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Forty Jobs for India

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Michelle Obama made a stunning appearance last night at the State Dinner for Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his wife, Gursharan Kaur. The gown is beautiful. She is a striking image of both strength and grace. Our American Queen.

So what’s my problem?

I never like it much when commentators rip apart…figuratively, speaking…what movie stars wear to the Academy Awards ceremony. But this gown took 40 people working full time for three weeks to create? Oh, and they did it in India.

Yes, I get the connection. But I wonder what my friends who have been laid off from their long-term jobs think about such a spectacle? Specifically, I worry about a friend who had a high power job with a major computer company before they shipped her job off to India. She is now an inch away from being homeless.

But here is my main point. I recall during the campaign that Michelle Obama (and her husband) often warned how all Americans (and seemingly including themselves) must be prepared to sacrifice for the good of our country.

Examples (emphases mine):

We have lost the understanding that in a democracy, we have a mutual obligation to one another — that we cannot measure the greatness of our society by the strongest and richest of us, but we have to measure our greatness by the least of these. That we have to compromise and sacrifice for one another in order to get things done. That is why I am here, because Barack Obama is the only person in this who understands that. That before we can work on the problems, we have to fix our souls. Our souls are broken in this nation.

Most Americans don’t want much. They don’t want the whole pie. There are some who do, but most Americans feel blessed just being able to thrive a little bit. But that is becoming even more out of reach.

If we don’t wake up as a nation with a new kind of leadership…for how we want this country to work, then we won’t get universal health care. The truth is, in order to get things like universal health care and a revamped education system, then someone is going to have to give up a piece of their pie so that someone else can have more.

Well, Mrs. First Lady, we have sacrificed. We have only a few pie crust crumbs left on our plates. So, who is that “someone else” who can have more of the pie, thanks to our sacrifices? Would that be you?

  • SuperGalt

    Barfing in revulsion of that picture. :(

  • confusedinAmerica

    Take a look at RCP —- It looks like over 1/2 the nation is not liking what is going on in DC.

    http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/other/president_obama_job_approval-1044.html

  • http://www.hillaryorbust.com Hillary or Bust

    I think the excess of this gown is worth commenting on. I want to kindly ask the other NQ commenters though: PLEASE REFRAIN FROM MAKING “UGLY MICHELLE OBAMA” comments!

    My beef is not with Michelle Obama, nor her thighs, her hair, or her body. It is with her husband and his policies.

    Michelle may or may not be a nice person. But I can’t automatically condemn any woman for being married to a man I don’t like.

    I see far too many comments here and elsewhere commenting on Michelle’s appearance. I don’t like it when they do that to Hillary, to Palin, or to Michelle Obama. I don’t even like it when people call Pelosi “Botox Pelosi.”

    Just watch that you don’t start using sexist terms to describe her, just because you are angry about her husband.

    Thank you.

  • SuperGalt

    My beef is not with Michelle Obama, nor her thighs, her hair, or her body. It is with her husband and his policies.

    Agreed, it is what the picture represents that makes me puke.

  • confusedinAmerica

    The picture in this blog actually is a good one of Michelle.

    However the one on yahoo is not. Michelle has a way of crinkling up her face in many of her photos that does not do her justice.

    On the dress, Nancy Regan was criticized all over the place for the moeny she spend.
    Just maybe in an economy like we have now the Obama’s might just take some hints from the Carters as to what type of money to spend on clothing.

    JMHO

  • Pat Racimora

    Thanks Hillary or Bust—

    I agree.

    I would prefer that folks stick to the issues raised! There ARE real issues here! It’s not just about a dress.

  • tek

    I would like to know what is the real agenda of the politicians in Washington that they are determined to send our jobs to India or import illegal workers here at home. They act like they’re afraid of all these foreign leaders, afraid to do the right thing by the American people or incur the wrath of third world potentates.

    As for Nancy Reagan, I believe they had quite a lot of Hollywood money of their own to spend. The Obamas had nothing coming into office, yet they spend lavishly.

    I don’t care what MO wears, I can’t stand her. ANd she never looks like a First Lady to me.

  • Clara

    Wonder if MO and BO knew that the Indian designer would be gladly sharing the history of the gown with cable outlet reporters? If they knew, then they are truly isolated and tone deaf to what is going on in the country with jobs.

    I’m floored they could be so blind or cold not to realize they contracted for this gown to be made overseas by 40 workers – that’s 400 busy fingers who are putting their paychecks in their Indian banks. No stimulus for American dressmakers!

    The dress is stunning, but then, it’s hand made with platinum threads. Did I hear that right? Good lord. Our Queen, indeed.

  • tek

    And, HB, don’t forget the sexist, vicious things MO said about Hillary and Bill.

  • http://www.hillaryorbust.com Hillary or Bust

    Thank you…

    I am actually pretty stunned that the Obamas wouldn’t think about getting a dress made in America during our time of economic crisis. I was a never a big huge “Made in America” activist, but I do think our own government should be buying things made here!

  • tek

    I don’t see any post here that isn’t about real issues. The dress is the catalyst to the discussion.

  • http://www.hillaryorbust.com Hillary or Bust

    Not yet, but I posted early and if she’s the topic, usually there will be some comment downthread about her ugly face or big thighs.

  • Kathy in CA

    Wow! 40 workers overseas to make this gown? Yes, Michelle looks remarkable, but the oppulance is way over the top. To me it just misrepresents everything the Obama’s stood for during the campaign. There is way too much spending going on in Washington these days.

    Remember also we do NOT elect a King and Queen. Got rid of that a few hundred + years ago.

  • JennOfArk

    Hmmmm…suppose…just suppose…Ms. Obama selected this dress, by an Indian designer and made in India, as a subtle homage to the Indian PM and wife who were being honored at the dinner?

    Sounds like good politics to me. And truly, the dress is stunning. She looks wonderful in it.

  • Pat Racimora

    Tek–I was just agreeing that I really didn’t do this as a “bash Michelle” piece–I think serious issues are involved, and so far commenters are making some very good, critical observations.

  • Kim

    Personally, all this extravagance makes me angry. Many of us, out here in the real world, are barely getting by, and I think it would be a good idea for the Obamas to become mindful of that. I can understand having a state dinner, but they should have pared it down. I don’t like taxpayer dollars paying for a bunch of celebrity idiots to have a nice dinner and schmooze with the Obamas.

  • JohnnyB

    http://www.startribune.com/politics/72867647.html?elr=KArks47cQiU47cQiU47cQUU

    Full menu for the dinner (almost all vegetarian) with wines from the U.S. looks like a “made in the USA” dinner.

    As for her dress, we do live in a global world, I think that using an indian designer/maker when the guest of honor is the Indian Prime Minister also helps develop a closeness. We need one after bending over backwards to Pakistan, Indian’s #1 enemy. President Obama has been in office 11 months and this was his first State Dinner, and he invited the Prime Minister of India. Seems like there were other choices that could have been invited much earlier than this. I think that is the story. Good work Pat on bringing up the issue.

  • elizabethrc

    I think the Obamas are losing site of the fact that they don’t own the White House…it’s just on loan to them. They seem to be guilty of the ‘kid in the candystore’ mentality and are lapping up as much of this country’s riches as fast as they can, while they can. Their distinct lack of background into what America is is showing.
    What they’re presenting to the American public is a pretty selfish, thoughtless over the top consumption, be it the seemingly endless travel, vacations, golf excursions, Wednesday parties at the WH for their friends, extravagant clothes (the $500 sneakers), their specially flown in chef, and it’s all paid for by your tax dollars and mine. I want mine back.

  • I’m a Linda too

    i thought it very funny that the media turned to skinny lenses now for Mechelle. They have chosen the stretched lense to make all look thinner and taller. The poor guards looked like wooden statues, but Mechelle, she looked much nicer.

    But, aren’t we shocked that Mechelle isn’t complaining of touching up photos by shooting in a stretched lens, having Obama look mighty awkward, but her looking thinner? Isn’t that the same kind of touching up?

    I thought this little adjustment was quite tellinng.

  • TeakWoodKite

    This the first time in my memory that MO has worn formal attire that did not make her look instantly akward.

    It is very sad that, having just watched a program about the sacking of the textile industry in this country that there aren’t 40 unemployed garment workers. Hillary or Bust, are you saying that the taxpayers picked up the cost of this?

    I would say that it is a sutle twisted way of paying homage to the people of India.

    Thanks for the update since I had just seen that campaign donors were at the dinner. Something BO promised would not happen.

  • Solara 9

    But, Johnny B. Do you really think India will be appeased by a dress?

    And how much did that dress cost? Many, many, many thousands, I would assume.

    I don’t want a King or Queen. I want leaders who understand what most of us are going through, and by their actions reveal that they care.

  • Don X

    I think Michelle should consider shopping at Ross for Less for clothes for her next event. She might find some good duds there and maybe send the savings to a charity like the Mercy Fund or World Relief or Food for the Poor. She might get less criticism and become a different kind of model than a clothes horse.

