War Widow To Bush: "You're Here To Serve The People. And The People Are No

[RamboLiberal]

http://www.tpmcafe.com/blog/coffeehouse/2006/aug/25/war_widow_to_bush_youre_here_to_serve_the_people_and_the_people_are_not_being_served_with_this_war

By Greg Sargent
I just got off the phone with Hildi Halley, a woman from Maine whose husband is a fallen soldier. Yesterday President Bush met with her privately, and news of their meeting was reported in a local Maine paper, the Kennebec Journal. The paper shared few details of the meeting, saying simply that Halley objected to Bush's policies and that she said Bush responded that there was no point in them having a "philosophical discussion about the pros and cons of the war."

But Halley has just given me a much more detailed account of her meeting with Bush. She told me that she went much farther in her criticism of the President, telling him directly that he was "responsible" for the deaths of American soldiers and that as a "Christian man," he should recognize that he's "made a mistake" and that it was his "responsibility to end this." She recounted to me that she was "very direct," telling Bush: "As President, you're here to serve the people. And the people are not being served with this war."

...She told me that her husband, Patrick Damon, who's long been active in Democratic politics, had been in Afghanistan as an engineer building roads when he died in June.

<snip>

"I talked to him about how important this person was to me," Halley recounted, speaking of her husband. "It's not just a soldier who died. Lives are changed forever...I said, `This doesn't make sense to me.'"

"He said, `Terrorists killed three thousand people, we had to go to war.'" Halley continued to me. "I said, `Well, who put the Taliban into power? The United States did.' He said, `I'm not going to have a philosphical debate over politics.' The whole conversation was very gentle."

[knowbody0]

1. george is a hallow man

[Harry Monroe]

27. Um, I think you mean "hollow"...

...not "hallow" is in "hallowed ground" (meaning sacred). To associate Bush with anything remotely resembling religion or the spiritual is blasphemy, IMHO.

[Cha]

34. Right! And georgebush isn't going to

have "philosphical conversation about war" with Halley or anyone else because he's not capable of it.

And if the conversation was "gentle" it's because of Halley's amazing demeanor. I would have been scorching that lying son-a-Biotch!

"We went to war because of 3000 dead?" That was the fucking taliban what about Iraq you fucking idiot?

[orleans]

61. my favorite part:

" "He cried with me," she recounted. "I feel he responded to me emotionally. "

HE CRIED! TEARS OF GUILT!!!

(the asshole!)

[knowbody0]

39. OMG!

thank you

[LWolf]

42. "hallow" can be a new term.

It can combine "shallow" and "hollow," for the President who has broken new ground in both directions.

[Lord Balto]

45. Callow

Actually, I think the word he was looking for was "callow," "lacking in adult sophistication"--Mirriam Webster

[civildisoBDence]

50. Shallow, hollow, callow

DUHbya hits the trifecta!

News and commentary, left to right

[yurbud]

2. damn I wish this was on tape

[bananarepublican]

11. Me too! I wonder what 'security' measures she had to endure? n/t

[Quantess]

15. No sh*t. Especially afterward.

She shouldn't be surprised if her phone is now tapped, now that she's demonstrated her hatred of freedom!!!111 , and obvious allegiance to Al Qaeda.

[bananarepublican]

16. Naw! They wouldn't tap a Guantanamo 'cell' phone!!! n/t

[lisby]

35. "That bitch is on the No fly list. "

Said King George as he ordered it so.

:dunce:

Lisby

[yurbud]

49. uh, we have deescovered the terrist eat certain spy foods then put a road

flare up their ass to create weapons of flatulence destruction.

therefore, you need a full cavity search and colonoscopy before you see the president.


Also, you must bow down and enter and leave with yur face on the floor.

and ya gotta back out of the room so you don't disrespect the presnit, or fire one of those fart bombs at him.

[Demeter]

54. I Was Wondering If Dubya Farted At Her In Response!

I would pay money to see the scolding. We could run a booth, sell tickets for a chance to give Boy George a piece of one's mind.....

