That is Mr. President to
You!
A Cranky Opinion for
CRANKY OPINION SATURDAY
The following is the opinion of a
cranky old man with little knowledge on the subject opined. Opposing opinions are welcome. They are welcome but they will be ignored,
and please, no name calling and that means you, you big stupid head!
It is Cranky
Opinion Saturday, and I've got nothing.
We just got home from the Jersey Shore, my 16 year old has been on a
rare visit from the land where they communicate without the letter “R” and we
also threw in a trip to Fredrick Maryland to visit with Frog.
I feel I
must post something, it is my addiction.
Last week I
was taken to task by a commenter because I referred to our President as Mr.
Obama. The commenter was correct, the
title is President Obama and if you like him or do not like him using the
correct title is a matter of respect for the office and the man and it is a
title which should always follow the man.
I think I have been pretty good with following this rule, but I slipped up
and I was wrong.
By the use of
Mr. not President, one should not infer that I do not like our President, though in
truth I did not vote for him and I do not think he will go down in history as a
great President. The use of “Mr.” was
probably a subconscious slip and a result of my general disapproval of his
Presidency. Still it was wrong and I do apologize. I respect the office, I respect the man, I do
not agree with all of his policies or his leadership.
Having said
that, and I hate the introducing “Having said that” I only wish others would
agree to same courtesy. I constantly read
comments on other posts that refer to “Bush this” and “Bush that,” and “Bush
was this” and “Bush was that.” Let us all agree to use the correct title to all
our Presidents past and present whether you agreed with their policies or
not. It is President Obama; it should
also be President Bush, President Clinton, and so on.
Disagree
with the policies, and dislike the agenda, but respect the man and respect the
office. I intend to do so and if I fail,
call me out again. I suspect those of
different political bents may not follow suit.
This is part of what is wrong with politics today.
The preceding was the opinion of a
cranky old man and not necessarily that of management…Mrs. Cranky.
i do respect anyone who holds that office. i try to support whomever gets elected to it for the good of our country.
ReplyDeleteI am of the opinion that those who practice politics today bought it upon themselves.
ReplyDeleteBy their actions, they have shown a great deal of contempt for those they, supposedly, represent.
But you are correct about the title.
OK, you shamed me into it. I refer to him as "Brick O'Bama" as if he were Irish, because it's funny, not out of any disrespect. But since you make the sincere case you do, I'll call him President Obama from now on.
ReplyDeleteJust a thought...can you meet me half way? Can I call him President O'Bama? :)
S
Since we all know you are generally fair minded on these things, we can see the humor in that...I guess you can get a pass.
DeleteFair enough. :)
DeleteRespect is earned. He's not earned my respect and neither did Jimmy Carter. Or Nixon. Perhaps I'm part of the problem? I don't think so.
ReplyDeleteHave a fabulous day. ☺
Respect the OFFICE. When you disrespect the office you disrespect the Country.
DeleteWell that's how I feel anyway.
OK...I feel a need to pipe in. I'm a foreigner and I had to learn this stuff more consciously. Please, don't take this as criticism - it's just a different learning than what a native of this country experiences. A native absorbs a lot of knowledge just by hearing things from childhood on. When a foreigner comes to this country, he or she learns by looking up stuff, listening to teachers, or researching.
ReplyDeleteThe title "President" belongs to the current office holder only.
Any former Presidents are Mr. Reagan, Mr. Bush, Mr. Clinton, etc. If a President had another honorific title prior to becoming president, you would go back to that title, e.g. General Dwight D. Eisenhower. But a former President speaks with the authority of a private citizen, even though we honor their service, so it goes back to Mr. LastName.
To avoid confusion with your friend Joe Bush while talking about "Mr. Bush," you might say, "Mr. Bush, President of the United States from 2001 to 2009." And if Mr. Bush came to your party/meeting/class and you were to introduce him to an audience, you would say something like, "I am pleased to introduce the Honorable George Walker Bush..."
I know the media use "President LastName" all the time for former Presidents, and that's why everybody thinks it's correct.
And I think it's a sign of this country being a great country that we can use humor like Lowandslow does and nobody ends up in jail. :-)
I believe that when referencing the actions of a President he deserves the title.
Delete"President Bush enacted such and such and I disagreed with that legislation," not
"Bush (or ever Mr. Bush) enacted...."
I know that retired service people are addressed by their highest rank. Once a Captain it becomes Captain Ret. President is the Commander and Chief so ex-presidents should be President Ret. and I choose to drop the Ret. as it is well known. If that is not the proper protocol, then I choose to change the protocol. We change stuff in this country all the time.
Oy vey.
ReplyDeleteI have been a longtime Obama supporter and I didn't take offense at you calling him "Mr." He's called much worse every day. And I have no problem with people disagreeing with him so long as they respect the position. And we should always stand behind our president no matter what when he represents all of us overseas. I've never seen a president treated with more disrespect than our current one. People wonder why the USA is slipping in every measurable field, particularly the world stage, but what should we expect when our leader is constantly vilified by his own citizens? When Bush was overseas I gave him all the respect his position deserved. Too bad Obama isn't given the same treatment.
ReplyDeleteOkay. So President Tricky Dick resigned before he could be impeached, and President Slick Willy was impeached but not convicted...I think I'm getting the hang of it. Not much of a student of history, but I know those two facts.
ReplyDeleteI see your point and I agree with it; respect the office and the person whether you disagree or agree with whoever is sitting there. Now I just got to start doing it.
ReplyDeletebetty
I do respect the office of the President because of the power it wields.
ReplyDeleteI find it difficult to watch when the person holding the office abuses it.
Please... bear in mind I am expressing an opinion and not making a judgement.
We're a very spoiled country - feeling the right to do and say whatever we want to.
ReplyDeleteWhat's that saying... When the chickens come home to roost...
However, let me clarify... I love this country - warts and all.
Ugh. It's all I can say. I am not an Obama fan and trust me, worse things than "mister" have come outta' my mouth referring to this moron but I get your point, although I disagree with respecting the man. The office? yes. The man? No. He hasn't done one thing to earn my respect.. Or trust.. Or support.. Or..
ReplyDelete