So, when he gets out, this guy will be considered a hero by tens of millions of people. He will be financially set for life, and respected everywhere he goes. Not bad for throwing some shoes. The only ones complaining will be wingnuts here in America who feel their glorious leader was humiliated.

"The only ones complaining will be wingnuts here in America who feel their glorious leader was humiliated."

I'm sure you would feel the same way if i threw something at obama. Regardless of your feeling toward bush there are certain things that are not acceptable to do to a president, changing penalties based on your opinion of the victim is wrong.

I'm not sure I agree Salmand. If somebody threw a shoe at Mussolini it would be one thing. If somebody threw a shoe Churchill it would be something quite different. A leader gets the respect they earn. The fact that they hold high office should not be a shield to being disdained and disrespected for gross incompetence and dishonesty. A p-o-s like GWB earned those shoes being tossed at him.
What probably really bothers you is that a man you disagree with, Obama, is considered to be a great man worldwide, and will likely never be subjected to the same types of humiliations when traveling overseas.

If somebody threw a shoe at Mussolini it would be one thing. If somebody threw a shoe Churchill it would be something quite different.
#3 | Posted by moder8

It would be quite different, as Mussolini and Churchill were never BOTH prime minister of England. Salamand is referring to the respect of the office, which both Obama and Bush hold/held. While you may have disagreed, disrespected, or even disliked the man in office before Obama, the office itself deserves our respect. the shoe thrower thre his shoes at both Bush and the Office of the President. I'm not so concerned about Bush having footwaer thrown at him; however, the office Bush held was similarly disrespected at the same time and that's what makes me mad about this whole situation.

The fact of the matter is that he assaulted a sitting president.
The victim of the crime should not matter in the eyes of any court. To allow that kind of judgment is the antithesis of justice.

But I disagree Bartimus. I don't believe there should be anything magical about THE OFFICE which should make displays of contempt aimed at it off limits. Especially not given the distrust the Founding Fathers frequently expressed about government power in all it's forms. GWB earned the contempt. The contempt was aimed at GWB. The fact that he happened to be President at the time does not somehow magically transform his incompetence, lies, and stupidity into something other than what it was. His Office at the time should not be a shield to his actions or statements.

In fact, using your logic, criminal charges should never be brought against a POTUS because doing so somehow belittles THE OFFICE. The reality is, THE OFFICE only gets the respect the person sitting in it deserves.

"In fact, using your logic, criminal charges should never be brought against a POTUS because doing so somehow belittles THE OFFICE. The reality is, THE OFFICE only gets the respect the person sitting in it deserves."

Way off. Are you really equating a personal grievance to a court of law?
If that was the case then everyone who did not like someone would be vindicated in assaulting them. Should i be allowed to throw something at obama because he is a liar and as corrupt as can be? Would it make it ok for me to do something like that if he continued his assault on the constitution? Sorry, but laws are not about your feelings, i cannot run someone off the road because he pissed me off. That is not the way it works and if it were it would be a far scarier place to be.

Throw a shoe at the President?!?

That's offensive?

We fucking helped kill their President.

Respect for the office Salamander?

Give me a fucking break.

"We fucking helped kill their President."

We caught him, they killed him

"Respect for the office Salamander?"

So i am free to do anything i want as long as i don't like the guy?

Great display of respect for the office of their President Salamander.............

Bush got all the respect he deserved. Hell, I would have thrown a shoe at him if given the chance.

"Hell, I would have thrown a shoe at him if given the chance."

And you think you would deserve less punishment then if i threw one at obama?

"Great display of respect for the office of their President "

Did we not give him the chance to leave?
Did we not give him back to his people?
Do you not see the difference between our country at war and a dumb guy throwing a shoe?
Do you think that everyone should become judge, jury and executioner based on their own personal beliefs? Would you still believe that when a guy feels justified putting a screwdriver through your arm because you looked at him cross ways?

"I would have thrown a shoe at him if given the chance."

Sure you would, tough guy.

1 day for throwing a shoe at a roach is too much.

Salamand: If the journalist were being released without punishment then maybe you would have a point. But the reality is, he is serving a one year sentence for throwing some shoes. If you or I threw shoes at Joe Shmoe, we wouldn't serve one week. So it is incorrect for you to state that somehow this guy is being given a free pass because GWB is so unpopular. The point is, even in spite of GWB's incompetence, lies and stupidity, the journalist is still getting a stiff sentence.

