NYT: Milosevic Rites Draw a Throng in Serb Capital

[DeepModem Mom]

Milosevic Rites Draw a Throng in Serb Capital
By NICHOLAS WOOD
and IAN FISHER
Published: March 19, 2006

BELGRADE, Serbia, March 18 — Well over 50,000 Serbs massed on the central square here on Saturday in a public wake for Slobodan Milosevic, the large numbers representing, in this nation's deep divide, either his final victory or one last embarrassment for Serbia at his hands.

A week after Mr. Milosevic died of a heart attack in his jail cell in The Hague, his coffin was carried at midday to a stage in front of Serbia and Montenegro's Parliament, formerly Yugoslavia's federal assembly.

"We are bidding farewell to the best one among us," said Milorad Vucelic, deputy president of Mr. Milosevic's Socialist Party. "There is no better place than this square for us to say our goodbye. Let us do it in a dignified manner. Let us shout his name as one."

The square had heavy symbolism for his supporters: it lent an official setting for a funeral not recognized by the Serbian state, and it was where large opposition rallies forced him from power in 2000, opening the way for his extradition to The Hague on charges of war crimes.

Crowds in Belgrade of the mostly middle-aged, bused from Bosnia, Croatia, Montenegro and Kosovo, chanted his nickname — "Slobo! Slobo!" — before the coffin was taken to his hometown for the funeral....

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/19/international/europe/19milosevic.html?hp&ex=1142744400&en=75851af20ff4b46c&ei=5094&partner=homepage

[grytpype]

1. Does this help explain why Bush isn't at 0% approval?

You can never get it down to 0%. There are Russians who still revere Stalin. There are always nuts.

[zanne]

5. That's what I thought while watching WJ this morning...

The question put to the audience was about the third anniversary of the Iraq war, and the Bushbots were calling in, praising Bush for his wisdom in invading Iraq. All I could think of was the funeral procession of Milosevich and the poor misguided people mourning him. You'll never convince Bush followers that their fearless leader is wrong because they've invested so much of themselves into believing in him that they've become ill. These are sick people to be pitied and helped. I don't try to reason with them individually anymore because, to put it rather crudely, you should never argue with a crazy person. I think that, eventually, these people will require help to live normal lives. I don't get angry at them anymore, because they just can't help the way they are.

[ConcernedCanuk]

2. Bush should ask himself - "when I die . . .

.
.
.

How many will grieve,

And how many will celebrate . . . ?"

An honest answer might be a bit disturbing . . .

[ConcernedCanuk]

3. I'm surprised at the lack of response

.
.
.

Or maybe y'all figure that with all that wiretapping/spying on you down there by your own government would make you a "target" "red flag" of the "Patriot Act" thing - the USA's modernized version of Hitler's "SS" - "Gestapo" - etc.,

YES

I do think that is what your country has become -

A disguised dictatorship under the umbrella of "democracy"

It took 3 years for a majority of USA citizens to realize that the Iraq Invasion and Occupation was wrong -

HUNDREDS of thousands massacred, and more every day

Gawd,

I'm glad I live in Northern Canada,

but even that is too close to the most dangerous nation in the world for my liking . . .

(sigh)

[jimbot]

4. Odd that the media reports vary so much on the numbers

I haven't checked the web, but the various TV sources have been quoting as few as 10,000 all the way up to hundreds of thousands. I realize that journalists tend to have a tough time counting people but that is a fairly large variance.

--JT