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Wednesday, May 04, 2005We were hoping not to have to fuss with this one, but the story lingers so... what say the TurkeyBlog about Laura Bush's standup?Here's Instapunk, found at Instapundit. Our own thoughts? There are different kinds of comedy, one of them being a comedy of the absurd. If there were any danger that any of Laura's jokes had more than the faintest ring of truth about them, there might be a problem. But the performance we got involved Laura suggesting she was going to set the record straight about a few things, then doing exactly the opposite. Other than noting Pres. Bush's early bedtime and his lack of love for all things press, the First Lady said exactly nothing that you could take to the bank until after the "but seriously, folks" break. If you're a shy librarian from a small Southern town, there's going to be a certain thrill at telling a dirty joke in public, and the thrill on Laura's face was clear. So was that bit of nervousness that let you know that she was more excited about the idea of having given such a routine than she was about the idea of actually giving it - in the same way that Douglas Adams liked having written novels much better than he liked writing them. Laura Bush was not a jock shooting off one-liners in the locker room, but a nervous student-council president type telling a slightly racy story to warm up the room and assert that she could run with the cool kids. It's not surprising that certain conservatives of the family values stripe are upset. If your idea of sex is something faintly disgusting that the miracle of life barely compensates for, then any reference to sexuality that fails to repulse is a threat. And if you need biblical injunctions to keep your wife's respect for you intact, any suggestion that women could have minds of their own is emasculating. Fortunately, the President has some pretty big cojones. He told half the world to take a hike when they tried to mess up his plans in the Middle East. Are a few zingers from the First Lady really going to emasculate him? Bull. They seem, to the contrary, to have made him laugh. What the world learned, then, is that the President of the United States is just about as secure in his marriage - and even his sexuality and overall competence - as he is in the conviction that his is the right vision for the Middle East. Laura Bush's bit did scare the bejeezus out of frustrated neo-puritans with adequacy issues by its suggestion that a woman could actually speak out - and who knows what they might say if the threat of hell doesn't quietly bind them to husbands who don't actually earn their authority? But the rest of the world didn't go home wondering who actually wore the pants in the family. To the contrary, they saw that the President's a big enough man to enjoy a laugh or two at his expense, especially from someone whose affection for him is so evident. 
posted by gbarto at 9:31 AM |
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