Bush on protesters:“That’s what happens when you make hard decisions”

[dajoki]

MSNBC
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10362963/

Amid loud protests, Bush praises Indonesia
President, on brief visit, hails protestors being able to 'say what they think'

Updated: 8:23 a.m. ET Nov 20, 2006
BOGOR, Indonesia - President Bush’s unpopularity here in the world’s most populous Muslim nation made intense security jitters and angry protests the hallmarks of a six-hour trip to court Indonesian favor.

At a joint news conference with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Bush shrugged off the demonstrations, saying it was a sign of a healthy democracy.

“I applaud a society where people are free to express their opinion,” Bush said of the protests that accompanied his visit to the world’s most populous Muslim nation.

Through sheets of sometimes heavy rain, Bush flew by helicopter from the capital of Jakarta to the presidential palace in a lush hilltop suburb for talks with the Indonesian leader.

“It’s to Indonesia’s credit that it’s a society where people are able to protest and say what they think,” Bush said. He noted that it wasn’t the first time he had drawn protests.

“That’s what happens when you make hard decisions,” Bush said.

[wtmusic]

1. No, that's what happens when you make stupid decisions nt

[niyad]

2. then what in the HELL are we doing with the 1984-ish misnamed "free speech zones"

in THIS country?

[CrazyOrangeCat]

6. ya sure got that right . . .

is that obscene, or what???

[bullimiami]

3. in our country we corral the protesters where bush doesnt have to see them.

thats called .. free-dom.

[Deja Q]

4. Dunno about Indonesia, but America elects people to represent Americans.

Again, free trade and such is not a bad concept. The trouble is, it's creasingly easy to say that America is being left out of the perks corporations are freely bestowing to everybody else, right down to education. Meanwhile, education in the home countries is waning. (the problem is just as bad in Europe too, as I'd read on a CNN article I posted earlier...) That's not good.

[beltanefauve]

5. In this country

we practice "preventative" arrest. At the RNC in 2004, for example, thousands of people were held "preventively" when they tried to "say what they think", without having broken any laws, without being read their rights, informed of charges, and, in many cases, after having done EXACTLY what the police had instructed them to do. People were held without arraignments longer than the 24-hour legal limit in New York. Some people were simply released after a time without charges and without paperwork. Yes, this is OUR country I'm talking about. And that's just one example of many.

[dajoki]

7. Hanutty claims it was all a set up...

Let's see, largest Muslim population in the world, shrub, well we all know how he feels about Muslims. OK, nutty, it was a setup.