Bush's Problem with Cindy

The problem that Bush and others of his ilk are havingwith Cindy Sheehan is that she trumps them in herethos or character. As Aristole and all others afterhim have noted, unless the person attempting topersuade us is seen by us as a person of goodcharacter with credibility. We will not be persuaded.Bush told us we needed to go to war because Iraq possessed WMDs and was in league with those whocarried out 9/11. He was in charge of those whogathered this information. Whether he manipulated itor not, and I believe the preponderance of evidence isthat he did, he is responsible for acting upon it.Fairly or unfairly, the buck stops with him.The facts have proven out that he was wrong. We launched a premptive attack on false grounds.Therefore, Bush has lost credibility in the eyes ofthe world, and now in the eyes of a growing number ofAmericans if the polls are to be believed.

Ms. Sheehan's credibility lies in the fact that shehas paid the highest price a parent may pay for Bush'sfolly. She has sacrificed her son on the altar ofpersonal politics. Her son died so that Bush couldgain a measure of revenge.So it is natural that those who see the threat willattack and seek to discredit her ethos becausefrankly, they have no other course of action. It isnecessary for them to destroy Sheehan. They cannotdismiss her, she by her sheer presence has becomesomeone they can no longer ignore.To them to continue their course, Cindy, or moreproperly, Cindy's character, must be destroyed.