Diplomatic Finesse
July 26, 2012, 12:44 pm
Posted by Margaret O'Brien Steinfels
Candidate Romney’s visit to England and the Olympics produced this interchange:
Mr. Romney: “‘The stories about the private security firm not having enough people, the supposed strike of the immigration and customs officials, that obviously is not something which is encouraging,’ Mr. Romney said in an interview with NBC on Tuesday.”
British prime minister, David Cameron: “‘We are holding an Olympic Games in one of the busiest, most active, bustling cities anywhere in the world. Of course it’s easier if you hold an Olympic Games in the middle of nowhere,’” an allusion to Salt Lake City, which hosted Games that Mr. Romney oversaw.
Best Friends?
On the other hand, we learn in the thread below on blackity-black-black etc. that President Obama couldn’t find the time to return Gordon Brown’s phone calls. It must be a really complicated relationship.
I’m pretty sure that nobody returned Gordon Brown’s phone calls. Even his mum probably let voice mail answer.
Poor Gordon Brown. Somebody should introduce him to Dubya, who hasn’t even been invited to the Republican national convention. I actually feel sorry for him, poor man.
Wow! David Cameron actually said, “Of course it’s easier if you hold an Olympic Games in the middle of nowhere”?
Talking big time SMACK!
It would seem that the PM adeptly mocks the one so-called accomplishment that Mittens likes to tout: the Salt Lake Olympic Games! Poor Mittens, he is forever avoiding any conversation of vulture casino capitalism, Massachusetts healthcare, or even his Mormon faith!
Apparently Cameron is the diplomat among Britain’s Conservative leaders. London Mayor Boris Johnson, in front of a crowd of tens of thousands yesterday called Romney out by name: ““There’s guy [sic] called Mitt Romney who wants to know if we are ready,” Johnson told a London crowd Thursday. “Are we ready? Yes we are!” ”
Video clip here:
http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entries/london-mayor-goes-after-mitt-romney-video?ref=fpa
Parliamentary debate style has prepared the Brits for the likes of the inarticulate Mr. Romney. Furthermore, their speaking in Anglo-Saxon completely flummoxed (FR. der.) him.
To give Romney the benefit of the doubt, maybe he is hyper-sensitive to security because we had that terrorist attack by Eric Rudolph at our own Summer Olympics in Atlanta.
Gov. Romney also made his own contribution to support George Bernard Shaw’s thesis that “England and America are two countries separated by a common language”, when he spoke about taking a “look out the backside of 10 Downing Street”, which in contemporary British English means, roughly, to “look out the Prime Minister’s ass”….
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/us-news-blog/2012/jul/26/mitt-romney-britain-gaffes
Hmmm! Doesn’t it have the same meaning in Americanese? Or is this simply Romney-speak based on the original Utahian? Or maybe just Emily Postum for whom the word “ass,” is unacceptable.
Thank goodness that he didn’t substitute “fanny” for backside.”
I lived in England in the late 1960s and learned very quickly that fanny has a meaning VERY different from what it means here in the colonies.
VERY VERY different. Believe me.
And then there was the time that the vacation substitute secretary bounded into my office and asked if I had a spare rubber …..