So Joe, in your world, guys who throw shoes are 'tough guys'?

Nice to know.

it is amazing, the attitude that laws only apply to some of you if you don't like the outcome.

We fucking helped kill their President.
#8 | Posted by Manypaths

LOL. Saddam was their "president"? Democratically elected in unbiased and fair elections, too I bet! ROTFL!

We helped kill their dictator

"The point is, even in spite of GWB's incompetence, lies and stupidity, the journalist is still getting a stiff sentence."

So you consider that a stiff sentence for assaulting a president? And no, what you really are saying is because of your belief of bush's incompetence ext... that the punishment should be less. So i ask again would you think i deserved a longer sentence if i did that to obama because of my belief in exactly the negatives you project onto bush?

So i ask again would you think i deserved a longer sentence if i did that to obama because of my belief in exactly the negatives you project onto bush?
#20 | Posted by salamandagator

Chirp...chirp... Don't expect an answer, Salamand.

Never did, in the eyes of far too many justice only exists when they agree.

If a shoe were thrown at Obama, I think that a year in jail would a lengthy sentence. Three years would be way excessive.

This is a signal from the Iraqis that they are no longer as firmly under thumb as they once were.

A small act of defiance in order to try out their increased autonomy.

Personally, Spud thinks this 2 year reduxced sentence is a lot fairer than the Scooter commutation.

Be Well.

"If a shoe were thrown at Obama, I think that a year in jail would a lengthy sentence"

Ok so we have established that you think a year is too long for assault a president. What if instead he had tried to punch or at least slap him? Do you think he deserves less because the type of assault? See, to me this was an act of violence, he used what he could but an assault is an assault.

"This is a signal from the Iraqis that they are no longer as firmly under thumb as they once were."

And why would that be?
Hmmm

Salamander, you are mixing your apples and oranges.

One, this did not take place in America.

To put this into the context that you are seeking let's put it this way.

If you threw a shoe at the President of Iran, in the United States, what should your sentence be?

I'll look in the morning.

Time for an Ale.

Salamand, the law recognizes different types of assault. Throwing a shoe is misdemeneanor at worst in most jurisdictions. You say "an assault is an assault", but that's plain stupid. Me throwing a shoe at you is completely different than me throwing a crowbar at you. If you really can't see the difference (if the world is really that black and white to you) then I am wasting my time even trying to reason with you.

"So Joe, in your world, guys who throw shoes are 'tough guys'?"

Guys who attempt to assault the president of the United States are either tough guys or morons. In your case, I'll go with the latter.

"We fucking helped kill their President."

We caught him, they killed him

They caught him, they killed him. The capture was another Jessica Lynch fairy tale, designed to deflect revenge agianst the Iraqis who captured him.

So, when he gets out, this guy will be considered a hero by tens of millions of people. He will be financially set for life, and respected everywhere he goes. Not bad for throwing some shoes

same can be said for the first righty to lob a boot at Obama.

It would probably have been reduced more if he had actually hit the fucker and laid a "size 10" stamp on his forehead.

I think the man should have a second chance.

At throwing the shoe, I mean.

I'm thinking Army boot, too, not sandal.

Careful Frank.

You too, Corky.

I'm always careful, kinda like GW when he milks a stallion.

Always warm your hands first.

Trade him to the San Francisco Giants.

Don't judge a man until you've thrown at a president with his shoes.

"The decision came as Barack Obama made his first official visit to Iraq as U.S. president."

Obama's first interview - Muslim

Obama's first apology - Muslim

Obama's first pardon - Muslim

#40 | Posted by KBM

wtf

The reason nobody throws shoes at Obama is because he has not been as incompetent, stupid, dishonest or plain wrong as his predecessor proved himself to be at every opportunity. Great men don't get shoes thrown at them. (I add the last part not only because it is true, but because it really annoys the wingnuts.)

The reason nobody throws shoes at Obama is because he has not been as incompetent, stupid, dishonest or plain wrong as his predecessor proved himself to be at every opportunity.

Obama is proving himself incompetent; the stupid and dishonest is open to question. But one question for you..