  • Tex-Mex Soup

    woh woh hang on a second. She may be your queen but she is no queen of mine, thats an absolutely grotesque thought.

  • TeakWoodKite

    For real ImaLindaToo?

  • AF catfish

    Where was it reported that her dress was made by 40 people? Is there a link? (So I can forward it to Obot friends …)

  • heather

    I’m not sure what you mean by “nothing”. As late as just a few days before he took office, Obama took a half a million dollars in advance to write a children’s book, so I don’t think they came in with nothing. Or did you believe all their “we’re just like you guys” lines?

  • Elle

    My sentiments exactly ! The obamas are all about the “Royal treatment” and they are in the wrong country for that.

  • Stan Davis

    I have two questions, the answers to which I would have to have in order to form a complete opinion on this “issue.”

    What did the dress cost and who paid for it? Some of these things are funded by private donors. I think that that was the case when Jackie (or was it Nancy? Or both?) bought new White House china.

    Apart from the cost and funding, I can’t believe that the Obamas would think it’s okay to outsource the gown. That is, unless there are no qualified dressmakers left in this country. And that would be another story.

    All that said, the Obamas make a pretty picture. And state dinners are nothing if not great, big photo ops.

    Stan Davis
    Lakewood, CO

  • Solara 9

    If you Google it, there are a zillion references by now.

    Here’s a good one from a standard source (Wall Street Journal) with lots of detail as well as the 40 people.

    http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2009/11/25/naeem-khan-on-designing-michelle-obamas-priceless-first-state-dinner-dress/

  • Solara 9

    Here is a quote from the above link–reporter talking directly with the Indian designer—

    Q. What would a dress like this ordinarily cost?

    For a dress that was made for her, it’s priceless. My dresses retail anywhere from $5,000 to $15,000…so I don’t know. There is no cost to this dress. The amount of time and effort, the number of people involved in making this dress, and the time factor, there’s no price.

    Q: How many people are we talking about?

    About 40 people between embroideries and people who sew the dress and make the corsets. It took more than four weeks to make this dress. All the embroidery is made in my father’s workshop in India…and all the cutting and sewing is done in my studio.

  • SuperGalt

    Imelda Markos and her obscene show collection anyone? That’s what this obscene extravagance amidst poverty in America is to me.

  • http://www.rabblerouserruminations.blogspot.com/ Rabble Rouser Reverend Amy
  • NomNomNom

    jmo it’s a nonissue. Naeem Khan’s business is centered in New York; he has a line at Neiman Marcus. He makes plenty of work for Americans too.
    The dress looked great, the people involved in making it were paid, who cares??
    I don’t like MO, but seriously, if she doesn’t dress well enough, then she’s the “ugly American” and making us look bad as a nation; if she dresses well, she’s wasting money and doesn’t care about Americans.

    “Yesterday, I was the third-most Googled person in America,” said Khan. “It is unbelievable.”…
    The grandson of a textile entrepreneur who specializes in elaborate embroidery, Khan moved to the U.S. to attend school when he was 20, but later became an assistant for the iconic minimalist designer Halston, who he met through his father. The rest is fashion history.
    “Halston sponsored me. I became an American citizen. And it has been the most amazing life. My most amazing thankful Thanksgiving is this Thanksgiving. It’s an American dream,” said Khan, who got choked up talking about it all.

    Awww.
    Give the man a round of applause. He made MO look fabulous. It’s a freaking Thanksgiving miracle already.

  • SuperGalt

    Correction:

    Imelda Markos and her obscene shoe collection anyone? That’s what this obscene extravagance amidst poverty in America is to me.

  • NomNomNom
  • Kathy in CA

    A subtle homage to the Indian PM is all fine and good. The point here, is that this dress was made as if for a Queen – which MO is not. Even more to the point, we are still not out of a terrible recession, jobs are not being created, and our debt is skyrocketing.

    Personally, I think Michelle is very lovely and would look stunning in anything. She could have easily worn a dress from India without all the “royal” treatment.

  • Hank

    I wonder what the wages are in India? She must be finally proud of America for the second time.

  • NomNomNom

    sorry Solara 9, hadn’t read the other comments yet, & seen you had already posted same link

  • Georgia

    40 people working full time….just to create madam’s dress? Sorry … all I can see are children working 12 hours a day forced to weave intricate embroideries at textile factories. It’s quite a problem in India

    http://www.itglwf.org/DisplayDocument.aspx?idarticle=15831&langue=2

  • TeakWoodKite

    No it’s the dress Jenn not her. That dress would make any woman “glow”. I bet they green screened MO too.

  • Zut alors

    So our problem here is that it’s a beautiful dress made by skilled Indians worn to honor the Indian Prime Minister’s official visIt? Or is our problem that Michelle didn’t wear a dress ordered by a US company from a Chinese sweatshop all its orders have been sourced to? Or is our problem that they honored the foreign leader by dressing up at all? Or should they have canceled the whole thing because economic times are tough? Or should Hillary have worn that dress? Help me out – I’m trying to fit in here.

  • SuperGalt

    Why bother when you already know the answer: this is a hate site from a parallel universe.

  • TeakWoodKite

    One of the related links dated 6 november said MO was to appear on Iron Chef, promoting her garden.

    A first for reality TV. NOT. LOl

  • Tricia

    Read the post again, Zut. (or read the whole thing this time.) The dress is only a symbol for the message, not the main point.

    It’s about telling us to all to sacrifice while she spends a fortune!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • SuperGalt

    The point here, is that this dress was made as if for a Queen – which MO is not.

    I think Ms. Obama might beg to differ on that point. ;)

  • MBC

    It’s not her gown, her nose, her thighs or her hair, it is in her soul, something dark and very, very angry.

    Can someone explain Michelle’s statement to me..”Our souls are broken in this nation.”.and put a positive spin on it, because to me it reeks of hatred and anger.

    What does she know about my soul or yours?

  • TeakWoodKite

    Our problem? And “fit in” implies a need for acceptance. I will pardon you quicker than a turkey bound for Disneyland.

  • ladydawnelle

    Now that is the first time I have liked what MO was wearing! That is gorgeous!

  • Zut alors

    I did. And I reread it too. Nowhere does it say that MO or us poor downtrodden taxpayers paid for it. In fact, I expect the advertising will stimulate the fashion economy quite a bit. I expect the article was just a moanfest and another excuse to complain about M and B Obama.

  • SuperGalt

    In which universe, this one or the parallel one?

  • http://www.themirch.com/3591.html Forty Jobs for India : NO QUARTER

    [...] the original here: Forty Jobs for India : NO QUARTER Related PostsJoin the Gdi Home Business While You are Out of Work and Looking …Five Tips for [...]

  • Anna

    But let’s be fair: the Kennedys sponsored lavish shindigs too.

    And it is a great dress. She’s worn a lot of crappy stuff. But this dress is superb.

  • creeper

    That “made in the USA dinner” had as its main course curry.

    The Prime Minister of India traveled halfway around the world to be served…curry.

    Think about it.

    And speaking of fabrics, let’s not forget our late, great textile industry. Are there ANY mills left in North Carolina now?

  • sproutingly

    To me they seem like hicks at a buffet–I know because that was me as a kid.

  • TeakWoodKite

    It is reported that MO wore two other “special” outfits during the day, as well.

    I wonder what happened to that MO looking forlornly out the window of the moving train, while BO played with his phone, campaigning.

  • lightacandle

    What the hell does Michelle mean by:

    “That we have to compromise and sacrifice for one another in order to get things done. That is why I am here, because Barack Obama is the only person in this who understands that. “

    “…Obama is the only person in this who understands that”????

    Is she for real?

    She is just as much of a fraud as he is.

    Call me when Michell sacrifices for you or me or anyone.

  • Just_Saying

    I want to know if the taxpayers are paying for the flown-in chefs, pizza, and gowns. I can’t afford a new outfit, yet I’m paying for hers? Unbelievable.
    .

  • creeper

    Methinks you are on to something here.

    This is weird…I googled “michelle obama state dinner dress” to find images for comparison.

    Not one. Nothing. Zip, zero, nada.

  • lightacandle

    As I recall, Michelle wore a sweater from Lands End (I think it was) to go to Buckingham Palace and meet the Queen of England.

    Also, Obama did not bow to THAT monarch.

    Does he bow only to certain monarchs?

    Why does he bow at all to anyone?

  • I’m a Linda too

    Yes, haven’t you seen the vids?

  • lightacandle

    I think when the Kennedys had those expensive shindigs, our country was not in the frightening economic distress it is right now, and American jobs hadn’t been shipped out of the country, as they have now.

    The Kennedy years were relatively prosperous years for America.

