The bush "middle finger" is a pen.

[Skinner]

Here is a link to the QuickTime movie:

http://homepage.mac.com/onegoodmove/movies/bushflips.mov

I looked at the frame by frame. It's not a thumb. And that's not a middle finger. It's a pen. He's pumping his fist in the air as a sign of victory. But he's got a pen between his fingers. Note the tiny little nob on the right side of the thing that is sticking up -- that's the little clip on every pen that you use to clip it to your pocket protector.



ON EDIT: Look closely at the two blown-up pictures. The one on the left shows a hand gesture that is not possible with a thumb or a middle finger.

[wicket]

1. Interesting

Thanks!

[Born Free]

203. I once had a fellow scratch his nose with the middle finger

However, it was just his way of giving me the finger to my face without attracting too much attention and it also would serve as his excuse should he be called into the office for inciting work place violence- one of the easiest ways to get fired where I work. Not everyone uses the clear and easy finger some use props for various reasons, mostly to have excuses to cover up, but that doesn't change the meaning ,
of the gesture to those receiving it.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

2. He carries around a skin-colored pen?

Eww...

[SheepyMcSheepster]

13. you can see it turn "whiter" the further he goes in the building

at least that's what it looks like to me.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

19. Yeah, most things do turn whiter...

...the closer you get to centers of power in this country.

[SheepyMcSheepster]

37. baddabing!

:silly:

[brainshrub]

84. Ta-da-dum-dum.

[Lisa]

189. best DU quote this month! (n/t)

[orleans]

196. LOL. and how true!

that creepy little frat brat--what a smart ass he is. the repukies really have something to be proud about, don't they?

[aden_nak]

31. Because of how MPEG compression works, colors will blend like that.

Especially in areas of high contrast, which that shot clearly features. Though thanks, now I have the image of Bush asking, "Wanna see my skin pen?"

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

35. I know...

I worked with MPEG video for quite a while, actually. I just think this thread, indeed this whole ruckus, is pretty funny.

[Booster]

45. I agree. What the Hell is the matter with all of us; of all the things

Bush has done, we are focused on whether he gave us the finger.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

95. He's been giving everyone the finger for the last 10 years.

Sometimes I wish he'd never sobered up.

[pnorman]

130. You're right about that..

This pic is not only ambiguous but the discussion is pretty well pointless. Far more serious topics out there.

However, there's a video of Dubya fliping the finger which appears to be not only authentic but unmistakeable. I see it here occasionally as a sig line, but I seem to have mislaid it's URL. Can anyone here help?

pnorman

[tblue37]

207. Here is a URL for it.

[tblue37]

208. Cool!

I didn't realize posting the URL would actually get the video clip into the reply!

[IndyOp]

141. Nice Republicans abandoned Nixon after they heard him use the "F"

word repeatedly on the Whitehouse tapes. People who didn't think the Watergate break-in was all that serious, were disgusted with his language - it exposed his behind-the-scenes persona to the voters.

I believe Skinner's assessment that *'s finger in the MSNBC video is actually a pen is on target.

We DO, however, have perfectly good photos and video of * giving the bird and we ought to use them.

The * finger shot in bushisanidiot's sig line is from a live action video in which you can hear * saying "one finger victory salute" and then giving the camera the bird:

<http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x4210049#4210141>

He is an immature, coarse, frat boy - far from the moral icon he is made out to be and we should expose that.

[Booster]

147. I agree.

"He is an immature, coarse, frat boy - far from the moral icon he is made out to be and we should expose that."

And we should be using that other video where there is absolutely no question about which finger he is using rather than this one which is really hard to tell. I don't dispute that we should use every thing we can to out this fraud, but the other video should be shown on Leno, etc.

[FreedomAngel82]

164. I think Bush is probably like that in private

He always puts up a fake act of "compassion" and being a "good Christian" and everything.

[aden_nak]

75. Ah, then you gots it. And yes, it is pretty funny.

[Uncle Joe]

123. Do you think his skin colored pen represents

honor or dignity? Also is he shooting the skin colored pen bird at the press or the American people, or maybe both?

[Starbucks Anarchist]

192. Kind of like Rove's flesh-colored hair (Daily Show) .

[Richard Steele]

3. A pen I might believe; but it surely ain't no THUMB. n/t

[Skinner]

10. You are correct. That is most certainly not a thumb. (nt)

[Skinner]

52. Actually, now I'm staring at it, and it might be a thumb.

But it looks too long and skinny to be a thumb. I still think it's a pen.

[johnnie]

69. I can't even see it being a thumb

Even if I squint I can't see how a thumb could look like that.

[Skinner]

73. I think it's unlikely.

But possible. Since the orientation of his hand is a smudge, its hard to tell. If you are still looking at the hand as if he's showing a middle finger, then you think you're looking at the back of his hand and the thumbs-up is impossible. But if you imagine that you're looking at the hand in a natural thumbs-up orientation, with the back of the thumb pointing toward us, then it is possible. But only if he has a really long, skinny thumb.

