During the early days of his administration, we were dazzled with reports of Barack Obama's deft displays of diplomatic tact. We recall, for instance, his giving an iPod to the queen of England.
Lesser known is the fact that he extended a gift to the Italian president during the recent G-8 summit in Italy. In fact, he gave a selection of American wines, including a wine produced here in North Carolina-- at the Raffaldini Vineyards, operated by a family of Italian descent.
I wonder how such a gift would be viewed by the Italians. First, wine is a major export item for that country; and it is an open question as to how delighted they may be, from an economic standpoint, with the reality of increasing American production of wine. Second, I suspect they might regard their own domestic wines as being far superior to wine produced in the United States.
I have to admit one thing, though. It was a better attempt than the iPod.
The iPod at first seemed like an odd choice until one read a little deeper and found out what was on it:
"Barack Obama met the Queen at Buckingham Palace today and gave her a gift of an iPod loaded with video footage and photographs of her 2007 United States visit to Richmond, Jamestown and Williamsburg in Virginia."
http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/tobyharnden/9355453/Barack_Obamas_gift_for_the_Queen_an_iPod_your_Majesty
Apparently, the Queen had asked for the pictures and video and her iPod was old and didn't show video. In addition, he gave her a rare autographed songbook signed by Richard Rodgers. (All he got was a picture in a frame. But further reading shows that's the gift the Queen gives every dignitary.)
Personally, I think the wine thing was creative and USA-proud, not to mention that it highlighted NC wines.
Posted by: Sue | July 12, 2009 at 05:33 PM
Sue, the story to which you linked reminded me of the gift of DVD's he gave the British PM.
I think the point of the objections to Obama's gift was the discordance of giving a relatively new techno-gadget to a elderly person who represents a deep monarchical tradition dating back many centuries. It was odd, and out of place. (And some observers wonder whether Obama has placed sufficient value in the historic US/British Anglosphere alliance, but that is another matter.)
With respect to Obama's gift to Italy's president, my concern is how it would be perceived by the recipients-- what they really thought about it.
Posted by: Joe Guarino | July 12, 2009 at 06:25 PM