Fellow Iraqi turns tables on Bush shoe-thrower

[KRonn]

 

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE5B15F920091202

PARIS (Reuters) - An Iraqi reporter imprisoned for throwing his shoes at President George W. Bush found himself on the receiving end of a similar footwear attack in Paris Tuesday.

Fellow Iraqi turns tables on Bush shoe-thrower

Oddly Enough

Muntazer al-Zaidi, whose flare-up against Bush last December turned into a symbol of Iraqi anger, was speaking at a news conference to promote his campaign for victims of the war in Iraq when a man in the audience hurled a shoe at him.

It hit the wall next to his head and a scuffle ensued in the audience, television footage showed.

French media said the attacker was an exiled Iraqi journalist who spoke in defense of U.S. policy, accusing Zaidi of siding with a dictatorship, before throwing his shoe.

Zaidi's own outburst summed up the feelings of many Iraqis about the U.S. military invasion of their country and the ensuing bloodshed and sectarian killing.

Millions of people around the world saw images of him shouting "this is a goodbye kiss from the Iraqi people, dog," during a news conference by the former U.S. leader, before throwing his shoes at him.

Zaidi, a television reporter, was sentenced to three years' imprisonment for assaulting a head of state. This was later reduced to one year and he was released in September.

He has alleged that he was tortured by guards after his arrest.

[Admiral Yi]

Isn't this an old story?  I could swear I've read about this dude getting shooed before.

[derspiess]

Someone should pin him down & shave his eyebrows.  IIRC, that's like a huge humiliation for Ayrabs.

[Martinus]

I wonder if the table-turner will be sent to prison and tortured. If not, then it's not much of an act of heroism, but rather a pathetic move.

[KRonn]

Isn't this an old story?  I could swear I've read about this dude getting shooed before.

I think this is about a week old. I don't know if it's been posted already; I didn't see it. I just find it funny, ironic.   

[Berkut]

I wonder if the table-turner will be sent to prison and tortured. If not, then it's not much of an act of heroism, but rather a pathetic move.

Why is that?

And who said it was an act of heroism to begin with?

I am guessing the penalty for simple assault is rather different than assault on a head of state though. plus he would be charged in France, which likely has rather differing laws about this sort of thing than Iraq anyway.

And he missed anyway, so it is actually just attempted assault.

[Admiral Yi]

I wonder if the table-turner will be sent to prison and tortured. If not, then it's not much of an act of heroism, but rather a pathetic move.

Tell that to the people who declared the original shoe tosser a hero before he was sent to prison.

[derspiess]

I wonder if the table-turner will be sent to prison and tortured. If not, then it's not much of an act of heroism, but rather a pathetic move.

That's *alleged* torture.  He could've been tortured, sure.  But if this dude is unstable enough to throw shoes at a foreign head of state, I don't think we can go on his word alone.

And I don't think the second shoe-thrower is being touted by anyone as a hero.  I do think it was pretty cool, but not heroic

But I know the way your mind works.  Shoe-thrower #1 throws shoes at a Republican US President named George Bush, and he's a hero, even more so because he had to go to jail.  Show-thrower #2 gave #1 a taste of his own medicine, but since #1 was anti-US, that automatically makes the #2 guy bad (or "pathetic").

I wonder what Shoe-thrower #1's opinion is on gay rights, and whether it might change your opinion of him? 

[Admiral Yi]

Who is more heroic, the shoe tosser or the guy who broke Berlusconni's teeth?

[Savonarola]

Who is more heroic, the shoe tosser or the guy who broke Berlusconni's teeth?

How about the guy who threw the tomato at Sarah Palin:

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/The-Vote/2009/1208/sarah-palin-escapes-flying-tomato-attack

[Jacob]

I think the original shoe tossing was okay, because in the end it was nothing but a symbolic gesture.  Bush handled with aplomb as well, so as far as I'm concerned it's no big deal either way.

That guy gets a shoe thrown at him later is kind of funny and pretty appropriate.  All in all, I have complaints about any part of this continuing story other than the original shoe thrower alleging to have been tortured.  That is all too believable, unfortunately, and if true it's not good at all.

[derspiess]

I think the original shoe tossing was okay,

I'm shocked.

[grumbler]

I think the original shoe tossing was okay, because in the end it was nothing but a symbolic gesture.  Bush handled with aplomb as well, so as far as I'm concerned it's no big deal either way.

That guy gets a shoe thrown at him later is kind of funny and pretty appropriate.  All in all, I have complaints about any part of this continuing story other than the original shoe thrower alleging to have been tortured.  That is all too believable, unfortunately, and if true it's not good at all.

Well, that, and the fact that he got actual serious prison time for throwing a coupla shoes.  That was not the way the story should have ended; he should have been sentenced to some kind of appropriate community service, or fined $666, or some other punishment as symbolic as his own actions.