I still think it's a pen. But I'm not ruling out the thumb completely.

[MelissaB]

80. That would be a hellava long thumb. n/t

[Strawman]

153. delete

this must be reply to the wrong post day for me. three times today.

[Zenlitened]

79. Too vertical, too. And the wrist is not flexed over to the right, as it...

... would need to be.

This mad dash to proclaim "it's a thumb!" makes no sense to me.

[Guaranteed]

179. I think it's a thumb. He's giving a thumbs-up.

It makes sense in the context. And, the color...

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

190. The lack of people coming forward who were really there bothers me.

I still vote finger.

[tblue37]

209. Actually, I have read that a couple of reporters have denied he

was flipping the bird.

[alfredo]

204. It is his finger. I've played with the image in Photoshop

and I can say with some certainty, it is his finger. Looking at other pictures of him shooting the press the bird only reinforces that belief.

[pointblank]

4. I think you are right

Unfortunately

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

7. Call in Bob Dole.

We need an EXPERT.

[CatWoman]

23. HAHAHAHAHAHA

:rofl:

[Stephanie]

5. What would he ever need a pen for?

He can barely speak - I'm sure he can't write.

[Mizmoon]

21. nominated for best comment on the topic

:)

[pointblank]

30. He probably carries a pen around

so he can dislodge any pretzels that may become lodged in his gullet.

[movie_girl99]

40. i spit my water all over my monitor when i read this. ..

that was the funniest thing i've read today.

[Judi Lynn]

42. Hey, who doesn't love to "mark?"

It might keep him busy while others are trying to get things done!

[KansDem]

110. Kind of like those placemats you get in restaurants to keep the kids quiet

You know: tic-tac-toe, connect the dots, and those word scramble games.

I always like the "which picture is different?' feature.

[Misunderestimator]

65. LOL!

[UrbScotty]

139. He did play Connect-The-Dots with Tom DeLay

Needless to say, it didn't go well for Dear Leader.

[FreedomAngel82]

166. If he does have a pen it's for decoration

[Bouncy Ball]

187. He likes to scribble!

Normally he uses the Washable Crayon Markers (he gets outside of the paper a bit), but in public, they make him carry his "special pen" and he was holding it up because he's excited that he gets to scribble soon!

[ScreamingMeemie]

6. I've reserved judgement. We have bigger troubles than this, but I still

can't make out what it is. :hi:

[SheepyMcSheepster]

8. i agree

you can see it turn white as he gets further into the building.
it doesn't look like a thumb and it doesn't look like a finger.
it looks like something else.

too bady we can't see his left hand earlier int he video to see if he is holding a pen.

[Beetwasher]

9. That's Certainly More Believable Than His Thumb

But I say we still say he's flipping the bird anyway and run w/ it.

[MissB]

18. Yeah, when did the Republicans ever worry about the truth?

He's essentially fucking us over anyway.

[Skinner]

68. It is ambiguous.

Might as well run with it. :shrug:

[fooj]

97. Ambiguous...

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Peace.

[Carni]

169. No way is that his thumb

To me it still looks like he did the old back handed flip off without turning around. I cannot tell from the blown up photo what the hell is featured. I am not just "running with it" but that looks like he's flipping people off to me. It doesn't look like a pen. Who carries a skin toned pen?

[johnnie]

11. I would go with that over a thumb

I just don't see how anyone could think that is a thumb. I can't form my hand like that.

[shugah]

12. but! but!

why let the truth spoil a good story?

does our side always have to be fair ;-)

j/k! thanks skinner. i was leaning toward the finger not thumb side, but it still didn't look quite right.

a pen. damn! ;-)

[Sparkle]

14. I got it......!!!

It's Clinton's finger!

[Gruenemann]

90. no!

a shriveled clenis!

[Ioo]

15. Why would he do that...

Was he blessing the pen...

You may as well say it was a carrot, becuase no one would do it...

[1monster]

16. That tiny little white thing on the side looks more like the hand of the

person in the background to me than it does a pen. Positioning is perfect for the hand.

[abbeyco]

17. Maybe it's one of his crayons???? nt

[Kraklen]

20. A pen with knuckles?

[Jara sang]

32. No way that is a pen. A flesh colored pen?

His hand is too angular, where was he holding it? Between his index and middle fingers?

[jmowreader]

78. How about a wooden pen?

There's at least one DUer who turns pens, and turned pens are popular. It's very possible that Bush has one.

[fooj]

99. OMG! Maybe it's a message to R2D2...

It's a sad day in America when dems look to excuse his unacceptable behavior. He's a prick. Period. His VP has no problem telling a Senator to "Fuck off"...Shrub has been photographed more than once flipping the bird...

You do the math.:think:

[jmowreader]

124. I know Bush flips people off

There's a famous photo on DU of Bush flipping someone off on camera. I remember the comment he made during the 2000 campaign about a reporter being an asshole.

But ya got all these people sitting around going "a flesh-colored pen?" Dude, get a piece of maple and put some padding lacquer on it. It will come out the same color as Bush's middle finger.

