The annals of politicized shoe gestures, far as I can tell, are less than voluminous. Coming quickly to mind: Nikita Khrushchev’s “We will bury you,” emphasized by a hammered sole. So-called “shoe-bomber,” Richard Reid, busted while allegedly trying to ignite a fuse in his sneakers. Super spy Austin Powers, stung by a precision-pitched loafer, who cried out to would-be assassin Random Task, “I’m going to have a lump there! You idiot. Honestly! Who throws a shoe?” And most apropos, given George Bush’s recent near miss in Iraq, Iraqis pelting Baghdad’s now-toppled statue of Saddam Hussein with shoes and slippers in April 2003.

So, given the competition, perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised that the incident in Iraq this weekend has taken such hold of global culture. Still, the story has prompted remarable responses: in the Arab world, supporters of the hurler, TV reporter Muntadar al-Zaidi, have taken to the streets to urge his release; a protest using shoes as props, is planned at the White House tomorrow; 95 of the top 100 YouTube politics videos today are about the incident; and scores of mash-ups, animated gifs and and spoof videos of the videos are making the rounds on the internet — some borrowing pop-culture figures, including The Three Stooges, video games, The Matrix and Monty Python.


George Bush Shoe Throw Austin Powers Remix, :25

Mashup: Bush Likes Shoes, 4:48

“These shoes rule. These shoes suck.” (Not safe for work due to language.)

Protest: Tomorrow a CODE PINK protest at the White House will include antiwar protesters and Iraq war veterans bearing bags of shoes.

Fashion tips: Hip-hop fashion site Complex offers a list of five shoes — many with nubs, spikes and knobs — that might’ve been better as projectiles.

Bush does stand-up: The surprisingly nimble Bush referenced what many consider a big boo-boo in his administration, saying he  “looked [Vladmir Putin] in the eye” — this was the year before Putin OK’d the raid on a Moscow theater held by Chechen separatists that killed 170 people, mostly civilians, and years before Russia sent troops into Georgia — and got “a sense of his soul.” In response to Saturday’s shoeing, he told reporters, “I didn’t know what the guy said, but I saw his sole.”

The comedy site 236.com says Bush is hoping his nimble response to the incident will help him “reshape his legacy” in Iraq: “Bush’s handling of the shoe-toss incident is far and away his most measured, calm, and reasonable response to a crisis on record.“

White House spin: Rob Walker, who writes for The New York Times Magazine, blogs, “I didn’t think there would be a way to reposition a guy throwing shoes at the President’s face as a victory for the American idea. But I guess there is.” He’s citing Bush who said “That’s what people do in a free society, draw attention to themselves” and Condoleeza Rice who said the incident “is a kind of sign of the freedom that people feel in Iraq.”

The Middle East responses: Iraqi officials don’t see it that way. The journalist is still being held in a Baghdad prison. Yesterday “thousands” of Iraqis protest his detention, calling him a “hero” (a poem posted on an Islamist site reportedly calls the man “a hero with a lion’s heart“). While many news outlets reported that al-Zeidi called Bush a “dog” while pitching the shoes, they (including this one) often neglect to include his other statement: “This is from the widows, the orphans and those who were killed in Iraq.”

The Libyan group Wa Attassimou, run by Muammar Gaddafi’s daughter, Aicha Gaddafi, gave al-Zaidi a bravery award yesteday “because what he did represents a victory for human rights across the world.” The group called for al-Zaidi’s release; he’s been accused of a “barbaric and ignominious act” and will be tried on charges of insulting the Iraqi state.

Then come the gifs, including this one spotted by Mediation…

…and these offered at Boing Boing:






And more:

Sock and Awe, the game, and what was on the bottom of the shoes:

Update: BBC and Arab media outlets are reporting that al-Zaidi is being tortured while in police custody