December 09, 2011
— Ace This occurred to me due to Obama's claim that paying people not to work creates more jobs than actually creating jobs.
It is a thoroughly stupid and ignorant statement. Even as a weak bit of political spin, it verges, apologies for the word but I mean it, on being mentally retarded.
A year or two ago one of those guys who's supposedly a libertarian but seems to make his rent attacking conservatives posited that the right suffers from "epistemic closure," a mis-named term which he claimed to mean "closed off to information or experience inconsistent with one's prior views."
A tasteless and unnecessary neologism for the very old idea of a Community-Based Reality, a group which decides what reality is according to a group. Contrary information will not be permitted to interfere with the Community-Based Reality the group is deciding upon; they reason backwards from their conclusions to decide what the Facts are which prove those pre-supposed conclusions.
Not a particularly new idea. But he made up a (poor) neologism for it, and attacked the right, so of course he got lots of links and probably a few invitations to MSNBC.
Using this terminology: Is Obama's mind epistemically closed?
Obama is supposedly a learned man. We are told he is a rara avis, in Chris Buckley's dribblings, a true intellectual.
When was the last time Obama actually learned something about the world?
Did he, as the book's title might have it, Learn Everything He Needed To Know By Second Semester Sophomore Year?
When was the last time Obama was actually confronted by new information and new experience and actually adapted his beliefs to fit the new fact-pattern, rather than consistently adapting the new fact-pattern to fit his old beliefs?
For, we were told, anyone who does not do this is is "epistemically closed."
So when has Obama done it? I'm sure that book Bill Ayers wrote for him contains moments of realization, but those are of course set deep in Bill Ayers' past.
One question the media loves asking Republicans is "What have you learned in office?" By which they really are asking: "Which hidebound conservative beliefs are you finally ready to jettison?"
They fret when a Republican dodges the question, saying something bullshitty about learning about the greatness of the American Voting Public, and cry "unteachable!"
Very well.
What has Obama learned in office? Which of his pre-existing beliefs has he learned to is wrong?
Don't say gay marriage; he's still "evolving" on that, so he is not ready to discard that old stance against gay marriage (not until January 2013, at least).
What has Obama learned?
The man is besieged by evidence of his own failures, after all. Even if one were, like his liberal media Praetorian Guard, to take the position that Obama's failures are really Hidden Successes, surely he must have changed some of his beliefs as he sees the practical effect of his hitherto entirely-theoretical knowledge of how economics, and the world, works.
Oh sure he'll claim he's learned he hasn't communicated his vision and his successes enough.
That is just a dodge, of course. That is not confronting his failures and learning from them; that is merely attempting to claim his failures are successes, and his only real failure is being President of a nation whose voters are too dumb to understand how amazingly he's succeeded.
That, in other words, is simply another proof of epistemic closure.
So: If Obama is such a learned man, what the fuck has he learned since age 19?
Posted by: Ace at
09:58 AM
| Comments (517)
Post contains 604 words, total size 4 kb.
Posted by: JWF at December 09, 2011 10:00 AM (1l37M)
They're always saying Obama is so smart -- he has a 160 IQ.
How come he can only speak one language?
If Obama is the intellectual cosmopolitan they (and he) say he is, why isn't he at least multilingual?
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 10:00 AM (sqkOB)
Posted by: CoolCzech at December 09, 2011 10:01 AM (niZvt)
Posted by: Lynn at December 09, 2011 10:01 AM (FmV27)
Posted by: The Robot Devil at December 09, 2011 10:03 AM (136wp)
Posted by: TelePrompter at December 09, 2011 10:03 AM (r2PLg)
Barack Hussien Obama suffers from a rectal - crainial inversion
As well as being a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure.
This is my professional opinion.
Posted by: Zombie Dr. Sigmumd Freud at December 09, 2011 10:03 AM (KhioZ)
Global warming types for example.
The Paultards and Alex Jones devotees on the right would be another example.
Posted by: Scott J at December 09, 2011 10:03 AM (KC2BE)
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 02:00 PM (sqkOB)
Well, he's at least bi
Posted by: Kal Penn at December 09, 2011 10:04 AM (136wp)
Posted by: brak at December 09, 2011 10:04 AM (U+5R9)
Posted by: TelePrompter at December 09, 2011 10:04 AM (r2PLg)
Posted by: Yip of Texas at December 09, 2011 10:05 AM (Mrdk1)
Posted by: wheatie.....aka ConservativeMenAreJustHotter at December 09, 2011 10:05 AM (HvKWW)
Posted by: Mike at December 09, 2011 10:05 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: Charles Gibson at December 09, 2011 10:05 AM (Mrdk1)
Posted by: TelePrompter at December 09, 2011 10:05 AM (r2PLg)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at December 09, 2011 10:06 AM (AZGON)
Isn't this kind of a Duh question? Of course it is. There's no evidence that he was a great intellect to begin with, but then on top of starting with average material, at best, the poor imbecile has grown up entirely cocooned in a make-believe lefty world.
Posted by: toby928© at December 09, 2011 10:06 AM (GTbGH)
Did the Obama administration delay report on Volt fires?
Well Ed, does Moochelle cause bathtub water to rise a foot when she gets in the tub?
Posted by: kbdabear at December 09, 2011 10:06 AM (Y+DPZ)
Posted by: TelePrompter at December 09, 2011 10:06 AM (r2PLg)
Posted by: maddogg at December 09, 2011 10:07 AM (OlN4e)
Never once has Obama spoken, off script, with authority on any subject.
Think about it.
Obama never makes knowledgeable references to anything, other than what the script tells him what to say.
Clinton, the Rhodes Scholar, could blab all day long about a lot of shit.
Obama, not a notable scholar of any kind, is a reciter of pre-prepared scripts.
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 10:07 AM (sqkOB)
Posted by: Blue Falcon in Boston training for the ONT mudwrestling match at December 09, 2011 10:07 AM (ijjAe)
Posted by: Dave at December 09, 2011 10:07 AM (Xm1aB)
Posted by: B. H. Obama at December 09, 2011 10:08 AM (97AKa)
and his only real failure is being President of a nation whose voters are too dumb to understand how amazingly he's succeeded.
Answer to the question is here.
He HAS SUCCEEDED in diminishing America abroad,
In Redistributing the wealth to some extent,
In packing the courts with liberal idealogues,
In paying off his favored interest groups UNIONS to the tune of TRILLIONS
and IS BUILDING HIS BASE OF GOVERNMENT WORKERS AND DEPENDENTS,
because the Lyin kING knows once the government workers and dependents reach somewhere over 50% his electoral advantage is sealed and we are stuck with him and his party until the coming collapse and rebirth of the nation.
God save us from the Lyin kING but mostly God save us from those voters too dumb to understand how he has succeeded!
Posted by: Concealed Kerry or submit at December 09, 2011 10:08 AM (vXqv3)
One of the few things that's a matter of public record: Barry was not even a National Merit Semi-finalist, much less a scholar.
Posted by: toby928© at December 09, 2011 10:09 AM (GTbGH)
Posted by: Quilly Mammoth at December 09, 2011 10:09 AM (MDrnF)
Posted by: TelePrompter at December 09, 2011 10:09 AM (r2PLg)
You bastard.
Posted by: Scott J at December 09, 2011 02:07 PM (KC2BE)
with fur
Posted by: The Robot Devil at December 09, 2011 10:09 AM (136wp)
Posted by: Barky O'Genius at December 09, 2011 10:09 AM (QKKT0)
Posted by: The Robot Devil at December 09, 2011 02:03 PM
The man needs a fluffer. Where are Raykon or Proudonkey when they're actually needed?
Posted by: kbdabear at December 09, 2011 10:09 AM (Y+DPZ)
Posted by: TelePrompter at December 09, 2011 10:10 AM (r2PLg)
Posted by: Mama AJ at December 09, 2011 10:10 AM (XdlcF)
Posted by: Barky O'Genius at December 09, 2011 10:10 AM (QKKT0)
You're hitting on all cylinders today, Ace. I want to share this with others (minus the F word to keep it family-friendly). I hope some version of this can appear in a column.
Posted by: Purity Of Essence at December 09, 2011 10:10 AM (2EdUM)
Posted by: Fritz at December 09, 2011 10:10 AM (/ZZCn)
Posted by: That dweeb from Newsweek at December 09, 2011 10:11 AM (Fw2Gg)
Posted by: TelePrompter at December 09, 2011 10:11 AM (r2PLg)
Posted by: Barky O'Genius at December 09, 2011 10:11 AM (QKKT0)
Posted by: Barky O'Genius at December 09, 2011 10:12 AM (QKKT0)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at December 09, 2011 10:12 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: 1/1027th of a Janitor at December 09, 2011 10:12 AM (tazG1)
Posted by: TelePrompter at December 09, 2011 10:12 AM (r2PLg)
But you know what I learned today? When you want to attack somebodys conservative credentials in the Republican primaries, you dont necessarily need conservative media to do it. You use newsoutlets like Mother Jones, TPM, CBS and The Daily Beast to do it. Willard just told me, when he came from a conference call with these guys.
Posted by: B. H. Obama at December 09, 2011 10:12 AM (97AKa)
Lily the starving Muppet™:
“Sometimes we can't always afford to buy all the food that we need,” Lily said. “I mean, but we've been finding lots of ways that we can get help...Yeah, for example, at school I get a free breakfast and a lunch...part of the meal plan."
I bet all that stuffing would hold a shitload of kerosine.
Posted by: Clutch Cargo at December 09, 2011 10:12 AM (Qxdfp)
1. 52% of the voting public are fools
2. Air Force One makes a great commuting vehicle
3. Partying every Wednesday night is cool, on someone else's dime
4. The Race Card is evergreen.
5. 90% of The Media are fools
6. Golf beats working
Posted by: Joe Mama at December 09, 2011 10:13 AM (dOsjQ)
Posted by: Barky O'Genius at December 09, 2011 10:13 AM (QKKT0)
Posted by: Dave at December 09, 2011 10:13 AM (Xm1aB)
Posted by: TelePrompter at December 09, 2011 10:13 AM (r2PLg)
Posted by: Barky O'Genius at December 09, 2011 02:09 PM (QKKT0)
Wait, no I didn't. I mispronounced it twice.