If it really is a pen, and given Bush's history it may or may not be, they do make flesh-colored pens.

However, given this, I'm still leaning toward it being Bush's finger.

[ck4829]

22. It's a tube containing Saddam Hussein's WMD!

:)

[KarenInMA]

24. Ok, OK, it's a pen. That doesn't mean we shouldn't run

with the finger story, it's the Rovely thing to do.

:evilgrin:

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

27. Even if it IS a pen...

...he still flipped them off... with his pen.

[bloom]

44. that is what I think, also

It wasn't any victory message. It was an FU to the press and the rest of us.

That is how I read it.

[AllyCat]

159. Agreed. The point he was trying to make was "screw you"

It doesn't matter if it was a pen, the middle finger of the guy next to him, or his brain on a stick. The point was: putting it in context, he was telling them what he thought of his little minions...not much.

That was not like any "victory" salute I have ever seen.

I agree with others here: he is a coarse, rude frat boy.

[fooj]

202. "his brain on a stick"...OMG- I'm in hysterics!

Thanks for that!:hi:

Peace.

[aden_nak]

25. It's definitely either a pen or Bill Clinton's penis.

[WeRQ4U]

26. Still think it's a thumb.

If you make a thumbs up, your fingers wrap around and fold under to the other side of your hand. Now, because the video is blurry, you can't see the individual digits. Here's my advice. Squint at it. You will see that you most definitely can make this gesture.

And unless the Men in Black have come up with this new type of top secret, flexible, flesh colored pen..........it aint a pen.

I'm done.

[Bumblebee]

43. as I said on an earlier thread, only if he is all thumbs!

[trotsky]

57. You and I will go down together on this one.

I swear it's a thumb. When I position my hand like that, it looks just like the still frame. If my hand were pixellated, that is.

[WeRQ4U]

72. I guess I'll see you in hell then huh.

LOLOL

P.S. Where did YOU buy your "FreeRepublic.com" pin. I washed mine and I need a new one. :eyes:

[kentuck]

28. It would have to be a pen...

because our honorable leader would never give America the finger. It just looks like a finger... :)

[Cronus Protagonist]

29. So what? He flipped the press the bird with it anyway

I don't care what it was, as his intent was perfectly clear. Crystal.

Or is it your assertion that the bird can only be flipped with a middle finger? If so, I have news for you....

:)

http://brainbuttons.com/home.asp?stashid=13
Buttons for brainy people - educate your local freepers today!

[kestrel91316]

34. I think you are right on this

[lady lib]

101. Exactly. Message is what's important, not the vehicle. n/t

[Cronus Protagonist]

119. Yep. As usual, Democratics ignore the baby and analyse the bathwater

:)

http://brainbuttons.com/home.asp?stashid=13
Buttons for brainy people - educate your local freepers today!

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

33. Skinner, in taking this to its logical extreme...

We can only assume that his middle finger has been surgically replaced with a pen! I saw it on prisonplanet!

[Crankie Avalon]

36. Are you really sure it's not a thumb??? I mean, I figured...

...maybe the little chimp was just trying to show off that he has an opposable thumb like us humans, after all.

Monkeys do have longer and thinner hands and digits than we do, don't they?

[Oreo]

38. I agree.... next subject

Looking at it again, I have officially changed my mind from it being his thumb to it being a pen. You can see in Skinner's 4th pic that his hand is wrapped around it.

Thanks Skinner... now that that's settled, lets call, email and fax the 15 House members that voted for CAFTA

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

41. Agreed. Next subject:

Did Robert Novak really take a dump on the white house lawn, or was it only Bush's dog?

[Oreo]

46. People are saying....

that Rove was caught naked with McLellan and Rove in a bathroom stall outside of a DC Metro station.

[bj2110]

39. OMG. We are really reaching here. Personally, I still think it's

obviously a thumb. Some people have longer thumbs than others. Look at your own hand from that angle with a thumbs up sign and the flesh blob it makes when you ignore the details of finger lines, etc... that you couldn't see in a vid like this. It looks the exact same. It's a thumb, people, lets move on.

[ibegurpard]

47. Looks like "the finger."

A lot of people seem to be treating it as such...why is it incumbent upon US to try to disprove that notion?

[rniel]

48. Are you sure

They didn't break into your house and perform some experiments on you last night like "the manchurian candidate" Of course with the extension of the Patriot act this is much easier for them.

I'm just kidding...A pen is plausible! Not a thumb though. I'm still betting on a finger cause I've seen him do that 2 other times already.

[Modem Butterfly]

49. I would never presume to send you a picture of my middle finger...

But when I look at the blown up pictures and my own hand flipping the bird (so to speak), it looks just like that. Maybe I'm holding my hand funny, but I don't think that gesture is impossible with a middle finger.

[DBoon]

50. I think you dropped two letter

you should have included 'is' at the end of 'pen'.

[countingbluecars]

51. Finger or not,

I'm sure the repugs will be demanding an apology from Jay Leno!

