Sunday, March 16, 2008

Bush and the Romance of Soldiering

This quote is from a Reuter's article (3/13/08) detailing President Bush's videoconference on the current situation in Afghanistan:



"I must say, I'm a little envious," Bush said. "If I were slightly younger and not employed here, I think it would be a fantastic experience to be on the front lines of helping this young democracy succeed."

"It must be exciting for you ... in some ways romantic, in some ways, you
know, confronting danger. You're really making history, and thanks," Bush said.




I seem to remember vividly, his evasion of service in Viet Nam, and this account from his professor at Harvard Business School. From a 2004 CNN interview:

Yoshi Tsurumi, in his first on-camera interview on the subject, told CNN
that Bush confided in him during an after-class hallway conversation during the 1973-74 school year.

"He admitted to me that to avoid the Vietnam draft, he had his dad -- he said 'Dad's friends' -- skip him through the long waiting list to get him
into the Texas National Guard," Tsurumi said. "He thought that was a smart thing to do."