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Bush Backwash

Oppressed small businessman hope to invent fond memories of the Bush Era, starting with this provocative billboard.

Such miracles have been wrought before with creative application of the writerly arts, even with Bush himself, so watch out.

Hitting Myths   

Its come to this: even the author of  an anti Ronald Reagan tome has switched from critique to searching for a usable Reagan past.

Will Bunch warmed the hearts of millions with his 2009 screed,  “Tear Down This Myth: How the Reagan Legacy Has Distorted Our Politics and Haunts Our Future.” Now, with 2011’s looming Reagan Centenary, Bunch is back with a paperback edition, and his sub-title throws in the towel.  Readers may now enjoy “Tear Down This Myth: The Right-Wing Distortion of the Reagan Legacy“

Apparently discouraged after years of  pointing to ever more elaborate and endlessly repeated lies, myths and evasions,   Bunch seems to think he can embarrass Reagan cultists by pointing to gaps between present claims and Reagan’s practice.

What went wrong?

“As it turned out, the inauguration of Barack Obama and the arrival of a large Democratic majority in Congress instead showed the limits of government in the face of this powerful philosophy that is loosely based on Reagan’s 1980s presidency but distorts or exaggerates the reality of much of what happened in those years.“

Huh?

               Yahweh Or No Way?  

A drive to rename the California’s Mount Diablo for Ronald Reagan has attracted only mockery, as nearby residents petition Contra County Supervisors opposing the change, and the inevitable Facebook page mobilizes the awesome power of social media to stop the devil hater’s plan.

God-fearing geography gadfly Arthur Mijares has tried to take out Diablo before.  In 2005 he pitched Reagan’s name, was told the late President hadn’t been gone long enough, and briefly substituted “Yahwey,” which was rejected.

Mijares appears outmatched in the online battle ahead.

“According to the proponent, who provided a copy of the Wikipedia entry for President Reagan with his application, “The Commemorative Name (Mt. Reagan) speaks for itself.”

Or perhaps not.  The plucky SaveMountDiablo-istas  petition effort appears stalled at 17 out of the 50,000 names they set for their goal.

Remembering Reagan Right    

The Reagan Legacy Project has an exciting new look, and new worlds to conquer.

Gearing up for the late president’s 99th birthday has seen a flurry of activity from Projectors, who seek to plaster Reagan’s name, face, or scared relics over as much American real estate as they can grab.  In their sights: Nevada.

He Glows!

Silver State Gipper fans paint a future both poignant and optimistic,  when “future generations of Nevadans can look up at Mount Reagan one day and ask, “Mom, Dad, who is Reagan?”

The organizers complain that Reagan’s greatness is unmarked in Las Vegas, when actually he’s all around:  The Reagan Era has become Vegas code for all things worn, played, and clapped out.

The Excalibur Hotel & Casino

“The room, however, seemed like a relic from the Reagan years compared to the other places we’ve stayed in Vegas“

  Bally’s Las Vegas   

“It was clean except for the windows which… hadn’t been cleaned on the outside since the Reagan administration.”

 Riviera Hotel & Casino    

” The rooms haven’t seen new wallpaper or carpeting since the Reagan administration.”

 

“It should be noted that this comic is neither a piece of Reagan sycophancy, nor is it political satire”  –Talking Points Memo

 

What’s with these guys? First the vaguely progressive Huffington Post faithfully reprints Associated Press’s recycling the disproved George W. Bush Jacket ‘n Tie fetish myth.

Now Talking Points Memo, with a staff that actually writes stuff, endorses a Ronald Reagan comic that’s kind of a mess.

TPM may not find the work sycophantic, but it’s certainly the product of  a sycophant.

Comic author Don Smith doesn’t fake the fawning. Did you know that, unlike some, Ronald Reagan “really loved this country.”

It’s true!

“I mean he constantly was saying, ‘The United States is a city set on a hill… He constantly would say, ‘The United States’ best days are still ahead.’ I mean that is amazing!“

Smith’s command of facts amazes as well, managing to work wrong dates into the assassination attempt panels.

And Smith confidently applies the simple truths of the Reagan Era to our present difficulties, with a happy result:

“Regarding radical Islam terrorism, I think his philosophy would be “We win, they lose,” just as it was regarding the Soviet Union back in the 80s. And frankly, that kind of moral clarity is desperately needed right now!“