Was something on TV last night?

I was really excited last night at the prospect of the return to prime time television of an absolutely vital, compelling force which has been sadly missed in the public arena. But then I checked the listings and realized that Battlestar Galactica actually returns tonight. Last night, I hear, it was George Bush giving his ...

I was really excited last night at the prospect of the return to prime time television of an absolutely vital, compelling force which has been sadly missed in the public arena. But then I checked the listings and realized that Battlestar Galactica actually returns tonight. Last night, I hear, it was George Bush giving his presidential valedictory. It's reassuring, I suppose, to learn that we still have a president -- the impotent American response to the last few weeks of carnage in Gaza has made it seem otherwise. I'm impressed with the political bloggers and analysts who actually bothered to watch, but I wasn't one of them.  I'm looking forward to Tuesday.

I was really excited last night at the prospect of the return to prime time television of an absolutely vital, compelling force which has been sadly missed in the public arena. But then I checked the listings and realized that Battlestar Galactica actually returns tonight. Last night, I hear, it was George Bush giving his presidential valedictory. It’s reassuring, I suppose, to learn that we still have a president — the impotent American response to the last few weeks of carnage in Gaza has made it seem otherwise. I’m impressed with the political bloggers and analysts who actually bothered to watch, but I wasn’t one of them.  I’m looking forward to Tuesday.

Marc Lynch is associate professor of political science and international affairs at George Washington University, where he is the director of the Institute for Middle East Studies and of the Project on Middle East Political Science. He is also a non-resident senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security. He is the author of The Arab Uprising (March 2012, PublicAffairs).

He publishes frequently on the politics of the Middle East, with a particular focus on the Arab media and information technology, Iraq, Jordan, Egypt, and Islamist movements. Twitter: @abuaardvark

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