Speaking of the importance of keeping your sense of humor...(EDITED WITH ADDITION)

...the right-wing Powerline demonstrates neatly why it's impossible to take anything they say seriously...

Obama thinks he is a good talker, but he is often undisciplined when he speaks. He needs to understand that as President, his words will be scrutinized and will have impact whether he intends it or not. In this regard, President Bush is an excellent model; Obama should take a lesson from his example. Bush never gets sloppy when he is speaking publicly. He chooses his words with care and precision, which is why his style sometimes seems halting. In the eight years he has been President, it is remarkable how few gaffes or verbal blunders he has committed. If Obama doesn't raise his standards, he will exceed Bush's total before he is inaugurated.

For another opinion, I'm going to consult with an expert on the scrutinization of words...

"This guy was a hack! He had a captive audience! And the way I know that is that I tried to tunnel out of there several times. He had an audience and he didn't know what to do with it."

"Words, when spoken out loud for the sake of performance, are music. They have rhythm, and pitch, and timbre, and volume. These are the properties of music, and music has the ability to find us and move us, and lift us up in ways that literal meanings can't."

"You are an oratorical snob."

"Yes I am and God loves me for it."

ETA: And for further reflections on Bush's skill as a public speaker, let's ask...George W. Bush.

"I regret saying some things I shouldn't have said," Bush told CNN's Heidi Collins when asked to reflect on his regrets over his two terms as president. "Like 'dead or alive' and 'bring 'em on.' My wife reminded me that, hey, as president of the United States, be careful what you say."

"They had a sign that said 'Mission Accomplished.' It was a sign aimed at the sailors on the ship, but it conveyed a broader knowledge. To some it said, well, Bush thinks the war in Iraq is over, when I didn't think that. But nonetheless, it conveyed the wrong message."

The president, whose legacy is sure to be hotly debated for decades...

Not all that hotly, really...do the words "downward spiral" mean anything to you?

Gallup Poll Daily tracking results indicate only 27 percent of Americans approve of the job Bush is doing as president