Mother who lost son in Iraq discusses private meeting with Bush

http://www.arcticbeacon.com/articles/article/1518131/28661.htm


Mom, Who Lost Son In Iraq, Talks About 'Disgusting' White House Private Meeting With Bush; Claims He Was Arrogant, 'Totally Detached From Humanity' And Didn't Even Know Her Name
Founder of peace group to stop senseless murder of our children, Cindy Sheehan wants parents to 'wake up' to the illegal nature of the war and Bush's corrupt motives meriting impeachment. She tells parents to advise their children not to fight, saying it's better 'to spend a year in jail instead of an eternity in a coffin.'
July 5, 2005

By Greg Szymanski

Cindy Sheehan has already had her heart ripped into a million pieces by the illegal Iraqi war, losing the son she loved more than life itself only five days after he arrived in Baghdad in April 2004.

There is nothing more painful or more heart breaking than a parent losing a child.

And for Sheehan to lose her 24-year-old son, Casey, must have been like someone taking her very own heart and soul and, without warning, ripping them out and throwing them into the depths of hell.

No one should have to experience such pain, but the cold reality of war is that someone’s child actually dies and there are actual parents left living with the hopeless task of trying to cope with the pain.

And anyone with any semblance of a heart and soul knows a mother coping with such a loss needs all the help and understanding she can get.

Anyone with the slightest bit of compassion knows a kind word or a shoulder to cry on helps a mother, who experienced the ultimate loss, get through another day when every day feels like it could be the end of the world.

So when Sheehan received an invitation to meet privately with President Bush at the White House two months after her son died, the least she could have expected was a bit of compassion or a kind word coming from the heart.

But what she encountered was an arrogant man with eyes lacking the slightest bit of compassion, a President totally "detached from humanity" and a man who didn’t even bother to remember her son’s name when they were first introduced.

Instead of a kind gesture or a warm handshake, Sheehan said she immediately got a taste of Bush arrogance when he entered the room and "in a condescending tone and with a disgusting loud Texas accent," said: "Who we’all honorin’ here today?"

"His mouth kept moving, but there was nothing in his eyes or anything else about him that showed me he really cared or had any real compassion at all. This is a human being totally disconnected from humanity and reality. His eyes were empty, hollow shells and he was acting like I should be proud to just be in his presence when it was my son who died for his illegal war! It was one of the most disgusting experiences I ever had and it took me almost a year to even talk about it," said Sheehan in a telephone conversation from Washington D.C. where she was attending a July 4th anti-war rally.

Sheehan said the June 2004 private meeting with the President went from bad to worse to a nightmare when Bush acted like he didn’t even want to know her name. She said Bush kept referring to her as ‘Ma’ or ‘Mom’ while he "put on a phony act," saying things like ‘Mom, I can’t even imagine losing a loved one, a mother or a father or a sister or a brother.’

"The whole meeting was simply bizarre and disgusting, designed to intimidate instead of providing compassion. He didn’t even know our names," said Sheehan. "Finally I got so upset I just looked him in the eye, saying ‘I think you can imagine losing someone. You have two daughters. Imagine losing them?’ After I said that he just looked at me, looked at me with no feeling or caring in his eyes at all."

Sheehan said what really upset her about the meeting is that Bush appeared to become annoyed and even angry at her daughter Carley, 25, who also attended the White House get-together.

"My daughter said to him directly ‘I wish I could bring my loved one back’ and he said something like ‘so do we.’ Later she told me that after he made his remark he gave her one of the filthiest looks she had ever had gotten in her life.

"I just couldn’t believe this was happening. It was so surreal and bizarre. Later I met with some of the other 15 or 16 families who were at the White House the same day and, sure enough, they all felt the same way I did.

"It’s interesting that they put us each in separate rooms. I heard this was done to prevent any type of group outburst and since it’s easier to control a situation when people are separated. Looking back, all I can say is that the meeting with Bush was one of the most disgusting experiences in my life.

"And I even asked him: ‘Why did you even bother to bring us here when I didn’t vote for you and don’t support the illegal nature of your war?’ He said it wasn’t political but I know it was just another one of his lies, as he probably wanted to be able to say out on the political stump that he wasn’t afraid to meet with families who lost loved one’s in the war."

Although Sheehan was opposed to the illegal nature of the war from the outset, it wasn’t until January that she began to become politically active.

Besides speaking at rallies and becoming known in Washington for her outspoken criticism of Bush, Sheehan formed a group called Gold Star Families For Peace, joining together families who lost loved ones in an effort to expose the illegal nature of the war and to hasten the return of troops still fighting in Iraq.

