Why was Bush Jr. so much more articulate in 1992?

[Cat Atomic]

I've seen a few older clips of Bush Dr. speaking, mostly from the 80's. He didn't seem eloquent by any means- but he was articulate enough to make his point. He could speak in complete sentences.

I was reminded of this while wacthing f911 today. There's a clip in there from 1992 (I believe), where Bush is saying something along the lines of , "access is power". Again he seemed... not eloquent, as I said- but at least normal. He was speaking english.

If he tried to say it today, I've no doubt it would come out like, "Axes are powerful" or something.

Anyway, I ramble. Did GWB have a head injury in the last 10 years or something? Did he have 50 IQ points surgically removed? Does he have Reagan's Disease (and I don't mean Alzheimers- I mean convenient stupidity)?

[DenverDem]

1. Degenerative effects of cocaine and alcohol abuse.

He did seem a lot more coherent in that one clip, pretty weird.

[Neoplatonist]

4. I agree, DenverDem

It's highly probable that Bush is experiencing the effects of long term drug and alcohol abuse. Look at Ozzy Osbourne, Keith Richards, and any number of people who abused hardcore drugs and alcohol. Bush exhibits all the symptoms.

[NecessaryOnslaught]

2. Its the lies..

He has lied so much in public over the last 12 years that every time he goes to open his mouth he has to remember not to contradict himself, something that is an impossibility- though he tries in vain, smirkin and squirmin.

[alittlelark]

3. My guess is that he is NOT a 'dry drunk'

He is, in fact a 'Wet One' (those that still drink and/or have changed diapers understand).

THE MAN W/THE 'FOOTBALL' IS BOMBED.

Just my opinion.

[the Kelly Gang]

5. he is definitely loosing a grip on it..shows in his eyes and talk

perhaps it is a degenerative alcohol related disease.
Happened to relatives in my family.

[shockingelk]

6. rasio segment asking this question

James Fallows was on Weekend Edition yesterday and gave three possible answers to your question ... the segment compares Bush and Kerry's debating styles and contains a clip of Bush debating in the TX gubernatorial race - it really sounds like a different person: "Debating Styles: Bush v. Kerry" http://www.npr.org/rundowns/rundown.php?prgDate=26-Jun-2004&prgId=7

[oscar111]

7. Psychiatrist opinion wanted

Someone have a psych friend, or is a psych, { or md working with addicts } , please try to get us a professional opinion and post it on this thread.

Would be good help in the election to have a publicly identifiable board of expert psychiatrist/md's give their diagnosis of bush. They do it for dead thinkers , like Lincoln, so why not at a distance for live people?
{ diagnosis of the dead is called paleopsychiatary, i think }.

[gonefishing]

11. Do a search on Psycholinguistics and Bush

http://www.ludd.net/retort/msg00157.html

Snip...

The author of Boxed In: The Culture of TV believes "Bush is not an imbecile. He's not a puppet. I think that Bush is a sociopathic personality. I think he's incapable of empathy. He has an inordinate sense of his own entitlement, and he's a very skilled manipulator. And in all the snickering about his alleged idiocy, this is what a lot of people miss."

Miller's judgment ? that an unelected president might suffer from a clinical personality disorder ? is much heavier than being called the global village idiot. "He has no trouble speaking off the cuff when he's speaking punitively, when he's talking about violence, when he's talking about revenge. When he struts and thumps his chest, his syntax and grammar are fine," Miller mentions. "It's only when he leaps into the wild blue yonder of compassion, or idealism, or altruism, that he makes these hilarious mistakes."

Bush even has trouble repeating comforting clichés. "Fool me once, shame ... shame on ... you," Long, uncomfortable pause. "Fool me - can't get fooled again!"

While the world was laughing, Miller saw something darker. "What's revealing about this is that Bush could not say, `Shame on me' to save his life. That's a completely alien idea to him. This is a guy who is absolutely proud of his own inflexibility and rectitude," wrote Miller.

Miller says that Bush saying, "I know how hard it is to put food on your family" is not 'cause he's stupid, but "because he doesn't care about people who can't put food on the table."

When Bush is envisioning "a foreign-handed foreign policy," Miller contends it's because he can't keep his focus on things that mean nothing to him. "When he tries to talk about what this country stands for, or about democracy, he can't do it," Miller observes.

