I Thought I Drank The Drink But The Drink Drank Me

Last week, I posted a brief thought about GWB's reported lapse back into drinking; As I said at the time, maybe it was just the warm fuzzies, but I wanted to see him actually get help for the problem, rather than just join in the dogpile:

“Now here's some sad information coming out of Washington.  According to reports, President Bush may be drinking again.  And I thought, `Well, why not? He's got everybody else drinking.'”
--David Letterman

Well, amnesty is over.

Here is One of the things I read last week regarding Bush's drinking, is in regards to his alleged 'recovery' and the recurrence of drinking. The Editors speculate:

(go read; I'll wait)



The Editors' ruminations have a solid feel to me. Bush has always partied; no need not to. Hey not to claim any kind of sainthood here; when I had fewer responsibilities and the constitution of a twenty year old, I could hit it pretty good myself, and still can, upon necessity (Free Hot Lunch anyone?) But the point is, that as adulthood developed, and as responsibilities increased, the partying just kind of faded away.

But for GWB, where was the need? Sinecures and cronyism provided for any professional cover he needed; in addition, the businesses he was installed into (oil; sports) are pretty open to continuing with a college lifestyle.

Because, like the Editors say, drinking is fun. If you don't have to bear the consequences, why stop?

To me, it seems awful telling that Bush's speech after Katrina contained a fond recollection of his 'youthful' excesses. Almost like his greatest regret was that he could no longer party in public view like in New Orleans any more.


Basically, three things:

1. If a potential political career was looming, what choice is there? You need to at least project the image of cleaning up, if you were a hellraiser.
2. The story is a bit neat: aging hellraiser reaches forty, wife lays down ultimatum, he finds Jebus- instant Movie of The Week. Plays great among the Christopaths, right Karl?
3. As has been pointed out, an alcoholic doesn't just need to stop drinking, becoming a dry drunk, but he needs to address the underlying issues of addiction and need. Bush has never addressed anything like this, by any account, hence his inability to even think of errors in his life.

Also along those lines, for someone professing to be a strong Born Again Christian, you never see any evidence that GWB goes to church - ever. Reagan was often shown going to church, had a regular attendance schedule. Jeez, you couldn't keep Clinton OUT of churches, especially Baptist. But GWB? Not so much. As a matter of fact, for all his heralded conversion, have we ever heard that he HAS a regular church?
Hey, it's not that I care so much; but if you're a religious person, isn't actually, you know, participating in your church kind of a requirement? Except for the church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, I mean?

The Reformed Drinker persona came just as he was entering political life.

The crankiness, the fidgeting, the recurrent injuries (Falling on a coffee table?) even the urgent pee break at the UN, all these are just circumstantial evidence of not just a recurrence of drinking, but that it has actually continued all along, in a more circumspect fashion.

He has claimed to be a reformed drinker. He may be an alcoholic, but as several reformed alcoholics have commented, he will always be one, and at this point has not addressed the disease, but the symptoms.

But really, at this point, what reason has George Walker Bush given us to believe him?