The Further Adventures of W

[bobmark226]

Today, at a press conference, this exchange happened with Peter Wallsten of the Los Angeles Times:

Bush: You gonna ask your question with shades on?

Wallsten: Yes...

Bush: But there's no sun out here.

Wallsten: It depends on your perspective.

Bush: Touché.

*************

Wallsten is blind.

Bob

[Cinnamon Crazy]

Oh my goodness....that is soooo funny.

Please let it be on Jon Stewart or Colbert tonight.
.

[smileybriley]

Peter Wallsten's not blind.

[leebee]

Peter Wallsten's not blind.

He is legally blind. I believe he wears the glasses due to the condition that has affected his eyesight.

[smileybriley]

I have to admit when I'm wrong. I was totally thinking of someone else. Oh well! So Bush's remark IS funny :)

[Randi R]

He is such an embarassment. But such a good source of entertainment... :rolleyes:

[Laura]

I read on CNN that Bush called to apologize and the reporter stopped him mid-stream and said don't worry, I wasn't offended, and according to CNN, he had not advised the White House of his condition.

[jeanrw]

Wallsten's not blind. From the article -

Wallsten still needs the sunglasses because he has Stargardt's disease, a form of macular degeneration that causes progressive vision loss. The condition causes Wallsten to be sensitive to glare and, even on a cloudy day, it can cause pain and increase the loss of sight.

[GingerPow]

Saw that press conference on t.v. this morning. Hard not to cringe.

It's good that W called to apologize, and Wallsten sounds like a very gracious guy.

[newtricks]

I thought Wallsten handled it very well. And to W's credit, (kinda) he was wearing pretty hip shades for Macular Degeneration. My dad has it and he wears those huge sunglasses with the big sides.

And sidenote to JeanW - how much do you know about Macular Degeneration? Because you're splitting hairs to dismiss it as "not blind". :mad:

[Chefzhat]

The leader of the country is being questioned by a reporter with dark sunglasses on, and wonders about said glasses.

That someone does little to explain himself, only offering cryptic comments.

The leader of the country later finds out the real issue and calls to offer apologies.



Hmmm, who's the classy one in this situation? The one making the honest mistake and apologizing, or the one who is being dodgy about his issues?

[newtricks]

The leader of the country is being questioned by a reporter with dark sunglasses on, and wonders about said glasses.

That someone does little to explain himself, only offering cryptic comments.

The leader of the country later finds out the real issue and calls to offer apologies.



Hmmm, who's the classy one in this situation? The one making the honest mistake and apologizing, or the one who is being dodgy about his issues?

OK, no. It's the reporter's fault?? That's ridiculous.

IMO, this whole thing has just blown up. It's not that big a deal, just mildly funny/ embarrasing. I don't think the reporter at that moment could have anticipated that it would blow up. Now, if he said "Mr. President, you putz, I have Macular Degeneration" and publicly embarrassed him then yes, it would have been on the news immediately.

I think *both* the reporter and the president acted graciously. It was just a mistake.

[Chefzhat]

I wasn't necessarily assigning fault. I agree with you . . . blow up over nothing.


~~edit~~ 'cause I can't explain myself well. Language impaired today.

[Laura]

And sidenote to JeanW - how much do you know about Macular Degeneration? Because you're splitting hairs to dismiss it as "not blind". :mad:

It really does depend on the progression of the disease. My father was diagnosed with it about 10 years ago, and only this year has it been determined that he cannot drive. He would in no way consider himself blind.

[jeanrw]

It really does depend on the progression of the disease.
Yes, it does. I worked for / with a man who's had macular degeneration for more than 12 years. He certainly doesn't consider himself blind though he no longer drives.

[LakeMartinGal]

'cause I can't explain myself well. Language impaired today.
I have days like that, too... :)

[newtricks]

OK, you know people with Macular Degeneration who don't consider themselves blind. I'll give you that. But why even go there with that comment in the first place? He has a physical condition that necessitates sunglasses (which is the leading cause of..... blindness btw www.macular.org/disease.html). The president questioned him on it. Oops. Not really a big deal. But, again, I don't see why one would automatically look for a reason to say that W didn't put his foot in his mouth. He did. Expect people to get a giggle out of it and move on.

If Hillary Clinton did something similar that would be on a lot of different blogs and would be defended by a lot of different people.

[myredcactus]

hey kids... maybe it's time we all just chilled out.



:cool: <-- not blind, just likes his shades.

[JJ40]

hey kids... maybe it's time we all just chilled out.

A big amen to that.

Have to admit, I got a chuckle out of it. And kudos to W (and I have to admit, I think that's the first time he ever got a kudos out of me) for recognizing his faux pas and calling to apologize.

[Wendy w]

A big amen to that.

Have to admit, I got a chuckle out of it. And kudos to W (and I have to admit, I think that's the first time he ever got a kudos out of me) for recognizing his faux pas and calling to apologize.

Same here. Usually, the man can do nothing right as far as I'm concerned and this was the right thing. No pun intended. ;)

[honeygirl1971]

IMO, as far as W's gaffes go, this one was pretty minor, and I'm glad he apologized (extremely rare for him). Still, you gotta wonder, why does he GO there?? If I was giving a press conference and noticed a reporter wearing sunglasses on a gray day, I would not comment on it! I would assume it was none of my business and what is more, that it was likely a medical issue, and I would see it as inappropriate to call attention to it or to question the reporter about it. He just walks right into these things without thinking. So typical. :rolleyes:

[SusanMac]

Yes, it's minor. Yes, it did make me chuckle, and mainly for the reason that Honeygirl mentioned. Only W would even comment on it in a press conference. He has such a goofy way of communicating. It goes along w/his winking & nicknames. Very unique for a Pres. It's why a lot of people like him, actually, b/c it makes him "real." (...also why a lot of people cringe :-)

[Randi R]

Yes, it's minor. Yes, it did make me chuckle, and mainly for the reason that Honeygirl mentioned. Only W would even comment on it in a press conference. He has such a goofy way of communicating. It goes along w/his winking & nicknames. Very unique for a Pres. It's why a lot of people like him, actually, b/c it makes him "real." (...also why a lot of people cringe :-)

"real"? Oh, I hope that's not the definition.