According to Miller, this is why GW is so closely watched by his handlers. "Not because he'll say something stupid," the Star paraphrased, "but because he'll overindulge in the language of violence and punishment at which he excels."

"He's a very angry guy, a hostile guy," Miller says. "He's much like Nixon. So they're very, very careful to choreograph every move he makes. They don't want him anywhere near protestors, because he would lose his temper." Adds this media expert, "It would be a grave mistake to just play him for laughs."

[BlueEyedSon]

15. "he can't keep his focus on things that mean nothing to him."

Like Ah-Boo Gareff?

[dbt]

17. Nice post, gonefishing!

In the Irish parlance (something we all need to be picking up in solidarity), Thanks very much, indeed.

"They don't want him anywhere near protestors, because he would lose his temper" is VERY telling. Couldn't have their boy (and I use the term in the finest old Southern derogatory sense) losing his shit near the TV cameras, could they?

Many DUers have also pointed out the fact that bu$h can't seem to talk without stumbling on any subject except doing violence to someone. That's borne out by Miller's observation about "the language of violence and punishment at which he excels."

Again, thanks for the post!

:toast:
dbt

[gonefishing]

21. It was shockingelk post that started my surfing

I listened to the Debating Styles in shockingelk's post:

http://www.npr.org/rundowns/rundown.php?prgDate=26-Jun-2004&prgId=7

and just started surfing. Thank shockingelk!

[NNadir]

19. An excellent analysis. One that had not occurred to me. eom

[qanda]

27. It's amazing that we're having this discussion

I kid you not that while I was watch F-9/11 and the interview Bush* did with Coleman I was thinking about why there seemed to be such a difference in his speaking styles. I guess the man is absolutely nuts.

I love what you posted here. Thanks for the link.

[camby]

24. Also try searching "narcissism" and "bully"

<http://www.bullyonline.org/workbully/index.htm>
<http://www.geocities.com/ptypes/narcissisticpd.html>

I was very much bothered by Bush's face-making in front of the cameras right before his March 13, 2003 speech to the nation announcing the invasion of Iraq. That probably bothered me more than anything else in F 9/11. I thought, "This man is seriously deranged." So I started doing some searches, and found some remarkable similarities. Hope these links work.

[camby]

25. Try this link on bullies, the first one not quite right

<http://www.bullyonline.org/workbully/serial.htm>

[Jose Diablo]

8. It looks like heavy metal (lead) low level poisoning. IMO

I wonder if there has been work done in the last 3-4 years on the plumbing in the White House, like someone used lead soldier on a pipe joint.

[Eurobabe]

26. Holy shit!

Did y'all read about the lead problems in DC? WASA strikes again!

[Jose Diablo]

36. I did not know what WASA was so I googled it

and came up with this.

http://www.dcwasa.com/lead/default.cfm

Seems there is a problem with lead service lines delivering water in the DC area.

[DeepModem Mom]

9. Here's earlier thread, re. NPR's segment cited in response #6 --

Link:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x1863138

I hope some DUers with expertise will pursue this, and this thing gets circulated. The U.S. may have a "President" suffering from a degenerative disease, that affects mental capacity, as a result of alcohol and drug abuse. The idea of an Ozzy Osbourne in the WH might convince some swing voters to swing to Kerry.

[Spinzonner]

10. As someone else has at least partially pointed out

he's in a much more complex situation now than he was then. He was defending a Texas and personal record that most in the media declined to examine closely and critically.

He has his own national history to defend and remain consistent on - which means juggling all those lies and misinformation.

He's under a great deal more stress.

And he's older and the past abuses coupled with age-related decline may be reaching a somewhat critical point. Don't forget, one way to mitigate the effects of age is to exercise - both the body and the intellect. And we know what Shrub's intellectual exercise amounts to - he wont even read material especially consolidated for his limited attention span.

[booksenkatz]

12. Good point

This is the first real job he's ever had in his life that requires a little bit more from him than just showing up. Ann Richards readily avers that the Texas governorship is really a figurehead job in many ways, as Texas government is very much driven by the lege. The jobs _Bush held before that were jobs his daddy got for him one way or another. He phoned them in.

I'm certain that even though he is currently surrounded by "brilliant people" :puke: that the job of president of the U.S. is nevertheless a difficult one... he's in waaaaaaaay over his head, and it shows.

