I think George Bush's greatest fault, the thing that has brought his approval rating tumbling down, the biggest factor in him being vilified by the press is...ready for this...his public speaking ability. Yep, I think his ability, or lack thereof, to effectively speak to the public is what has killed people's opinion of him. When he speaks, he seems unsure of himself too often, pausing to look at the teleprompter a moment too long. The 9/11 days were days where he spoke from his heart, often impromptu, and the true nature of the man came through but make him deliver a prepared political speech and he seems lost.
Many people think he may be the least intelligent President we have seen. I tend to think it's just his demeanor when speaking that leaves that impression. I honestly think he has dealt with some crisis that we do not and may never know. I think he has had to take the bullet on popular opinion because he was smart enough to keep some things out of the public media.
Maybe it's because I think Bill Clinton and Barack Obama have swept into office on their charisma, not policies. I remember listening to Bill Clinton in the early days thinking how good he was but it wasn't his policies that were good, it was his ability to make me believe he was just like me. I snapped out of it but he had me for a little while. We see it in our churches sometimes. The preacher may not be saying anything but he does it so well that we hang on the words. There are plenty of TV preachers that can preach a good sermon full of nothing and there are plenty of people who would be incredible preachers of truth but their presentation wouldn't capture our attention.
Yep, I think Bush's inability to effectively mesmerize the masses was and is his downfall. He has had to deal with issues, most of which were not his making, that many Presidents have not known. I think history, if it all comes out one day, will be kinder to George Bush than the current opinion of him. I'm probably wrong but...
2 comments:
Jeff,
I agree with your comments about President Bush and preachers. The real question that I'm left with is, "Are we so lazy as a society that we simply want our ears tickled?" I know in religion there are many who attend churches based on the charisma of the preacher, and the convenience of his message. I'm blessed to be a part of a congregation; however, where both ministers honor truth over charisma and convenience. Will our new president-elect seek truth, honesty and integrity over charisma and convenience...we will see? Who knows...I'm probably wrong...well, probably not probably...I'm just wrong.
I think you touched on why so many new preachers get burned out so quickly. They aren't experienced enough to gain credibility through their speaking, so instead of enduring through perhaps a couple of years to gain that credibility, they give up and take another job somewhere else...
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