[MadMaddie]

3. Because he is the "Decider" and he is not going to talk to

any mother who has lost her son or daughter about their sacrifice....the lives mean nothing to him....he is a hollow, empty man....

[bdamomma]

65. exactly he feels he owes no one an explanation.

I hate the man.

[A HERETIC I AM]

4. He didnt want to have a philosophical debate because he pronounced it.....

"Silofosikal" and he wasnt at all sure what the word meant. Not to mention that this woman was obviously talking WAY over his head when she said "You are here to serve the people"
"NO, i am here to serve Halliburton and Exxon Mobil."

He was probably sitting there thinking "I wish she would shut up so's i can say "newculer" and "hard work...it's hard work...i'm workin hard"

[bananarepublican]

12. The term is 'phizo-follicle' and Bush thought he was at a Grecian 2000...

... festival.

Not only did Bush not know what "silofosikal" meant, he didn't know which fundraiser he was at!

[alittlelark]

5. I can't believe I am the first to nominate this story...?!

....anyone else?

[TomInTib]

6. So where's the philosophical point over who enabled the Taliban?

That's a given, georgie.

Fuc***g idiot.

[Shakespeare]

7. Typical coward behavior.

The conversation strays into territory where he can't win and is clearly uncomfortable (our responsibility for the taliban being in power), so he just shuts off debate.

Fucking coward.

[longship]

8. It's a honor to put this one on the Greatest page.

This woman has chutpah. She needs some recognition to standing up to the baboon.

[aein]

9. philosophical debate? I can't imagine anything more realistic than how

lives are impacted by war, and whether we are fighting the right war.

[opihimoimoi]

17. He is jus saying words they said to use....He would be lost in such

a debate...Too Shallow and there is nuthin they can do to make the man deeper except photo ops and support from the Pub Media BS Brainwashing team.

[Flubadubya]

21. Philosophical debate... Hah!

He couldn't have a philosophical debate if his life depended on it. You have to have a brain to think philosophically... his are raisin bran! :puke:

[alcibiades_mystery]

24. Are you suggesting that philosophy isn't realistic?

:shrug:

We are in these wars because of philosophies, you know?

[razors edge]

10. Dictatorships seam orderly

(Karl ship that bitch to Gitmo)

[Swamp Rat]

13. Inbred idiot

[focusfan]

31. agree with you

[Amonester]

14. "He said, 'Terrorists killed three thousand people'

And the lil' terrorist LIES killed?? ###,###?
http://www.morethananumber.org/?q=counting


For what? :grr:

[NMMNG]

18. Snap!

He needs to be reminded that he's there to serve the people, not rule them.

[RC]

19. He was --

"She recounted to me that she was "very direct," telling Bush: "As President, you're here to serve the people. And the people are not being served with this war.""

[undeterred]

20. Can you imagine Clinton, Carter, Kerry, Edwards, Gore, or any Dem

refusing to discuss the "why" of a military action with a widow? I can't.

[Felinity]

23. If that had been Clinton

he would have launched into a detailed breakdown of the history of the ME & US policy. She would have left two years later with a degree in International Politics.

Of course, Clinton would never have lied us into a war, because he knew he would be savagely criticized and scrutinized every step of the way--he would have been IMPEACHED. Then again he would not have sat on his butt for the first 9 months of 2001, either.

[DemonFighterLives]

22. The pinhead in chief showed his true colors

He is only true to the cronies, women and children be damned. Cannon fodder be damned.
Many people knew that when he spoke of compassion, he meant something different entirely.
:argh:

[FuzzyDicePHL]

25. OK then, fine.

Don't make it a philosophical discussion -- make it a PRACTICAL one, based on facts and documented actions & statements. No philosophy needed to illustrate his failure.

[bluerum]

26. Ha ha ha. Anything beyond "Hey dawg howz it hangin" is a

philosophical discussion to this moran in chief.

