<header style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: sans-serif; font-size: medium;">S’pore declared as the country that gave the worst gifts to President Barack Obama
By Belmont Lay
</header>Washington Post, one of the last bastions of great American journalism, has written an article, “All 274 gifts given to Barack Obama between 2009 and 2012, ranked“.
Singapore was declared one of the worst gift-givers between the years 2009 and 2012. But we still did better than Russia.
Singapore apparently has a knack for giving Creative gifts: “Creative” as in the company started by Sim Wong Hoo. Like the device pictured above, the Creative ZEN X-Fi 2 64GB MP3 player, given as a gift in 2010.
This earned a rebuke from WP, as “This was three years after the iPhone came out”. In other words, MP3 players have already become obsolete. And Singapore had the audacity to give the American President an MP3 player whose country gave the rest of the world Apple.
From Washington Post:
But Singapore was probably being a smartass about it. The gifts are never meant to be handed over to the President personally and never ever improved diplomacy.
You can read the article here and find out what other countries gave, for example, Malaysia, who gave an ornate pewter jewelry box with velvet interior, presented in a blue velvet box in 2011.
By Belmont Lay
</header>Washington Post, one of the last bastions of great American journalism, has written an article, “All 274 gifts given to Barack Obama between 2009 and 2012, ranked“.
Singapore was declared one of the worst gift-givers between the years 2009 and 2012. But we still did better than Russia.
Singapore apparently has a knack for giving Creative gifts: “Creative” as in the company started by Sim Wong Hoo. Like the device pictured above, the Creative ZEN X-Fi 2 64GB MP3 player, given as a gift in 2010.
This earned a rebuke from WP, as “This was three years after the iPhone came out”. In other words, MP3 players have already become obsolete. And Singapore had the audacity to give the American President an MP3 player whose country gave the rest of the world Apple.
From Washington Post:
185. Singapore, 2009:
16″ × 23.75″ metal panel with cityscape view of Singapore, presented in a wooden box with a plaque on the top that reads “APEC Singapore 2009.” 9.5″ × 6.75″ × 2.75″ bronze abstract sculpture in a braided motif inscribed, “From the 2009 APEC Conference in Singapore,” presented in a fitted wooden presentation box.
267. Singapore, 2010:
Creative Aurvana Live! black headphones. Creative pocket video camera. Creative noise cancelling earbud headphones.
272. Singapore, 2010:
Creative ZEN X-Fi 2 64GB MP3 player and earphones. OSIM uGoGo electronic pulse massager.
The good news is that we did better than Russia, who gave a CD holder and some CDs in 2009.16″ × 23.75″ metal panel with cityscape view of Singapore, presented in a wooden box with a plaque on the top that reads “APEC Singapore 2009.” 9.5″ × 6.75″ × 2.75″ bronze abstract sculpture in a braided motif inscribed, “From the 2009 APEC Conference in Singapore,” presented in a fitted wooden presentation box.
267. Singapore, 2010:
Creative Aurvana Live! black headphones. Creative pocket video camera. Creative noise cancelling earbud headphones.
272. Singapore, 2010:
Creative ZEN X-Fi 2 64GB MP3 player and earphones. OSIM uGoGo electronic pulse massager.
But Singapore was probably being a smartass about it. The gifts are never meant to be handed over to the President personally and never ever improved diplomacy.
You can read the article here and find out what other countries gave, for example, Malaysia, who gave an ornate pewter jewelry box with velvet interior, presented in a blue velvet box in 2011.
