All about Obama!

[fencerchica]

Why is Obama the only world leader to bow to the Emperor of Japan? Obama is proof to the world how stupid Americans really are

He maybe should have held hands with the Emperor, the way that W. did with Crown Prince Abdullah?

[jessicasimpson]

He maybe should have held hands with the Emperor, the way that W. did with Crown Prince Abdullah?

Well, to be fair, that is also a common thing for that reigon.

[fencerchica]

Well, to be fair, that is also a common thing for that reigon.

Exactly.

[Bayou Bum]

It figures. Defend Obama, Beggar in Chief, at all costs. If that is the way it is done, then why don't other world leaders kiss the feet of the Emperor? Even the NY Times criticized Clinton for a mild bow in 1994. I guess it is true Obama can do no wrong in the eyes of his worshipers!

King of Morocco
President South Korea
President Kazakhstan
Prime Minister Slovenia
Prime Minister India

[Bayou Bum]

Compare Vladimir Putin and President Obama:

[noodle]

Why is Obama the only world leader to bow to the Emperor of Japan? Obama is proof to the world how stupid Americans really are

explain your assertion. why do you think that bowing was a mistake?

[keith]

Isn't it Un-American to be polite to foreigners?

I'm pretty sure that's in the constitution somewhere.

[migopod]

explain your assertion. why do you think that bowing was a mistake?

This is just another example of how arrogant our president is!
Bowing is totally arrogant! What a dick move. A real president would have given the emperor of Japan a good, solid kick in the nuts! This is pre-12/7 thinking at its worst. The house needs to immediately draft articles of impeachment and return our country to the path of cowboy diplomacy and screw-the-rest-of-the-worldism.

Actually it's not usual for heads of state to bow to each other, even if it's common custom for the Japanese to exchange bows. Sort of falls into the "unnecessary deference" category, but it's far from insulting.

Beats the hell out of vomiting on the prime minister.

[Bayou Bum]

explain your assertion. why do you think that bowing was a mistake?

For over 200 years the President has not bowed to foreign leaders. It is a sign of weakness and subservience. Even in Japan it was seen as such.

Kyodo News reported "Japan embarrassed that Obama made such a fool of himself and made America look weak."

“The bow as he performed did not just display weakness in Red State terms, but evoked weakness in Japanese terms….The last thing the Japanese want or need is a weak looking American president and, again, in all ways, he unintentionally played that part."

It is one thing for a common citizen to show respect to the emperor but as world leaders, Obama should at least act like an equal to other world leaders. The bow came just before he apologized for our entering WWII after Pearl Harbor.

Question now for you. Why do you think it was a good idea and which world leaders do you think it is okay to bow to? Should Obama bow to Ahmadinejad?

[noodle]

For over 200 years the President has not bowed to foreign leaders.

oh? and nixon?
http://images.google.com/hosted/life...&start=12&um=1

It is a sign of weakness and subservience. Even in Japan it was seen as such.

no, its not. not in japan, where he was a guest, conducting diplomatic activities.

Question now for you. Why do you think it was a good idea and which world leaders do you think it is okay to bow to? Should Obama bow to Ahmadinejad?

1) does ahmadinejad live in a country where bowing is used to show respect? no.
2) if he did, does obama have a reason to show him respect? no.

if he did, he would have made a mistake in doing so.



to be clear, obama's bow to akihito was awkward and not correct. he didn't do a good job with it. but the things that you have asserted are wrong with it are factually incorrect.

[NGV]

Kyodo News reported "Japan embarrassed that Obama made such a fool of himself and made America look weak."

Where exactly are you getting this from? When you put something in quotation marks and attribute it to a news source, it should actually come from that news source.

[telkanuru]

no, its not. not in japan, where he was a guest, conducting diplomatic activities.

It does show a fair degree of ineptitude wrt etiquette. You only bow lower than someone you are subservant to, by protocol. Granted, in the good old days you used to have to walk on your knees to go see the emperor and grovel backwards out the door as you left, so he could have gone farther.

[noodle]

It does show a fair degree of ineptitude wrt etiquette. You only bow lower than someone you are subservant to, by protocol. Granted, in the good old days you used to have to walk on your knees to go see the emperor and grovel backwards out the door as you left, so he could have gone farther.

oh i agree, like i said, he did mess it up. i'm arguing against the notion that he shouldn't have bowed at all because the american president should bow to no one. the reasoning for the gesture was appropriate, but it was badly executed.

[Bayou Bum]

oh? and nixon?
http://images.google.com/hosted/life...&start=12&um=1

You are seriously equating the two? At best, Obama can't even do something as well as Nixon. I didn't expect you to actually admit that Obama did something he shouldn't have.

no, its not. not in japan, where he was a guest, conducting diplomatic activities.

Yes, it is. Why is he the only world leader to bow? I can see your point though if it is because he knows that he is not equal to all other world leaders. As a leader, he is not a world leader, but since he IS the President of the United States, he should not be submissive to every leader in the world.

1) does ahmadinejad live in a country where bowing is used to show respect? no.
2) if he did, does obama have a reason to show him respect? no.

if he did, he would have made a mistake in doing so.

