What is a swivet ?

Is this the six year swoon, or the sixth year swoon? Bush's numbers have never been good, he went into the 2004 elections under 50% and he was beaming the OJ look of surprise after he won. The personal likability poll is something cooked up by the right wing media to offset his oafish and incompetent handling of everything from day one. The sixth year swoon is just another footnote in the media watchers almanac, and another chapter, second generation, in the Bush family history of failed presidencies.

That the majority of the American people see George Bush as likable is a remarkable tribute to the success of professional PR and to the poor taste of the American people.

How many voters actually understand what it means that George W. Bush is third generation Skull and Bones? Anybody who knows also understands that they have little or nothing in common with George W. Bush (unless their name is Rockefeller).

"Swivet," which is a great 19th century word, means, according to the nearest dictionary, "a state of extreme agitation." And the do-you-like-him-personally question is something that pollsters have been asking about presidents for two decades. It is a smart way to separate out some of the factors that prompt Americans to vote the way they do.

This is a word I've heard all my life. The other thing I've heard all my life (60 years now) is "if you don't know what a word means look it up in the dictionary."

Thanks for the suggestion on looking up a word not known, old timer.

I guess this 72 year old man will just have to point out that "swivet" is not in my Concise OED, nor defined by google. I checked both of these before posting.

Give a little credit old fella.

That is the question that pops into my mind whenever I hear somebody say that people like George W. Bush as a person. I don't like him. I think he's phony and willfully ignorant; both of these qualities are near the top of my list of those which I can't stand in people.

I have one thing in common with the President. Like Mr. Bush, Jesus also happens to be my favorite philosopher. Unlike Mr. Bush, I at least attempt to put his philosophy into practice in my daily life. That makes Mr. Bush a hypocrite, and hypocrisy stands at the very top of my aforementioned list of personal attributes that would cause me to dislike someone.

The thing that really has me scratching my head is that so many people don't see these things about President Bush in his words, deeds, and body language. They seem quite obvious to me.

In regards to the likeability issue, you have to consider the basic cynicism about politics and mistrust of government officials in this day and age. My parents' Depression-era generation perceived that political leaders could do more than just rob the citizenry blind, thanks to FDR. But our heroes are much more maligned than they used to be; in our ridiculous, entertainment-soaked culture, the general citizenry demands those personal dramas. I'd go so far to say that on a subconscious level Clinton's perception as a sleazebag kept the populace's interest. It's done wonders for Kennedy's legacy.

In this cynical setting, a likeable political figure is lazy, simple-minded and non-threatening. An unlikeable one is ambitious, intelligent, and poses a threat to steal our livelihoods.

The misconception still for many people is that Bush is actually running the executive branch, and as the administration's ineptness mounts these people are simultaneously realizing that the "regular guy" character he portrays (however poorly he plays it) after all these years is kind of boring. He's been doing this for a long time, and tied with the political aspects of his failures, the political entertainment has turned from safe to monotonous to depressing. He's not a rich character with demons like Clinton was, and hence he's not very engaging. To put it in TV terms, why hasn't this show been replaced by a mid-season dramady? Something with Bonnie Hunt, maybe.

I think the only antidote to this ridiculous appetite Americans have for schmaltzy entertainment in politics is a severe economic collapse. We're a wealthy country, but the middle class has slowly been getting squeezed for the better part of 30 years now and the country's consumer culture is primed for a shock. It's the pocketbook that causes people to storm the castle with pitchforks and torches, demanding actual service from their representatives.

Politics will always be tied to entertainment, however, and that's all the more reason to enjoy it and follow it and stay involved, as far as I'm concerned. The Dems might as well play up to it and not run dullards like John Kerry for president. Too late? Crap.

Professional market researchers know there can be a big difference between what people say, what they think and what they do.

Clinton caught with his hand in the proverbial intern's thong. Do you like him? Ahh is my wife listening? In puritanical America, society expects you to say you don't like the cheating bastard. That said, who hasn't considered the odd fling. People reply to surveys with a consience that their answer is being judged by society.

Is he doing a good job? That's less fuzzy and more objective. Fewer societal mores to worry about bumping into.

As for Bush. Like him? I think most people sense he's this lost kid being fed talking points and other peoples ideals. A simple soul trying to handle a complex world he doesn't understand but still wants to feel like he can make a difference. A situation many of us can identify with.

As for me, I feel sorry for the poor dolt. He's a hood orniment. Cheny's the engine, Rove's the driver with defence, oil and other big business providing the gas.

I couldn't agree with the person more that spoke of how unbelieveable it is that people say they "like him". I'm not saying that GWB is the ogre of all time, but to my way of thinking he certainly is close. If you have eyes, ears, and a couple of brain cells, exactly what is there to truly like about this man? Who in their right mind could say they admire him? FOR WHAT?!!! He is an ignorant man, no doubt, and I am weary of hearing about about how smart Rove is. If he, and the others on the constant flattery team, are really smart then why do they allow Bush to come across as so cocky in his body language, his mannerisms, his speech. I imagine there are some who may try to inform him, but he is simply to dumb and ego-driven to listen. Just now I saw a bit of him giving a speech in India yesterday. Just the way he looks out at his audience while flipping to the next page - this man is a NUT! I know some of this can be seen as petty attacks against him, but it is all part and parcel of what this man is/is not. My husband, sons, and I are just sick with worry about the state of our country under this administration. Yes, we would LOVE to see him impeached. But know that will probably be impossible, certainly unless the Dems win seats in November. I wish Bush and his family, Cheney, Rice, Rove, Rumsfeld, no harm. I wish that wherever their favorite place on this earth is, they would just go there, very soon. I feel sure the cows (cow?) on Bush's "ranch" miss him terribly. shelby