[Boomer]

13. Still looking for the source, but....

Not that long ago I read a fascinating theory proposed by a neurologist concerning the possibility that Bush was suffering from a specific neurological disorder. If I could recall the precise diagnosis, I might be able to find the source again. So far my general Googling hasn't turned up the article.

Based on observations of behavior reported in the press throughout the last few decades, this doctor theorized that Bush deliberately skipped his pilot's medical exam because it would reveal the disorder -- grounding him and revealing a condition that could scuttle his future political career, not to mention marring his image in the Bush Family. Then the doctor traced the progression of the disorder and matched the symptoms to George's increasingly spastic physical episodes (such as falling from a bike or dropping Barney), his verbal confusion and even the White House secrecy veiling injections that Bush receives twice a day. And finally, he suggests that Bush no longer jogs because the disorder is getting worse.

It was very persuasive and yet seems to have received very little attention. If I were wearing a tin hat I'd say he hit too close to the truth and all references have been wiped from the web....

[greymattermom]

23. the disorder

The diagnosis was some form of epilepsy. That would explain the falls and wearing a mouth guard while bicycling.

[Boomer]

28. Temporal-lobe epilepsy

Yes, I believe that was the diagnosis. And I found this description of symptoms after just a cursory online search:

-----------------------------

Epilepsy, temporal-lobe: Epilepsy that is characterized by abnormal electrical activity in the temporal lobe of the brain. This activity does not cause grand mal seizures; rather, it causes unusual behaviors and patterns of cognition. Temporal lobe epilepsy may, for example, cause sudden outbursts of unexpected aggression or agitation, or it may be characterized by aura-like phenomena. The seizures of temporal-lobe epilepsy often start in childhood.

Temporal-lobe epilepsy is usually classified as simple or complex partial seizures. Patients commonly experience a variety of psychic, gustatory, olfactory, and autonomic symptoms.

Complex partial seizures are characterized by impaired awareness. Patients are disabled. They lose awareness and tend to have a motionless stare accompanied by automatisms -- stereotyped, repetitive, involuntary movements such as lip smacking, chewing, picking at objects, scratching, and gesturing.

-------------------------------

Does that sound familiar?

[newyawker99]

31. Hi greymattermom!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[Lydia Leftcoast]

35. Or tertiary syphillis?

??

[Swamp Rat]

14. His battery is going dead.

Mark my words, he'll just be sputtering nonsense in the end... Hell, he's almost there already.

[Vickers]

16. Poor earpiece reception

:P

Seriously, like other folks have said, I think it's a combination of increased stress and years of substance abuse catching up with him.

Then again, it just might be God's way of messing with his head for co-opting His name in such a crass fashion.

:shrug:

[bushneedstogo2]

18. He was probably high

[snippy]

20. Did Bush exhibit a pattern of injuring himself while Governor?

If not, could the pretzel attack, the Segway incident, the floundering attempt to exit the car, and the bicycle crash indicate a progressive degenerative condition? Also, the pretzel and bicycle incidents are the only ones I know of that left visible evidence of the injuries to his face, but how likely is it that there have been other incidents in which Bush injured himself but the evidence is covered by his clothing?

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

32. Apparently in 1986 he nearly killed himself in an airplane

according to this article appearing in the UK Guardian that discusses Bush's mental competency and the effect of his past upon it:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1033904,00.html

"...As the alcoholic George Bush approached his 40th birthday in 1986, he had achieved nothing he could call his own. He was all too aware that none of his educational and professional accomplishments would have occured without his father. He felt so low that he did not care if he lived or died. Taking a friend out for a flight in a Cessna aeroplane, it only became apparent he had not flown one before when they nearly crashed on take-off. Narrowly avoiding stalling a few times, they crash-landed and the friend breathed a sigh of relief - only for Bush to rev up the engine and take off again..."

[Cheswick2.0]

22. it's tough when God picks you to do a job you are not suited for

I chalk it up to knowing he is not up to the job "God chose him for".

[Tatiana]

29. Perhaps because he was clean and sober at that time. n/t

[maggrwaggr]

30. fascinating article in the Atlantic about this

about how when Bush was running against Ann Richards for governor of TX, they had debates and Bush was actually pretty good. Not eloquent, but sharp and articulate.

