Potemkin World or the President in the Zone

Read TomDispatch - Potemkin World or the President in the Zone As most of us know, the President is insulated from the populace by his design, after all why would he want to be exposed to any views that differ from his own? It amused me to read (in this article) that Brussels was "hermetically sealed" and the streets denuded of human beings as the Prez rolled through the streets. The same occurred again and again as he rolled across Europe. Looked good for the sanitized news right? Brussels is a vibrant city full of people, shops, restaurants and centuries of history. In fact, when my husband and I visited in Sept 2004, there was a weekend celebration commemorating US help during WWI, complete with re-enactors and restored vehicles and more. So, what was Bush thinking? These people like us, but he had the city locked down tight instead. Evidently Bush could not possibly be exposed to even a small view of reality.
Ah well, there is a monument of sorts, a fountain really, that is another symbol of Brussels, the Manneken Pis....which is dressed in a different costume weekly. I only wonder what they dressed the Manneken Pis in for Bush's visit...the media never said. They should have put a cowboy hat on the Manneken Pis, symbolizing Bush's manners in Europe...
FYI: the Manneken Pis, is a statue of a little boy peeing, that is dressed in various costumes year round.