Is George Bush's TEXAS ACCENT for real?

[Peter Pirate]

Wat a wascal!

 

[Chris2597]

I live in central Tx. and his dialect/accent is nothing compared to some....I dont really notice it as I am around it all of the time....He visits Crawford frequently....and that area of Tx. seems to have a thicker more prounounced sound to the accent....I am sure when he is in Texas for a time....the accent may get more pronounced. I think his wife definetly has the Texa/southern tone to her voice....
I think he sounds the same now as he did as Gov of Texas.
I liked him as the Gov and like him now....I might not agree with all of his politics but I do believe he is an honest and good man/

 

[phamton]

Those of you from Texas who say it sounds nothing like you are correct. I grew up in West Texas near Midland/Odessa where George and Laura lived. They both have a West Texas accent. It is different than other Texas accents. I've lived all over the state from the Panhandle, to North Texas, to Central Texas, to East Texas, and lastly in South Texas. I always had Texas people comment on my accent and most thought I was from Tennesse.

Just like George and Laura, I grew up in the 50s and 60s there when the accent was much stronger than it is today. My own children who were born and raised in Texas don't have an accent at all. The younger generation doesn't have an accent like the older generations. I've often wondered why but suspect it may be they were exposed to more tv than we were.

George has more of an accent than his family because he stayed in Texas. Also living with a wife who has a strong West Texas drawl makes it easier to keep the accent. My college roommates always picked up my accent.

 

[rcyannacci]

It's a performance. But just because it's not "real" doesn't mean it's malicious either. But it's certainly strategic, part of the image.

Anyone who's had as much public relations training as Bush (who would have had to endure endless hours of speech work for debates and such) would now how to turn it on and off depending on the needs of the audience. Actors can learn a dialect in a matter of weeks, so if Bush wanted, he could adopt any speech pattern he wanted. But the Texas drawl supports the image he's cultivated.

 

[ThAnswr]

His accent comes and goes depending on the audience.

However, the accent may not be fake, but the Crawford ranch is. It's a horse-less, 1 cow ranch that was purchased in 1999 because it was good PR for the presidential race. And those dilapidated buildings you always see in the background are just for show. Those are not the family home.

 

[Disney Doll]

Wow!!! It's amazing the details folks know about the President's ranch!!!

My guess is that his accent becomes more pronounced if he's spending a significant maount of time in Texas, being exposed to the dialect. I always come home from Boston with a Boston "Pahk the cah in Havahd yahd" accent if I have been there for a while.

 

[rcyannacci]

His accent comes and goes depending on the audience.

However, the accent may not be fake, but the Crawford ranch is. It's a horse-less, 1 cow ranch that was purchased in 1999 because it was good PR for the presidential race. And those dilapidated buildings you always see in the background are just for show. Those are not the family home.

Again, it's a really well-crafted performance, and apparently they also have a great stage setting.

These people are professionals. I just wish they had the sense to perform a new script...maybe if they had been nicer to Hollywood, they would have better writers.

 

[brerrabbit]

TheAnswr,

I am not defending Bush at all based on my prior post that says "he aint from Texas", but as far as the "Ranch" goes, here in Texas a lot of people with wealth have "Ranch's" Its not limited to any particular political affiliation or occupation. It's just kind of trendy. Buy some land, build a house, weekend get away kind of thing. No horses, no cows, no crops. Just for show. I guess I could say I have a ranch, I inherited 22 acres with a stock tank and lease it out for someone to run cattle on (agricultural tax exemption). Heck I even own five head of cattle that runs with the heard. I never say I own a ranch, if someone asks I just say I own 22 acres of land north of College Station. More than likely those who have ranchs in Texas do it for the tax exemption. We have some of the most oppresive property taxes in the nation and if you can get an agricultural exemption granted your taxes are next to nothing. But as far as it being fake, yeah probably so but he sure aint the only one in Texas doing it.

 

[tlgoblue]

"Who cares"??? Come on guys, this is a harmless yet interesting and possibly funny little conversation. Do some of you have to defend dubya so rabidly even when there is no real charge leveled?

Of course it doesn't matter if it's real or not but it's kind of funny to hear that it all could be bs (bu****)...

Bite your tongue! I will never be accused of defending GWB. The "who cares" came from me truely not giving a hoot about something as rediculous as anybody's accent, real or contrived. If you want to pick apart the President, there are better and more meaninful ways to do it.

 

[rcyannacci]

Bite your tongue! I will never be accused of defending GWB. The "who cares" came from me truely not giving a hoot about something as rediculous as anybody's accent, real or contrived. If you want to pick apart the President, there are better and more meaninful ways to do it.

I don't think it's ridiculous to point out the stagecraft of modern politics. We all look at politics today through so many filters, that we need to understand those filters if we are going to truly understand the context of the situation. And, I don't see it as just the president who's being picked apart...it's his team and, even more so, the American audience who feels it's a betrayal to even question such matters.

So, while many of the posts here have been dismissive, the subject at least is meaningful.

 

[shortbun]

Politics ARE interesting! Smoke and mirrors mostly and in Dubaya's case: a cowboy accent. Makes him more appealing to the common man. Glad I'm not "common!"

 

[tlgoblue]

I don't think it's ridiculous to point out the stagecraft of modern politics. We all look at politics today through so many filters, that we need to understand those filters if we are going to truly understand the context of the situation. And, I don't see it as just the president who's being picked apart...it's his team and, even more so, the American audience who feels it's a betrayal to even question such matters.

