Some claim US president Barack Obama's bow to the emperor of Japan was a sign of deference inappropriate to a president, that it is against US protocol, and that as leader of the free world he should bow to no one. One blog site said the president's bow was treasonous. Others recalled that Obama bowed to King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia last April. The Washington Times said it was a "shocking display of fealty to a foreign potentate."

Is any of this true and if true does it really matter. Tradition in Japan is to bow when meeting the Emperor who is head of state and also descended from royalty of Japan going back thousands of years. This is tradition and not a law and in any event would not apply to a US president. Most foreign leaders do not bow when meeting the Japanese emperor. So this was a personal decision by president Obama.

Was this bow insulting to the office of president, to the nation of America, or to US citizens. Some people say so. However I was not embarrassed or insulted. Much of this is as usual political and partisan. Obama made a choice that was right for him and there was nothing wrong with it. I have and will criticize Obama for adding trillions f dollars to the debt but this bow is of no importance. Criticize him for realo issues, not for what is at worst a social faux pas.

Let it go. Get back to the real problems we have and the real mistakes president Obama has made.