[Catshrink]

53. Explain what Jr. is doing with a pen?

There's no context for it here -- he's not signing anything. Why would he have anything in his hands?

Sorry, Skinner, I don't buy it.

[Gruenemann]

94. And why his RIGHT hand? Isn't he

left-handed?

[Virginian]

194. No, he isn't smart enough to be left handed.

and besides left handed people are in their right brain, and we know that can't be true of Dubya.

(Clinton was left handed.)

[ClusterFreak]

54. Dag Nabbit!!!

....are you telling me my appropriately outraged post of earlier this morning, slamming Bush and slamming the MSM for not covering the Finger story...was inappropriate??

Stupid frame by frame video evidence getting in the stupid way!!

Truthfully, upon reflection, I don't think a person can make a middle-fingered salute and have their index finger and third finger remain in a tight fist like that. Try it everyone, you'll see what I mean. Those two fingers have to raise up just a little, it's just how the tendons work, etc.

Shucks.


.....awe, but wait!!!! Maybe Chimpy 'shrub-stituted' his middle finger with a pen....so as to give us all the finger, without....really....doing......aw fuck it.

:grr:

[seabeyond]

55. oh thank you this is funny

yes i can see, and glad we were so quit to (we ya i know)to be honest about this.

looks like a closed hand all the way around. i can see

appreciate it. makes for an even more funny story. good call

[seabeyond]

61. close enough for me to not state it is bush flippin off. n/t

[MadHound]

56. Sorry, still think it is Bushboy flipping the bird

Doesn't look like any pen I've seen, nor does the object move up through the picture like one would move a pen, even if you're carrying between your index and middle finger.

It isn't a thumb, for it is in the wrong position for a thumb. And I don't know about you, but I can most certainly achieve the same shot, same position with my hand and middle finger.

Besides, this isn't the first time Bushboy has flipped us off, either figuratively or literally.

[Kadie]

58. I think it is his fist

with the relections from the background. There are several lights or reflections or something in the picture.




Whatever it is, we all know what he meant. LOL

[PunkPop]

59. Certainly could be a pen. However, it's not his middle finger.

But I'm just a freeper with mental problems so don't mind me.

[Straight Shooter]

60. We need to see the "before" images. Is he carrying a pen with him?

If he is clearly carrying a pen before he walks into the building, then, yes, it's probably his pen.

But otherwise, a pen isn't going to mysteriously materialize into his hand. Looks to me like he's flipping them the bird, he's such a frat boy.

Better technicians than we are will scrutinize this film and come up with the verdict. The main point is, we're all willing to believe he would do such a classless thing. And that is a very sad commentary on who's running this country.

[Lannes]

62. Maybe its a partial flip

He doesnt want to use the finger so he substitutes the pen.Well,cant do anything with that.

[Tommymac]

63. Don't buy the pen either...

From the sequence you posted, his finger or whatever is moving to the right...there is a person on the stairs in the background whose face merges with the "finger" as he moves - this is the 'white knob'.

No, it is a finger...which one, it;'s hard to tell...so I will go with the interpretation Rove would if this was a Dem...it's a middle finger! What's good for them is good enough for me...we have to stop playing nice.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

64. What does that semi-literate boob need a pen for? Spearing pretzels?

Though I think you're right. If not, the idiot doesn't even know how to flip the bird correctly.

[Obamarama]

66. Yeah, and the man in the moon is a lady, too!

I have a little secred I'd like to impart
That I hope doesn't give you too much of a start
Though it's shocking, it's completely true.
I know it isn't gossip or rumour of course
For I've had it from quite a reliable source
And I'd like to pass it on to you.

The man in the moon is a lady, a lady with lipstick and curls
The cow that jumped 'ovah' cried "Jumpin' Jehovah,
I think it's just one of the girls!"

She winks at the stars from her bed of green cheese
That isn't a nightgown, it's a satin chemise

Her friends are the stars and the planets, she sends the big dipper a kiss

So don't ever offend her, remember her gender -
The man in the moon is a 'Miss'!

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

67. Someone just posted on another thread that the WH claims it was his thumb.

So the pen theory just flew away like a bird....... So we know that they are lying liars, and if it wasn't an inocuous pen, and it isn't a thumb, it can only be one other thing.....

[MelissaB]

71. It still looks like the bird to me.

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

74. Me too Melissa. I just put it into one of my photo programs and enlarged

it, and it ain't no pen I've ever seen (and is the same exact color as his flesh), and if it were his thumb it would be the longest thumb in ratio to a hand.

[fooj]

122. You've got that right, girlfriend.

"One fingered victory salute." That's what the rat bastard calls it.

Peace.

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

137. I think it comes as naturally too him as that disgusting smirk!

Peace right back at ya! :hi:

[Individualist]

85. When the WH claims it was his thumb,

that's confirmation it was his middle finger.

[redqueen]

70. Looks like a thumb to me! n/t

[Goldmund]

76. No, Skinner. This is ROVE'S middle finger.

And is meant to distract from Traitorgate.