    Not so today

  • NomNomNom

    textiles in the US total have shrunk dramatically as a result of the free trade acts NAFTA & CAFTA, and NC lost about 200,000 jobs all told, but they still have about 1/4 of the nation’s textiles, (about half of that is knitting mills) and it makes up about 12% of NC’s economy, down from 20%.
    one of the main public universities, NCSU, still has a very good textiles program both for traditional textiles an nonwovens and their Nonwovens Cooperative Research Center is one of the best in the world.
    http://www.allbusiness.com/north-america/united-states-north-carolina/1179330-1.html
    Our new governor Bev Perdue has just given a grant to KnitRite (out of Kansas, does prosthetic hosiery, diabetic socks, etc) and they will refurbish a small plant here; it’s just a few jobs, but at this point anything is welcome.
    Textiles have actually made a modest comeback in NC in the past decade. :)

  • NomNomNom

    admin, another comment eaten by Spaminator, plz throw it back up, thx.

  • Rich

    In the spirit of not making a negative Michelle Obama comment, I think in this instance we misjudged her action by saying it is not consistent with her comments about the fact that we all need to make sacrifices. I am sure that if Michelle had her desire she would have had the dress made in the U.S. by workers who would come to the White House to do their work, thereby supporting American labor and maybe even the Unions.

    However Michelle knew that she needed to make sacrifices for two reasons. One is the fact that the United States is not paying enough attention to India, who is really our good partner on the war against terrorism, and instead is paying attention and giving resources to India’s enemy Pakistan.

    So as part of her sacrifice she decided to send 40 jobs over to India. Also, the second reason was to save the American taxpayer some money by having the work done for much less in India. (snark)

    After all we do want our first lady to look great and she did, so job well done.

    Rich

  • Zut alors

    Talk about bending reality to force it into your thesis! Michelle didn’t pay for the dress. Nor did you. Nor did I. Just some wealthy people who’ll rush to buy imitation copies from this rather lucky designer and his firm.

    I can’t see a downside to any of this: India can showcase it’s work, M looks lovely, rich people will buy similar dresses thereby paying for it, you can get a bee in your bonnet with righteous though misinformed anger and everyone goes home happy!

  • TeakWoodKite

    Sorry, I have had the “Holiday music” channel on the cable. Not yet, but thanks for the tip I will do so.

  • lorac

    Full menu for the dinner (almost all vegetarian)

    I think that traditional Indian food is predominately vegetarian – that might be why the menu is mostly vegetarian.

  • Just_Saying

    Rich: “We do want our first lady to look great”

    I disagree. I don’t really give a flying fig how the first lady looks, as long as it doesn’t cost me anything.

    I would like her husband, however, to get back on track and start caring about the United States and its people…

  • oowawa

    Pat, I imagine you thinking about doing a ‘toon for this. I know how very difficult that would be. Would it involve a fairy godmother? No–I guess not. When you’ve got 40 seamstresses in India working for you, who needs a fairy godmother?

  • SuperGalt

    No disrespect to the dead intended, but the Kennedy that recently passed left us one hell of a mess with him throwing his weight behind dear leader.

  • lorac

    I bet there are Indian Americans here who could have made it, even recent immigrants. That would have kept the money here, and paid homage to India…

  • lorac

    ROFL axiom applies!

    Does the name of this one suggest that he may be from one of the planets in your galaxy, Galt?

  • I’m a Linda too

    Let me tell you. I was really starting to feel sorry for her when they kept showing her walking in Copennhagen in that yellow/gold dress that was too small and pulled up and gathered in her middle waste, it looked so bad.

  • SuperGalt

    Given the present circumstances of America quickly becoming an impoverished third world nation, the dress and other extravagances do seem way out of line.

    These extravagances fuel the growing perception this administration is way out of touch. Actions always speak louder than words. Their behavior does not match their rhetoric. People are noticing.

  • lorac

    I expect the advertising will stimulate the fashion economy quite a bit

    I can hear the ads now: Losing your home? Don’t worry! Spend that money you would have spent on your mortgage on one of our $10,000 gowns!

  • SuperGalt

    Fuck no! :P

  • TeakWoodKite

    One is hard pressed to find the obscure stargate address he came from. Ori wannabe.

  • Zut alors

    Wt flying F??? I take it from this rather silly comment that you’ve never been in a third world country. Take a trip there sometime – plenty of choice.

    The only perception that’s growing is my perception that you don’t know what the hell you are talking about. Ask for a passport for the holidays Galty. Open your mind.

  • lorac

    That’s a good metaphor.

  • helenk

    http://womenstate.blogspot.com/2009/11/should-we-be-scare-couple-crashed-wh.html

    The security was a little lax

    WOMEN WITH INTELLIGENCE AND EXPERIENCE,MEN WHO SUPPORT THEM AND COUNTRY BEFORE PARTY ALWAYS

    PUMAS,BUBBAS,EQUALISTS AND THOSE PEOPLE RULE

  • SuperGalt

    Which metaphor? As you know, I love a good one!

  • SuperGalt

    Oops, I replied to your comment when you first posted it. It was not in the right place in the thread. I see it now.

  • Onofre’s arm

    I guess you’d have to be rich to buy that dress……….. and tasteless too.

    At least when Michelle is finished with it, she can donate it as a tent for a dozen homeless citizens. I’m sure that it is water repellent with the Scotchguard that is routinely used on upholstery fabrics.

  • Onofre’s arm

    Zut alors the Hutt?

  • oowawa

    Well, Onofre’s arm, when she is done with it, I’m sure that Jack Cafferty would be willing to pay a fortune for it. In addition to the pleasure of sniffing it at leisure, he can always envision the rapturous splendor of M’s exquisite bare arms, revealed in all their perfect beauty. He’s probably clipping snapshots of the event, as we speak.

  • HARP

    I don`t care what they are wearing. I can`t stand either one of them.

  • Onofre’s arm

    Oedipus gouged his eyes out with a broach for far less.

  • SuperGalt

    Not evil enough. Darth Maul.

  • Onofre’s arm

    Sorry, Michelle has said and done MORE than enough on her own to be a target of my ridicule!

  • oowawa

    I do not like them dressed like queen or king,
    I do not like them dressed like anything:
    Naked or dressed, the point is moot:
    It’s always just an empty suit!

  • lorac

    LOL!

  • Onofre’s arm

    I wasn’t thinking so much along evil lines, more on appearance.

  • lorac

    Excellent, oowawa!

  • lorac

    Well, so far he bows to male monarchs, not female monarchs.

  • Ani

    I think the First Lady is wearing a stunning gown and I have never seen her look better. However, if it is true that this gown was created and made overseas instead of in the United States, employing our workers, that is really a disgrace under the circumstances.

    Once again, this White House and the First Couple seem oblivious to the symbolic natuer of their actions and the signals they are sending to the American people.

  • lorac

    No one can say that Haters from Parallel Universes don’t have a sense of humor lol

  • SuperGalt

    Appearances don’t concern me. Physical bodes are soul containers, except in this case I’m afraid this soul has been sold to a devil masquerading as savior.

    I’m waiting for this reply now:

    “Wt flying F??? I take it from this rather silly comment that you’ve never been to hell. Take a trip there sometime – plenty of choice.”

    They don’t seem to comprehend metaphor very well or choose to ignore it on purpose.

  • SuperGalt

    I dub you honorary member (with peanut clusters) of the Triskelion Irony and Paradox Society, Terra Off-world Chapter.

    You get a badge even! :D

  • AF catfish

    Thank you for the links!!

    And Happy Thanksgiving!!

  • Onofre’s arm

    This is almost too easy, isn’t it oowawa?

  • Onofre’s arm

    I should add that the homeless citizens were made that way by her husbands policies.

  • lorac

    Well said, Ani.

    Who said, “I feel your pain”? Was it Clinton?

    Anyway, it wasn’t Obama, that’s for sure….

    I think he is co-opting Marie Antoinette’s “Let them eat cake” (which meant “bread” then, as I understand….)

  • SuperGalt

    The perception is of elitists and out of touch with no genuine regard for the American people — just themselves.

    In my mind, how stunning she looks physically gets translated to pure ugliness, based on her and her husbands actions and intentions. I literally can’t see what you are observing.

  • sandi78

    The Indian PM is a vegetarian, so they served him a vegetarian meal. I don’t see anything wrong with that. There was an alternative with I think, shrimp for non-vegetarians.

    I think the dress is beautiful, and as my tax money didn’t pay for it, I don’t care how much it cost. I was very disappointed to learn that it had been made in India. I know that most of the clothes that most of us buy were made in some country other than the US, but I think that it would be good for the First Lady to wear American-made clothes while so many Americans are out of work, may because their jobs moved to India. Obama could have counted them in his “jobs saved or created” list.

  • lorac

    I’m thinking that your Triskelion ray-eyes (will they be back for the event?) go right through clothing, and you can see the soul, heart, and mind. So the superficial things that we are limited by (the clothing, etc) go right by you. That’s normal, Galt. Your highly tuned Triskelion senses go right to the crux of the matter. You shouldn’t be expected to make comments on things we earthlings are limited by. :)

  • lorac

    He’s been to first world planets. Earthly third world cities are in the flyover area.

  • Onofre’s arm

    It’s not just metaphor that baffles them. They’re so absorbed with self-righteousness, that they fail to understand that playful hyperbole is an important component of humor. They even get offended when you tell them to “lighten up”. Sooo……… lighten up bots!

