Her parents had drilled her to loathe the military from birth.
The Officer never broke decorum. He simply exited the car and didn't say a word.
Posted on 11/30/2001 4:05:33 PM PST by Norb2569
On tonight's Special Report with Brit Hume, (hosted by Jim Angle this evening), at the close of the show when they normally have some funny video clip, they showed President Bush and the First Lady on their way to Marine One to leave for Camp David for the weekend. Jim said "You will see the president notice something unusual on his way to Marine One".
As the video starts, the First Lady is leading the way into the helicopter with the spaniel dog on the leash, and the president is right behind her with the Scotty on the leash.
As the First Lady entered the chopper, the Marine at the gangway saluted and held his salute. The scottie the president was walking decided it wanted to squat right when he got to steps. The president pulled on its' leash, but the stubborn scottie persisted in squatting. The president bent down and scooped up the pooch and entered Marine One. After he entered the Marine cut his salute and returned to the position of attention.
Moments later the president reemerged from the helicopter and out onto the steps. The Marine was standing at attention, head and eyes straight ahead. The president leaned over and tapped him on the left arm. The startled Marine turned his body toward the president and received his returned salute!
I was so impressed by this true act of respect for our military people by our president! He really does get it. Most any other person of his staure would have just continued his journey, disregarding the neglected return salute. Not George W. Bush. He is earning the respect of the military community, not expecting it - as most would.
I have begun laughing at my liberal friends who make derogatory comments insinuating about President Bush's "intelligence." I think he has SNOOKERED so many people....and I'm thinking of telling them pretty soon how SNOOKERED THEY ARE!
Oh good grief! NOT. Any "politician" couldn't have thought quick enough and stopped to do what Bush did. Your comment is pathetic.
Actions speak louder than words (or symbolic gestures).
Bush's actions HAVE spoken louder than his words, but you haven't been listening. And please don't demean a salute to a Marine as just "a symbolic gesture." Shame.
No, but I've got some good strong hands that I would rather use.
Oh, c'mon you guys! He's a politician and a pretty good one as shown today. Unfortunately, he's also a socialist and that's not what America (or any other country) should be about. Anyway, It was a good idea as judged by your responses but let's keep things in perspective. Are we really that starved for a hero? You know deep down that it was just a very poignant gesture by a politician. Actions speak louder than words (or symbolic gestures).
Perhaps.
But here is a DIFFERENT opinion, from "Saluting Bush", by George Caylor, at www.ontheRIGHTside.com:
Personally, bellagio_jo, I prefer Mr. Caylor's analysis to YOURS."...Now to today's subject. Have you noticed a difference in the salute given by our military men and women as President Bush walks by? Most folks would not notice anything, but military people see it right away. Watch: when President Bush leaves his helicopter or Air Force One, the honor guards salute and face him as he disembarks, then turn their faces towards him as he passes by.
They continue to salute his back as he walks away. This kind of salute has not been seen in the previous eight years, though it is customary courtesy to the Commander-in- Chief.
You see, soldiers aren't required to turn and face the President as they salute. They are not required to salute his back. They are only required to salute. They can remain face-forward the entire time. And that is what they did during Bill Clinton's entire Presidency. Our soldiers were forced to obey Clinton's orders, but they were not forced to respect him. From their salutes, we can surmise that they did not.
Why is such respect afforded to President Bush?
He doesn't even know how to bite his lower lip and get teary-eyed whenever he speaks!The following incident from Major General Van Antwerp may give us an insight.
Gen. Antwerp is president of the Officers' Christian Fellowship. He lost nearly all his staff when the Pentagon was attacked Sept.11. His executive officer LTC Brian Birdwell was badly burned and in the hospital when President Bush visited him. Our President spent time and prayed with Brian. As he was getting ready to leave, he went to the foot of Brian's bed and saluted. He held his salute until Brian was able to raise his burned and bandaged arm, ever so slowly, in return.
The Commander-in-Chief never initiates a salute, except in the case of a Congressional Medal of Honor winner. The injured soldier did not have to return the salute.
But he did, out of respect to his President - a Soldiers' President.
Congressman JC Watts (R. Oklahoma) said, "character is doing the right thing when nobody is looking."
The nation and world learned some of what our last President did when nobody was looking. That President has been disbarred this week - the worst disgrace (other than imprisonment) to a lawyer. CNN will have a difficult time shining his or his wife's tarnished images.
In this time of war and danger, I am so grateful to have a President whom the soldiers salute - fully."
BUMP
Being a fighter pilot -- for that matter, simply taking off in a single-engine jet fighter of the Century series, such as an F-102, or any of the military's other marvelous bricks with fins on them -- presented a man, on a perfectly sunny day, with more ways to get himself killed than his wife and children could imagine in their wildest fears.-- Tom Wolfe, The Right Stuff.
More than just class, GWB has a touch of humility in him, which is very much needed for the most powerful man on earth. I saw him carving turkey at that messhall at Ft. Campbell, and I got all misty. A very humble and touching gesture, yet I could also tell that he was enjoying himself thoroughly. It made me feel warm and happy inside, and I was grinning as much as those GIs in the carving line were.
I've seen other photos of GW and his Scottie, and again his genuine humanity shines through. Scotties are weird and smart dogs, and only a true doglover would put up with their weirdness. Everything about Bush is genuine.
On the other hand, we have the klintons, who expect to be treated as gods. Can anybody even remember any instance when they did anything genuinely warm, humble, and human?
Semper Fi!
Her parents had drilled her to loathe the military from birth.
The Officer never broke decorum. He simply exited the car and didn't say a word.
It's about a grieving British lady who lost her only granddaughter to a drunk driver, and how she wrote to every US politician she could think of as part of her attempt to start an international crusade against drunk driving. She wrote to WJC, HRC, algore, Tipper....and all 50 governors.
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