Since Obama is continuing almost the exact same policies of Bush in Iraq.. (which by the way.. gave the shoe thrower the opportunity to toss without getting shot) What exactly was Bush incompetent about in Iraq? Maybe the war wasn't executed perfectly? So name one in history that was..

Ask your Mom when you get home tonight..

One of these days you slogan-only libs are going to have to grow up..

Since Obama is continuing almost the exact same policies of Bush in Iraq.. What exactly was Bush incompetent about in Iraq?

Because Obama is proving himself to be in over his head does not excuse the screw ups of Bush. Bush was incompetent and Obama is showing himself to be too inexperienced to even see the incompetence.

Basically, we have offically jumped from the frying pan into the fire.

Because Obama is proving himself to be in over his head does not excuse the screw ups of Bush. Bush was incompetent and Obama is showing himself to be too inexperienced to even see the incompetence.

#44 | Posted by kanrei

Roma is going to go apeshit when he reads this.

It is what I see and I voted for Obama. Given the choice today of McCain and Palin or Obama and all I know, I would pick Obama again, but that does not mean I am happy with the job he is doing, just that I really hated the other option.

Danni is going to rip me a new one for that too, I already know it is coming.

"One of these days you slogan-only libs are going to have to grow up.. "

#43 | Posted by nmg_no at 2009-04-08 02:17 PM

Kinder, Gentler
Read My Lips, No New Taxes (Bush)
Compassionate Conservatism (Bush2)
Change is Coming (McCain/Palin)
Mission Accomplished
Wanted Dead or Alive
Death Tax
Drill Baby Drill
NoBama
Country first
etc., etc., etc.

Yeah, grow up libs! lol

I hate liberal slogans just as much, so don't get bunched up back there. But anyone with eyes and a working brain has to admit the republicans have been on the forefront of slogan-centric campaigns and administrations for some time now.

Kevin,
You forgot the best: Obamanation. That one was a clever pun actually.

......you won't catch Bush browsing in the Baghdad Payless.....

......you won't catch Bush browsing in the Baghdad Payless.....

#51 | Posted by skizziks at 2009-04-08 02:28 PM

You mean the Iraqi Ammo Cache?

"You forgot the best: Obamanation. That one was a clever pun actually."

Yeah, it goes hand in hand with the "country first" slogan. The irony is that these are the same sand-crotches who said using "Betray Us" was treasonous.

Obamanation was one of the better puns...probably explains why it didn't catch on with the more socially retarded and fiscally liberal south and mid-west populations upon which Bush depended so much for support.

NMG NO,

That's easy. Unlike his father, Shrub failed to see that overthrowing the Sunni's would empower Iran and in the process destabilize the balance of power in the region. Killing a million innocent people or wasting $3 trillion is apparently less worthy of a legal inquisition than throwing a shoe.

When Bremer took over, Franks quit in disgust and took his team of Iraq experts with him. Bremer's agenda was to privatize everything. He failed to achieve this objective. Destroying the countries infrastructure and failing to rebuild any of it while wasting hundreds of billions is a direct consequence of hiring fresh graduates from a US religious college to oversea reconstruction.

Shrub was eventually forced to honor the will of those Iraqis that remain in Iraq, fighting for their right to control the price and flow of their own oil. SHRUB LOST THAT UNNECESSARY WAR. Only misinformed fools that swallow Bushit are unable to see this.

You mean the Iraqi Ammo Cache?

#52 | Posted by kanrei

....yup......

"Obamanation" worked for both sides too, it was perfect.

Obama Supporter: When Obama wins, it will be an Obama Nation

McCain Supporter, Yes, an Obama victory will be an abomination.

Obama Supporter: When Obama wins, it will be an Obama Nation

McCain Supporter, Yes, an Obama victory will be an abomination.

#56 | Posted by kanrei

.....and when McCain wins it'll be a cold day in hell......

What probably really bothers you is that a man you disagree with, Obama, is considered to be a great man worldwide, and will likely never be subjected to the same types of humiliations when traveling overseas.

#3 | Posted by moder8

What fantasy world are you living in? Obama has not achieved one global task that was set out as a goal. World leaders are more likely laughing behind his back than they are respecting him. He has done not one thing on the global stage that would show him to be thought of as a "great man". He spoke of drawing down nukes and got no response. Well, not true, the N. Koreans responded by shooting off a rocket. Yeah, everybody thinks he's great. Where do you come up with stuff like this?

