Cracked Eggs

A reference on Language Log led me to a new (to me) blog - Mr. Verb - and reading through the archives there I found this post (from Jan 19):

I noted in a brief post what seemed to me a meltdown in Bush's interview on the News Hour earlier this week. One of the things that really disturbed me was his response to Lehrer's question about whether Iraq had become a 'broken egg'. Bush answered:

I don’t quite view it as the broken egg; I view it as the cracked egg ...

Now, I don't do metaphor, but this chunk keeps getting played on NPR, quoted in papers, etc. and none of the folks I've heard or read in the mainstream media seems to be saying what lots of political bloggers have said: This doesn't make sense. I guess the best case would be an egg with a cracked shell but the membrane still intact, so it's not leaking. Been a while since I've been around laying hens, but isn't a cracked egg a goner from the relevant bird's eye perspective?

Now, maybe it's just me - and you know I don't care for the current president - but this figure of speech seems pretty clear.

I think the difference is that a broken egg is all over the floor or counter top - that is, was broken by accident - while a cracked egg is now in a mixing bowl ready to be used to make something or a skillet - that is, was cracked deliberately.

I think Bush meant that Iraq's not "broken" but "in transition", ready to be served up as a delicious and nutritious part of a new world breakfast order - a Western Omelet, no doubt.