Mark my words, this will the official motto of somebody’s blog before you know it:
[President Bush said,] “And the amazing thing about this world we live in is that there’s a kind of free-flowing, kind of bulletin board of ideas and thoughts out there in the ether space, sometimes landing on somebody’s desk and sometimes not, but always available. It’s a very interesting period.”
Take out the Bushist stumbles, and you have the potential for something like “BrendanLoy.com: a free-flowing bulletin board of ideas and thoughts out there in the ether space.” Heh.
Actually, now that I have given it a little more thoguht, it almost has to be a Zak eupheminism … a Loy euphemism would have to be more like “coursing the purple hound” … (only in Irish Gaelic, of course) …
I don’t know that the comment is quite as simpleton as some might want to think.
Yeah, it might sound a bit corny and lame to some, but I kinda like it.
The sentiment he’s stating is certainly true. It is an amazing time in our world history, especially from an information standpoint.
Whether you call it “ether space” or the “interweb”, “information superhighway”, “blogosphere” or any other euphemism shouldn’t really matter.
I know it’s easy to take pot shots at the President for his often times fumbled use of vocabulary, but it’s one of the things that I find endearing. For someone that grew up in a well-to-do family, with incredible power and the best the world of higher education has to offer, he does a very credible job coming off as an “everyman.”
I personally like it. He’s either genuinely an “everyman” with the same foibles and faults as the rest of us, or he’s incredibly adept at making us think so.
Just be glad you’ve still go the time to blog badly (according to your missus). I spent most of the day in the lobby of the Courthouse waiting to file a lawsuit in the particular division I wanted. So, blog away, badly or not.
There is nothing endearing about stupidity, especially when it comes from a graduate of Andover, Yale and Harvard who is the leader of the free world. Grandpa or a three year-old talking like this might be cute. When it comes from a POTUS who doesn’t bother to understand the world around him, not so much.
Bush may speak badly, but everyone knows what he’s saying and where he’s coming from. By contrast, someone like Clinton spoke very well, but you couldn’t tell what he really meant at all . . . even when it came to something as rudimentary as the word “is.”
And Max, you’d be lucky to be as “stupid” as Bush. There’s a long line of losers in Bush’s wake muttering about him being stupid. There’s being stupid and being inarticulate, and only someone who is truly stupid wouldn’t know the difference. And if being glib were the only criterion, then Don Rickles would be President.
“There’s a long line of losers in Bush’s wake muttering about him being stupid. There’s being stupid and being inarticulate, and only someone who is truly stupid wouldn’t know the difference.”
What long line of losers? All those losers who are suddenly being proven right by the utter collapse of the Bush Doctrine? Those losers like Bush, Sr., Colin Powell, Brent Scowcroft who warned him about starting a “pre-emptive war” in Iraq? Instead, he listened to those “winners” like Rumsfeld and Cheney?
Bush is both inarticulate and stupid. Hate to break it to you. America is finally…FINALLY…onto this moron. He is a Pretender to the Thrown on par with Napoleon III. If you are still worshipping at his feet, you must be just as stupid as he is.
I have no sympathy for people like you, or Alasdair, Andrew or Joe Mama. The Bush Presidency is officially a failure. Get used to it.
No, I’m thinking more along the lines of Bush’s actual opponents in an election . . . you know, John Kerry, Al Gore, Ann Richards. All the other names you mention, Mad Max, are fellow Republicans who merely disagree on a particular policy. You’re obviously too stupid yourself to understand the distinction.
And is NOT thinking the President is stupid necessarily the same as “worshipping at his feet?” You are a real dolt, Mad Max!
Thats Mad Max… Esquire apparently. And come on guys…i’m as conservative as they come, but this guy really is a dunce. I wince every time he speaks. If he had the ability to clearly articulate anything, to inspire anyone, his administration would be in such better shape.
I don’t normally pick on people for spelling mistakes, but there’s something delicious about calling Bush “inarticulate and stupid” and then referring to him as a “Pretender to the Thrown.” Heh.