  • NomNomNom

    the embroidery was done in India in Naeem Khan’s father’s workshop, the rest was made in the US.

    “How many people are we talking about?”
    “About 40 people between embroideries and people who sew the dress and make the corsets. It took more than four weeks to make this dress. All the embroidery is made in my father’s workshop in India…and all the cutting and sewing is done in my studio.” (Khan’s family has been embroiderers for generations: they can do a better job than Americans. His studio is in New York; he’s also a naturalized American citizen).
    “And you sent a few other dresses so she’d have options?”
    “Of course.”
    “And how does it work? Does she pay for the dress? Do you donate the dress?”
    “I don’t even know about that. I am not even involved with it.”
    “So, the dresses may wind up in the Smithsonian or something like that?” (The Smithsonian has a marvelous collection of significant clothes and items owned by previous fist ladies).
    “I wouldn’t even know. I hope they do.”
    “But you were willing to put in all this work anyway knowing this was a huge moment.”
    “Wouldn’t you? I would do anything. To me, this is the biggest honor they could put on me, especially for the country I was born in, and the country that took me in.”

  • SuperGalt

    You don’t know the half of it. I’ll put it to you this way: in my real life, I’ve experienced some very odd things making it easy to pretend to be Galt, Master Thrall of planet Triskelion. :D

    In all seriousness, I do try to see through things and report my observations, right or wrong, as the case may be.

    I do need to report I was wrong about Bush II, he was not Satan: he was only his apprentice. We have Satan himself now as president. And yes, I am being metaphorical. ;)

  • lorac

    Who, ME?

    OMG, you like me! You really like me! You really, really like me! (my best Sally Fields)

    Wait…. do I have to BOW to you? lol

  • lorac

    ie, I don’t want to join any club that would have Obama’s butt as a member…

  • NomNomNom

    it’s not platinum threads, it’s paillettes plated with sterling silver and appliqued on.
    platinum is about $1450 per oz, silver (not plate) isn’t $20.

  • SuperGalt

    After I wrote the comment you replied to, I wondered if anyone would get it. You are quite perceptive.

  • SuperGalt

    Its good to share a simpatico with another soul, especially after what we’ve been through, witnessing our votes turned into felgercarb by greed and ego-based evil doers.

  • SuperGalt

    Let me try again:

    Posit: Imelda Markos (of obscene shoe collection infamy / poverty surrounding her) = Michelle Obama (of outsourced 40 workers dress and other extravagances infamy / poverty surrounding her).

    I see no fundamental difference.

  • lorac

    And she’s the one who created the program to turn the poor and unwashed away from her own hospital, the one she earned was paid, what?, over 300,000 a year at…

  • beachnan

    Ani great comment. I also think she looked lovely. I am wondering why the media has gone out of it’s way to portray her as a great fashionista. Up until this dress and a couple of other outfits, I felt that the outfits she wore, were ill fitting and unflattering. Now, when she finally wears something stunning the positive comments are deserved, but the press has already lost their credibility by claiming her other outfits were newsworthy. I do think it would have been nice if she had worn something made in America and the fact that 40 people had to take so long to create it seems a little over the top. How do we find out who paid for this?

  • lorac

    Hey, I just thought of something – this president loves to say he is setting precedents (even when he isn’t) – but I’ve racked my brain, and I just can’t remember any president and his family flying in a space shuttle to a heretofore unexplored galaxy.

    Might there be a good candidate galaxy, somewhere past yours? I bet we could do it – he would fall for the same nonsense he led his own followers with. We just give him lots of praise, and emphasize what a precedent setting excursion it would be, get them in the missile, then put it on “permanent orbit” !!!

  • SuperGalt

    One can dream, grasshopper. ;)

  • maryann

    Oh, I don’t know how you could know your tax dollars didn’t pay for that dress. Afterall she spends $1.5 million of our taxpayer dollars per year on her 22 assistants, dates, separate planes for a few hours convenience, multiple entourages instead of overlapping…
    the unauguration of the usurper and wife was outlandish, it’s been nothing but bankrupting the US from then on.

  • http://deleted BuzzisbackLatte

    Okay since some need to still be PC re: MicHELLe O’Antoinette.

    Here’s my take: “The dress makes her likable enough.”

    Where is that black belt she’s so fond of? The one she wears just under her armpits…

    I wonder how many workers could have been put to work in America for the same amount of that dress and that dinner?

  • SJ

    I know one thing when these two leave the WH they will be in no need to travel and see the world, they will no longer wonder what dinning with the rich and famous be like, they would of done it all.

    The both of them would of done it all, I have never seen a Presidency with so much excess and wastage, and the joke is how the people of America is sitting silently by just looking on, its as if they are in a state of disbelief that all this can be happening right in front of their eyes.

    The Presidency brings many thing to those that sit in that office, to the Obama’s it has brought some they never thought they could achieve in their wildness dreams, to them its all about self and what they can get out of it, all those that feel this is about serving your country and making it better well you guys better take off your blinkers and take a long hard look, because it sure as hell is not.

  • Ellen D

    a subtle homage to the Indian PM and wife

    Oh that’s just silly.
    She should be wearing a dress made in the U.S. designed by an American designer and I don’t care how this comment is taken.

  • Ellen D

    And speaking of fabrics, let’s not forget our late, great textile industry. Are there ANY mills left in North Carolina now?

    I still have sheets made in the U.S. from 20 years ago. My new Egyptian cotton sheets only last a few years.

  • Anna

    The designer is American.

  • Anna

    Naeem Khan is an American.

  • Cathy in Ks.

    When I viewed the photo of the the Obamas and your article, I was reminded of elementary school and those test questions of “what’s wrong with this picture?”. Yes Michelle looks beautiful in her dress and the Obamas make a “striking couple” but I have to agree that the message being sent to the American people is one of gross hypocrisy.

    It doesn’t matter to me if the Obamas paid for this dress out of their own pockets or the designer gave this dress to the First Lady. These people are not supposed to be self-serving celebrities. They are public servants. When the “public” is going through hard times and “sacrificing their pie crust crumbs” as you pointed out, Pat; I think it’s the height of arrogance and insensitivity to indulge in wearing clothing that smacks of obscene wealth and made by foreign workers who possibly are not fairly compensated for their labor. Surely Michelle could have looked just as beautiful in a dress far less costly made by American workers.

    Jimmy Carter’s name was mentioned in an earlier comment. Say what you will about President Carter’s policies, but when the man talked about making sacrifices to the American people, he and Rosalind at least “walked their talk”.

  • NomNomNom

    Naeem Khan is a naturalized US citizen: he is an American. He is based in New York, lives in Miami. He employs Americans. The dress was partly made in India (the embroidery, in his father’s store) and partly made here.

  • NomNomNom

    ……

  • Obamastolemycoutry

    I agree not to make comments about the women’s dress, looks, body parts, etc., but I will speak against MEMEMEMEchelle because I do have a problem with her and her husband. I heard some speeches she, herself, made during the primaries and found her to be a disgusting, selfish, America Hating, drama queen, liar, who has decided that she is entitled to special treatment. One such speech she whined about how She and Barack, get your tissues ready now, boo hoo, they had to work really hard to get just average grades in college (apparently because they are black = college is too hard??? I don’t know WTF she was talking about), but then, they finished school and , OMG, you cannot believe how cruel America is, get ready…She and Barack had to pay back their student loans!!!!! Isn’t that just awful??? Poor, poor, pitiful MEMEMEchelle! America was supposed to get them into the best college and apparently give them straight As without having to do any work on their own, oh yeah, and then America forgot to give them a free ride! How did they survive I wonder???? Wow. They struggled so hard so the completely unaccomplished husband of hers could get a free ride to the top job without having earned it! And do not get me started on MEMEMEchelle’s large number of servantsstaff!!!

  • Onofre’s arm

    Thank you loraC for closing the loop.

  • Ellen D

    To be fair, I have just read the article. The designer is a U.S. citizen and his workshop is in New York. They count as part of the 40 people = the others were in India embroidering the fabric.

    Then I came across this:

    And how does it work? Does she pay for the dress? Do you donate the dress?

    I don’t even know about that. I am not even involved with it.

    And I remembered other first ladies who were raked over the coals for borrowing designer clothes and not paying for them. Nancy Reagan springs to mind. So what gives with this? If this were John McCain’s wife all sorts of people would be screaming. I don’t have any problem with the practice but it should be the same standard for all First Ladies. I just hate the hypocrisy.

  • Tricia

    Zut–Do you KNOW who paid for it?

  • Obamastolemycoutry

    If they knew, then they are truly isolated and tone deaf to what is going on in the country with jobs.

    They don’t know and they don’t care. They have jobs and so do their friends so what’s the problem? None for them.

  • Tricia

    But, VERY poor role modeling for a couple who said they wanted change and are on the side of the “little people.”

    We could not buy that dress. And the designer also says there will be no copies made.

    And who knows who paid for it? The designer was asked and would not tell.