Posted by: Barky O'Genius at December 09, 2011 10:14 AM (I2LwF)
Posted by: Blue Falcon in Boston training for the ONT mudwrestling match at December 09, 2011 10:14 AM (ijjAe)
Posted by: TelePrompter at December 09, 2011 10:14 AM (r2PLg)
Posted by: Barky O'Genius at December 09, 2011 10:14 AM (QKKT0)
I don't mean that he's unintelligent. I think he's simply average.
That's the great thing about being a Progressive. You can be a middling pseudo-intellectual and be advanced along effortlessly by adopting the correct group-think and taking on the identity of an accepted victim class.
Posted by: runninrebel at December 09, 2011 10:15 AM (i3PJU)
It's obvious to us what happened: we didn't dig too deep with Obama.
We [They, really] didn't bother to scratch the veneer.
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 10:15 AM (sqkOB)
If Obama is such a learned man, what the fuck has he learned since age 19?
I bet he's learned that using a screen is a lot easier than chopping Cocaine with a razor.
He's probably learned that Kobe Beef is a lot better tasting than Spam.
He's also figured out that staplers work better than tacks for putting flyers on telephone poles.
Um...
Posted by: Clutch Cargo at December 09, 2011 10:15 AM (Qxdfp)
Posted by: Barky O'Genius at December 09, 2011 10:15 AM (QKKT0)
Posted by: maddogg at December 09, 2011 10:15 AM (OlN4e)
Posted by: TelePrompter at December 09, 2011 10:16 AM (r2PLg)
I read "epistemic" for "episiotomy" and got really confused at first. . . I thought you mean somebody sewed SCOAMF's brain closed.
Which, come to think of it, someone probably did.
Posted by: Biblio at December 09, 2011 10:16 AM (7o8VY)
Posted by: Honey Badger at December 09, 2011 10:16 AM (GvYeG)
Posted by: Jaws at December 09, 2011 10:16 AM (4I3Uo)
Posted by: TelePrompter at December 09, 2011 10:17 AM (r2PLg)
a 800 billion stimulus doesn't keep unemployment at 8%....
Nope. If he had learned that, he wouldn't be pushing Stimulus III.
He's probably learned that spouting socialist bullshit gets him an endless army of volunteers that go out and repeat his mantra, that they will lie cheat and steal to see him succeed in spreading it.
Posted by: GnuBreed at December 09, 2011 10:17 AM (ENKCw)
This guy (he sure as hell ain't no man) cannot and will not think of anything other than his own power.
It really is a form of mental retardation, to be so singularly (and egotistically) focused on one thing to the excusion of everything else. A great many politicians suffer from this.
Posted by: BackwardsBoy, working towards full Curmudgeonhood at December 09, 2011 10:17 AM (d0Tfm)
Posted by: Barky O'Genius at December 09, 2011 10:17 AM (QKKT0)
Obama is very thin in every imaginable way.
Obama is, how can I put this, our first Gilded president.
But he's presented as our Golden President.
Think about it.
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 10:17 AM (sqkOB)
Posted by: tommylotto at December 09, 2011 10:18 AM (LBxr1)
Posted by: Empire of Jeff at December 09, 2011 10:18 AM (vzFJV)
Posted by: B H O at December 09, 2011 10:18 AM (SO2Q8)
Posted by: Nevergiveup at December 09, 2011 10:19 AM (eCnLg)
Posted by: Harry at December 09, 2011 10:19 AM (QQLy7)
"So: If Obama is such a learned man, what the fuck has he learned since age 19?"
Um, don't do the brown acid?
Posted by: rickb223 at December 09, 2011 10:19 AM (zji3t)
Posted by: PR at December 09, 2011 10:19 AM (T7Z8q)
Posted by: TelePrompter at December 09, 2011 10:20 AM (r2PLg)
Obama is a malignant narcissist of the first order. Narcissists do not use words to communicate the truth but rather to manipulate others. It is more than evident that Obama actually believes that his rhetoric has magical properties, that all that needs to be done is for him to Speak and it is So.
He says these logically inconsistent and outright false things not because he thinks they are true but because he thinks they are USEFUL. Conservatives need to stop giving him the benefit of the doubt by assuming he's ignorant.
He is NOT, and neither are those around him. They know exactly how the free market works. They just don't like it because they're not in control of it.
The man is besieged by evidence of his own failures.
You're assuming that helping the economy heal is a goal. Again, it is NOT. It is NOT paranoid to assume that Cloward-Piven is influencing his/their thinking. Obama had marinated in faculty-lounge Marxism his whole life (even as a child), and he has surrounded himself with people whose stated goals are to overthrow capitalism and replace it with a top-down command-and-control economy that you can't call socialism but that functions exactly like it.
Because if they WERE using the Cloward-Piven strategy, what would be different from what they're doing now?
Posted by: dicentra at December 09, 2011 10:20 AM (AIGFR)
Posted by: An Observation at December 09, 2011 10:20 AM (ylhEn)
Posted by: FLOTUS at December 09, 2011 10:20 AM (QKKT0)
Posted by: Lemon Kitten at December 09, 2011 10:20 AM (O7ksG)
Posted by: Jaws at December 09, 2011 02:16 PM (4I3Uo)
Very true so what happens when he txts his peeps on their taxpayer supplied cell phones to turn out the occupy wall streeters, union hacks, professional baby makers, don't care to workers for the next election and convinces them wiining is key, by any means necesary, cause it has already begun.
Posted by: Concealed Kerry or submit at December 09, 2011 10:20 AM (vXqv3)
Posted by: Crunch McLargehuge at December 09, 2011 10:20 AM (e8T35)
You don't have to apologize for saying "verges."
Posted by: real joe at December 09, 2011 10:21 AM (30+Gl)
I read "epistemic" for "episiotomy" and got really confused at first. . . I thought you mean somebody sewed SCOAMF's brain closed.
Which, come to think of it, someone probably did.
Well he does have that large crescent-shaped scar on the back of his head....that the MFM refuses to show.
Posted by: wheatie.....aka ConservativeMenAreJustHotter at December 09, 2011 10:21 AM (HvKWW)
Posted by: Nevergiveup at December 09, 2011 10:21 AM (eCnLg)
Posted by: toby928© at December 09, 2011 10:21 AM (GTbGH)
So: If Obama is such a learned man, what the fuck has he learned since age 19?
Posted by: Ace at 01:58 PM
How to run Fast and Furious from behind the scenes?
Posted by: An Observation at December 09, 2011 10:21 AM (ylhEn)
Posted by: Waterhouse at December 09, 2011 10:22 AM (dp+c+)
IOW, the Borg.
One good definition of intelligence is the ability to adapt to new circumstances. Res ipsa loquitur.
Posted by: pep at December 09, 2011 10:23 AM (YXmuI)
There's some mighty fine pron on that there internet
Posted by: B H O at December 09, 2011 10:23 AM (SO2Q8)
Geesh I would think we would all understand just how great his genius is by now, do you never listen to a liberal?
Posted by: Fire with Fire at December 09, 2011 10:23 AM (dieO2)
The Paultards and Alex Jones devotees on the right would be another example.
Paranoid schizophrenia is not the same thing as epistemic closure.
Being completely ignorant of everything (AKA 19 years old) also is not the same thing either.
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 10:24 AM (UmXRO)
OK, fun is fun, but easy does it.
He's been pushing the payroll tax cut for months ('it creates jobs') and recently added the unemployment extension to the stump speech. So 'payroll tax cut creates more jobs than a pipeline project' mantra became 'payroll tax cut >and umployment extension< creates more jobs.'
A tired, desperate man who relies on a teleprompter, is how I read it.
Posted by: CJ at December 09, 2011 10:24 AM (9KqcB)
Posted by: Nevergiveup at December 09, 2011 10:24 AM (eCnLg)
Posted by: Barky O'Genius at December 09, 2011 10:24 AM (I2LwF)
Posted by: TelePrompter at December 09, 2011 10:24 AM (r2PLg)
Posted by: Master Chief Brock Obama at December 09, 2011 10:25 AM (l9zgN)
Oh, quick, where's that quote of Larry Summers (I think) talking about how Obama jumped to the wrong conclusion and wouldn't listen to Summers and somebody else trying to correct him...
Posted by: Mama AJ at December 09, 2011 10:25 AM (XdlcF)
But what did he choose? About the most uninspiring, archaic, cartoon of an identity. He's lazy. He lacks courage. He has no confidence or self-esteem. He's a walking ego and a weak one at that.
Posted by: runninrebel at December 09, 2011 10:25 AM (i3PJU)
Posted by: Honey Badger at December 09, 2011 10:25 AM (GvYeG)
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 10:26 AM (UmXRO)
Obama's unemployment remark is still irritating me. Made me think of how this used to be a nation founded on the meshing of enterprise and liberty, which according to Obama does not work.
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 10:26 AM (sqkOB)
Enterprise
The legend of the Enterprise in the US Navy has a long history; incarnations of the ship go back to the 1776.
The word enterprise is quintessentially American, is it not?
We're at a point in our nation's history when we about to launch a new lineage of ships. Perhaps called Unemployment, the opposite of enterprise.
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 10:26 AM (sqkOB)
Posted by: FRONT TOWARD LEFT at December 09, 2011 10:26 AM (p7SSh)
If one kneels at 6.2 degrees south of east while in the Lincoln bedroom one is facing directly at Mecca.
Posted by: B H O at December 09, 2011 10:26 AM (SO2Q8)
Posted by: Barry Obama at December 09, 2011 10:26 AM (48wze)
Posted by: Nevergiveup at December 09, 2011 10:27 AM (eCnLg)
One good definition of intelligence is the ability to adapt to new circumstances. Res ipsa loquitur.
The Borg did nothing BUT adapt. They were on a Quest For Perfection, figuring that by assimilating all possible cultures with their knowledge and customs they'd finally reach that apotheosis.
Remember that they had to keep changing the frequencies on the phasers because the Borg adapted to the attacks so quickly.
But the Borg sought Utopia through destruction, which makes them a perfect analog to the Left.
