History Forum / General / British History / April 2004

"No Nuance Is Good News"

"The Washington Times' Tony Blankley *** has an astute observation on
American political rhetoric and John Kerry's difficulties:

"His friends say he is just instinctively nuanced in his thinking. . . .
According to Webster's Dictionary, the etymology of *nuance* is from the
middle French (Hmm!) word *nuer*: to make shades of color; from *nue*:
clouds, akin to the Greek; *nythos*: dark.

That would seem to be Mr. Kerry's problem.  ******

He thinks and talks in shades that create clouds and darkness around
him.  No one knows what he is saying, and thus what he is thinking.
This makes things rather awkward for an American politician.  ******

The rhetoric of American politics is binary, not gradational: Give me
liberty or give me death; our nation cannot exist half slave and half
free; are you pro life or pro choice; are you for or against capital
punishment; pro or anti-war; for or against tax cuts. . . . ******

Seeing seven sides to an issue is useful in the study of metaphysics.
******

Dick Wisan can tell us all about that. ---- DSH

But men of action -- and world events always have required American
presidents to be men of action -- must be capable of decisive action.  A
candidate for president who is incapable of clearly expressing a single
principle or goal he will fight for is inevitably going to be an
ineffective candidate.  And if he can't even decide what to say with
clarity, he is unlikely to be able to act as president under the
crushing pressure of world events."

James Taranto
The Wall Street Journal
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Precisely!

This is another good reason why ACADEMICS often make such poor leaders.

*** Tony Blankley, born in London, is a naturalized American citizen.

D. Spencer Hines

Lux et Veritas et Libertas

Vires et Honor