THE HUDDLED MASSES

Everyone finds it hard to buy the right gift for people they don't really know. The Statue of Liberty proves that to me. Nice gesture, strange gift.

The Statue of Liberty was given by the French to the United States of America for their Centenary. How did that work? "Happy Centenary - here's a big statue of a woman holding a torch... we made it ourselves."

Now, it's a good looking statue. It's iconic. But it's a strange sort of gift to give a country. I'd love to know what the thought process was there.

I guess they figured all the books they could get were in French which, really, isn't a very fun present for someone who doesn't speak the language. It's like those terrible "educational toys" you'd get for Christmas as a child. Too much "educational" there, not enough "toy" if I recall.

You could maybe buy a record, but when you're buying it for the whole country it's going to be tough to find something that's to everyone's taste. Maybe a greatest hits collection, one of those "Now" albums by various artists, I don't know. It's a tough call.

In that context, the Statue of Liberty actually makes a lot of sense. What do you buy someone you don't really know? Pointless desk furniture - a paperweight. And what is the Statue of Liberty if not a giant paperweight?

When it came down to it, it was the paperweight or an enormous box of chocolates.