Back To Reality - Torture and Shoes

Now that we've all had our fun laughing at shoes being thrown at George W. Bush, each of us vicariously enjoying throwing those shoes at him, let us turn our attention to the gentleman who actually did the deed for us! Our hero is not only under arrest, but evidentally has been tortured.

Read on, from al Jazeera Magazine...

"Iraqi reporter al-Zaidi's arm, ribs broken"
16/12/2008 03:10:00 PM GMT


Security agents have broken the arm and ribs of al-Zaidi, a reporter who hurled his shoes at President Bush on Sunday.


Security agents have broken the arm and ribs of al-Zaidi, a reporter who hurled his shoes at Bush during a press conference Sunday in Baghdad.

"He has got a broken arm and ribs, and cuts to his eye and arm," the reporter's brother Durgham told AFP on Tuesday.

"He is being held by forces under the command of Muaffaq al-Rubaie," he added.

According to Durgham, his brother was being held by Iraqi forces in the heavily fortified Green Zone compound in central Baghdad.




His employer, al-Baghdadiya television, also reported that al-Zeidi had been "seriously injured" and called on the government to allow lawyers and Red Crescent representative to visit him.

On Monday, thousands of Iraqis staged a demonstration in Sadr City in Baghdad calling for the release of the journalist. Hundreds of Iraqis demonstrated on Tuesday across the country demanding the release of al-Zaidi.

The 29-year-old Muntadhar al-Zaidi, a correspondent for al-Baghdadiya satellite channel, threw his shoes at the US President George W. Bush during a press conference on Sunday, shouting "This is a goodbye kiss from the Iraqi people, dog!"

Bush inked an interim security agreement with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki during his farewell visit to Baghdad in a bid to extend the presence of US troops in the war-ravaged country.


© aljazeera.com

UPDATE - THE GAME! At Last! A Good Use For Shoes

POST 400 In case anyone is counting...

Here is one of the online games chucking shoes at the still-for-about-a-month Prez:

http://kroma.no/2008/bushgame

I intensely dislike wearing shoes, uncomfortable beasts at best. Here, however, is a good use for them.

I post this just in case there is even one among my readers who hasn't seen it. I heard on TV this morning that Iraqis are divided 50/50 about this incident. Fifty percent believe the "attacker" was correct to throw the shoes; the other 50% believe he was wrong to embarass the Iraqi Prime Minister.

(After that last post, I'm sure we all need something like this.)

IN THE NAME OF HUMANITY, STOP THIS!!

I CALL ON ISRAEL! I CALL ON EGYPT! I CALL ON ALL THE COUNTRIES OF THE WORLD TO PUT AN END TO THIS ATROCITY!

Frankly, I no longer care who is to blame. We are all responsible!

I have no time to write a good post today, so just look at the pictures. Then write your governmental representatives of your country to put an end to this murder of innocent children! If enough of us insist and don't quit insisting, they will listen. Do it now, this minute! How many will die horribly while you hesitate?

I have come under considerable fire for harping on this horror that is Gaza. No matter. I will continue harping until it is resolved or I am dead!

The Meanings of SAD

I can think of at least three meanings of SAD off the top of my head. First, there's Seasonal Affective Disorder, which your author fights with some success each winter. There's the Punjabi political party , Shiromani Akali Dal. The bridge between these two is the simple English word "sad," meaning unhappy, sorrowful. Read on...

How to dishonour your turban, a short lesson in one picture.

Ever wonder where Bollywood got the image of us Sikhs as a bunch of buffoons?

A leader puts a crown on the head of SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal during a rally at Jaito, Faridkot district, on Saturday. Tribune photo: Kulbir Beera

From: The Tribune OnLine Edition

MUMBAI - AND DELHI

I have not written about the terrorist attack on Mumbai for a very good - to me - reason. Fire has been coming out of my mouth and smoke from my ear, from absolutely furious anger. One aspect of this whole affair, as an aspect vital to us Sikhs, seems to have been completely overlooked - or purposely ignored.

I have not trusted myself to say anything reasonable or lucid. So I have been silent.

Now someone else has written what I would like to say. In fact two people have. First, the Sikhtoon, then a link to the blogpost.

I am a regular reader of Sidhusaaheb's blog, I, Me, Myself. He has a incisive political sense (sometimes at odds with my ideas, though), a great sense of humour, and he's a Sikh. What more could anyone ask for?

To read his post, please go to my post about Mumbai on sometimes - 2. It's worth the click, I promise.

The Real Terrorists In Texas

(See the previous post for more information, as well.)