Saturday, November 08, 2008



The world's most "incorrect" national leader still in form

We read:
"Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's gaffe-prone Prime Minister, today found himself accused of racism after calling Barack Obama "suntanned". Speaking in Moscow at a joint news conference with President Medvedev, Mr Berlusconi said Mr Obama's election had been "hailed by world public opinion as the arrival of a Messiah".

He added: "I will try to help relations between Russia and the United States, where a new generation has come to power. I don't see problems for Medvedev in establishing good relations with Obama, who is also handsome, young and suntanned".

Mr Berlusconi said he had intended the remark as a compliment and those who failed to understand this were "imbeciles"....

Mr Berlusconi's previous gaffes include remarking to businessmen on a trip to the US that Italy was a great country to invest in "because we have fewer Communists nowadays and beautiful secretaries, superb girls".

Meeting the Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen in 2002, Mr Berlusconi described him as "the best-looking Prime Minister in Europe" and suggested he should have an affair with his wife, the former actress Veronica Lario.

Source

I suspect that Silvio was just having fun again. He is a very good humored and jocular man. He is 72 so comes from an age when far fewer things were "offensive" -- and he obviously sees no need to change. He did very well in the last election so many Italians are obviously on his wavelength. I must say I always look forward to his latest "gaffe".

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

So this is how it's going to go for the next 4 (or 8) years? Every joke is going to be cause for the cry of "RACISM?"

In the words of brad stein : "Put a helmet on!"

Anonymous said...

Under "The New World Order", humor is forbidden unless first approved by your local "Politburo".

I wonder how long it will take the sheeple, especially in the US, to realize that they control nothing. They deserve everything that's done to them!

Anonymous said...

I think the guy is hillarious. Finally a politician with a sense of humor.

Anonymous said...

Berlusconi is a demagogue - appealing to italian women in particular - an 'el duce'!

Anonymous said...

The actual phrase used by Berlusconi was that Obama was "handsome, young and suntanned". Most people would understand that to be a compliment. It is rather telling that the critics are generally only quoting the one word, and then twisting even that. Berlusconi's reaction is spot on: those who (in my opinion deliberately) failed to understand what he said were imbeciles.

Anonymous said...

What ever happened to that thing called "A sense of humor". Why does everyone have to be so uptight?