Thekla:
Sounds a little naive to support that. Where did it come from? They make giant banners on aircraft carriers? All the world’s a prop.
“Keepers of Bush Image Lift Stagecraft to New Heights”
By ELISABETH BUMILLER, NYT, May 15, 2003.
…The most elaborate - and criticized - White House event so far was Mr. Bush’s speech aboard the Abraham Lincoln announcing the end of major combat in Iraq. White House officials say that a variety of people, including the president, came up with the idea, and that Mr. [Scott] Sforza embedded himself on the carrier to make preparations days before Mr. Bush’s landing in a flight suit and his early evening speech.
Media strategists noted afterward that Mr. Sforza and his aides had choreographed every aspect of the event, even down to the members of the Lincoln crew arrayed in coordinated shirt colors over Mr. Bush’s right shoulder and the “Mission Accomplished” banner placed to perfectly capture the president and the celebratory two words in a single shot. The speech was specifically timed for what image makers call “magic hour light,” which cast a golden glow on Mr. Bush.
“If you looked at the TV picture, you saw there was flattering light on his left cheek and slight shadowing on his right,” Mr. King said. “It looked great.”
Let’s see what “Soldier of Fortune” had to say about it…for Pete’s sake, you’re quoting something from Bumiller?!?
Every visit is like that – media strategists are called “public affairs” in the air force, and one is assigned (grade depends on who’s visiting) to every distinguished visitor who visits – the number of apples in the fruit basket on the dresser in the hotel room is coordinated before the guest arrives – as is the scent of air freshner in the car, if that person so desires…(and holds enough rank to rate this kind of “care and feeding”) – once, after a night flight, I was asked to get “balsamic vinegar dressing” to go on the 6ft sub I was asked to pick up (this is 9pm, after a full 6am arrival at work) for their dinner while they looked over the slides I’d stayed up all night perfecting (this particular guy disliked “arrows” on slides – preferred dashes…go figure) – my point is this: EVERYTHING you see is staged like that; EVERYTHING – the military is all about organization, planning, and protocol. Distinguished visitors are just that – they get every comfort conceivable – most refuse the comforts as well, but most military folks consider it their duty to meet the requirements, even if they’re not
real requirements, but instead “preferences” –
My eyebrows didn’t raise at all when I read that – when Pres Clinton came to Tucson in 99, we stopped over FOUR HOURS of flying so he could land…that’s like…a gazillion of your tax dollars involved there. Not ONE soul could be on the flightline. All windows and doors had to be secured – window shades pulled (in many cases, shades
installed so they could be pulled…LOL!) – tons of security police utilized for additional traffic control throughout the city – not to mention the TPD officers who were lining the streets. And then there’s the aforementioned “rent-a-crowd” — over 300 people (think of the lost manhours – 1hr wait before, 30min after, plus travel time, which was on foot since all traffic anywhere near the site was prohibited, so that was another 20min for me, more for others…) It’s called “pomp and circumstance” – and you look at footage of any presidential visit to a military anything – base, ship, humvee, – it’s all shaking hands and kissing babies, and it’s all the same.
And is it at all possible that “various people including the president came up with the idea” – could it have been "I want to get out there and shake their hands, I want to be there to say “GOOD JOB” _----- could that have been where his (name removed by moderator)ut came in? Don’t know, b/c they won’t tell you that, they just try to make it look like he said “I want a huge photo op, ok? Screw the guys on the ship, I want to look good!”
Just google “elisabeth bumiller” – it’s no wonder she thinks this way – I dont’ think she and I would see eye to eye if we were glued at the nose
