Thursday, January 15, 2009

Wherefore Art Thou, Ugly Betty?


WHEREFORE ART THOU, UGLY BETTY?

How ironic: as a plane sinks into the Hudson, a misfortune clearly visible to many Manhattanites, we are once again held captive, for at least one more time, by George Bush’s 9/11 meta-narrative addiction in more ways than one.

For it came as no surprise, then, that approximately 5 minutes into his farewell to arms speech, broadcast on all major networks this evening—as would be the wish of a narcissist in chief, George couldn’t help invoke 9/11. His presidency began on 9/12/01, after all. And from that point on, second nature had George exploit, spin, and interweave 9/11 narratives to his advantage. Hell, he got us into two wars because of what a 9/11 tapestry of stories could offer.

That the White House recently published an on-line list of all the terrorist attacks Mr. Bush supposedly prevented proves just how much our 9/12 president developed a dope show addiction to the 9/11 narrative, and for all the wrong reasons.

But as George graces the television screen for a 2009 version of mission accomplished, NO ONE really cares. Rather, as my wife has duly noted, we are more concerned about next week’s inauguration—Thank God—and, quite frankly, our regularly scheduled television programming.

Which brings me to the question: wherefore art though, Ugly Betty, when we need you most?