  • Pat Racimora

    Yeah, the story would be dead by the time I fniished drawing all of that embroidery!

    Back to a toon for Thanksgiving tomrrow.

  • http://deleted BuzzisbackLatte

    Not to mention Zut zit alors alame thinks that Michelle’s dress is going to linger in the collective mind of everyone.

    Nope. Everyone is too worried about making through the holidays to have visions of Michelle’s booty in that dress.

    Nightmares, maybe.

  • jwrjr

    The ad for the Jan 3 episode of Iron Chef says that one of the chefs will be the White House head chef, and that there will be a super-special guest. You know the old saying – “If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck …”.

  • jwrjr

    The Obamas are quite proficient at having other people sacrifice for their benefit.

  • jwrjr

    “99 Problems But a Queen Ain’t One”?

  • FrenchNail

    Arretes tes divagations, Tu commences a nous pomper! Soit tu es mazo de venir te faire tailler un short sur ce site, soit t’es un minable qui a besoin de joindre les deux bouts en blogant pour Obama. L’un comme l’autre, tu fais honte a ta nouvelle patrie et a ton ancienne.

    RENTRE DANS TON TROU.

  • FrenchNail

    Gorgeous yes, but completely inapropriate to show so much skin at an official event of International stature.

    But once again, this White House has absolutely no sense of protocol.

  • FranSC

    Someone said Michelle did not curtsey to Queen Elizabeth when they visited Buckingham Palace earlier this year. Then another said, “She probably thought Queen Elizabeth should curtsey to her.”

  • FrenchNail

    You’re in the wrong country!!!

    We do not despite and belittle “rich” people here.

    Oh but I forgot you’re not American at heart just an imported socialist coming on our shores to spit his marxist venon.

  • confusedinAmerica

    Carter’s wife worn the same dress for the presidential inauguration parties as she wore for when her husband became governor.

    Even though Carter wasn’t the greatest of presidents, his family did walk the talk.

    It would be nice to know that someone in DC is trying to walk the path Obama expects us to walk budget wise.

  • FrenchNail

    When you humiliate your security details by allowing anti-white racist comments to be commonly said by your mother-in-law in the White House and when you fire the long time head of the CIA White House detail after he complains to you about it, you should remember the words of your dear preacher: Chickens are coming home to roost.

  • FrenchNail

    Too much skin. Very offensive to Indian officials and their wifes who are much more demure in their official appearance.

  • FranSC

    Regardless of who designed the dress, where it was made, etc., if it took 40 people 3 weeks to make, imagine the cost!

    How can any public figure, much less these two, show their face with such extravagance dripping from them with the joblessness in this country, economy falling off a cliff, and home foreclosures at historic levels and climbing.

    Michelle should have worn “again” one of her many gowns all are familiar with, served Chicken curry or the vegetarian version since the PM and wife are vegetarians, and been done with it. They would have gotten a lot more respect for their frugality and sacrifice in these exceptionally hard times.

  • ~~JustMe~~

    Yes the dress is gorgeous!

    However the Lady in a Pant Suit would of been even better!

  • elizabethrc

    There’s no other country stupid enough to take them.

  • Chelsea Patriot

    Hey! Let’s Get This Straight!

    Barry is Our American Queen!

  • elizabethrc

    I used to design textiles for the home furnishings industry and lost one job due to the company being moved to Spartanburg out of NYC.
    Spartanburg must be a ghost town by now, having once been a thriving town with multiple mills. Lots of lost jobs, never to be recovered.

  • SuperGalt

    Three observations of those aligned with BO, thanks to observing his self-appointed representatives:

    1.) Some blindly follow and enable him, out of ideological and/or partisan loyalty. This is not evil, but woefully misguided behavior of people too unsophisticated to see the forest in the trees.

    2.) Some follow and enable him knowing what BO is all about: the man many of us discovered when we delved into the deep recesses of his past. Is this evil? Personally, I find BO to be the embodiment of pure evil with a superficial nice smile. I’ll let you decide for yourself if these followers and enablers are evil.

    3.) Last group perhaps do not follow but are unaware what BO is really all about, but they enable due to self-serving interest such as working for his staff. They benefit from the employment and that’s a powerful motivator to darn blinders.

    I should note I am not necessarily defining evil in the spiritual sense, but the behavioral of the evil doers. The end result is the same however: human suffering for some greed and ego-based agenda.

    My 2 cents! :D

  • Rif

    I agree. She has taken patriotism to a new level and this is another esample of her in your face arragance.

  • lightacandle

    No matter how one slices it, the event and the dress were a gauche display of excess at a time when so many Americans are jobless and becoming homeless — and 50 million Americans are going hungry every day.

    Obama loves to mention that this is the worst recession since The Great Depression. Well, President Franklin D. Roosevelt would never have hosted such a gauche display of excess during The Great Depression or during World War II.

    FDR was a serious man who cared about people, and the same is true of Eleanor Roosevelt. Mrs. Roosevelt was a fairly wealthy woman and always dressed appropriately but she never wore a dress that took 40 people weeks to sew and decorate — it was an OBSCENE display of wealth and waste when so many fellow countrymen are suffering so terribly.

    Barack and Michelle Antoinette dance on — just as Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI did in pre-Revolutionary France — ignoring the suffering of the people.

  • http://N/A breeze

    “Barack and Michelle Antoinette dance on — just as Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI did in pre-Revolutionary France — ignoring the suffering of the people.”
    ===================================================

    Right, Lightacandle!

    And look what happened to them in the end….

  • http://N/A breeze

    Comment by FrenchNail | 2009-11-26 02:36:28

    “When you humiliate your security details by allowing anti-white racist comments to be commonly said by your mother-in-law in the White House and when you fire the long time head of the CIA White House detail after he complains to you about it, you should remember the words of your dear preacher: Chickens are coming home to roost.”

    ————————————————–

    Very ‘interesting’!

    Can anyone expand on this and, maybe, give links?

  • NomNomNom

    btw, here is Hillary Clinton at the state dinner (from the Still4Hill website)
    http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2669/4134237281_4450343f5c.jpg

  • http://N/A breeze

    NAEEM KHAN ON DESIGNING MICHELLE OBAMA’S

    “PRICELESS”

    FIRST STATE DINNER DRESS

    http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2009/11/25/naeem-khan-on-designing-michelle-obamas-priceless-first-state-dinner-dress/

  • Tricia

    Hysterical, oowawa!

  • Portia Elizabeth

    Merci beaucoup!

  • Portia Elizabeth

    Curious as to a possible cost for this dress I did a little rudimentary math.

    Let’s say the workers have a 40 hour work week. (Probably an underestimate)
    40 hours X 3 weeks = 120 hours.
    120 hours X 40 workers = 4800 man hours.
    Let’s say, for the sake of calculation, the workers earn $3.00 per hour. (This may be an under-estimate, too, but who knows what they’re paid?)
    $3.00 X 4800 man hours = $14,400 if my math is correct.
    Now, that doesn’t include the cost of the silk, the pailletes, the thread, the corset built into the dress to give it shape, zipper, etc.

    By my rough calculations that dress cost more than my annual salary from my first job.

    I did think Michelle looked fabulous in the dress, much more beautiful than some of the clown costumes she’s been seen in this year. That said, I think it was a self-indulgent, thoughtless choice when the cost of that dress is more than some families have to live on for a year. I would’ve thought more of her if she had considered the impact of her lavishness before insulting people who will go hungry today.

  • http://firefox AnnieCarmel

    I couldn’t agree more. The woman, her husband, her POV, her comments, arrogance, lack of appropriateness grates. Constantly. She never makes good choices…just in your face tackiness and lack of even basic manners. When people make the sorts of statements that have come out of her mouth about broken souls, etc., you can believe they know from personal, intimate experience and are unwittingly speaking of themselves.

    No I won’t give her a pass. Take a look at cripessuzette.com 11/25 post “How Now Moo Cow? or You can dress her up but you can’t take her to a tent” for our graceful (not) FLOTUS eating with her fingers and trying to cover up her mouth while sucking food from her teeth. Oh, God, oh God, oh God!

    During the campaign, she often wore flats so as not to tower over everyone else. Always for selfish reasons…get elected. Now that they’re in the WH, she wears heels and makes dwarfs out of the Queen, and the wife of the Indian PM. It’s just another signal of her graceless, mean spirited hatefulness of others. Never a thought to the comfort of others. Her outer ugliness is just a reflection of her inner ugliness.

  • http://firefox AnnieCarmel

    How right you are.

  • http://firefox AnnieCarmel

    She could have worn a sari like dress. Certainly you don’t make the guest of honor look out of place.

  • http://firefox AnnieCarmel

    Yes, we had an exquisite textile industry. That’s why we still have vintage clothing. Beautifully made and wonderful fabrics. Our “off the rack” clothes of up to 30 years ago, although not couture, had finished seams, beautiful construction and lasted forever.

  • http://firefox AnnieCarmel

    The DC Clampetts.

  • http://firefox AnnieCarmel

    if she doesn’t dress well enough, then she’s the “ugly American” and making us look bad as a nation; if she dresses well, she’s wasting money and doesn’t care about Americans.

