This ad is supposed to say what exactly?
Dubya's got a new ad on his Web site that depicts the members of John Kerry's "coalition of the wild-eyed." (If nothing else, this coalition at least appears to be numerically stronger than the "coalition of the willing" that invaded Iraq.)
Granted, it's calculated to appeal to Bush's base. But that said, anyone who isn't already rabidly conservative or fascist (and I'm not dealing in hyperbole on this one) would be hard pressed to find this ad portraying Bush in a favorable light. Maybe it's just me, but I think invoking Hitler -- even if, presumably, it's to liken your rivals to him -- isn't the best tactic, especially when the comparison is so abstract, understated and muddled that it leaves the viewer with the impression that Candidate Bush is being equated with Hitler.
To wit: The ad features a video of Hitler, with chants of "Sieg Heil" in the background and a text overlay reading "What were war crimes in 1945 ...." which then fades into a video of Bush, gesturing in a manner eerily reminiscent of the Hitler salute, with the text "is foreign policy in 2003."
In fairness, it is taken from a MoveOn ad, and it even shows the MoveOn logo at the end of the clip, but it's easy to miss and easier still to be left thinking Bush is using Hitler's "final solution" as a manual for his foreign policy.
And a greater sin than this is a second, inexplicable juxtaposition of Hitler and Bush. It begins again with images of Hitler and his fiery German bluster, with the text "God told me to strike at al-Qaida and I struck them." Then it transitions to scenes of Bush, still with Hitler speaking, with the text "and then He instructed me to strike at Saddam, which I did." While I'm guessing this was also a MoveOn montage, there's no credit this time. Not to mention, it makes the juxtaposition of Hitler and Bush all the more striking and jarring.
But, since this ad is intended to appeal to Bush's base, maybe it's apt to conflate him with der Führer. After all, Bush has remarked about how much easier this would be if it were a dictatorship. But frightening, nonetheless.
Granted, it's calculated to appeal to Bush's base. But that said, anyone who isn't already rabidly conservative or fascist (and I'm not dealing in hyperbole on this one) would be hard pressed to find this ad portraying Bush in a favorable light. Maybe it's just me, but I think invoking Hitler -- even if, presumably, it's to liken your rivals to him -- isn't the best tactic, especially when the comparison is so abstract, understated and muddled that it leaves the viewer with the impression that Candidate Bush is being equated with Hitler.
To wit: The ad features a video of Hitler, with chants of "Sieg Heil" in the background and a text overlay reading "What were war crimes in 1945 ...." which then fades into a video of Bush, gesturing in a manner eerily reminiscent of the Hitler salute, with the text "is foreign policy in 2003."
In fairness, it is taken from a MoveOn ad, and it even shows the MoveOn logo at the end of the clip, but it's easy to miss and easier still to be left thinking Bush is using Hitler's "final solution" as a manual for his foreign policy.
And a greater sin than this is a second, inexplicable juxtaposition of Hitler and Bush. It begins again with images of Hitler and his fiery German bluster, with the text "God told me to strike at al-Qaida and I struck them." Then it transitions to scenes of Bush, still with Hitler speaking, with the text "and then He instructed me to strike at Saddam, which I did." While I'm guessing this was also a MoveOn montage, there's no credit this time. Not to mention, it makes the juxtaposition of Hitler and Bush all the more striking and jarring.
But, since this ad is intended to appeal to Bush's base, maybe it's apt to conflate him with der Führer. After all, Bush has remarked about how much easier this would be if it were a dictatorship. But frightening, nonetheless.
posted by Alexander Dubcek | 21:48
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