Bush Branding
May 13, 2008 4:35 PM Subscribe
Worldwide disdain of Bush used to sell everything from newspapers to marmite to adhesive tape to cars to Scrabble, plus lots of advocacy ads for not-for-profit organizations.
I can't blame 'em. It's far easier to bash Bush than to actually have an opinion. Having your own opinion requires making tough choices and facing the consequences. On the other hand, blaming a far-away leader for all the world's problems is politically painless.
It's the same reason the Cuba embargo failed; we gave Castro something he could blame all of his internal troubles on. Whenever things got rough, he'd just blame the US, whether it was involved or not.
posted by Leon-arto at 4:45 PM on May 13, 2008
It's the same reason the Cuba embargo failed; we gave Castro something he could blame all of his internal troubles on. Whenever things got rough, he'd just blame the US, whether it was involved or not.
posted by Leon-arto at 4:45 PM on May 13, 2008
False dichotomy. People can have their own opinions, "make tough choices," etc., and laugh at Bush in their ads.
posted by equalpants at 4:53 PM on May 13, 2008 [4 favorites]
posted by equalpants at 4:53 PM on May 13, 2008 [4 favorites]
And he's NOT getting royalties for all that? Our Intellectual Property laws need to be seriously tightened up! Okay, everybody who's LOLing because I used the word "Intellectual" in a Bush comment, CUT IT OUT. Or pay him and me a nickel each.
posted by wendell at 5:05 PM on May 13, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by wendell at 5:05 PM on May 13, 2008 [1 favorite]
What equalpants said. Also,
...blaming a far-away leader for all the world's problems is politically painless.
For many, many people all around the world, the US president and the global military and corporate web that he controls and/or represents is never really "far away". Obviously, the actions and decisions of the US president can and do have very real and immediate impact upon the lives of people everywhere.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 5:05 PM on May 13, 2008 [3 favorites]
...blaming a far-away leader for all the world's problems is politically painless.
For many, many people all around the world, the US president and the global military and corporate web that he controls and/or represents is never really "far away". Obviously, the actions and decisions of the US president can and do have very real and immediate impact upon the lives of people everywhere.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 5:05 PM on May 13, 2008 [3 favorites]
I'd love to see more ads like this in the US, but for some reason, despite his low approval rating and the high percentage of people who think the country is headed in the wrong direction, for some reason mass media is still timid about criticizing Bush.
posted by hifiparasol at 5:07 PM on May 13, 2008 [2 favorites]
posted by hifiparasol at 5:07 PM on May 13, 2008 [2 favorites]
Castro. My, what a timely, apropos allusion.
/me tears up Teapot Dome comment he was working on
posted by DU at 5:16 PM on May 13, 2008 [1 favorite]
/me tears up Teapot Dome comment he was working on
posted by DU at 5:16 PM on May 13, 2008 [1 favorite]
for some reason mass media is still timid about criticizing Bush.
I'm pretty sure mass/corporate media shares most of the same agenda of our military/industrial government. I'd actually be suspicious if they were more critical.
posted by rokusan at 5:18 PM on May 13, 2008 [2 favorites]
I'm pretty sure mass/corporate media shares most of the same agenda of our military/industrial government. I'd actually be suspicious if they were more critical.
posted by rokusan at 5:18 PM on May 13, 2008 [2 favorites]
That's some weirdly confused commentary accompanying them.
posted by cillit bang at 5:19 PM on May 13, 2008
posted by cillit bang at 5:19 PM on May 13, 2008
Also, as for "a far away leader" being unrelated to most people's problems...
Dude, check out any quickly-Googled map.
US meddling is very, very close to home for a very great deal of the world's people.
posted by rokusan at 5:20 PM on May 13, 2008 [3 favorites]
Dude, check out any quickly-Googled map.
US meddling is very, very close to home for a very great deal of the world's people.
posted by rokusan at 5:20 PM on May 13, 2008 [3 favorites]
I'm sure there were plenty of overseas dopey caricatures of Reagan and Clinton, too.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 5:24 PM on May 13, 2008
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 5:24 PM on May 13, 2008
That's some weirdly confused commentary accompanying them.
Indeed it is: impossible to tell where (if anywhere) this guy stands. And the skewered English doesn't help. Granted, he's not a native speaker... but he'd be advised to have a native speaker/copy editor go over that stuff. It's really pretty bad.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 5:24 PM on May 13, 2008
Indeed it is: impossible to tell where (if anywhere) this guy stands. And the skewered English doesn't help. Granted, he's not a native speaker... but he'd be advised to have a native speaker/copy editor go over that stuff. It's really pretty bad.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 5:24 PM on May 13, 2008
I miss the days when you could actually have an argument about Bush.
posted by empath at 5:27 PM on May 13, 2008
posted by empath at 5:27 PM on May 13, 2008
Here, I'll say something controversial. Since Bush got rid of Tenet, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Rove, Feith, Gonzalez, Libby, Ashcroft, etc and stopped trying to actually implement an agenda, his Presidency has been noticeably less disastrous.
posted by empath at 5:30 PM on May 13, 2008 [6 favorites]
posted by empath at 5:30 PM on May 13, 2008 [6 favorites]
George W. Bush is directly responsible for a lack of innovation at Microsoft.
posted by turgid dahlia at 5:37 PM on May 13, 2008
posted by turgid dahlia at 5:37 PM on May 13, 2008
blaming a far-away leader for all the world's problems is politically painless.
politcally painless? It takes a lot of gumption for a government to stand up to Bush and his saber-rattling. No one wants to become the next Iraq or Afghanistan.
posted by peacheater at 6:13 PM on May 13, 2008
politcally painless? It takes a lot of gumption for a government to stand up to Bush and his saber-rattling. No one wants to become the next Iraq or Afghanistan.
posted by peacheater at 6:13 PM on May 13, 2008
Since Bush got rid of Tenet, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Rove, Feith, Gonzalez, Libby, Ashcroft, etc and stopped trying to actually implement an agenda, his Presidency has been noticeably less disastrous.
