1984 Game Page and Essay Topics

[Tian]

 Greetings,

Kebo, you asked where activists get their information.

Many activist do their own research among people who have direct access to information, either because the system is leaking, or because they are negatively affected by that system.

Even in "1984", the system is not watertight. The proletariat, kept in ignorance, are still "free" in the sense that they are not under direct surveillance. The problem is that they suffer from false consciousness. If I remember correctly, Winston went do their areas (the "ghetto") to try to find out about things, but very few could remember the past or cared to do so......

In our real world, the system cannot completely stop the truth, they just outnumber the true information with propaganda. If we look closely, and search other sources than the mainstream, we can still find the truth. This is actually what Rootsie said earlier.

For instance, I think that censorship is harder in the USA than in Europe. A couple of weeks ago, the Norwegian national broadcasting showed a French docu about the CIA's atrocities. I doubt that national TV in America would show this one.....
While it was showing, the sound disappeared. It later came back, but I guess many viewers had already changed the channel. I never heard any explanation, it might be sabotage by the CIA (who has all electronic transmissions under surveillance anyway) or someone loyal to the USA in the TV studio.

Seshata, I can see your point about the danger of certain independent activists. I think we need to watch out for what you are saying there.

Actually, thought crime is being introduced in our new anti-terror laws, where people can be convicted for their intentions.

Still, I think there are better chances of fighting the system in the real world than in "1984". "1984" is still a warning to us about the worst case scenario.

WE NEED TO KEEP IN MIND THAT THE SYSTEM IS NOT ALL-POWERFUL, IT CAN BE BEATEN!

Let's fight until the Babylon system is down and destroyed! People are fighting against imperialism all over the world now, there is hope that we can win!

The struggle continues!

Tian

[Kebo]

No doubt a lucid response Tian. Appreciated and received.
You say that the system is not watertight.

You touch on another question. Does the Imperialist system
have a lock on the game at this ppoint, or is there truly room for the rebels/people to win. I'll bet that some informed visionaries have concluded that the situation is hopeless, but is there Hope? Perhaps the system has every angle covered. At this point I don't know, although I do have hope in my heart.

Kebo

[Tian]

 Greetings, Kebo

That is an interesting and important question you are raising. I'll try to share my position on this.

I believe no human being, or man-made system for that sake, has a "lock on the game", simply because it is NOT a game, we are talking about the real world. The only one powerful enough to determine the outcome of history, would be GOD. And I believe that even God has not determined the world, prophecies are warnings to us. (Sorry, this was besides the point - I don't want to discuss beliefs/religion here)

The best argument that there is hope, is HISTORY. We need to study history and learn from it.

History teaches us that NO EMPIRE HAS EVER SURVIVED!!!

Limiting the discussion to the last century, what happened to the Ottomans, Germans, Japanese, British and Soviet empires, to name but a few? They all collapsed!

I seriously believe, supported by many critical thinkers around the world, that the AMERICAN EMPIRE WILL FALL WITHIN OUR LIFETIME!

I think George Bush knows (or fears) this as well, and that explains why he is so desperate. But his desperation and impatience will most likely lead to IMPERIAL OVERSTRETCH, something that brought down many empires in history. I predict that the US will not be able to bear the costs (economic, human and political) of continuing the "war on terror" for decades. Keep in mind that for every new war, America will lose support and recruit more terrorists.

Looking back to 1984, maybe we Westerners, either we live in Norway or the US, are the ones in the "outer party", the ones under surveillance, the ones that lose hope? Perhaps we are the deceived ones.

If we look to the Third World, where there is less access to misinformation, and more access to direct experience and suffering, it's obvious that the system has NOT got every angle covered. If enough people join the anti-imperialist fight, the imperialists will have no chance!!!

It is a question of time, but time is on our side! And there is always the danger of a new empire replacing the American one. Some have suggested China......

I hope we can continue reasoning this issue further, as it's very important, I think....

Tian

[iyah360]

posted:

"I seriously believe, supported by many critical thinkers around the world, that the AMERICAN EMPIRE WILL FALL WITHIN OUR LIFETIME!"