Posted by: dicentra at December 09, 2011 10:27 AM (AIGFR)
Posted by: Wall-E at December 09, 2011 10:28 AM (48wze)
Posted by: CoolCzech at December 09, 2011 10:28 AM (niZvt)
Posted by: Nevergiveup at December 09, 2011 10:29 AM (eCnLg)
Posted by: FRONT TOWARD LEFT at December 09, 2011 10:29 AM (p7SSh)
Posted by: model_1066 at December 09, 2011 10:29 AM (YbQJm)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at December 09, 2011 10:30 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: dicentra at December 09, 2011 02:20 PM (AIGFR)
Yes, and if Fast and Furious really were a conspiracy to implement more gun control by supporting the 90% lie - exactly how would it differ from what we have seen?
Posted by: An Observation at December 09, 2011 10:30 AM (ylhEn)
Posted by: TomH at December 09, 2011 10:31 AM (wOrAR)
Posted by: phoenixgirl at work at December 09, 2011 10:32 AM (s+J9D)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at December 09, 2011 10:32 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: dicentra at December 09, 2011 10:32 AM (AIGFR)
Posted by: dicentra at December 09, 2011 02:20 PM (AIGFR)
Yes, and if Fast and Furious really were a conspiracy to implement more gun control by supporting the 90% lie - exactly how would it differ from what we have seen?
No.
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, sounds like a duck, tastes like a duck, it is a mongoose.
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 10:33 AM (UmXRO)
Posted by: MaxMBJ at December 09, 2011 10:33 AM (deaac)
"This occurred to me due to Obama's claim that paying people not to work creates more jobs than actually creating jobs."
They have economists and statistics to back this up. And, no I don't believe them.
Even if true, the difference between the dole and the pipeline is the pipeline creates jobs and pushes private money into the market, weareas the dole takes money (in taxes) out of the market and puts it back in (or increases the debt).
Posted by: davod at December 09, 2011 10:33 AM (C5U9L)
Posted by: kbdabear at December 09, 2011 02:06 PM (Y+DPZ)
guess that's one ocean that won't be lowering.
Posted by: Unclefacts Out Of Commenting Retirement Just For This One Thing at December 09, 2011 10:33 AM (6IReR)
It does come back to that, doesn't it? I have yet to have anyone point out one thing that indicates that the SCoaMF has even average intellect.
Posted by: toby928© at December 09, 2011 10:34 AM (GTbGH)
What has Obama learned?
Don't try and drive over a speed bump when Michelle is in the Limo or you'll get high-centered.
Posted by: Barack Hussein Obama at December 09, 2011 10:34 AM (0OXcp)
The fuck couldn't make change, so no.
I'd LOVE to ask him, I buy a burger, fries and shake from you for $8.32, and give you a $20 and 2¢. Count my change back.
That's why I would feel so much better if he'd ever had a job, any job.
He's so separated from the reality of most people it's damn frightening.
Posted by: Clutch Cargo at December 09, 2011 10:34 AM (Qxdfp)
RE: the NLRB backing off of Boeing....
Boeing had to agree to build a new jetliner at their plant in Washington. ....Crap. Obama's shakedown worked. He was all smug and strutting about it....saying "A lot of people will be working".
Posted by: wheatie.....aka ConservativeMenAreJustHotter at December 09, 2011 10:35 AM (HvKWW)
Rush says this repeatedly about SCOAMF, no matter what room he walks into, he's the least qualified of anyone, to do anything.
Posted by: Unclefacts Out Of Commenting Retirement Just For This One Thing at December 09, 2011 10:35 AM (6IReR)
Posted by: Wall-E at December 09, 2011 10:35 AM (48wze)
It does come back to that, doesn't it? I have yet to have anyone point out one thing that indicates that the SCoaMF has even average intellect.
You mean besides his splendid pants crease?
It is not 'intelligence' they mean, he is 'fashionable and trendy'.
They confuse the two, because they are fucking stupid.
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 10:35 AM (UmXRO)
Posted by: Wheeler at December 09, 2011 10:36 AM (WKs/3)
Can't find the quote I'm looking for, but instead almost barfed over this, which I'm not even going to bother to link:
Suskind also nails, I think, Obama's intellectual blind spot. Indeed, Obama himself nails it, telling Suskind that he was too inclined to search for "the perfect technical answer" to the myriad of complex issues coming at him. What he'd end up with instead is, as Suskind astutely summarizes it, "clever" answers that were "respectfully acknowledging opponents' positions, even those with thin evidence behind them, that then get stitched together into some pragmatic conclusion — but hollow."
Yeh, he's too perfect and technical for us.
Posted by: Mama AJ at December 09, 2011 10:36 AM (XdlcF)
Posted by: joeindc44 at December 09, 2011 10:36 AM (vsqv4)
He didn't "change his mind." He says what he needs to say at any given moment and then does what he was going to do anyway.
We really need to stop assuming that the Left uses language to tell the truth. They deny that TRVTH exists, saying instead that language refers not to reality itself but to more language, and therefore there is no objective reality, and therefore "I don't need to be right, I just need to be interesting" (Stanley Fish).
It's a battle of narratives to them: facts are just a social construct invented by Dead White Males To Oppress Teh Other. So they use "facts" to further the narrative, not in any kind of quest for TRVTH.
The sooner you understand this the better. They do NOT have the same goals that we have (national prosperity and strength). They have one goal only: to micromanage society, the way God intended.
Posted by: dicentra at December 09, 2011 10:37 AM (AIGFR)
I believe Michelle's weight is still classified - so there is no objective way to tell what happens to water level.
Posted by: An Observation at December 09, 2011 10:37 AM (ylhEn)
Think about it...
If you were a total dumbass desperate to become better informed, which theory looks more attractive?
You can become smart by studying dilligently for the remainder of your life.
You can become smart by wearing the pants smart people wear.
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 10:37 AM (UmXRO)
http://tinyurl.com/7xx22w5
Posted by: davidinvirginia at December 09, 2011 10:38 AM (rLhp2)
The Alien from Area 51, Valerie Jarret dismisses Trump's curiosity about Obama's school records back in April 2011:
“We know this is nonsense. He is almost 50 years old. And he is president of the United States and I don’t think anybody will debate his intelligence and so now we do need to get serious…let’s just get serious…get back to focusing on what’s important."
Her reasoning is sound, ya?
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 10:39 AM (sqkOB)
Posted by: toby928© at December 09, 2011 10:39 AM (GTbGH)
If Obama is such a learned man, what the fuck has he learned since age 19?
19 is too old to be the Mullahs favorite Dancing Boy.
Posted by: Barack Hussein Obama at December 09, 2011 10:39 AM (0OXcp)
Because shut up. That's why.
Posted by: Archimedes at December 09, 2011 10:39 AM (4136b)
Posted by: dicentra at December 09, 2011 02:20 PM (AIGFR)
Yes, and if Fast and Furious really were a conspiracy to implement more gun control by supporting the 90% lie - exactly how would it differ from what we have seen?
THIS! And for the above reasons we must chose a candidate who can articulate and effectively bring the fight first hand to the ignorant masses and around the media to communicate to them that their Messiah is not an intellectual rather a far left idelogue whose dreams, visions, policies, and charachter is not aligned with their own and is destroying the American way.
Alas we may be too far gone, too many may prefer the government handouts and the benefits derived from the labors of others while doing very little other than kissing governments ring at election time.
Posted by: Concealed Kerry or submit at December 09, 2011 10:40 AM (vXqv3)
No, it's a coot!
Posted by: dicentra at December 09, 2011 10:40 AM (AIGFR)
Posted by: Joffen at December 09, 2011 10:40 AM (zLeKL)
Posted by: The Teleprompter...Tee...Heee ... The dumb-ass actually read it !!!!! at December 09, 2011 10:40 AM (48wze)
Posted by: Fritz at December 09, 2011 10:40 AM (FabC8)
Boeing had to agree to build a new jetliner at their plant in Washington. ....Crap. Obama's shakedown worked.
If I am Boeing, I am just saying that until 2013 when a new NLRB (or no NLRB hopefully) exists.
Posted by: Guy Mohawk at December 09, 2011 10:40 AM (JYheX)
If Obama is such a learned man, what the fuck has he learned since age 19?
I learned how to be Integratively Complex!
Posted by: Barack Hussein Obama at December 09, 2011 10:41 AM (0OXcp)
Posted by: B(+).H.O. at December 09, 2011 10:41 AM (2ocJB)
It takes a village dood.
In Kenya I think, I dunno ask Ayers. He wrote about it in my book.
or was that Hillery?
Posted by: preznit stumbledumb at December 09, 2011 10:41 AM (HBqDo)
Posted by: Adam Smith's Invisible Pimp Hand at December 09, 2011 10:41 AM (tKFT6)
Jarrett two days ago:
"Jarrett had the opportunity to hang out with Lady Gaga at the White House to discuss ways to combat bullying. And while she frequently travels with her boss, riding on Air Force One is still “very, very cool,” Jarrett admitted.
“Every day I get to the White House, I pinch myself,” she said."
These are the assholes running the federal govt.
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 10:41 AM (sqkOB)
A year or two ago one of those guys who's supposedly a libertarian but seems to make his rent attacking conservatives posited that the right suffers from "epistemic closure,"
Paging Mke Church...Mr. Church??
Posted by: dananjcon at December 09, 2011 10:41 AM (8ieXv)
Obama seems to have grasped that Bush was right on virtually every aspect of foreign policy. Thankfully, Obama has evolved from apology diplomacy to Predator diplomacy.
The Commie In Chief is a slower study when it comes to economics.
Posted by: Dennis at December 09, 2011 10:41 AM (sb8LP)
Imagine you run a Burger King, would Obama even make your short list for the position of Assistant Manager?
If I ran a burger king I wouldn't even serve the bastard.
He'd get a bag full of hope that I would change my mind.
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 10:42 AM (UmXRO)
Jeremiah Wright. 20 years.
That's got to be worse than crystal meth--or even butyl nitrate--for the brain. And it's probably the only stuff that looms out of the fog in Barry's mind, simply because of the rote repetition at high volume every Sunday for 20 years. I guarantee that every crackpot quote out of Barry's mouth can be found in Wright's sermons.
Posted by: 66chevelle at December 09, 2011 10:42 AM (QjSgY)
Posted by: Buzzsaw at December 09, 2011 10:42 AM (tf9Ne)
I beg to differ. A stupid guy could never pull off a crease like the one in that man's pants.