Everlong: Boy, it obviously really gnaws at you how well respected and dignified Obama is. LOL. If you ever see fit to get out of the Rush echo chamber you will realize that Obama indeed is viewed highly favorably throughout the world. (So, unless you consider improving America's image internationally not to count for anything, even you must concede he has accomplished a great deal in just three short months.)

First of all, I never listen to Rush. Haven't for years. Secondly, where are all of these highly favorable views? He hasn't accomplished a single thing on the world stage. He's introduced a few things, all of which were met with no response. It doesn't gnaw at me at all. What does gnaw at me are when people like you try to make it out like he's adored by so many world leaders. So far he hasn't had one instance of this being the case. You're making things up purely out of speculation. You happen to believe that other world leaders think he's a great man, but we haven't heard that sentiment from any of them.

The only thing he has accomplished has been to apologize for America and lessen our position in the global arena. If the world leaders love him so much it's because he denigrates the US and does nothing but point out our flaws. He is either afraid to, or doesn't know how to present America as the leader of the free world. He wants to drag us down and make us equal to countries like Venezuala when it comes to influence and power.

European countries and the Russians and South American's love to hear an American president denigrate the country because that falls in line with their way of thinking. If they see him as a great man for this, then it is for all the wrong reasons.

Everlong you are exactly correct.

Hussein is the worst President this nation has ever had, 95% of every move he has made has been wrong.

The reason why he runs down America so often is because that is what he has been taught this whole life.

From Frank the Poet, to Rev. Racist, To Billy Ayers, etc, etc, Hussein has been taught that America is wrong, evil, and racist.

Even though Hussein has been pampered and coddled his entire life he has been brainwashed into believing this by his sick mentors.

America elected a slick Ward Churchill it's President.

Rex- you're stupid.

BTW, the Iraqi shoeboy should be buried up to his neck and have a lawnmower run over him.

Less than a year into his term and Obama is the worst prez ever? Really? Worse than Buchanan? W?

Try cutting the hyperbole out of your diet, rex.

My very favorite, and unquestionably the world champion of liberal slogan speak.. was former congresswoman now some of sort of nut activist, Cynthia McKenny..

The best McKenny line ever.. was when asked a hard question by a reporter in Atlanta starting she began singing "who let the dogs out?"

Man, you have to miss her in Congress..

but her fans populate this thread.

Alex, I agree with you. Rex is stupid. But, then again, as I'm sure by now most readers of the DR already know, that is my opinion of the vast majority of wingnuts who post on this site.

BTW, the Iraqi shoeboy should be buried up to his neck and have a lawnmower run over him.

#64 | Posted by r_zeitgeist at 2009-04-08 06:21 PM |

How dare he throw footwear at your mancrush? Off with his head!!

My very favorite, and unquestionably the world champion of liberal slogan speak.. was former congresswoman now some of sort of nut activist, Cynthia McKenny..

The best McKenny line ever.. was when asked a hard question by a reporter in Atlanta starting she began singing "who let the dogs out?"

Man, you have to miss her in Congress..

but her fans populate this thread.

#67 | Posted by nmg_no at 2009-04-08 06:25 PM | Reply | Flag: non sequitur

Alex, you want a President that apologizes for farting in his own bathroom, I want a President that will walk in his enemies house and take a shit on the dinner table.

Then dares anyone to complain about it.

Right now your type of President is in office, but this too shall 'pass'.

I want a President that will walk in his enemies house and take a shit on the dinner table.

Alex, you want a President that apologizes for farting in his own bathroom,

Like I said: Stupid. I want nothing of the sort. 4 years of knowing me, and this is the best you can do?

"I want a President that will walk in his enemies house and take a shit on the dinner table.

Then dares anyone to complain about it."

Yeah, but Rex... you're an asshole, remember?

America doesn't need asshole foreign policy. Or asshole domestic policy, for that matter

That 's why you lost the election, remember?

We have a history of kidnaping and imprisoning sitting leaders of sovereign nations. Jug someone for throwing a shoe at ours? I say give a Golden Shoe award for courage in journalism. herm

I say give a Golden Shoe award for courage in journalism. herm

#75 | Posted by herm at 2009-04-09 10:07 AM | Reply | Flag

If this guy would have been in the White House Press Corps, we might have gotten some truth out of Washington.