Jimmy Carter, The Most Respected Man In America? Naaaah!....

The Iconoclast ^ | December 15, 2002 | Murray Soupcoff (The Iconoclast)

[Apolitical]

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Jimmy Carter, The Most Respected Man In America? Naaaah!....



December 15, 2002: Well, here's another howler from CNN that should be another incentive for Americans to switch to Fox News as their cable news source. According to the Media Research Center, CNN featured an interview with the renowned Georgia peacemaker, peanut farmer and political nutcase, Jimmy Carter, after Jimmy accepted his Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo. During the interview, CNN's Jonathan Mann fawningly told the diplomat of choice of the world's most repressive tyrants and dictators: "Mr. President, you are arguably the most respected American on the planet today."

Oh, yeah? By whom? After all, that's akin to telling Martha Stewart, "Martha, you are arguably the most honest businesswomen and health-stock investor in America." Or "Al Gore, you are arguably the most charismatic politician in all 50 plus states of this great nation of ours." Or "Tom Cruise, you are arguably the tallest man Nicole Kidman has ever slept with." Or "Trent Lott, you are arguably the most respected politician in black America." Or "Adam Sandler, you are arguably the most hilarious chronicler of fart jokes America has ever seen."

Probably the best take on this exercise in typical CNN hyperbole is a sardonic look at this "incident" by our own contributor editor, Marni Soupcoff. So with great pride, we recommend -- especially to all you Jimmy Carter haters out there -- Marni Soupcoff's latest American Enterprise Magazine Online column, THE MOST RESPECTED AMERICAN? Killer rabbits say no!

To whet your appetite here's an excerpt:

The interview with the former President took place shortly after the humble peanut farmer -- who asks nothing more from life than good health, peace, and the world's fawning attention -- accepted his Nobel Peace Prize. In it, CNN's Jonathan Mann told Carter: "Mr. President, you are arguably the most respected American on the planet today."

I'll let that just sink in for a moment before going on, but let's just say that arguably has got to be the operative word in that sentence.

O.K., have you thought about it? Played around with the idea a little? James Earl Carter the most respected American on the planet? Surely Mr. Mann must have made some kind of mistake. Perhaps he was thinking of James Earl Jones, whose voice is indeed the stuff of power and can elicit reverence and veneration even when it's only advertising a phone book. Or perhaps Mann was confusing the former President with basketball great Vince Carter whose performance in the NBA All Star Game slam dunk competition did inspire awe all across North America, if not the planet.

But he couldn't possibly have been serious in suggesting that Jimmy Carter is the most respected American on the planet. The same Jimmy Carter whose most aggressive move as President came in 1979 when he was attacked by a killer rabbit and raised a paddle in self-defense?....

My, my. Nasty stuff indeed.

[Blue Collar Christian]

All this about religion. Not really, it's just an excuse.
You can see this struggle in the microcosm of a work place. It's all about "with" and "without". The people without are not willing to do what the people with have done to be with. Like the American Revolutionaries kicking out English rule. The people in these extremely impoverished counries are led by Talliban or some other extremist party(I know, The US installed the Talliban). Sadly, you may die trying to do what it takes to be with, but that's the risk you take. Also, I do not believe real democracy can be installed anywhere, it has to be wanted by the people willing to do what it takes to be with, and they have to win. You, my English freind, are right, this is to be a war on terrorist extremist, not Muslims, or any other religion. BTW, you can keep Madonna, PULEEZE!

[Blue Collar Christian]

Oh, ya, wasn't his all about that socialist rat Carter?

[Blue Collar Christian]

I go along with your wishful thinking on mideast peace, and no, I don't have a crystal ball, but I believe any peace between Israel and Palistine will be brief at best. Historically, they both feel that their people are entitled to the land promised to Abraham because of the family line. In this case, the sin of Abraham and Sarah to see God's plan their own way, out of lack of faith, led to a split blessing of a large line of decendants. I can simpathize with both sides, but my alliegence is with US/Israel because I read the whole book and know how it comes out. If Bush's road to a Nobel Prize, which was politically levered against him by being given to Carter, is realization of mideast peace through his administration of mediation, then he can tie up his trophy case with something else.

You have yourself and yours a Merry Christmas too.

[Blue Collar Christian]

My good English friend, no disrespect taken. You have good manners and I detect no animosity.
I agree that Bush's plan in action could be the solution for peace in the mideast, but I disbelieve the ability of the leaders of the region to accept a comprimise that would pacify the people long term. Just for the sake of this discussion, let's say Israel pulls out of the West Bank, maybe gives up a little more land, call it Palistine and (here's the fantasy part) the suicide bombings stop. Palistinians keep making babies, immigrating back from around the globe and growing, ultimately they will need more land. What's to stop the people from being rallied up with "we want back the land that is rightfully ours".

Here in the US we have a lobby group called "Sierra Club" that is a very dedicated and effective bunch. Their agenda is to conserve as much land in its natural state as possible. This includes restoring as much land as possible. Seems like a great cause, doesn't it? This means reversing man's development or use of the land for residential, commercial or recreation purposes. (unless your recreation is of their purist taste) So they petition the closure of millions of acres, "compromise" for a fraction of that, and then petition again. It's an incrimental advance of their agenda. They have their extremist sympathizers too. Criminally violent groups like ELF, Earth First and PETA. Back to the war on terrorists, these are terrorists.