Comments on: Mike Huckabee Proves Foreign Policy Idiocy, Again

By: kevintracy

kevintracy — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 00:00:58 +0000

If you seriously believe that bowing to a person in Japan is a sign of obedience and a recognition of their superiority over us, you shouldn’t be allowed to vote.

By: Jamison

Jamison — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 23:01:19 +0000

Well, we kinda did fight a war so that Americans wouldn’t have to bow to royalty, or foreign leaders.

I’m just sayin’…

By: kevintracy

kevintracy — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 20:44:27 +0000

Hahaha, thanks for sharing, Laurie. I hope you folks had a great Thanksgiving!

By: Laurie

Laurie — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 17:59:03 +0000

As far as the bow…My family and I hosted a Japanese family and a lone Korean yesterday for Thanksgiving. Not only did they think the bow was “just part of accepted protocol”, they were all scratching their heads about the uproar this has caused in our country. Was it “an apology”, was the angle “too extreme”, did Obama demonstrate “weakness”…All of those questions were met with bemused and confused expressions. Truly, they struggled to find the words to express what a non-issue this was for those who understand the culture. Eye opening, for me.

Fun stuff…Just to let me know that they understood, at least, the silliness of the controversy, I recieved very exagerrated bows from them all after dinner. At last, some context AND some humor about this, the smallest of non-issues the right has ever cooked up.

By: Laurie

Laurie — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 16:30:52 +0000

“Seriously, what is it about Katie Couric that causes Republicans to make utter fools of themselves?”

Best question I’ve heard about the media in a long time. Perhaps Ms. Pixie is doing what all the others-conservative, liberal and “non-biased”-cannot: Getting pols to underestimate her so badly that they reveal themselves nakedly.

Dick Cheney is such a great example of what a government health care plan can provide. Nitroglycerin, pacemakers to keep his bloodless heart beating… Go, Dick…Show us all what is really needed.

By: kevintracy

kevintracy — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 12:11:25 +0000

If you’re looking to Dick Cheney as a man who exhibits good behavior and interacts well with other people, you might be more of an idiot than Huckabee. I like Dick Cheney a lot, don’t get me wrong. But he’s not somebody I want directing foreign policy, meeting with foreign leaders on a regular basis, or even picking my parents up at the airport.

The position of Emperor is a position we agreed to make part of Japan’s constitution when we gave it to them after the war. Furthermore, the Emperor that fought us in WWII is dead and rotting in the ground. You’re arguing, essentially, that President Bush was giving a back-rub to Adolf Hitler when he was really giving one to Angela Merkel.

By: Jarrod

Jarrod — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 11:53:29 +0000

Huckabee said the bow was offensive to him, like it was offensive to a lot of other Americans, especially those who fought in World War II. You didn’t see Cheney bowing to the Japanese Emperor – does that mean Cheney was a foreign policy idiot?

By: kevintracy

kevintracy — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 03:46:38 +0000

If you look for pictures of the Emperor, you’ll see him shaking a LOT of people’s hands.

By: kevintracy

kevintracy — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 03:45:49 +0000

He’s the figurehead of Japan, you’re supposed to make a deep bow to him. Furthermore, if you look at how Japanese politicians and businessmen greet Americans, there is usually a bow first and then a handshake or a handshake and then a bow. It’s standard protocol to greet people both their way and be greeted your way. If it was a breech of protocol, the guy wouldn’t have shook his hand.

By: Steve

Steve — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 19:40:24 +0000

Angle of the bow was much too severe and the coinciding handshake was a major breech of protocol that nobody can dispute…..