I've finally found a job opening: presidential gift selector.
The newspaper industry is dying and my job opportunities are slim, so it's time to become creative in my career choices. After reading about President Barack Obama's trip to Europe, I was encouraged by the possibility of becoming an official expert to select gifts for European dignitaries and leaders.
Who hasn't been stuck with the age-old question of what to get a world leader who owns everything? So it's understandable that Obama has floundered a little in his first attempts.
The president clearly needs a little help.
Last month, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown visited Washington, D.C. and brought Obama a pen holder crafted from the timbers of the 19th century British warship HMS President, whose sister ship, the HMS Resolute, provided the wood for the Oval Office's desk.
Obama presented the prime minister with a set of 25 DVDs of American movies, which Brown will never be able to watch because many European DVD players are not compatible with American DVDs.
Then, last week, Obama gifted Queen Elizabeth II with an iPod that contained audio of several of his speeches as well as pictures from the Queen's visit to Richmond, Va. in 2007. He also gave her a rare signed songbook by Richards Rogers, because her favorite musical is Oklahoma!.
The queen gave the president a signed, framed picture of herself and her husband, the standard gift for visiting dignitaries.
Although the queen already owns an iPod, Obama was ridiculed in the British newspapers for his gift. But the gift is appropriate for the technology-loving president, who was unable to part with his beloved Blackberry upon taking office.
Last week, while world leaders met for the G-20 conference, Michelle Obama presented Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, the wife of the French president, with a Gibson acoustic guitar. Bruni-Sarkozy is a musician and former model.
I'm not sure that as the expert presidential gift selector, I would be able to do much better. It's the worst gift giving decision a person could ever face. What do you give the leaders of the free world who consider money no object?
A better alternative would be to build off from Obama's campaign emphasis on public service and servanthood. An act of service would speak volumes to ally countries compared to a useless gift.
Perhaps the biggest encouragement from Obama's trip to Europe is the fact that the most talked-about stories are about dignitary gifts. Thus far, Obama hasn't said anything embarrassing, incorrect or unintelligent. He has handled his visits with grace. Though gift giving is a tradition that has gone on for decades, the media can do little but pick at gift choices.
I'm sure whoever helps the Obamas in the political decision of gift choices has been researching the implications of their decision for months.
Thus, my application for gift selector will likely be rejected because I can offer little in the way of suggestions for what to give the queen of England as a gift. The Obamas seem to have the task mostly under control, although their choices left a little to be desired according to the British newspapers.
I suppose I will have to continue the job search on my own.
Jessica Turnbull is a senior majoring in journalism and is The Daily Collegian's Wednesday columnist. Her e-mail address is jlt5044@psu.edu.
