I Know The Feeling

That smirk, combined with the jokes about serious matters, are two of George W. Bush’s worst qualities. (Of course, there are many more.) Instead of throwing shoes, which would have only broken my television, I frequently gave Bush the finger. It made me feel better. I feel empathy for Muntadher al-Zaidi. I have never felt empathy for George W. Bush.

From Iraqi shoe thrower: Bush's 'soulless smile' set me off:

Muntadher al-Zaidi, the Iraqi journalist on trial for throwing his shoes last year at then-President George W. Bush, said the former American leader's "bloodless and soulless smile" and his joking banter provoked him.

Al-Zaidi threw both of his shoes at Bush during a December news conference with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki in Baghdad. Neither shoe hit the president, and other people in the room quickly knocked al-Zaidi to the ground before security officials arrested him.

He explained his actions in an hour-long appearance on Thursday at the Central Criminal Court of Iraq. Asked if anyone pushed or motivated him to do this, al-Zaidi said he was spurred on by the "violations that are committed against the Iraqi people."

"I could only see Bush and feel the blood of the innocents flow under his feet, as he was smiling that smile -- as if he had come to bid farewell to Iraq and with the last support and more than 1 million martyrs," al-Zaidi said. "At that moment, I felt this is the man who killed our nation ... the main murderer and the main person responsible for killing our nation."

"I had no intention to kill the commander of the occupying forces ... even if I had a weapon ... I was expressing my inner feelings and those of all the Iraqi people from east to west and north to south and the feelings of hatred they hold for him," he said.

Al-Zaidi told the judge that he had intended to humiliate Bush in the past. As Bush listed the gains made in Iraq during the mid-December news conference, al-Zaidi said he was thinking about the millions of civilians who had been killed, widowed or displaced. He talked about the sanctity of mosques being violated, the rape of women and daily humiliations.

"I don't know what accomplishments he was talking about. The accomplishments I could see were the more than 1 million martyrs and a sea of blood," al-Zaidi said. "There are more than 5 million Iraqi orphans because of the occupation. ... More than a million widows and more than 3 million displaced because of the occupation."

I can’t help but think that it is unlikely that I would be arrested if I went to one of my local town meetings and threw my shoes at my mayor because I was upset with him. Where is the justice in this world if Muntadher al-Zaidi is punished for a non-crime and Bush is never punished for his many crimes?

Update:
Some people simply refuse to listen to what others have to say if it doesn’t fit their point of view.

Let's Throw Shoes At Clueless Cheney

From Cheney: 'I Don’t Have Any Idea' Why People Don't Like Me by Faiz Shakir:

Only 29 percent of Americans approve of the job Dick Cheney is doing as vice president. In an interview with his hometown Wyoming newspaper, the Caspar Star-Tribune, Cheney expressed his bewilderment over his low approval numbers:

QUESTION: How do you explain your low approval rating?

CHENEY: I don't have any idea. I don't follow the polls.

My experience has been over the years that if you govern based upon poll numbers, upon trying to improve your overall poll ratings, people I've encountered who do that are people who won't make tough decisions. And the job the president has, and those who advise him, is to make those basic fundamental decisions for the nation that nobody else is authorized or able to make.

What happens when all those decisions are the wrong decisions, Mr. Cheney?

Oh, and here's a clue for you Mr. Cheney. Most people don't like pompous, arrogant, self-centered, lying, evil bastards. Let the door hit you really hard on the way out.

Laura Bush Talks About Shoes

From Laura Bush ‘wasn’t amused’ by shoe incident by Kristi Keck:

First Lady Laura Bush said that although she “wasn’t amused” when an Iraqi journalist threw shoes at her husband, she sees the incident as a sign that “Iraqis feel a lot freer to express themselves.”

Earlier this month, an Iraqi journalist threw shoes at President Bush during a news conference in Baghdad. Bush ducked, and the shoes, flung one at a time, sailed past his head.

“It was an assault. And that's what it is,” the first lady said in an interview that aired Sunday on “Fox News.”

“And the president laughed it off. He wasn't hurt. He's very quick. As you know, he's a natural athlete. And that's it. But on the other hand, it is an assault, and I think it should be treated that way,” she said.

