Subtle Interruptions

Yesterday, President Obama was giving a speech at The National Defense University. The topic was focused on how America is going to redefine our approach to terrorism. Mr. Obama was addressing the U.S. use of drones and the potential closing of the Guantanamo prison. Repeatedly throughout his talk, the president was interrupted by a heckler named Medea Benjamin who works for Code Pink. Code Pink is an organization that opposes U.S. military action. At times during the president's speech, it almost felt like more of a debate. Mr. Obama was respectful and engaged the woman in a brief dialog where he acknowledged the validity of some of what she had to say. I can not think of too many world leaders who would have done that. That, to me, is one of the beautiful things about living in a democracy where freedom of speech is guaranteed. While Ms. Benjamin became too disruptive, and was ultimately removed, her point was made. Ms. Benjamin stated: "People around the world are tired of nice words from President Obama, and they want some concrete action. Some say that it is rude to interrupt the president, but it's rude to kill innocent people with drones." After Ms. Benjamin was removed, Mr. Obama responded to what she said by adding: "The voice of that woman is worth paying attention to. Obviously I do not agree with much of what she said, and obviously she wasn't listening to me in much of what I said. But these are tough issues, and the suggestion that we can gloss over them is wrong." I admire the president for leaving his prepared remarks to comment on what Ms. Benjamin had to say. He could have easily dismissed the interruption as a distraction and continued on with his prepared remarks. To read more about this article visit:   http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/24/us/politics/obama-spars-with-activist-during-terrorism-speech.html--