Oh Brendan - Mr BS was just th’roan by the massive successes of those who so successfully ran in elections against our “dunce” of a President …
JB - I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again … it is a classic sign of an intelligent dyslexic that he can make himself easily understood even while using words that, taken literally, are not quite right … and the classic accusation of Bushism is that the President “used *this* word when he *obviously* meant *that* word !”
If his predecessor President had been as smart as this “dunce”, he would not have left a stain on a blue dress, wouldntcha think ?
To the critics: try having someone write down everything you say everyday. I doubt, on paper, you would be flawless.
Anyway, I like the phrase, “ether space”. It’s a nice combination of the notion of the ether that pre-20th century physics held was present everywhere and touched everything, and the modern phrase “cyber space”. Cyber space, typically considered a separate world, is now an integral part of our world of Blackberries and blogs.
Yes… I think it’s silly and stupid that some people here are using this particular Bush quote to launch serious criticisms against the guy. It’s obviously true that he’s not one of our more articulate presidents, but this is not really a good example. I say this despite the fact that I started it; I think the quote is more funny because of its slight awkwardness, but it certainly isn’t worthy of anything approaching serious criticism. I mean, what exactly is wrong with the quote I posted? Read it again:
“And the amazing thing about this world we live in is that there’s a kind of free-flowing, kind of bulletin board of ideas and thoughts out there in the ether space, sometimes landing on somebody’s desk and sometimes not, but always available. It’s a very interesting period.”
Really, the only issue is his repetition of the phrase “kind of,” and that’s the sort of thing that we all do all the time in everyday conversation. He wasn’t reading off a script, he was speaking extemporaneously (this was an interview, not a speech), and he didn’t immediately have the words to say what he was thinking, so he said “kind of” again as a filler. That’s hardly some huge verbal gaffe. And “ether space” isn’t wrong, it’s just funny-sounding. So honestly, I don’t see what the big deal is. Bush may be dumb, and he certainly is inarticulate at times, but this isn’t actually a good example of either.
I love how Neo-Cons point to George W. Bush winning elections as proof that he is not stupid/a failure/etc.
Does that mean Carter’s Presidency was a roaring success? Or Hoovers? Or any other President? Since you have to be elected to the job in the first place, I think using the fact that you got there as proof you are intelligent/succesful at the job is a pretty stupid reason regardless of which party you belong to.
To your point, I think after five years people are just tired of having Bush’s inability to speak properly trotted out as a “folksy quality.” The guy can’t speak. That’s one of the reasons he has been so bad at leading people when he doesn’t have the fear of another 9/11 to scare them with.
A&A, my point is that this isn’t a good example of Bush’s “folksiness”/stupidity. There’s nothing egregiously “folksly” about this particular quote. That he doesn’t have perfectly well-formed sentences ready to go for every thought that passes through his brain merely means he isn’t a robot, not that he’s an idiot. That he said “the ether space” instead of “the ether” and used the phrase “kind of” while momentarily at a loss for words when speaking off the cuff, makes him…completely normal.
February 28th, 2006 at 5:27:07 pm
i like to say “interweb”
February 28th, 2006 at 5:56:15 pm
Brendan, you’ve been slacking. Your blog has been boring today. I’m disappointed. Hang your head in shame, man!!!
And you are totally walking the dog later.
February 28th, 2006 at 6:10:44 pm
I suspect that Bush has Herd of the Ether Space on his Ipod.
Yes, Herd of the Ether Space. Google it.
February 28th, 2006 at 6:11:16 pm
Hmmmm … “walking the dog” …
is that a Loy euphemism or a Zak eupheminism ?
(innocent smile)
February 28th, 2006 at 6:30:06 pm
“Walking the Dog?” Is that a metaphor for some type of sex that can’t be described? (blatant South Park reference)
February 28th, 2006 at 7:02:27 pm
Phead - our thoughts ran in close parallel …
Actually, now that I have given it a little more thoguht, it almost has to be a Zak eupheminism … a Loy euphemism would have to be more like “coursing the purple hound” … (only in Irish Gaelic, of course) …
February 28th, 2006 at 7:08:27 pm
I don’t know that the comment is quite as simpleton as some might want to think.
