Politics can often be the source for quips and put-downs. Here’s one from Barack Obama during a debate with Mitt Romney. Mr Romney pointed out that the US navy had fewer ships than at any time since 1916. “Well,” quipped Mr Obama, “we also have fewer horses and bayonets.”
The public and the media love these kinds of quips, although the evidence that they actually change the public’s mind is slim. Usually, they cement a particular image: Ronald Reagan’s resigned “There you go again” to Jimmy Carter in 1980 reminded Americans that Mr Carter’s accusations were often unfounded.
And then this week Avigdor Lieberman, Israel’s foreign minister, reacted to the Swedish decision to recognise Palestine by saying the Middle East is more complex “than the self-assembly furniture of Ikea”. Sweden’s foreign minister, Margot Wallstrom, was quick to react: “I’m happy to send Lieberman an Ikea flat-pack,” she said. “He’ll see it requires partner cooperation and a good manual.”
