Just One More Year! Good Riddance to George W. Bush

That is the headline of an op ed piece from Britain's fantastic newspaper, The Independent. The author of the piece, Rupert Cornwall, writes:

Today is a sombre milestone, marking the start of the last of Mr Bush's eight years in the White House. This being a leap year, exactly 366 days remain until 20 January 2009, when his successor will be sworn into office. It is a time when incumbents look to their legacies. And for this President the view could scarcely be bleaker.

Is he the worst President in US history? Mr Bush faces stiff competition from the likes of James Buchanan, who watched as America slipped towards civil war, or Warren Harding with his corrupt administration, or Herbert Hoover, who failed to halt the slide into the Great Depression, or, more recently, Richard Nixon, the only President to be forced to resign. But in terms of dogmatism, incompetence, ignorance and divisiveness, Mr Bush surely compares with any of the above. (Read it in its entirety here.)

I think he sums up the whole sorry situation very well, although I disagree with him on some points. He believes that Bush cannot be held responsible for the looming recession. I say, look at the man's record! He has turned every venture he has ever touched into dreck (although he and his buddies always seem to make out like bandits. Imagine that.)

I also take issue with this: "Belatedly, the President has learned the virtues of diplomacy, and his troop surge has at least reduced the violence in Iraq." Has he learned the virtues of diplomacy? I still believe that he will find a way to bomb Iran before his term is over. And ask a citizen of Iraq whether the troop surge has reduced the violence.

I don't have a lot of faith that U.S. regime change is going to change our path anytime soon. What I do know is that we at the grassroots have to keep on working for the common good, sowing the seeds of nonviolence and of stewardship regardless of what we predict as an outcome. And I, for one, am looking forward to that day 366 days from now.