Peggy Noonan: Speech had 'way too much God'

[quaoar]

http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/pnoonan/?id=110006184

Way Too Much God
Was the president's speech a case of "mission inebriation"?

The president's speech seemed rather heavenish. It was a God-drenched speech. This president, who has been accused of giving too much attention to religious imagery and religious thought, has not let the criticism enter him. God was invoked relentlessly. "The Author of Liberty." "God moves and chooses as He wills. We have confidence because freedom is the permanent hope of mankind . . . the longing of the soul."

It seemed a document produced by a White House on a mission. The United States, the speech said, has put the world on notice: Good governments that are just to their people are our friends, and those that are not are, essentially, not. We know the way: democracy. The president told every nondemocratic government in the world to shape up. "Success in our relations will require the decent treatment of their own people."

The speech did not deal with specifics--9/11, terrorism, particular alliances, Iraq. It was, instead, assertively abstract.

< snip >

Ending tyranny in the world? Well that's an ambition, and if you're going to have an ambition it might as well be a big one. But this declaration, which is not wrong by any means, seemed to me to land somewhere between dreamy and disturbing. Tyranny is a very bad thing and quite wicked, but one doesn't expect we're going to eradicate it any time soon. Again, this is not heaven, it's earth.

[yardwork]

1. Ronald Reagan's speechwriter didn't approve....

Peggy Noonan is not one of my heroines, seeing as how she wrote most of Reagan's speeches, but I have to give her this. She wrote damn good speeches.

The divide between the Reagan camp and bushco is alive and well. Excellent.

[GRLMGC]

2. What? There can never be too much God

hahahahahahahahahahhahahaha

[aquart]

3. Has Peggy the Idolatrous turned?

Is she worshipping at other idols? What say ye?

[ClarkUSA]

4. She's jealous because she's been snubbed by the Bushies

[umtalal]

7. The new speech writer is a jesus freak.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6790433/

[Gloria]

5. This from my high school chum (and I mean that in the worst way)

who spoke of dolphins and God and Reagan, etc. etc??

Oh, please Peggy! Why are you worried?? Your son isn't old enough to be drafted, ishe??

[robbedvoter]

6. Peggy put just the right amount of God in Ronnie's mouth

not too much, not too little. It's ego bitching, nothing more.

[Greybnk48]

8. You mean

Whhhiiiinnnnniiinnng don't you. Bitching I can handle but all this woman does is whine, even when she says someting positive.

[housewolf]

9. Oh the arrogance of it all!

Thanks for posting this article, I loved reading it.

Peggy Noonan always did have a way with words: "mission inebriation" is a great phrase! It so accurately describes the arragance, shamelessness and ego-inflation of GWB that I find so difficult to deal with.