Ugh.

I wrote about this last night on my own blog, but RK was down and I couldn't x-post.  Looks like I wasn't alone in disbelief over this asinine article.  My main gripe on Will?  What of HIS literary masterpieces in the article:

But notice, in the same sentence that the word "literally" appears, the word "infinitely." Earth to Webb: Words have meanings that not even senators can alter. And he has been elected to be a senator, not Humpty Dumpty in "Through the Looking Glass." ("When I use a word it means just what I choose it to mean -- neither more nor less.") America's national economic statistics are excellent; Webb could actually tell us how much richer the "top tier" has become, relative to other cohorts, over a particular span. But that would require him to actually say who he is talking about, and that takes time and effort, and senators -- Webb is a natural -- often are too busy for accuracy.

Based on Webb's behavior before being sworn in, one shudders to think what he will be like after that. He already has become what Washington did not need another of, a subtraction from the city's civility and clear speaking.

OK, back up. George Will is attacking Jim Webb's writings and speech, and in the same article he does so, he drops the following literary masterpieces:

Earth to Webb
(seen Zoolander?)

And he has been elected to be a senator, not Humpty Dumpty in "Through the Looking Glass."
(Um...right...)

He (Webb) already has become what Washington did not need another of, a subtraction from the city's civility and clear speaking.
(OK, buddy, here's the thing. If Bush is a "clear" and "civil" speaker, I will gladly take Jim Webb's big, fancy SAT words, ok? I happen to be the type of person that would LIKE their POTUS to be a little above the fray and well-educated.)

I don't really know what it's like for military families, either, but I'm not stupid enough to act the poseur to someone like Webb and pretend that I do know. I am smart enough to know they make sacrifices I can't even imagine.  Bush is not.  Although no one ever decided Bush was a smart guy, either.

It was only a matter of time till Will did this.  So, I am slightly amused.  This may be the only time in my life I quote him, but here goes:
"Well."

As for being "disrespectful" of the president: how respectful should a person be to a lying, election-stealing, torture-loving war criminal?

First, pompous...Defined as "having an excessive sense of self-importance, usually displayed through exaggerated seriousness or stateliness in speech or manner"

Second, poseur...Defined as "somebody who tries to impress others by behaving in an affected way."

Holy CRAP (Sorry George if that is not a proper use of that term here in hallowed capital of Democracy)...but were you frickin lookin in a mirror when you wrote this piece of CRAP (oh there I go again).

You are defining Jim Webb as having an excessive sense of self importance which is manifested by a desire to impress others by behaving in an affected way? Man you are describing yourself!!!!

George, George, George...you have been in Washington WAAAAY too long...get out into the real world for a bit, deflate that king sized ego of yours...you are a talking head on a moderately rated Sunday morning news program, and a editorialist who pretends to an undeserved intellectual superiority. You are no more important than any of the other thousand faceless talking heads who say what they need to to get noticed!!!

Brother...

In another act of courage and wise judgment, Webb chose not to have his photo taken with a man who not only has taken our country into a reckless war, but whose dangerous leadership style threatens this nation and the life of Jim Webb's son.

Webb wisely tried to avoid a confrontation; George Bush recklessly sought one out. He then arrogantly said, "That's not what I asked?"

This is beyond the pale. Jim Webb is a real patriot who fought and bled for his country and made his own way in this world. George Bush on the other hand is an AWOL flyboy who earned his stripes as a cheerleader at Andover and Yale and everywhere else he has gone not because of any innate talent, but because his father happened to be a rich and powerful man.

In life and in history, Webb wins hands down. Bush has proven his cheap mettle once again. Webb is a refreshing addition to the Senate and one who will not let Bush's arrogance and poor policy decisions slide.

I had to go to the dictionary on "infinitely" to make sure, but my surmise was correct.  In common usage it can mean something different than in the mathematical sense.  One definition from Dictionary.com:

"indefinitely or exceedingly great: infinite sums of money."  ---

It also means unmeasurable (which is a different meaning than, say, "boundless")  I think Webb's use of infintely was correct in the sense that the rich have so much money it is incomprehensible to the ordinary person.  I mean, what do you do with a billion dollars?