Posted by: David Brooks at December 09, 2011 10:43 AM (QKKT0)
Posted by: An Observation at December 09, 2011 10:43 AM (ylhEn)
Jarrett on Obama:
“I think Barack knew that he had God-given talents that were extraordinary. He knows exactly how smart he is. … He knows how perceptive he is. He knows what a good reader of people he is. And he knows that he has the ability — the extraordinary, uncanny ability — to take a thousand different perspectives, digest them and make sense out of them, and I think that he has never really been challenged intellectually. …
So what I sensed in him was not just a restless spirit but somebody with such extraordinary talents that had to be really taxed in order for him to be happy. … He’s been bored to death his whole life. He’s just too talented to do what ordinary people do.”
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 10:43 AM (sqkOB)
If Obama is such a learned man, what the fuck has he learned since age 19?
Not to get between Michelle and a tamale?
Posted by: Captain Ahab at December 09, 2011 10:43 AM (m+uox)
Posted by: The Teleprompter...Tee...Heee ... The dumb-ass actually read it !!!!! at December 09, 2011 10:44 AM (48wze)
"Obama is a college freshmen for life. Forget the sophomore year, he's a freshman who is still amazed by the new world he has discovered so unlike high school. "
Don't excuse Obama's actions and speeches by implying lack of knowledge. This allows the apologists to ascribe his actions to ignorance or bad execution.
Obama's actions are more correctly explained by looking at his mentors and life history. They are the actions of a someone schooled in the hate America Socialist rhetoric of the left wing.
Posted by: davod at December 09, 2011 10:44 AM (C5U9L)
But I learned that a long time ago in Chicago.
Posted by: Barry O'Loser at December 09, 2011 10:44 AM (kPT11)
Obama is so bored, so talented that...well, he never did anything extraordinary in his life except buffalo the American people into voting for him for president.
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 10:45 AM (sqkOB)
It's not what he believes, it's what he tells the peons to believe. And if it's repeated enough, it becomes fact. A fact that the peons believe.
You know, "War is Peace," "Freedom is Slavery."
Please spend this afternoon revisiting Mr. Orwells lovely book of prophesy, "1984."
Posted by: shibumi at December 09, 2011 10:45 AM (z63Tr)
Posted by: jwb7605 at December 09, 2011 10:46 AM (Qxe/p)
Posted by: Lord Monochromicorn at December 09, 2011 10:46 AM (Car1w)
You know, Ace, you could just stopped right there and gotten a pretty definitive round of yesses from the crowd. And we'd all have been right, too.
Posted by: Keith Arnold at December 09, 2011 10:46 AM (Jdtsu)
Obama is too talented things 'ordinary' people do such as...start a successful business.
Or invent something.
Or discover a cure for a disease.
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 10:46 AM (sqkOB)
Her reasoning is sound, ya?
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 02:39 PM (sqkOB)
Works for me.
Posted by: The Man Behind The Curtain, To Whom You Should Pay No Attention at December 09, 2011 10:46 AM (QKKT0)
THIS! And for the above reasons we must chose a candidate who can articulate and effectively bring the fight first hand to the ignorant masses and around the media to communicate to them that their Messiah is not an intellectual rather a far left idelogue whose dreams, visions, policies, and charachter is not aligned with their own and is destroying the American way.
Not that many here need to be told, but there is a post up at NRO with comments by Camp Romney, to the effect that he will be repeating McCain's strategy, which has also been his primary strategy.
What is Romney actually running on?
Anyone? Bueller?
OK - what did McCain run on (besides Sarah Palin, Vietnam and 'its my turn')?
The first time is a tragedy.
The second time it will become a farce.
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 10:47 AM (UmXRO)
And if you think this is bad so far, could you imagine how bad it would be when the he goes full Bracky if he won re-election?
God save us all if that happens.
Posted by: Guy Mohawk at December 09, 2011 10:47 AM (JYheX)
Posted by: CoolCzech at December 09, 2011 10:47 AM (niZvt)
173
Boeing had to agree to build a new jetliner at their plant in Washington. ....Crap. Obama's shakedown worked.
If I am Boeing, I am just saying that until 2013 when a new NLRB (or no NLRB hopefully) exists.
--------
I hope so. ....Hopefully Boeing put some really nebulous language in that agreement, like "in the existing facility", so that they could simply close down that facility in order to escape the encumbrance of having to build it there.
Posted by: wheatie.....aka ConservativeMenAreJustHotter at December 09, 2011 10:48 AM (HvKWW)
(e.g., see W's "atrocious" 5% unemployment vs. my "improving" 9%)
Posted by: Barky O'Scoamf at December 09, 2011 10:48 AM (kPT11)
No, no.
Obama is so bored that he decided to focus all his special talent on politics, i.e., being a leader who tells others how to live and what to think.
Obama's talent is his ability to sit on a throne and command the peasants.
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 10:49 AM (sqkOB)
Although, to be fair, it won't be second time.
McCain wasn't even second, what with John Kerry, Bob Dole, and probably dozens of other pioneers having blazed that trail for him.
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 10:49 AM (UmXRO)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at December 09, 2011 10:49 AM (AZGON)
Epistemic Closure = snob that stopped listening to anyone after age 13.
But the big words help us get the big grant money!
Posted by: HoundOfDoom at December 09, 2011 10:50 AM (KhioZ)
Posted by: cranky-d at December 09, 2011 10:52 AM (H2G0R)
Epistemic Closure = snob that stopped listening to anyone after age 13.
Well... literally, epistemic closure = close-mindedness.
But the big words help us get the big grant money!
Yup.
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 10:52 AM (UmXRO)
I'm as astounded as Valerie Jarrett that she and Obama are in the White House.
I'm sure you'll all agree.
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 10:53 AM (sqkOB)
Posted by: Ian S. at December 09, 2011 10:53 AM (tqwMN)
Posted by: Wall-E at December 09, 2011 10:53 AM (48wze)
Posted by: Blue Falcon in Boston training for the ONT mudwrestling match at December 09, 2011 10:53 AM (ijjAe)
Posted by: Fritz at December 09, 2011 10:53 AM (FabC8)
Posted by: Aunt Zeituni's Nephew at December 09, 2011 10:54 AM (kPT11)
Isn't Romney's platform "I look Presidential, I am attractive to women, and I will not admit Romneycare was a mistake?"
Posted by: shibumi at December 09, 2011 10:54 AM (z63Tr)
Posted by: Greg at December 09, 2011 10:54 AM (bN5ZU)
...in a fundamentally transformational kinda sorta manner of speaking
Posted by: ontherocks at December 09, 2011 10:54 AM (HBqDo)
Correction: He learned to fake it well enough to fool the douchebag libs who wanted to believe in the first place -- the leftard media, the self-identified "elites," the academics and their ducklings, and the suburban vaporheads who worry about being seen as having the right attitudes about things. With an audience like that, he never needed to be "really good" at it.
Posted by: al-Cicero, Tea Party Jihadist at December 09, 2011 10:55 AM (QKKT0)
Posted by: mike at December 09, 2011 10:57 AM (0hdwM)
Posted by: dfbaskwill at December 09, 2011 10:57 AM (ndlFj)
That the media keep asking the same intellectually vacuous questions and expecting a different answer.
Posted by: Prophet of Truth at December 09, 2011 10:57 AM (e8kgV)
Posted by: Bracky O'Clueless at December 09, 2011 10:58 AM (kPT11)
He also learned how to be the first ever editor of a law review without ever editing or writing anything at all.
I question his so-called intellect daily.
Posted by: Guy Mohawk at December 09, 2011 10:59 AM (JYheX)
“One possible course of action… could be to encourage governments to adopt laws and regulations to regulate this ever-growing industry.” -- ICRC
Another would be to cut off money to the Red Cross for their meddling, but I can see a compromise Â…
Have the game report each violation of international law Â… and then score bonus points for each.
Posted by: Prophet of Truth at December 09, 2011 10:59 AM (e8kgV)
Posted by: maddogg at December 09, 2011 11:00 AM (OlN4e)
Fun things to do in a Chicago bath house?
The Chicago Way of servicing the public?
Community organizing?
Golf?
Race-baiting and Social Justice for fun and profit?
etc., etc.
Posted by: Stu-22 at December 09, 2011 11:00 AM (k4bdL)
Posted by: Sir Golfs-A-Lot at December 09, 2011 11:00 AM (GBXon)
Posted by: mike at December 09, 2011 11:00 AM (0hdwM)
And yet 52% of the population thought that somebody who could not obtain the "Trusted Employee of the United States Government" status - for which any government contract employee, including a janitor, has to qualify - would be a good person to get the nuclear launch codes.
Posted by: An Observation at December 09, 2011 11:00 AM (ylhEn)
Posted by: forest at December 09, 2011 11:01 AM (yCT6Q)
Posted by: Barfy O'Agitator at December 09, 2011 11:01 AM (kPT11)
217 What is Romney actually running on?
Isn't Romney's platform "I look Presidential, I am attractive to women, and I will not admit Romneycare was a mistake?"
------
I don't think Romney is attractive. ....I keep hearing that, and as a woman, I just don't see what the attraction is.
He walks like a badly animated Ken doll. His babity way of talking is a turnoff. And he comes across as arrogant most of time.
Posted by: wheatie.....aka ConservativeMenAreJustHotter at December 09, 2011 11:01 AM (HvKWW)
Posted by: An Observation at December 09, 2011 02:43 PM (ylhEn)
Queen? Well he is a whiny little bitch, so I can see that.
Posted by: Unclefacts Out Of Commenting Retirement Just For This One Thing at December 09, 2011 11:03 AM (6IReR)
What kind of person can come out of high school and have no record of any friendships or girlfriends at all until well after college and ensconced at Bill Ayers Marxist School for Retards.
Posted by: Guy Mohawk at December 09, 2011 11:03 AM (JYheX)
Posted by: nekked at fow news at December 09, 2011 11:03 AM (Sdl9x)
Posted by: Pyrocles at December 09, 2011 11:04 AM (cv5Iw)
Posted by: Todd 3465 at December 09, 2011 11:05 AM (spa4d)
What kind of person can come out of high school and have no record of any friendships or girlfriends at all until well after college and ensconced at Bill Ayers Marxist School for Retards.