Yeah, it might sound a bit corny and lame to some, but I kinda like it.
The sentiment he’s stating is certainly true. It is an amazing time in our world history, especially from an information standpoint.
Whether you call it “ether space” or the “interweb”, “information superhighway”, “blogosphere” or any other euphemism shouldn’t really matter.
I know it’s easy to take pot shots at the President for his often times fumbled use of vocabulary, but it’s one of the things that I find endearing. For someone that grew up in a well-to-do family, with incredible power and the best the world of higher education has to offer, he does a very credible job coming off as an “everyman.”
I personally like it. He’s either genuinely an “everyman” with the same foibles and faults as the rest of us, or he’s incredibly adept at making us think so.
Just be glad you’ve still go the time to blog badly (according to your missus). I spent most of the day in the lobby of the Courthouse waiting to file a lawsuit in the particular division I wanted. So, blog away, badly or not.
February 28th, 2006 at 7:10:36 pm
SIGH …
thoguht - dialectical variant of ‘thocht’, Old Scots equivalent for the Modern English “thought” …
(blush-grin)
Are you convinced ?
February 28th, 2006 at 7:18:52 pm
Yeah, it might sound a bit corny and lame to some, but I kinda like it.
I agree..
February 28th, 2006 at 9:18:17 pm
There is nothing endearing about stupidity, especially when it comes from a graduate of Andover, Yale and Harvard who is the leader of the free world. Grandpa or a three year-old talking like this might be cute. When it comes from a POTUS who doesn’t bother to understand the world around him, not so much.
February 28th, 2006 at 10:16:12 pm
One would have thought being articulate would be a job requirement for being the leader of the free world. Oh well.
February 28th, 2006 at 10:58:03 pm
Bush may speak badly, but everyone knows what he’s saying and where he’s coming from. By contrast, someone like Clinton spoke very well, but you couldn’t tell what he really meant at all . . . even when it came to something as rudimentary as the word “is.”
And Max, you’d be lucky to be as “stupid” as Bush. There’s a long line of losers in Bush’s wake muttering about him being stupid. There’s being stupid and being inarticulate, and only someone who is truly stupid wouldn’t know the difference. And if being glib were the only criterion, then Don Rickles would be President.
February 28th, 2006 at 11:03:03 pm
Bush is just discovering the joke names my friends gave the net in the day!
We’ve called it the interweb, the internets, and so forth for a long time.
Ether Space is new, though. I like it. Great combination of ethernet and cyberspace.
February 28th, 2006 at 11:28:13 pm
“There’s a long line of losers in Bush’s wake muttering about him being stupid. There’s being stupid and being inarticulate, and only someone who is truly stupid wouldn’t know the difference.”
What long line of losers? All those losers who are suddenly being proven right by the utter collapse of the Bush Doctrine? Those losers like Bush, Sr., Colin Powell, Brent Scowcroft who warned him about starting a “pre-emptive war” in Iraq? Instead, he listened to those “winners” like Rumsfeld and Cheney?
Bush is both inarticulate and stupid. Hate to break it to you. America is finally…FINALLY…onto this moron. He is a Pretender to the Thrown on par with Napoleon III. If you are still worshipping at his feet, you must be just as stupid as he is.
I have no sympathy for people like you, or Alasdair, Andrew or Joe Mama. The Bush Presidency is officially a failure. Get used to it.
February 28th, 2006 at 11:41:41 pm
No, I’m thinking more along the lines of Bush’s actual opponents in an election . . . you know, John Kerry, Al Gore, Ann Richards. All the other names you mention, Mad Max, are fellow Republicans who merely disagree on a particular policy. You’re obviously too stupid yourself to understand the distinction.
And is NOT thinking the President is stupid necessarily the same as “worshipping at his feet?” You are a real dolt, Mad Max!
February 28th, 2006 at 11:51:25 pm
Thats Mad Max… Esquire apparently. And come on guys…i’m as conservative as they come, but this guy really is a dunce. I wince every time he speaks. If he had the ability to clearly articulate anything, to inspire anyone, his administration would be in such better shape.