QED.

:evilgrin:

[merh]

77. Even if it is a "pen" as you say Skinner.

The way he fashioned it in his hand and then motioned at the press when asked questions is indicative of his intentions. He is a liar that can't even be honest when he flips off the press. He has to substitute a pen for his middle finger.

When we were kids, we would hold up the index finger, the middle finger and the ring finger and tell the person that we were flashing the fingers at to "read between the line" - it was still the flipping off gesture, just as what the prezidip did with his pen.

[Zenlitened]

82. Yeah, he wanted to flip them off while being able to say...

..."Oh, I don't REALLY flip you off, tee-hee."

Just as he can claim he never REALLY said Saddam Hussein carried out the 9-11 attacks. Wink, wink.

:puke:

[merh]

89. Exactly!

They can't even be honest about their dishonest and contempt for this nation. There is no honor amongst these theives. :nuke:

[fooj]

103. I suppose this is a misunderstanding, too.

http://www.nypost.com/gossip/pagesix.htm

DUBYA SHARES HIS DIRTY JOKES.

He's a lying rat bastard. Pure and Simple.


Peace.

[merh]

105. I don't have an online subscription.

What's it say??

[bushisanidiot]

81. Why would the moron in chief be carrying a pen? a CRAYON, i could

understand..

[Khaotic]

184. don't forget this gem

Poor Barney ... Shrub can't even keep a dog safe, much less a country.

[Pithlet]

83. It doesn't look like a middle finger to me, either.

My first thought was an index finger with the thumb bent on the side. It could also be a pen. But it is too far over to the left on his hand to be the middle finger.

[XemaSab]

86. what's a pocket protector?

Skinner, are you a nerd????

[Lex]

87. Why the heck would one hold a PEN up in that manner? To simulate

giving the middle finger?

[SmokingJacket]

88. Even if it is a pen, the gesture is "f*** you"

Why some kind of cheer as he's leaving? Makes no sense.

The set of his shoulders, the aggressive movement of his arm, and that thing with the finger or the pen is THE BIRD.

I felt flicked off. I *was* flicked off.

[Lex]

96. Exactly, even if it WAS a pen, it was to simulate the middle finger.

Why else would one gesture with a pen that way?

[Hong Kong Cavalier]

98. I noticed that, too.

The abrupt jerk of the arm as it raised towards the ceiling was almost exactly like someone flipping someone else off.
Aggressive sociopath that he is...

[marions ghost]

128. right whatever digit or implant ...it's still "Up Yours!"

a pretty unmistakable gesture in any language--unless he's trying to stifle a reflexive Sieg Heil (didn't Monty Python do a skit on that?) Exactly--what's the meaning of this OTHERWISE? I don't think his neurological condition is quite that bad yet.

Although I know the Resident still uses the fat crayons, I say that's too fat for a pen. Maybe it's a cigar?

[OrlandoGator]

91. Why in the hell did he randomly throw his fist in the air?

Pen, finger...doesn't matter. I want to know what kind of fucking exotic Tourette's syndrome results in that random "fist in the air" he did.

[fooj]

92. Pen or no pen...that "pumped fist" is a definite "fuck you"...

Right back at ya, Shrub.



Peace.

[merh]

100. So was Janet Jackson's nipple her nipple or a pasty?

Gosh, how many hairs can be split when the object and its meanings are the same?

I agree my friend, the pumped fist is a definite "fuck you".

:hi:

[fooj]

112. Hey lady...

let's take a pass on the kool-aid today...

:smoke:

peace.

[merh]

117. kool-aid, kool-aid

I don't drink me no kool aid!

I drink water, preferably at room temperature, no ice, nothing too chilled.

:smoke:

peace, love & rock & roll :hippie:

[fooj]

125. Bet those boy scouts wish they knew he'd be a no-show.

All 300 of them. Bet they could care less if it's a pen or not.

Hey, maybe he was giving them the "one fingered victory salute."

Peace.

[MelissaB]

149. Don't you want some? I call it kook-aid.

Isn't he a cute little thing. Maybe that's why kook-aid is so tempting.

[merh]

156. Oh no,

I remember him busting through brick walls when I was a kid! :scared:

No - no kool aid -- stay away!!!

[rug]

93. But what about the Zagruder fikm?

[Gruenemann]

102. It's not just the shape!

WATCH the video. The timing is that of a flipoff. If he were waving, the hand would move from side to side...if it were a victory gesture, he would be pumping his fist up and down. But it's a fast motion, lasting about as long as it would take to say 'fuck you.'

Watch it. It looks like a flipoff to me.

[smoogatz]

104. That's a damn finger.

A.It's the same color as his hand.

B.It's the exact length and thickness of a finger.

C.That ain't no "knob"--it's pixellation. In this case probably a bit of motion-blur. Note that you get the same effect from his cuff.

Somebody asked him a question he didn't like and he shot them the bird. End of story.

