Can't operate a bike, but leads a nation?
 

Saw this on BBC.com tonight, and couldn't resist. Just too funny when people with massive responsibilities are incapable of operating a bicycle correctly. Hee hee hee.

Bush 'waving when fell off bike' , reports BBC

President Bush is a keen cyclist who has taken a few tumbles
US President George W Bush was waving to police when he fell off his bike at the G8 summit in Scotland last July, newly published police papers reveal.
Mr Bush was shouting "Thanks, you guys, for coming" when he lost control and collided with an officer, the documents obtained by Scotland on Sunday show.

The smash left Mr Bush with scrapes on his hands and arms, and the policeman needing crutches for an ankle injury.

At the time, Mr Bush laughed off the crash as a sign "I should act my age".

The police report confirms that Mr Bush later telephoned the injured policeman to ask how he was and to apologise.

The cause of the officer's injury was officially recorded as being "hit by a moving/falling object".

One hand

The report details how the police unit, dressed in riot gear, was guarding a road outside the Gleneagles Hotel when Mr Bush cycled up on a damp road.

"As the president passed the junction at speed he raised his left arm from the handlebars to wave to the police officers present while shouting 'Thanks, you guys, for coming'.

"As he did this he lost control of the cycle, falling to the ground, causing both himself and his bicycle to strike [the officer] on the lower legs," it says.

The White House made no comment on the report.

Mr Bush's usual cycling trails are near his ranch in Crawford, Texas, and near a Secret Service training facility at Beltsville, Maryland.

Wow, the BBC just reported that?

Hey, don't knock it. I've done that before. Granted, I was standing on my pedals climbing up a hill and when I waved to my neighbor. I forgot that I was using both of my hands to pull up the handlebars evenly as I was pumping uphill and fell face-first into the pavement. Of course by that time, my "Hey, how are you doing?" had gotten the attention of all of my neighbors so they all got witness my wipeout. Oh, does it also mean anything that I voted for W as well? :D

it's too easy to do when not focused just on riding. I was riding with brotherinlaw and stopped at intersection to talk to him. I had to look down, as when I turned around I knocked home down. He stayed ahead of me all the way back......

Funny picture but, shouldn't it be a mountain bike? Sorry but I'a a stickler for detail.

Well at least he's getting out there ;)

I reckon this thread is destined for P&R to join the other dozen but i will join in. Just to summarize, we need to review. The President of the United States of America tries to wave to a law enforcement officer, but instead runs over one on his MOuntain Bike and then crashes, injuring himself and the officer. President Bush proves yet again that cycling, and pretzel eating are not for the timid.

A short time later, his vice president, goes quail hunting and shoots one of his hunting partners. Now considering that you would expect to find a punch line somewhere in this joke. Unfortunately it is real. A real joke, just like everything else these knuckleheaded, greedy Republicans have done in the last several years.

So where does this leave us? If you've fallen from a bike, you can't be President? Or, if you've been President you can't ride a bike?

[QUOTE=Ranger Unfortunately it is real. A real joke, just like everything else these knuckleheaded, greedy Republicans have done in the last several years.[/QUOTE]

My father is a banker and we used to but heads while I was doing my first Master's (Master of Social Work). I used to spew my one-sided, naive, liberal ideology to him occaisionally. One day he stopped me and said "Troy, if you don't feel that way when you are young, you have no heart; but if you don't think more like I do by the time you are my age, you have no brain!". His point was that my liberal, bleeding heart discussions were fine in principle, but human nature usually screws up a good thing and results in abuse of the system.

Over the years, I have come to agree with him and have completely exited the field of social work. I still give to the poor, but I don't really expect them to do anything but take it and demand more and more. I was disgusted to see 3rd generation welfare recipiants demanding that the government take care of them after Katrina. At some point, a human being worth his own protoplazm has to get off of his A$$ and do something to better his own condition. Sure, solid arguments have been made about the playing ground not being fair; and I agree that it isn't. But to see people insist that others maintain their worthless existance sickens me. I have lost faith in human nature.

It is suprising to me that I feel this way. I watched my own father lose his business and have to rely on welfare for a while when I was growing up. But he did not expect that help to maintain his family indefinitely. Even though he was college educated, he put on a silly twinkie costume and waved to drivers for minimum wage. He stirred mink oil for only slightly more money. He did what could to support his family. I just don't understand what makes some people think they deserve to be maintained indefinitely.

So I guess I jus't don't see that much wrong with expecting people to make use of existing resources to better themselves.

Now the problems in Iraq resulting from the power vacuum we created (that any moron should have seen coming); that is another story.

I'm not sure what you just said, but it sounds good to me. Look, I voted for Bush. Well, i voted for him the first time. I am just addressing the issue that he is a screw up. We all know screw ups and we know what they do. Screw Ups, screw up, over and over again.

We all know the person who can break anything. You know, let them drive your car around the block and they wreck it. I know somebody who tried to pick up cycling awhile back. They literally rode about 5 miles and crashed twice and nearly a third time. Why? YOu ask. Because they are a screw up. This person that i mention, screws up pretty much at everything he does.

I am not going to get into the liberal and conservative debate. I will admit that I am not smart enough for that. But I know a screw up when i see one. Don't get me wrong, i'm all for Screw Ups I'm just not sure we should have them as number 1 and number 2 in the government of the United States of America.

Mommy, Mommy, look at me, look at me .... DOOOOHHHH!!!!!!

Just imagine what the man could do with a shotgun ;-)

If you can't must the concentration to cycle on dry pavement or operate a segway scooter (a self balancing device), you may not have the concentration necessary to run the United States government.

Yeah, like we've never heard that one before. Thanks for communicating that unique nugget of wisdom ;-)


Seriously though, I think people just change. Sometimes they go one way, other times they go another. I started early as a conservative and have gotten more liberal ever since. I can identify with the notion of ultra left wing drivel as it turns me off as much as the ultra right froth. Any good political theory needs to recognize the sometimes inconvenient effects of reality.

I see the BBC isn't much different from U.S. media in reporting non-news events.

It's too late to stop me if you've heard this one before but

I've got so much crap to complaint about President Bush, but falling of his bike isn't one of them. You go prez!

During the 2004 campaign, Kerry crashed his road bike in Massachusetts.

Interestingly, Mark Warner, who is considered a front-runner for the 2008 Democratic nomination, fell off his bike last year and broke his hand.

It would seem that crashing a bike is a requirement for being president.

Wow! A good number of the members of BF, almost everyone who participates in the Mountain Biking forum and every clipless rider out there are potential presidential candidates. :D

haha thats awesome!!!!
i always dreamed about political-people riding bikes!

:D

Rather proud to say I never voted for him. More proud by the day. Since no one will bat an eye at this administration's more criminal follies...I suppose all we have left is chuckling at the slapstick of falling off of a bike. It's like seeing someone get kicked in the nuts...always a finalist on "America's Funniest Home Videos". (What kind of statement is that, though?)

As far as criminal follies...well. A-moral is lacking morality. I-mmoral is knowing right and wrong, and choosing wrong. As time goes by, I view these guys more and more as Immoral.

To summarize:
Worse, not better
Hypocrisy
Ulterior Motives
Chaos
Narcissistic
Orwell's worst nightmares

Well, 2006 is here. The work starts now.

Bush and Cheney have made me so very ashamed.

When Bush rides...apparently noone is allowed to pass him.

Screw that!

As much as I am happy to be an American, I am ashamed and frightened for our nation that elected them twice. Even with the possible manipulation of the elections, the results were still close.
America is in a mesochistic phase.

SG