March 1st, 2006 at 1:27:09 am
I don’t normally pick on people for spelling mistakes, but there’s something delicious about calling Bush “inarticulate and stupid” and then referring to him as a “Pretender to the Thrown.” Heh.
March 1st, 2006 at 1:53:38 am
Oh Brendan - Mr BS was just th’roan by the massive successes of those who so successfully ran in elections against our “dunce” of a President …
JB - I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again … it is a classic sign of an intelligent dyslexic that he can make himself easily understood even while using words that, taken literally, are not quite right … and the classic accusation of Bushism is that the President “used *this* word when he *obviously* meant *that* word !”
If his predecessor President had been as smart as this “dunce”, he would not have left a stain on a blue dress, wouldntcha think ?
March 1st, 2006 at 2:34:29 am
To the critics: try having someone write down everything you say everyday. I doubt, on paper, you would be flawless.
Anyway, I like the phrase, “ether space”. It’s a nice combination of the notion of the ether that pre-20th century physics held was present everywhere and touched everything, and the modern phrase “cyber space”. Cyber space, typically considered a separate world, is now an integral part of our world of Blackberries and blogs.
March 1st, 2006 at 2:49:28 am
Yes… I think it’s silly and stupid that some people here are using this particular Bush quote to launch serious criticisms against the guy. It’s obviously true that he’s not one of our more articulate presidents, but this is not really a good example. I say this despite the fact that I started it; I think the quote is more funny because of its slight awkwardness, but it certainly isn’t worthy of anything approaching serious criticism. I mean, what exactly is wrong with the quote I posted? Read it again:
“And the amazing thing about this world we live in is that there’s a kind of free-flowing, kind of bulletin board of ideas and thoughts out there in the ether space, sometimes landing on somebody’s desk and sometimes not, but always available. It’s a very interesting period.”
Really, the only issue is his repetition of the phrase “kind of,” and that’s the sort of thing that we all do all the time in everyday conversation. He wasn’t reading off a script, he was speaking extemporaneously (this was an interview, not a speech), and he didn’t immediately have the words to say what he was thinking, so he said “kind of” again as a filler. That’s hardly some huge verbal gaffe. And “ether space” isn’t wrong, it’s just funny-sounding. So honestly, I don’t see what the big deal is. Bush may be dumb, and he certainly is inarticulate at times, but this isn’t actually a good example of either.
March 1st, 2006 at 5:59:07 am
I love how Neo-Cons point to George W. Bush winning elections as proof that he is not stupid/a failure/etc.
Does that mean Carter’s Presidency was a roaring success? Or Hoovers? Or any other President? Since you have to be elected to the job in the first place, I think using the fact that you got there as proof you are intelligent/succesful at the job is a pretty stupid reason regardless of which party you belong to.
March 1st, 2006 at 11:41:33 am
Brendan-
To your point, I think after five years people are just tired of having Bush’s inability to speak properly trotted out as a “folksy quality.” The guy can’t speak. That’s one of the reasons he has been so bad at leading people when he doesn’t have the fear of another 9/11 to scare them with.
March 1st, 2006 at 11:56:55 am
Brendan-
“Delicious?” When did you become Caesar Romero as “The Joker?”
March 1st, 2006 at 1:41:56 pm
A&A, my point is that this isn’t a good example of Bush’s “folksiness”/stupidity. There’s nothing egregiously “folksly” about this particular quote. That he doesn’t have perfectly well-formed sentences ready to go for every thought that passes through his brain merely means he isn’t a robot, not that he’s an idiot. That he said “the ether space” instead of “the ether” and used the phrase “kind of” while momentarily at a loss for words when speaking off the cuff, makes him…completely normal.
March 1st, 2006 at 2:00:30 pm
Gee, Brendan. I was just bustin’ on you about your choice of the word “delicious.” Didn’t mean nuthin.’
March 1st, 2006 at 6:47:53 pm
I was responding your 10:46 AM comment, not your 11:01 AM comment. :)