    Yes, you got that right. She never makes the right or good choices and that is the overriding reason for the constant critique. She’s had a year to get it right and she never, ever does. You just can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.

  • http://firefox AnnieCarmel

    Well, the bots knew they had their work cut out for them after the so-called “party”. The pictures of MEshill eating with her fingers, and sucking her teeth put me over the top. Sorry, bots and other sympathizers…no defense there.

  • http://firefox AnnieCarmel

    Strapless generally isn’t done by FLOTUS’ and especially with MEshill’s fat hanging over the back of the dress. http://cripessuzette.com 11/25 post.

  • confusedinAmerica

    I thought the President and their family were supposed to limit the presents they took while in the WH.

  • Portia Elizabeth

    Yikes! it must be my turn to be eaten by the spaminator.
    Another one disappears…

  • b mathews

    so the dress was made in india by 40 indians making 25 cents an hour? i guess american designers are not good enough for her. maybe for the next event she can have a muslim designer make her a designer burka like the new barbie.

  • b mathews

    what really pisses me off is the fact that these 2 interlopers are the least 2 people deserving of being in the whitehouse. they have used and abused all those priveleges and perks that come with the job and act as tho they are king and queen instead of hired hands who will most likely be gone in 3 years. obama was hired to do a job but outsourced everything to other incompetents while he spends his time (and our dime) on sightseeing the world. while that might be a good idea since he is incompetent to run the country, but the people he outsources his work too are just as incompetent. seems all he does when he is in D.C. is party (also on our dime) while ordinary people are scrounging for a job to pay their mortgages and put food on their table. its like they are giving americans the finger every time they do this. so party on obama, your days in office are numbered.come 2012 we will be giving you the finger.

  • http://firefox AnnieCarmel

    I’m sure he designed it with the Smithsonian in mind but so what? It’s tasteless in this economic crisis we’re in. Surely, he must have known the Indian PM’s wife wouldn’t come riding in on an elephant, draped in gold. Next to MEshill, she looked like a servant. Disgusting.

  • b mathews

    what comments are you referring to? (made by O’s mother in law) and why havent i heard about it? i also heard that one of their secret service guys asked for reassignment because he couldnt take all the racial comments made by the obamas. any truth to that? tho it would not surprise me.

  • http://firefox AnnieCarmel

    Gosh, she didn’t refer to us as “Whitey” did she? Or Honky? Like Mother, like daughter.

  • NomNomNom

    Some other recent first ladies at their state dinners for India (I could not find a picture for Johnson’s in 1966, also not sure all of them had state dinners for India (Ford? Carter? Bush I?);

    http://www.nola38.com/sns-ap-us-obama-india-state-dinner,0,423283.story?page=2
    the Kennedys and Nehru and Indira Gandhi; the giant size state dinner was dispensed with in favor of a smaller “working” dinner

    http://todaystyle.today.com/files/2009/01/lady_bird_johnson.jpg
    Ladybird’s pretty jonquil colored inaugural gown

    http://voices.washingtonpost.com/reliable-source/2009/11/read_this_state_dinner_ramp-up.html
    the Nixons and Indira Gandhi before state dinner

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/23/state-dinner-prep-former_n_367640.html video, shows Betty Ford’s favorite state dinner dress, which she wore on several occasions (starts at 2:43)

    http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jimmycarterinindia.jpg
    here are the Carters being welcomed on their arrival in India (president & first lady Reddy & pm Desai)

    http://www.whotv.com/news/nationworld/sns-cd8bca17ebb3499793ec132422664225-3,0,3268416.photo the Reagans and Indira Gandhi at state dinner for India

    http://www.joanhansen.com/images/as_p3_scaasi_barbara_bush.jpg
    Barbara Bush at the Literary Lions dinner at the New York Public Library, in a great dress, looking most un-frumpy (escorted by Arnold Scaasi, the designer)

    http://images.huffingtonpost.com/gadgets/slideshows/1275/slide_1275_18940_large.jpg
    the Clintons and Vajpayee at state dinner for India, sorry about link (it’s an Oscar de la Renta leopard print and she looks great!)

    http://www.life.com/image/53254135
    The Bushes (II) prepare to meet Singh & Kaur for state dinner

  • lightacandle

    Well, anyway, now we know what it takes to make Michelle “proud” of her country.

    Disgusting.

  • NomNomNom

    back in the Spaminator :roll:

  • DS

    Amazing how a year later Hillary looks Presidential, Obama still looks uncomfortable and Michelle still looks pissed.

  • Portia Elizabeth

    Hillary looks beautiful. Blue is her color.
    Thanks for the link!

  • StarBright

    I really could care less what mo wears….she is ugly and soulless inside and out ! Nothing she does is appealing she is scared and dirty ….

  • DCMediagirl

    JennofArk: I agree. Beautiful dress and respectful gesture. Hillary Clinton showed equal respect when she wore a scarf during one of her events during her trip to Pakistan. Again, a respectful gesture. If Michelle Obama wears J. Crew critics say she has no class. There’s no winning this one.

  • http://deleted BuzzisbackLatte

    Oh, look who’s back. Ms. Contrary.

  • NomNomNom

    “it’s beginning to look a lot like christmas…”

  • NomNomNom

    lol, you have nailed it

  • Carol

    that is hardly what she said and you know it. she was merely commenting on how student loans are often a very big burden on people and go on for a long time – she is certainly not the first person to comment on this. you just have this need to exaggerate whatever the obama’s do spin the negative.

  • Carol

    give me a break – that is nothing compared to what the clinton’s BOTH said about Obama, period.

  • http://deleted BuzzisbackLatte

    Oooh, a stealth bot. Carol, do tell us ver batim exactly what ‘she’ said.

    LOL!

  • http://deleted BuzzisbackLatte

    Oh, what was that nastly ol’ thing the Clintons allegedly said about the Obamas, Carol? Or are you just a little lost bot?

  • http://deleted BuzzisbackLatte

    LOL! So true!

  • NomNomNom

    he gets to keep the dress

  • NomNomNom

    thx very much & happy thanksgiving!!

  • SuperGalt

    * Crickets *

    Drive-by stray dog pooping on the blog rug then bolting axiom applies. ;)

  • SuperGalt

    Comment by Carol | 2009-11-27 00:46:33

    that is hardly what she said and you know it. she was merely commenting on how student loans are often a very big burden on people and go on for a long time – she is certainly not the first person to comment on this. you just have this need to exaggerate whatever the obama’s do spin the negative.

    What about you exaggerating in this same thread about the Clinton’s negatively???

    Goose / Gander axiom applies. ;)

    Comment by tek | 2009-11-25 19:19:36

    And, HB, don’t forget the sexist, vicious things MO said about Hillary and Bill.
    Reply to this comment

    Comment by Carol | 2009-11-27 00:49:15

    give me a break – that is nothing compared to what the clinton’s BOTH said about Obama, period.

  • Daisyjane
  • PaddyJ

    Well, “Queen” is the right word to use, as in “Monarchy”.

  • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTmLKUT817Y Eldear Jhane

    Thank you, THOUGHT POLICE.

    She is a beast

  • hokma

    It’s worse, because Rasmussen has been shown to be the most reliable poll when it comes to elections. So he has only 46% approval and still trending down.

  • Sassy

    “Pretty is as pretty does”!
    Enough said!

  • I’m a Linda too

    btw, this photo is a still of one of those vids. Look at Obama.

  • creeper

    That link didn’t work well. Found this:
    http://cripessuzette.wordpress.com/2009/11/25/how-now-moo-cow/

  • jbjd

    Yes, the poverty of paying back student loans without any trace of such payments on their income tax forms at the same time BO was on retainer for Robert Blackwell, owner of Killerspin, at $8,000 per month.

  • glennmcgahee

    Meechelle, wanted that dress so she got it. At least she had more to spend than last time when she complained that the stimulus money her household received, $600, would hardly pay for a pair of earings.
    On another note, the DNC guy who managed to give us the Obama nomination is a teabagger I guess:
    http://hotair.com/archives/2009/11/27/howard-dean-stop-obamacare-now/

  • creeper

    “And how does it work? Does she pay for the dress? Do you donate the dress?”
    “I don’t even know about that. I am not even involved with it.”

    To quote Sarah Palin…bullcrap. He owns the company. This is the biggest thing he’s ever done. And he has no idea who paid for it?

    Bullcrap.

  • elizabethrc

    40 jobs for India? This is an example of how pitiful these people truly are. They are really stretching for a rationale for this over the top consumption. Do they not understand that they are becoming more and more foolish, naive and out of their element with the vast majority of their actons? I guess not.
    The clock is ticking for the Obamas. Soon they will be thankfully superfluous.

  • jbjd

    I also loved that brown/copper gown.

  • Texas Playwright

    Amen, Ellen D. AAAAmen.

