily understand why the UN bureaucrats would hate it. All I can say is, long may that middle finger wave.
This gets very political. You have been warned.
"The United States of America has the sovereign authority to use force in assuring its own national security."
That line just gave me chills. The very act of using the terms "United States of America" and "sovereign" in the same sentence is a political statement, a raised middle finger to the U.N.
"That duty falls to me as commander of chief by the oath I have sworn, by the oath I will keep."
It's a very straightforward statement of intent, but the part about oath-keeping, as it will be for every President from now on who talks about honor and fidelity, cannot but amount to, subtextually, a raised middle finger to Clinton. The rumors about Clinton being the next UN Secretary General, by the way, make perfect sense; WJC would be a perfect fit at the temple of sanctimony on the East River.
"The tyrant will soon be gone. The day of your liberation is near."
Simultaneously a prediction and a plain statement of fact.
"...the American people can know that every measure has been taken to avoid war, and every measure will be taken to win it."
A veiled warning to Saddam.
"No act of theirs can alter the course or shake the resolve of this country. We are a peaceful people -- yet we're not a fragile people, and we will not be intimidated by thugs and killers."
Simultaneously a declaration and a challenge.
"Terrorists and terror states do not reveal these threats with fair notice, in formal declarations -- and responding to such enemies only after they have struck first is not self-defense, it is suicide."
The sound you hear is the horrified, collective clucking and tut-tutting of the Kofis and Hanses and Jacqueses of the world, who are sounding more and more like Margaret Dumont in a Marx Brothers movie.
"The security of the world requires disarming Saddam Hussein now."
Another blasphemy. For the UN apparat, security is utterly nonjudgemental.
"And when the dictator has departed, they can set an example to all the Middle East of a vital and peaceful and self-governing nation."
Interesting that this belief now gets ridiculed by members of what was at one point the party of Wilson. Clinton really did change everything for the Democrats.
"That is the future we choose."
The resolve and decisiveness of this little statement are so American, so dismissive of the passivity and complacency which are the hallmark of socialism, I can easily understand why the UN bureaucrats would hate it. All I can say is, long may that middle finger wave.
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