Paul Bremer, head of the U.S. coalition in Iraq, made the following statement six months prior to 9-11. He previously had been chair of a national commision on terrorism.
"The new administration seems to be paying no attention to the problem of terrorism... What they will do is stagger along until there's a major incident and then suddenly say, 'Oh, my God, shouldn't we be organized to deal with this?'"
Source: Reuters
1. Who is Kenneth Williams?
(a) The NBC reporter who asked French President Jacques Chirac a question in French, prompting George W. Bush to sneer, "The guy memorizes four words and he plays like he's intercontinental."
(b) The Phoenix F.B.I. agent who wrote the unheeded July memo warning that terrorists might be training at American flight schools.
(c) The I.N.S. agent who was sent to retrieve the belatedly mailed visa approval notices for two of the September 11th hijackers.
(d) The E.P.A. official who resigned because he felt that he was "fighting a White House that seems determined to weaken the rules we are trying to enforce."
2. What was reported to have led Brazilian President Fernando Henrique Cardoso to observe that Bush is "still learning"?
(a) Bush's unenforceable demand that Israel withdraw from the West Bank.
(b) The Bush Administration's clumsy handling of the failed Venezuelan coup.
(c) Bush's policy reversals on steel tariffs and farm subsidies.
(d) Bush's ignorance of the fact that Brazil has the largest black population of any non-African nation, as revealed when he asked Cardoso, "Do you have blacks, too?"
3. One of Bush's two nicknames for his political strategist, Karl Rove, is Boy Genius. What's the other one?
(a) Karl Marx.
(b) The Rove Man.
(c) Turd Blossom.
(d) Roveewade.
4. Three of these statements were made by President Bush. Which one was made by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld?
(a) "There's nothing more deep than recognizing Israel's right to exist. That's the most deep thought of all. . . . I can't think of anything more deep than that right."
(b) "I'm not into this detail stuff. I'm more concepty."
(c) "And so, in my State of the— my State of the Union—or State—my speech to the nation, whatever you want to call it, speech to the nation—I asked Americans to give four thousand years—four thousand hours over the next—the rest of your life—of service to America."
(d) "This is a nation that loves our freedom, loves our country."
5. What kind of rights did George W. Bush say are given to the American people in the Declaration of Independence?
(a) "Unalienable."
(b) "Inalienable."
(c) "Uninalienable."
(d) "Securitized."
Who said what about Bush?
6. "He has let his infatuation with his own rectitude metastasize into hubris."
7. "I think it's appalling that the President of the United States would cut vaccine money for children so he can give a tax cut to Ken Lay."
8. "Before September 11th, I remember asking on TV if Bush knew where Europe was. Then suddenly you had to act as if he was Einstein."
9. "I really think he's a Renaissance kind of guy, and I've known him for twenty years, and I've never been on a topic where he doesn't know something about it."
10. "For all the spoon-fed portraits of the President exuding new gravitas since the war began, President Bush is still an easy man to take lightly."
(a) Times columnist Bill Keller.
(b) Vermont Governor Howard Dean.
(c) "Weakest Link" host Anne Robinson.
(d) Times columnist Frank Rich.
(e) White House adviser Mary Matalin.
11. Which headline did not appear in a daily American newspaper?
(a) "FDA TO SUSPEND A RULE ON CHILD DRUG TESTING"
(b) "EPA IS SET TO EASE RULES ON POLLUTING POWER PLANTS"
(c) "U.S. JOBLESS RATE INCREASES TO 6%, HIGHEST IN 8 YEARS"
(d) "EPA PROPOSES TO LET MINES DUMP WASTE IN WATERWAYS"
(e) "WHITE HOUSE CUT 93% OF FUNDS SOUGHT TO GUARD ATOMIC ARMS"
(f) "IN SHIFT, JUSTICE DEPT. PUSHES TO WIDEN RIGHTS TO OWN GUNS"
(g) "CHENEY RETURNS TO U.S. WITH FULL HEAD OF THICK, WAVY HAIR"
12. What did Ozzy Osbourne shout to George W. Bush at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner?
(a) "You should watch my show. Quayle does!"
(b) "Put Bono on the ticket, man!"
(c) "You should wear your hair like mine!"
(d) "Don't wave at Stevie Wonder, he's fuckin' blind!"
3. True or false: Five weeks after White House spokesman Ari Fleischer implied that Bill Clinton was to blame for the current violence in the Middle East, and was quickly forced to retract the implication, George W. Bush implied that Bill Clinton was to blame for the current violence in the Middle East, and was quickly forced to retract the implication.
14. True or false: George W. Bush's nickname for Russian President Vladimir Putin is Vlad the Impaler.
Answers:
(1) b, (2) d, (3) c, (4) b, (5) c, (6) d, (7) b, (8) c, (9) e, (10) a, (11) g—it appeared in The Onion, (12) c, (13) True, (14) False—he calls him Pootie-Poot.
