Hey, it could be a “dumb like a fox” kind of thing. I remember reading about some study that showed that people remember more of what they read if it’s in a font that’s harder to read. In this case, people engage in order to figure out what the wording actually means–so, more time spent with eyeballs on it, just what every advertiser wants!–plus, people are talking about it, right? Getting people’s attention at all is half the battle. And this is so egregious…who’s to say it wasn’t intentional? I can’t help wondering.
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is this a common saying? our fables and myths see the fox normally as cunning
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The phrase in English tends to go “Crazy like a fox”. Which means playing stupid, or crazy in order to manipulate people into treating you differently, giving you an advantage.
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Yes, here “dumb like a fox” or “crazy like a fox” is used to mean that a person’s behavior may appear stupid or crazy but there’s actually an ulterior motive to it.
I suppose the cunningness of a fox is more often thought of as deceitful or devious…I was thinking of it here more in the sense of a possible cleverness toward an end that may not be apparent to others at first.
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I worked my way up from the mailroom to a high enough position that I sometimes get sent to conferences. At my first conference a guy asked me where I got my degree. When I said I didn’t have one he said, “I think you should go talk to someone else” and walked away.
It was a good reminder that there are some really stupid educated people out there.
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Perhaps earlier on in his career, otherwise I would imagine that there was more a respect for the office he holds than for the man himself.
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Yes, I find the Homerian usage much much more likely.
That’s awful! And also a classic example. I love how they said “where did you get your degree”, as opposed to “what did you major in?” It goes to show they’re working from a class/background assumption, instead of wanting to know what your knowledge type and level is.
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No, these were reports from when he was president. The folksy bullshit was for the media and voters.
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To an extent, but the delivery wasn’t an affect, he didn’t change it up as Obama does between audiences. One couldn’t help be smarter than the persona, but there’s no light behind those glassy eyes. Late stage alcoholism? The mannerisms were addled, he didn’t give any appearance of being a “decider”, just a sad doesn’t-really-want-to-be-here prop for the forces in charge.
I have no particular reason to believe that the anecdotes were anything but respect for the office over the man after he stepped down. Thirty years after, then we’ll get a more honest/accurate picture of what went on.
The Bush family father and son both put on different mannerisms to achieve office, but the addled and the folksy were two separate elements of Dubya’s role. The latter isn’t what I’m discussing.
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Isn’t Perl Horber one of the Crystal Gems?
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I see you’ve made up your mind regardless of what I might say about it. No point in my going looking for the reports since you know (despite never having met the man), right?
No, the stupid part is what the fuck does Pearl Harbor have to do with anything? Is this guy upset that we’re not maintaining a grudge against the Japanese? And why are we supposed to forget about the Alamo? Is he a Texian revanchist?
I agree it can be kind of mean to make fun of dumb people. We wouldn’t make fun of someone who is actually retarded, so why is it okay to mock someone who’s a little bit above that line? All I can think is it’s to keep them aware of their place. An actually retarded person doesn’t need reminding that they’re not smart, but a regular functioning moron might get to thinking that his uninformed and unconsidered opinions about things are just as valid as intelligent people’s opinions, and we’ve got more than enough of that particular syndrome going around.
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I’ll personally never know, but in politics persons rarely savage someone with as much power and influence. I just don’t have much faith in these convenient anecdotes.
So what is it that your base your judgement that he’s an idiot on, exactly?
So I have heard, on occasion. I won’t speculate who might have offered that high opinion in return for future advantage, or out of some high-minded respect for the office. Hell, some of 'em might have even meant it.
But “perceptive and intelligent” doesn’t do this to a fellow head of state:
Then you have his speedy and competent response to Hurricane Katrina. The prudent and ultimately harmless squandering of the budget surplus. The overall competent management of the U.S. economy between 2001 and 2008. The completely sensible decision to invade Iraq. The decision to torture suspected enemies, and the decision to defend that decision once sensible people discovered it. The widely lauded success of No Child Left Behind. Oh, and they say he read all the briefs?
Wonder how often he yawned while reading that one. See: here’s a quick wit at work:
“Damn, didn’t I just read something about this last month?” Well, give him a dozen minutes or so. Then he’ll get to work.
Unless he thinks it’s a vacation day.
Hell, let Jonathan Chait write this post for me.
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The boilerplate retort to that is that “Presidents aren’t ever really on vacation,” because they’re supposedly still on call and taking meetings while they’re clearing brush on the ranch or whatever. They can do the job from Camp David or Kennebunkport or Honolulu. Still, I think it’s more damning of U.S. standards of employment that even 174 days in eight years is more than most people get.
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I think it’s more like “stupid people are too stupid to realise they’re stupid” than putting someone in their place. A stupid person may well have a higher position in society than a smarter one.
And anyways, the whole “stupid” concept is conflated these days with foolishness. It seems to me that usually when we say someone is stupid we mean they are being foolish. Foolishness is not so heavily tied to intelligence, and in our fiction at least, there are plenty of stories of people realising the error of their ways when it’s pointed out to them and choosing a different path. That’s the theme of most Christian sermons any given Sunday, and a prominent theme in other Abrahamist religions as well.
As for “Remember Pearl Harbor” – I could see that resentment lingering on. Take a grandfather dying there, add in racism, top with manufacturing jobs lost to Asia. It’s a racist and reactionary stance and falls down for those reasons, but I can’t see it as totally random.
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It’s precisely the same mindset behind the ubiquitous “Never Forget” signs and shirts and banners and bumper stickers that popped up after 9/11. Just sixty years more out of fashion.
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