The American Empire and the European Union are yin and yang to one another. The beast is private, secret, economic entities that can play nation-states off of one another and all laws are being erased which allow the nation state to protect itself and populace from their whim.

[Tian]

 Greetings!

Point taken, iyah. Thanks for your post!

To illustrate with an example: when the German empire fell, the same Nazis were recruited by the CIA. I know, there would be numerous examples of this, where the people with power just leave the sinking ship and jump on the next one.

The European Union will probably suffer the same fate as the American empire.....

But I still believe, if the infrastructure of the system breaks down, it will be difficult for these economic elites to maintain their position, or even survive.

Our dependency on technology makes us very, very vulnerable. Large-scale power failures is just one thing that makes the Western world collapse.

Our dependency on international trade makes us very vulnerable as well. Imagine large scale terrorism against the shipping industry, it will mean the end of the global, liberal economy......

Tian

[seshatasefekht7]

peace and hotep,

with the advent of the machine, man's production of goods increased tremendously. utopia was set aside by the capitalist and dystopia continued along with the theft of human production of surplus goods. instead of sharing this surplus with the working class, the capitalist enabled themselves by absorbing the excess capital created by mass production of workers. why is it harder for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven than a camel to enter the eye of a needle? within the capitalistic system the capitalist steal from petit capitalists as well as the common worker.

Tian, if the infrastructure of the system breaks down and if we successfully inhibit the people with power from just leaving the sinking ship and jump on the next one, we must not destroy the machine or become machine breakers. the capitalist welcome an attempted violent overthrow of their decadent system which would allow them to continue jumping from ship to ship..... the only way to prevent them from escaping and setting up elsewhere is to legally and gradually take their ships since we could never compete with pschopaths with their choice of their own weapons of mass destructions. is it better to be an enemy at the gates or within them? trojan horse theory.

like iyah360 said, the beast is private, secret, economic entities that can play nation-states off of one another and all laws are being erased which allow the nation state to protect itself.

it  would seem difficult for westerners, in general,  to make up the ones in the "outer party" because in the world of 1984 the world is divided and controlled by three superstates and each one consists of inner(5%), outer(10%) and proletariat(85%). the ones under surveillance are basically the outer party members who are tried and tested for membership into the inner party. they eventually end up in room 101. they are the one who must be strip of hopes or other loyalties. also, within the three superstates the inner party is at war with all of the states' inhabitants for the sole purpose of maintaining its hieratical/pyramidal structure where the few(eye) rule over the many(body).

the only hope remains with the proles latent consciousness.

Tian, if we look to the third world(please consider the proles as the third world collectively), where there is less access to misinformation, and more access to direct experience and suffering, it's obvious that the system has NOT got every angle covered.  true.  however if people fight the capitalist using its self defeating methods, we will have no chance!!!

if the american empire fall, you can be assured that big brother has a long awaited contigency plan.   the empire must be carefully transformed in our life time or over the next century.

Tian, i think george bush knows nothing and fears everything but his masters  pressume to know everything and fears nothing. if we have considered IMPERIAL OVERSTRETCH, remember big brother has also studied the cycles of history. the inner party will be able to bear the costs (economic, human and political) of continuing the "war on terror" for hundreds of years until a 'free radical' appears. Keep in mind that the purpose of war is the destruction of surplus goods instead of sharing them with the working class.

History teaches us that NO EMPIRE HAS EVER SURVIVED until the age of big brother (which is only a progression of dystopia that ends  with zamyatin's "we"). mankind's inhumanity to mankind lead to his displacement with machines.

if we fight until the Babylon system is down and destroyed then we bow to the sethian gods of war and lose.

how was the battle between horus/hero/hera and seth/typhoon ended? in court not on a battlefield.....our hope is with maat which is the one angle that the system could not cover.

to hell withe sedition.

freedomisahapislave

[seshatasefekht7]

peace and hotep,

ps--

Mahathir, a respected leader in the developing world with a long history of making articulate, provocative comments, is retiring Oct. 31 after 22 years in power. He told the Islamic leaders that Muslims had achieved "nothing" in more than 50 years of fighting Israel.

