Thursday, February 24, 2005

Hearts and minds

Bush's idea of fence-mending: Cancel the 'town hall' forum scheduled in Mainz, Germany with the local folks. From the King:

During his trip to Germany on Wednesday, the main highlight of George W. Bush's trip was meant to be a "town hall"-style meeting with average Germans. But with the German government unwilling to permit a scripted event with questions approved in advance, the White House has quietly put the event on ice. Was Bush afraid the event might focus on prickly questions about Iraq and Iran rather than the rosy future he's been touting in Europe this week? . . . .

The Germans, though, insisted that a free forum should be exactly that. Wolfgang Ischinger, Germany's Ambassador to the United States, explained to the New York Times last week: "We told them, don't get upset with us if they ask angry questions." [my emphasis]


Does the Chimp administration think the Krauts are a bunch of red-staters? They lived through Hitler and they haven't forgotten. There are still ruins all over the place from that war. My aunt's house still has a half-inch wide crack running up one of the walls that was made by an American artillery shell landing in the backyard. They remember the Nazi years and they see something similar coming down the pike in the U.S.

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