My Manolos have something to say
By Alex Shimo - Wednesday, February 25, 2009 - 1 Comment
The George Bush shoe-throwing incident has inspired a worldwide outpouring of creativity
Is it better to be egged or pied? Neither, according to a growing number who have ditched the food and now throw their shoes, and even make art about the rebellious act.
This creative outpouring was set off by the infamous pair tossed at former president George W. Bush by an Iraqi journalist. Footwear has long been a visceral symbol of disrespect in the Middle East, says Arsalan Iftikhar, a contributing editor for Islamica Magazine in Washington. Simply showing someone the soles of your shoes, let alone aiming them at them, is a sign of brazen contempt, which explains why the statue of Saddam Hussein was pummelled with shoes and sandals when it was toppled in April 2003.
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Carolyn Parrish lives!
By Philippe Gohier - Wednesday, December 31, 2008 at 1:13 PM - 6 Comments
…Only she’s come to inhabit the body of a left-wing, fringe party leader in…
…Only she’s come to inhabit the body of a left-wing, fringe party leader in Quebec’s National Assembly.In case you missed it—and no one would blame you—Québec solidaire’s Amir Khadir is in a bit of hot water after tossing a shoe at a picture of George Bush at a rally in Montreal last week. Gilbert Gagnon, a teacher at the Cégep de Sainte-Foy, filed a complaint with the National Assembly, claiming the gesture “encourages violence” and that it came at the expense of the “dignity and responsibilities of a MNA.” Khadir has countered by saying his voters knew what they were getting when they elected him.
It seems unlikely that Khadir’s party or his colleagues in the National Assembly will send him off into the wilderness the way the federal Liberals did with Parrish (or hang him out to dry the way the PQ did to Yves Michaud eight years ago), if only because it’s a little hard to make the case hating Bush still matters. Besides, you can hardly blame Khadir for doing what he was essentially elected to do—add a bit of colour to an otherwise sleepy crop of politicians in Quebec. But it’s funny how little time it’s taken for Khadir to be reminded he’s supposed to be bland.
For the record, I’ve been getting my shoe-tossing kicks here all morning.
[Photo by Bernard Brault, La Presse]
