Tuesday September 29, 2009, 6:43 am
A memoir by George W Bush's former speech writer claims that Bush administration officials objected to giving JK Rowling a presidential medal of freedom on the grounds that her Harry Potter books "encouraged witchcraft".

According to the liberal American blog Think Progress, Matt Latimer's Speech-Less: Tales of a White House Survivor reveals how politicised the medal, which is America's highest civilian honour, became during the Bush administration.

Latimer, whose memoir was published last week by Crown in the US, says that the "narrow thinking" of "people in the White House" led them "to actually object to giving the author JK Rowling a presidential medal because the Harry Potter books encouraged witchcraft".

The medal is given to "individuals who make an especially meritorious contribution to the security or national interests of the United States, world peace, cultural or other significant public or private endeavours". During the Bush administration, it was awarded to individuals including Tony Blair, Harper Lee, Muhammad Ali, Alan Greenspan, Nelson Mandela, Doris Day and Charlton Heston.

The first 16 recipients of Barack Obama's presidential medal, handed out in August, included Stephen Hawking and Senator Ted Kennedy – who, according to Latimer's book, failed to receive the medal during the Bush administration because he was "a liberal".

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/sep/29/harry-potter-rowling-medal

Tuesday September 29, 2009, 6:47 am
Uh becasue of witchcraft????? Do they not know witchcraft is not meant to be evil????? She so definatley deserves this medal!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Gorilly

Tuesday September 29, 2009, 7:04 am
seems like the ole bush admin was so fixed on ideology and politics that they couldn't see beyond their own arseholes. may be a bit o' magic would have shaken their tree and crumbled their intricately built dreamhouse (whorehouse).

Tuesday September 29, 2009, 7:46 am
witchcraft = bad, war for oil and religiously bigoted hypocricy = good

Tuesday September 29, 2009, 7:56 am
witchcraft ? a childrens book, who cooked this up? Then again I have to say, who want's a medal from Bush, who could hardly read ?

Tuesday September 29, 2009, 7:58 am
Pftttttttttttttttt Agnes...LMAO

Big Cat I practice it but I am what you consider a Green witch...A healer for mother earth...LOL

Big Gorilly Hugs

Tuesday September 29, 2009, 8:02 am
This really shows how much the Bush Administration bowed down to the extreme right wing of the party.

Tuesday September 29, 2009, 8:07 am
I would not want to have my head where George obviously has had his lo, these many years.

Tuesday September 29, 2009, 8:18 am
When the first couple of books were out and I heard that people on the right were against them because of witchcraft, I thought how ridiculous! Do they not let their children read or watch Cinderella either? Every day we get more proof of what an imbecile Bush is.

Tuesday September 29, 2009, 8:32 am
I find this very entertaining, since everyone on the Right is calling President Obama Hitler now, yet during the Bush administration, more books were pulled off our library shelves, then were put on. More of our freedoms were taken from us and anyone who spoke out against him was an evil terrorists, who is UnAmerican, Unpatriotic and the made up laws, were then placed into the Patriot act, so they could enforce them. Even when it flat out disregarded our Constitution......

I am also with those who say who really wanted a medal from the little hairy Bush anyhow?

Tuesday September 29, 2009, 9:01 am
If you are like me an adore this woman and would like to send her a thank you or just some encouragement. Letting her know, not all American's think this way.

Here is the info so you can.

Contact JK Rowling

You can write to Jo at either of the following addresses:

J. K. Rowling
c/o Scholastic Inc.
555 Broadway
New York, NY 10012

or

J. K. Rowling
c/o Bloomsbury Publishing
38 Soho Square
London
W1V 5DF
UK

Tuesday September 29, 2009, 9:03 am
Thank you Boty girl it will be done....

Blessed Be....Gorilly

Tuesday September 29, 2009, 4:03 pm
You would think that to the administration that controlled the US for the last decade and which seemed to be living in some sort of fantasy world witchcraft would have been no great threat.
If that wasn't bad enough now it's beginning to look as though the "Bush Administration Fantasy" is going to have a sequel.

Tuesday September 29, 2009, 4:50 pm
Of course they objected! They sympathized with Voldemort.

Tuesday September 29, 2009, 7:27 pm
and Cheney was the godfairy and Bush a leading witch so they would know

Wednesday September 30, 2009, 12:04 am
hahahahahaha

RIDICULOUS!

Wednesday September 30, 2009, 6:15 am
Thank you all for noting and commenting!

We all know Bush is a fool, and JK really doesn't need this from our country to know she has contributed to the generations and be known in the same likes of Tolkien, Lewis, White and all the other famous authors who use their first and middle initial as their pen names ;-)

Wednesday September 30, 2009, 7:58 am
so much for freedom of religion eh?

Thursday October 1, 2009, 12:17 pm
Ah!!!! afraid a bit of that Potter magic would of stirred up the wrong ingredients in their mixing bowls... and we would of all got to know about their secret recipes from the White House kitchen...

Thursday October 1, 2009, 3:05 pm
Well, ever since Harry Potter I have wanted to preform voodoo on people that disrespect me.
Not really.
It's a lot like people that hate, say, video games like Pokemon because they fight, or video games in general because they think all they are is killing people and watching their blood spew out. Yeah, I'm not really surprised to hear that it "promotes witchcraft," but I am disappointed that it actually happened and she lost out on an award for that reason.

Sunday October 4, 2009, 7:28 pm
Bush was/is from the dark side!!!

Saturday October 17, 2009, 8:16 am
George Bush is an idiot....he's an anal sphincter and I hope he's wallowing in anonymity.