Monday, July 04, 2005

By the way, it's nice to see that the Bush speechwriting shop knows how to recycle:

Bush speech in Morgantown, West Virginia, today: The war we are fighting came to our shores on September the 11th, 2001....

Nationally televised Bush speech at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, Wednesday night: The war reached our shores on September the 11th, 2001.

Today: They seek to spread their ideology of tyranny and oppression across the world.

Wednesday night: Their aim is to remake the Middle East in their own grim image of tyranny and oppression....

Today: After that day, I made a pledge to the American people, we will not wait to be attacked again.

Wednesday night: After September the 11th, I made a commitment to the American people: This nation will not wait to be attacked again.

Today: Iraq is the latest battlefield in the war on terror.

Wednesday night: Iraq is the latest battlefield in this war.

Today: We're taking the fight to the terrorists abroad so we do not have to face them here at home.

Wednesday night: There is only one course of action against them: to defeat them abroad before they attack us at home.

Today: And our military is helping to train Iraqi forces so they can defend their own liberty. Our strategy can be summed up this way: As Iraqis stand up, we will stand down....

Wednesday night: And as we pursue the terrorists, our military is helping to train Iraqi security forces so that they can defend their people and fight the enemy on their own. Our strategy can be summed up this way: As the Iraqis stand up, we will stand down.

Today: On this Fourth of July, and in the days ahead, I ask every American to find a way to thank the men and women defending our freedom. There's so many ways to do so. You can fly the flag, or send a letter to the troops in the field, or help a military family down the street. The Department of Defense has set up a web site, Americasupportsyou.mil. You can go there to learn about efforts in your own community.

Wednesday night: This Fourth of July, I ask you to find a way to thank the men and women defending our freedom -- by flying the flag, sending a letter to our troops in the field, or helping the military family down the street. The Department of Defense has set up a website -- AmericaSupportsYou.mil. You can go there to learn about private efforts in your own community.

Hey, why not? It worked so well on Wednesday night, right?

*****

New York reporters couldn't figure out how [Huey Long] expected to get space with the same gag every time he came to town, but now I think I understand. He was from a country that had not yet entered the era of mass communications. In Louisiana, a stump speaker still tells the same joke at every stop on a five-speech afternoon. He has a different audience each time, like an old vaudeville comic, and Huey just hadn't realized that when a gag gets national circulation it's spoiled.

--A. J. Liebling, The Earl of Louisiana

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