Bush Picture Worth a Thousand Words (2/22/02)
by Dean Hartwell
During his trip to
Asia, President Bush has made visits to the nations of Japan, South Korea and
China.
The President has spoken on a number of occasions throughout the trip. For
example, he indicated his support for Japanese Prime Minister Koizumi. He said
that North and South Korea should unify. And he told the Chinese to adopt
democracy.
But none of his words could match the picture of him at a joint press
conference with South Korean President Kim Dae Jung. While waiting for the
translation of questions to him, Bush's eyes wandered into space. Even during
his own comments, he showed little interest in what he was saying as he rarely
made eye contact with either Kim or the audience.
I might reconsider my impressions of this picture were it not for the fact that
Bush made the trip close to one of the nations he called a member of the
"axis of evil", North Korea, and for the fact that he did not consult
our allies like South Korea before he made that statement in his recent State
of the Union Address.
With the facts and the image aligned with one another, I see a picture of a
president who disrespects the people of other nations. It doesn't take many
words to see the danger in that.