"They survived 2,000 years of pogroms not by hitting back but by thinking," Mahathir said of the Jews. "They invented socialism, communism, human rights and democracy so that persecuting them would appear to be wrong, so that they can enjoy equal rights with others."

Mahathir said the world's "1.3 billion Muslims cannot be defeated by a few million Jews," but suggested the use of political and economic tactics, not violence, to achieve a "final victory."

freedomisahapislave

[Tian]

 Greetings, seshatasefekht

It's a pleasure reasoning with you. Thanks for commenting upon my points!

However, it is not quite clear to me what you suggest that we do. So, I have a few questions about things unclear to me....

You said, "the only way to prevent them from jumping ship, is to legally and gradually take their ships". I interpret this that we should work within the system, to take over control. Does this imply reform over revolution? In that case, how?

I agree with you that hope lies with the proles/Third World latent consciousness. Then you said, "if people fight the capitalist using its self-defeating methods, we will have no chance". What exactly are the methods you are referring to?

I see your point about the machines being a new factor to the equation. Good point! Still, I pointed out that machines also make them (and us) dependent and vulnerable.

I also see your argument to fight the struggle in other ways than with violence and war.

Peace,

Tian

[seshatasefekht7]

peace and hotep,

firstly, tian,

"6. How would you protect yourself against the Thought Police? Is there any defense? What can you do, personally, to prevent Ingsoc from becoming reality? "  

isn't this the appropriate question?

for years i have advocated the development of an independent african in amorica  congress. consisting of the combined leadership of every progressive organization at our disposal. instead of having a few  sacrificial leaders, we should be represented by a body of  self replenishing leadership forming an oaau(or african unity) in amorica which should present one clear thought on relevent issues. a real 'black' caucus.   one people. one aim. one love.  

i hope this clarify just what we should do. yes we should work within the system to better it rather than take over control through revolt. reformation over revolution or we will throw out the baby with the bathwater.  if we africans had no blame, i would choose revolution. however i know different. we produced 'white'ness.

tian, "if people fight the capitalist using its self-defeating methods, we will have no chance", because self defeating method/tactics shown historically to fail. we cannot fight a perceived enemy by using its own tactics. we will never defeat a psychopath without becoming the same. we cannot utilize ignorance, arrogance and stubborness.

to prevent Ingsoc from becoming reality we must raise an organization of rational and respected voices, unlike my own, to develop our own declaration of independence from all would be tyrants. our combined organizational leadership should convene regularly and publicly on general issues if only by internet alone. then it would really matter if we collectively opposed or promoted anything.

freedomisahapislave

[seshatasefekht7]

peace and hotep,

"8. You are a budding O'Brien type of person; what important career decisions would you make? What would you do with a friend like Winston? "

if i was the o'brien type of person, my first career decision  would be selling  out to big brother. i would accept any and every little trinket. i would appease myself. i would join in a rebellion against truth. i would harvest a world of wantabe o'brien's and use the hell out of them. everyone would be a thought criminal except me.

a friend like winston would be canon fodder. spent and use by me to ensure that i receive more trinkets because winston doesn't know what i have endured. my loss of humanity. my my my. winston's could never be my friend. he is more like a pet that i saved. yes, i saved that miserable maggot and i will bash his brains in when it wish. i am winston's master. oh yeah, and  i am big brother also........

freedomisahapislave            

[seshatasefekht7]

peace and hotep,

freedum  = slavery

war = peace

ignorance = strenght


9. Write your own essay in Newspeak. Note the differences in what you want to say and how it actually comes out. Does Newspeak  destroy thought? Does it enable the government to control people? What types of Newspeak do we use today? Does it perform the same function? Does it affect the way we do things in society?  

"Timeline of Saddam Hussein's rise and fall from power
A glance at the life of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein:
April 28, 1937: Saddam Hussein is born in Tikrit to peasants of the Sunni Muslim minority in Iraq. Abandoned by his mother, he is raised for a time by his Muslim uncle.