I agree with another writer above who talked about Will fearing Webb.  See my comment at http://www.raisingka...

This is how Webb makes "W" feel:

I didn't mean that he should literally bust Nancy Kerrigan in the kneecaps.  I'm a skater, for god's sake.  I meant it figuratively.

Dana Milbank displayed some savage wit today, which showed what an "empty suit" town D.C. is, and illustrates to me why people are afraid of Webb:

And what of the congressionally appointed Iraq Study Group? After nearly nine months of studying, the commission will finally give some recommendations next week. Its deliberations are so relaxed that its co-chairmen, James Baker and Lee Hamilton, found time on Monday to pose for an Annie Leibovitz photo shoot for Men's Vogue. (The current issue has features on "the new Bond temptress," the "Alpha Suit" and "power" wristwatches.)

Political Washington is in a state of suspended animation these days: waiting for Bob Gates to replace Donald Rumsfeld as secretary of defense, waiting for the Baker-Hamilton commission, waiting to see whether Bush will raise or lower troop levels. But with good ideas in short supply, and hopes falling that the Men's Vogue Study Group will produce a magic solution, leaders of both parties seem unable to do much more than heap blame on Maliki and argue about whether or not to call the Iraq carnage a civil war.

If George Will tried to tell that to somebody down here, they would listen politely, and he'd just get the classic  "you aren't from around here, are ya?"

Which means - you've got the manners of a boar hog.

Imagine.  Some things just never change.

I am even more proud that I worked on his campaign and that he is our Senator from the state of Virginia.  As far as
the middle class disappearing, it sure as hell is. More and more people are in poverty....look at Lousiana and the Ninth Ward.  Just what progress is being made in New Orleans to rebuild?  Bush and his ilk are not planning to rebuild New Orleans.  He doesn't give a hoot about anyone but his rich friends. 

Let's flood The Washington Post with responses to this insane idiotic editorial and give them a reality check.

Beginning in January, the breath of fresh air that Jim Webb will bring to Washington, D.C. should help rid it of many recent bad odors.

Perhaps by springtime, such new attitudes and ideas will have replaced old hot air in the nation's capital city.

Let's just take another collective deep breath and ask those all-important questions once again:

Is it 2007, 2008, or January 20, 2009 yet?  No, but soon it will be...

I'm breathing easier already, and it's not even December, 2006 yet.

Thanks!

Steve

Here's another -
http://www.washingto...

This article blasted Will way back: Counterpunch

He's a bit of a distraction?

http://www.huffingto...

Was this some subtle inside joke between George Will and himself that just got away from him?  Or has he really lost it? 

Easily among his worst columns in recent memory.  This is coming from someone who agrees with George Will more times than I'd like to admit.

This is truly Washington, in case you wonder what Washington truly is. Washington is a place where politics is just something you do all day. You lie, you send kids to war, you give them inadequate equipment, they're wounded and permanently maimed, they die, whatever. Then night falls, and you actually think you get to pretend that none of it matters. "How's your boy?" That, according to George Will, is a civil and caring question, one parent to another? It seems to me that it's exactly the sort of guy talk that passes for conversation in Bushworld, just one-up from the frat-boy banter that is usually so seductive to Bush's guests. George Bush once said to someone I know, "How old is that seersucker suit anyway?" and my friend (who should know better) went for it lock stock and barrel.

So finally someone said to George Bush, Don't think that what you stand for is beside the point. Don't think that because you're President you're entitled to my good opinion. Don't think that asking about my boy means that I believe for even one second that you care. If you did, you'd be doing something about bringing the troops home.

George Will thinks this is bad manners.

I don't.

In an open thread with links, Markos gives Raising Kaine some props.

http://www.washingto...

The Author perhaps should have questioned Prez Bush's use of the word "boy" to descibe the young man.
Son would have been more appropriate, but that wasn't Bush's point anyway as it was obvious that he just intended to goad Jim Webb into a reaction, his choice of words attests to that, imo.
Its obvious that Bush could give a crap about anyone's son or daughter, he's only interested in his stubborn desire to be King, at any cost.
Mr. Will, this is all hypocrisy, the height of it in fact.