Why, the Manchurian Candidate, of course.
Just don't let Jill Biden play the Queen of Diamonds in their weekly Bridge game.
Posted by: Arms Merchant at December 09, 2011 11:05 AM (kPT11)
Yeah, people keep saying this, but I don't believe it. Rather, I think we have learned that there are some parts of the military-industrial complex that are out of the reach of the Commander in Chief.
Posted by: Barky O'Genius at December 09, 2011 11:06 AM (I2LwF)
Posted by: Adam Savage at December 09, 2011 11:06 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 02:41 PM
I wonder when flying over the Pacific, the pilot of AF One wonders to himself ... "can I jam the yoke all the way forward and put it into a dive the co-pilot can't recover from" ....
Posted by: kbdabear at December 09, 2011 11:07 AM (Y+DPZ)
Remember, Fox News' parent company, NewsCorp, also runs The Sun in the UK. Famous for Page 3. Which is online, natch.
Matter of time. (May constitute an improvement, if you ask me.)
Posted by: Sir Golfs-A-Lot at December 09, 2011 11:07 AM (GBXon)
Posted by: Arms Merchant at December 09, 2011 11:08 AM (kPT11)
And I learned not to let the boys play with the guns. You want something done right...
Posted by: Kari Byron at December 09, 2011 11:09 AM (GBXon)
Posted by: FRONT TOWARD LEFT at December 09, 2011 11:09 AM (p7SSh)
Posted by: Mike at December 09, 2011 11:09 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: nerdygirl at December 09, 2011 11:10 AM (2oBun)
Pelosi says that too. But everyone knows she's just a sociopathic liar who doesn't care what's true. Why do we need a more complex explanation in Obama's case? Is it the Harvard thing?
Posted by: Splunge at December 09, 2011 11:10 AM (2IW5Q)
Posted by: Schwalbe: The Me-262© at December 09, 2011 11:10 AM (UU0OF)
Posted by: Adam Savage at December 09, 2011 03:06 PM (AZGON)
No Adam, your just a colossal fuck up. You should be giving bj's to bovines for a living, its really all you are suitable for.
Posted by: maddogg at December 09, 2011 11:10 AM (OlN4e)
Posted by: John Huntsman at December 09, 2011 11:11 AM (niZvt)
Posted by: maddogg at December 09, 2011 02:15 PM (OlN4e)
HEY....
Posted by: Turd Ferguson at December 09, 2011 11:11 AM (WUWb9)
Posted by: nerdygirl at December 09, 2011 11:11 AM (2oBun)
Posted by: Cajun Carrot at December 09, 2011 11:12 AM (zHl9z)
"Never mind that. How come he was the only genius in the room that didn't know Bill Ayers was a convicted Weather Underground terrorist involved in a plot that killed an innocent police officer?"
No he wasn't
Posted by: davod at December 09, 2011 11:12 AM (C5U9L)
Posted by: Schwalbe: The Me-262© at December 09, 2011 11:13 AM (UU0OF)
Posted by: Mike at December 09, 2011 11:14 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: Joejm65 at December 09, 2011 11:14 AM (zjkh9)
Whoever said Obama is an articulate incompetent is right on the money IMO. He is nothing but a bullshit artist and a con man, who has smooth-talked his way all the way up.
In 2008 Ace quoted a comment of mine explaining why middle-aged women hated Obama so much and voted in droves for Hillary: we have all seen men like him in our work lives, talking their way into promotion after promotion, and fucking up at higher and higher levels. Always they have a ready excuse for failure: I wasn't given enough support/resources/staff/responsibility, I was set up to fail, I wasn't allowed to choose my own team, this organization is just too hidebound for my visionary talent, etc. Women work their rears off and play by the rules, make the organization run better, do everything that is asked of them and more, but some asshole guy sweeps in and gets the corner office.
Every man like this reaches a level where he finally fails and gets fired. But it can take a long time.
Look at Barack Obama's life and you can see this is what he is. Always angling for the bigger and sexier job. Always has grand delusions of his own ability and vision. Dazzles people into taking him over the more competent rival, then fails spectacularly but alwys has an excuse.
I don't think he really believes ANYTHING he says, which is why he never cares if he says something one day that completely contradicts something he said 6 months ago. All he believes in is his own superiority. He never understands why he is failing and so will never change course. Incompetent people who reach high levels of business or government never, ever realize that they actually are incompetent.
Posted by: rockmom at December 09, 2011 11:15 AM (NYnoe)
Georgia Democratic Rep. Hank Johnson accused the tea party movement and the National Rifle Association of creating an “manufactured” controversy over Operation Fast and Furious Thursday.
“I think this is another manufactured controversy by the second amendment, NRA Republican tea party movement,” Johnson said.
Posted by: King Barry the Lernidd at December 09, 2011 11:15 AM (Y+DPZ)
I mean, it's great to have flackcatchers like them. They're so busy sucking up all the hits that Issa doesn't have time to go after me.
Posted by: Binky O'Bambam at December 09, 2011 11:15 AM (kPT11)
Isn't Romney's platform "I look Presidential, I am attractive to women, and I will not admit Romneycare was a mistake?"
Well, we're still waiting for the wildcard campaign plank to drop - something along the lines of "Look, I made that kook Bachmann my VP to show you wingnuts why you have to vote for me even though I hate you too, so suck it up".
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 11:15 AM (UmXRO)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at December 09, 2011 11:15 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: ChristyBlinky at December 09, 2011 11:16 AM (baL2B)
239.... I think Obama learned that Gitmo was more necessary and harder to close than he and Left initially believed before being privy to top secret intel. Same can be said for the necessity of "torture", drones, and the impossibility of immediately ending the wars.
If he gets a second term, all that will go out the window.
I think that the only thing he 'learned' was that it would've been political suicide to close down Gitmo, etc. He needs the political advantages of being able to say that he has been 'tough on terrorism'.
Posted by: wheatie.....aka ConservativeMenAreJustHotter at December 09, 2011 11:16 AM (HvKWW)
Posted by: Joffen at December 09, 2011 11:16 AM (zLeKL)
Posted by: Phinn at December 09, 2011 11:16 AM (KNtHw)
Posted by: Moe Ron at December 09, 2011 11:17 AM (yWDpP)
He's not so much closed to new ideas as a raving idiot.
Obama is the dumbest and least qualified occupant ever to hold the office of president. The only people dumber are the legions of idiots that voted for him and despite 3 years of American Horror Politics still support him despite all logic and reason.
The only really amusing thing is they still seem to think they have some intellectual superiority.
Posted by: AdamPM at December 09, 2011 11:18 AM (/83rF)
Volt Named 2011Â’s Collectible Car of Future Years from now General Motors Co.Â’s Chevrolet Volt extended-range hybrid sedan will be the most desirable North American-made model from the 2011 model year, according to the Friends of the National Automotive History Collection in Detroit.
No word yet if GM will be bought up by the Franklin Mint
Posted by: Prophet of Truth at December 09, 2011 11:18 AM (e8kgV)
Brian Terry unavailable for comment.
Posted by: Hollowpoint at December 09, 2011 11:21 AM (SY2Kh)
Posted by: Cajun Carrot at December 09, 2011 11:21 AM (zHl9z)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at December 09, 2011 11:21 AM (AZGON)
To be fair, Romney has documented exactly what he wants to do as President. He has written more White papers than all of the other candidates in addition to his wonkish 59 point economic plan and entitlement reform plan praised by Ryan.
You may not agree with him or his style but it's not accurate to say he is not running on anything.
To be fair, no it is not.
It is accurate.
Herman Cain ran on 999. Romney has never ran on his 59 point economic plan and he never will. Hank Johnson isn't stupid enough to try to run on a 59 point plan.
What will he campaign on?
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 11:22 AM (UmXRO)
One of Obama's colleagues (the libertarian Richard Epstein) at the University of Chicago - where Obama taught briefly - said that during discussions and exchanges that everyone around the room would give his or her thoughts on a topic.
Except Obama. He was a Sphinx. He would listen, not interrupt, not ask questions but also, most important for Epstein, not give his own view. On that matter he was silent.
For supporters, this would be interpreted as someone open minded and willing to listen to others.
But for Epstein, it was evidence of a close mind, of someone unwilling to expose his ideas and have them examined or scrutinized.
I think the evidence is accumulating that Epstein is right and the supporters are wrong. Obama took in these other views - and not reveal his own - not because he wanted to learn from them. Instead, he wanted to learn about them. Two different things.
Bush was excoriated for his supposed lack of intellectual curiousity. I'll pose that Obama suffers from it as much if not more than Bush did.
Posted by: The Federalist at December 09, 2011 11:22 AM (MoGzh)
I am not saying I disagree with his views. I do, but that's not the point.
I'm saying his campaign strategy and style is a catastrophic disaster in waiting.
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 11:23 AM (UmXRO)
Posted by: nerdygirl at December 09, 2011 11:23 AM (2oBun)
When he gets cocky and thinks he's the smartest guy in the room, we do the equivalent of letting him play with the dials on a fake engineering panel
Posted by: George $oros at December 09, 2011 11:24 AM (Y+DPZ)
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 11:24 AM (UmXRO)
That 52% of America is even more stupid than he is.
Posted by: Penfold at December 09, 2011 11:24 AM (1PeEC)
Volt Named 2011Â’s Collectible Car of Future Years
As if any of them will still be operational in 30 years. The batteries will be dead and I doubt replacements will be available.
Nobody will want a car in their collection that they have to push.
Posted by: Hollowpoint at December 09, 2011 11:25 AM (SY2Kh)
Posted by: Jypsea Rose at December 09, 2011 11:27 AM (digkk)
You don't think Obama makes the REAL decisions, do you?
When he gets cocky and thinks he's the smartest guy in the room, we do the equivalent of letting him play with the dials on a fake engineering panel
No....
But I don't think any of the morons he brought with him to actually run things are much smarter than he is.
While Barry fiddles with the fake engineering panel the real one is now manned by the likes of Stephen Chu and Valerie Jarret.