1955-57: Saddam attends nationalist school in Baghdad, joins the Baath Socialist Party and takes part in a coup attempt on the king and prime minister.

1958: Saddam spends six months in prison for slaying his communist brother-in-law.

1959: After taking part in an assassination attempt on the prime minister, Saddam escapes to Syria with an injured leg. He later travels to Egypt under the protection of Egyptian President Gamel Abdel Nasser.

1962: Saddam enters the University of Cairo; the following year, the Baath Party overthrows Iraq's prime minister, paving the way for Saddam to return to Iraq and marry his first cousin, Sajida Khairallah Tulfah.

1964-66: The Iraq government imprisons Saddam for plotting against it. He escapes.

1968: A leader in the Revolutionary Command Council, Saddam plays a major role in the Baath Party's coup.

July 16, 1979: Saddam becomes the head of state, chairman of the Revolutionary Command Council, prime minister, commander of the armed forces and secretary-general of the Baath Party. By August, he orders the execution of about 500 senior members of the government.

1980: Iraq goes to war with Iran. Saddam uses mustard gas on the Iranian people in 1984.

1988: Saddam orders the use of mustard gas and nerve agents to kill at least 5,000 civilians in the Kurdish region of Iraq; Iran and Iraq declare a cease-fire.

Aug. 2, 1990: Iraq invades Kuwait.

Jan. 17, 1991: U.S.-led coalition begins 37-day bombing portion of Gulf War.

Feb. 24, 1991: Operation Desert Storm ground war begins, lasts 100 hours and chases Iraqi troops from Kuwait.

1991: Shiite rebellion and Kurdish uprising erupt in Iraq. Saddam brutally crushes both, killing thousands.

1996: Saddam orders the execution of two sons-in-law for defecting to Jordan after luring them back to Iraq with a false pardon.

1997: Saddam repeatedly denies attempts by United Nations weapons inspectors to resume inspections.

2000: Saddam, worth $7 billion, ranks 55th on the Forbes richest list. The U.S. calls for a special war crimes tribunal to try Saddam.

2002-03: Iraq allows weapons inspectors back into Iraq amid pressure by the U.N. and U.S. war threats. U.S. officials continue to assert that Saddam is hiding weapons of mass destruction.

March 17, 2003: President Bush tells Saddam to leave Iraq within 48 hours or be ousted by military force; the ultimatum comes after a failed attempt to get the U.N. Security Council to agree on a course of action to disarm Iraq.

March 18: Saddam appears on Iraqi television and defies Bush's ultimatum.

March 19: War begins with an airstrike on a compound where Saddam is believed to be meeting with advisers in Baghdad; he later appears on Iraqi television.

March 20: 40 Tomahawk missiles are fired on Dora Farms, south of Baghdad, where Saddam and sons are said to be. Later in the day, Saddam appears on Iraqi TV.

April 4: Iraqi TV shows video of Saddam walking on a Baghdad street.

April 7: U.S. warplanes bomb a section of the Mansour district in Baghdad where Saddam and sons were said to be meeting.

April 9: Baghdad falls.

April 18: Audio and video recordings of Saddam surface, purportedly made April 9.

July 4: CIA says an al-Jazeera TV audiotape of Saddam saying he is still in Iraq and directing attacks is "most likely his (Saddam's) voice."

July 17: Arab TV airs audiotape purportedly of Saddam denouncing Iraq's newly formed Governing Council.

July 22: Saddam's sons and top lieutenants, Uday and Qusay, are killed in a firefight with U.S. troops. Shortly after the raid, U.S. troops mount another in Mosul, saying "we missed him by a matter of hours."

July 27, predawn: U.S. troops raid three farms in Tikrit, again announcing they missed Saddam by 24 hours.

Evening: Although not confirmed, witnesses report soldiers raided the home of a tribal leader in Baghdad, looking for Saddam.

July 29: Iraqi TV airs audiotape of Saddam acknowledging his sons' deaths; CIA says it is authentic.

