On 17 December 2008, the Guardian published a letter by Arab Media Watch adviser Chris Doyle, entitled "The boot is on the other foot."

The near universal acclaim for the Baghdad clogger shows just how despised the Bush administration has been. Using footwear to insult a Bush has history. In the main hotel in Baghdad, the Rashid, Saddam Hussein placed a giant picture of George Bush Sr on the floor of the entrance foyer, just so every guest could leave their footprint. Tony Blair, when making his historic visit to Libya in 2004, was given a clear sighting of the soles of the feet of Muammar Gaddafi, a snub largely unnoticed in the west. The hope is that with the end of Bush, the US will significantly lighten its bloody footprint on the region, and tread more carefully.

Chris Doyle

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/dec/17/letters-george-bush-iraq