[opihimoimoi]

106. It don matter pen or finger...its the gesture.

[smoogatz]

108. Somebody waves a pen at me, I'm not offended.

They give me the finger, I follow them and break their headlight with a tire iron.

[fooj]

107. The one on the left is possible...

I just did it. I'll have a friend take a pic and I'll post it later.

C'mon. Let's get back to work.

Peace.

[progressoid]

109. Cool - he doesn't have to use those big safety pencils anymore.

[Stirk]

111. It's a thumb. Go frame-by-frame as he lowers his arm, and you'll

see that it's his thumb.

[fooj]

116. OK. OK.

It's a thumb...:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

Peace.

[alfredo]

113. Here's another image of him flipping the bird. It's been

altered using filters, but it has not be manipulated to appear he is flipping someone off. There is also another movie at a different time showing him shooting the bird.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=104&topic_id=4211333&mesg_id=4211591

[electron_blue]

115. Here's a clear as day video of him flipping the bird

http://www.ooze.com/finger/bush-finger.mov

no need to talk about filters, thumbs, pens or whatnot.

yes, indeedy, this is who 50% of America picked to bring morals back to the white house.

what an ass.

[fooj]

120. "One fingered victory salute."

You heard the President.

Peace.

[fooj]

129. Bottom line...his reputation PRECEDES him.

"Fool me once, shame, uh, shame..." LOL!

Peace.

[alfredo]

135. Ignorant, arrogant, greedy

asshole. I think the people are starting to see that.

[fooj]

201. There's that creepy, long "fuck off" finger again!

:smoke:

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

114. The blown up pictures are too blurry to show where his knuckles are

In the smaller photos, it looks like the upper sections of his other fingers are above his knuckles. In the blown up photos, it looks like his fingers are all folded AT the knuckles, which would probably be physically impossible while giving the middle finger. I think we need a clearer video.

Also, is there video of Bush BEFORE this, while facing the camera, to see if he had a pen in his right hand? If he had no pen just before this happened, then that theory probably doesn't hold up.

[inchhigh]

118. Look at the reactions

The other people in the video sure seem interested in his "raised pen". there is a guy on the far right and you can almost see him saying "Did the Pres really just flip the bird?"

[DS1]

121. Well, they've always said the Pen is mightier than the Sword

:shrug:

[rasputin1952]

126. He's flipping off hte Press, that isn't a pen...Knowing what we do about

bush, it is his normal response to what irritates him. His #'s are in the toilet, he's being called out, and he doesn't like it. He's a hothead, and a cretin. I don't care if he flips me off, I'd flip him off in a second if we came into eye contact.

Who the hell has a flesh colored pen anyway?????...:eyes:...and it WAY to big to be his dick.

[fooj]

132. BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Thanks. I needed that.:hi:

[MelissaB]

127. Scotty just refused to comment on it.

Edited to add: There was lots of laughing when the question was asked.

[fooj]

131. Really? Wonder why that is?

I know. "As you all know we are in the middle of an ongoing investigation..." LOL!:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[long_green]

151. oh yeah, hahahahahahah

The president is a vulgar, vindictive, murderous liar. Hilarious.

[unblock]

133. IT DOESN'T MATTER IF IT IS A PEN OR A FINGER

assuming it IS a pen, what on earth was the intended message from raising a fist clutching a pen extending up where a middle finger might be?

right, EXACTLY THE SAME message as if he had used an actual middle finger.

no one carries a pen like that, and if they do, they certainly don't raise a fist like that unless they mean it to be seen like that.

[jpgray]

134. It's a thumb or a pen, or Bush has the tiniest hands in the world

If you look at the photos proportionally, and are familiar with anatomy, no way is that a middle finger.

[baby_mouse]

136. Actually, it's a garlic press

There's a slight bulge exactly where you would expect the crushing to happen. Also, giving the lighting conditions and the proximity of the rest of Bush's hand to the press, the shiny steel surface is probably partially reflecting his skin tones.

[0rganism]

138. You got that right. Every time he signs one of those Orwell Laws...

...it's like he's flipping off the entire world.

"See? I'm signing the 'Clear Skies Initiative'! Fuck you!"

"See? I'm signing the 'Patriot Act'! Fuck you again!"

"See? I'm signing the 'Help America Vote Act'! HAHAHAHAHA!"

Bush doesn't need to use his middle finger when he can just sign another piece of the republican fascist agenda into law.

[UrbScotty]

140. Riiiiiiiiiiight. And the media is liberal.

Uh-huh.

(sorry, I couldn't resist)

[MadAsHellNewYorker]

142. your screen shots and close ups do more to convince me it IS a finger

the middle finger to be more precise.

Thanks for point it out though :hi:

[question everything]

143. Oh well. Was fun while it lasted n/t

[sunnystarr]

144. Maybe it's a finger pen ... for those who care enough

to fuck the very best.

[glitch]

145. Bush carries his own pen? Where's the paper? Datebook?

Important "Presidential" papers? Was he just doing a crossword puzzle?
Or does he just scribble on walls...