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 11:27 AM (UmXRO)
Alongside the Edsel. Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at December 09, 2011 03:21 PM
I think Pacers, Pintos, and Vegas are high valued collectors items now because a lot of lefties with cash are nostalgic for the 70s, and it's rare to find one that hasn't been crushed at the scrapyard or rotted in some redneck's back yard
Posted by: George $oros at December 09, 2011 11:27 AM (Y+DPZ)
Posted by: B. Hussein Obama at December 09, 2011 11:27 AM (AZGON)
What's really horrible, aside fro m the incredibly bad taste involved, is that they were able to get it designed and built already, while the Freedom Tower is what, 10 stories so far?
Posted by: wiserbud at December 09, 2011 11:27 AM (gCa4h)
Lohan nood > Hilton nood
I disagree entirely.
You will meet me at 4:00PM on Tuesday outside the Circle-K so that I may shoot you to death.
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 11:28 AM (UmXRO)
True but the Hobos sleeping in the junk yard will love them. The volt interiors will be pristine from never being used.
Posted by: Buzzsaw at December 09, 2011 11:28 AM (tf9Ne)
Posted by: CoolCzech at December 09, 2011 11:29 AM (niZvt)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at December 09, 2011 11:29 AM (AZGON)
But the Borg sought Utopia through destruction, which makes them a perfect analog to the Left.
Compared to the Left, the Borg aren't so bad. As a matter of fact, the Borg are a laugh riot compared to the Left. The Borg have pleasant personalities in comparison.
Posted by: LGoPs at December 09, 2011 11:30 AM (+Uv5V)
Posted by: Chris Mathews at December 09, 2011 11:30 AM (48wze)
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 02:00 PM (sqkOB)
Facility for learning a second (or third or more) language isn't a measure of intellect. Children with hearing problems--chronic ear infections, things like that--have a difficult time later in life learning foreign languages. At least that was diagnosed as my problem, according to a specialist my parents consulted when I was a teenager, an otherwise A-student struggling with Spanish in high school. I got by in high school and college by studying Latin.
I can't speak to Obama's foreign language problem. Maybe his IQ is over-inflated.
Posted by: troyriser at December 09, 2011 11:31 AM (vtiE6)
Posted by: steevy at December 09, 2011 11:31 AM (7WJOC)
I am not saying I disagree with his views. I do, but that's not the point.
I'm saying his campaign strategy and style is a catastrophic disaster in waiting.
I honestly think he believed he could win the primary by just showing up and performing reasonably well in debates. It's his turn, after all.
He's done far too little to reassure conservatives that he's not a RINO chameleon. He should've been out there even before announcing, visibly defending conservative principles.
Instead he did his usual 'finger to the wind' thing, waiting until it was abundantly safe before offering a stance- for instance, waiting till Marco Rubio was ahead in the polls before endorsing him.
Posted by: Hollowpoint at December 09, 2011 11:32 AM (SY2Kh)
She also insists she is a better Catholic than the Pope. Just ask her. She'll say it again and again. The true definition of Stupid.
Posted by: dfbaskwill at December 09, 2011 11:32 AM (ndlFj)
"What has Obama learned in office? Which of his pre-existing beliefs has he learned to is wrong?"
"What has Obama learned?"
"So: If Obama is such a learned man, what the fuck has he learned since age 19?"
Ace: You might be asking the wrong questions.
The point of becoming a "learned man" is to use the knowledge learned, while becoming learned, to better identify, explain, react to, master, etc., the various situations and events that occur in life, and to choose the best, or at least better, course of action.
I see his actions and decisions as being, at best, at the freshman liberal arts college level, at worst, somewhere around the junior level in a modern progressive (i.e., failing) high school.
So: What actions, decisions, etc., has Obama made that would set him apart, and above, the above-average man ... or even the average man?
Posted by: Arbalest at December 09, 2011 11:32 AM (lYoyL)
I have a crush on imaginary Paris Hilton.
Imaginary, because I imagine her to secretly be a diabolical genius with an IQ of 153, an exquisite violinist, and a phenominal actress.
Why, I bet right now she's sitting in her mansion reading Nabokov and listening to Vivaldi, wishing she could meet a guy who could look past all the money and the fame and just get to know her for her....
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 11:33 AM (UmXRO)
Posted by: Hollowpoint at December 09, 2011 11:33 AM (SY2Kh)
Oh, bullshit. Bibi is a fucking snake. Even Sarkozy said so (to Obama). He got his veto by the administration on UN Palestinian statehood though - he should thank Susan Rice and go back to swabbing Sharon's carcass down.
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 11:33 AM (z0HdK)
@212
Yeah...looks like some snotty Eurotrash firm is looking to enhance their portfolio in order to suck up to some sheik in Qatar or Dubai.
And I know it isn't in China, but, that's really bad Feng Shui you're pimping, Eurotards.
Speaking of really bad Feng Shui, check out the Flight 93 Memorial in Shanksville, PA. Not so in-your-face as the Korean Kitsch, but twice as evil.
Posted by: 66chevelle at December 09, 2011 11:33 AM (QjSgY)
Facility for learning a second (or third or more) language isn't a measure of intellect.
It is among Obama's peers.
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 11:33 AM (sqkOB)
Posted by: maddogg at December 09, 2011 11:34 AM (OlN4e)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at December 09, 2011 11:35 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: Barney Frank at December 09, 2011 11:35 AM (niZvt)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 03:33 PM (z0HdK)
Even Sarkozy? What the hell does that mean?
Posted by: Bevel Lemelisk at December 09, 2011 11:36 AM (FkKjr)
Posted by: James Tiberius Kirk at December 09, 2011 11:37 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: Jypsea Rose at December 09, 2011 11:37 AM (digkk)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 03:33 PM (z0HdK)
Go fuck yourself, Clarence.
Posted by: garrett at December 09, 2011 11:37 AM (0OXcp)
Posted by: Christopher Taylor at December 09, 2011 11:38 AM (r4wIV)
Posted by: Barney Frank at December 09, 2011 11:38 AM (niZvt)
Posted by: The Universal Translator at December 09, 2011 11:38 AM (AZGON)
That's why you need to prepare NOW
Posted by: Glen Beck at December 09, 2011 11:38 AM (Y+DPZ)
Posted by: FRONT TOWARD LEFT at December 09, 2011 11:38 AM (p7SSh)
I'd like some really smart Breitbart type to create an ad that reviews the hypocracy of the left. Reagan, Quale, Bush = idiots. Obama, Pelosi, SloJoe = intellectuals at a level rarely seen in American politics.
The left lives, eats, and breathes projectionism.
Posted by: Havedash at December 09, 2011 11:38 AM (sFD5n)
Posted by: Country Singer at December 09, 2011 11:38 AM (L8r/r)
"Earlier this month, Nicolas Sarkozy and US President Barack Obama were left red-faced when it emerged that the former had complained that Benjamin Netanyahu was a liar.
During the private conversation at a G20 summit in Cannes, Mr Sarkozy said he could not "stand" Mr Netanyahu.
Mr Obama was heard to reply: "You may be sick of him, but me, I have to deal with him every day."
(Jewish Chronicle)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 11:39 AM (z0HdK)
Clarence,
1. I just rang a bell, so a troll, perhaps you, just got his gerbil.
2. Get back under the stairs where you belong.
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 11:39 AM (sqkOB)
Posted by: Guy who should be at Obama's shoulder as he triumphs through Rome at December 09, 2011 11:39 AM (T0NGe)
Posted by: George Orwell what knows Obama is a stuttering clusterfuck of a miserable failure at December 09, 2011 11:40 AM (AZGON)
Oh, quick, where's that quote of Larry Summers (I think) talking about how Obama jumped to the wrong conclusion and wouldn't listen to Summers and somebody else trying to correct him...Posted by: Mama AJ at December 09, 2011 02:25 PM (XdlcF)
This sort of sounds like what you described (warning: link to Mother Jones).
Posted by: Jeremiad was a Bullfrog at December 09, 2011 11:41 AM (Wqfrr)
A French president who doesn't like an uppity Jew? Wow, that's a shock.
Posted by: nickless will probably get accidentally banned again soon at December 09, 2011 11:41 AM (aCpwD)
I have a crush on imaginary Paris Hilton.
Imaginary, because I imagine her to secretly be a diabolical genius with an IQ of 153, an exquisite violinist, and a phenominal actress.
Why, I bet right now she's sitting in her mansion reading Nabokov and listening to Vivaldi, wishing she could meet a guy who could look past all the money and the fame and just get to know her for her....
She's mine.
Best,
Posted by: Mike at December 09, 2011 11:42 AM (4Kl5M)
Posted by: Michelle Obama's Landing Strip at December 09, 2011 11:42 AM (0OXcp)
During the private conversation at a G20 summit in Cannes, Mr Sarkozy said he could not "stand" Mr Netanyahu.
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 03:39 PMYou say you read that a Frenchman said he couldn't stand a Jew
Well, I am over-fuckin'-whelmed.
Whattya want, a junior G-Man badge for that?
Posted by: Vincent Hanna at December 09, 2011 11:43 AM (Y+DPZ)
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 02:00 PM (sqkOB)
And why doesn't he play a musical instrument? I have yet to meet a genius or even just a very highly intelligent person who can't play a musical instrument, even if it's just at basic level.
I also notice a complete lack of intellectual curiosity on his part.
No way he's as smart as they think he is.
Posted by: MissTammy at December 09, 2011 11:43 AM (SsG4J)
Posted by: maddogg at December 09, 2011 11:43 AM (OlN4e)
And why doesn't he play a musical instrument? I have yet to meet a genius or even just a very highly intelligent person who can't play a musical instrument, even if it's just at basic level.
Does kazoo count?
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 11:45 AM (UmXRO)
Posted by: nickless will probably get accidentally banned again soon at December 09, 2011 11:45 AM (aCpwD)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 03:39 PM (z0HdK)
Yes, Clarence, I know about that.
I fail to understand why the hell it matters what Sarkozy thinks, considering France's position on Israel has usually been, shall we say, sophisticated.
Posted by: Bevel Lemelisk at December 09, 2011 11:45 AM (FkKjr)
and the books Obama's supposedly written, Tammy, are crappy
There is nothing extraordinary about Obama except the fact that he managed to land himself in the White House.
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 11:45 AM (sqkOB)
Posted by: Kal Penn at December 09, 2011 11:45 AM (AZGON)
Posted by: Jypsea Rose at December 09, 2011 11:46 AM (digkk)
A shitty sex tape and flashing your cooch will only keep you in the limelight for so long.
