Obama has destroyed so much of his magic by taking that selfie with Cameorn and the Danish woman.

[moondog]

What an appallingly crass thing to do.
I've really gone off him in a big way.

If I was sat next to Obama, I'd want more than a selfie.

As the photographer has stated there was singing and dancing going on around them. It took part in a Football stadium not in a place of worship.

"Magic?"

Really?

Obama is one of the most lacklustre presidents in recent history.

What magic?
an absolute failure of a president

You don't think he has any charisma, Pendeen?

With all politicians, you have to reserve judgment until they retire. Then (Thatcher excepted, she never mellowed or opened up, I feel) they become people again and you can work out if there is anything of worth in them. Amazing how John Major turns out to be quite bearable. Gordon Brown-still odd. Tony Blair-even more smug. George Bush-surprisingly warm. Ted Heath-born ratty, stayed ratty. Clinton-still louche.

So I will be interested to see how Obama comes across in say, 2017.

I've changed my mind on this. At first I thought it was crass and disrespectful. Having thought about it, and given the context (ie everyone else having a good time), I think it was probably OK. It's just slightly surprising to see three very different political leaders having such a good time together.

I think it's not a bad thing either if it gives the "Danish woman" a higher profile. I've been a mega fan of Danish politics since Borgen...

i had no idea obama was magic! did he go to hogwarts?

bloody stupid thing to say really, hes just a man doing a job

What a load of angst over nothing.

I doubt Mandela's family give a toss.

I doubt Mandela himself would've given a monkey's fart.

No he bloody hasn't!

Oh grow up you lot! It's a PHOTO of a PHOTO being taken!

Not REALITY! (Geddit?)

You have no actual context for this image. You cannot decode it in any meaningful fashion. You do not know whay it was recorded. Why are you talking about 'Magic'? Are you stupid enough to believe in 'Magic'? What possible relevance does 'Magic' have to international politics?

Do you work for the Disney Corporation perhaps?

I was at an event with Nelson Mandela once and 'formal' the guy really wasn't. Quite the opposite. Along with the dancing, singing and that bizarre bloke standing next to the speakers that pretended to know sign language I think the world leader selfie (and Mrs O's boot-faced reaction) would have had the great man in stitches.

In defence of the OP, I think by "magic" she is simply referring to Obama's personal charisma. Discovering that this man who normally exudes an aura of statesmanlike authority has joined in with a giggling selfie is a bit like seeing footage of Martin Luther King performing the hokey-cokey.

But they weren't going with the flow were they? I don't see photographing themselves as reflective of that.

All 'formal' means is in accordance with etiquette or convention / officially sanctioned so Mandelas memorial was a formal occasion in that it reflected the local cultural mores. It may seem 'informal' to us but it wasn't in the context of SA's.

They weren't dancing and singing. They were doing something with total self absorption as opposed to dancing and singing with total disregard of their self.

And as for 'African Funerals' - what are they precisely? I didn't know there was a generic 'African' funeral/memorial.

By 'they weren't dancing and singing' I was referring to the Obama/Cameron/Thorning Schmidt trio. Not the crowds.

And as for 'African Funerals' - what are they precisely? I didn't know there was a generic 'African' funeral/memorial

Obviously in a continent of many different countries, there will be many different funeral customs.

The point is, despite those variations, in comparison, British funerals and British attitudes towards death and mourning are still very different and you can't judge how people behave at them based on a British idea of how things should be.

'Them' being funerals in SA [or any other African country]

I'm not necessarily using 'British' funerals as a comparison although I wonder what 'British funerals' are exactly. A Roman Catholic High Mass w/ wake is very different to a methodist funeral which is very different to a Humanist service which is very different to a Muslim service. All British.

Taking photographs of yourself is different to singing/dancing/giving thanks.

Was the contrast between their self involvement and the selfless thanksgiving of other attendees that stood out for me.

It was still a formal occasion. Just not 'their' kind of formal.

Yes, there are also different types of British funerals. They generally have sedateness in common though [though I am aware of the 'piss up' after the funeral that some people favour] and it seems that anything that deviates from that is deemed inappropriate by many British people.

Was the contrast between their self involvement and the selfless thanksgiving of other attendees that stood out for me

How many other people were present?

I expect the majority didn't have the worlds media waiting to take their picture.

It was one brief moment in a long day.

no idea who she is. and yet everyone's addicted to Borgen!

Mignonette, I'm not entirely sure that everyone there was quite as selfless as you might thing. Perhaps I'm being cynical, but I would imagine there were a fair few people who were in the crowd who went partly just to say there were there, just as people nowadays say "Live Aid, yes I was there." It was a big historical occasion. I imagine there were countless thousands of selfies taken.

think not thing.

Yes, I would bet my last fiver that that was not the only photo taken by attendees that day.

Chaniging subject slightly, the signer at the memorial has just revealed his Schizophrenia Dx so hopefully all the twitter piss takes will stop now (Caitlin Moran was one of them).

migonette- assuming he does actually have Schizophrenia!

I am addicted to the youtube videos of his 'signing'