Edit: he thought there'd be boy scouts wanting autographs!

[ProfessorGAC]

146. It Does Look Like A Pen In His Fist

I buy Skinner's take on this.
The Professor

[Wish Upon A Star]

148. Pencil.

It looks like a pencil.

[long_green]

150. I now understand the JFK coverup...

and how it worked.
Here we have a case of a man clearly flipping off the press on national television and people can't agree on what they saw (some of them because they don't want to).

[Blue_In_AK]

152. Even if it is a pen...

...why would he hold it that way? I still think he's flipping everyone off, no matter what he's using to do it.

[Strawman]

154. Nah, he would need one of those pens with an eraser

For when he messes up writing his name

[GracieM]

155. Index finger?

[Nordmadr]

157. I don't know what some of you are looking at? It looks like one

thing to me and one thing only. His middle f*ing finger. I have watched the video clip and the pictures in this thread. It's a damn finger! you are seeing the back of his hand as he walks away giving the people behind him the bird. I most certainly can do that with my finger.

Olaf

[elehhhhna]

160. YES, it looks like his finger--

You might note from this pic he bends his fingers at the second (middle) knuckle--just like in hte finger photo from today...

[Twist_U_Up]

158. I`m sorry Skinner but....

I`ve had alot of experience in this area.

I grew up flipping the bird,I think I was like 3 years old when I first learned it. I didn`t know what it meant until I was like 6 or 7.

After that it was completely down hill. I flipped everyone off and used to love it when someone would flip one back at me.

I am an excellent source to decide if this is a flip or a thumbs up or even a pen and I can say without a doubt that this was definetly a FUCK YOU Press Flip with a school boy flair.

Just look at the source, the schrub is a sure flipper. Hes been flipping it for years,maybe as long as me !!!

[elehhhhna]

162. Yep, and you CAN see the shadow of the hair on his hands,

i tell ya it's the finger.

[FreedomAngel82]

161. If you watch the video

You can clearly see he is flipping off the camera. It's no pen or any crap like that. He's really doing it. This should be everywhere. Show what kind of "Christian" he is. I hope Jon Stewart shows this tonight.

[elehhhhna]

163. Where's the video?

[Tim4319]

167. heres a link

Try this one

http://homepage.mac.com/onegoodmove/movies/bushflips.mov

[Shakespeare]

165. "We're number one! We're number one!"

That mouth-breather is just one foam-finger away from being some drunken idiot at a sporting event . . . which is pretty much a metaphor for his entire life.

[Twist_U_Up]

168. hear ye hear ye

a true village idiot

[Twist_U_Up]

170. Just look at the way he drops it at the end

like hes getting away with something, a school boy at heart

[Ranec]

171. Fire Leno! n/t

[Im_Your_Huckleberry]

172. sorry, not buying it...

hold a pen like you'd just been writing, and it won't stick out from your fist straight like that. it sticks out at an angle away from the thumb. also it likely wouldn't stick out that far, unless you hold the pen tip very far from your hand when writing. most people hold it fairly close to the tip. no, i think he's just a smarmy, infantile asswipe who thinks he's funny.

[Jersey Devil]

173. I saw a guy in court claim his penis was a thumb

Yep. He exposed himself to a toll collector on the George Washington Bridge and at the time of trial claimed the toll collector had mistaken his thumb, which he said was on his lap, for his penis. The judge thought it was so funny he took a couple of months off his sentence.

Do you suppose that guy and * have the same lawyer?

Sorry Skinner - it was his middle finger.

[Kurovski]

174. Surrogate middle finger.

The joke's on us either way.

[Walt Starr]

175. Yup, I looked at it REALLY closely

He was asked if CAFTA would pass. His repsonse was to hold up his pen as if to say, "I'm signing it with this."

[ElectroPrincess]

176. Whoa!

Both the left and the right spins us round-and-round.

IMO this is a STELLAR example highlighting the difference between Republicans and Democrats. A Republican would NOT ever counter a fellow Republican who was able to degrade Clinton.

If this were Clinton's gesture, this pausible second theory would NOT be forwarded because Republicans close ranks.

Yah, dispicable. However, with regard to this instance = IMO

"Bullshit! That's no pen. No way! No how! George W. Bush was, in essence, giving The American People "the finger." Why are these apologists trying to lie for that BAD BAD man? I'm appauled and disgusted ... we DEMAND an apology!?!


< Psssst!!!! Are you NOW catching on to how Republicans tend to win in this dirty game?> ;)

[seabeyond]

177. re looked and looking more with son, could be a finger

palm facing the reporters. would have to see how the whole arm is positioned.

too bad scotty cant just say, hey all knock it off, he was holding a pen up. but oh no, we cant even getting answer on this.

looking at the pictures i am seeing the fingers down in the palm and thumb crossing, as if he held up palm to journalist, not knuckles

[Khaotic]

178. Yeah, yeah ... it's a pen

As much as it looked like 'the bird' when I first saw it ... upon further scurtiny, I think it's a pen.

