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| Europe |
| Israeli ambassador targeted in Swedish shoe attack |
| 2009-02-06 |
| Organizers of a university seminar say someone hurled a shoe at the Israeli ambassador to Sweden during a discussion about Israel's upcoming elections. It's getting pretty old now, isn't it? It was not immediately clear if Ambassador Benjamin Dagan was hit in the attack at Stockholm University. Organizers said Thursday a person in the crowd threw a shoe at Dagan at the seminar Wednesday night. Swedish radio reported a second person threw a book at the ambassador and that both attackers were detained by police. Stockholm police could not immediately confirm the report and the Israeli Embassy declined to comment. The incident echoed similar shoe-throwing attacks against former President George W. Bush in December and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on Monday. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #11 Before I went to Morocco in 1973 with the Navy, our cultural briefer told us that in Arab countries, the soles of the shoes were considered to be (and probably actually are) unclean because they are often covered with camel and other dung. Even showing someone the soles of your shoes is considered an insult. |
| Posted by: Rambler in Virginia 2009-02-06 22:21 |
| #10 Thank you for making my point better than I did, Rednek Jim. By the way, what happened to the c you used to have? I had an cookie vanish, and retyping had a typo, after looking at it a second I decided to let it stand, after all us Rednex kan't spel nohow.;-) |
| Posted by: Rednek Jim 2009-02-06 19:50 |
| #9 Ima was thinking Imelda Marcos would have been the diplomatic equivalent of a carrier battle group. |
| Posted by: .5MT 2009-02-06 17:50 |
| #8 Btw, the original shoe-throwing idiot had a cultural background to motivate him doing so... forget the whole "he thew a shoe because iraq is being crushed under the heel of the occupiers" thing, IIUC, judging for example from the falling of the saddam statue, or from shoes-throwing at US troops in demos turning into riots, arabs seem to believe hitting something with the sole of one's shoe is particularly insulting and demeaning. Shoes are UNCLEAN - shoes cooties! So, all those copycats are actually copying without any idea about its meaning, a pretty generic yet culturally-specific arabic meme, because, well, it's BEEN DONE ON TEEVEE. Next thing you'll know, they'll be cursing moustaches. |
| Posted by: anonymous5089 2009-02-06 14:11 |
| #7 Actually, I was thinking more along the lines of .40 caliber lead. |
| Posted by: Darrell 2009-02-06 14:02 |
| #6 Thank you for making my point better than I did, Rednek Jim. By the way, what happened to the c you used to have? |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2009-02-06 13:35 |
| #5 That paintball idea is fine, he'll think again before trying this shit again. (It could have just as easily been .40 Caliber Lead) |
| Posted by: Rednek Jim 2009-02-06 13:07 |
| #4 #3 A paintball? You're too kind, tw. Posted by: Darrell I'm not so sure, Darrell. Those paintballs can raise a nasty whelt. The paint doesn't wear off very easily, either. Just grab the marked shoe-throwers, and toss 'em in a cage of half-starved, badly-beaten, rabid Rottweilers. You know you've got the right person by the blue paint all over his face. The dogs will take care of the rest. |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2009-02-06 13:06 |
| #3 A paintball? You're too kind, tw. |
| Posted by: Darrell 2009-02-06 12:55 |
| #2 It seems to me the proper response is a paintball to the forehead, but what do I know? |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2009-02-06 12:53 |
| #1 I've a closet full of old shoes belonging to wife & dau - perhaps some protesters would like to make bids? 50 cents to start? |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2009-02-06 08:54 |