Zina Hanna

SWC 100

July 11, 2009

Buffalo, New York

The essential aftermath of what George W. Bush left in his reign

as leader of the United States of America is most reflected in the

photograph entitled Buffalo, New York. As the president of the United

States for eight years, he deceived the nation into believing false

promises. Bush had a lasting destructive effect on this country and it’s

people. There are three main points that are apparent in the

photograph that symbolically illustrate the real devastation that

George had created. He left an entire nation in fear, he generated

unstable and unsupported programs, and his weak international

diplomacy with other nations put us in the position of having broken

ties with allies.

The image Buffalo, New York is a photograph of an interior of a

well-engineered minimalist environment consisting of a stairway

crafted in fine materials and surrounded by floor to ceiling glass

limestone and marble. The first level of the stairway leading up is

constructed with a central understructure riser with each step

balanced in the center while the upper steps are cantilevered from the

wall. The open airy feel is enhanced by the space being flooded by

natural light from the bank of windows. Clearly this entire space
required significant engineering and cost to build. The grandeur of the

interior is representative of an American dream, however, on closer

inspection of the photograph there is evidence of neglect,

abandonment, instability, and lack of direction that parallels the

condition in which George W. Bush left the nation.

When reading the image carefully you detect specific qualities

that cause the viewer to pause. The stairwell is extremely precarious.

No matter how well constructed and engineered there are no supports.

There is sign of an upper handrail at one point that has been removed.

The lower portion of the steps has a main support where the steps are

teetered from the center with no visual connectivity to either indicate

or represent security and stability and also exclude any handrail. The

central stairwell riser is much like the educational program (No Child

Left Behind) that was implemented by W., and each of the lower steps

represent the school systems that have had to balance between what

is really needed in the classroom and what is being mandated on a

federal level. While the program seems to represent the best interests

of all school children the program was left with insufficient funding and

no real support. This analogy could be applied to a number of

programs George Bush had left or abandoned, however, he was most

noted for instilling unfounded fear in the American people.

The stairwell represents a precarious structure that leads

nowhere in the photograph and the elements of safety are not there or
are removed. This is where George led us from 9/11 till his last days in

office. He built a real strong case for us to retaliate against the

evildoers, yet the end result proved to be unfounded and left a nation

in fear. He did not guide a nation to a higher level he lead a nation

nowhere and along the way did not generate a feeling of safety or

security. In addition to undermining the stability of the American

people, in the process he helped destroy the relationships between

many long time allied nations. Countries that once envied America, are

now maintaining their distance. This region has lost numerous faithful

allies, never to return.

The misleading information and mistrust that was presented to

the American people was witnessed by other nations that grew to an

unprecedented levelof unpopularity and hatred towards the US.

Symbolically in the image lastdays01 there is a wall of glass where

upon close inspection you can detect that the windows have been

blown out. Specifically there is one window that has a hole where

someone had thrown a rock from the outside. This has significant

symbolism in that want and destruction have been inflicted from the

outside to the structure that represents America.

The image in the photograph best reflects the destruction that

George Bush brought upon the nation. Everything from the broken

glass to the missing handrail, all portray the agony and fear created

during the eight years of his reign. Through his impulsive decisions,
America has lost many faithful allies. His unstable programs were

better left uncreated, as they appeared in vain, leaving the country

void. A country that was once filled with hope is left empty; was once

courageous and strong, is now left weak and abandoned. Through the

false promises of one man, this nation has to forever work to repay for

all the damage of his mistakes.