Dubya was amused, why wasn’t Laura? Do you find “Iraqis feel a lot freer to express themselves” to be an extremely arrogant expression? I do. Do you find it to be extremely insulting? I do. Do you find it to be delusional? I do. Laura Bush is effectively saying that Iraqis should be thankful that we invaded their country, killed and maimed many of their civilians, and bombed them into the Stone Age so that they could throw their shoes at President Bush. She wants them to be thankful that she and her idiot husband gave them freedom. (How free are the ones who are dead, Laura?) And yet, when one of them chooses to express himself using this wonderful freedom, Laura Bush doesn’t like it. Freedom. Does Laura Bush even understand the meaning of the word?

I have a question for Laura. If throwing shoes is an assault, what do call what your husband did to Iraq? If Muntadhar al-Zaidi is to be held accountable for his actions, shouldn’t George W. Bush also be held accountable for his actions, as well? Let's remember that Muntadhar al-Zaidi did not kill anyone. He didn't even injure anyone. What kind of assault is that? Assault. Does Laura Bush even understand the meaning of the word?

Perhaps we should have invaded Iraq with an army of shoe throwers.

Perhaps someone should have given Laura Bush a dictionary for Christmas.

Here is more on the topic of the shoes of Muntadhar al-Zaidi by Bruce A. Jacobs.

And so Bush, feckless and clueless as ever, makes his final victory lap, and the shoes fly. And, thankfully, in another month we will be airlifting him out of Washington.

Is Anyone Listening?

Muntadhar al-Zaidi threw his shoes at George W. Bush. His message is Yankee go home. George W. Bush didn’t get the message. He is too stupid, too self-absorbed (like many Americans), and too arrogant to hear. Now more voices have joined the chorus of Yankee go home. Is anybody listening?

From Iraqis urge government to free shoe-thrower:

Protesters across Iraq Tuesday urged government authorities to free the TV correspondent who threw his shoes at President Bush.

Hundreds of students at Diyala University in Baquba carried banners demanding the release of Muntadhar al-Zaidi -- described by demonstrators as an "honorable Iraqi."

Smaller protests emerged in the Anbar province city of Falluja and in two Baghdad locations -- Baghdad University in the northern part of the city and western Baghdad's Ameriya district. In those events, students also took to the streets.

Dhirgham al-Zaidi, the shoe-thrower's brother, said the journalist hated the "material American occupation" and Iranian influence in Iraq.

TV networks across the world continue to air the shoe-throwing scene, which has touched a nerve in the Arab world, where there has been an outpouring of support for al-Zaidi -- a correspondent for the Egyptian-based Al-Baghdadia TV.

Throwing Shoes At Bush

Muntadhar al-Zaidi literally threw his shoes at George W. Bush.

From Iraqi journalist throws shoes at Bush in Baghdad:

A man identified as an Iraqi journalist threw shoes at -- but missed -- President Bush during a news conference Sunday evening in Baghdad, where Bush was making a farewell visit.

Bush ducked, and the shoes, flung one at a time, sailed past his head during the news conference with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki in his palace in the heavily fortified Green Zone.

The shoe-thrower -- identified as Muntadhar al-Zaidi, an Iraqi journalist with Egypt-based al-Baghdadia television network -- could be heard yelling in Arabic: "This is a farewell ... you dog!"

While pinned on the ground by security personnel, he screamed: "You killed the Iraqis!"

Bush, never one to resist an opportunity to prove that he is an insensitive clod, joked about the incident:

Al-Zaidi was dragged away. While al-Zaidi was still screaming in another room, Bush said: "That was a size 10 shoe he threw at me, you may want to know."

I hope that Muntadhar al-Zaidi is not punished severely for this. He is not responsible for killing, maiming, and destroying people’s lives. Bush, on the other hand, is. Bush is the one who should be punished.

What would it be like if Muntadhar al-Zaidi has started some kind of movement? I imagine a future where Bush is inundated with shoes everywhere he goes for the rest of his life.

On the other hand, or foot, the Justice Department has found a way to throw some figurative shoes at George W. Bush.

From Justice Dept. Times Cases For Obama's Arrival by Ari Shapiro:

Some lawyers who have worked at the Justice Department for years say they are delaying certain cases in hopes that the Obama administration will give them more attention than they received from the Bush administration.

That is especially true in parts of the Civil Rights Division, where the Obama administration's priorities are expected to be very different from those of the current administration.

Civil rights prosecutors also say they are dusting off old investigations that have sat untouched for years. They hope new leaders will take interest in those old cases, which makes some companies that have long been under investigation nervous.