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Posted on 07.09.09 by K. Daniel Glover @ 1:01 pm
A few weeks back, President Obama reminded everyone why he won the dishonor of elitist of the year in 2008 by bragging that he can cook Pakistani food and reads Urdu poetry. That politically expedient boast to Dawn, an English-language newspaper in Pakistan, backfired on Obama last week. Jon Stewart of “The Daily Show” used it as a punchline in a skit titled “That’s Great, Now Fix The Economy.”
[CONTENT WARNING: Brief profanity]
The fact that Obama likes Pakistani food isn’t necessarily elitist. Enlightened rednecks are open to trying new foods simply because we like to eat.
The solution: Pile an array of fruits, vegetables and assorted snacks onto a pile of rice and curried meat, and top it all with a spread of sweet chutney. We love to make a party of it by having friends who have never heard of empire curry bring one topping each to a group dinner. So like I said, it’s always fun to sample new foods. But Urdu poetry? That’s about as elitist as you can get. Filed under: Culture and Food and Just For Laughs and People and Video Comments:
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[...] Obama The Urdu Poetry Buff: “ [...]
Pingback by Dirty Democrats » Obama The Urdu Poetry Buff — July 13, 2009 @ 5:19 am
Great clip. But Punjabi poetry (a minority language in Pakistan) might be more elitist. Set it to music as a Qawwali song (Sufi devotional music) and you’re over-the-top! Believe it or not, this is just such a song (with English subtitles) even a Christian redneck could love:
http://www.babelsongs.com/2009/06/aik-alif-by-saieen-zahoor-and-noori.html
Comment by Dale Sundstrom — July 20, 2009 @ 11:04 am
[...] stick to Urdu poetry and arugula, Mr. President, and leave NASCAR and swamp cabbage to all of us rednecks you so [...]
Pingback by The Enlightened Redneck » Obama’s NASCAR History Lesson — August 23, 2009 @ 10:01 pm
Urdu poetry is very attractive to the lovers of nature, life, romance, and philosophy. It draws upon centuries old culture, language, forms, and cliches of Persia and Arabian peninsula along with the great sub-continent the home to 1.25 billion people.
Those of you who are wondering as to what attracted Obama so much in Urdu poetry, take heart. There are fine English Translations available to enjoy.
Above all, American Urdu literary scene is wide and interesting. One such great American Urdu (and a modern Sufi) poet has been Saiyid Mohammad Hanif Akhgar Maleehabadi. He was a legend of American Poetry. Why not pay a visit to his works cited in the above link, and see for yourself this amazing poet’s works. American can be proud of such literary treasures and cultural diversity in its folds.
Hashim Syed, Chief Editor
Justuju Media
Comment by Hashim Syed Justuju — September 10, 2009 @ 5:59 pm