Aug. 1: Another audiotape issues a new call to arms against U.S. forces; CIA authenticates it as Saddam.

Dec. 13, 8:30 p.m. local time: U.S. forces capture Saddam on a farm in Ad Dwar. He was hiding in a 6-foot by 8-foot hole that had been camouflaged with bricks and dirt.

Sources: Associated Press and USA TODAY research" according to big brother's newspeak


thoughtcrime does not entail death
thoughtcrime is death..........

oceania is at war withe east asia
oceania has always been at war withe east asia
oceania has never been at war withe eurasia

under the spreading chestnut tree
i saw you and
you saw me......  

next.

freedomisahapislave

[seshatasefekht7]

peace and hotep,

some people today wanted to know why saddam wasn't taken care of back then. was it because of noriega?  


Houston Chronicle


NOVEMBER 6, 1993

Column: Editorials

UNRELIABLE SOURCES
CIA has knack of employing most ruthless autocrats


By Staff

Edition: 2 STAR
Section: A NEWS
Page: 36






Index Terms:
Editorial Opinion



Estimated printed pages: 2



Article Text:

The Central Intelligence Agency cannot conduct its worldwide spying operations without coming into contact with unsavory people. However, as the events in Haiti remind Americans, the CIA has an uncanny knack for fostering and enriching some of the worst autocrats, drug traffickers and murderers of our time.

Following the circulation of a fake CIA report alleging that ousted Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide was mentally ill, U.S. officials revealed that during the 1980s the CIA employed some of the principal military officers and politicians who overthrew Aristide and are now making Haiti such a hell on earth. Congress' General Accounting Office reports that Haiti's strongman, Gen. Raoul Cedras, and Police Chief Michel Francois are key suspects in the smuggling of tons of cocaine from Colomb ia to the United States via Haiti.

The CIA's involvement in Haiti is reminiscent of its operations in Panama, where it recruited, paid and nourished Gen. Manuel Noriega. Noriega is now imprisoned in the United States after the U.S. invasion of Panama and his conviction on drug charges. Like his Haitian counterparts, Noriega may have been a valued information source for the CIA, but the information he provided could not possibly have compensated for the injuries he gave to democracy and human rights.

The CIA says it needs to employ dictators and cutthroats such as members of the repressive Haitian military in order to keep U.S. officials fully informed of political developments. Why is it, then, that U.S. officials and the agency seem constantly taken by surprise by the actions of the thugs they employ? If the CIA still needs to know about political reality in Haiti, perhaps it could turn to a number of excellent books on the subject in the library, or consult the news pages of a good daily newspaper.






Copyright 1993 Houston Chronicle
Record Number: 11*06*1164088

freedomisahapislave

[seshatasefekht7]

peace and hotep,


Houston Chronicle


October 14, 2001

Houston Chronicle 100 YEARS 1981-90


Author: Staff


Edition: 2 STAR
Section: SPECIAL
Page: 14






Index Terms:
Profile
Houston Chronicle Events History



Estimated printed pages: 1



Article Text:

Reagan inaugurated as hostages freed in Iran, 1981.



U.S. Centers for Disease Control announces first cases of AIDS, 1981.


Prince Charles marries Lady Diana Frances Spencer, 1981.


President Reagan wounded by John Hinckley in Washington, D.C., along with press secretary James Brady, 1981.


War in the Falkland Islands breaks out between Argentina and Great Britain; British launch massive effort to liberate the islands, Argentine defenders surrender, 1982.


Chinese and British agree to restore Hong Kong to China in 1997, 1984.


Mikhail Gorbachev becomes general secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, 1985.


Space shuttle Challenger explodes 74 seconds after launch at Cape Canaveral, killing seven astronauts, 1986.


Dow Jones average drops 508 points, Oct. 19, 1987.


Pam Am Flight 103, bound from London to New York, blown up, killing 258, Dec. 21, 1987.


U.S. invades Panama, ousts Manuel Noriega, 1989.


Tiananmen Square Revolt in People's Republic of China, 1989.


President George H.W. Bush nominates General Colin Powell as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the first black to attain that rank, 1989.

