What would happen if, say, Obama punched Putin in the mouth?
Aside from the security moving in fast, what would each country/political party do?
Has this ever happened in recent history? I assume it hasn’t.
World War III.
Moved to IMHO.
Colibri
General Questions Moderator
Diplomats would say “Shame, shame”. But the real world would not care.
What if G W Bush (by proxy) punched Saddam Hussein in the mouth? Or gave Angela Merkel a back-rub?
It would be a significant diplomatic issue. But beyond that? I don’t it going anywhere too far.
The bottom line is we’ve moved beyond the idea that international affairs are arrangements between individuals. Nowadays the leaders of countries, even monarchies and dictatorships, are seen as the representatives of their nation not its embodiment. So if Obama and Putin got into a fistfight, it wouldn’t be seen as a fistfight between America and Russia.
“Of course you realize this means war.” Bugs Bunny, Foreign Secretary.
I’m interested in the follow-up question in the OP:
When was the last time a leader of a country committed a direct act of physical violence upon the leader of another country?
Did Khrushchev’s shoe actually make contact with Kennedy? (and would we count that?)
Just thought I’d Google this and I’ve already informed myself that it never happened.
An Iraqi journalist threw his shoes (both 'em!) at George W. Bush. If I remember correctly, Bush ducked and wasn’t actually hit.
And Bush the Elder threw up on the Japanese Prime Minister…
If the President and some high-ranking foreign leader ever actually got into a tussle, their security guys would pull them apart. There’s some risk that their security guys would then get into a tussle, and as some of them are armed, it could get hairy. On the other hand, they’re exceptionally well-trained, so they could probably figure out how to stand down.
Anyway, it would probably lead to two kinds of responses: the “I don’t trust you” response, where diplomacy would be conducted across desks and with other barriers, and the “I still trust you” response, where, in a big show of perfect trust, leaders would meet face to face, hug, kiss each other’s cheeks, and strongly demonstrate that they have no fear of anything as absurd as fisticuffs.
I have never heard a version of this story in which Kennedy was involved, or even present.
Kruschev’s shoe [is supposed to have] made contact with a desk at the UN headquarters in New York. He had asked the President of the Assembly, Freddy Boland, to call another delegate to order and, when Boland permitted the other delegate to continue speaking, he protested against that decision by gesturing, banging his desk and [allegedly] hitting his desk with his shoe in opposition to Boland’s use of his gavel. The incident was terminated by Boland adjourning the sitting.
Nobody was directly threatened with the shoe, much less hit with it. I haven’t seen any reports suggesting that Kennedy was present. The incident occurred about a month before the 1960 election and at the time he was a US Senator, campaigning to be elected President. It seems very unlikely that he would have been present.
Yeah, first time I heard the story was probably about 25 years after it happened. The story was set at the U.N., so that part was correct, but in the telling I was audience to Kennedy was there and he was President already and he was the target of the shoe.
I’ve heard to story with those same incorrect details from different sources in the years since.
Immediately after I made the post that you quoted, I looked up the story and found that I had believed a complete fabrication all these years. I should start spreading the word as I know that there are others out there who believe the same thing.
The Field of the Cloth of Gold, 1520. Henry VIII wrestled with King Francis I of France, and lost.
And that was a consensual sporting contest, which is not really what the OP is asking about.
Putin would spit a tooth, then take a swing at Obama. Back and forth till one fell.
ETA, then the victor would help the other to his feet, they’d slap each other on the back, and crack open the good vodka.
[quote=“Marine_One, post:1, topic:756899”]
What would happen if, say, Obama punched Putin in the mouth?
QUOTE]
Putin wins by KO less than 1/2 way into the 1st
I might start watching the news on TV again…
I like the way you think!
…if Dubya had ever expressed an interest in punching Saddam in the nose, I would have been happy to give him a push down into the spider hole.
[quote=“Zeke_N.Destroi, post:15, topic:756899”]
Nah, judo is Putin’s sport - he wins by ippon in 15 seconds is my guess.
“Perhaps I went a bit too far.”
(P.S.: anyone remember the title of the cartoon this appears in? As I recall, Bugs ends up surrounded by shells, says the line, and the shells blow up, ending the cartoon.)
ETA: To add a bit more detail, Bugs goes bugs for some reason I can’t remember either, and the military has to hunt him down to stop him.
NM, answered my own question. It’s called “Rebel Rabbit” and the actual line is:
“Eh, could it be that I carried this thing too far?”
(BOOM!)
(Bugs behind bars)
“Eh, could be.”
Ah, the joy of misremembered memories… 