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All Hail the Bush Literati

A BUZZFLASH READER COMMENTARY
by Suzanne

It's amusing when Jr. and Pickles try to go all JFK and Jackie. Dubya wrote a sophomoric poem that would embarrass an inebriated undergrad, describing his wife as a "lump in the bed." JFK was a best selling Pulitzer Prize winning author of "Profiles in Courage" and "Why England Slept." His Inaugural address and "I Am A Berliner" speeches entered the lexicon as no others. Both JFK and Jackie were certifiable eggheads, history buffs and bibliophiles. Both lived in Europe after college, traveled widely and were true internationalists.

Mrs. Bush just opened the Book Festival comparing reading to an "itch you can't reach." Ugh. Jackie edited over 100 fine books for Doubleday; and wrote articles for the "New Yorker" under a nom de plume. At Vassar she won the "Edna St. Vincent Millay" prize for literature. She restored the White House to historical authenticity, redesigned lovely gardens and wrote the first White House Guide book ever which has been a big money maker for the White House curator's office.

She caused historical preservation laws to be enacted. And worked to save and restore historical buildings and sites including Grand Central Station in NYC, and the pyramids in Egypt that were threatened by the Aswan Dam project. The gift of the Temple of Dendur to America in NYC's MOMA was in honor of her efforts. She worked on the Save Venice projects, and was instrumental in bringing the Mona Lisa to America for public viewing. These are but a few from a very long list of her efforts to lift others and preserve and highlight cultural heritage while avoiding publicity for herself.

After only 90 days in office the Kennedy's were beloved all around the world. Millions poured into the streets waving American flags across Latin America, Europe and Asia because the Kennedy's lit a match of hope in the world that reflected American civilization in a glittering light. Jack--an actual war hero--was present in San Francisco for the ratification of the United Nations. He gave the world the Alliance for Progress, the Peace Corps, the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, the President's Council on Youth Fitness, the first ever presidential Committee on the Status of Women, and the reach for the moon. His press conferences were legendary for his quick wit. When Helen Thomas asked him "What are you doing for women?" He quipped, "Well, I don't know Ms. Thomas, but I'm sure whatever it is, it isn't enough!"

Jackie spoke French, Italian and Spanish. President de Gaulle said "She showed the whole world how to behave."Both had infinite respect for other people's dignity and opinions. While Dubya brags he doesn't read the papers, JFK took speed reading in order to read more. Jackie's beautiful watercolors graced UNICEF greeting cards, she raised two beautiful children, and was one of the top horsewomen in the country.

I hope that the "lump in the bed" and the "lumphead" are "having a nice day" planning what next to bomb, destroy, empty of meaning and vulgarize.

Suzanne, San Francisco

A BUZZFLASH READER COMMENTARY