Friday, July 20, 2012

Obama's Foreign Doctrine

Politico, 7/17/12
Romney singled out a line from Obama’s stump speech on Friday in Virginia, attacking the president for saying no one is successful on their own, calling it “insulting” to all entrepreneurs.

“If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some help,” Obama said in Roanoke, Va. “There was a great teacher somewhere in your life. Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges. If you’ve got a business, you didn’t build that. Somebody else made that happen. The Internet didn’t get invented on its own.”

The crowd of about 1,000 booed when Romney quoted a line, “If you’ve got a business, you didn’t build that.” (Update: But there's this).
 Book of Job, 6c-4c BCE

38 Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said:

“Who is this who darkens counsel
By words without knowledge?
Now prepare yourself like a man;
I will question you, and you shall answer Me.

“Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?
Tell Me, if you have understanding.
Who determined its measurements?
Surely you know!
Or who stretched the line upon it?
To what were its foundations fastened?

Or who laid its cornerstone,
When the morning stars sang together,
And all the sons of God shouted for joy? ...


“Have you commanded the morning since your days began,
And caused the dawn to know its place,
That it might take hold of the ends of the earth,
And the wicked be shaken out of it? ...

“Have you entered the springs of the sea?
Or have you walked in search of the depths?
Have the gates of death been revealed to you?
Or have you seen the doors of the shadow of death?
Have you comprehended the breadth of the earth?


Tell Me, if you know all this.
[Odd to hear someone from perhaps the most communal of all American religions--and one with an exemplary record of concern for the poor-embrace a posture of nihilistic individualism.]

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

You may be over-thinking this. All you need is "The crowd of about 1,000 booed when Romney quoted a line, ..."

Further detail is superfluous.

Buce said...

Interesting, do you think they were booing Romney, then, not Obama? That possibility had not occurred to me.

Anonymous said...

No. My 'point' was, they would have booed any reference to Mr. O. Aside from being inanely obvious, it was irrelevant to the thrust of your post. For which, regrets.