You have a choice as a symbol of freedom as she was to those women:

1) you can offend by politely not wearing the hijab the very people who suppress women

or

2) you can offend the poor women who get beaten for not wanting to cover their hair and are fighting for their life of the right to not cover it.

Gee, hard question…..NOT!

If I had not been reading daily Greta’s Blog at Gretawire, I would probably be critical myself of our First Lady, Mrs. Laura Bush wearing a head scarf. (it was not worn in public)…

Unless of course, she does not mind the hijab. In that case, I would resent her representing my nation

She was in a nation where women unnecessarily die of breast cancer because of the culture of subjugation. The women sitting next to her had bags on their heads, for Christ’s sake.

I do not like the covered faces of immigrants in our nation because it is too easy to facilitate slavery.

I believe there may be female immigrants in America who are prisoners and cannot escape. They are isolated and brought out in public only with faces covered, not allowed to speak to outsiders. In our area such women are herded by men who tell the store owners what the covered woman wants.

These women are raised to obedience. Is there a better environment for the Stockholm symdrome? A hostage taught from birth to have loyalty to the captor?

Yet the PC idiots here tell us to honor these peoples’ choices!

I despise this culture. I have no desire to change Saudi Arabia, but I believe our immigration rules should refuse to admit people who keep women this way. Along with the Pledge of Allegiance (which these radical immigrants do not respect) we need to teach all children they shall not be subjugated if they are citizens of this nation

Freedom stops at keeping and raising slaves. Out with you subjugators and slavers. We lost 500,000 men to end slavery and it should not be tolerated

Um I saw a Muslim woman the other day without her hijab on. She came up the issue desk (I’m working in a library on an 8-month contract) and she smiled, took it out and put in on much to my displeasure (she was very beautiful).

Maybe she only had it off because her husband/brother/son wasn’t around. Anyway I don’t see why Laura Bush (who is a lovely woman) should wear it over there or anywhere for any reason.

aengus on October 29, 2007 at 10:04 AM

I doubt she had it off for any reason other than it wouldn’t make a political statement until she was actually face-to-face with another individual. (You)

COGNITIVE EGOCENTRISM

The projection of one’s own mentality or “way of seeing the world” onto others…

and

LIBERAL COGNITIVE EGOCENTRISM (LCE):

The projection of good faith and fair-mindedness onto others, the assumption that “other” shares the same human values, that everyone prefers positive sum interactions.

and

Augean Stables had a link to another site where this definition is given:

Demopaths: people who use democratic language and invoke the values of civil society only when it serves their advantage in demanding restraint from their opponents so that they can undermine those very rights. They themselves show few signs of commitment to these values when it calls for restraint or self-correction on their part, engaging in demonizing stereotypes.

and AS puts it together:

MOEBIUS STRIP OF COGNITIVE EGOCENTRISM:

Demopaths are particularly adept at exploiting LCE. They speak in precisely the terms that appeal to LCE, insisting that their struggle is for human rights, fairness and justice, even as their notions of these matters differ wildly from those of the liberals to whom they appeal…

…As a result, a dysfunctional relationship between demopaths (DCE) and their dupes (LCE) has emerged. Under current circumstances, where most liberals cannot even detect the existence of their own LCE nor imagine the possible DCE of others, this dysfunctional relationship works radically to the advantage of the demopaths. When Western authorities empower demopaths rather than sincere moderates, they hurt the forces of civil society and human rights and empower the forces of dominion and war.

She could have said, “Oh, thank you very much, I’ll try this on later. I really appreciate your gift and… here… I’d like each of you to have a copy of the bible and torah. I’m sure you’ll enjoy them every bit as much as I enjoy your hijab.”

FloatingRock on October 29, 2007 at 12:41 AM

That would be something.

The hijab is a reminder to muslim women that THEY are responsible for controlling the lustful impulses of men, who are incapable of controlling themselves.

drewas on October 29, 2007 at 10:25 AM

Yup, and if Laura Bush was not so wrapped up in PC liberal garbage she would be over their fighting for the cause of women currently locked up for having committed the crime of once having been raped. Or are those laws just part of their rich cultural tradition too?

It is truly scary if Laura Bush is that naive. And I do believe that she is.

Connie on October 28, 2007 at 2:12 PM

My thoughts exactly Connie. When I first saw her donning the head scarf I wrote that it must be one of two things:
1). She is completely naive or
2). She understands but is willingly acting like a good dhimmi.
I’m really not sure which is worse when we are talking about the first lady of the U.S.
Its now clear that she is simply naive. And as you said that is very scary. She is as naive as a typical liberal.

Do you honestly expect a goodwill ambassador of such stature to say “I refuse to wear this scarf with the pink ribbons” to their faces while being a guest?

Ronald Reagan refused a mule from a poor Latino farmer, joking that he already had so many back in Congress.

Maybe she only had it off because her husband/brother/son wasn’t around. Anyway I don’t see why Laura Bush (who is a lovely woman) should wear it over there or anywhere for any reason.

- The Cat

P.S. But then again, wouldn’t it be like us telling them to put a shirt on?

She could have said “I don’t cover my head but I would be pleased to wear it as a shoulder scarf”…
That would have been in tune with western culture. Plenty of western women wear scarves around their shoulders tied in the front.

(What would Hillary Do?)

Leaders do not subjugate themselves to others when they visit foreign countries. You should have politely thanked them for the gift, and then put it aside…as you would have done with a book, a pen, a medal, or any other gift.

“When in Rome” does not apply to our first family. We expect you to demonstrate and promote AMERICAN ideals when you travel.

Thought questions: Would you have participated in a stoning just to be polite? Would you walk two paces behind a male foreign leader?