more on bush in Germany

The Germans Bush Wasn't Able to See

MAINZ, Germany, Feb. 23 - President Bush of course is not the first president named Bush to come to this town on the Rhine, but the very physical circumstances of this president's stopover here on Wednesday suggest how different, how less automatically warm, German-American relations are now than they were when his father stopped in Mainz 16 years ago.
Most conspicuous was the lack of contact between ordinary Germans and an American president visiting what could almost have been a stage setting: a town with buildings but no people, the shops and restaurants in the center of town closed, and only uniformed police officers on the streets.
Compare that with the main event of the first President Bush's trip here in 1989: a speech to an enthusiastic audience of 3,500 people gathered in a flag-draped hall, thrilling to Mr. Bush's declaration that Germany and America are more than "firm allies and friends," they are "partners in leadership."
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But this president was entirely sealed off from Germans - other than Chancellor Gerhard Schröder and the German journalists at a news conference, and even a town-meeting-type encounter with Mainz residents was scrubbed out of worry the mood would be hostile. A meeting with a group of carefully screened "young leaders" was put in its place.
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But the dispute over the Iraq war awoke German citizens to something new in their relationship with the United States, an unease over the price that they might have to pay to be members of an alliance led by a figure whose instincts they distrust.

"Most Germans are still emotionally averse to what Bush stands for - going it alone, not paying attention to due process, which we love in Europe," said Eberhard Sandschneider, the director of the German Council on Foreign Relations.

The Germans remain anxious that their country will yet be drawn into a foreign military venture by a president who, as Mr. Bush has affirmed several times so far on his European tour, keeps all options, including military action, on the table.

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Check out the article for another photo of the massive demonstrations!
I wonder what people from other countries really think about the president of the largest "free country" in the world not being willing to meet or even see the citizens of their country? Americans don't seem to be concerned with the fact that bush refuses to appear anywhere if the audience hasn't been pre-screened, but Europeans have to wonder about his confidence.
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OK, this is hilarious! The conservatives want to show that there was a PRO-bush demonstration too - check it out here.
As best as i can see, there were about 6-12 people in this "demonstration"! A little different from the thousands of anti-bush protestors!
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More on this and bush in general in a Buzzflash Editorial.