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2007 Press Herald filePresident Bush and I don't agree on much, especially when it comes to foreign policy.
I continue to believe that we went to war in Iraq under false pretenses, and that the policies of the current administration have badly injured our reputation across the world.
My late father always taught me that it was always OK to oppose the policies of the president, as long as you held respect for his office.
When Jamilla El-Shafei of Kennebunkport planned her massive marches at Walker's Point, though I didn't participate, I admired her willingness to organize against a policy with which she so vehemently disagreed.
But with her latest project, "Shoes for Bush," El-Shafei has crossed the line.
When the now-famous Iraqi journalist threw his shoes at President Bush, he did not simply disrespect a reckless foreign policy; he disrespected the office of the presidency.
El-Shaffei's plan calls for protesters to throw shoes at an effigy of President Bush the day before Inauguration Day. Such events are a popular custom in Middle Eastern protests of U.S. policy.
In America, however, we don't need to assault mockups of our leaders; we have the power of the ballot, and on Nov. 4, Americans voted against the failed policies of the last eight years.
We have a president-elect who has called for an end to the uncivil politics on the far right and those that El-Shaffei has embraced on the far left.
On the eve of a great leader's ascension to the presidency, we should heed his call to look ahead, not backwards.
Ben Goodman
Kennebunk