[Harry Monroe]

28. He is here to serve the people..

Exactly!!! And as his "employer" he works for me!!! And I want him fired for incompetence!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[LynnTheDem]

29. `Terrorists killed three thousand people, we had to go to war.'

Too bad the FACT is Iraq had nothing whatsoever to do with the terrorists who killed 3000 people (yeah, incuding several hundred NON-Americans).

But hey, war on any naiton is fine, right, bush? As long as bush can be a war president and his cronies can war-profiteer!

[madmunchie]

41. Thank YOU!

Three Thousand People Killed....BY WHOM?????? Not Saddam, they always fall back to that.

[leesa]

43. Well, it was also inappropriate to go to war for the crime of 9-11.

The crime should have been investigated, those involved should have been found and brought to trial. The war we launched in Afghanistan was entirely inappropriate as well. They just wanted war. They promised the Taliban war because they could not get the land right of way for the gas pipeline through Afghanistan. They tried to broker the deal in July 2001 and failed.

[madmunchie]

44. I know, I know

It just amazes me though, when they get backed into a corner, they cry "Well, three thousand people were killed", Like one thing had anything to do with another. They are so pathetic.

[bdamomma]

67. or the other favorite line we haven't got attacked in five years

so bush's plan is working, WHAT BS. The same old talking point being played over again and again.

[focusfan]

30. i just hope the libreals can take over Congress

because maybe they can be rid of this war mongering s.o.b the
democrates need to take our country back.and say F you neocons

[lonestarnot]

32. Yes and they have been lying more and more about how

deaths are occuring. They don't care if families get the truth or not.

[WinkyDink]

33. I guess she's lucky to have escaped his flatulence.

[spanone]

36. He's incapable of debating. Fuck him and his minions.

[noel711]

37. this is sad....

I'm not going to ridicule W., at least not at this incident.

I think it's immoral to make fun of the disabled. I believe he truly is impaired, psychologically, spiritually and morally. He has absolutely no business being in leadership in any capacity, but it is what it is.

This whole situation is sad... this woman who lost her son to this travesty in Iraq honestly approached the man who is responsible for her loss, and the loss of so many... and he can't, simply can't offer her any comfort, nor is he capable of standing on his own, away from those 'memes' that they have programmed into him.

It's tragic that the so-called 'leader of the free world' is incapable of being a real man, and speak for himself. I truly pity him.

And for all the mothers who have given the greatest sacrifice,
I cannot offer any excuse for this government, nor this country who must endure this lack of spiritual, courageous leadership.

I had a conversation with a Canadian friend who doesn't understand why the Democrats can't get it 'together.' He doesn't get it, nor do many Americans. Democrats will never, ever be under one, monolithic banner. The glory of the Democratic Party is its diversity: we are a unique and glorious buffet of differences, and we celebrate that. But we are united against the conservative fascism that have destroyed so much of what we had. Stories like this confrontation between Bush and a military mother can only benefit our future because they reveal the truth of what lies beneath the surface.

[Straight Shooter]

40. Very thoughtful post.

But I differ with you regarding bush. Pity should be reserved for those who have no choice for the way they are, or their circumstances. bush chooses to be as he is. He was groomed to be the way he is, and he never resisted, for he loves the illusion of limitless power over the little people. And it is an illusion, for true power rests in having self-discipline and a rational mind, neither of which bush will ever experience.

Welcome to DU, noel711. :hi:

[geardaddy]

63. Point of information...

She lost her husband in Afghanistan not her son in Iraq.

[tanyev]

38. A good time to remember this one, too.

Bush to dead soldier's mom: "How do you know his life would have been good
http://www.ustourofduty.org/pages/videoDoloresPrez_high...

