For an old guy, he has pretty good reflexes.

Incoming!

he's spent the last eight years dodging things. he ought to be good at it.

Who throws a shoe? Honestly! You fight like a girl!

From the website nowpublic.com:
"Throwing Shoes Is the Ultimate Insult an Arab Can Make"
What the media is not telling you about the man who is a journalist for for Al-Baghdadiya TV, an Iraqi-owned station based in Cairo, Egypt, is that throwing his shoes at the president is one of the most ultimate insults an Arab can make and saying while he throws the shoes “This is the farewell kiss you dog….this is from the widows, the orphans and those who were killed in Iraq.”

From the AP:

Talking to a small group of reporters after the incident, Bush said, "I didn't know what the guy said, but I saw his sole."

Oh, yeah, the 'ol "what the media is not telling you" schtick. The insult angle was one of the first things the "media" told me this morning while watcing the news.

Did the guy get his shoes back?

Hells Bells. I was so close to making that the header for this post. Thank you for not letting that one get by!!! Vicarious is also right. I don't know if I could have ducked that fast. Bush also told the media that it "was a size 10 he threw at me". So many things about Bush nauseate me to no end, but he can be pretty funny from time to time.

Yeah, while he is still generally evil, Mr. Bush seems to have mellowed a lot over the past eight years. Sometimes, I kinda actually like him (gasp!) as a person.

I saw an interview with Al Franken and even he said if you can keep the converstaion limited to the kids, baseball, and movies, he is not really a bad guy. His politics and religious views are a very appauling to me,but something about him makes me wat to sit down and have a conversation. I have not seen "W" yet but I heard it is a decent insight into his psyche.

I like the part in the new Harold and Kumar movie where they stumble upon the Crawford ranch and end up spending a fun afternoon sparking up with W.

I really, really hate him, but I bet he WOULD be fun to just hang with.

If the shoe fits wear it. The guy that threw the shoes pretty much summed up Bush and the Iraq war.

Actually, displaying the bottoms of ones feet or offering a person the left hand are considered insults in Muslim cultures. I heard a few mentions to this, but nothing really all that clear was made to really explain why.

From what I remember, the left hand is an insult because that is the hand that is designated to wipe yourself with. It's considered dirty. I would assume the same about the bottom of your feet.

Goldi's got it right...there is a whole list of etiquette that goes along with visiting an Islamic country, particularly on the Arabian peninsula.

wiki's got a fairly decent list of some of the more common points.

Dining in an Arabic household is rather interesting, too...aside from the segregation of men and women the meals can also last for a while, with the meal not actually commencing for an hour or more after arriving and then upon finishing, it's considered rude for guests to stick around no longer than a few minutes afterward.

Hanging with Bush would probably be more like this:
http://www.theonion.com/content/node/42590
I'd rather have a beer with the shoe-thrower.

That Iraqi journalist should apply for a job with The Onion. He'd be a shoe-in.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etiquette_in_Canada_and_the_United_States

Huh. So that's why lefty handshakes feel a little awkward.

That's why I'll never be a Muslim. Too wacky for me.

What if Luterans threw hotdishes as a sign of insult?

Try your luck at hitting that dodgy codger.
http://www.sockandawe.com/