The British are angry. Their prime minister, Gordon Brown, traveled all the way to Washington and Barack Obama couldn't take a few days off to entertain him and give him some nice presents.
Brown and Obama met on March 4 in the White House and discussed the global financial crisis, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, had a lunch, then Brown delivered a speech to a joint session of the US Congress.
Still, Brown and the British expected much more.
The Sunday Telegraph writes that the British officials think "Obama aides seemed unfamiliar with the expectations that surround a major visit by a British prime minister."
I mean, Brown doesn't represent some small European island. He represents the country that once had an empire that controlled most of the world… the empire that first profited greatly on slavery and slave trade, then abolished it. Don't they deserve respect today?
The article in the Sunday Telegraph continues:
Mr. Brown handed over carefully selected gifts [to president Obama], including a pen holder made from the wood of a warship that helped stamp out the slave trade - a sister ship of the vessel from which timbers were taken to build Mr Obama's Oval Office desk. Mr Obama's gift in return, a collection of Hollywood film DVDs that could have been bought from any high street store, looked like the kind of thing the White House might hand out to the visiting head of a minor African state.
How could Obama give Gordon Brown a present that belongs to some African "savage"? Please president Obama, next time you have to know how to treat the British. They are human beings too (of a higher order, as many of them still seem to think), with expectations and feelings.
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Comments: 41
Do you think this strategy will work?
My thought is that it won't because the radical Muslims hate us because we don't honor their God, which as far as I'm concerned is the same God we have, just a different name. I could be very wrong.
Go have a cup of coffee and WAKE UP.
The Taliban aren't in IRAQ.
I wonder if the DVD collection was a re-gift. lol
The Prime Minster's wife brought some very nice, well thought out gifts for the Obama children, too. Michelle sent an aide down to the gift shop and gave the Brown boys models of Helicopter One! lol What a hoot!
This reminds me of The Beverly (Chicago) Hillbillies go to the White House!
I'm afraid that there are segments of the British press that drop below even the National Enquirer. Maybe the President had a lot on his mind, and maybe if the Civil Service in the UK were more concerned with solving problems than in picking out needless gifts, they wouldn't be nationalizing so many banks right now!
Presumably, the President and the P.M. met, talked, exchanged ideas, didn't insult each other, found some common ground, and went back home. We can watch the ends of Star Wars movies if we want silly pomp and circumstance. And now, one more for the cameras, please...
The only reason why NPR was the only place you heard about this is the US is that NPR is the only news organization in the US that has the pulse of other countries- it may be a silly story, but it was probably a big deal for some in the land of the Queen and Camilla.
Next!
speaking of teapots, an English friend of mine told me the story of an elderly relative who was found cutting the tops off tea bags in the kitchen. He said, "It's quite remarkable. These little bags have exactly the right amount of tea for one cup!" Indeed. True story, too.
Last time I made an adverse comment, I was not given points. So there we are for free speech.
Truly some are running out of things to whine about.
Watch, he leaves the toilet seat up will be the next repub crisis.
He should have stayed here, looking into the many disasters that HIS party's Government helped initiate, like Iraq, like the banking crisis, like.... (insert any crisis of your choice, there are plenty to choose from, after all).
You probably weren't given points because the rest of Gather isn't as impressed with your weak BS as you are.
I think you should reconsider the word "savages" in reference to Africans. Africa was the most intellecutal and advanced continent in the world before Europe bastardized their societies and enslaved their populations. Your slur could be used against Latinos as well. What's more "savage" than being a member of MS-13, 18th Street, the Latin Kings, ESEs, or Mexican Mafia? Do you see my meaning?
But, Hispanic culture gave us the Mayan and Inca civiliazations who built magnificent pyramids and an alphabet we still use today. A "savage" is someone without intelligence and respect for the public. President Obama has a lot of nations wanting his time. It shouldn't matter where they come from. We're all equal from Great Britain to Zimbabwe.
If you can't even get something as easy as a dinner and gift right, President Obama is going make people like Rush Limbough and Ann Coultor very rich covering his mistakes.
It appears that President Obama is dissing the Brit's most famous and stalwart leader by quickly returning the most famous bust of the man loaned to this country by the United Kingdom in the aftermath of 9/11. The return of the bust of Churchill flustered the British government because they didn't ask for it to be returned. Our best ally was nonplussed and even quickly told Obama he could keep it in the Oval Office where Bush had displayed the piece of art. Obama told them no thanks which made the Brits even more amazed.
To the people of England and the world, please accept my apologies for the two most recent dumbasses we elected to the office of the President. We F'ed up!
Remember the insult is only as bad as the person who feels insulted not how bad the person making the insult means for it to be.
The insult lasts as long as the person being insulted feels the insult was.
You may think these are non events, but remember you are the one being insulted.
Also in international politics when the word is spread that some one was insulted, it sends messages too all the other countries.
That is no way to treat a visiting head of state even if he lied them into war too.
It is the insult of the head of state, this was at best a lack of caring or lack of effort to understand. When there is a few thousands citizens out of millions then it is just those people trying to insult. When it is the head of state then it is a deep disrepecting insult.