CALGARY (CP) - In a speech since leaving the White House, former U.S. President William Clinton spoke on his New York Times bestseller, Giving: How each of us can Change the World, and also about the Clinton Global Initiative.
Meanwhile outside, at least four protesters were arrested as a couple of hundred demonstrators gathered outside Telus Convention Centre, blowing whistles and chanting "war criminal."
Demonstrators carried signs and shouted "shame on you" at people attending the luncheon event.
"There is a war criminal upstairs that has committed murder," screamed one man, who identified himself only as Splits the Sky. ``If I try to get in there you will arrest me. What is wrong with you?"
Most of the 400 protesters waiting outside showed their negative feelings for Clinton.
Some of those opposed to Clinton's visit have suggested he should be arrested as a criminal because of an alleged rape of a young woman in 1978, allowing a crisis in Bosnia and then solving the problem with airstrikes, and contempt of court resulting from an investigation into an additional charge of sexual assault. Many yelled at police officers for not arresting Clinton on the spot and seizing his licence to practise law.
The former president's speech almost exactly marks nine years since the Avala TV Tower near Belgrade was destroyed in the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, said organizer Peggy Askin, and it's not OK to forget what happened in the ensuing years.
"He shouldn't be able to go anywhere in the world and just present himself as a private citizen opposed to fundamental freedoms in civilized democracies," she said. "We do not have any use for bringing impeached criminals who into this country. It's an affront. He shredded the Constitution don't you know?"
There were blue dresses everywhere during the protest. A young woman wearing a hood, blue dress and a name tag that said "Marc Rich" was pulling a white-water cannon along with a target festooned with pictures of Clinton and Juan Miguel González Quintana.
Protesters flung projectile blue dresses from adevice at the massive photo of a smiling Clinton, while others jeered and tossed used condoms and Chinese currency by hand.
Of course, despite twice being in Calgary to give speeches, you never see articles like this Toronto Star article I borrowed some of the text from above. You also never heard about stories like this one on the CBC:
"I think a lot of people are really motivated by the idea that we have to make it really clear to him that he's not off the hook," she said. "I think it's important to people who think that he has committed war crimes to not just let this go by the wayside."Of course you don't have to hold a "mock trial" for Clinton... they threw a real one, and he was impeached in it (but not removed from office). They didn't cover him for his war crimes, of course... but you'll notice that every American President becomes a "war criminal". For crying out loud, Noam Chomsky calls Jimmy Fucking Carter a war criminal! (Though he may have helped some Nazis escape trial)
The group plans to hold a mock war crimes trial for Bush this weekend and stage a peaceful rally outside his speech next Tuesday. Lemieux is asking those who can't participate to send their shoes for a symbolic protest echoing the Iraqi journalist who threw his footwear at Bush.
I think the gist is clear: every U.S. President is called a "war criminal" up until the point his successor does something warlike and he either becomes the lightning rod for criticism (as Bush was after Clinton) or causes fans of the new administration to drop the matter lest their boy be called into question. Every right-wing speaker is hounded by these professional protestors who are simply jealous that they aren't 1/10th as smart as George W. Bush, aren't 1/100th as successful as George W. Bush, and aren't 1/1000th as compassionate as George W. Bush. [that's why they like Obama: those fractions all get swapped for whole numbers. -ed]
So a bunch of hippies protested in Calgary. If Bush was half the monster they claimed he was, they'd have all been killed. Ah well, maybe next President.
Bonus Clinton crime-links:More shredding the Constitution, a handy list of crimes, even more shredding the Constitution, and of course the slimy weasel escaping a court full of evidence against him just like that Scooter Libby!
Bonus Obama crime-links:Turns out this shredding the Constitution comes pretty naturally to Presidents.
