MEETING THE EMPORER
Wanna bet this is a "before" picture?
Remember EARTHA KITT? The White House surely does. Way back when, the sultry voiced chanteuse was for some obscure reason invited to tea with LADY BIRD JOHNSON. During the usually un-newsworthy photo-op, Eartha lit into Lady Bird’s husbands VIETNAM WAR policy. A fire storm of controversy followed.
Every administration since has live in terror of a repeat performance. Folks invited to the White House are “vetted” out the yin-yang. Any one likely to raise a ripple should not hold their breath waiting for an invitation not matter how eminent or important they may be.
Of course handlers of RESIDENT GEORGE W. take even greater pains to make sure he or his wife are never told what they don’t want to hear. During the run-up to the WAR IN IRAQ, LAURA BUSH canceled a planned meeting with top American poets when word got out that some of them would protest the coming conflagration. It became the incident that gave birth to POETS AGAINST WAR.
SHRUB is reported never allowed to read newspapers, only sanitized-and simplified-news summaries prepared by a staff who knows what’s good for them. The many petitions against the war, to end torture, or preserve the BILL OF RIGHTS which are presented at the White House Gates are never accepted. The White House e-mail system is designed to block organized protest campaigns, and, reportedly able to send even individual e-mail with criticism in it to the trash bin.
When every few month he gets the itch to go out “among the people” to promote the war, some crack pot SOCIAL SECURITY scheme, or to shake down the fat cats for REPUBLICANS, he goes only to tightly controlled, ticket only venues where demonstrators and dissenters are kept far out of camera range.
In short, would-be Emperor George never has to hear that he is standing naked.
So sing the praises of 50 high school seniors, PRESIDENTIAL SCHOLARS, who took their ceremonial opportunity to slip him a hand written note urging and end to the use of TORTURE by the United States government.
Way to go, guys and girls!