"While dictators rage and statesmen talk, all Europe dances — to The Lambeth Walk."

Sunday 8 March 2009

A Brief Weekly News Round Up: 1st - 7th March 2009

A couple of stories which hit the headlines this week:

1) US Senator Edward 'Teddy' Kennedy is to get an honorary knighthood from the Queen, it was announced on Wednesday.

Apparently this will be for 'services to US - UK relations' and particularly pertaining to his work in the 'Peace Process' in Northern Ireland (which saw 'tough on terrorism' New Labour, er, surrender to violent terrorists).

I personally feel this is an abuse of the Honours System - I find Kennedy to be an odious and highly dubious individual, who in a fairer world might be in prison (or at least would have been tried for what happened at Chappaquiddick).

2) Gordon Brown received 19 standing ovations for his address the the US Congress. However, all was not as it seemed - many members of the British press suspected Obama just didn't care.

This was confirmed when an Obama staffer told The Telegraph:

'The official dismissed any notion of the special relationship, saying: "There's nothing special about Britain. You're just the same as the other 190 countries in the world. You shouldn't expect special treatment."

To which my response would be: "Naff off you unpleasant, clueless little Leftist b*****d. Either that or let troops from Bolivia, Mauritania and Haiti support you in your foreign adventures, and show us how equal we all are. Here's how a real American see it."

There's nothing special about Obama, but that doesn't stop the world fawning all over him...

Any how, Obama was widely criticised for the 'gift situation'; Mr Brown took him several thoughtful presents, including a pen-holder carved from the timbers of an anti-slaving ship and a 1st edition biography of Winston Chruchill.

Obama got him a set of 25 classic American films on DVD.

The only good thing about this gift is that it inspired this image from the excellent Guido Fawkes (where all credit must go):

Apparently Mrs Obama might be transmitting her coolness to Britain through her husband, Lady MacBeth style; she can't forgive us for the slave trade, you see.

As long as she gets her husband to pass on her distaste to Arab governments and leaders about their role, and the leaders of certain African countries about their on-going trade.

Oops, best shut the blind - a pig just flew past.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

"British prime minister Gordon Brown thought long and hard about what gift to bring on his visit to the White House last week. Barack Obama is the first African-American president, so the prime minister gave him an ornamental desk-pen holder hewn from the timbers of one of the Royal Navy’s anti-slaving ships of the 19th century, HMS Gannet. Even more appropriate, in 1909 the Gannet was renamed HMS President.

The president’s guest also presented him with the framed commission for HMS Resolute, the lost British ship retrieved from the Arctic and returned by America to London, and whose timbers were used for a thank-you gift Queen Victoria sent to Rutherford Hayes: the handsome desk that now sits in the Oval Office.

And, just to round things out, as a little stocking stuffer, Gordon Brown gave President Obama a first edition of Sir Martin Gilbert’s seven-volume biography of Winston Churchill.

In return, America’s head of state gave the prime minister 25 DVDs of “classic American movies.”

Evidently, the White House gift shop was all out of “MY GOVERNMENT DELEGATION WENT TO WASHINGTON AND ALL I GOT WAS THIS LOUSY T-SHIRT” T-shirts. Still, the “classic American movies” set is a pretty good substitute, and it can set you back as much as $38.99 at Wal-Mart: Lot of classics in there, I’m sure — Casablanca, Citizen Kane, The Sound of Music — though this sort of collection always slips in a couple of Dude, Where’s My Car? 3 and Police Academy 12 just to make up the numbers. I’ll be interested to know if Mr. Brown has anything to play the films on back home, since U.S.-format DVDs don’t work in United Kingdom DVD players."

Mark Steyn - National Review

Looks like Obama now needs to insult the other 189 heads of state in the world to ensure Britain hasn't received any special treatment.

Dr.D said...

BO is a narcissist, and he is going out of his way to offend anybody and everybody, so you should not feel singled out for special treatment. In fact, in someways, it should be reassuring. If he did something nice, that would be a warning that he was setting you up for something. This way, you can rest assure he has no plans for you. I wish I could feel that comfortable.

The 1st Earl of Cromer said...

Derius:

Maybe he just sees Brown as yesterday's man. I think it's all about the moment with Obama, he seems awfully shallow and fickle.

I somehow fear he'll be too busy crawling to the worst of them to have time toinsult them.

Dr. D:

Fair point, maybe his lack of interest is a good sign. Keep your chin up - remember what eventually happened to Narcissus!

Dr.D said...

For any who would like an insight into Obama, I recommend this article:

http://www.faithfreedom.org/obama.html

It is somewhat old; it was written while he was still running for president, but the analysis is spot on, I think.

The 1st Earl of Cromer said...

Thanks very much for the link, most informative.

During the election his support-base seemed a little scary, with all the unquestioning adulation.

Hopefully more people will wise up as he starts to prove he has no clue, but who knows?