So would you consider drilling for oil in Anwar disastrous? Less Disastrous? Or noticeably less disastrous?
Remember. If you even think about praising the current occupant, he will find a way to fuck up the country in 48 hours.
posted by cjets at 6:51 PM on May 13, 2008
So would you consider drilling for oil in Anwar disastrous? Less Disastrous? Or noticeably less disastrous?
Remember. If you even think about praising the current occupant, he will find a way to fuck up the country in 48 hours.
posted by cjets at 6:51 PM on May 13, 2008
He did set up that swank Hawaiian Wildlife Refuge thing. And is working hard to increase the volume of water it holds without expanding the boundaries.
posted by cowbellemoo at 7:08 PM on May 13, 2008
posted by cowbellemoo at 7:08 PM on May 13, 2008
we gave Castro something he could blame all of his internal troubles on.
And US internal troubles are all clearly due to the Russkies and the Red Chinese and the terrorists and....
posted by binturong at 7:42 PM on May 13, 2008
And US internal troubles are all clearly due to the Russkies and the Red Chinese and the terrorists and....
posted by binturong at 7:42 PM on May 13, 2008
Ugh. Yes. These ads were a serious stretch of the imagination.
posted by pantsonfire at 7:46 PM on May 13, 2008
posted by pantsonfire at 7:46 PM on May 13, 2008
And US internal troubles are all clearly due to the Russkies
I think you're proving my point: One path to political success is to blame everything on some outsider that can't respond. For Cuba, it was the US. For the US from 1950-1990 it was the Ruskies. For the US from 2001-20__ it's the terrorists.
Just the same, it's politically easy for Italy to blame that country's woes on the US rather than internal problems (religious bickering, organized crime, excessive taxation, inefficient government, etc).
posted by Leon-arto at 7:51 PM on May 13, 2008
I think you're proving my point: One path to political success is to blame everything on some outsider that can't respond. For Cuba, it was the US. For the US from 1950-1990 it was the Ruskies. For the US from 2001-20__ it's the terrorists.
Just the same, it's politically easy for Italy to blame that country's woes on the US rather than internal problems (religious bickering, organized crime, excessive taxation, inefficient government, etc).
posted by Leon-arto at 7:51 PM on May 13, 2008
The US military is deployed in 130 countries around the world. So exuuuuse us if we actually have an opinion about you.
posted by dydecker at 8:17 PM on May 13, 2008 [5 favorites]
posted by dydecker at 8:17 PM on May 13, 2008 [5 favorites]
This 'Iceberg' one is brilliant. Good old-school poster art.
posted by Anything at 9:18 PM on May 13, 2008
posted by Anything at 9:18 PM on May 13, 2008
"Now watch this drive."
How the fuck did we re-elect this motherfucker?
posted by kirkaracha at 10:18 PM on May 13, 2008
How the fuck did we re-elect this motherfucker?
posted by kirkaracha at 10:18 PM on May 13, 2008
Is Bush an "Idiot"? You decide...and no doubt you already have. I know that actions speak louder than words, but his words speak 'volumes'. Is it really a surprise that Bush is held in such 'disdain' around the world?
posted by appleyar at 11:34 PM on May 13, 2008
posted by appleyar at 11:34 PM on May 13, 2008
Did you mean worldwide disdain for the people who voted Bush? The guy himself is a riot and not half the idiot he's pictured to be.
posted by elpapacito at 3:01 AM on May 14, 2008
posted by elpapacito at 3:01 AM on May 14, 2008
Just the same, it's politically easy for Italy to blame that country's woes on the US rather than internal problems (religious bickering, organized crime, excessive taxation, inefficient government, etc).
Might I politely inquire as to where in the holy hell you pulled this bit of info from?
'Cause it's a shitnugget of massive proportions, and I wish to point & laugh at your woefully misinformed source.
posted by romakimmy at 6:50 AM on May 14, 2008
Might I politely inquire as to where in the holy hell you pulled this bit of info from?
'Cause it's a shitnugget of massive proportions, and I wish to point & laugh at your woefully misinformed source.
posted by romakimmy at 6:50 AM on May 14, 2008
not half the idiot wit he's pictured to be.
Those ads are Bush's real legacy. In time, even the name "Bush" may come to be synonymous with "gigantic clusterfuck."
posted by octobersurprise at 6:51 AM on May 14, 2008
Those ads are Bush's real legacy. In time, even the name "Bush" may come to be synonymous with "gigantic clusterfuck."
posted by octobersurprise at 6:51 AM on May 14, 2008
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