Material girl Michelle Obama is a modern-day Marie Antoinette on a glitzy Spanish vacation

[Geee]

NY Daily News:

Material girl Michelle Obama is a modern-day Marie Antoinette on a glitzy Spanish vacation
ANDREA TANTAROS

Thursday, August 5th 2010, 1:53 AM

Sacrifice is something that many Americans are becoming all too familiar with during this economic downturn. It was a key theme in President Obama's inaugural address to the nation, and he's referenced it numerous times when lecturing the country on how to get back on its feet.

But while most of the country is pinching pennies and downsizing summer sojourns - or forgoing them altogether - the Obamas don't seem to be heeding their own advice. While many of us are struggling, the First Lady is spending the next few days in a five-star hotel on the chic Costa del Sol in southern Spain with 40 of her "closest friends." According to CNN, the group is expected to occupy 60 to 70 rooms, more than a third of the lodgings at the 160-room resort. Not exactly what one would call cutting back in troubled times.

Reports are calling the lodgings of Obama's Spanish fiesta, the Hotel Villa Padierna in Marbella, "luxurious," "posh" and "a millionaires' playground." Estimated room rate per night? Up to a staggering $2,500. Method of transportation? Air Force Two.

To be clear, what the Obamas do with their money is one thing; what they do with ours is another. Transporting and housing the estimated 70 Secret Service agents who will flank the material girl will cost the taxpayers a pretty penny.

Perhaps it could be that the Obamas, who seem to fancy themselves more along the lines of international celebrities than actual leaders, espouse a different view of sacrifice. When Michelle Obama accompanied her husband to Copenhagen along with best buddy Oprah Winfrey, she billed the trip - an ultimately unsuccessful bid to bring the Olympics to Chicago - as follows: "As much of a sacrifice as people say this is for me or Oprah or the President to come for these few days, so many of you in this room have been working for years to bring this bid home."

A quick jaunt to Denmark is a sacrifice? What portraits in courage!

The Obama modus operandi is becoming clear. From lavish trips to Spain to reportedly flying Bo, the President's Portuguese water dog, on a separate aircraft to vacation with them in Maine, to a date night in New York City that perhaps cost nearly $100,000, their idea of austerity is really just the lap of luxury, at least for ordinary folks.

Incredibly, the Obamas have long portrayed themselves as precisely such commoners. Just this month, Obama told ABC the First Couple is "not that far removed from what most Americans are going through." And that "it was just a few years ago that we had high credit card balances, we had two kids, thinking about college. We had our own retirement accounts, wondering if we were going to be able to get enough assets in there."

[NCTexan]

I don't think so....

 

[Geee]

LOL. Bo looks more like Marie

[nickydog]

Maybe not in looks, but the comparison is good in every other way. This article makes my blood boil.

[clearvision]

So no US resorts where worthy of receiving these stimulus funds?

[NCTexan]

Playing at a theater near you...

 

[Argyle58]

And Zero thinks his poll numbers are falling because of Fox News and Rush Limbaugh.

[pollyannaish]

Maybe not in looks, but the comparison is good in every other way. This article makes my blood boil.

 

Ditto that in every way. I can't tell you how many times in life normal people choose not to do things because of appearances. That they don't seem to have any ear for such hypocrisy is so disturbing to me!

[righteousmomma]

The article makes my blood boil too.

However in fairness to Marie Antoinette I must say the comparison is ludicrous and ironical.

 

(In the first place Queen Marie never said the famous line "Let them eat cake." from all accounts.)

 

She was a product of royal upbringing and lifestyle in a time when there was only royalty and the common people. France did have a monarchy-- a Queen Marie Antoinette and a King Louis. We do not. Least until now.

 

Actually the French Republic that came about after Louis and Marie were beheaded by a mob of commoners and thrown into a hole under the streets of Paris and after a bloody purge of most of the educated and wealthy was very much the inspiration for our new Republican form of government.

[Argyle58]

Actually the French Republic that came about after Louis and Marie were beheaded by a mob of commoners and thrown into a hole under the streets of Paris and after a bloody purge of most of the educated and wealthy was very much the impetus and inspiration for our new Republican form of government.

 

Actually, it was the other way around. Our breaking with the Crown and subsequent formation of a constitutional Republic were factors in inciting the French Revolution. When our Republican form of government was formed, the French were still under a monarchy. The great purge of the nobles didn't start until 1791.

[righteousmomma]

You are right on the dates.

Too upset to think straight. Guess I was referring more to Thomas Jefferson cheering on the republicans (people) and Adams standing back a little apprehensive and amazed. Regardless we each influenced the other and now we have all these totally classless clueless "ruling elite" liberals in charge. imo

[clearvision]

First ladies often go on vacations, with and without the president. An issue for Mrs. Obama may be how many: New York in March; Chicago, over Memorial Day; Los Angeles in June; Camp David -- sort of an extension of the White House -- in July; Maine in July, to highlight Acadia National Park, and now Spain. Mrs. Obama is glamorizing Spain's coastal resorts before her Aug. 14 first family weekend visit to Florida's Gulf Coast, to encourage tourists scared away by the oil spill. Starting Aug. 19, the Obamas will spend 10 days in Martha's Vineyard.

