Bush to Pope Benedict: Come to dinner! Pope to Bush: Thanks, but no thanks.

[pnwmom]

Well, for once I like something this Pope has done. I'm shocked.

http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Pope_to_skip_White_House_dinner_0411.html

SNIP

Q Just to clarify, for the pope's visit to the White House, you said that now there's a dinner in the East Room in honor of the pope?
MR. STANZEL: Yes.
Q Will the pope actually be attending that dinner?
MR. STANZEL: I don't believe so, no.
Q Okay. Thank you.
<...>
Q I'm sorry. The pope doesn't attend a dinner in his honor?
MR. STANZEL: No.
Q (Off mike.)
MR. STANZEL: He doesn't come into the building.
Q Well, then it's not a dinner for the pope, is it?
MR. STANZEL: It's in honor of his visit. There will be leaders from the Catholic community from all over the country who are in town for that visit.
Q Is there a reason the pope doesn't attend the dinner?
MR. STANZEL: I don't know. I don't have the full extent of his schedule.

Benedict's schedule does not indicate any events that would conflict with his ability to attend the 7:30 p.m. dinner that Wednesday. He is just scheduled to return to the Vatican embassy in Washington at the same time after a meeting with US bishops at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington.

It's unclear why the Pope won't be attending the dinner in his honor, but he is expected to touch on issues upon which he and President Bush disagree during the visit, especially the Iraq war.

During his visit to the United Nations a few days later, the Pope will address "the false notion that might makes right," according to a Vatican representative.

Some experts also predict the Pope would criticize the "culture of fear" in the United States. The Rev. David Hollenbach, director of Boston College's Center for Human Rights, said recently that this culture is seen as integral to the US involvement in Iraq.

SNIP

[HCE SuiGeneris]

1. Snubbed by God's ambassador. Did God speak to you Chimpy and tell you why?

No?

What a surprise...

[Rex]

2. Maybe the Pope doesn't like the fact that George talks to God.

[pnwmom]

5. Or maybe he thinks he's been listening to someone else?

Someone who promotes fear and anger and war?

[MeDeMax]

3. PRICELESS !!! -- n/t

[man4allcats]

4. Why would the Pope dine

with a Pharisee? It would be sacrilegious.

[ljm2002]

6. Probably something to do with torture...

...I'll bet he was planning to come, and then the torture memos came out.

Kind of hard for a religious figure to justify associating with that crowd after it has come out that they sat around in the White House going over details of how suspects would be tortu... er, harshly interrogated.

[Wizard777]

7. Long story short. In the run up to the war. They told the Pope to go pound sand

they don't care what he thinks. But that was back when Bush was the second comming of Jesus. He was talking to God. He was God's warrior. The CIA had obviously resurected project MKULTRA. That had to be some damned good LSD.

:rofl:

[Mind_your_head]

8. Ratzo's following instructions to lend some credibility back to the church?

"Instructions: Ignore the bushman Result: the stupid *masses* will think you're intelligent"

[Zynx]

10. There's never been much evidence either he or JP II ever cared for Bush at all.

The church has always been staunchly opposed to the war as well as Bush's economic policies.

[peekaloo]

9. Bu$h: "Fine. That just means I get an extra hot dog".

[antigop]

11. Ratzinger does not believe in pre-emptive war.

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1727724-2,00.html

The Pope has refused to accept pre-emptive war as just, and a confidant recalls him shaking his fists and shouting "Basta!"--Enough!--back in the early days of the Iraq war.

[hlthe2b]

12. LOL.... I first read that as him saying "Bastard!" Enough!

Now, THAT would have increased my sense of Ratzinger.....(who, I really still can not accept as a Pope-- not that I didn't have issues with his predeceser)

[dysfunctional press]

13. maybe he's still on "vatican time"?? 7:30 eastern would probably be way past his bedtime in italy.

nt

[pnwmom]

14. I read somewhere that they didn't want to interfere with the U.S. election. n/t

[backscatter712]

15. There's hope for Pope Palpatine yet.

If he refuses to break bread with our psychopath in chief and is anti-war, we might yet be able to work with him.