Obama’s bow in Japan sparks some criticism
November 17th, 2009 . by TexasFredObama’s bow in Japan sparks some criticism
WASHINGTON - Some American conservative commentators are seizing on President Barack Obama’s deep bow to Japan’s emperor during the weekend, accusing the U.S. commander in chief of groveling to a foreign leader.
Obama greeted Emperor Akihito, whose father ruled when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor in 1941, with a simultaneous handshake and nearly 90-degree bow, sparking furious online commentary, much of it negative.
Obama’s gesture on Saturday was not without precedent, however. Neither was the outrage.
U.S. presidents from both political parties often have been criticized for attempts at culturally sensitive greetings to high-ranking foreigners.
Full Story Here:
Obama’s bow in Japan sparks some criticism
I don’t care which U.S. President it was, the President of the United States of America DOES NOT BOW to ANY King, Emperor, Sovereign or leader of ANY nation! PERIOD!
As this article points out, other Presidents have done it before Obama! Bill Clinton and Richard Nixon bowed to foreign leaders. I am not just bashing them for doing it either.
George W. Bush KISSED the Saudi King and held his hand like a little school girl for crying out loud!
Personally, I don’t give a DAMN what the customs are in Japan, China, Africa or Asia, we are Americans and we have pride in ourselves. Or, maybe I should say, some of us have PRIDE in America. Obviously, our current President has NO pride and little shame. Barack Obama bows to ANY world leader he meets, and those he doesn’t bow to, he apologizes for America to.
Some are calling it a sign of respect. I see it as a sign of submission.
Personally, I find each and every one of these pictures repulsive. Personally I find the idea of Nixon, or any other POTUS bowing to anyone repulsive. I couldn’t find a picture of Nixon bent over or I would have posted it too!
And Americans wonder WHY we have lost any serious position of respect in this world, and they wonder WHY the radicals of Islam are so set on our destruction.
You only have to look at the behavior of recent Presidents, and the image that behavior projects. We are perceived as being ripe for the picking!
Amen, Fred!
JDL
Kinda makes you feel nauseated, huh? So many precious lives have been
sacrificed and body’s mangled and this is the kind of pussy whipped assholes that WE elect. When they stop air traffic at LAX (clinton haircut) and get a 400 dollar haircut,(edwards) what does that tell you?
We get this kind of garbage to lead our country. They aren’t men, they’er eunuchs(no balls) Like I have said before and I’ll keep saying it till I die, that these fake ass girly men only want what they can get out of the government and that’s big money, country club status, retirement benefits, free travel, and a warm seat to set their worthless asses on for 2 days a week while they try and make everybody think they really give a shit about our country. Every dam one of them should get thrown out in the street by the scruff of the neck OR get jail time. If it was up to me, they’d get both and be forever barred from holding office again.
Oh my gawd… Fred, you certainly said it straight up my friend!!!! Those photos of Dubya are definitely nauseating!!! I’m with you… our country was founded on the dignity that men can rule themselves and shouldn’t have to bow to the will of a King… so how dare they play with that principal and embarrass this nation like that!!!!
HAM, when Bush was POTUS, I blasted him on a daily basis, and I am NOT a Dem or a Libber, never have been, but because i blasted him for his idiocy, I was castigated by the likes of Amy Proctor and her ilk of Bush ASS KISSERS…
Now, I blast Barack Hussein Obama, I have NO use for that cretin, I mean NONE…
Had I been a blogger during the Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush 41 or Clinton administrations, I would have blasted ANY and ALL of them had the circumstances dictated they needed it…
I am an INDEPENDENT American and a CONSTITUTIONAL patriot, the posers that have destroyed this nation make me ill. And I have NO problem with DAMNING them all to hell.
What are they gonna do? Send me to fight in a foreign war??
I’ve been doing some research into world cultures for a decade now. Here is my take: Taken in context of the cultures, Bush still comes out better here!
The kiss is a greeting in Saudi among those you consider your equal. For a king to greet someone thus is a sign to his people - as is the holding of hands. If an Muslim walks side-by-side with you and takes your hand he is saying to everyone, “This is my dear friend”.
On the other hand, kissing the ring is a sign of fealty and submission, as is the bow Obama carried off. In fact, it was a bow so deep as to say “I’m unworthy!” At most a head nod would have sufficed. On this I conferred with my Japanese friend, (who got her Citizenship just before the last election, bless her!), to make sure I was right. When I brought up the subject her voice became shaky when she told me just how badly ol’ Barack embarrassed himself & our Nation. She added that if any Japanese politician had blundered so he would have been removed from office before he even got back to Japanese soil! (At times I envy the Japanese political structure…)
Bull, out.
The bow in Japan has always been both a sign of submission and of respect with the person having least status bowing lower than the one with more. Accordingly, Obama should have given nothing more than a casual nod. This president certainly does have a way with tossing political protocol to the wind. I think this is no accident and part of his plan to lower America’s status in the eyes of the world and show we are just another one of the guys. We are just one of the guys, but the one thats saved the bacon of many of the others, but he would just as soon forget that. I thought bowing with out when we won the revolution and said good-bye to King George.
Obama has NO concept of the term, ‘losing face’…
Asians place great value on ‘face’, those not familiar with this term need to study Asian cultures, I won’t even begin to try and educate on this one, it’s too much and in many cases, will be far too intense for some minds to grasp.
Awesome comment Bull, and a great source too, the Japanese friend and her knowledge…
Obama insulted us, the citizens of the USA, with this “please don’t hurt me bow”.
That’s it. Obama should be brought up on treason charges.
