An ethicist strips off Bush's moral veneer (does talk about morals=moral?)

[papau]

http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/tom_brazaitis/index.ssf?/base/opinion/1074335519172181.xml

"When I have told friends and colleagues that I am working on a book about 'Bush's ethics,' some of them quip that the phrase is an oxymoron, or that it must be a very short book," Singer writes in the introduction."

An Ethicist strips off Bush's moral veneer
by Tom Brazaitis
The Cleveland Plain Dealer
Jan. 18, 2004

<snip>..In a presidential election with an incumbent running, the first question voters ask is whether the man who holds the job merits a second term. Only after that question is answered in the negative or with a "maybe not" does attention turn to the qualifications of the challenger.

Those of you who have made up your mind that Bush deserves four more years may skip the rest of this column. For those who are undecided, I have a recommendation: Put in an order for a new book by Peter Singer, due out in March, called, "The President of Good & Evil: The Ethics of George W. Bush."

It covers the major issues dealt with by the Bush administration through mid-2003 --stem cell research, faith-based initiatives, wars in Afghanistan and Iraq to name a few -- but Singer analyzes Bush's statements and actions through an ethical prism. Remember, it was Bush who campaigned as the candidate who would bring "honor and dignity" to the White House, a not-so-subtle reminder of Bill Clinton's moral failings in the Oval Office. <snip>


Nevertheless, Singer, a Princeton bioethicist, takes his task seriously, acknowledging that "tens of millions of Americans believe that is sincere, and share the views that he puts forward on a wide range of moral issues."

"My starting point," Singer says, "is to take what Bush says at face value, and inquire how defensible the positions that he espouses are." <snip>

Singer isn't buying. From what we now know, he says, "it appears that the Bush administration decided what action it wanted to take, and then selected and massaged the intelligence information to make it support that action."

As for Bush's backup claim that the war would save Iraqi lives, Singer reminds us that in March 2003 when Bush ordered the attack, no case could be made that there was a looming humanitarian catastrophe in Iraq.

Washington psychologist Renana Brooks, head of the Sommet Institute for the Study of Power and Persuasion (www.sommetinstitute.org) has written that Bush's handlers "project the president as a man of character. The character myth relies on the psychological phenomenon that a person who speaks frequently and passionately about morals is generally regarded as a moral person."

Before voting this time, we would be wise to ask ourselves whether we believe the myth or the man.<snip>

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Brazaitis, formerly a Plain Dealer senior editor, is a Washington columnist. Contact Tom Brazaitis at: [e-mail]
202-638-1366

[rfranklin]

1. Actually people who talk constantly are usually...

the ones who are child rapers, or closeted, self-hating gays, or degenerate gamblers, or sadomasochistic slaves.

Examples are Bob Livingston, Karl Rove, William Bennett, Roy Cohn, George Bush, Tom DeLay, Newt Gingrich...and on and on. And they all happen to be Republicans.

[gristy]

2. It's about time a book on this came out

"My starting point," Singer says, "is to take what Bush says at face value, and inquire how defensible the positions that he espouses are."

My dad was just commenting today that the problem with bush is not what he says. It's what he does, and that what he does is usually in conflict with what he says.

[retread]

3. Is this Peter Singer, the author of Animal Liberation?

*

[fishguy]

4. My cousin wrote a book called Presidential Picks and Promises

I believe that is the title. A copy is at my parent's house.

He compared the promises Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan made campaigning and during their terms. Both fulfilled about the same percentage of promises.
The point of the book became no matter who is the President or politician, you must take what they promise with a grain of salt.

EXCEPT GEORGE W. BUSH!!!

[coda]

5. Not a good idea to use Singer as a source to blast * with.

There are tons of material from people to show *'s self-evident moral shallowness w/o rsorting to using anything from Singer.