Internetworkers: http://www.ibiblio.org/internetworkers/

["Don Rua" <rua AT mindspring.com>]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Michael Czeiszperger" <michael AT czeiszperger.org>
To: "Internetworkers: http://www.ibiblio.org/internetworkers/";
<internetworkers AT lists.ibiblio.org>
Sent: Wednesday, March 02, 2005 6:58 AM
Subject: Re: [internetworkers] George W. Bush - stoner


> Doesn't bother me either.  What bothers me is the double standard
> regarding Clinton's use of the same.
>

I thought about that comparison as well, but still see differences:

Clinton says: "I smoked weed, but I didn't inhale." (I think - It just
doesn't pass the sniff test. When I hear that, I feel I've been directly
lied to.)

Bush says: "I refuse to answer any questions about drug use." ( I think  -
Okay, the guy probably did something in his youth, but he's not telling. My
curiosity is piqued, but he's not lying nor trying to play loose with the
meanings of words. If the voters don't like his refusal to answer, they can
vote their heart, and he takes that chance, but he didn't go lawyer on us
like Bill.)

[An actual quote by Bush on the topic from Time magazine: "As I understand
it, the current FBI form asks the question, 'Did somebody use drugs within
the last 7 years?' and I will be glad to answer that question, and the
answer is no."]

>>I listened to the full quote, and if memory serves he paraphrased the
bible quote "will he who is without sin cast the first stone", implying
he thinks gays are immoral.

I see the implication, but I rarely interpret the phrase in that manner. If
someone said, Michael C is a jerk because of X, Y, Z, I might shoot the
"without sin" quote at them, regardless of whether I have any opinion or
knowledge about you. Especially so if the critic was very religious. It's
just a killer reply to Christians when they want to moralize, since it is a
quote from Jesus.

I did find the following insight from Clinton special counsel, Lanny Davis,
interesting:
( http://differentriver.com/archives/2005/01/21/true-confessions-a-democrat-
likes-gwb/ )
****************But despite what you may have heard or read, George was not
just frat-house party boy. One of my most vivid memories is this: A few of
us were in the common room one night. It was 1965, I believe - my junior
year, his sophomore. We were making our usual sarcastic commentaries on
those who walked by us. A little nasty perhaps, but always with a touch of
humor. On this occasion, however, someone we all believed to be gay walked
by, although the word we used in those days was "queer." Someone, I'm sorry
to say, snidely used that word as he walked by.

George heard it and, most uncharacteristically, snapped: "Shut up." Then he
said, in words I can remember almost verbatim: "Why don't you try walking in
his shoes for a while and see how it feels before you make a comment like
that?"

Remember, this was the 1960s - pre-Stonewall, before gay rights became a
cause many of us (especially male college students) had thought much about.
I remember thinking, "This guy is much deeper than I realized."
*****************


Don

"I'm the one that has to die when it's time for me to die, so let me live my
life, the way I want to" - JMHendrix