More about the Bush-booing
Inauguration crowds surround the Washington Monument
WASHINGTON - I meant to follow up early on my blog item from before the speech, about President Bush getting booed from back in the public-access crowd back by the Washington Monument. But my phone died before I could, and it took this long to navigate the river of humanity back to a working electrical outlet. (Apologies to readers; plea for mercy to editors.)
Here’s the rest: The booing was, in fact, pretty shocking, regardless of your political bent. Some of it was augmented with obscenities. When they showed VP Dick Cheney in the wheelchair, the booing was joined with some laughter at his predicament (he injured himself moving things recently).
This was a young, idealistic, generally peaceful and upbeat part of the crowd, so it was a little surprising that just one voice piped up in opposition, saying things like, “Don’t do that,” and “Hey, we don’t need to do that.”
After the second, Cheney-inspired round of boos, I found the guy, a young man there with some friends. I asked him about his sole defense of decorum.
Here’s from the tape:
“He’s still the president of the United States and I think we should show respect, regardless of how we feel ideologically. . . . I supported Obama, but I feel the president should be given due respect. . . . I don’t feel the need to boo him now. The elections are over and we can certainly give him his due. We have change now; we have enough change to spare.”
For adherents to politeness, that’s the good news. The bad news is, he’s not a natural-born American (they were, by and large, booing, it appears). He’s Alven Muladdic, an Italian immigrant who now lives in D.C.
KUDOS to Alven, being an Italian myself, I can see how he showed more class than his American cohorts and kudos to Kevin for reporting on this.
This basically sums up my feelings about Obama’s supporters in general. In return, I plan to show Mr. Obama the same respect they have shown President Bush.
It was the media’s defense of decorum that allowed Bush and Cheney to push through a war based on the flimsiest of evidence without ever being seriously questioned. The crowd that was booing believes, and is almost certainly correct, that Bush and Cheney are responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths from an unnecessary war, eroding the constitution, and authorizing torture, and they believe that these things are more important than “decorum.” I’m not surprised to see that the media disagrees.
Please note that I am truly shedding tears. Kennedy and Byrd have both apparently collapsed following the Inauguration. Not yet being reported by the PD.
Politics may be a contact sport here in Texas, but today was an inauguration, not a football game folks. I dislike Bush as much as anybody I know (more than most).
However, the booing was beneath us as citizens of the greatest democracy on earth! Respect the office of the presidency, even if you don’t like the person. Remember we are all Americans. In order to recover from the bitter partisan sniping that has grown ever worse throughout the last decade, we need to move on past the anger and pain. Let us all put the past behind us and begin anew to love one another and serve one another. That is what Obama’s speech was about.
Pray for peace, pray for Obama and our nation’s leaders, and then rise up and get busy lending a hand to move the nation forward.
God bless America.
P.S. If you disagree strongly enough to leave a comment, that is okay with me. Freedom of speech is something people have fought and died for. Be grateful for it and use it wisely. Remember what else Obama said…no one will respect you much for what good things or people you tear down…you will only succeed in winning their respect for what good things you build up and help create:)
Centrist-Same old broken record. Which paper did you read it in first, or did you see it on the instant medium of television?
I agree that any booing was in poor taste on this day, especially in light of the theme of the President’s inaugural speech. I was disappointed also by the “Nah Nah Hey Hey Goodbye” chant as the helicopter left with the Bush family.
In ordinary cases, Presidents are due respect. In bush’s case, he deserves more than booing. Another shoe would have been a good idea. He stole both elections, was never legally president, is responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths and injuries, let a major American city die and has done nothing good for the American people, other than his rich friend. Good riddance. May we never again be cursed with such a man.
Hussein: WORST PRESIDENT EVER!!!! - been waiting about 2 1/2 months to write that.
Susan - You sound like a great human being. Can I buy you a drink? If you want to talk about a legal President, then Hussein shouldn’t be pres b/c he’s not even a naturalized citizen. You nazi’s on the left are probably the worst thing about America.
Hope the same hatred towards President George Bush today with chants and obscenities hits everyone of those at the coronation involved and on this board (Susan as an easy example) square in the face some day….shame on all of you scum types. Semper Fi (to all real Americans)
To A. Centrist and Mike:
You two are the most idiotic people in America, or at least in the St. Louis metro area today. I suggest you both catch the next flight to somewhere far far away where you can help each other out by taking careful aim with revolvers at each other’s faces and end your misery now before Obama is re-elected in four years. The world would be a better place without the likes of you. Your brains combined equal less than my pet parakeets.