  • jbjd

    Ha! In those states where then DNC Services Corporation general consel Joseph Sandler submitted the Certification of Nomination to election officials signed by Nancy Pelosi, swearing BO was Constitutionally qualified for the job so as to get his name printed on the ballot, before actually ascertaining whether this was true; we named Howard Dean, Chair of the Corporation, as the perpetrator of the fraud. (The lawyer works for the corporation.)

  • FrenchNail

    Scrub, scrub, scrub… I could not find any link anymore. But I remember it very clearly. The head of the White House CIA detail had personnaly complained to Obama about the treatment of the staff by the family and the racist comments by the mother-in-law, and as a result was immediately fired/reassigned. That was sometime in the spring early summer.

  • http://N/A breeze

    Thanks, FrenchNail.

    Interesting, will remember the next time an
    obot screams RAAACIST…..

  • candymarl

    To be fair I think Michelle looks very good in this gown. Her hairstyle is beautiful. One of the complaints about her has been how much she spends on clothes but frankly ends up looking well – terrible.

    In this case she truly looks elegant and very much like a first lady.

  • http://www.onlinedataentryjobshome.com/how-to-start-with-data-entry-jobs-without-paying-money.html How To Start With Data Entry Jobs Without Paying Money?

    [...] Forty Jobs for India : NO QUARTER [...]

  • connie

    There’s two things I would like to say, #1) the dress is beautiful and she looks great in it. She finally looks like a first lady instead of Mary Tyler Moore. #2) Barack looks very THIN in that picture. I can’t believe he has only lost 5 lbs. I guess its all that chain smoking!

  • tango

    I think the First Lady looks stunning too. The problem isn’t necessarily that it was made overseas just that I feel it was done so TO SAVE MONEY! Indian workers will do the job at a pittance compared to American workers. Now, I understand that there are probably more skilled or more numerous Indian embroiderers than there are American ones but given enough notice, I think the designer could find crafts people in America who could’ve also done a wonderful job. This is a custom dress, it would’ve been great if the labor on it could’ve all been American even if the design was Indian influenced. I think that would’ve been a great statement Mrs. Obama could’ve made in support of American workers.

    I feel Mrs. Obama is just tone deaf. With her wearing $500 sneakers to the food bank and her designer boots while digging the White House garden all the while talking about sacrfice and giving to others in service just seems disconnected. Please, practice what you preach and do yourself what you think I should do.

    If this her Mrs. Obama’s idea of cutting back and sacrificing in today’s economy, I can only imagine her wardrobe and actions if the economy was going great.

  • thinker

    What exactly did the Clintons say about Obama?

  • basil

    ‘then someone is going to have to give up a piece of their pie so that someone else can have more.’

    Problem with Momo is she wants everyone to give their pie to HER so she can have moremoremore.

    40 people working for 4 weeks at let’s-be-generous-and-say $.25 an hour = $320.

    I’d say that’s slave labor, something Mo is supposed to be opposed to, not to mention the inordinate profits made by the non-American designer of let’s say $15,000 – $320 = $14680 meaning the designer made 387X the employees – on a par with dirty American capitalists,

    My big problem with momo is her hypocrisy.

  • EWard

    It’s hard to give kudos to MO/BO when his policies are not only bankrupting the country but undermining and insulting our longtime allies. Even with this state visit, BO managed to bungle his remarks and suggest the Indian prime minister was fortunate to be honored by Obama’s first state dinner.

    I could care less what MO wears. It’s Obama’s lies to the nation, funneling taxpayer dollars to Acorn, promoting legislation favorable to SEIU interests (Cap & Trade, card check, health care and so on)….Andy Stern’s 22 visits to the Obama WH, silencing legitimate free speech…Tea Parties and Town Hall meetings.

    Obama’s poll numbers are plummeting because the rest of the nation realizes they elected a fraud.

  • http://www.hillaryorbust.com Hillary or Bust

    “She is a beast”

    It is frankly statements like that which reek of underlying racism and give the Obots cause to call everyone who dislikes the Obamas a racist.

    “Beast” = not quite human, which is a very deep and entrenched form of historical racism against blacks, and why whites were often feeling justified in keeping them as slaves.

    I do not throw the racism card around lightly. But it seems the racism comes out against Michelle a lot. From she’s a beast to the more benign she has no manners…well, I cringe when I read some of these comments.

  • thinker

    the brown copper number was truly stunning –understated, elegant, and just plain gorgeous.

  • helenk

    this is the problem with the dress and dinner.
    I can see this used in a campaign against dems in the future

    WOMEN WITH INTELLIGENCE AND EXPERIENCE,MEN WHO SUPPORT THEM AND COUNTRY BEFORE PARTY ALWAYS

    PUMAS,BUBBAS,EQUALSTS AND THOSE PEOPLE RULE

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdxPfjFclK8

  • http://noquarter foxyladi14

    100000 times better

  • connie

    wow, you are really working hard to find something racist in the word “beast”. With all the attacks lately on freedom of speech, I am surprised you are attacking ANYONE’S right to describe what they feel about ANYTHING. Also, why are you so worried about how obots view anyone? Who are you to judge?

  • http://deleted BuzzisbackLatte

    This isn’t the Kennedy era. There’s no need to be fair in that respect.

  • http://www.hillaryorbust.com Hillary or Bust

    I think it hurts the credibility of those opposing Obama when people say things like Michelle Obama is an ape, gorilla or a beast. And yes, beast has racist connotations when applied to a black woman. Absolutely.

    It’s also demeaning in a sexist way – i.e,. the other implication being that she’s not sexy or attractive, as if that was the only thing that made a woman worthwhile.

  • connie

    soooo… one could call her an olive, but it would have to be a green olive, because it would, of course “reek of underlying racism” if it was black or even calamata? priceless.

  • http://deleted BuzzisbackLatte

    What makes Michelle worthwhile?

    What does it say for comprehension if people can’t see the absurdity in comments? No wonder peoples’ ability to learn and comprehend has been compromised! Understanding humor in all it’s forms is indicative of higher intelligence.

    What happened to quips and word plays being a form of high comedy. Are self-esteems so fragile and dependent on everyone being so politically correct that the turn of phrase or harsh assessment is seen as too rough? Oh boo hoo!

    I thought that people in America were still allowed to vent without repercussions from self-designated PC police or obot whiners.

    Geesh, were Dorothy Parker and the Algonquin Roundtable alive today! The quips would be far more cleaver but none the less devastatingly funny and true.

  • http://deleted BuzzisbackLatte

    OMG. Those pictures of Michelle were cringe worthy – again.

    There’s no excuse for that in the White House or McDonald’s.

    Where are all the PCers to complain about those bad manners?!!!

    I’ve seen better manners from cowboys in rural Idaho than what the Faux (no) Lady displayed.

  • http://deleted BuzzisbackLatte

    Zut is another example of those that can’t read between the lines. It wasn’t what was said in those articles, it was what wasn’t reported.

    The designer didn’t know the payment arrangement?

    Riiiigggghhht and Obama is the best president evah?

  • http://deleted BuzzisbackLatte

    Granny taught EllyMay and Jethro better manners than MicHELLe “larned” and she’s “posed” to be “edumacated” and went to one of “them darn fancy skools!”

  • IndayHill

    IMO, the dress is very elegant and costly to be worned by the leader’s wife, when the country is suffering from domestic problems ignored by this leader.
    What is their clear message to the nation? EAT YOUR CRUMBS !

  • Sandy

    Now thats a class act!

  • mountainaires

    It’s a beautiful dress, and they certainly look like they think themselves the queen and king of America.

    There’s something mighty FREUDIAN about the fact that Michelle always seems to select GOLD fabrics/dresses/outfits.

    I’m sort of appalled by the incredible extravagance of this pair. They had their 18 foot Christmas tree delivered from Virginia to the white house via HORSE DRAWN CARRIAGE today.

    The image of that tree arriving in a horse-drawn carriage is really disgusting to me.

  • lorac

    Mountainaires – I know what you mean, but I think it’s tradition. At least, I remember it being done before…

  • lorac

    Somebody said that they could tell the photographer used a different lens for that picture – something that made them seem taller and thinner – to make MO’s middle area less – well, just “less”.

    And don’t bring poor MTM into it! I always liked her! She could light the room up with her smile! She could take a nothing day and suddenly make it all seem worthwhile!

  • lorac

    I heard about this maybe a month ago on the internet, but I don’t have any particular details or refs.

  • lorac

    Ou est Monsieur PePe LaPlume?

    (am I close? lol)

  • NomNomNom

    http://www2.journalnow.com/content/2008/apr/29/truth-or-tales-polite-and-friendly-freddie-hammer-/
    Hillary’s 1995 carriage drawn West Jefferson (woot!), Ashe County, NC frasier fir :)

  • beebop

    These two are so damn tone deaf they can’t even HUM properly.

  • beebop

    I know no one wants a “negative” MOMO comment, but one of the comments at WAPO was damn funny — why is Charles Barkley wearing a dress?

    I laughed so hard I woke the dog up!

    Seriously … if we can’t laugh what good are our tax dollars for since we’re paying for this dinner fiasco?