So, while many of the posts here have been dismissive, the subject at least is meaningful.

I agree, but then we should be discussing the packaging of politics and not a single aspect of it as some sort of proof positive that the Administration is manipulating the American audience. It is all part of a package, but again, whether or not he uses a very common communication technique (knowingly or not) shouldn't be the definative proof that he is dupping the American public. It's like the liberals want to hang him for something, and so far they can't make anything stick, so let's talk about his phoney accent. Yeah, that's the proof right there that he's a liar and dishonest and not the "real deal" as he is trying to present himself. Everyone on this board has an opinion, and mine, as it relates to this thread, is that there are bigger questions to be answered than how GWB manipulates his speech to reach his target audience.

 

[rcyannacci]

I agree, but then we should be discussing the packaging of politics and not a single aspect of it as some sort of proof positive that the Administration is manipulating the American audience. It is all part of a package, but again, whether or not he uses a very common communication technique (knowingly or not) shouldn't be the definative proof that he is dupping the American public. It's like the liberals want to hang him for something, and so far they can't make anything stick, so let's talk about his phoney accent. Yeah, that's the proof right there that he's a liar and dishonest and not the "real deal" as he is trying to present himself. Everyone on this board has an opinion, and mine, as it relates to this thread, is that there are bigger questions to be answered than how GWB manipulates his speech to reach his target audience.

But here's the beauty of the situation: Bush and Co. set themselves up for this critique with their wholesale attack of Hollywood and their manipulation of "smoke and mirrors." During the campaign, there wasn't a day I didn't here how wrong it was of actors to think they could make a difference because they weren't "real" people...actors play make believe for a living...they are expert liars, so we continually heard. So when anybody dares suggest that Bush is one of the all time best political actors, it hits way too close to home and people say "let's ignore this silliness to talk about serious issues."

And, of course, it isn't just Bush but all the politicians in DC. But, he is the president, and as such is a primary target for such a critique. Anyone who runs for that office knows that will be the case. So what becomes even more interesting is noting the people who are so quick to come to his aid, as if he's too fragile to stand up to such attacks.

I'm not trying to hang Bush for anything in this discussion. If anything, I've given him a huge amount of credit for the skills he's displayed in this regard. Bush is an excellent actor; and I've taught acting, so I at least know a little about it. The problem is, acting is seen as an unresprectable profession, which has everything to do with the conservative attack machine.

 

[rcyannacci]

You too can learn how to speak like W:

http://www.dialectaccentspecialists.com/whichtape.shtml

Dr. Stern's Acclaimed Technique for
Accent & Dialect Learning

TEXAS
Includes four variations: (1) the general central and east Texas sounds, (2) the more melodic dialect of the Houston area, (3) the flatter sound of the west-central and southwest Texas and (4) the closed, nasal sound of the Panhandle dialect.

 

[tlgoblue]

But here's the beauty of the situation: Bush and Co. set themselves up for this critique with their wholesale attack of Hollywood and their manipulation of "smoke and mirrors." During the campaign, there wasn't a day I didn't here how wrong it was of actors to think they could make a difference because they weren't "real" people...actors play make believe for a living...they are expert liars, so we continually heard. So when anybody dares suggest that Bush is one of the all time best political actors, it hits way too close to home and people say "let's ignore this silliness to talk about serious issues."

And, of course, it isn't just Bush but all the politicians in DC. But, he is the president, and as such is a primary target for such a critique. Anyone who runs for that office knows that will be the case. So what becomes even more interesting is noting the people who are so quick to come to his aid, as if he's too fragile to stand up to such attacks.

I'm not trying to hang Bush for anything in this discussion. If anything, I've given him a huge amount of credit for the skills he's displayed in this regard. Bush is an excellent actor; and I've taught acting, so I at least know a little about it. The problem is, acting is seen as an unresprectable profession, which has everything to do with the conservative attack machine.

Interesting parallell. I guess you give Bush way more credit than I do. I don't think he's smart enough to fake an accent. (I would not say the same for Karl Rove). You may be right. He may be a good actor. I really don't know. It seems to me, that whenever he is on the hotseat, he deferes to one of his cabinet and steps back behind the curtain with Rove and co.

 

[ThAnswr]

I agree, but then we should be discussing the packaging of politics and not a single aspect of it as some sort of proof positive that the Administration is manipulating the American audience. It is all part of a package, but again, whether or not he uses a very common communication technique (knowingly or not) shouldn't be the definative proof that he is dupping the American public. It's like the liberals want to hang him for something, and so far they can't make anything stick, so let's talk about his phoney accent. Yeah, that's the proof right there that he's a liar and dishonest and not the "real deal" as he is trying to present himself. Everyone on this board has an opinion, and mine, as it relates to this thread, is that there are bigger questions to be answered than how GWB manipulates his speech to reach his target audience.

Bush uses and even more common technique with his audience called "stacking the deck". Every one of those town meetings he has is invitation only. He packs his audience with friendly groups who aren't going to question, but be polite, nod at the appropriat moments and applaud. And all of this is done on the taxpayer's nickel.

He not only manipulates his speech, he manipulates the make-up of his audience.

 

[rcyannacci]

Bush uses and even more common technique with his audience called "stacking the deck". Every one of those town meetings he has is invitation only. He packs his audience with friendly groups who aren't going to question, but be polite, nod at the appropriat moments and applaud. And all of this is done on the taxpayer's nickel.

He not only manipulates his speech, he manipulates the make-up of his audience.

Very meta...the audience isn't just watching the performance, they ARE the performance.