VIDEO INTERVEIW WITH Dolores Kesterson

By Jeff Norman
August 11, 2005
Cindy Sheehan is not the only Gold Star mom who felt disrespected after a visit with George W. Bush. Dolores Kesterson, whose son Erik was killed in Iraq in November of 2003, was among several military families who last year were invited to meet with Bush as a group. Each family was allotted ten minutes with the president, but because she is divorced from her husband, Dolores asked to speak with Bush one-on-one.

Dolores reports exclusively for U.S. Tour of Duty that she waited alone in a small partitioned area, wondering if her request would be granted, before a Bush aide suddenly announced, "The president will now see you." As the commander in chief strode briskly toward her, it seemed to Dolores that he was trying to intimidate her. "He came marching in and got right in my face...eyeball to eyeball, and said, 'I'm George Bush, the president of the United States, and I understand you have something to say to me in private.'"

Dolores tried to give Bush a sense of what type of person Erik had been. She described her son as a "comedian" whose favorite saying was, "Life is good." The president replied, "How do you know his life would have been good?"

Dolores was shocked by Bush's eagerness to question the value of her son's life. She told the president, "Nobody wants to die."

Before he concluded their meeting, Bush proclaimed to Dolores, "We won't know in our lifetime whether or not Iraq was a success."
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x479658



Asshat.

[davekriss]

46. Unf*ckingbelievable!

"How do you know his life would have been good?"

What a f*cking thing to say!! Questioning the validity of the surviving wife's fond rememberance of her husband's favorite saying, "life is good"! How clueless and sociopathically cold does one have to be to stumble so? George W Bush is an idiot, and that wouldn't be so bad if he wasn't also the most dangerous idiot ever born on our shores. I pray 2006 brings a Democratic majority to Congress that start's immediately excising our nation from this mess.

"We won't know in our lifetime whether or not Iraq was a success."

Georgie Bushboi, um, no. We will know whether or not Iraq was a success. It was not and will never be a success -- it is an unmitigated disaster, the disaster your father warned you against, the disaster Brent Scowcroft wrote about in his famous op-ed in the WSJ in 2002. Get a clue! Even your blood and family friends tried to warn you off this tragic folly!! Everything you touch turns to blood and mud (Harken, Arbusto, Texas, now the US of A)! Now You, Mr. President, are an utterly failed human being, incapable of even realizing how bad you are.

Now go ride your tri-cycle in Crawford, go clear some mind-numbing brush and leave the rest of us alone!

[Selteri]

48. Wow, jerk in chief and atop of that a cold hearted bastard.

It would be equal to saying that Vitnam is a success but nobody who lived through it would realize it for another three centuries. IE After they've had a chance to rewrite history into propoganda.

[rasputin1952]

53. "How do you know his life would have been good?"...For God's sake...

we all know bush's life has been an utter failure, maybe he was just throwing out a mirror of himself.

What a despicable thing to say...and he wonders why he is seen as a moron w/o a soul or any common decency?

[dogday]

47. She is more gracious than I could be

I could not stand to be in the same room with with this liar, leaker and thief....

[Raffi Ella]

51. I'm surprised he even listened to her.

It speaks volumes about this woman that he did.

[bullwinkle428]

52. The bastard is STILL conflating 9/11 with Saddam Hussein...

"Heh-heh-heh...what's 'CONFLATING'...heh-heh-heh"

[Rex]

55. Terrorists killed three thousand people, we had to go to war.

With Iraq? Reeeeeeeeeeeaaallly George? I mean I can see Afghanistan IF we had the intention of capturing OBL (which we obviously didn't). But IRAQ George? Why are you linking the two when just the other day you said NO ONE was linking 9/11 to Saddam? Wasn't that you?

Sounds like Emperor Chimperor is having a hard time telling people how to live and die and doesn't want to get into a philisophicalical argumentation over the subject, it really means bunk to Bush. Dictators just laugh off the deaths of their military pawns.

