US gesture lost in Russian translation
"With smiles all around, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov gathered with aides Friday for talks on a range of issues, including the fight against terrorism, Iran's nuclear ambitions, missile defense and other topics. With a media gaggle looking on, Clinton handed Lavrov a green box tied with a green bow. He opened it to reveal ...."
Concept stolen from Ed Whelan @ The Corner
As far as I have been able to tell, this stupidity has been greeted with smiles and giggles. O how cute!
Had anything that stupid been done during the George W. Bush administration, the howling ridicule would have been, I think, deafening.
Posted by: ELC at March 6, 2009 6:29 PMIt just gets worse. Clearly the condition for getting an appointment in the BO administration is a lobotomy.
Posted by: Fat Man at March 6, 2009 7:19 PMYou missed the best photo, which also ran in today's hardcopy:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/washingtondc/la-fg-clinton6-2009mar06,0,4176153.story
What's so f****** funny?
Posted by: Hannon at March 6, 2009 7:19 PMMaybe a DVD of Dr. Strangelove would have been more appropriate.
JWM
Posted by: jwm at March 6, 2009 9:52 PMThis is all very funny. But frankly it's not ready for primetime. Unfortunately, this is more serious than a late night comedy variety show. When do the adults take over the production?
Posted by: boqueronman at March 7, 2009 6:34 AMLet's not forget. The Obama administration is practicing "smart" diplomacy - as opposed to, you know, that stupid stuff the Bush administration was doing. Ack.
Posted by: Western Chauvinist at March 7, 2009 7:42 AMA lot of people are going into therapy when they realize they miss George Bush.
Posted by: Fred at March 7, 2009 1:32 PMDid they look at a picture of a Russian cash register on Google to find the phrase "reset" but saw the "overcharge" button by mistake?
Even if they had gotten the translation right, does this "reset button" jazz sound a little corny to anybody else?
This might have worked at a PTA meeting in Des Moines, Iowa or at a staff meeting at a Dodge dealership in Buffalo, New York.
I'm so glad the smart people are back in power.
Posted by: Mumblix Grumph at March 7, 2009 3:08 PMI totally sympathize with Secretary Clinton; I made a similar mistake due to language and cultural barriers with a new neighbor last summer. . .
Posted by: Bob W (the new Kowalsky) at March 7, 2009 5:50 PM"It is impossible to speak in such a way that you cannot be misunderstood." -- Karl Popper N.B.: Comments are moderated to combat spam and may not appear immediately. Comments that exceed the obscenity or stupidity limits will be either edited or expunged.
AMERICAN DIGEST HOME