You can always tell when Bush is in trouble. He always brings out 9/11. 9/11 is the cudgel that he waves. As far as he's concerned, it's 'Open Sesame'. 9/11 is his way of saying, 'Okay, I'm fucking up now, but remember four years ago? That was cool.' I think he thinks he can use it for anything. '9/11. On 9/11 we were attacked. And so, I should get to bang your wife.' What? 'Now, there are some nay-sayers out there who think I shouldn't bang your wife, well, that's the cut-and-run crowd.'
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Stewart argues that political leaders often exploit 9/11 to deflect from current failures.
- In plain terms
- Leaders use past tragedies to justify poor current decisions.
- What can you take from it?
- Past trauma should not be used to justify unrelated present actions.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How is history used in politics?
- What justifies bad decisions?
Another view
It reduces complex political discourse to a personal attack.
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