Prime Minister Berlusconi of Italy is very excited about Obama’s victory, and in a speech in Moscow yesterday listed, among Obama’s positive qualities, his young good looks and suntan.
Suntan?
Where has this guy been all these months? Is he for real? Will someone please break the news to him? Gently, of course. He’s obviously in denial.
Meanwhile, in this post of mine, I had said that if Obama wins, Indians claiming some connection with him would be crawling out of the woodwork. The circus, ladies and gentlemen, has begun!
The Quirky Indian 
November 7, 2008 at 12:31 pm
Check out my post on Presidential Haircuts:
http://www.sethandray.com
November 7, 2008 at 12:48 pm
@ QI
Berlusconi is an inordinately vain and stupid man. He has had hair transplant and plastic surgery to look young – pity they do not do intelligence implants. I think his innards are so corrupt he must stink. Somehow his country’s citizens seem to see him as a viable political entity. In a democracy people get the leaders they deserve.
Also: Italy also gets a lot of N African refugees so it is not that they have never seen a black person!
As for the circus, these priests would be the same who throw untouchables out of their temples? Would they? A 17 year old girl from a SC community once told me that when her friends found she was SC, they were surprised and said things like – “Oh but you are smart”, “Oh but your parents own their own house but mine rent”; “Oh BUT YOU ARE SO FAIR, we thought SC/ ST were dark people”. These are teenagers of India, today.
Har shaakh pe ullu baitha hai…
November 7, 2008 at 1:28 pm
Heh. Berlusconi is the Paris Hilton of the political world so I guess it was to be expected.
As you said, the circus has begun. Here is “The Hindu”‘s contribution to it. An Indian woman(mallu as well!) who was friends with Obama’s mother!!
Note the “We had a complex relationship and felt the connection at first sight..” bit.
Prasanth
November 7, 2008 at 1:51 pm
😀 😀
I always knew it!
i knew my cousin’s brother’s sister’s grampa’s second wife’s son’s nephew would definitely win..
We are close family..erm..wonder wen he is sending me tickets to the White House …
November 7, 2008 at 2:58 pm
@ QI
Come to think of it, Kenya declaring 3 days of national holidays for Obama’s election is not a million miles from ‘Bharat Ka Gaurav – Obama’. Well as alliterative possibilities go, at least he turned out not to be Kenya Ka Kalank. (I seriously hope that Ekta What’s-her-face doesn’t read your blog else coming soon to a TV screen near you…)
November 7, 2008 at 4:38 pm
I too am related to Mr. Obama.
During his hostel days, Obama had too much to drink and felt very sick. His friend gave him a relaxant and Obama felt better.
The relaxant was bought from a medical shop owned by my uncle. Now Obama owes his health to my uncle and therefore, I.
He is forever indebted to us.
November 7, 2008 at 7:29 pm
ha ha ha….
Am sure am somehow related to him…lemme try how 😀
Sun tan 😀 too good
November 7, 2008 at 8:52 pm
Sonal Shah is one of his advisers. I can already hear the bhavishyavanis taking place….
November 8, 2008 at 6:08 pm
Don’t be jealous.
I know very well Obama. He is a member of my family!
Yes!
I know very well the brother in law of the nephew of the shopkeeper who provides everyday beer(s!) to the the husband of the best friend of the whiskey’s supplier (he is my supplier too, but nothing to do with the story of course)of the one who used a long time ago to be a poker partner (and whiskey partner too… Eh! Come on! Don’t smile!) of the janitor who used to work in Harvard the year before Obama enrolled. And yes! This janitor who quited his job before Obama arrived (in fact he was fired because bad people said he was drinking too much, but of course it’s not true), knows very well the janitor who replaced him. And the latter is very close to Obama.
Why?
Very simple!
This guy knows very well the father of the plumber who is the father of the girl who used to date the guy beside Obama in his classroom.
And because the brother in law I mentioned above is like a brother to me, of course, Obama is a member of my family.
So, Quirky, if one day you are driving in US and get a fine, let me know.
I will contact the one who is like my brother, the brother in law of whom you know already… After a while (a long while…), don’t worry, I will be back to you…
But beside, you are related too!
The sister of the neighborhood of the brother in law I just mentioned, knows very well the son of the woman who knows very well too the whiskey supplier and this guy (the son, come on! be concentrated!) went to India for his vacations, 10 years ago.
So, Quirky, of course you are aware of that, you are related too!
Whoah!
🙂
OK Quirky, I have to leave now, a whiskey is waiting for me…
🙂
November 9, 2008 at 3:21 pm
@ QI
This is my view is the best declaration of why Obama is :
November 9, 2008 at 3:22 pm
Hahah the priests have said Obama seems to be a devotee of hanuman! Crazy people.
@shefaly: Since you brought it up I had a christian friend, one of the toppers in class, told me that since apocalypso was coming she didnt know what would happen to me (a hindu) cause her priests had said that christians will be saved 😀
Man I was freaked, she was serious!!