I will never get over what the Japanese did to our captured soldiers.
Japan has been successful in business after the USA re-built it.
Hold all your friends close, and your enemies closer.
That’s why the words enema and enemy are so close alike!!!
The way our president and many of the presidents before him have greeted and acted towards leaders of other nations has been disgraceful, our president is their EQUAL and should act and be treated as such. Who is teaching these guys etiquette? Bozo the clown? (The POTUS should never bow to anyone.)
One thing I would however like to point out, the photo of GWB and Saudi King Abdullah kissing, I do believe is photo shopped. I believe Saudi’s greet with a kiss on each cheek.
It may be Photoshopped, if someone can offer rock solid proof, I’ll take it down… If not, it’s staying.. .
BHO is a real disgrace to America. He should not be bowing to anyone…I don’t care if they are Heads of State. The bow in Japan as a gretting should either be a bow or a hand shake…not both at the same time.
As far as GW kissing the Saudi King…I heard it was a kiss on the cheek. This photo appears to be a full lip kiss…a photoshop fake in my opion. Notice W’s chin is on the far side of the picture…yet his nose is up close. For this to happen his head would have to be tilted more.
Now as far as W holding hands with the Saudi King…..this should have been a major…and I’m talking major insult to the Saudi King….as the left hand in the Arab world is used for wiping ones ass…and nothing else. So… W is holding on with his ass wiping hand…lmao…too funny no one noticed that in Saudi Arabia.
The pic of the GWB kiss may be a Photoshop, maybe not, can you offer anything other than opinion? If you have solid proof, I can delete it very easily, but I have seen NO proof…
Its seems the old saying in now wrong “pictures never lie” use to ring true, but in todays world! I don’t know about the kiss or the hand-holding, its does seem odd to me. I doubt Bush would kiss a man on the lips, as for the ass-wiping hand thats news to me, but sounds right. Yup, I right handed, but a lefty when it comes to that. My secret is out!!!
Photoshopped:
http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2008/01/14/he_kisses_for_thee
Good sense of humor going on, though.
Wait a minute - not quite the same pic. Hold on…
OK, haven’t found the original for that pic - but look at the wiper blades on the vehicle behind them - where Bush’s left arm could or should be. There is a definite line where a clumsy photoshop happened.
Yep Silver Fox…..the left hand is only for body cleaning.
Read below info taken off another website….
Customs & Etiquette in Muslim world
Right Hand, Left Hand
As with many local customs around the world, Islam distinguishes the use of the right and left hands for a number of applications.
The left hand is primarily used for cleaning yourself, especially for cleaning the private parts after using the toilet.
The right hand is used for just about everything else - shaking hands, eating and picking up the Qur’an should only be done with the right hand - be sure to remember this!
If someone offers to shake your hand while it is dirty, don’t offer to shake with your left. Simply tell them that your hand is dirty, and offer your right forearm for him / her to shake instead. NOTE: Only offer to shake hand with someone of the same gender as you.
With regards to writing, drawing, or any other activities, there is no preference between your left and right hands.
It was years ago one of our past Presidents ( could have been Clinton or Carter ) was visiting another country and patted some little boy on the head with his left hand. There was a big outcry about that…because the head is suppose to be their direct contact with Allah…and patting someone on the head disrupts that contact…but patting them on the head with the sh*t hand ( left hand ) is really an insult. So much for trying to impress someone…lol
http://foehammer.net/zenphoto/with-friends-like-these/image/bush-abdullah.jpg ?
It’s a good thing I’m not President. I would probably get shot because I would not bow down to any foreign leader.
Nor should you, Don. Nor should any American!
Bowing so low is a sign of submission, couple this with the American apology tour and it is troublesome.
Disgusting lack of social awareness and protocol. At minimum, that is bad enough. To exhibit this as the chief officer of the USA, the President, is absolutely inexcusable. It is a clear sign of one or more of the following:
1. Arrogance if he is not listening to his staff.
2. Incompetence on the part of his staff.
3. Incompetence on his part for picking such incompetent staff.
4. Incompetence on his part for actually doing it, regardless the reason.
5. With a complete knowledge of history, protocol, and standards of expectation, knowingly demonstrating an intentional and complete disregard for the Office of President and ALL it represents (including this great nation, you and me!!)
6. Same as number 5, but with additional intentions to signal worldwide his agenda to lead the United States into submission to international authority (away from our Constitutional guided rule of law), and reduce us from our state as the one and only free and independent national superpower in the world. In essence, to direct a massive and global re-distribution of the wealth of the United States, produced by hard working Americans under the freedom which we used to enjoy. Either for personal power or ideology, in my mind, this is treason and/or sedition.
I won’t even get into the use of our criminal court system to try prisoners of war, or enemy combatents, or whatever label is used as identification, by his allowance and under the direction of those under hsi direct control. Just watch if they do not ask that Sharia Law be included somehow in those proceedings as the camels nose in the tent. (sorry for the thread jack, but so much comes to mind when anything is discussed that is in reference to this poor excuse of a man usurping the highest office in the land. And the use of that word has NOTHING to do with his birthplace or questions of his “citizenship”. It has EVERYTHING to do with his actual personal words and actions in office. Imagine if Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, or either Bush I or II had done what he has done and continues to do and allow. It would be just as wrong. This has nothing to do with political party (dem v. rep) or even right v. left. This is theft of our way of life and form of government, started many decades ago and continuing on a scale and in such blatent open process that those with eyes to see are aware of where this will lead. We are the frogs being slowly boiled int he pot. (sorry for the thread jack, Fred. Feel free to cut this and paste elsewhere as you see fit).