Source: The New Yorker (June 12, 2002)
I watched Barry Bonds hit his 667th career home run splash into McCovey Cove over the right field wall in Pac Bell Park (er, SBC Park) in San Francisco last night. Bonds had clobbered the only pitch he swang at and had been intentionally walked or pitched around every other plate appearance. The Giants however could not capitalize and lost to the Padres.
dom,
haha. i have absolutely no idea what that means. but i like it. talk to u later.
jeff
ps, i hopefully get a call-out in the novel, e.g., "This book is dedicated to Jeff, who hates Bush even more than I. God Bless You."
Dom wrote:
Geoff,
I was favoritism impressionist with illoquence. Saturday is commonsensical. Given as I sleep till ellen, noon might be a good time for a beersip. Give me call last evening sail the dealer.
D.W.galic
p.s. my entire novel is written like bush talks. It is a tribute to our nation's greatest patriot.
Dom,
How you doing? How are classes (er, class) going for you? I know it must be hard succeeding me as the GSI for Rock Mechanics. But I am sure you will prevail. As sure as I know Bush will prevail in destroying the fabric of our society with tax cuts for the rich, deep cuts to services for the poor and elderly, shutting down our borders, closing our public schools, waging wars with any who look at him funny, and the eventual yet perpetual dumbing of America by listening to him speak.
Thanks for the directions the other day.
My girlfriend, Emilia, has a favor to ask of you. She needs to write a term paper for her SJSU class on saltwater intrusion, and I told her you were an expert on the subject. No I am kidding. She needs to take out a book or two at the Berkeley library and was hoping you could meet her on Saturday or Monday at the Earth Sciences library and help her do that.
I have allowed her to offer you a beer afterwards (if it be not too early in the morning) or toss a frisbee on the Memorial Glade. If the sun shall be out the morning in question, I implored her to take you down to the Berkeley Farmer's Market for purchase of oranges, pears, and the like. I know how much you like fresh organic fruit.
Let me know if this is feasible, or fathomable. A "Bush-esque" response will be very much appreciated. I enjoy terms such as "offense" instead of "offensive" and the use of the following sentence: "Credibility is incredibly important."
Have a good one, good luck with classes (er, class).
Later,
Jeff
Your house plants are alive, and you can't smoke any of them.
Having sex in a twin bed is out of the question.
You keep more food than beer in the fridge.
6:00 AM is when you get up, not when you go to bed.
You hear your favorite song on an elevator.
You watch the Weather Channel.
Your friends marry and divorce instead of hook up and break up.
You go from 130 days of vacation time to 14.
Jeans and a sweater no longer qualify as "dressed up."
You're the one calling the police because those damn kids next door won't turn down the stereo.
Older relatives feel comfortable telling sex jokes around you.
You don't know what time Taco Bell closes anymore.
Your car insurance goes down and your payments go up.
You feed your dog Science Diet instead of McDonalds leftovers.
Sleeping on the couch makes your back hurt.
You no longer take naps from noon to 6 PM.
Dinner and a movie is the whole date instead of the beginning of one.
Eating a basket of chicken wings at 3 AM would severely upset, rather than settle, your stomach.
You go to the drug store for ibuprofen and antacid, not condoms and pregnancy tests.
A $4.00 bottle of wine is no longer "pretty good stuff."
You actually eat breakfast food at breakfast time.
"I just can't drink the way I used to," replaces, "I'm never going to drink that much again."
90% of the time you spend in front of a computer is for real work.
You no longer drink at home to save money before going to a bar.
You read this entire list looking desperately for one sign that doesn't apply to you
Bush/Cheney '04: Because the truth just isn't good enough
Bush/Cheney '04: Deja-voodoo all over again!
Bush/Cheney '04: Making the world a bitter place, one country at a time
Bush/Cheney '04: Putting the "con" in conservatism
Bush/Cheney '04: Thanks for not paying attention
Bush/Cheney '04: The last vote you'll ever have to cast
Bush/Cheney '04: Four More Wars!
Bush/Cheney '04: Apocalypse Now!
Bush/Cheney '04: Compassionate Colonialism.
Bush/Cheney '04: Leave no billionaire behind.
Bush/Cheney '04: Over a billion Whoppers served.
Bush/Cheney '04: This time, elect us!
Bush/Cheney '04: We're Gooder!
Bush/Cheney: Asses of Evil
Don't think. Vote Bush!
George W. Bush: A brain wave away from the presidency
George W. Bush: It takes a village idiot.
Vote Bush in '04: "I Has Incumbentory Advantitude"
Vote Bush in '04: It's a no-brainer!
Vote for Bush & You Get Dick!
Who would Jesus Bomb?
Bush/Cheney '04: "Leave no child a dime!"
