Shoe throwing - Global trend - Whose next?

Shoe throwing at press conferences are a trend, now!!

Like all other trends start somewhere, near or related to the US. The first known incident (to me) was when an Iraqi journalist Muntadhar al-Zaidi threw a shoe at US President George W. Bush (Link). Zaidi has been imprisoned for three years, the defense lawyers - one supporting reasoning to save him was shoe did not hit the US President. The President had good relexes, his aim perfect, Zaidi miscalculated.



Our neighboring country's world leader Wen Jibao, Premier of the People's Republic of China at his address in the Cambridge University (Link).



Israel Ambassador Benny Dagan was addressing students at Stockholm University, where he had been invited to speak on the upcoming elections in Israel, when a young woman in the audience hurled a shoe at him, hitting him in the chest. (Link). This one for sure she had a great aim, our World leader was hit in the chest.



The other one much closer to Home Minister P Chidambaram was addressing press conference (Link) managed to dodge the shoe.



Two of the four shoe throwing incidents are done by journalists from above. Technically speaking, we appreciate their love for what they stand for, we also appreciate what they have been writing, but throwing shoes at any leader is not what goes as protests or the basic principle they have been following of "pen being mighter than the sword"

Reaction of the world leader to the incident like that of

George Bush - he shrugged away the incident.

Better reaction was of P Chidambaram (PC) that is "Please take him away. Gently, gently" and then later adding "let not the action of one emotional person hijack the entire press conference. I have answered his questions to the best of my ability." for PC it is the elections or better still he was being nice to the person in front of the media audience. He follows the Gadhian philosophy "I forgive him".

But for sure, tomorrow papers will have stone throwing incident in front page news and asking the same question, what i am asking now.