Bohemian Conservative
Commentary: Politics at Home and Abroad
The Urban Grind's piece on British MP George Galloway, comparing his tactics to those used by Marion Barry, inspired this commentary from yours truly:
I was listening to Mark Steyn on the Hugh Hewitt show about 30 minutes ago, and he lambasted British MP George Galloway as “the lowest of scoundrels.” Galloway used to visit Saddam, bringing him gifts like fancy chocolates and such. I was reading about his (Galloway's) Senate appearance yesterday, and, as Hugh concurred, there was little mention of any of his agredious behavior that was his whole purpose of attending the hearings to begin with. The MSM coverage made him appear as a parliamentary Michael Moore-type, focussing on his fiery tone toward the Senate sub-committee.
One thing my fellow Americans must remember is that there is a very big difference between the British House of Commons and the US Senate. British MP’s speak very candidly in Parliament compared to the overly polite stoicism of our Senators. I despise Galloway, but I do admire the refreshing, “gloves off,” un-PC nature with which he and other MP’s conduct themselves in the political arena. The diatribes from clowns like Byrd and Kennedy wouldn’t last 5 minutes in a Parliamentary system. Our congress critters could take a lesson or two from these folks, and it would go a long way toward their credibility with Americans who, like me, have no or very little faith in anything these guys say or do.
Watch some Parliamentary coverage on C-SPAN sometime, and you will find it much more engaging than watching our Congress in (non)action. I cringe when I think how our President would fare if he had to stand in front of Congress and field rapid-fire questions and attacks from the opposition the way Tony Blair does. Let’s face it, the President doesn’t do too well when he has to think on his feet; he has a lot of trouble even when he knows what questions are coming from the press and selects from a pre-determined list of reporters to call upon.
Since coming to New Zealand, watching how things work here (Parliamentary, similar to Britain) has been a very eye-opening experience and has demonstrated how insulated from much of the rest of the world many of my fellow Americans are. We in the blogosphere can do a lot to change that.
I was listening to Mark Steyn on the Hugh Hewitt show about 30 minutes ago, and he lambasted British MP George Galloway as “the lowest of scoundrels.” Galloway used to visit Saddam, bringing him gifts like fancy chocolates and such. I was reading about his (Galloway's) Senate appearance yesterday, and, as Hugh concurred, there was little mention of any of his agredious behavior that was his whole purpose of attending the hearings to begin with. The MSM coverage made him appear as a parliamentary Michael Moore-type, focussing on his fiery tone toward the Senate sub-committee.
One thing my fellow Americans must remember is that there is a very big difference between the British House of Commons and the US Senate. British MP’s speak very candidly in Parliament compared to the overly polite stoicism of our Senators. I despise Galloway, but I do admire the refreshing, “gloves off,” un-PC nature with which he and other MP’s conduct themselves in the political arena. The diatribes from clowns like Byrd and Kennedy wouldn’t last 5 minutes in a Parliamentary system. Our congress critters could take a lesson or two from these folks, and it would go a long way toward their credibility with Americans who, like me, have no or very little faith in anything these guys say or do.
Watch some Parliamentary coverage on C-SPAN sometime, and you will find it much more engaging than watching our Congress in (non)action. I cringe when I think how our President would fare if he had to stand in front of Congress and field rapid-fire questions and attacks from the opposition the way Tony Blair does. Let’s face it, the President doesn’t do too well when he has to think on his feet; he has a lot of trouble even when he knows what questions are coming from the press and selects from a pre-determined list of reporters to call upon.
Since coming to New Zealand, watching how things work here (Parliamentary, similar to Britain) has been a very eye-opening experience and has demonstrated how insulated from much of the rest of the world many of my fellow Americans are. We in the blogosphere can do a lot to change that.
posted by Mae at 12:21 PM
7 Comments:
Thanks for the link Joe. I don't think this comment went through the first time.
By the way, did that Muslim guy who told Stan not to name his cat Mohammed ever come back? It doesn't look like Stan said anything to him directly.
nah, he hit and ran. I checked out his profile...20 year old Pakistani living in Canada. But I thought it was a good thing to post on its own and deconstruct him piece by piece LOL!!!
and you're quite welcome, Lisa. We're all in this trying to do the same thing in our own different ways. Chrenkoff linked us and our numbers went up pretty well, so hopefully its a sign of good things to come
I do love the way the Brits unload on on another. We could use a whole lot more of that here in the States.
And Lisa, screw him and the camel he rode up on. I can't get much more direct than that.
Stan, it is fun to watch them go at it. Here in NZ there is a very outspoken conservative MP named Winston Peters who makes no bones about his dislike for Muslims, and he takes no shit from the Greens and the other libs. He's so strong on immigration policy, I can't imagine how he would deal with our border crisis in the States. I really like him. Lots.
Last week I was watching the news and one of the MP's was ejected from the floor by what would be the equivalent of the Speaker of the House who presides over the debates. All statements and rebuttals must be directed to her. One guy got out of line and would not heed, so she had him removed. It's great to see some passion in government.
Question? Why is a British MP testifying before our senate? Do we not have the power to summon legislative leaders from other countries here to testify? If we find he did wrong, are we going to jail him? Do we have that authority and power? I just found it strange him testifying here but I don't know the whole story.
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