# Bush Blackout Speech - What A Moron!!! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 15, 2003, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294 "2003-08-15T01:29:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Kal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9de053/32.png) [@Kal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kal)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/41 "2003-08-15T11:03:52Z")
“My fellow Aquariums, Today a power outraged has causulated many lightbulbs and… er… stuff… to stop functionating…” ---
**Author:** ![London\_Calling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@London\_Calling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/London_Calling)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/42 "2003-08-15T11:20:54Z")
My fellow Amnesians, throughout the wirl, Armenia is seen as a shining beaker of freedom. Today, parts of that great shining lie in darkness . . . ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/43 "2003-08-15T11:43:17Z")
“My fellow Artichokes, today something happenated. It was not good. Power did not come to our cities. This was not due to terrorizelers. The best solution is to… Do something about the blackamoor. The best solution now is to do something. And we will. Do something. God bless us, each and every one, Mary Poptarts.” ---
**Author:** ![London\_Calling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@London\_Calling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/London_Calling)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/44 "2003-08-15T11:49:31Z")
My fallow Amnesmaniacs, It’s easy to fergit sometimes . . . . Yep. Thank you and God bless the greateration of Texas. ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/45 "2003-08-15T12:02:45Z")
It was appropriate for the President to make some remarks, given the number of people affected by the blackout. Much as I dislike GWB, I don’t really blame him for being a poor public speaker. Anybody can fumble. However, my cumulative impression from the past few years is that the man is deliberately, wilfully ignornant and simple-minded, which is worse than being naturally stupid. I would love to see the POTUS subjected to “Question Time” on a regular basis. Perhaps we give the President a bit too much deference in our culture. When the current one does have a press conference, it’s scripted. ---
**Author:** ![Rashak\_Mani](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ea666f/32.png) [@Rashak\_Mani](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rashak_Mani)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/46 "2003-08-15T12:07:37Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jjimm \* > \*\*There’s an show on UK TV that does a great GWB impression. He usually starts his speeches with something like: > > “My fellow pelicans…” \*\* What show is it ? Might try getting it online or in Eurochannel here… What about the Bush speech … anywhere is it online in video ? ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/47 "2003-08-15T12:18:58Z")
Eh. Bush is merely a figurehead for the evil right wing cronies who subject us to untold fear and misery in order to line the pockets of the people who line their pockets. What he says about a blackout is smaller than small potaotes. ---
**Author:** ![Kal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9de053/32.png) [@Kal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kal)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/48 "2003-08-15T12:21:38Z")
Dead Ringers. The radio version is due to be broadcast tonight at 10pm (BST) on Radio 7. If you go to the Radio 7 [homepage](http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbc7/) and have Realplayer or Windows Media, then you can listen to it online. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/49 "2003-08-15T12:24:04Z")
The show is called [Dead Ringers](http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/previews/index_deadringers.shtml), and the chief impressionist is a guy called John Culshaw. He’s pretty much the best vocal impressionist I’ve ever heard (check out his Dr Who prank calls, and his Ozzy Osbourne and Ricky Gervais impressions are fucking immaculate). The second series was a bit weak, but the current one is really on the ball. ---
**Author:** ![sunfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/96bed5/32.png) [@sunfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sunfish)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/50 "2003-08-15T12:56:28Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by rjung \* > \*\*I just wonder why everyone’s making such a big deal about the blackouts to begin with. From all accounts I’ve heard, the authorities believe power will be restored in a few hours anyway. Are folks on the east coast _that_ dependent on their machines that they can’t hack a power outage for more than ten minutes? \*\* No offense, but this was not a matter of people feeling bereft of the chance to post to the SDMB for a few minutes. For example, there were literally thousands asleep on the streets overnight here in NYC because the entire transit system was shut down, and some hotels were not allowing guests to remain indoors after dark. Why not read a few articles or watch CNN for a bit before making this sort of comment? As for Bush’s comments… frankly, I had the radio on at the time but didn’t bother to listen, because by the time his statement came out I’d already heard what I needed to hear from other sources. I’m not a huge fan of Mayor Bloomberg, but IMHO he did much more to make me feel comfortable (if resigned) about the whole situation, and he did it within an hour after the whole thing started. Now, off to trash all the stuff in my fridge that’s probably not good any more … [total time in blackout: 17 hours, 35 minutes] ---
**Author:** ![meara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@meara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/meara)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/51 "2003-08-15T14:39:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by John Mace \* > \*\*OK, moron, I just saw an Power Company representative interviewed on the news and he explained that in situations like this it was common for people to experience rolling blackouts. Since the grid is interconnected all over the country, this is the best way to make sure a major outage does not spread even further. \*\* Hmmm… instead of me writing a kneejerk response to that, let me sit back a sec and try to fight some ignorance (perhaps my own?). Does anyone know if “rolling blackout” is a term really applicable to this situation? To my knowledge, it is used to describe a situation where supply cannot