I went frame by frame and when you can very first see his hand the "finger" is already extended.

Since when does anyone walking down a hall (even Shrub) pre-position their middle finger before giving the bird?

I know, I know ... we're talking about Shrub.



... but still, even someone as mentally challenged as him probably wouldn't pre-load the bird before holding it up.

Then again it does look pretty pre-loaded here:



Or see the video here: http://vjarmy.com/junkbin/bushuncensored.mov

Did anyone happen to TIVO/DVR Leno?

I'm sure it's easier to see without the compression used to make the .mov file.

A higher-res copy could be posted to even more scurtiny.

Even without anything else though ... the way he raised it up and put it back down (the whole time extended), I don't think he used the bird.

The above image, however, is real and taken from the video. It's real, he gave the bird, it's true.

Then there's that wedding in '92 after he went "cold turkey" from booze back in '86.


http://www.thesmokinggun.com/bush/bush.html

Check out his stellar performance there.

Now we just need the elusive picture of Shrub doing a line of coke back in his ... college dayzzzzzzzzzz.



Or maybe that's yezzzzzzzzzzzturday.

[Rex]

180. Hard to tell

the Boosh creature is such a shady character that body parts seem to melt into the background. Is it a pen, thumbs up, a wagging middle finger? In Boosh's reality it can be all three and none at the same time.

Crafty is the Boosh!

[Khaotic]

181. Similar pen, similar look

That's my hand with a pen, holding it up like Shrub was holding his pen.

I think his pen may have been showing more, but the overhead light that he passed underneath at the moment he raised his hand washed out his hand and the pen so they looked like they were one.

If someone had the live feed TIVO/DVR'd, then it would probably be more appearant.

He was holding his pen and at the question he raised it to throw salt in the wound in regard to the fact he was getting ready to sign.

I'm sure he loves his pen ... not that he doesn't love to give the bird when he thinks no one is watching.

Such is talked about here: http://www.lies.com/wp/2004/07/11/bush-gives-protesters-the-finger/

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

182. There is no thing on the side - that's a shiny object in the background

Skinner suggests that there's something sticking out on the side, that is the little clip built in to the side of a pen.

But if you look at the succession of images, there's a long shiny object further back than the "finger". Look at image #4 from the left in the smaller images. There's a shiny long thing that is clearly not attached to the finger or pen, that is to its right, but that seems farther back. In image #5, it seems to get closer to the finger or pen, but is clearly not a part of it. In image #6, the finger(pen) finally comes partially in front of it as seen by the viewer. By the time you get to images #7 and #8 (which were blown up by Skinner and posted below them) the shiny object in the background looks like it's become something protruding from the side of the pen. But clearly it's not the clip built in to the side of a pen. It's something farther back, behind the finger or pen.

[pitohui]

183. why would he be holding up a pen

doesn't make sense

it's a finger

we've been dissed, get over it

[Im_Your_Huckleberry]

185. partial retraction

after looking again at the clip - especially the frames where his hand is coming down - it appears to be his thumb. this does not mean, however, that he is not a smarmy asswipe. i stand by that much of my earlier assesment.

[hippywife]

186. I'm not too sure what it is

If you look at the first enlargement he posted, it looks like a pen in a clenched fist giving a victory pump. Although the second enlargement does look like an extended "We're number one!" index finger.

Either way, it doesn't change a thing...he's still an ass.

[tuvor]

188. Even if you're right...

...THIS ain't no pen.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

191. Post #4 from ChampionJack in this thread should answer all ?s

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x1966276

[ElectroPrincess]

198. Oh yeah, that's the way ... good ole' frame enhancement :-)

[Redstone]

193. Uh, Skinner> Have you EVER seen ANYONE hold

a pen sticking out between two fingers like you posit?

I haven't. And I'm old. Seen a LOT of people holding LOTS of pens, I have. But never like that.

Redstone

[LaPera]

197. Skinner, I think you may be wrong --- I understand trying to avoid

misinterpretations on DU which is very important -- However, "The truth shall set you free!"

[tinfoilinfor2005]

195. A pen? What for? A crayon, maybe.

And Crayola has a flesh colored crayon. Maybe he was in the middle of "coloring time" when cheney called him out for a photo op.

[Swamp Rat]

199. It's a pen. n/t

[Dervill Crow]

200. It looks too short to be a middle finger.

My middle finger and the back of my hand from the wrist to the proximal knuckle are the same length. If you look at the length of his "finger" compared to his hand, it's either a pen or he has awfully stubby fingers. It looks like about the length a little finger should be, and that's definitely anatomically impossible.

I cannot believe I'm sitting here an hour after my bedtime looking at a picture of * and measuring my fingers.

Good night, DUers.

[alfredo]

205. The colors tell the tale.

I further enhanced your images to bring out the colors.

[WoodrowFan]

206. that's even WORSE

In many countries flashing your pen like that at someone can start a blood fued that lasts for generations!

[bobbieinok]

210. the pen freepers said Kerry used in the debate???????