Sooo…… Am I the only one who thought the John Kerry/James Taylor diplomacy towards France was the oddest thing I’ve ever seen?

I hadn’t gotten to it because of being down with the flu last week.

But, am I the only one who thought the John Kerry/James Taylor diplomacy towards France was one of the weirdest things they’d ever seen?

First, the Administration screws up what should have been a staggeringly easy show of solidarity with our NATO partner. And then they followed it up with this weirdness?

What are your thoughts?

36 thoughts on “Sooo…… Am I the only one who thought the John Kerry/James Taylor diplomacy towards France was the oddest thing I’ve ever seen?”

  1. I gave up on our current administration a long time ago. Most times I can follow Democrat thought process, This isn’t in left field, it isn’t even in the ball park.

  2. Taylor has appeared on Sesame Street and the song was performed by the Muppets. So it might work. They wanted to send Bert & Ernie but their contract with the Puppets’ union constrained them

  3. Eric that might be “Used To ” love James Taylor. All my mind sees now is Kerry & Taylor hugging a bunch of spineless Frenchmen who allowed Sharia Law to rule a few hundred areas in a once proud country.

    1. all this scene needed was 1. huge styrofoam pillars and 2. a big round podium-mounted seal with an eagle cluching a guitar and the words “office of the president’s musician”

  4. I’ve seen a lot of things more odd. You must not get out much Pat. 😉 One time I saw a whole bunch of adults at a political rally wearing tri-corner hats with teabags hanging off of them and one guy had an assault rifle hanging off his shoulder. Then there was that time when Mitt Romney introduced himself saying ‘Hey gangstas, you know me. I’m the M. I. Double Tizzle.’ Odd stuff.

    I’ve done a couple of gigs when the microphone sagged like that and you have to crouch down to get the right sound to come out of the speakers. James is a pro though. Just close your eyes and listen. He does a perfect job, all things considered.

  5. Bill,

    It is context and you know it.

    The U.S. is getting pilloried because nobody thinks it was worth there time to travel to the Rally in response to the Paris massacres. Then, when we do get around to it, our Secretary of State has a has-been (if he really once was a somebody) sing a song.

    And, instead of a song of apology, it is a song that has allusion the “friend” is God or God-like.

    The pathologies it belies is staggering. Saw this idiot last night in the Patriots box sporting his baby blue scarf while everyone else was dressed as if it was warm in there. Go Seahawks.

  6. BF in reality what you mentioned is a good synapse of symbolism over substance. That is fine at a political event but what the Obama entourage has delivered is the same. What America needs to get through our thick heads is now that we have this escalation of Islamic Terror wreaking havoc all over the world only one plan will stop it. And that was described perfectly by General Schwarzkopf. Hugging the survivors just won’t cut it.

  7. So Troy and Charlie, are you guys saying the French don’t like hearing James Taylor singing a Carole King song about loyal friendship? Or that you don’t?

    1. At one of the huge televised rallies after the Charlie Hebdo event, one of the people watching aimed his speakers out the window of their apartment and played John Lennon’s “Imagine” song. The video showed the whole crowd picking up on the tune and singing along with it. The French probably get it better than we do. maybe that’s the context you’re talking about, Troy. The other context is nations having a large number of ‘second-class’ citizens, a context to which we ourselves are most certainly not immune. I’m curious what you guys think the answer is, and if you do, whether or not you’ll share it with is here. 🙂

      1. Here’s my suggestion. The first issue of Charlie Hebdo published after the slaughter of their cartoonists and editor has sold 5 million copies. prior to that their typical circulation was less than 50 thousand. You could talk Mr. Powers into running a copy of the cover picture of that issue here on DWC and providing a translation of the copy for those who don’t read French. In so doing, you will have provided the audience here an opportunity to see what those who have suffered the most at the hands of the terrorist murderers think the answer to the problem is. Then you can extrapolate from that what their attitude toward John K. James T. and Barack O. most likely is.

        Sidenote. In a recent interview, the new editor of the publication said that perhaps the most offensive and hard to understand thing for him was why a free, democratic nation would refuse to run pictures of his magazine cover. He was also adamant to insist that cartoonists and writers are not ‘at war’ with anybody, and haven’t killed anyone, ever. So, if you want to ‘do the right thing’ as far as the French artists are concerned guys, all you have to do is listen to the music and look at the pictures. Thats where the message is, even it it seems ‘wussy’ or ‘hippy.’ Because, like it or not, that’s the answer. Even for macho doods like you. 🙂

      2. “The French probably get it better than we do. ”

        Actually, they don’t, and have expressed their befuddlement & dismay.

