Catholic and Enjoying It!
Yep. Saw the bow. Slept like a baby anyway. Don’t much care. He’s the amateur President. He makes these dumb blunders a lot. As dumb blunders go, I prefer these to, say, plunging us into useless wars that cost hundreds of thousands of lives and inaugurating a regime of legal torture and war crimes. For some reason, the people who have are having hysterics over a stupid bow had no problem making every excuse in the world for the stupidities of the previous administration.
In a related matter, I can’t help noticing that the people who turned a complete blind eye to the catastrophic blunders of the past Administration have now developed such keen vision that they can see all manner of Evil Mastermind Genius in the current Administration, even as they are simultaneously denouncing Obama as a fool who can’t function without a teleprompter. Me: I ask, “Which is it? Is the guy an evil genius or an helpless boob? Make up your mind. Or some of us will be forced to conclude that, as you did with the previous Administration, you don’t actually know what you are talking about and are just regurgitating the pre-packaged talking points you pick up from media talking heads on radio and Fox News.”
I’ve thought all along that Obama seems to me to be making blunders I would associate with an amateur, with somebody who doesn’t quite know what he’s doing. I think that’s sufficient explanation and don’t think we need recourse to The Vast Evil Genius Conspiracy that so many paranoid Righties are leaping to believe in.
That said, I do think there is something in this bit of analysis from a reader:
Our media feeds on hate, strife and conflict. Hence this story, which goes trolling for anti-monarchist, anti-Japanese sentiments that might provoke its readers. Note how it hits all the great tunes — an American leader bowing and scraping to furners, the arcane silliness of monarchy to begin with, then Hirohito and Tojo. Of course, pointing out the idiocy will start a recrimination safari into HiroshimaNagasakiland. Can people informed by what are, in effect, subway taggers make intelligent choices?
I suspect that’s a much more fruitful way to approach this whole story. How often do we let ourselves get whipped into a frenzy by the news? Why do news people whip us up so much? What’s in it for them? Is there a scriptural mandate for being whipped into frenzies frequently? How does this square with the apostle’s counsel:
Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, do; and the God of peace will be with you. (Philippians 4:8-9)
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