Good. I'll save this for when he visits Iran. I'm sure you will have changed your opinion once Obama embarrasses the US again.


[quoteto be clear, obama's bow to akihito was awkward and not correct. he didn't do a good job with it. but the things that you have asserted are wrong with it are factually incorrect.[/QUOTE]
Because you say so? Typical liberal response, if you don't like the facts you say they are incorrect because you have no good argument to justify your blind loyalty. The facts are that Obama bowed to the Emperor of Japan like no other US President in history and no other world leader, taking a subservient position that is unfitting a leader of his position. It was a position of weakness as seen even by reporters in Japan. What fact is incorrect?

I have to admit though that the US is in a position of weakness thanks to Obama, therefore I can see how it is appropriate for Obama to humble himself and beg for mercy from the rest of the world. But he should not do so as President of the US.

And the World Apology Tour continues ....

[noodle]

You are seriously equating the two? At best, Obama can't even do something as well as Nixon. I didn't expect you to actually admit that Obama did something he shouldn't have.

you said no other president has bowed. nixon bowed. period. don't squirm out of it. you were wrong and you refuse to address or admit it, as has become your standard.

you've also yet to explain why you feel that the bow was a sign of weakness.

Yes, it is. Why is he the only world leader to bow? I can see your point though if it is because he knows that he is not equal to all other world leaders.

i don't know. i'm not going to speculate on the international politics of other countries' leaders. bowing or not bowing is almost equal in my mind, except the bow would show that they are making an attempt at cultural communication and understanding.

Good. I'll save this for when he visits Iran. I'm sure you will have changed your opinion once Obama embarrasses the US again.

yep, you can bump this thread when he bows to someone in iran.

Because you say so? Typical liberal response, if you don't like the facts you say they are incorrect because you have no good argument to justify your blind loyalty. The facts are that Obama bowed to the Emperor of Japan like no other US President in history and no other world leader, taking a subservient position that is unfitting a leader of his position. It was a position of weakness as seen even by reporters in Japan. What fact is incorrect?

no, because that is how it is done. obama was literally entering into akihito's home, it is good manners to bow lower when doing so, and the emperor bowed back. he didn't do it right, again, but he was putting forth effort to be culturally aware.

link me the article showing that reporters in japan thought it was a sign of weakness. don't link me the right wing blog post that quotes something, show me the source. i've still been unable to find anything.

p.s. i think its funny that you assume i'm a liberal because i disagree with the things you say.

I have to admit though that the US is in a position of weakness thanks to Obama, therefore I can see how it is appropriate for Obama to humble himself and beg for mercy from the rest of the world. But he should not do so as President of the US.

could you rationally explain this statement for me? any of it, really. why his, through your eyes, weakening of america implies he has to beg mercy from the rest of the world? how does that even make sense.

and again, thinking that his bow affects anything is delusional. why was nixon's ok? why wasn't he destroying the US by bowing, just 50% less since his wasn't as deep?

[Bayou Bum]

Here's the link:

http://sankei.jp.msn.com/world/ameri...1004002-n1.htm

You are an idiot to try and justify what Obama did. It wasn't even close to what Nixon did and even Nixon was criticized for it. There was no eye contact, arms should be to his side, and Obama shouldn't be licking his shoes. I can also provide you a link to a website with over 200 other heads of state greeting the Emperor of Japan without bowing. In a country that believes all men are created equal, why does Obama present himself as so inferior?

To borrow from someone else: He shall now be called O-bow-ma!

[noodle]

Here's the link:

http://sankei.jp.msn.com/world/ameri...1004002-n1.htm

You are an idiot to try and justify what Obama did. It wasn't even close to what Nixon did and even Nixon was criticized for it. There was no eye contact, arms should be to his side, and Obama shouldn't be licking his shoes. I can also provide you a link to a website with over 200 other heads of state greeting the Emperor of Japan without bowing. In a country that believes all men are created equal, why does Obama present himself as so inferior?

To borrow from someone else: He shall now be called O-bow-ma!

the news story you linked me is reporting on what americans viewed as a "too low posture", and quoted a fox news source. its a report on the controversy in america.

[NGV]

Still waiting for Bayou Bum's source for the following "quote" from Kyodo News (which he put in a quotation box, for good measure):

Kyodo News reported "Japan embarrassed that Obama made such a fool of himself and made America look weak."

I imagine we'll be waiting quite a while for that source, given that it almost certainly doesn't exist.

[Philistine]

You know--another thing I'm unclear about--I thought this thread was about "Obama and his arrogance". Isn't the bowing thing showing the opposite? I guess the narrative is now: "Obama, not arrogant enough...."

Tough to keep up.

--Philistine

[noodle]

You know--another thing I'm unclear about--I thought this thread was about "Obama and his arrogance". Isn't the bowing thing showing the opposite? I guess the narrative is now: "Obama, not arrogant enough...."

Tough to keep up.

--Philistine

aw man, thats where i was headed with my line of questioning. you ruined the punchline