November 9, 2008 at 3:26 pm
typo *apocalypse,
interestingly apocalypse has two meaning
utter destruction and devastation
and
divine revelation of triumph of good over evil!
November 10, 2008 at 12:33 pm
@Shefaly – I am not very optimistic about anjaam-e-gulistan…..and “kenya ka kalank”…..that’s a nice one. Hopefully Ekta doesn’t visit this blog, otherwise you’ve created another monster….or should that be monstrosity.
@Prasanth – “the Paris Hilton of the political world”….that kind of explains it all. Thanks! 🙂
As for the link…I couldn’t have written the article better myself…please tell me it wasn’t real. Had to be a spoof. People can’t be that stupid!
@mystiquedew – I’ll see you at Chacha’s inauguration!
@katya – let’s hope he remembers all his ‘near and dear” ones…the ones he owes his victory to.
@Smita – I’m sure you can also find a very close connection….. 🙂
@LM – Think I’m gonna scalp ring-side seat tickets….need to make up for the Fashion debacle, and this one seems to be 4 year show…at least!
@Francois – which of course means that we are related as well…..I always thought you’d look like me if you grew a beard! 🙂
@Priyanka – all kinds of weirdos around….like I said, anjaam-e-gulistan can’t be very good
November 10, 2008 at 1:38 pm
lol. you’re so right. we’re pretty quick to claim heroes in india 🙂
November 10, 2008 at 4:29 pm
Stupid personified, perhaps? 😀
If Obama’s got a suntan, then I wonder what I am? 😀
November 10, 2008 at 4:33 pm
@Q! The sun-tan is obviously a overkill. In my theory was anyone but Bush. Anyways we’ll have to be concerned more about the outsourcing markets decisions.
November 10, 2008 at 4:50 pm
Nope…the piece was in The Hindu after all, generally straitlaced in such matters. Things just keep getting better. 🙂
November 10, 2008 at 5:29 pm
@QI:
Heh heh. Suntan indeed! Was watching TV a while ago – Barkha Dutt was doing the tiresome “Why don’t we have an Indian Obama?” jig. What had me floored was a part of Ram Guha’s response: the current Chief Minister of Bihar is one of our Obamas. Hmmm. Am I missing something here?
@ Prasanth: I protest. Please to refrain from insulting Ms. Hilton.
November 10, 2008 at 10:56 pm
This is hilarious and the comments make it even funnier 🙂 When I tell him about this post, Obama is going to be in splits.
November 12, 2008 at 12:21 pm
hahaha!
no wonder i always thought Italians were a lot like us!! :p
cheers!
November 12, 2008 at 1:55 pm
Ummm, actually, Berlusconi was trying a bit of sarcastic humour. He pretty much called it a “suntan” on purpose.
You could criticise him for being a racist, though
The newspapers tell me the remark has pissed of Carla Bruni, though. And if its pissed of Carla, its pissed me off too.
November 12, 2008 at 2:17 pm
Hahaha. Very funny. Am ROFL.
The comments are brilliant too.
November 12, 2008 at 3:25 pm
@Sonaljhuj – 🙂
@Nikhil – we are all suntanned!
@Chirag – 🙂 you’re right, we have to see if the man’s just an orator, or if he can deliver
@Prasanth – the end, my friend, is nearer than I thought!
@Smokescreen – Yes, I saw that programme on NDTV as well….Yes, we’re missing something here. But here’s the parallel I think Guha was trying to draw: both Nitish and Obama were elected on the promise of change and reform. Both have yet to deliver, though Nitish has apparently taken some tentative steps in that direction. Any parallel beyond this floors me!
@Indianhomemaker – be sure you tell Obama this at the next family/school reunion!
@Abha – that’s why they do so well in India!
@Hades – it might seem like that, but I think you give too much credit to the man. He has a history of such gaffes…this isn’t the first one. I am inclined to be a lot less charitable…..I think his pendulum swings somewhere between stupid and racist….but a lot closer to stupid!
@Trailblazer – :-). Welcome to my blog, and thanks for the comment.
November 12, 2008 at 5:24 pm
Oh man this suure seems to be an interestic stuff..Indian’s claim relation to Obama ;P gimme a break! Soo sad that the links are now showing up! And i couldnt have the full fun!
November 13, 2008 at 1:02 am
Hi QI –
Berlusconi is a shady character in the best of light. It’s not great for democracy when the wealthiest person in the country also controls the media and holds the most powerful political office. Seems wrong on lots of levels.
November 14, 2008 at 10:57 am
come on … this is Silvio Berlusconi you are talking about. He is as coo coo in the head as they come. You cannot take him seriously. As far as heads of state go, he is in the league with our erstwhile PM Mian Nawaz Shareef and lame duck Dubya…
November 14, 2008 at 11:00 am
PS: In case you have seen Berlusconi’s pictures, he has what in US is known as George Hamilton tan, that is orange in color. He must have been envying Obama’s chocolate brown complexion and wondering, “where saloon does this guy go to?”