Did you see George Dubya verbally attack a blind man yesterday?

Question

That was pretty disturbing don't you think? Is Dubya just stupid as hell or is he cruel too?

The reporter said himself that he is in fact legally blind. If you guys actually saw the conference than you would know that.

Please don't answer if you don't know what you are talking about.

Answer 1

As usual he made a judgment before he had the facts. Should be no shock.

Answer 2

Yes, I did see the conference and Bush cracked a joke (hardly an "attack") about wearing sunglasses when asking the "President of the United States" a question. It is a question of etiquette.

I also saw that when Bush found out that there was a "RARE" eye condition that required this guy to wear sunglasses, he immediately called him and apologized.

Are you just stupid as hell or too dumb to recognize the difference between such a scenario and an "attack"?

Answer 3

He didn't know the guy was blind and that is why he was wearing sun glasses. If you are conducting an interview it is pretty rude to weat sunglasses and not be able to have the other person look you in the eye.
When he found out he was blind the president called to apologize and the guy said he wasn't offended at all.

Answer 4

good exaggeration:

WASHINGTON -- President George W. Bush has apologized for poking fun at a Los Angeles Times reporter for wearing sunglasses during a news conference in the Rose Garden.

Video: Bush Teases Reporter
Podcast: News Conference

Bush, who often teases members of the White House press corps, told Times reporter Peter Wallsten he was sorry Wednesday after he poked fun at him for wearing sunglasses, not realizing they were needed for vision loss.

Bush called on Wallsten during a news conference in the Rose Garden and asked if he was going to ask his question with his "shades" on. The reporter offered to remove the sunglasses. But then Bush said, "I'm interested in the shade look. Seriously."

"All right, I’ll keep it, then," Wallsten said.

"For the viewers, there's no sun," Bush said.

Wallsten said, "I guess that depends on their perspective."

To that, the president said, "Touche."

Even though the sun was behind the clouds, Wallsten needs the sunglasses because he has Stargardt's disease, a form of macular degeneration that causes progressive vision loss. The condition causes Wallsten to be sensitive to glare and even on a cloudy day, can cause pain and increase the loss of sight.

Wallsten said Bush called his cell phone later in the day to apologize and tell him he didn't know he had the disease. Wallsten said he told the president no apology was necessary.

"He said, 'I needle you guys out of affection,'" Wallsten said. "I said, 'I understand that, but I don't want you to treat me any differently because of this."'

Wallsten said the president said he would not treat him differently, so Wallsten encouraged him to "needle away."

"He said, 'I will. Next time I'll just use a different needle,"' Wallsten said.

The reporter said his only complaint is that the president didn't answer his question about White House credibility at the news conference.

Poking fun <> attacking
vision loss <> blindness (in this reporter's case yet anyway)

Answer 5

OK, our Pres might not be the sharpest tack but he had NO way of knowing that that reporter was blind or had an eye problem. In any culture and especially ours, it is improper etiquette to keep sunglasses or hats on indoors as well as in other formal settings.
Sh!t happens so cut "Dubbya" some slack......He did after all, call the reporter to personally apologize once he was made aware of his ailment.

Answer 6

So blind people who mouth off are special and are not to be debated with or told to shut up? Woe is me, I deserve to be treated differently even when I'm acting like an idiot?

Answer 7

Do you think being blind means no one can ever contradict you? Where'd you get a silly idea like that? I'm no fan of Bush, but a handicap doesn't make you omniscient.

Answer 8

No I did not. Apparently the blind man did not "see" it happen either.

Please prove your accusations. I do not understand baseless statements with no proof.

Answer 9

He must have had a scriptwriter. He's too stupid to be able to verbally attack anyone

Answer 10

the man, a reporter, is NOT blind, just sensitive to sunlight which could damage his sight. but yes, bush is an ******.