[rrasile]

56. Poor Girl

I stopped feeling sorry for people like her long ago when my neighbors twin sons got killed in a car accident during their drive back home after they served in the Vietnam war.
Her husband had a choice. This kind of shit has happened for years.
Why doesn't she just write a book or look to get on the talk shows, they'll know how to use her.
If she's such a sob story we'll hear more from her, but don't hold your breath.
The people need to know that these people that are screwing up the world are the worst of our times. The worst is that they don't know their selves how wrong they are.

[Divine Discontent]

57. huh?

she's not like the typical "I was for this war dear KING, and now I'm pissed my husband is dead".

I have sorrow for even that type of woman, but even more for this lady, she told Bush to his face that she was never for it, didn't vote for him, and should end it and his pride. That's AWESOME. Her husband, for all we know, fought with refusing to be assigned, or was torn by it, or was thrilled, we don't know. All we can go on is what she said, and she gave him an ear full!


www.cafepress.com/warisprofitable <<<--- check it out! 100's of new funny stickers/shirts

[Sparkly]

66. "these people that are screwing up the world"

Which people?

[EST]

58. I have known thespians whose command of character

was so good that they could create the desired emotions, called for in the script, so genuinely and authentically that it would destroy them for days after a stellar performance.
Crooks and charlatans can commiserate with their victims and cry on cue so easily that they absolutely command believability and can trim their victims for years and years and be widely regarded as a pillar of the community.

I am not just describing the vast armada that swings into action on Sundays and plucks its flock clean while teaching them all the self delusions required to hate remorselessly.

My own ex-brother in law and three other anti-social creeps, in drunken, ugly narcissistic hedonism, murdered a man, Christmas day, 1961.

During their lockup in county jail, prior to sentencing (there was never any question as to their guilt,) they got 'ligion, embraced christianity-one of them even becoming a minister-and cried around in front of the judge about how they knew what bad boys they had been, how sorry they were and how they were never going to be bad again.

Deathbed conversions are common, so I'm told, as are more profitable conversions when facing the possibility of long prison sentences.

With all the emotional play acting, not a one of the miscreants served a day in prison for the murder!

Bush's anti-social leanings run deep and he has always been a masterful conniver, the sort that can and will screw you over and over and over...
The only truth he has spoken that cames to mind is his promise to occupy Iraq, with the full complement of troops, until January, 2009.
The rest is all lies--lies and play-acting. Curse him and his entire line to the seventh generation.


(As a follow up, the magical resurrection of the murderers' humanity lasted until the one year of probation the judge sentenced them to expired)

[shaniqua6392]

59. Get out of OUR house, George.

You are not welcome any more you piece of crap. God bless that poor woman and her family. She lost her husband and George does not give a crap.

[mkb]

60. Moderation Is Good For The Long Haul

     I think this article underscores what I've been writing
about lately, that we can't expect things to get better
anytime soon.  Bush and his allies are not about to stop what
their doing.  
     If you can find measures of happiness as you do your
work, that's understandable, but let's not lower our guard
against the myriad of difficulties we face.
     Many of us do not have it all figured out, but we
understand generally what the problems are.  Trying to not
lose sight of that which we know is most correct is important.
 We cannot expect perfection and non-stop sacrifice from
people, nor should we many times, but mostly to think things
through carefully as much as possible before acting, and to
have as much moderation in our lives as possible, particularly
if we're less sure about what we're doing.  We're hoping for a
win-win future, but we have to have patience and fortitude as
much as possible.  We need to avoid the extremes, politically
and in our daily lives.  

[vkobaya]

62. Absolutely Wrong

Crazy Liberals! You should be grateful that you get to kiss the King Dimbutt the Great's behind. He is kind enough to let you live and not strike you dead where you stand. Death to all the traitors who don't worship the very ground on which he walks. Why should he serve the filthy, lowly, stupid peons who are less than dirt? They all, all, all belong to him. God annointed Bush as the Great American Taliban King. Who are the dirt of this nation to question God's will?

[MissB]

68. As batshit crazy as that post was, you still should've added

a sarcasm smilie, lest someone "alert" on your post.

[Name removed]

64. Deleted message

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