Posted by: Hollowpoint at December 09, 2011 11:46 AM (SY2Kh)
Posted by: Anthony Weiner at December 09, 2011 11:47 AM (AZGON)
Yeah, he was a fuckin' liar, but that is what he said.
Posted by: Guy who should be at Obama's shoulder as he triumphs through Rome at December 09, 2011 11:50 AM (T0NGe)
Recorder?
It worked for Ace of Bass...
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 03:45 PMNot so well for Katy Perry
Posted by: kbdabear at December 09, 2011 11:50 AM (Y+DPZ)
Check and mate, wingnuts!
For his next trick, Clarence will prove that Reagan was an asshole by citing comments of Tip O'Neill.
Posted by: al-Cicero, Tea Party Jihadist at December 09, 2011 11:50 AM (QKKT0)
Posted by: speedster1 at December 09, 2011 11:51 AM (v40Bj)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 11:51 AM (z0HdK)
Supposedly what got Sarkozy worked up was that Israel wouldn't fly Gilad Shalit home on a French plane.
Posted by: Hollowpoint at December 09, 2011 11:51 AM (SY2Kh)
Completely O/T, but here's some more Christmas music for ya:
My Advent Calendar of Music – Day #9: Let's Hear it For The Boys http://t.co/LENtE5V3 (It's all secular music today)
Posted by: Teresa in Fort Worth, TX at December 09, 2011 11:52 AM (0xqzf)
A shitty sex tape and flashing your cooch will only keep you in the limelight for so long.
Posted by: Hollowpoint at December 09, 2011 03:46 PM
A month in a real jail, and grandpa cutting you out of his will if you don't straighten up were probably big incentives too
Posted by: kbdabear at December 09, 2011 11:53 AM (Y+DPZ)
258 What kind of person can come out of high school and have no record of any friendships or girlfriends at all until well after college and ensconced at Bill Ayers Marxist School for Retards.
Posted by: Guy Mohawk at December 09, 2011 03:03 PM (JYheX)
Has no one from our side ever bothered to investigate Obama's past? You would think there would be some people who would love to have their 15 minutes of fame by relating their "I knew jesus in school. I once saw him heal his 8th grade English teacher's stutter by the laying on of a joint." stories.
Posted by: Havedash at December 09, 2011 11:53 AM (sFD5n)
Yeah!
I challenge any of you wingnuts to find a single fault with anything he published while on the Harvard Law Review!
Posted by: John Harvard at December 09, 2011 11:54 AM (4Kl5M)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 03:51 PM
FIFY
Posted by: The Fixer at December 09, 2011 11:54 AM (Y+DPZ)
Harvard Law has a 97% graduation rate.
No math at all.
No dissertation.
No competition from foreign-educated students.
A third-rate statistics master's student at UMass could get HLS magna.
But tell me this: Prove to me he earned it. Prove it was based only on his (subjective) grades. Prove to me that HLS didn't want the embarrassment of having the first black president of the HLR being the only one who didn't get a cum laude honor.
Prove it.
Posted by: AmishDude at December 09, 2011 11:54 AM (T0NGe)
And yet, he for some reason refuses to make public his transcripts. You'd think he'd be quite proud to show off his awesome academic career, if it existed.
You do know that Honors at Harvard weren't awarded strictly on grades, right?
Hell, even if he were a straight-A student (which he wasn't), the grades someone got in college 30 years ago doesn't tell us much about a man's intellect.
Posted by: Hollowpoint at December 09, 2011 11:54 AM (SY2Kh)
300 Mexican were left speechless at Johnson's comment.
Posted by: An Observation at December 09, 2011 11:55 AM (ylhEn)
Pssst - doesn't Clarence know that 90% of Harvard graduates are Cum Laude or higher? Their grading system is a complete joke in the Ivy League.....
Posted by: Teresa in Fort Worth, TX at December 09, 2011 11:55 AM (0xqzf)
Posted by: maddogg at December 09, 2011 11:55 AM (OlN4e)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 03:51 PM (z0HdK)
Ah yes, Obama did so awesome in college he won't release his transcripts.
Posted by: Bevel Lemelisk at December 09, 2011 11:55 AM (FkKjr)
Obama is, how can I put this, our first Gilded president.
But he's presented as our Golden President.
Think about it.
I think he is GELDED!
The wanker in chief has no balls
Posted by: jwm at December 09, 2011 11:55 AM (0oYHO)
Posted by: the Charlie Daniels of the torque wrench at December 09, 2011 11:55 AM (le5qc)
Oh, and, Barack Obama is a stuttering clusterf*ck of a miserable failure.
Posted by: Y-not at December 09, 2011 11:56 AM (5H6zj)
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 03:45 PM (sqkOB)
He does have those magnificent scalp markings reminiscent of those South American Cuzco Alien Space Trails.
....could be a meaningful and clandestine sign of Space Cadet School
Posted by: ontherocks at December 09, 2011 11:57 AM (HBqDo)
When was the last time Obama actually learned something about the world?
When was the first time?
Posted by: really ... at December 09, 2011 11:57 AM (meyVd)
300 Mexican were left speechless at Johnson's comment.
Posted by: An Observation at December 09, 2011 03:55 PM (ylhEn)
Hey, this is about gun control.
You can't make huevos rancheros without breaking a few eggs, amirite?
Posted by: AmishDude at December 09, 2011 11:57 AM (T0NGe)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 03:51 PM (z0HdK)
Was he really, based on what? Let's see his transcripts then, he should be proud to show them to the American People.
Posted by: robtr at December 09, 2011 11:57 AM (MtwBb)
rara avis..... that must be latin for fucking imbecile.
Posted by: Berserker at December 09, 2011 11:57 AM (FMbng)
Posted by: Jimbo at December 09, 2011 03:55 PM (O3R/2)
In part. But I think mostly he just knew all the right people.
Posted by: AmishDude at December 09, 2011 11:57 AM (T0NGe)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 03:51 PM (z0HdK)
FIFY Clarence.
Posted by: Havedash at December 09, 2011 11:58 AM (sFD5n)
Posted by: kbdabear at December 09, 2011 11:58 AM (Y+DPZ)
Gingrich is a PhD. Whackjob Paul is an MD. Cain has degrees in math.
And you've got a boner over a fucking lawyer?
Posted by: nickless will probably get accidentally banned again soon at December 09, 2011 11:59 AM (aCpwD)
One guess only! I feel you guys know your terrorist history.
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 11:59 AM (z0HdK)
No, he's only yapping about how a 10% tax cut that he himself renewed is responsible for the poor economy, and that paying people not to work is the best job creation incentive imaginable.
Also, there are 57 states.
Posted by: Hollowpoint at December 09, 2011 11:59 AM (SY2Kh)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 03:51 PM (z0HdK)
Some of the dumbest people I know are sporting Harvard degrees.
Posted by: garrett at December 09, 2011 11:59 AM (plN+2)
One of these days hopefully more people are going to realize that SCOAMF has throughout his life had nothing but pats on the head, that-a-good-boy's, and boosts up the ladder to get where he is today, not to mention some shady doings by those who wanted to get him into the WH.
Posted by: Theresa at December 09, 2011 12:00 PM (nAvCW)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 03:51 PM (z0HdK)
And you could see the cum laude all over my face the day I graduated. Stanley was so proud.
Posted by: Barky O'Genius, Haaaahvaaaahd Graduate at December 09, 2011 12:00 PM (D5hxK)
And you've got a boner over a fucking lawyer?
Posted by: nickless will probably get accidentally banned again soon at December 09, 2011 03:59 PM (aCpwD)
Thank. You.
Hell, when given the opportunity, Democrats decided to vote for Raul Grijalva rather than an actual rocket scientist.
Posted by: AmishDude at December 09, 2011 12:00 PM (T0NGe)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 03:51 PM
Let's see, where can "Clarence" go where super-smart people like him can save the world from the horror of Creationism 24/7?Don't tell him, he's super smart and he should already know!
Posted by: Dr Charles Johnson, Scienceologist at December 09, 2011 12:01 PM (Y+DPZ)
If he has been listening to NPR he recently learned that the FDR spending cuts caused the great depression.
Posted by: Bob Undead Saget at December 09, 2011 12:01 PM (dBvlk)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 03:51 PM (z0HdK)
Yeah, those brilliant, insightful articles Obama wrote while editor of the Harvard Law Review are considered intellectually ground-breaking explorations of....oh, wait. Obama didn't write anything while editor of the Harvard Law Review, the only editor who didn't since there's been a Harvard Law Review. Well, there's always his best-selling autobiography...my bad. Evidence suggests he didn't write his best-selling autobiography. Well, we can always fall back on the stellar grades recorded for posterity in his college transcripts. No? Okay.
Posted by: troyriser at December 09, 2011 12:01 PM (vtiE6)
Posted by: Honey Badger at December 09, 2011 12:01 PM (GvYeG)
He’s just too talented to do what ordinary people do.”
Truely talented / intelligent people don't require lackeys going around telling eveyone how great they are. It is obvious.
Posted by: Ronster at December 09, 2011 12:01 PM (JGYCE)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 03:59 PM (z0HdK)
Hey Clarence go jump off a fucking bridge and get some unemployed angel some work you jerkoff.
Posted by: ontherocks at December 09, 2011 12:01 PM (HBqDo)
You know what else talented people do?
Stuff.
Stuff such as produce or create something that benefits society.
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 12:02 PM (sqkOB)
I had a huge schtick about episieotomy closure featuring Dr. Bombay, but it got pretty wordy. And no one would have thought it funny, but me, I suspect.
Posted by: jwm at December 09, 2011 12:03 PM (0oYHO)
Obama organized communities.
Well, he did so in title.
How does one organize a community in Chicago where the community already exists and has done so for a very long time?
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 12:04 PM (sqkOB)
I just heard a clip of Emmanuel Cleaver, esteemed congress critter from my town of Kansas City...... spouting off that each billion dollars of spending generates 40,000 jobs.
Posted by: Joe Biden at December 09, 2011 12:04 PM (C8hzL)
I had a huge schtick about episieotomy closure...