 

Wow the First Couple is doing some serious vacationing...

[Pepper]

Clearvision

 

It's the only thing they appear to be serious about - besides deepening the racial divide

 

 

NCTexan

 

Great Grifters Image.

 

Wow the First Couple is doing some serious vacationing...

[Valin]

I could be wrong, but last time I checked America still had a couple of resorts on the ocean.

[Argyle58]

I could be wrong, but last time I checked America still had a couple of resorts on the ocean.

 

Yeah, but nothing worthy of such class, style and elegance:

 

[Pepper]

Valin

 

 

Mechelle needs another vacation to relax from the stressful trip to Spain.

 

Therefore, FLOTUS and the PUTZ will be in Panama City Beach to check on fluid levels.

 

But that city was never really affected by the oil gusher. It was just a victim of bad press.

 

I could be wrong, but last time I checked America still had a couple of resorts on the ocean.

[Pepper]

TRR EXCLUSIVE (actually just a reminder when Obozo was on GMA on July 23, 2010)

Real reason why Mee-chelle forced to go alone to Spain. It seems that Obama attempting to hold down family spending. Obama feels our pain

 

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: "We're just not that far removed from what most Americans are going through. I mean it was only a few years ago when, you know, we had high credit card balances. We had two little kids that we were trying to figure out how to save for — enough for college."

 

"That we were still thinking about our own retirement then looking at our retirement accounts and wondering, are we going to be able to get enough assets in there to make sure we're protected."

 

 

For the purpose of the clueless who rely on Ask Yahoo:

 

Question: Did Obama really say that he and Michelle were affected by the current economic downturn?

 

Answer: Yes. In fact, when asked on Good Morning America on July 23, 2010 about the economy, Obama said:

"We're just not that far removed from what most Americans are going through."

 

Obama: My Finances Have Suffered, Too

 

Obama: My Finances Have Suffered, Too

[Argyle58]

Would be sunbathers look on as authorities rope off 100 yards of one of the most popular beaches in the world for Michelle and Sasha's private use.

 

Photo from Foxnews.com

 

 

This doesn't look like a crowd of admirers, they look pretty peeved

[Casino67]

[NCTexan]

Thanks MEchelle.... we will.

 

[clearvision]

Twinkies last forever...

 

I think I have told it before, but back in the good old work days, we had a guy doing a Twinkies experiment in his office window for over 6 months to see if they would "rot". So, a couple of us decided to accelerate the experiment and arranged for some bait shrimp to be brought in... The Twinkies were dispatched from his office window, sliced open, shrimp inserted, and then put back. For two days people complained of a hideous smell coming from his office. Then the next day we heard him hollering down the hall.... it was in the twinkies... it was in the twinkies...

[Pepper]

Clearvision NCTexan Valin Casino67

 

Clase de español para los jóvenes

---

 

Lección numero 666: Los Palabras de la Wookie

 

"¿Es este hotel me hace gorda?

 

"Does this hotel make me look fat?"

[Pepper]

Michelle Obama could face 'appearance' issue over luxury Spain vacation

 

First ladies often go on vacations, with and without the president. An issue for Mrs. Obama may be how many:

New York in March;

Chicago, over Memorial Day;

Los Angeles in June;

Camp David -- sort of an extension of the White House -- in July;

Maine in July, to highlight Acadia National Park,

and now Spain.

 

Mrs. Obama is glamorizing Spain's coastal resorts before

her Aug. 14 first family weekend visit to Florida's Gulf Coast, to encourage tourists scared away by the oil spill.

Starting Aug. 19, the Obamas will spend 10 days in Martha's Vineyard.

[pollyannaish]

You know that's what is bothering me about this.

 

All the coverage I've read about this talks about how this "appears." It appears wrong, it appears thoughtless, it appears callous.

 

Well. You know what? Let's assume for the record that this trip ends up costing taxpayers 400,000 dollars. That could give TEN people an average wage for a YEAR in this country. TEN PEOPLE. And they are blowing through it like it was pocket change over and over again. And it would employ TWENTY-SEVEN people in the poorest communities making minimum wage for a year.

 

 

We hear millions and billions and trillions tossed around so much these days, we forget just how large a sum 400,000 is.

 

It is time we get a little perspective on this. It doesn't just APPEAR thoughtless, callous and wrong. It IS thoughtless, callous and wrong.

[NCTexan]

Clearvision NCTexan Valin Casino67

 

Clase de español para los jóvenes

---

 

Lección numero 666: Los Palabras de la Wookie

 

"¿Es este hotel me hace gorda?

 

"Does this hotel make me look fat?"

Pepper!

 

"Si Senora, su cabeza es gorda!"

 

Clearvision!

 

I love the story of the office prank.