The Smile of Tiberius

Pierrot has no time at all for Bush bashing. While he doesn't particularly care for Bush, and thinks that he is definitely in line for a series of active criticisms. Here is one, albeit a soundbyte crafted by both sides, that is Penn and the media for ease of reporting, that I take offense with:
Actor Sean Penn wasted little time unleashing his volatile political views upon a Toronto International Film Festival news conference Sunday, calling U.S. President George W. Bush "a Beelzebub - and a dumb one." http://www.canada.com/topics/entertainment/tiff/story.html?id=4f83a29d-45c9-4f8c-a791-1689b8b49530&k=14822
Thank you Mr. Penn for your insight. I did not know that W was a Beelzebub... and to qualify that, a dumb one. On a related note, we now know what the word of the day was for Mr. Penn. Nothing else I have read of Mr. Penn's ideas on government that is much more insightful without being hopelessly anachronistic or unrealistic. While that may be all well and good this is what passes as an ideological attack by the left these days - as it has since 2000! When Bush sees this he smiles, just as he smiled and hugged a certain black civil rights leader after Bush was openly slandered by the preacher at the Katrina vigil. Why did Bush smile in the face of theseborderline insults? Because he knew that he had the power and that all they were doing was wasting their time in slandering him, not actually posing a measurable ideological threat to his regime. Just as in the height of the Roman Empire, Tiberius was said to smile in the face of his detractors, as countless scandals surrounded his rule. Why? Because he knew that he had the power and that talk is cheap. In fact, to him as Tacitus notes in discussing his reign, what appeared to be threats to his power actually helped prezerve it by distracting people from the real issues at hand, giving them something to talk about, not act upon. Bush is the modern incarnation of Tiberius and his sheepish smile that says 'sure you can say I'm dumb... but I'm still the most powerful man on earth'. His is the smile of Tiberius.
Funny how all these smug, self-indulgent fools (and I consider Jon Stewart, Colbert, Penn among their number) haven't been able to mount a decent defense of the Democratic party or its principals and probably will continue to be as impotent through the upcoming midterm elections despite the fact that they may gain control of at least one legislative body. This is pathetic given the intellectual ammunition Bush has given them. No-one seems to be able to rise above cheap satire. Where is the young versions of Howard ZInn when we need a new, realistic voice to defend the left against the Republicans and their fundraising apparatus which is currently miles ahead of the Dems. When Pierrot was young we based our support of the Algerian independence movement on cutting edge postcolonial ideas that we gleaned from the works of Sartre et al., not on the sayings of an undereducated actor. We put thought into our words and actions. 6 years on, Bush is still in power and looks a lot smarter than almost anyone who would bother to call him dumb. Here is my level-headed and acute criticism of his whole regime:
1.) Bush has not decriminalized the stealing of cars as he promised Pierrot he would prior to the election
2.) The regime has succeeded in convincing the working classes, particularly non-urban whites
that they are their party while eroding their tax position relative to the higher classes with an appeal to a misformed idea of christian patriotism that should be frightening to anyone who believes in the idea of separation of church and state.
3.) Has continued to build up a massive trade and national deficit, the implications of which are the topic of constant discussion amongst economists.
4.) Has relied upon personal consumption for the 'bounce', (are we still in a larger bear even with his latest run-up? Dow hasn't got back to 2000 levels yet?) to the historically unprecendented point of having a negative savings rate.
5.) Muddled, ineffective immigration policy.
6.) A useless war which is utterly absurd, based on a series of blatant, well-documented misrepresentations, which history will look upon as the beginning and end of post Cold War American imperial ambitions. All of this has been glossed over with appeals to patriotism which could easily be destroyed in the open argument that this government claims to protect but avidly avoids.
With such criticisms easily at hand, their is no place in my mind for relying on insults to decry Bush and his regime. Doing so makes this modern Tiberius very happy indeed.