Her involvement with the anti-war movement also led her recently to join forces with the After Downing Street movement, a civic, political and activist group seeking to open a Presidential impeachment inquiry based on the release of damaging British intelligence documents showing Bush doctored WMD intelligence reports to justify his war policy.

"Americans need to wake up and we need to put public pressure on our leaders to end this illegal war," said Sheehan, adding that if the public remains passive, recent statements by Donald Rumsfeld that the war may last another 12 years will come true. "We can’t let these people continue to murder our children and also continue murdering innocent Iraqi citizens, now totaling more than 100.000.

"This is an immoral war based on a false premise. Iraq was never an imminent threat and the Downing Street Memo proves Bush went to war for oil, greed and all the wrong reasons.

Commenting on Bush’s recent speech at Ft. Bragg intended to rally America behind an unpopular war, she said:

"He never mentioned the WMD threat and repeatedly brought up 9/11 in an attempt to scare and frighten everyone again. People have characterized the speech in many ways, but if I had to pick a few words, I would say hypocritical, manipulative, condescending, meaningless drivel."

After the speech, Sheehan was unexpectedly invited on the CNN Larry King Show June 28, but expressed concern and outright anger over the fact she was only given 82 seconds to be "the token anti-war peace speaker" in an hour show which essentially contained a pro war message from all the other guests.

In a recent rebuttal article placed on the Internet, expressing her displeasure with some of the CNN guests and the short time given for her anti-war message, she wrote:

"My absolute favorite guest of the evening was Sen. John Warner, powerful chair of the Senate Armed (Disservices) Committee. Of course, he fell in lockstep behind his Führer (Bush) and praised the speech…. I sat in the Green Room with Sen. Warner's entourage. I wondered (even out loud) what price they have paid for our administration's misdeeds in Iraq. They all looked like happy, well-fed, well-dressed, well-educated, and well-hydrated Americans.…I sincerely doubt if any of them had a loved one ripped from their lives by a car bomb, IED, or bullet in an ambush.

"I spoke with John Warner after his interview and told him unless he was prepared to sacrifice even a good night's sleep over this senseless and criminal war, then he should work on ending it, not prolonging the carnage. He told me that I was "entitled to my opinion," but he would respectfully have to disagree with me. That was awfully Constitutional of him!

"I finally got to speak for my 82 seconds (all the time Larry King Live could spare for the peace message) about how this war is a catastrophe and how we should bring the troops home and quit forcing the

Iraqi people to pay for our government's hubris and quit forcing innocent children to suffer so we can allegedly fight terrorism somewhere besides America. How absolutely racist and immoral is it to

take America's battles to another land and make an entire country pay for the crimes of others? To me, this is blatant genocide.

"After my brief advocacy for peace, my position was refuted by another mom whose son was killed in Iraq in 2003, saying she "totally disagrees" with me and "feels sorry" for me.

"Well, you know what? I ache for her blindness and for the millions of ‘sheeple’ who have had the wool pulled over their eyes by this bunch of hypocritical, bad shepherds who are running a disastrous herd over the world. I have distressing news for the ‘Soccer Safety Moms’ and the ‘NASCAR Dads’ who are such ardent supporters of this administration and war:

"Your grandchildren and children who will be entering Kindergarten this fall will be fighting George's endless war if he gets his way and is allowed to continue spreading the cancer of imperialism in the Middle-East….

"Think about it when you tuck your child into bed tonight."

For more informative articles, go to www.arcticbeacon.com where donations are accepted to keep the truth and news flowing in the wake of a media blackout.

 

Thanks PR for the link, keep posting..I don't always agree with you, but I do find you very informative
-Heather

 

All Hail Bush the Compassionate.

Damn, what a reptile.

 

I was asked by someone new to the forums to post this and in all fairness which I'm all about I will..here ya go Daniel, it's a look on both sides of the story.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/national/20050630-124908-7077r.htm

 

Maybe he received sensitivity training after the first encounter.


Isn't a chameleon a reptile?

 

Greg Szymanskis personal opinion attached to this encounter is pityful

She seems to have changed her mind multiple times , strange lady.

 

But yet the personal opinion of an obvious White House contrived press hack voiced through the Moonie Times is laudable since it reinforces a status quo already exposed repeatedly as based on lies, is that it matt?

A truly discerning mind you continue to be!

 

i reckon it's the only way he can chat up people. confuse them then humour them.

 

If all the quotes the lady made are genuine then i have a point, if some have been taken out of context i have a point.. If some were made up for the interest of a biased point then , no i have no point. What quotes from the lady do you think were made up or taken out of context.

 

Who changed her mind? I'm confused... Who are you talking about?

 

Bit unfair of me She (Cindy Sheehan) did not change her mind , i read a bit to much into it . She just seems to have gone a bit overboard with her 'attack' . She still seems a srange lady.

