SHAME!

Here's the still. Go here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JGK-xbXxMw&feature=related

for the video and see that it's not a trick of cherry-picking photos for an awkward or out-of-context shot.

The President, and his staff's ignorance of protocol, resulting in abominable rudeness to the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom pales before this.

That is the backside of the President of the United States you see, as he bows low to King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.

You may recall, the President returned a bust of Winston Churchill on loan to the United States. And after receiving wonderfully tasteful and significant presents from Prime Minister Gordon Brown, gave him a set of DVD's that won't play on English sets and some trinkets from the White House gift shop.

If it wasn't a calculated insult, it was definitely tacky.

He also, by the way, took the Queen's hands in both of his. Protocol is for a quick touch of the hands. Michelle touched the Queen on the back, also not protocol. To be fair the Queen initiated a touch, so Michelle might actually have been invited to a greater intimacy than protocol stipulates.

Those of a conspiratorial bent will no doubt read very sinister motives into this. I think there is no need - even "innocent" ignorance in this case is appalling enough.

At this moment I am so furious I can barely see straight. Once and for all, AMERICAN CITIZENS DO NOT BOW TO FOREIGN MONARCHS GOD DAMN IT!

Much less the President of the United States! Innocent ignorance, or whatever motive you wish to ascribe to this. Our president has disgraced our country.

If it were a private citizen who'd done this, I'd say stay overseas because you haven't got a country to come back to.

I am going to be watching the MSM for reactions to this with great anticipation. I'll be watching to see how the MSM tries to 1) ignore, 2) make light of, 3) justify this.

Thank God for the Internet! It's very difficult to bury things anymore. (My wife saw it before I did - on the online Polish media.)

I have been a critic of the President; his ideology, his associates, and his policy. Nonetheless, I realize that these are differences of opinion, and my assessment of the soundness of his judgement, and have tried to express my differences in an appropriate tone.

But this is neither.

This is a disgrace.

Mr. President, you have disgraced our country. Every one of your countrymen who understands the symbolism of this gesture, giving the sign of submission to a foreign tyrant, is - or damn well should be, burning with shame right now.