meet demand, so power companies selectively disable certain parts of the grid and then turn them back on in a rolling fashion (e.g. palo alto from 1-2pm, mountain view from 2-3pm, etc.). The key point there is that it’s not just a widespread outage, but rather rolls around the region. All of the references to it I’m finding on the web use the term that way, e.g.: [http://www.csudh.edu/admfin/power/PowerOutagesFAQs@CSUDH.htm](http://www.csudh.edu/admfin/power/PowerOutagesFAQs@CSUDH.htm) > **[Disaster Relief](https://www.redcross.org/about-us/our-work/disaster-relief.html)** > > From small house fires to multi-state disasters, the Red Cross goes wherever we’re needed, so people can have clean water, safe shelter and hot meals when they need them most. [http://www.psnh.com/Energy/EnergyOutLook/RollingBlackouts.asp](http://www.psnh.com/Energy/EnergyOutLook/RollingBlackouts.asp) [http://www.usnewsclassroom.com/resources/activities/act010212.html](http://www.usnewsclassroom.com/resources/activities/act010212.html) I have never heard this term used to describe an unplanned event, and in fact, describing it that way (especially when speaking from California) seems misleading. People who experienced California’s recent rolling blackouts might take those words to mean that someone made a controlled decision to cause this blackout, not that it was triggered automatically by an unknown event. I suppose energy officials may need to use rolling blackouts in some areas to manage demand until the grid is fully recovered, but I still don’t see how the original event can be called a rolling blackout. Sure, it spread, but it didn’t roll from one place to the next (turning places off and then back on as it went). A search of google news shows a handful of news stories using the term -after- the president’s speech, but none before. Are there any dopers in that field who can elaborate on the terminology? ---
**Author:** ![elf6c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c57346/32.png) [@elf6c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elf6c)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/52 "2003-08-15T14:55:11Z")
It wasn’t Curious George’s fault- he couldn’t find his flight suit in time for the speech. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![ThatDuckIsEvil](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@ThatDuckIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThatDuckIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/53 "2003-08-15T15:08:59Z")
Kal, London, and jjimm…you owe me a new pair of panties. I’ve soiled myself. ---
**Author:** ![Linear\_Crack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Linear\_Crack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Linear_Crack)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/54 "2003-08-15T15:11:58Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by elf6c \* > It wasn’t Curious George’s fault- he couldn’t find his flight suit in time for the speech. > :rolleyes: [Oh yes he did!](http://us.news1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/rids/20030814/s/1060890407.3154354250.jpg) -LC ---
**Author:** ![GaWd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f08c70/32.png) [@GaWd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GaWd)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/55 "2003-08-15T15:25:42Z")
Meara, coupla comments: > [@](#): > > People who experienced California’s recent rolling blackouts might take those words to mean that someone made a controlled decision to cause this blackout, not that it was triggered automatically by an unknown event What “recent” rolling blackouts? In the last 2 summers, I think there were some VERY isolated blackouts in california, but not what I would consider “rolling blackouts”. We’ve been warned on a few occasions in the last 2 years, but they’ve not had to initiate the blackout system. I think GWB is an ass, so this latest speechw hen he really shouldn’t have had to say anything is ridiculous. He looked as good as ever on TV. Sam ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/56 "2003-08-15T15:46:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ThatDuckIsEvil \* > \*\*Kal, London, and jjimm…you owe me a new pair of panties. I’ve soiled myself. \*\* Don’t throw them away! They’re [valuable](http://www.snopes.com/risque/kinky/panties.htm). ---
**Author:** ![meara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@meara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/meara)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/57 "2003-08-15T15:47:38Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by GaWd \* > \*\*Meara, coupla comments: > > What “recent” rolling blackouts? In the last 2 summers, I think there were some VERY isolated blackouts in california, but not what I would consider “rolling blackouts”. \*\* Sorry… I was calling them “recent” in comparison to the last major Northeast blackout, which was almost 40 years ago. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/58 "2003-08-15T15:49:14Z")
> [@](#): > > I think GWB is an ass, so this latest speechw hen he really shouldn’t have had to say anything is ridiculous. He looked as good as ever on TV. He may have looked ridiculous, but as Anthracite pointed out, some of us were just waiting to carp on the Prez for his Hooveresque disconnect from the plight of millions of Americans. That’d have been much more fun than the standard “Bush don’t speak good” ranting we’re left with this morning. Shrub and Co. made the right moves here. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/59 "2003-08-15T16:23:50Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by elf6c \* > It wasn’t Curious George’s fault- he couldn’t find his flight suit in time for the speech. > :rolleyes: This comment shows that you neither know what you’re talking about (the flight suit the president was wearing when he was a passenger in the particular jet in which he was a passenger is the same type of personal protective clothing any passenger wears when that passenger is a passenger on that particular type of jet) nor do you have any currently valid gripes against the president’s performance regarding the issue at hand in this thread. In short: you made a stupid comment that reflects negatively on you. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294/60 "2003-08-15T16:35:28Z")
> [@](#): > > He may have looked ridiculous, but as Anthracite pointed out, some of us were just waiting to carp on the Prez for his Hooveresque disconnect from the plight of millions of Americans. Please do not insult America’s greatest president by comparing him to Bush. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-blackout-speech-what-a-moron/195294.md?page=4)