Did Pres. Bush fake his idiocy?

[Folder Land]

Pres. Bush (43) was called an "Idiot" by many of his critics and by in my opinion, unoriginal comedians. The media also did not give him much credit and was very biased towards him. I must say before I go on, that I am no way of supporter of Pres. Bush and I believe that he and members of his administration needs to be charged and put on trial.

To go on, I been studying and think hard about the theory that Pres. Bush was an “idiot”. In fact, I believe that he faked his perceived unintelligence and that behind the scenes, he was rather intelligence. I don’t think a man can be much of an idiot and have Americans vote for him in 2004 when he clearly broke many laws. I believed that he is one of the smartest and most cunning Presidents the United States ever had.

I believe that the issue is the intelligence of the average American. Most of the time, no matter if left or right, most Americans make major decisions based on mostly or purely on emotion. When Americans saw Pres. Bush in 2004, they saw themselves. They did not see him as a war criminal. He walked like them and talked like them, so they voted for him.

That is my view. I would love to hear yours!

[Funk4ever]

You're not very original yourself with this "all this bad stuff he did must mean he was actually extremely cunning" argument.

I think he just relied too much on his staff and viewed the world a bit too simply.

[Avenio]

I think he was fairly average as far as intelligence went; from what I remember, he had relatively poor grades in university and drifted around job-to-job for a while. It might have been that 'average-ness' and distance from the perceived ivory tower that helped him win, in fact. From what I'm aware, though, he didn't really make a lot of his own decisions whilst in office, choosing instead to rely on the advice and prodding of his advisors, and didn't really think his actions through; this meant that when those decisions went south, he had a hard time justifying his motives and said actions. That, when combined with a tendency for gaffes in speeches, created the Bush as idiot trope, in my mind.

[Robert Magoo]

He was unwise; intelligence has nothing to do with it. People who say he was stupid likely don't have much intelligence themselves. 125 IQ is hardly low, by any standard.

[Cannot think of a name]

What in the hell did you study to come to that conclusion? I thought that maybe you'd be referencing this video or looking at perhaps some sort of comparison of things where he demonstrates a sophisticated understanding of something compared to him presenting the same thing with an 'aw shucks' delivery.

But instead its just plain old 'evil mastermind' theory? He's as much a product of a campaigning mastermind as he is anything else. Electoral engineering, campaigning, these things are becoming less and less about candidates and more and more about the people who understand how to run them. Having a well run campaign that overcomes what you would perceive as shortcomings just means there are good people around him.

And that was really a lot of the issue with Bush, is that there was the impression that he was in fact being run by the people around him and not the other way around. Whether this makes him stupid or not is irrelevant.

[Folder Land]

What in the hell did you study to come to that conclusion? I thought that maybe you'd be referencing this video or looking at perhaps some sort of comparison of things where he demonstrates a sophisticated understanding of something compared to him presenting the same thing with an 'aw shucks' delivery.

But instead its just plain old 'evil mastermind' theory? He's as much a product of a campaigning mastermind as he is anything else. Electoral engineering, campaigning, these things are becoming less and less about candidates and more and more about the people who understand how to run them. Having a well run campaign that overcomes what you would perceive as shortcomings just means there are good people around him.

And that was really a lot of the issue with Bush, is that there was the impression that he was in fact being run by the people around him and not the other way around. Whether this makes him stupid or not is irrelevant.

But Don Rumsfeld was not running for president in 2004, Pres. Bush was. He is the one the American people saw.

[JuNii]

So... now people are saying that he's better than an oscar award winning actor?

[Cannot think of a name]

What in the hell did you study to come to that conclusion? I thought that maybe you'd be referencing this video or looking at perhaps some sort of comparison of things where he demonstrates a sophisticated understanding of something compared to him presenting the same thing with an 'aw shucks' delivery.

But instead its just plain old 'evil mastermind' theory? He's as much a product of a campaigning mastermind as he is anything else. Electoral engineering, campaigning, these things are becoming less and less about candidates and more and more about the people who understand how to run them. Having a well run campaign that overcomes what you would perceive as shortcomings just means there are good people around him.

And that was really a lot of the issue with Bush, is that there was the impression that he was in fact being run by the people around him and not the other way around. Whether this makes him stupid or not is irrelevant.

But Don Rumsfeld was not running for president in 2004, Pres. Bush was. He is the one the American people saw.

What does that have to do with anything?

[Greed and Death]

Pres. Bush (43) was called an "Idiot" by many of his critics and by in my opinion, unoriginal comedians. The media also did not give him much credit and was very biased towards him. I must say before I go on, that I am no way of supporter of Pres. Bush and I believe that he and members of his administration needs to be charged and put on trial.