Caption:
Photo: 241 U.S. Marines and 58 French killed as terrorists bomb U.S. installation and French barracks in Beirut, Lebanon, 1983 (color)





Copyright 2001 Houston Chronicle
Record Number: 3345152

freedomisahapislave  

[seshatasefekht7]

peace and hotep,


Houston Chronicle


NOVEMBER 28, 1992

Panamanian official may have unfrozen $1 million for cartel


Author: TOD ROBBERSON
Washington Post

Edition: 2 STAR
Section: A NEWS
Page: 26
Dateline: PANAMA CITY







Estimated printed pages: 2



Article Text:

PANAMA CITY -- Panama's top law enforcement officer, Attorney General Rogelio Cruz Rios, may have assisted a Colombian cocaine cartel by releasing more than $1 million frozen in the cartel's bank accounts here, according to U.S. and Panamanian officials.

The officials said Cruz unfroze bank accounts that the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration believes were used in a money-laundering operation by the Cali cartel, Colombia's second-largest cocaine-trafficking syndicate.

According to a subsequent ruling by the Panamanian Supreme Court, Cruz did not have the authority to take such action.

U.S. officials acknowledged that Cruz's action has, at the very least, set back efforts to curtail Colombian drug operations here.

The United States invaded Panama and installed a pro-American government in 1989 with the express purpose of eradicating this country's high-level cooperation with Colombian drug traffickers.

The Bush administration claimed a major victory in the international war on drugs when U.S. troops captured dictator Manuel Noriega, who is now serving a 40-year prison term in Florida for drug trafficking.

In an interview, Cruz said that he had unfrozen the bank accounts but said he was strictly adhering to Panamanian law -- which, he said, prohibited the assets from being frozen.

He maintained that the charges were being made against him for political reasons, adding that he had informed the U.S. Embassy before taking the measure.

He added that he believed he would have the authority to unfreeze other accounts in the future.

Even before the invasion, the Bush administration had concerns about possible links between Cruz and the Cali cartel, according to U.S. and Panamanian officials.

Nevertheless, the administration kept silent when President Guillermo Endara named him attorney general shortly after Endara took the oath of office at a U.S. military base in late 1989. According to Panamanian law, Endara cannot now dismiss Cruz.

Cruz served as secretary of the board of directors of First Interamericas Bank, S.A. -- a bank allegedly owned by the cartel -- from November 1984 until July 1985, according to documents obtained from the public registry here.

The Panamanian government dissolved the bank in mid-1985 after determining that it had been used for cartel money-laundering operations.

Cruz said that he resigned from the bank upon learning that fellow board members were Cali cartel members. The bank was dissolved days after his resignation.

According to documents provided by government investigators, Cruz over the past 2 1/2 years has unfrozen more than $1 million in Panamanian bank accounts -- despite having been told by the DEA that the accounts were owned by the Cali cartel and managed by at least one of his former colleagues on the board of First Interamericas.






Copyright 1992 Houston Chronicle
Record Number: 11*28*1096152  

freedomisahapislave

[seshatasefekht7]

peace and hotep,


Houston Chronicle


February 14, 1988

Column: OUTLOOK

Will the real George Bush stand up?


Author: MARIANNE MEANS


Edition: 2 STAR
Section: OUTLOOK
Page: 1






Index Terms:
EDITORIAL OPINION
'CLT 'CLT ELECTIONS PRESIDENTIAL



Estimated printed pages: 3

Correction: Ms. Means, based in Washington, D.C., is a columnist for Hearst Newspapers.



Article Text:

I F HIS PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDACY is to survive, the real George Bush will have to stand up.



Assuming, of course, there "is" a real George Bush.


Iowa Republicans resoundingly rejected the vice president in large measure because they are confused about the identity of the man behind the big title. Bush has tried to run simultaneously both as President Reagan's loyal shadow and as an independent leader, two patently contradictory roles.


