While protesters were outside chanting, “George Bush, War Criminal, Not Father of the Year”, “George Bush kills babies,” and holding signs that read, “SHAME, Father’s and Mother’s Day council, George W. Bush is a War Criminal Not Father of the Year”, former president George W. Bush was inside the Hilton on 53rd Street receiving an award for Father of the Year by Father’s and Mother’s Day Council to benefit Save the Children.
Debra Sweet, of World Can’t Wait: Stop the Crimes of Our Government, explained why she believed that George W. Bush was a war criminal. She told me, the Mother’s and Father’s Day Council “gave the award to Tony Blair as well, and they are both major, imperialist war criminals.”
“We’re out here to say George W. Bush is Godfather of the Year. Here’s someone responsible for killing one million people in Iraq. That’s not counting Afghanistan, that’s not even counting Yemen and Syria”.
“The U.S. started smaller 911’s all over the Middle East as revenge” for 911. You have an almost endless war now that’s gone on towards Iraq since 1990. In the 1980’s the U.S. funded elements that became Al Qaeda. They funded them unintentionally by leaving all this war material in Iraq for people to pick up. They created sectarian warfare and the whole country came apart, so the U.S. is responsible for creating ISIS where such Islamic fundamentalists are now seen as the obvious answer to U.S. imperialism.”
“Those of us who care about Humanity want to see an end to this war. The drone bombings, the secret operations, the surveillance, the funds being put into Iraq for more bases”.
The end goal, she explained, is to control the Middle East and to keep other countries from controlling it. “To manage the oil and to assert U.S. domination over every other country”. “It’s outrageous, immoral unjust no matter what president is in charge but, this one”, pointing to the Hilton and referring to George W. Bush, “should be in prison. Give him a fair trial and let the people of the world talk about what he did”.
“There’s an Iraqi woman suing the Bush administration for what they did to Iraq, attempting to get a hearing in Federal Court. It’s a good effort and it’s really bringing out the fact Iraq was destroyed by this war and not helped”.
Meanwhile, inside the Hilton, Bush was honored by his daughter Barbara:
Also receiving recognition from the National Father’s Day Committee was Morris Goldfarb, the head of the G-III Apparel Group. David Gonzales of Jacksonville, Florida, was recognized as the Ashok Sani “All-Star” dad. The gathering raised $1.3 Million. Mark Shriver, President of Save the Children Action Network, served as Master of Ceremonies at this year’s awards.
Not from the protest yesterday, this pic of former CIA analyst Ray McGovern proudly displaying his feelings on this sweatshirt, spoke at the UNAC United National Antiwar Coalition, event in Secaucus, NJ back in early May:
Ray has been arrested numerous times in the name of opposing war, most recently in New York City this past winter outside the 92nd St Y for attempting to ask General Petraeus a question during the question and answer period after he spoke.
George W. Bush spoke about his father, George H. W. Bush, as “living life to the fullest and finding joy in his family and his faith”. He spoke at length about his father’s parachute jumps at the age of 85 and again at 90. He also mentioned the phone call from his friend Arnold Schwarzenegger to his dad where Arnold told said, “happy Birthday to the most badass 90 year old I know”.
Although the Father of the Year event where George W. Bush was recognized was not political, many thought about the innocent children in Iraq, Yemen and Syria that have been killed during and after his illegitimate wars. The wars were fought in order to gain domination and NOT because of “terrorism”. These people think that giving W. the Father of the Year award just might be a bit hypocritical.
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