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Obama, Suu Kyi And The Forbidden Kiss ("grave breach of custom")
IBT ^

Posted on 11/19/2012 2:07:02 PM PST by Arthurio

As Barack Obama appeared in the home of Myanmar pro-democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi in Yangon, the U.S. president planted a platonic, but very affectionate, kiss on her cheek (to which she appeared to slightly recoil in embarrassment). This act has surprisingly elicited little or no comment in the global press thus far – quite unusual since public displays of affection represent a grave breach of custom in virtually all Asian countries.

Obama likely did not mean to offend his Burmese hosts, however, as a well-travelled man of the world, he must have known that a kiss – especially one between a man and a woman who are not married; and one delivered to the most famous woman in Southeast Asia – violates local etiquette.-snip-

With respect to Suu Kyi’s apparent ‘backing away’ from Obama’s kiss, another expert on Burma, Frederic K. Lehman, Professor Emeritus at the University of Illinois, speculated: “if, indeed, she did back away, possibly it is a personal thing with her and maybe she may have felt it was not to be done in a Burmese context-- she is, after all, a politician and sensitive to how her constituents may feel about her behavior.”

Though the kiss has elicited no diplomatic incidents, Obama did make at least one other blunder during his informal meeting with Suu Kyi.

The Associated Press reported that Obama repeatedly mispronounced her name, though Suu Kyi politely refrained from correcting him.

The president called the Nobel laureate “Aung Yan Suu Kyi,” versus the correct pronunciation: “Ahng Sahn Soo Chee.”

Nile Gardiner, a Washington-based foreign affairs analyst for the Daily Telegraph, commented: “It is rather embarrassing, as well as sad, that the leader of the free world can’t even pronounce the name of the most famous human rights activist on the planet.”

(Excerpt) Read more at ibtimes.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: aungsansuukyi; bho44; kiss; myanmar
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1 posted on 11/19/2012 2:07:07 PM PST by Arthurio
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To: Arthurio

IDIOT.


2 posted on 11/19/2012 2:08:48 PM PST by onyx (FREE REPUBLIC IS HERE TO STAY! DONATE MONTHLY! IF YOU WANT ON SARAH PALIN''S PING LIST, LET ME KNOW)
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To: Arthurio

Obamagabe is perhaps the most crudest president we’ve ever had. He’s a complete diplomatic moron.


3 posted on 11/19/2012 2:09:15 PM PST by SkyDancer (Live your life in such a way that the Westboro church shows up at your funeral)
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To: Arthurio
ABC News reporter heard on the radio today (emphasis in the original audio):

"Aung Saung Suu Kyi, who EARNED her Nobel Peace Prize....."

LOL!

4 posted on 11/19/2012 2:09:46 PM PST by Uncle Miltie (0BAMA CHOSE to watch a MUSLIM SNUFF FILM rather than a HEROIC AMERICAN RESCUE FILM)
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To: Arthurio

Aw, dag; dude was just vending his heterosexual street creds.


5 posted on 11/19/2012 2:11:12 PM PST by Albion Wilde ("Not only no, but HELL NO we will NOT moderate our stance."-- Jim Robinson)
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To: SkyDancer

Too bad it was not in some wild islamic nation.


6 posted on 11/19/2012 2:11:18 PM PST by Mouton (Voting is an opiate of the electorate. Nothing changes no matter who wins..)
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To: Arthurio
. . . public displays of affection represent a grave breach of custom in virtually all Asian countries.

Try it in certain Muslim countries and you could wake up with your head missing.

BO, of all people, ought to know that, growing up in Indonesia.

7 posted on 11/19/2012 2:12:10 PM PST by Vigilanteman (Obama: Fake black man. Fake Messiah. Fake American. How many fakes can you fit in one Zer0?)
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To: onyx

No No you have it all wrong Barack Hussein is a genius. According to the media it was George W. Bush who was an idiot. I miss George W. every time I hear Obozo speak it’s like a small child talking to grandparents all generalities no substance.


8 posted on 11/19/2012 2:12:42 PM PST by cquiggy
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To: Mouton

Too bad it was not in some wild islamic nation.

then Obama would be all over a guy


9 posted on 11/19/2012 2:13:00 PM PST by molson209
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To: Arthurio

what a complete idiot.


10 posted on 11/19/2012 2:13:19 PM PST by DeoVindiceSicSemperTyrannis
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To: SkyDancer

Obama never MEANS to offend - but he goes right ahead and does it anyway. After all, he will be excused for just about anything, because, you know, he is “black” and the world gives a pass to the “oppressed black folk” of America. America treated black folks so shamefully, doncha know, and they can be “bad as they wanta be”.

And this guy is “likeable”?


11 posted on 11/19/2012 2:14:40 PM PST by alloysteel (Bronco Bama - the cowboy who whooped up and widened the stampede.)
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Comment #12 Removed by Moderator

To: Arthurio

Will the lapdog media hound Obama about making this unforgivable gaffe??


13 posted on 11/19/2012 2:15:40 PM PST by Menehune56 ("Let them hate so long as they fear" (Oderint Dum Metuant), Lucius Accius (170 BC - 86 BC))
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To: Arthurio

The boy did it on Purpose, not near as
stupid as he acts.


14 posted on 11/19/2012 2:17:09 PM PST by easternsky
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To: skeeter
Gaffe, gaffe, GAFFE.

No. It's not a "gaffe". "Gaffe" has no objective meaning; "gaffe" exists only in the mind of Big Media. Bath-house Barry will never commit a "gaffe", no matter how boorish, inept, or stupid his behaviour, because Big Media will never call it a "gaffe".

15 posted on 11/19/2012 2:17:46 PM PST by ArrogantBustard (Western Civilization is Aborting, Buggering, and Contracepting itself out of existence.)
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To: Arthurio

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNRXGRFJdDY If Ubama was a (R) this would be national news.


16 posted on 11/19/2012 2:18:20 PM PST by missnry (The truth will set you free ... and drive liberals crazy!)
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To: Arthurio

That doesn’t look like a diplomatic kiss...that looks more like he was rounding first, headed for second base.


17 posted on 11/19/2012 2:19:59 PM PST by Tex-Con-Man (<-------currently working through post-election anger issues.)
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To: Arthurio
Any other President would take care to learn the proper protocol when visiting a foreign country--but Obama is so brilliant he doesn't need to bother with that.

Obama probably thinks the name of the most famous human rights advocate on the planet is pronounced "Jesse Jackson" or "Jimmy Carter."

18 posted on 11/19/2012 2:20:05 PM PST by Verginius Rufus
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To: Arthurio

The King can do no wrong.


19 posted on 11/19/2012 2:20:37 PM PST by Brad from Tennessee (A politician can't give you anything he hasn't first stolen from you.)
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To: Arthurio

My Gosh....Has he been hanging out with Bill Clinton??


20 posted on 11/19/2012 2:20:37 PM PST by ExCTCitizen (More Republicans stayed home then the margin of victory of O's Win...)
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