The Legacy Of The Shoe

Many are counting down the days to Christmas, and many are counting down the days to the New Year. Personally, I am counting down the days to the Inauguration - as of December 18, 33 days remain before President-Elect Barack Obama steps forward to take the reins of the country. Many are already starting to ponder President Bush's legacy and how he will be noted in the history books.

And now, we may have a fitting image in the last days of his presidency.

The shoe. Or actually, a pair of them - right and left.

The shoes in question were thrown at Bush by an Iraqi journalist.

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All credit goes out to the President, who shucked and jived his way around them (he was a co-owner of the Texas Rangers baseball team, don't forget). With the rather smug look on his face, it was almost as though he was in the batting cage saying "is that all you got, Hoss?"

But wait, there's more. Far more. 

Irony being what it is, one of the last images that we have of our current president is two shoes being thrown at him by an Iraqi. In the Islamic culture, it is a sign of disrespect - and a rather significant one at that. I'd call that dramatic irony - writers might consider it a lovely footnote.

Time will tell what the historians will say about Bush. I am sure that as time ticks onwards, the reflections on his legacy will improve. But after eight years of whatever it is we've survived, and an approval rating in the negatives, we tie up all the loose ends with ... shoes. Now how is that for a legacy?