As Mr. Bush had lunch with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in the capital, New Delhi, tens of thousands of demonstrators turned out in Azad Maidan, a field here made famous by Gandhi's civil disobedience protests against British rule.In many parts of the world, it'll take a generation or more before you can travel, openly, as an American.
The current protest, called by Muslim organizations and leftist political parties, was largely peaceful, but bristling with an anti-American rage that is not often displayed in India.
The demonstrators shouted slogans against Mr. Bush. In one section of the field, a crowd gathered to burn an American flag. The crowd began beating the flaming flag. Then a young man lifted a boy named Shoaib over the fire and instructed him to urinate on it. He did, bemused by all the attention. He said he was in third grade.
Nearby, a few dozen men stood under a banner declaring, "We are ready to become suicide bomber." It is a sentiment rarely expressed openly in India, which has had domestic terrorism over the years but whose citizens have not seemed to be attracted to the current global terrorist networks.
"Suppose Bush is here," said Sajid Khan, 25, a student. "I will suicide bomb to Bush. If we could get a visa, we would go there and fight."
Crowd estimates varied from 250,000 to 700,000, according to the city police and a protest organizer — or from 10 percent to 25 percent of the Muslim population of Mumbai (also known as Bombay).
Thanks, fuckers.
UPDATE: A reader writes in to email to remind us of that French-language tag by some US company that says
Gently hand wash with lukewarm water and mild soap, do not machine dry, do not bleach, do not iron, we are sorry that our president is an idiot, we didn't vote for him.More next post.
