Consoler-in-chiefs - Tragedies and Presidental Speeches

[MA-Caver]

Tragedy is part of any nation's history. For the U.S. the types have varied but have reached all of us in one way or another. Presidents tend to address us in these times. This video shows some of the best of those speeches. Lincoln's Gettysburg address was only 10 lines long and he did it in 2 minutes. Clinton's Oklahoma City Bombing speech was the shortest of his career at 9 minutes long. Interesting factoids to be found here. http://news.yahoo.com/video/us-15749625/consoler-in-chiefs-23833940

 

[Bill Mattocks]

I have to admit, I changed channels last night when the applause started. It sounded much more like a campaign speech to me. I did not care for it. I do not remember if former Presidents' speeches on such topics were similarly greeted, but if so I would not have liked them, either.

 

[chrispillertkd]

Obama's speech itself was OK. Not great, just OK. (Of course, I never viewed him as the great orator others do, and the speech in AZ did nothing to change my mind.) In my view, Bill is correct that the speech did include some campaign-like aspects. But the real problem was that the atmosphere of the event seemed more like a pep ralley than a memorial service.

With all the applause and the veritable flood of words someone forgot to mention to the speakers that it wasn't about them. What was needed was a reflection on the fragility of life, a request for prayers for the friends and families of the victims, perhaps prayers for the repose of the souls of the victims if any of them were Catholic, a reflection on how God can bring good out of even the worst evil, that we hope that the victims are in a better place now and that's pretty much it.

Since the majority of Americans rejected the ham-fisted association of political rhetoric with the shooting any mention of politics, including political speech should have been omitted from the beginning, and that includes the references from Obama that, "Rather than pointing fingers or assigning blame, [we should] use this occasion to expand our moral imaginations, to listen to each other more carefully, to sharpen our instincts for empathy and remind ourselves of all the ways that our hopes and dreams are bound together."

Pax,

Chris

 

[MA-Caver]

I have to admit, I changed channels last night when the applause started. It sounded much more like a campaign speech to me. I did not care for it. I do not remember if former Presidents' speeches on such topics were similarly greeted, but if so I would not have liked them, either.

Sometimes it seems that Presidents live for tragic events to happen so that they have an opportunity to show the people just how HUMAN they are and that they do care about the people (for the people by the people) and it's just like what happened with several presidents after a great consoling speech their polls went up a few points. BFHD
Bush with 9/11 couldn't possibly passed himself off as a grieving president ... not with that "oh boy have WE got ourselves a WAR!" grin on his face, because Daddy would be so proud.

Now with this congresswoman's death and the collateral damage death of a child... Yeah I didn't even bother to watch the speech or even have my tv on for it. I'm not surprised that folks see it as more of a campaign speech than anything else.

:idunno: whaddya expect? They're politicians.

 

[Bill Mattocks]

:idunno: whaddya expect? They're politicians.

No, sometimes they're animals.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20028447-503544.html

"It was as though no one in the arena but the immediate mourners and sufferers had the least notion of displaying respectful solemnity in the face of breathtaking loss and terrifying evil," he added. "... The tone of the event came to resemble a pep rally, no matter the monstrous fact of the six dead and the many injured."

But some are pointing to both the response of his audience and the fact that t-shirts were handed out to cast the memorial as an inappropriately political event.

Tucson Republican Mayor Bob Walkup told Politico that the mood of the rally was appropriate.
"If there was one thing that was appropriate, it was cheering," he said. "I've been in the hospital, and the people that are healing, they want to hear people cheer."

Yeah. And t-shirts to commemorate the event.

I'm sorry, I can't even pretend to think this was just business as usual for politicians. Bush didn't hand out 'Ground Zero' t-shirts while standing on the smoking rubble of the World Trade Center towers, did he?

Oh, it's been mentioned that the University of Arizona actually handed out the t-shirts. Yeah. Distinction without a difference. If the White House had said "Don't do that," they would not have done that. This was a campaign stop and that's all it was. I want to vomit.

 

[Touch Of Death]

Sometimes it seems that Presidents live for tragic events to happen so that they have an opportunity to show the people just how HUMAN they are and that they do care about the people (for the people by the people) and it's just like what happened with several presidents after a great consoling speech their polls went up a few points. BFHD
Bush with 9/11 couldn't possibly passed himself off as a grieving president ... not with that "oh boy have WE got ourselves a WAR!" grin on his face, because Daddy would be so proud.

Now with this congresswoman's death and the collateral damage death of a child... Yeah I didn't even bother to watch the speech or even have my tv on for it. I'm not surprised that folks see it as more of a campaign speech than anything else.

:idunno: whaddya expect? They're politicians.

Let him try not making a speech.
Sean