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Love that piece. It's worth pointing out also that Keith was there only for the final year of office, rather than near the beginning, which is one of the best p
by Jach 11y ago
Love that piece. It's worth pointing out also that Keith was there only for the final year of office, rather than near the beginning, which is one of the best pieces of anecdata against the post-1994 ongoing dementia theory (which a priori I still think is more likely than the "playing dumb" theory). There is of course other anecdata on Bush not being as intelligent as Keith claims, but the big issue that should make most people have low confidence in either extreme is it's hard for people to form an accurate mental model of the President. The 4th image from http://www.ribbonfarm.com/2015/04/08/the-essence-of-peopling/ http://www.ribbonfarm.com/2015/04/08/the-essence-of-peopling... highlights the issue.
- bitwize 11y agoI don't much like his policies, but I always had a big question mark in my mind when it came to Bush's raw intelligence. He spoke like a man who didn't know how to speak in public, not like someone who was ignorant or addled. There was a peculiar absent-mindedness to his gaffes ("misunderestimate", "is our children learning") and so forth but it had a more "way out of his element" feel rather than coming from a place of stupidity. I doubt I'd be able to do much better in front of a large and frequently very hostile audience. Part of my problem with American politics is that so few know how to think clearly about the actors involved. I guve Bush considerable benefit of the doubt when it comes to mental capability but I don't agree with him. And I dislike Obama for his failure to uphold the values he got elected on, not (as many feebleminded urbane Democrat voters suppose) because of his skin color.
- finid 11y ago> He spoke like a man who didn't know how to speak in public, not like someone who was ignorant or addled. His problem went beyond not knowing how to speak in public, which, by itself, is not a sign of not being intelligent. He was truly very dull, something he himself admitted to ("I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed"). Aside from that, if you passed through college, then through grad school and always referred to the Internet as "the internets", and to "the google", then public speaking is the least of your worries.
- mietek 11y ago> He was truly very dull, something he himself admitted You may wish to rethink this.
- finid 11y agoYou'll have to give me good reasons to. No, downvoting is not one.
- cholantesh 11y agoWas not the linked article sufficient?
- kevin_thibedeau 11y agoIt's revisionist history. Bush is clearly not as dumb as he was caricatured. But he certainly couldn't lead in any way on his own without daddy's entourage telling him what to do.
- cholantesh 11y agoCould any head of state? The depth of expertise required to hold that kind of position is far more than one man can deign to have.
- david927 11y agoThe linked article was fluff piece by a friend of his.
- gravypod 11y agoWhat do you mean by this?
- realitygrill 11y agoDull people don't usually call themselves dull. "Reasonably intelligent" or "average" are more common. Think, was there perhaps a strategic reason to paint himself so?