Mainz Residents Told Not To Take a Peek at President Bush

[chlamor]

Bush will arrive in Mainz, Germany tomorrow and it seems the residents will be asked to temper their curiosity and avert their eyes as the Cowboy King drives by in his limousine caravan. To suggest he is not a popular fella' in Mainz is to point to the obvious.


Mainz residents told not to take a peek at president
By Bertrand Benoit in Berlin, George Parker in Brussels and Robert Anderson in Prague
Published: February 21 2005 22:28 | Last updated: February 21 2005 22:28

For residents of Mainz, George W. Bush's seven-hour visit to Germany on Wednesday and his short meeting with Gerhard Schröder, chancellor, will mean one of two things: a headache or a holiday.

Between the US president's 9.45am landing at Frankfurt airport and his afternoon departure, the sleepy Rhineland town and birthplace of Gutenberg will turn into a steel fortress.

In a contemporary echo of the Lady Godiva legend, anyone living on the route of the presidential motorcade is being discouraged from taking a peek at the 60- to 80-strong column of vehicles conveying the US president. In police leaflets, residents have been asked to keep their windows shut and stay clear of balconies “to avoid misunderstandings”.

Stores and restaurants in the “red zone”, the high-security area centred on Mainz's electoral palace, have been advised to close for the day as part of the biggest security operation in the country's postwar history. “They told us we could stay open if we liked but that nobody would be allowed in the area. It did not seem to make much business sense,” said Bozo Vukoja, owner of the Am-Fischtor Croatian restaurant in the red zone.
http://news.ft.com/cms/s/ca1d3720-8457-11d9-ad81-00000e...
 

[SoCalDem]

1. So.. who's got the salt pillar concession?

:)

[Blue_In_AK]

19. I was just thinking the same thing...

Looking at ** is like taking a peek at the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah -- sulfur, fire and brimstone from heaven.

[KoKo]

2. Here's an e-mail I got this a.m. from a friend in Mainz!

(I edited this to take the personal stuff out, but this is in reply to an e-mail I sent to German friend who has also lived and worked in the US but is back working there in Mainz.) Enjoy


---------------------------------------------------------------------
Greetings!
How sweet of you to think of us in “the old“ Europe. Yes, everybody I know wishes you had kept your minority president over there. The entire town of Mainz is shut off, people have to take leave because they either can’t get to work or are unable to return home. Business has almost closed down, and the airport ceased to function – just because of … George (I am refraining from the use of bad words). However, I am glad you expressed your sentiments and that there are in fact millions of Americans who have not lost their senses.

I was actually quite thrown off my (at times ridiculous) championship of the US. Now, I’ll not ban my American style decoration from the new house and think of the future when the next administration is elected. (Thank God Papa Bush isn’t in the cheese business, or his insipid son would be waging war at Holland which is only a few miles from my home.) Tomorrow the Cowboy will be in Poland to visit his buddies in “the new” Europe. They have emptied a 200-room manor hotel for him and, I’m sure, have the entire remaining military force there to ward off harm (and demonstrations).

Lots of Good Wishes,

XXXXX

[GetTheRightVote]

7. I am glad your friend is supportive of us, I hope her prays are answered

soon.

:kick:

[FreedomAngel82]

15. I think we all do

:)

[Catherine Vincent]

3. Instead they were told to pee on him.

LOL!

[GetTheRightVote]

8. Nice photo of Bill

:kick:

[Catherine Vincent]

12. Thanks.

I change it every other week. There's plenty out there of the big dog!:-)

[alfredo]

4. One must not gaze upon the face of God.

[SoCalDem]

9. Germans sure liked gazing at Clinton.. pics from 2000

[grytpype]

10. The Africans loved him too, when he visited in 98.

Meanwhile, Idiot Boy gets shuttled from one ultra-secure, lackey-filled bubble to another.

[FreedomAngel82]

16. I love those pictures!

Clinton was the best president. :cry: I miss him. :cry: I saved those pictures. Gotta show my future kids someday the best president ever. :)

[alfredo]

18. Our last real president.

Sure miss him.

[linazelle]

20. The apologists would say "times have changed" ...

They can't put 2 + 2 together and figure out that ** has been the one who changed them.

Nice pix. :hi:

[linazelle]

21. dupe

[Jack Rabbit]

5. Maybe they shouldn't turn out for him at all

I wonder if the corporate media will show empty streets where he visits?

[jojo54]

6. Sure, you're expected to

lose business, lose money, stay indoors (even if it's a nice day) and don't even try to look or you'll be shot, no questions asked!! The one good thing about it is the kids - their eyes won't be burned trying to catch a glimpse of the murdering chimp from the world's leader of democracy (snicker, snicker).

[ffm172]

27. the weather is nasty

it is snowing since last night and road conditions aren't the best. So I think everybody who can will stay indoors. I definitely would and put a sign in the window.

[satya]

11. Sorry Everybody.

We don't want him any more than you do.

[Catherine Vincent]

13. LOL!

good one!:thumbsup:

[illflem]

14. Is his goal to piss off every single person in the world

or is he just an asshole?

[AgadorSparticus]

25. both. and these are the ONLY 2 things in which he can do well,

unfortunately. i can't believe they are asking people not to look at him. has this ever been requested before?

[illflem]

28. Yes, the paraders passing by him at the coronation

were told not to look at him

[Tsiyu]

17. This means only one thing

There must be threats against someone or other.

This is the mandate of a paranoid, frightened bully.

[Dirk39]

22. Mainz will be shut down

Opel (General Motors) will be closed, people are not allowed to enter their balcony, 1300 drain covers were closed (welded), the freeway is closed, it's a ghost in a ghost town talking with ghosts.


And it's Mainz!? It's not Berlin, not Frankfurt, not Hamburg, it's Mainz.





Hello from Germany,
Dirk

[Catamount]

29. When was this photo taken?

Thanks.

[Logansquare]

31. JFK in Berlin, I believe n/t

[Hardrada]

23. I wish Bush would have been in Dresden last week

since it would have been interesting. The neo-nazis don't like Bush either.

[Bluebear]

24. Thou shalt not gaze at the Chosen One.

Holy mackerel.

[Radical Activist]

26. The emperor doesn't want himself to be seen without his clothes n/t

[Coventina]

30. That's it. The world is offically insane. n/t