To go on, I been studying and think hard about the theory that Pres. Bush was an “idiot”. In fact, I believe that he faked his perceived unintelligence and that behind the scenes, he was rather intelligence. I don’t think a man can be much of an idiot and have Americans vote for him in 2004 when he clearly broke many laws. I believed that he is one of the smartest and most cunning Presidents the United States ever had.

I believe that the issue is the intelligence of the average American. Most of the time, no matter if left or right, most Americans make major decisions based on mostly or purely on emotion. When Americans saw Pres. Bush in 2004, they saw themselves. They did not see him as a war criminal. He walked like them and talked like them, so they voted for him.

That is my view. I would love to hear yours!

Eisenhower did the same thing. He presented this image of just hanging out playing golf and relaxing. In reality he was a micro manager. Also when an underling screwed up would claim it was his political ineptitude. Such as when the secretary of state announced the new British Ambassador to the US, before the British had picked him ( waiting for the US to suggest who).

[The Republic of Lanos]

So he successfully trolled his political opponents?

[AiliailiA]

All recent US Presidents seem to get dumber after a few years in power. I blame Nixon.

[Beringovia]

I wouldn't go so far as calling it "faking his idiocy" but I do think that he played up his "aw shucks" persona to such an extent that it made him seem like an idiot to those who were pre-disposed to believe the worst about him.

[Disco Tetris]

He might have played it up, or he might just be a ditzy person/bad public speaker. Even when I sometimes speak on things I understand very well, I stumble over my words and look like a complete idiot because I get nervous etc.

[Wazkyraque]

Why would a smart person fake idiocy?
That wouldn't be smart, more idiotic.
So therefore he is an idiot for being a smart person faking idiocy.

[Yootwopia]

Probably. Being underestimated is one of the greatest strengths that anyone can have.

[Yootwopia]

Why would a smart person fake idiocy?

Because it means that people rarely see your ulterior motives. Obviously you're not very smart, or you'd have realised this.

[GreaterPacificNations]

I always liked to think so. That would make him a much cooler villain.

Otherwise, though, he is just the face guy for the circle of Neo-cons behind him (Cheney, Rove, Wolfowitz, etc). A straight talkin' Texan, son of a republican president, and born again Christian.

[Salvarity]

Folder why are you making a bunch of new Topics about Misc Stuff everytime you log on.

Also Bush wasn't Idiotic no Idiot could have lead America. He just wasn't a good leader.

[Yootwopia]

He just wasn't a good leader.

If his aim was to make his pals gobs of cash, yes he certainly was.

[Wazkyraque]

Why would a smart person fake idiocy?

Because it means that people rarely see your ulterior motives. Obviously you're not very smart, or you'd have realised this.

I understand that.
But why would you do it if you are President of one of the most influencial [<---that may or may not be the right word for this] countries on the planet.

Pretending to be an idiot and pretending to make idiotic discisions when you know better, and can do better is rather stupid.

[AiliailiA]

Why would a smart person fake idiocy?

To evade responsibility.

Suddenly having a bad memory under examination is quite common in criminal trials. "I do not recall" avoids either self-incrimination or perjury.

(Not saying Bush did that mind you; just speaking to the specific question you ask)

[Yootwopia]

But why would you do it if you are President of one of the most influencial [<---that may or may not be the right word for this] countries on the planet.

Because then people will say stupid shit like "haha invading Afghanistan, what a fucking Joey" when actually there are plans as refs infrastructure and the state support of civil engineering and security firms that your mates are controlling influences in. Buh.

[GreaterPacificNations]

Why would a smart person fake idiocy?
That wouldn't be smart, more idiotic.
So therefore he is an idiot for being a smart person faking idiocy.

Because the republican base is decidedly anti-intellectual. Who do you think would win in a republican primary; a salt of the earth, god fearing, simple man with a unbreakable moral compass and values of steel, or an articulate harvard educated Lawyer/economist with a comprehensive understanding of domestic and international law, geopolitics, and market trends.

[AiliailiA]

Because it means that people rarely see your ulterior motives. Obviously you're not very smart, or you'd have realised this.

I understand that.
But why would you do it if you are President of one of the most influencial [<---that may or may not be the right word for this] countries on the planet.

Pretending to be an idiot and pretending to make idiotic discisions when you know better, and can do better is rather stupid.

If you were being pressured into making decisions you felt were wrong, you might want to avoid the responsibility for them.

It would be great if Nixon bugged the Oval Office properly and everything since was on record ... and appeared on Wikileaks. Including the pornographic bits.

[Maurepas]

Eh, he was of average intelligence I think, poor speaking ability, but that doesn't mean he was unintelligent. I simply think he subscribed to a lot of theories and policies that were either outdated, incorrect, or simply bad for the United States, and he surrounded himself with people who were basically just "yes men" for those same positions.