"We are living in desperate times." Said Karl.
Whether he said it in those words or in a more eloquent tone; whether he said it in a handful of words or in a thousand word essay, the thesis for Mr. Rove's unfolding drama is as above.
My thesis is this:
To folks like me, the perception of Mr. Rove as a "genius" is absurd. Sadly, he has perhaps ingeniously managed to cling to this perception for years. Conversely, it is my opinion that his sham aura of genius will soon be replaced by the harsh light of his true classification, which is little more than one of an adept cheat: a feeble hermit behind a wizardly curtain. Thus, with the arithmetical cancellation of his seemingly complex array of political equations, his unmasked aura will be shared with the world.
Folks like me, those who were blessed with some measure of ability to see right through people, have been milling around with frustrated faces for far too long at the Democratic Party's acute fear of the supposed genius of Karl Rove and its complete lack of any movement in any direction in defense of itself; and in these waning days before the election, many of us feel a sharp rise in our frustration for the lack of any direct attempt to reduce the complexity of Rove's equation. Thus, I feel compelled to devote my diary to debunking the sham that is Karl Rove with the hope of at the very least inspiring a handful of people in my Democratic Party leadership to take this man head-on before it is too late.
Were Mr. Rove a genius, his party would not be in the state it is currently in. It does not take a genius to recognize and practice moral integrity, to weigh personal sacrifices against the greater good of his world and burden himself; to see himself as part of a larger organism, therefore pursuing deeds in the interest of the health of the whole. A genius might visualize these elements simultaneously. After which, he might discover the singularity of the problem and solution, and further, the benefit to his party and his diverse world he could bring by pursuing the dignified cause. He would note the various elements of personal suffering and of personal sacrifices; elements he would easily foresee along the mental projection of his journey. He would likely do this in unison with unrelated thoughts, as his mind would have the ability to process multitudes of formulas and scenarios that arise by microscopically indirect connection. Perhaps he would arpeggiate his guitar in 6/8 while his mind processes these thoughts.
The fact is, he has done none of these things. Not a single one. While he is a smart man and is competent at the task of winning elections, the dastardly character shared by his benefactors coupled with the hollow emptiness beneath the façade of the party he has transformed is a model clue of Mr. Rove's lack of genius.
Because he is not mentally sophisticated enough to discover the core components of what is necessary to perpetuate the untainted success of his party, moreover, his world, he must construct a web of illusions. Because his intellect lacks genius, his work is absent of everything but the perpetuation and advancement of his own power, a diametric opposite of the process of a brilliant mind.
Mr. Rove is instead little more than a swindler. A purveyor of roadside oddities, spinning wheels, and skillful hands sliding cards across the table; forever concealing the fourth from the marks who have gathered around him, hoping to better their lives if only they could "win this one."
In the absence of his genius, He knows that he must engage in duplicitous tactics to con his "base" into forking over, thus keeping the scam going.
He must use his power to extort a renewed sense of support from his waning base.
From Newsday.com
[Rove] taps government resources to boost candidates in need.
During a whirlwind five-hour trip to bolster an endangered GOP congressman's reelection prospects, White House political guru Karl Rove last week delivered a fiery speech to 500 party activists, then shook every available hand and posed for snapshots like a rock star. He toured suburbs recently trashed by a snowstorm. He also found time to huddle with local strategists.
But the most significant element of Rove's effort to help four-term Rep. Thomas M. Reynolds keep his job may have occurred behind closed doors, when the White House strategist met with a federal disaster relief official contemplating how to respond to the storm. Four days later, Reynolds announced that President Bush would authorize millions of dollars in federal disaster aid for the area.
The timing was perfect: Reynolds broke the news hours after testifying before the House Ethics Committee about his role in the Mark Foley sex scandal -- knocking reports on the scandal out of the spotlight.
(To call the above story "genius" is to slap Albert Einstein in the face.)
Rove must work feverishly to exploit the poverty, ignorance and fear of those who have for whatever reason shown their ease in being used. Were I a power hungry person of modest smarts, I would do the same. It doesn't take a genius to conjure this notion. Not by a longshot. Further, he needs some tidbit of national significance; a (whatever month it happens to be) surprise. Because his benefactors are nowhere near the intellectual level of genius, or even competence for that matter, I would say that OBL is out (I may be wrong;) and so, my guess is that sometime on Sunday, Monday, or Tuesday, we may see live reports of the President patting soldiers on the back in Iraq or Afghanistan.
Whatever the sum of the November 7th equation, the outcome will not be a result of the work of any genius. Should Karl Rove's horrid party prevail, it will be the result of a series of bribes, swindles, and cheats; a great lie as told by MacBeth's perceptions of his own failure: "of sound and fury, signifying nothing."
While he works on whatever the "surprise" scam turns out to be, the hastily slapped together "architecture" that hides the void is likely at its most vulnerable point since "Karl Rove" had become a household name. Because he is not a genius, the secrets behind his collection of scams are ours to hack away at, killing the "genius theory" once and for all.
While I share a lack of Genius with Mr. Rove, I assert that my aptitude transcends his by great bounds. For, while his decrepit mind is forever reigned by binary selfishness ("win-lose","good-evil","personal gain-break even",) I enjoy the vast diversity of objectivity. Where he must lie to save himself, I am free to accept the consequences for my truths. Where he has masterfully spun a web of illusion to conceal his true self, I sit comfortably at my desk, waiting for my wife to come home. When she arrives, she will kiss me and love me for my imperfection, which I have made fully available so that I may one day pass on some benefit to my world by being a better person than I am today.
"Genius?" Not on his best day.
(This was once a huge essay. I edited it myself (can you tell? :) ) so that it would be Daily KOS friendly. Please note the following points should you have remained awake enough to make it to this point:)
* Karl Rove (and his President) have never once addressed an unfiltered body of people. Rather, he dictates methods and tactics to loyalists who buy his "genius" classification.
* Karl Rove only appears just before or just after the manifestation of a manufactured event.
* When asked difficult questions, Karl Rove has done little else but to threaten or attack the media. When "interviewed," he is rarely taken to challenge; but rather, is lobbed softballs by loyalist "journalists."
* Karl Rove, from my observation, didn't go to college to absorb knowledge. Rather, he went to avoid serving in the military during the Viet Nam War, and through his pursuit of several scams, was successful in avoiding the draft.