They are using this as the "wow - Bush was such an idiot, holding hands and hugging" blah, blah, blah.
Now, who was using the proper ettique?
oH! HA.... GOOD POST!!
and might I add...
protocols....
http://www1.american.edu/TED/hpages/protocol/middle~1.htm
SAUDI ARABIA
Greetings are highly formalistic
Shaking of hand is often accompanied by touching the arm or the shoulder
Men who are familiar with one another may often embrace at greeting
Relish lavish gifts
Have a strict sense of religion and diet
Men may bring wives to the United States, however, in Saudi Arabia, they remain unseen
Cherish long, close business friendships
Harbor a disdain for the US business custom of changing sales/marketing representatives
Dogs are not commonly household pets
Good topics: history, culture, and respect fore the Islamic faith
Bad topics: any blasphemy, Israel, and the role of women
http://www.ehow.com/how_2089399_practice-proper-business-etiquette-saudi.html
Use your hands carefully. Use your right hand when doing anything in public to practice proper business etiquette in Saudi Arabia (e.g., handshaking). Keep from gesturing with your hands a lot or pointing at anything, especially to the soles of people’s shoes or feet. This is considered very rude behavior. Get used to people being in your personal space and refrain from pulling or jerking back when someone touches you. It is customary to touch and stand close to one another.
http://www.the-saudi.net/business-center/business-etiquette.htm
Saudi custom regarding greetings is rather ritualized. When entering a meeting full of people, a Saudi will greet each person individually with a handshake while standing. The same is expected of visitors. Learning some appropriate Arabic phrases for such occasions is appreciated.
Did BO give him a DVD set or an iPod? ;)
They are using this as the "wow - Bush was such an idiot, holding hands and hugging" blah, blah, blah.
Now, who was using the proper ettique?
O could have done just about anything else and he would have been ok. I wonder what he was thinking? Watching the video you can see others handshaking...even hugging but nobody is bowing. Maybe he wanted to be different or he just totally missed the orientation meeting that morning! Probably more like it is he actually was bowing to someone he thought was above him. Yuck!
Demonstrating his ignorance. I watched the video. It struck me as patronizing. Right up there with the tourist who believes using chopsticks makes him Chinese.