Bush did poorly in Iowa with those Republicans who think it is time for fundamental changes in Reagan's policies; they felt Bush's intimate association with the president was a liability. Yet he only got a fourth of those GOP voters who said they were supporters of Ronald Reagan.


Iowans were right to wonder just who George Bush is. He has yet to propose a political agenda of his own that might establish ways in which he differs from the president. He has not separated himself from Reagan on a single major issue. Yet nobody confuses his personality with that of Reagan.


Bush made a pitiful effort in New Hampshire to get a new start by claiming geographical affinity, echoing Sen. Robert Dole's successful Iowa message - he's "one of us." Bush cited the fact he was born in neighboring Massachusetts, grew up in Connecticut and summers in Maine. But the Bush imitation was as superficial as the original was powerful.


Dole's appeal was only marginally aimed at reminding Iowans of his roots next door in Kansas. Its principal message involved character: Dole was saying that he grew up poor, has worked hard for everything he has, and understands and relates to the needs of ordinary working people.


Bush, a product of wealth and privilege swaddled in the elitist trappings of the vice presidency, cannot make that linkage.


As to his own character, Bush sends conflicting messages.


Is the real George Bush still the man he was before entombment in the vice presidency - a moderate, a spokesman for the old Republican establishment overthrown by Ronald Reagan, an internationalist and a doubter of supply-side theories? Or is he, in the pattern of all converts, even more dedicated to the rigidly conservative Reagan ideology than the original right wingers?


Is the real Bush the one who is so puritan he uses prissy euphemisms, such as saying "deep doo-doo" instead of using a more pithy term for manure? Or is he the filthy-mouthed locker-room jock who swears at television anchors and tells dock workers he "kicked a little ass" after debating vice presidential nominee Geraldine Ferraro?


Is the real Bush the influential adviser who was "in the loop" on every important White House policy decision? Or the ineffectual hanger-on who didn't have a clue that the White House was pursuing an arms-for-hostage deal?


Is the real Bush the candidate who pledges earnestly to balance the budget that got so out of whack during the Reagan-Bush years? Or the one who not only promises never to raise taxes but wants to cut them some more while offering no realistic way of raising revenue or specifying which federal programs he would cut to reduce the deficits?


Is the real Bush the fellow who never said a peep while the administration tried to get tax breaks for segregated colleges, made sweeping cuts in federal programs for minorities and the disadvantaged and ignored the growing plight of the homeless? Or the one who seems compassionate, saying "prosperity means helping your brothers and sisters, whoever they are, whatever they are, whatever their needs?"


Is the real Bush the one who hides behind a campaign official to issue a toughly-worded attack on his rival's integrity and then whines, when confronted, that although he stands by the attack he hadn't read it? Or is he the man who contends that he is "a tiger" unafraid to face down any foe, including Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev?


Is the real Bush the one who stands up for law enforcement officials and claims to be a law-and-order man? Or is he the candidate who whips out a plastic pistol, points out it could go undetected through metal detectors and "kill the pilot of an airplane" and then vows to oppose pending legislation that would outlaw such guns?


Is the real Bush the Word War II veteran who boldly takes the offensive against the press, against Dole, against prying questions about his role in the Iran-Contra affair? Or is he the wimp of legend, who has nothing to say that has not been scripted for him and rehearsed privately in advance?


Is the real Bush the only one in the race who has supported Reagan all the time on every issue, as he now tells New Hampshire voters? Or is he the one who said he'd never support a tax increase, "period", just as President Reagan agreed to a conference with Congress over deficit-reduction proposals that included tax increases?


The confusion over Bush's identity is compounded by the fact that the big jobs on his resume involved carrying out duties dependent upon secrecy and policies established largely by others - head of the CIA, chairman of the GOP National Committee, U.S. representative to China, ambassador to the United Nations. His public record tells us little of his own views as he carried out those roles.


His cautious nature and reluctance to take risks have left the voters with a career paper trail and little more. If Bush is to win over hearts and minds, he will have to reveal more of himself than we have yet seen.



Caption:
Drawing: George Bush





Copyright 1988 Houston Chronicle
Record Number: HSC0214522978  


freedomisahapislave