  • beebop

    Like it ever occurred to tone deaf mememechelle?

  • connie

    She shows she is not proud of America and anything America. Everytime I go shopping, I always look for Made In USA sign and I don’t care paring extra cents as long as it is made here. And this woman had her gown done outside the country! They represent America and American people and in a state dinner such a s this they should showcase American food, American way of doing things; yet, they tried hard to imitate the Indian culture. How abominable! They have no right to be there in the White House!All they do is spend, spend ,spend.

  • Silence Dogood

    One could argue there is deep seated hatred for her own country on a subconscious level if she failed to see the symbolism in the outsourcing.

  • Peggy Sue

    Thank you for that, Hillary or Bust. I feel the same way. We can’t very well complain about the sexist rampage against Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin [which was very real, not illusionary] if we’re willing to savage Michelle Obama.

    And come on, she looks beautiful in that photograph. How many complaints have there been about the pricey designers [who also have seamtresses meticulously sewing and ruining their eyesight] for other First Ladies? We expect the First Lady to look smart and polished. And for this affair? Michelle pulled it off.

    That doesn’t mean I like Obama’s policies. It just means that in this instance, my eyes tell me: Michelle Obama looked smashing.

  • Peggy Sue

    Oh yes, that horrible truth they said about Obama:

    He wasn’t ready, he was inexperienced, he didn’t know what he was talking about yada, yada, yada.

    Or are you referring to the manufactured racist charge?

    Get the wax out of your ears!!!

  • Portia Elizabeth

    In the game “I can give you a sentence” Dorothy Parker’s reply to horticulture was “You can lead a whore to culture, but you can’t make her think.”

    Now I wonder why I thought of that…

  • Peggy Sue

    Well, I still think Michelle looked stunning.

    However, there was a devastating article up at RBO, written by John Batchlor entitled, “Not the Joads at the White House” that speaks to the State dinner, the party crashers and the chilling aspect of the Dubai default.

    The article ends with:

    “Clinking glasses at a phony state dinner. Camera clicks at a prankish phony reception. Silent dread that Dubai World is our phony world, a cheat.”

    Not even Michelle’s dress can compete with that.

    Couldn’t bring the link up on my remote but scroll down the page. It’s worth a read.

  • http://! stodgie

    carol, supply the info which you assert or be quiet.

  • http://! stodgie

    oh please! beautiful? not!

  • http://! stodgie

    since michelle is “special” we aren’t supposed to comment on her dress or attitude. NOT

  • http://! stodgie

    sand, thanks for sharing how naive you are.

  • http://! stodgie

    annie, uggggggggggggggg! i don’t want to see that. watching bush eat bread was enough. i think michelle will spoil my dinner for a long time. she is digusting.

  • http://! stodgie

    geez i actually looked at her. no supper for me.

  • http://! stodgie

    jack paid for jackie’s clothes for the most part. jackie also was famous for keeping clothes and jewels for decades to wear again and again. she wore a low of faux jewels that had no real value. her ability to use a little and make it look like a lot says a lot about her and zero about michelle.

  • http://! stodgie

    that’s rich! michelle making a sacrifice for america? what world do you reside in?

  • http://! stodgie

    thanks daisyjane

  • http://! stodgie

    i notice cnn(comedy num nuts) just can’t get enough of the gate crashers. i actually yelled at the tv today when that came on and scared the cat.

  • http://www.hillaryorbust.com Hillary or Bust

    You’re missing the history here. Historically, blacks have been portrayed as apes, gorillas, animals, beasts and “less than” human as a means of justifying their slavery.

    It is not the same as being called an olive. There is a historical precedent for the association of the term “beast” with underlying racism.

    It’s the same reason why calling Obama “boy” is a problem. It goes back to what the slave masters called their black slaves.

  • DCMediagirl

    Hillary or Bust and Peggy Sue: I guess you two didn’t get the memo that sexism is bad except when referring to Michelle Obama. Then all bets are off. We can criticize her for her ass, her thighs, her heels, her dresses, her hair…everything that Hillary Clinton was criticized for which we all found offensive, and with good reason.

    The dress being made in India is a red herring. If she’d dressed in J. Crew the same commenters would have accused her of having no class. I agree the dress was gorgeous and I commend the designer.

    I also take issue that it is gaudy and vulgar to throw such lavish dinners during tough economic times. So should the President, his wife and Cabinet dress in rags and serve guests gruel? How about sackcloth and ashes? Would that work?

    Call me a bot if you want. I’ve learned that if you don’t march in lockstep with the netroots you’re a racist and if you don’t join the he-can’t-do-anything-right crowd you’re a bot. Whatever.

  • DCMediagirl

    Kathy in CA: Formal Indian clothes always make the wearer look regal. It’s the fabric and embroidery. South Asian designers don’t do minimalist, not even in abaya design. Your comment about the “royal treatment” is just silly.

  • DCMediagirl

    NomNomNom: You’re brave to inject reason and facts into this conversation. This doesn’t appear to be the thread for that.

  • DCMediagirl

    Hey NomNomNom: See what I mean? It doesn’t matter that an American designed the dress. Now it’s too expensive! So what if his American workers make money? Michelle Obama wore it so the designer and his people must be punished for designing such a beautiful dress! Why didn’t they buy their clothes at Goodwill? And it wouldn’t have been too insulting to the PM and his wife if they’d ordered carryout from some local Indian joint instead of throwing a lovely dinner, right?

    Do some of you listen to yourselves? Seriously?

  • DCMediagirl

    God forbid that anyone offer an opinion that doesn’t blindly adhere to conventional wisdom. And how is complementing Hillary Clinton for showing respect during her visit to Pakistan “contrary”, unless you’re listening to too much Limbaugh and Beck?

  • DCMediagirl

    As a long time admirer of South Asian design – the fabrics, the embroidery, the attention to detail — I say yes, the dress was beautiful.

  • rosa

    I agree, about the words being used in this way against Michele Obama, are wrong no matter which woman it is. I don’t like it but I also don’t like her but I don’t
    need to attack her that way.. NOW if you could pass it on to the obots that did this to Hillary and Sarah along with the media we would all be happy..

  • greg

    I can’t believe taxpayer dollars are wasted on this nonsense. I hope someone audits her soon.

  • connie

    The Encarta World Dictionary describes “beast” as the irrational or aggressive part of somebody’s personality. I believe many of Michelle Obamas statements have been both irrational and aggressive. Why are you so intent on reading racism into other’s words? Based on this definition, Michelle Obama IS a beast. Any underlying racism is in your imagination.

  • http://deleted BuzzisbackLatte

    My fave:

    Brevity is the soul of lingerie.

    Dorothy Parker

  • http://deleted BuzzisbackLatte

    Okay, you’re a bot.

    LOL!

    That’s called walking right into that one!

  • http://deleted BuzzisbackLatte

    What’s the matter? Not getting enough attention this week-end?

  • http://deleted BuzzisbackLatte

    Don’t listen to Beck or Limbaugh. Interesting how you just assume that you have the answers.

    Is arrogance one of your traits you take pride in?

  • NomNomNom

    actually, it was the “Wouldn’t you? I would do anything. To me, this is the biggest honor they could put on me, especially for the country I was born in, and the country that took me in.” comment I was attempting to emphasize.
    I have not found any information on who paid for the dress, it being donated etc, but I do know that clothing for the president and first lady are not covered by taxpayers, though the state dinner assuredly was. Also, they are given staff expenses, I’ve read MO’s costs taxpayers ~1.75 million and Laura Bush’s was somewhere between ~1-1.25 million. I think either is positively obscene, and this and the state dinners also need some serious legal codification.
    back to the clothes: clothes are either donated, loaned, or paid for by the first couple. Nancy Reagan for example took over 3 million in such presents and loans.
    I am assuming Khan responded this way because it was a politic (non)answer. It would be very stupid of him to embarrass a patron.

  • NomNomNom

    I liked the supposition it was made in a back alley sweatshop by children the best.
    :roll:

  • brady

    connie – agreed. this just demostrates what happens with political correctness – the thinnest skinned person tries to set the tone of what is/isn’t acceptable for everyone. once the race card is played, however, you can be sure there is no intelligent discussion left.

  • renata

    yup – quite the ugly beast

  • consultant55

    Yep, she IS a scary beast.

  • consultant55

    The problem is that its a recession and people are starving right now. These Obama people are out of touch with ordinary America. This isn’t a beauty pageant or a game. it is for the Obamas.
    Michelle Obama wants to be a fashion queen, and its sick how you and other people believe the hype. She doesn’t really DO anything expect waste money on trips to the farmer’s market, so we can criticize how she lives and spends our money. She represents this country. It doesn’t look good. Wasting money on dresses made in India, out of touch, thigh high boots from France when people are losing jobs, wasting millions so she can buy vegetables at a farmer’s market when people are starving and losing their homes, two planes to Denmark. The lady is out of touch and arrogant.
    Too bad that people like you think she’s great. Guess you have to say stupid things like that if your in DC.

  • Franklin

    I have tertiary syphilis.

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