Sour Grapes

Why look to the past?

President Bush explained at a pancake breakfast in Maumee, Ohio this morning that there's a single reason he concerns himself with the past:

... [T]he only reason we look... to the past is to verify what we're going to do in the future to make this country safer and stronger and better.

In some ways this is a typical Bushism, with its somewhat strange choice of words. But think about what it means to "to verify what we're going to do."
We verify hypotheses.
Disproving them does not verify them; only proving them does that.
So, intentional or not, this statement tends to confirm my fear that the only evidence this administration sees is supporting evidence; evidence to the contrary is ignored or discounted.

Lest anyone think I'm quoting out of context or selectively quoting to distort the President's statement, here's the full paragraph:

I believe we've shown the country that I can put together an administration that knows how to lead; an administration that can handle the tough times; an administration that's steady and resolute; an administration clear of vision. And it's important that we not only talk about what has happened, but as importantly in a campaign, you talk about what you intend to do. And that's what I want to share some time with you today. I want you to tell your friends and neighbors, as we seek the vote, as we garner support, that this administration has done things. And the only reason we look past — to the past is to verify what we're going to do in the future to make this country safer and stronger and better.

Original post by Namenlosen Trinker at 5/04/2004 01:18:00 PM Eastern time :: 0 comment(s) ::

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