It's so bizarre how he's degenerated into this babbling village idiot.

Then there's this (not a photoshop belive it or not):

[oneighty]

33. Hey maggrwaggr

Please explain site and reason for that foolish gesture.

Thanks, 180

[maggrwaggr]

40. ???

not sure whuttyoutakkinabout

[oneighty]

41. The photo of Bush*

Where was it taken? Why was he in boxing stance? Who he going to be beating on??? (In your signature line)

180

[maggrwaggr]

42. it was after some speech I believe

I think to some military people. I can't remember exactly but when I first saw the picture I thought it was photoshop and then found out that it wasn't. There were several of these photos, in a series. He was in some crowd before or after a speech.

[AntiCoup2K4]

34. Probably from drugs. But WHICH drugs is the question

People assumed Ozzy Osbourne's incoherent ramblings on his MTV "reality" show were the result of 25 years of chemical abuse. Yet once Ozzy revealed that his doctors (or more likely Sharon) had kept him doped up on too many prescriptions, he mysteriously started making more sense. Same with Anna Nicole Smith in recent months.

Could it be that Junior is on prescription meds that are turning him into a babbling idiot? (as opposed to a semi coherent idiot in the past)

[Morning Dew]

37. Someone should tell Shrub...

the phrase is Pax Americana, not Paxil Americana.

[amazona]

38. karsakoff's syndrome is progressive

Prolonged alcohol/drug abuse can destroy the mind, and * is Exhibit A.

[justjones]

39. I noticed this on the Jesus Factor from PBS....

When he was campaigning, he surely was more articulate than he is now.

My first thought is that he is putting on this accent to appeal to the "Southerners" who he wants to think he is from Texas and a rancher, just one of the good ole, down-home boys.

But then I was thinking perhaps it had to do with his indoctrination into fundamental Evangelical Christianity at that church in Texas. Could it be that he somehow adopted the accent unconsciously when he was intensively studying the Bible with those with that accent....you know, just like Madonna at one point had an English accent all of a sudden because she was living in England and her speech was influenced as such?

I don't know, it's just a thought that I had. I really don't think he could pull off the former, but if he was trying to forge his own identity being he didn't have one at the age of 40, perhaps he adopted his accent in Texas just like he adopted his religion. If he didn't know who he was at the age of 40, I can see how he could be grasping at straws to forge one, and he just so happened to be in Texas at the time.

Of course, this is all unconscious on his part. He doesn't strike me at one who would be able to do it consistently if he was talking like this deliberately, but I'm sure his subconscious was influenced to keep doing it when he got positive enforcement when he talked this way.

I don't really know....I'm just saying. :shrug:

Edited for typo

[Brian Morans]

43. He can speak articulately

when he wants to. He was speaking in coherent sentences to that Irish journalist the other day. He just uses the folksy imbecile act to shore up his base - they like a guy who sounds like he couldn't find his ass with both hands and Onstar.

[LizW]

44. Very good question

I've been wondering myself what the heck is the matter with him. There's even a noticable difference in the last couple of years, since the war started. He seems to be laboring over his words, and using this exaggerated pronunciation to cover it up.

The most extreme example of what I'm talking about was the other day with the "Abu Gar-eff" flub, where it took him 10 full seconds to come up with the word "situation".

Every time I hear him speak I think of that scene in the movie "Tootsie" where they're doing the soap opera live on the air and Dustin Hoffman goes off into this impromptu thing, making up his story as he goes along. He gets stuck at one point and keeps saying, "...and........and........and..........and......". All the crew are cringing, trying to help him get the word out.

I've said this before, that I think either something is really wrong with Bush that is progressively impairing his verbal function, OR, he's doing this on purpose to look dumb. Either one is scary.

[peacetalksforall]

45. I believe they are using brainwashing him to control smirks and sneers

and enhance his ability to maintain his self-worth and the allusion that he has clothes on and they can't quite get it right.

[Oddman]

46. uhhh. . . sorry . . . bush has NEVER been

Articulate!

[Tellurian]

47. Bush WAS overwhelmed by the responsibility the presidency entails..

now in all the chaos, he is lost, unable to cope. Relying totally on directions on what to do and say next.. See how confused he was about what was next Ireland, then Turkey..couldn't get it straight no matter how hard he tried..Like a computer with too many glitches to defrag..CRASH-