Throwing Shoes at President Bush

It is also self-evident that everyone does not agree that Bush has done a bad job as president. He has millions of supporters.

Brandon9000 wrote:

Cycloptichorn wrote:

Brandon9000 wrote:

Cycloptichorn wrote:

Brandon9000 wrote:

Why? What would that have to do with assessing the correctness of his policies?

You don't think that when your policies are so bad, people are moved to throw things at you; you don't think this is a sign of a problem with one's governance? That random people throw stuff at presidents who are doing a GOOD job?

Cycloptichorn

Yes, random people throw things at people who are doing a good job. It's hardly a poll. I suppose that if FDR had walked through (or used his wheelchair) some bombed out section of Europe in WW2, some people might have vented by attacking him, but it hardly demonstrates that America was in the wrong in WW2.

Can you find evidence that previous presidents, who were doing a good job, have had things thrown at them by angry members of foreign countries?

I don't think random people throw their shoes at people who are doing a good job. I think that generally thrown items are reserved for those who have done a poor job. And it's perfectly appropriate for this case, as Bush has done a downright Shitty job and everybody agrees on this fact, including you, Brandon.

Cycloptichorn

It's self-evident that people in war zones may be angry at people who started the war. It doesn't mean that the war is wrong. There are undoubtedly people who would like to throw things at Obama, and if one actually does so one day, it won't prove that Obama has done wrong.

It is also self-evident that everyone does not agree that Bush has done a bad job as president. He has millions of supporters.

What a joke. He doesn't have millions of supporters. He has practically nobody. There are a lot of party-line Republicans out there but they all detest bush as well.

I ask again: can you find evidence of this ever happening in the past to an American president?

Cycloptichorn

Brandon9000 wrote:

It is also self-evident that everyone does not agree that Bush has done a bad job as president. He has millions of supporters.

Then again, the mere fact that you and like-minded followers still support Bush does not mean has has not done an abysmal job as president.

Probably. Lee Harvey Oswald threw a bullet at JFK, and there were assassination attempts on Ford and Reagan, but even if I couldn't, it's absolutely clear that the actions of one man are not an accurate assessment of a president's work while in office.

Also, if Bush doesn't have millions of supporters, then how could he have an approval rating of 25% or so? Doesn't that mean that a quarter of the people ask say that they approve of the job he's doing?

All Americans should be proud of our president and how he handled this incident.

What was the significance of an Iraqi journalist throwing his shoes at President Bush?

We asked Middle East expert and ARC post doctoral fellow at Melbourne University Benjamin MacQueen:

US President George W Bush came in for some rather harsh treatment yesterday by being pelted with the shoes of Iraqi journalist Muntazer al-Zaidi of Al-Baghdadia television who also labelled the President a "dog".

So what is the significance of this, despite the obvious reticence anyone would have by being hit by a shoe? There are two elements that make the shoe, and hitting someone with a shoe, a particularly significant statement in Arab and Middle Eastern culture. The first has its basis in religion and the second in cultural custom, although the two are inter-related.

Not limited to just Arab Muslim culture, but Middle Eastern religious culture generally (Jewish, Christian and Muslim), reference to someone or assault of someone with a shoe carries symbolic value in terms of Old Testament tradition. For instance, Psalms 60:10 ("Moab is my washpot, over Edom will I cast out my shoe...") reveals that assault with a shoe is a traditional defamatory gesture for one's enemies (Moab and Edom were both enemies of Judah).

They are a reflection, not an assessment. And to compare this to former assassination attempts is asinine, Brandon. It is a very visible signal of a failure of a president, when you have foreign reporters throwing shoes at you, and people are mostly sad that he missed.
Cycloptichorn