Try as I may, I am unable to find a single sentance describing your outrage to Vice President Cheney's coarse "go f*** yourself" remark on the Senate floor early in this administration.  Is that what you consider to be civil behavior?

Since you have now apparently ascended to the role abandoned by self-appointed moralist and slot machine aficionado William Bennett, I beg you to elaborate on why Senator-elect Webb's reaction to "I didn't ask you that, I asked about your boy" amounts to incivility.  While Mr. Bush indeed occupies the office of president, don't you agree that his tenure has wrought sufficient "incivility" in nearly six (glacial) years that he will no doubt be regarded as an aberration in the history of this republic?

If the mid-term elections demonstrate anything, it is that the majority is not content to be represented by the doe-eyed hand-picked cultists that inhabit presidential photo-ops, and we will no longer bite our tongues and pretend that the current placeholder deserves civility.  He has, time and again, proven himself unworthy.

I dare say that Mr. Webb, a decorated Marine, can be trusted to have a proper regard for the office Mr. Bush currently occupies, and didn't intend his retort to demean that position.  His contempt was clearly --and accurately-- aimed to deflect a thoughtless attempt at familiarity, one which was obviously not welcomed, nor appropriate, given the circumstances.

Your opinion gave no consideration to the fact that the war in Iraq is not an intellectual exercise for Mr. Webb, nor did you acknowledge the burden of fear that Mr. Webb continues to bear conspicuously, though justly.  For you to hold him to a higher standard than Mr. Cheney, for you to expect Mr. Webb to remain "civil" in the face of a truly uncivil slight, confounds me.  Please address this subject again.

"Try as I may, I am unable to find a single sentance describing your outrage to Vice President Cheney's coarse "go f*** yourself" remark on the Senate floor early in this administration.  Is that what you consider to be civil behavior?" -- Pvt. Citizen

Thanks to one of the WaPost comments though, I think George Will just gave Jim Webb an entirely intended, and extremely subtle compliment.

RE-READ the last paragraph.

"Based on Webb's behavior before being sworn in, one shudders to think what he will be like after that. He already has become what Washington did not need another of, a subtraction from the city's civility and clear speaking."

The first thing that jumps out at this former lit major is the comma after "of" (a blatant grammatical error by a blantant grammarian).

Second, the on its face ridiculous comment about "the city's civility and clear speaking".  The federal city is anything but this.  George Will's tongue is solidly in his cheek.

Third: "And he has been elected to be a senator, not Humpty Dumpty in "Through the Looking Glass." ("When I use a word it means just what I choose it to mean -- neither more nor less.")

Translation: Jim Webb was not elected to be a Truth-Teller (tongue solidly in cheek).  That is exactly what Washington DC needs right now.

So, I guess that Mr. Will will not be using sarcasm very much in the future. He used to write for a more select audience, and they all seemed to -get it - when he used this technique. ....................................................................... But today he calls Senator-elect Secretary Webb a boor, citing his lack of respect for civil dialogue, and nobody sees Mr. Wills tongue contorting his right cheek. .................................................................... Come on, folks. Its a joke. Remember how, just over three weeks ago, President Bush was saying how anybody who loved the US Constitution and wanted Bush to obey it was a traitor ? .................................................................... This column is just George Wills way of showing how Bush is getting a dose of his own medicine. ............................................................... I would throw in a really big word like pusillanimous, but I dont know what it or any other big words mean. But even I know basic sarcasm when I see it. ............................................................... Mr. Will cant just come out and criticize President Bush for uncivil boorishness or misuse of language, thats not part of his shtick. But when he pokes fun at these Presidential shortcomings in a sophisticated, deniable manner as in this column, the proletariat just doesnt get it.

By grantsctt | Nov 30, 2006 7:25:57 PM | Request Removal

Finally, I would add that George Will savaged our Iraq policy and George W. in a recent column.  So it seems that he is no fan of G.W. or our Iraq policy.

A move like this by Will now, puts him in a position to give Jim Webb a more overt compliment later.  I'll be curious to see how things play out.

Quibbles though. Let's don't even get into"infinitely."  Anyway, I'd take Will over anyone on this site in an argument any day of the week. He's one of the smartest guys in journalism.

You don't think Webb was acting a little self-important and arrogant? Jesus, the guy oozes...