        1. French don’t hug as Kerry awkwardly discovered ; they do the two cheek smooze thing. Being the international traveler that he claims to be, it’s bizarre that Kerry did not know this.
        2. James Taylor is virtually unknown in France. He’s a pal of Kerry, not the French.
        3. It is unbelievable how close John Kerry came to being president in 2004. This episode is reason enough to confirm that there is a God, and He is indeed with the USA.

        1. Yeah, I hear ya. I would have brought these folks and had them sing this song, but hey, nobody asked me, right?

          1. Billy I bit and went to the web site. Not an impressive list. His apoligizing tour could have included such things as keeping your health plan, keeping your doctor, apologizing to the officer regarding the beer incident before he had the facts. The times he interjects race and his thoughts when an investigation is actually on going. I just don’t get how people like you and my parents drink the tea of this “president” in name only. I would do anything to have Bill Clinton back instead of this race bater and income re-distributor. If a democrat can’t see the destruction he’s compiled against this countries economy and race relations there’s no hope for you. I even kinda like you.;)

        2. James Taylor is very well known in France, he’s on tour there starting in March and was not flown out especially but was already there promoting his tour
          Actually the words of the song were very appropriate – how is telling France that they have a friend in America so awful?
          Get over yourselves

  8. Bill,

    It is usually better to just do a mea culpa. A simple expression of regret that none of our big 3 (Obama, Biden, Kerry) weren’t there. In fact, we didn’t get one of our big 500 there. An Ambassador in some situations is like sending the Pizza delivery boy (he was nearby so. . . .).

    If one can’t/doesn’t make a big event (wedding, funeral, etc.), we just express our regret. We don’t then sing a song that says we really are great and a great friend.

    Tone deaf, bad priorities, or just a screw-up, it really doesn’t matter but a song trivializes what we didn’t do and a legitimate reaction to our absence.

    I am reminded of a “good friend” of a deceased who didn’t cancel plans for the funeral because “it is what the deceased would have wanted me to do.” In reality, everyone who knew the deceased would have wanted that person at the funeral providing consolation to the family.

    A mea culpa might not be enough but is a good start. Singing a song that is self-inflating is bull crap.

      1. “so the answer is that you don’t like it”

        Well, it was UNIVERSALLY panned?

        The REAL question, is why do you defend this weirdness, BF?

        Oh yeah, I got it:

        Your guy Obama = always right = worship

        1. No, not at all. I have my own issues with our President albeit different than yours, no doubt.

          1. No doubt.

            Odd that we here haven’t read of any differences you may have BHO???

            Nor a quick scan of your rants at Madville support your reveal any statements of difference or criticism of BHO.

            When you engage in your communal lovefest at Madville, you probably don’t have any desire to alienate the wolves there.

            1. I’ll list them here if you’re truly interested. If on the other hand, you just want to give me a hard time, feel free to do that without my help, since it would probably be a waste of my time to type them all out for you, and of yours in while you pretend to read and think about them.

              1. And in the time that it took to compose your woeful self-serving comment, you could have listed 3-4-5 differences.

                Or, maybe those difference do not exist so you couldn’t offer them?

                yawn

  9. Bill,

    I have a sense how things could have been messed up and thus not critical of missing the event. Someone sends a request for high upsomeone to go, the upper person doesn’t get all the facts or is distracted, and a bad decision is made. Happens all the time in life, in government, in business, everywhere.

    What is not so easy to understand or excuse is when faced with your first mess up (no matter how innocent) is compounding and trivializing the first mess up.

    The President has found it damn easy to apologize for America’s past when it didn’t involve him personally. When it is somehow associated with him, no apology. Ever.

    1. I’ve seen Obama and his admin apologize for a lot of things Troy. We must use different news outlets. 🙂

      1. i’m considering sketching a picture of mohammed fronting a cars cover band, with allah on keyboard. the caption will be “moving in shario.” it will be a respectful rendering. is this wrong? why? NOTE: i have not actually done this, so far it’s hypothetical.

      2. “I’ve seen Obama and his admin apologize for a lot of things”

        So have I, as have millions of Americans.

        He apologizes for the US, and American values at every turn.

        It’s truly embarrassing.

  10. Good facebook post that said they would send the Supremes over to ISIS to sing “Stop in the Name of Love”

  11. My own opinion is that if you are going to sing a song to show sympathy with France, the least you can do is sing it
    IN FRENCH!!!!

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