[Guest post by DRJ]
The diplomatic whiz-kids in the Obama Administration strike again:
“The State Department has conceded committing a diplomatic faux pas by sending birthday greetings to Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II a week early.”
I wonder how many times the Brits will have to say “No offense was taken” before Obama leaves office?
— DRJ
Pronounced "Patter-EE-koh"
E-mail: Just use my moniker Patterico, followed by the @ symbol, followed by gmail.com
Disclaimer: Simpsons avatar may resemble a younger Patterico...
The statements made on this web site reflect the personal opinions of the author. They are not made in any official capacity, and do not represent the opinions of the author's employer.
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Gazzer (37e378) — 6/4/2010 @ 10:26 pmHRC
Early in our marriage, I presented my wife her birthday gift two months early. But in my defense it was tax season, I had been working 85 hour a week for two months and both March and May start ma.
If only I could have had an expensive spokesman explain my mistake. Oh well. Better early than late. At least I didn’t give her a set of cassette tapes with my greatest speeches.
MU789 (36e540) — 6/5/2010 @ 5:10 amObama himself should have walked up behind the queen and given her a neck and shoulder massage. One of the great diplomatic inventions of W. The familiarity works every time.
Larry Reilly (fadcab) — 6/5/2010 @ 7:36 amOh, Larry. You just can’t handle your boyfriend not being The One. So—at least you don’t sound drunk this time—you resort to bashing GWB. “He did it too” doesn’t work for little kids, and it makes you look like a partisan hack. Which is a viewpoint you claim to despise in others, but amply demonstrate when you post here.
Eric Blair (e2121c) — 6/5/2010 @ 8:05 amBlah, blah, blah, dipsh!ts!! What we reeeally need at the state dept. is a proper lack of attention to detail! Jethro Bodine must work there!
bill glass (1d4df7) — 6/5/2010 @ 8:13 amI would rather have a neck rub by W than an IPod with Obama’s speeches on it.
PatAZ (655234) — 6/5/2010 @ 8:23 amMaybe they could have given her a gift of movie DVD’s that won’t play in European systems – oh, wait…
Dmac (3d61d9) — 6/5/2010 @ 9:00 amHoly crap. So much for the smartest woman in the world heading things up at State while the O!ne’s brilliance brings about Change, of the kind we hope there is little more of.
Is there anything too stupid for these idiots to foul up?
EW1(SG) (edc268) — 6/5/2010 @ 9:43 amNo, these guys could screw up the proverbial one-car funeral procession.
Beldar (75c3bc) — 6/5/2010 @ 12:14 pmbut, but, but – infallible! Ivy League!
enoch_root (174a66) — 6/5/2010 @ 2:53 pmHow the US State Department, the gang who is supposed to be up on foreign relationships, can screw up the Queen of the United Kingdom’s birthday, (it’s not like she just got crowned), or that they are probably one of the few countries who will fight with us, is beyond my simple comprehension.
Cheshire Cat (0cd6a2) — 6/5/2010 @ 3:31 pmUm, this is not her real birthday (which was in April), this is the day on which the UK government decides to celebrate her birthday. And it’s not on the same date or even the same weekend every year; it’s on a Saturday in June, but the government decides each year which Saturday would be most convenient. So there’s no reason why the State Department should have known when it was this year; they probably just went by when it was last year.
In addition, that’s only the UK celebration. In Canada it was on the 24th of May, so the greeting was several weeks late. In New Zealand it’s on the 1st Monday in June, so the greeting was actually right on time. In most of Australia it’s on the 2nd Monday in June, so it was a week early, but in Western Australia it’s at the end of September or the beginning of October! So there’s no special significance to the exact date, and no reason the greeting couldn’t have been sent at any time in this season.
When they should have sent the greeting was her actual birthday, when she actually turned 84, which was 21-Apr.
Milhouse (ea66e3) — 6/5/2010 @ 9:48 pmOh, and it’s Your Majesty, not Your Highness. If you’re going to nitpick the State Department…
Milhouse (ea66e3) — 6/5/2010 @ 9:49 pmMilhouse #13 – doesn’t the State Deparment save the “Your Majesty” form of address for their own Secretary of State ?
Alasdair (205079) — 6/5/2010 @ 10:46 pmMilhouse:
Good point.
On second thought, maybe I’d fit right in at the State Department.
DRJ (d43dcd) — 6/5/2010 @ 11:11 pmWhy would the Queen make a public comment or take offence? Especially when the entire government and royal family can tell hilarious stories about the Clinton and Obama at official functions for decades to come.
tehag (d11713) — 6/6/2010 @ 5:51 am