Bush's back rub magnified in cyberspace

AP ^ | July, 20 | By JAKE COYLE,

[notes2005]

NEW YORK - An impromptu back rub that President Bush gave German Chancellor Angela Merkel is now massaging millions of funny bones.

A 5-second video and series of photographs recently posted on YouTube.com and various blogs show Bush surprising Merkel at the G-8 Summit by quickly rubbing the back of her neck and shoulders. The chancellor immediately hunches her shoulders, throws her arms up and grimaces, though she appears to smile as Bush walks away.

The video has been one of the most popular clips on the Web and spawned countless remarks on the particulars of etiquette for world leaders. Coupled with Bush's use of an expletive at the summit and a U.S. senator comparing the Internet to a "series of tubes," the incident reveals anew the power of the Web — and YouTube, specifically — to beam embarrassing political gaffes around the world.

Larry Sabato, professor of politics at the University of Virginia, agrees that today, public figures have to be more careful in "a thousand ways." But he maintains sites like YouTube can be revealing.

"If they're not doing something that's embarrassing, they have nothing to worry about," he says. "A president ought to know enough not use an expletive in a fairly open meeting and almost any male alive today knows that you don't offer uninvited massages to any female, much less the chancellor of Germany."

Many writers saw a sexist aspect to Bush's back rub. "This isn't a Sigma Chi kegger, it's the G-8 Summit," wrote blogger Christy Hardin Smith on Firedoglake.com.

(Bush was actually in Delta Kappa Epsilon. Another Web 2.0 truism: Blogs are not always friendly with the facts.)

Earlier this week, Bush was recorded using the s-word while discussing the Mideast with British Prime Minister Tony Blair. An mp3 of Bush's line, posted by The New York Times, has been a popular download — ranking two spots ahead of Justin Timberlake's "SexyBack" on The Hype Machine, a Web site that charts the most-linked audio tracks by blogs.

No one need remind former presidential hopeful Howard Dean of the political ramifications of the Web — nor Sen. Ted Stevens (news, bio, voting record) of Alaska.

The 82-year-old Republican, chairman of the Senate Committee on Science, Commerce and Transportation, has been parodied mercilessly by bloggers after referring to the Internet as a "series of tubes" and for mistakenly calling an e-mail "an Internet." A music video for the "DJ Ted Stevens Techno Remix" is currently playing on YouTube.

Like Bush's closed-door G-8 meeting, a speech by Stevens was once unlikely to reach many people. But now sites like YouTube can strike anytime, anywhere.

Even when you're getting a massage.

[bluefish]

I don't think Bush looked too bad. He does it with men too. Rather, it looked like an over-reaction on her part. She looks hypersensitive to the point of bizarre. You know the type. The reaction makes one wonder if she would lose it in a crisis. People feel comfortable with a calm and steady leader. Her reaction did not demonstrate this.

[Zman516]

Libs just can't stand for Bush to ever be shown in a favorable light.

Remember their hysteria over his landing on the Aircraft carrier and being photographed in the flightsuit?

[GoldCountryRedneck]

Well.... maybe her G-Spot was hit just right at the G-8????

~GCR~

[swheats]

Maybe the gesture was out of place, but it's unfortunate that we have not been able to see the president as a man in his presidency. We've had to view him as a warrior protecting this country.

He really does cause the images of those around him to become real. And not just unreachable leaders on a stage.

[BigSkyFreeper]

Liberals Are Just Jealous President Bush Is A Personable Man

President Bush congratulates Margaret Spellings on being nominated for Education Secretary in this photo taken on January 20, 2005.

[Dallas59]

Just waiting for the left to start making comparisons between what Bush did and what Clinton was impeached for.

[stripes1776]

The "highlight" of this article is this backrub thing, but notice how quickly they toss in the swearing incident, trying to lump it all in as "Bush's gaffes". One of the most liberal people I know told me when Bush swore about Syria, it was the first time he really considered Bush president!

I am not surprised by that. The left needs "primitiveness" to show someone is "human." It's like Clinton getting oral sex in the oval office from a lowly female intern half his age. It showed his humanity, how real he was, and therefore how qualified he was to hold his office.

This is the shallowest thinking you can imagine, but it animates the mind and feelings of a liberal.

[demecleze]

I think this was just crossed wires, she wasn't expecting it and maybe she was lost in thought and it startled her.

I think the president is just a physical and protective guy who shows his affection in this manner.

I should know I am the same way, very rarely I might startle someone; especially women as they seem a little more jumpy then men. When I do I apologize and try to find out how I misjudged. This usually involves explicitly discussing the matter with the woman. Usually it is just a case of bad timing or she didn't care, it was just an unconcious reaction.

Often if I know her well and she has a good sense of humor I might do it again to break up the monotony or for fun.

I have encountered people who seem to think I am somehow trying to come onto the woman or girl, which I find odd because I treat everyone in a similar way (from my dog and my mother to my friends).

It seems like there are those who see any interaction between a man and woman as sexual. I have even had people imply that I was interested in women old enough to be my grandmother at times, which I found quite disturbing and odd.

I feel sad for people who can only relate to members of the opposite sex in a sexual manner. I can't envision a happy marriage for them at any rate.

[leadhead]

However, I will admit that if I did that to the women in the office it could conceived as Sexual Harassment. The actual working environment does not allow for that.

Get out of that place. Our accounting woman have a sign in the office "Sexual Harassment Acceptable, and Encouraged"

Of course, these woman are both attractive and competent so they don't have to fall back on victimology.

[RatsDawg]

Hey where is that clip where Clinton is groping a woman's leg and she flips him the bird?

[Dahoser]

I think Katheryn Willie might have a difference of opinion on what a "grope" is, yet they try and associate that term with this action.

But Gloria Steinem said Slick's groping of Kathleen Willey was okay because he stopped when Willey told him to.

[HiTech RedNeck]

Our accounting woman have a sign in the office "Sexual Harassment Acceptable, and Encouraged"

Yer kidding?!?

[Michael.SF.]

LOL

So this 'grope' by W was better because he stopped before she told him to.

[napscoordinator]

Our accounting woman have a sign in the office "Sexual Harassment Acceptable, and Encouraged"



LMAOROTF. Those are some great secure women!

[Tom D.]

"Many writers saw a sexist aspect to Bush's back rub. "This isn't a Sigma Chi kegger, it's the G-8 Summit," wrote blogger Christy Hardin Smith on Firedoglake.com.

"(Bush was actually in Delta Kappa Epsilon. Another Web 2.0 truism: Blogs are not always friendly with the facts.)

This isn't that much off. The Sigma Chi Fraternity was founded in the mid-1800s at Miami (Ohio) University as a part of a schism of the Delta Kappa Epsilon (Deke) Fraternity.

[Dahoser]

LOL!