 

Losing a son to war based on fruad and deception only to be callously patronised by the Commander in Chief is grounds for far worse condemnation from anyone with an ounce of civic duty. The only thing that is strange here matt is your continued bandwagon idnifference to the notion of government accountability.

 

She came to these conclusions after her son died, post rationlising a point of view after her son died is understandable.. but i think unfair. If she felt this intently she should have voiced her opinions long before her son died. Her loss is tragic, but she should not be so monumentaly self rightious about it. How do we know she was 'patronised', i can't call her a liar but it does seem very conveniant imho. If i met her i think i would think she is a whiny misery guts (not that i would, i would have a bit more respect for her than that).
The point this is the only reason this thread is here is to bang home a vapid point that gets told countless times in many different guises. It aint even subtle (lettering so bold and large) . I say it is biased due to the fact she has lost her son (who i believe did not have to get re-deployed to iraq-not the point though i suppose). The other testimonies from the other link you swiftly dismiss. What is your opinion of the more 'positive' testimonies ? whats that you can't read anything other than what is within your prism of thinking.

 

I read the other piece matt and I know enough about the political arena and especially this ideologically-driven news creating administration aparatus (orchestrated by Karl Rove whom you might do well to learn a thing or two) to recognise manufactured excusatory accolades when I see them.

You sadly accept only that which allows you to remain the smug armchair cheerleader you have long been, whilst those like Mrs Sheehan at least are to be offered some late in the day respect for having their once status quo serving mentalities rudely awakened by unnecessary death.

But I don't expect you to appreciate nor understand the extent of the media compliant fraud being directed from within the government nor change your tune on the immorality of our war of aggression regardless of the increasing numbers of victims it generates on both sides.

I find you more pitiable than Mrs. Sheehan by far.

 

1. She allowed, and probably even encouraged her son to join the military. 33 points off for that.
2. She is surprised Dubya is an idiot, out of touch with regular people and doesn't really care about the soldiers as human beings? 33 points off for that.
3. She only came to the realzation of these things after her OWN son died. The deaths of the many who came before his had NO impact on her. Selfish and self absorbed herself. 33 more points.

She's an idiot. It amazes me, these people who were all gungho and prowar and proBush and then, lo and behold someone they know and cares about dies and suddenly they are all antiwar. They didn't give a shit about the innocent people who died in Iraq and Afgan, or the other soldiers who died before their own relative. NO sense of perspective, these people. This womyn claims she was against the war from the onset. WHY was her son in the Military, then? She's either a liar or a hippocrite. or both.

These are people who can't see beyond the tip of their own nose.

 

I agree with you Maggie and my pity for those who wake up only after the fact is tangible. Better late than never at all though, as we see all too pervasively with those who have nothing but blind bandwagoneering invested in their sideline support for the continuance of our international atrocities.

For what little it is worth, the exploited castoffs of this neo-imperialist agenda, selfish as they may be, are nonetheless that many fewer cheerleaders upon whom the war criminals can rely for political capital the longer this continues.

In a perfect world the lot of them and their progeny should be shipped off to experience every last minute of suffering and torture they have been perpetrating and justifying towards innumerable others from Gitmo to Afghanistan. But sadly this is just another turn of the wheel which I lived long enough to see repeated over and over in differing contexts by successive administrations.

 

I think relating to both links, both women were right. In my opinion he probably treated one woman one way, and another the other way. I think the way people look at others and perceive them are different all together. After viewing Bush, from his many conversations on tv and otherwise, I'd haveta go with the woman who felt betrayed by him. IMHO I believe one woman saw the "real" Bush and the other saw the "Put on a show to look like I do care about America" Bush..ya know the one we all mostly saw when he was campaigning, (except there was that one time when his true colors came out during his debate). From what I hear when he owned the Texas Rangers, and again this is heresay..he was a real asshole, so I'm betting he still is. I get a bad vibe from Bush, always have.

 

hahahahahahahaha you realy are a vicious nasty peice of work.

 

Nothing remotely vicious about me actually, Matthew. Those who wage war of aggression, presume themselves too mighty to be held to account to the precepts of international law whilst preaching the "rule of law" and who systematically remove civil liberties and subject countless numbers of foreign nationals to indefinite imprisonment and troture to support an ideologically inspired global bid for resource control, aka The New American Century, are the nasty pieces of work.

So too all their sheepish sideline apologists.

Remember, the only thing evil needs to succeed is for people of good conscious to do nothing. Enjoy your perch on the bandwagon.

 

why was you having me shipped off to your percieved torture venue then hahahaha you just have a spiteful tongue thats all...anyway never mind