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A Big Fish Story:

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Message Megan Bronson
George W. Bush was asked what his most memorable moment was since he became President of the United States of America. His response was a surprise and one that only his closest confidants could have guessed. His answer""catching a large fish in his lake. Some sources reported the fish to be a six and one half pound perch and others a seven and one half pound bass. Either way, all things considered, I find this response frightening.

A thinking and connected person might have responded that one of his two inaugurations as President would be his most memorable moment in the past six years. Certainly reading My Pet Goat and then continuing to blink and read My Pet Goat when the World Trade Center was hit, by not one but two, hijacked commercial aircraft would be expected to be high on the list of memorable events since Bush became President. It is certainly at the top of the list of unforgettable and memorable events of any American citizen in possession of a television and a heart on September 11, 2001. The memorial service which George and Laura Bush attended for those who died in a Pennsylvania field as a result of the crash of Flight 93 on September 11, 2001 would reasonably be expected to be at least in the top three memorable events experienced by George W. Bush in the past six years. This would only be respectful given that there is abundant evidence that those who died resisting the hijackers saved the White House from suffering a similar fate as the twin towers and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001. They died terrified and trying and that is true courage. They would be near the top of most thinking Americans' lists of memorable events.

One could reasonably surmise that toppling the regime of Saddam Hussein who was accused of having Weapons of Mass Destruction and posing an "imminent threat to the United States""putting us in clear and present danger" would rank high on the list of memorable events. Bringing down Satan Incarnate should be a truly big deal to George W. Bush in carrying out what he considered a mandate from God communicated directly to him. The problem with this is that Bush used and continues to use our money, our resources, and worst of all the lives of our young men and women to carry out his own personal, zealous, religious agenda. We all know now, including those congressman and senators who supported Bush in going to war in Iraq, that Saddam Hussein had neither weapons of mass destruction nor did he pose a clear and present danger to the United States of America.

Then there was the "Mission Accomplished Moment" in 2003 on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier, decked out in flight suit and all, that one would think would be a truly memorable event for George W. Bush. "This marks the end of the combat phase of the war in Iraq", George Bush cavalierly remarked as he stood under the Mission Accomplished banner which was suggested by the Navy and made by the White House. Ending the combat phase of the invasion of Iraq is certainly a highly memorable event. However, three years later the war and occupation of Iraq are still ongoing with tens of thousands of civilian casualties and little reporting on the numbers of deaths of our own military personnel. (Remember Viet Nam where every evening on the news we heard the tally of the military and civilian deaths on both sides. This kept us out of denial about the most horrible consequence of war.) There are thousands of men, women, and children who have been wounded in Iraq since the invasion whose lives are and will be forever changed and/or destroyed. One would think that walking through Walter Reed Hospital and seeing those who have lost limbs, suffered severe head injuries, and other devastating war time injuries would be not only memorable, but haunting.

The survivors all along the Gulf Coast who had their lives wiped away by Hurricane Katrina should feel deeply insulted and outraged at taking a back seat to the catching of a fish. I spent four weeks in New Orleans last year and remain deeply affected by the loss and devastation that I saw there. If you have seen that devastation with your own eyes, you will never forget it. The promises made by Bush regarding rebuilding the region and taking care of the people have proven to be hollow and without substance. The media moment showing George W. Bush hugging and kissing the foreheads of the two distraught and grieving teenaged African American girls must have been memorable. They had no idea they were being used as a photo op or that the words of the man who was using them were without truth or substance. George W. Bush was in San Diego pushing his Iraq agenda while people in New Orleans were suffering in sweltering heat on roof tops and overpasses, in the Superdome and Convention Center, without food and water or medical care, supplies, or emergency services. Most of those trapped in the city were African American. Those images will be forever burned into the psyche and memory of this nation. Certainly, these people, these events, are worth being remembered and noted.

These are just a few of the most glaring memorable moments when looking back on the presidency of George W. Bush. Certainly there are many more that would qualify for a top ten list of memorable events. The choice of catching a large fish as the most memorable moment of his time as President of the United States trivializes the tragedies of the last six years and also trivializes the tragedy that has been the Presidency of George W. Bush and his disastrous legacy to this nation and to the world. It has become downright frightening to have a person in the office of the Presidency of the United States of America who is so totally clueless and callous.
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Megan Bronson is a mother, grandmother, nurse, psychotherapist and author who has grave concerns regarding the impact of the current administration's decisions on future generations of children of not only this country but of the world.
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