Why is bush called * in du posts??

[westcor]

Why is bush called * in du posts?? this may be a dumb question, I think I have an idea, but just wanna make sure.

[ixion]

1. Doonsebury

:-)

[westcor]

2. doonesbury??

can u explain a little more?

[ixion]

4. Garry Trudeau uses an asterisk to refer to Bush in the cartoon strip

Doonesbury, so it's an ode to that. Make sense?

[Cary]

13. I thought it was a reference to "asshole"

The splat mark looks like an asshole.

[Hissyspit]

23. Cary - see my post #7 below

The real reason I'm posting, though, is to tell you my real first name is Cary. Good thing I didn't use it as my username or you wouldn't have gotten, too. I think, assuming you didn't become a member until after Nov 2004.
:7

ON EDIT: Nope. On checking, you beat me to it!

[dmr]

19. That, and because Bush* was never elected in 2000

he, in our minds, will have an asterik next to his name as the only unelected POTUS.

I'll never forget, nor forgive ...

[bigwillq]

26. Welcome to DU!

:hi:

[undeterred]

3. I thought it was the name too profane to be spoken.

:evilfrown:

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

15. Like Lord Voldemort?

It might also be because an asterisk looks like an asshole.

[TomInTib]

18. That's it for me. Neither speak or type...

Just hearing his voice on TV is sometimes too much.

[Sanity Claws]

24. That's what I thought too

[mod mom]

29. that has been my interpretation also.

[westcor]

5. awesome thanks

thanks

[CatWoman]

22. example

[CatWoman]

6. Doonesbury uses an "*" to portray Bush in his cartoons

being that Bush will always have an * beside his name in the history books.

Only president to be appointed via the Supreme Court.

[henslee]

25. Exactly, same way Roger Maris will always have * next to his HR record.

because it was a longer season. It would dog most people but when you are a fuckin idiot you pay it no mind.

[Blue_In_AK]

33. I like to call him ** since he didn't win either election... n/t

[Hissyspit]

7. Multiple - footnote in history due disputed elections; looks like asshole

people don't want to type his name; Doonesbury tradition, etc.

[TroubleMan]

8. Because he really wasn't elected....it was stolen

Hopefully the history books will have an asterisk next to his name when they list the presidents.

[xultar]

9. Welcome to DU

:hi:

[Marnieworld]

10. It started with his first illegitimate election

It's a symbol of the fact that he is president but a President* as in *= not elected but selected by the court.

The Doonesbury explanation is in reference to Trudeau's brilliant depiction of Bush as a * with a Cowboy hat on to drive this point home I imagine.

I hope this helped.

Welcome to DU!
:hi:

[jmm]

11. I believe it has to do with

when Phil Jackson said the Spurs should have an * next to their win in that short NBA season. Since Bush's 2000 win was questionable, to put it mildly, that should be used instead of his name.

[Gman]

12. Because in the list of all presidents he will have an * next to his name

because of how he won Florida in 2000. At least, if memory serves correctly, that's the original reason going back to '01 or so.

[stevedeshazer]

14. *Not legitimate

*Not elected 2000
*Not elected 2004

[OKNancy]

16. Because, just like a sports team

who wins a short season, or some other contest is thought of as being unusual, it is marked with a *
So when the record books are published, Bush will have a * by his name because he really didn't win in 2000.

[Sanity Claws]

27. Good thing that Roger Maris has passed on

Roger Maris got an asterisk after he hit 61 homers in the 162 game season in 1961, beating Babe Ruth's record of 60 homers in a 154 game season.
I'm glad Roger M is not alive to see that someone has put W's and the repugs' usurpation of power in the same category as his magnificient feat.

[OKNancy]

30. Me too!

I loved Roger AND Mickey. I loved both of them.

[Loge23]

17. His name is too profane

use anything but that awful four letter word!

[Trajan]

20. In 'Breakfast Of Champions', the brilliant novel by Kurt Vonnegut

* = asshole ....

I find it is the most apt explanation ....

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

21. I thought it was like the asterisk used for Roger Maris' homerun record

to signify that Bush really didn't legitimately win the presidency and therefore an asterisk is required every time he's mentioned in the context of President.

[Blue_In_AK]

34. Although apparently Roger Maris was an honorable man...

...and accomplished something remarkable, Babe Ruth notwithstanding.

[Dude_CalmDown]

28. It's shorthand for Fucktard. n/t

[emald]

31. I use it because I can't even spit his name out..

I even feel sorry for people who have that name. * is the only way I can refer to him. He is an asterisk. Or an asskiss. Worst. Resident. Ever.

[cosmicdot]

32. visit the DU glossary

http://demopedia.democraticunderground.com/index.php/DU_Glossary#NUMBERS.2FSymbols

2004 added a second asterisk

Bu$h**

use of the $ = the profiteering/general theft of the Treasury


I have feeling he's going to end of with a lot of asterisks.

worst pResident ever

[Samantha]

35. See Post 13 from this older thread -- it will explain it

Here's a link:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=1031943#1032235

That link takes you to a still older thread, post 19:

"19. That was a home-grown DU inspired suggestion"

I suggested that we actually start using the asterisk after Bush*s name to never let the world forget he was selected by the Supreme Court to reside in the Oval Office, not elected by the people. My original thread referenced a remark I had read shortly after his selection that his name in the history books, as it would be included in any list of Presidents of the United States, would always be followed by an asterisk. The footnote to the asterisk would denote the fact that he was in fact considered illegitimate by some since his accession to the White House came about by such unorthodox means.

While I cannot take credit for literally conceiving this, I did suggest we actually start using the asterisk after I learned the first historian had written an account of election 2000 totally omitting the Florida debacle and the Supreme Court decision. I thought it was important in our everyday lives to remind the public constantly exactly how Bush* became our pResident. Not too many people responded to my original suggestion, about 26. One of those was Q. Those who did respond started using the asterisk religiously and gradually it caught on.

I have tried several times to find my thread in the Archives without success. I usually get a message that that function has been disabled whenever I have looked. The Roger Marris comparison was in the original responses. However, one poster who responded he thought it was a brilliant idea also used an *hole analogy.

I would like to suggest that if you have acquired the habit of including the asterisk after Bush*s name when you post here at DU, you consider doing it everywhere. I intend to do so. I think it would be an appropriate thing to do to try to acquire widespread usage of this since the 2004 election season is here and the political elite have declared the 2000 election will not be an issue in 2004. Widespread usage of the asterisk during the next 12 months and the appropriate explanation when asked why it is used will only serve to irritate the hell out of Karl Rove and we should use every means at hand to do just that. I hope you will join me in widening the use of the asterisk after the name of our selected pResident.

*******************

I keep this now for reference because this question pops up every couple of months.