Posted by: jwm at December 09, 2011 04:03 PM (0oYHO)
I'm not sure what an episiotomy closure is, but I'm pretty sure I wouldn't want one.
Posted by: troyriser at December 09, 2011 12:05 PM (vtiE6)
Posted by: Berserker at December 09, 2011 03:57 PM (FMbng)
It's the translation in Austrian, but good guess.
Posted by: really ... at December 09, 2011 12:06 PM (meyVd)
How does one organize a community in Chicago where the community already exists and has done so for a very long time?
You sell it cocaine.
Posted by: garrett at December 09, 2011 12:06 PM (plN+2)
Posted by: Bob Undead Saget at December 09, 2011 04:01 PM (dBvlk)
Heh, it's funny how NPR missed the income tax surcharge on the top 5% in 1936, the start of the social security tax in 1937, and the Business tax of up to 70% in 1937 as a cause of the second downturn.
It was just the fact that he didn't increase WPA spending in 1937 that caused it all.
Posted by: robtr at December 09, 2011 12:06 PM (MtwBb)
Posted by: kbdabear at December 09, 2011 04:03 PM (Y+DPZ)
Odd. He isn't quoting any polls.
I wonder why.
Posted by: AmishDude at December 09, 2011 12:06 PM (T0NGe)
The media just went with the 'community organizer' title without even looking to see if it really meant anything tangible.
Posted by: Soothsayer at December 09, 2011 12:07 PM (sqkOB)
Posted by: Berserker at December 09, 2011 03:57 PM (FMbng)
By the way, whatever happened to Christopher Buckley?
Posted by: AmishDude at December 09, 2011 12:07 PM (T0NGe)
Posted by: jwm at December 09, 2011 12:07 PM (0oYHO)
I am more like Bartlett and Frum - the Bush/Cheney regime lost me to the GOP.
In fact, I'm so not-partisan that I spend all my time trolling conservative sites that criticize Barack Obama.
That's how not partisan I am.
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 12:08 PM (z0HdK)
According to the report last week, Sarkozy – explaining his very undiplomatic comment about Netanyahu to US President Barack Obama in November – said that he was “furious” that Israel refused to fly Schalit out of captivity on a French helicopter.
and erg's got nuthin'
Posted by: toby928© at December 09, 2011 12:08 PM (GTbGH)
And as my ex brother in-law learned asking the Doc to put in a couple of extra stitches is not funny to a woman that just gave birth.
Posted by: Buzzsaw at December 09, 2011 12:09 PM (tf9Ne)
Posted by: steevy at December 09, 2011 12:09 PM (7WJOC)
Posted by: Jean at December 09, 2011 12:09 PM (WkuV6)
One guess only! I feel you guys know your terrorist history.
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 03:59 PM
He didn't leave a company stranded in Mogudishu when things went south, if that's what you want to imply
Hey erg, speaking of terrorist history, why don't you go fap to some old Bader-Meinhof, PLO, Weathermen, and Red Brigades news stories on Youtube?
Posted by: kbdabear at December 09, 2011 12:09 PM (Y+DPZ)
Posted by: Blue Falcon in Boston training for the ONT mudwrestling match at December 09, 2011 12:11 PM (ijjAe)
Posted by: The Epic Presidential Failure is a Fool at December 09, 2011 12:11 PM (o6qLZ)
By the way, whatever happened to Christopher Buckley?
Good question for Iowahawk if he's lurking here, or swapping tweets with Ace
Posted by: kbdabear at December 09, 2011 12:11 PM (Y+DPZ)
Posted by: FRONT TOWARD LEFT at December 09, 2011 12:12 PM (p7SSh)
Posted by: Wall-E at December 09, 2011 12:12 PM (48wze)
Posted by: Blue Falcon in Boston training for the ONT mudwrestling match at December 09, 2011 04:11 PM (ijjAe)
You want a perfect example? Christina Romer. She went to all the right schools, actually got good grades, got awards, prizes, grants, the works.
Then, when it came time to produce a work product, she gave us the chart.
You know, Geoff's chart.
The one that said that unemployment would be at 6% by now with the stimulus.
Posted by: AmishDude at December 09, 2011 12:13 PM (T0NGe)
Thank you! An excellent point, and I no one ever makes it. Those books are NOT the works of an intellectual giant. Obviously, Bill Ayers ain't as smart as he thinks he is, either!!
rara avis..... that must be latin for fucking imbecile.
Posted by: Berserker at December 09, 2011 03:57 PM (FMbng)
Dr. Pepper hurts when you choke on it, dude, and it makes the monitor all sticky! 
Posted by: MissTammy at December 09, 2011 12:13 PM (SsG4J)
results suggest that among the schools it supported, the Challenge had little impact on school improvement and student outcomes, with no statistically significant differences between Annenberg and non-Annenberg schools in rates of achievement gain, classroom behavior, student self-efficacy, and social competence.
That's correct, Obama and his cronies blew through $150 million to produce ... no measurable result.
Posted by: Waterhouse at December 09, 2011 12:13 PM (dp+c+)
Posted by: dan in michigan at December 09, 2011 02:21 PM (ursg4)
I doubt he's ever turned a wrench in his entire life.
Posted by: Insomniac at December 09, 2011 12:14 PM (v+QvA)
Posted by: Velociman at December 09, 2011 12:14 PM (/y+CG)
Posted by: Waterhouse at December 09, 2011 12:15 PM (dp+c+)
Ok - quiz - which US President ran like a girl when 241 US Marines were killed by an Islamo-fascist terrorist bombing?
One guess only! I feel you guys know your terrorist history.
Coming from the anti-war party with the imperialist president, what's your point?
You miss Reagan?
Hey, me too buddy.
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 12:15 PM (UmXRO)
Ok - quiz - which US President ran like a girl when 241 US Marines were killed by an Islamo-fascist terrorist bombing?
Can you reconcile these two, please?
Posted by: fluffy Clemmons at December 09, 2011 12:15 PM (4Kl5M)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 12:15 PM (48wze)
Posted by: FRONT TOWARD LEFT at December 09, 2011 12:15 PM (p7SSh)
toby, OMG, you guys are killing me today.
Posted by: MissTammy at December 09, 2011 12:16 PM (SsG4J)
Yes, I worry about the Wahhabi Christians like I would any theocracy. That is why I oppose school vouchers.
I don't want my property taxes supporting a filthy madrassa.
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 12:16 PM (z0HdK)
Posted by: FRONT TOWARD LEFT at December 09, 2011 12:17 PM (p7SSh)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 04:08 PM (z0HdK) Why did you diss Mr Reagan in one of your earlier posts if you are so proud of him? See below. 386 Ok - quiz - which US President ran like a girl when 241 US Marines were killed by an Islamo-fascist terrorist bombing?
One guess only! I feel you guys know your terrorist history.
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 03:59 PM (z0HdK)
Posted by: Havedash at December 09, 2011 12:17 PM (sFD5n)
By the way, whatever happened to Christopher Buckley?
Somebody ironed the crease out of his pants and he melted.
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 12:17 PM (UmXRO)
Posted by: Yojimbo at December 09, 2011 12:18 PM (b4hhr)
Posted by: nickless will probably get accidentally banned again soon at December 09, 2011 12:18 PM (MMC8r)
Posted by: Todd 3465 at December 09, 2011 12:18 PM (spa4d)
Posted by: Honey Badger at December 09, 2011 12:18 PM (GvYeG)
<i>If Obama is such a learned man, what the fuck has he learned since age 19?<i>
I learned about pineapple juice changing the taste of semen.
And that's a good thing to know - for me anyway.
Posted by: Metrosexual Barack Obama at December 09, 2011 12:18 PM (KhioZ)
I am being spoofed now! Asshole.
You guys don't want any sound out of your little echo chamber.
You people make me so mad that I'm going to give my Barack Obama dildo and extra hard workout tonight!!!!
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 12:19 PM (z0HdK)
Posted by: FRONT TOWARD LEFT at December 09, 2011 12:19 PM (p7SSh)
I don't want my mom's property taxes supporting a filthy madrassa.
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 04:16 PM (z0HdK)
FIFY
Posted by: mugiwara at December 09, 2011 12:19 PM (D5hxK)
Maybe I'm being too hard on Barky. That factory Solyndra built had singing robots, too.
Posted by: Waterhouse at December 09, 2011 12:19 PM (dp+c+)
You know, when you skip the sockpuppet while manufacturing false consensus, that's somebodies job man!
You're worse than an ATM!
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 12:19 PM (UmXRO)
FIFY
Posted by: The Fixer at December 09, 2011 12:20 PM (Y+DPZ)
“…whatever happened to Christopher Buckley?”
Posted by: kbdabear at December 09, 2011 04:11 PM (Y+DPZ)
Much as I imagine Ronald Reagan would have felt if he could listened to Ron Reagan (MSNBC asslicker), William Buckley would weep with disappointment at how his son turned out.
Posted by: jwest at December 09, 2011 12:20 PM (8moZm)
Yes, I am the same. Good IP work.
I am a Hayek fan.
I'm also a fan of diddling little children, but you all knew that already.
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 12:21 PM (z0HdK)
And no Clarence, an HLS magna cum laude who won't release any of his college transcripts has not accomplished anything of note.
Posted by: An Observation at December 09, 2011 12:22 PM (ylhEn)
Remember John Drew, the prof who came forward a couple years ago to say he knew Ogabe at Occidental? He has a comment after this piece at American Thinker re Da Won's supposed "intelligence."
The article's a killer too. Not only did Barry pretend to write a book that Billy "Boom-Boom" Ayres wrote; Ayres stole it from someone else!
Posted by: RushBabe at December 09, 2011 12:23 PM (tQHzJ)
Posted by: toby928© at December 09, 2011 12:23 PM (GTbGH)
He DID release his poetry.
That had to be at least 3rd grade level writing right there.
He deserves some credit, wingnuts.
Posted by: Entropy at December 09, 2011 12:23 PM (UmXRO)
Posted by: Todd 3465 at December 09, 2011 12:24 PM (spa4d)
They are no more capable of acknowledging their failures than some people can concede that the universe is more than six thousand years old.
Leftists share many traits with Islamists, in particular, their shared hatred of free societies.
Islamists consider Israel an abomination because the existence of Israel refutes the existence of Allah.
Leftists consider the US an abomination because our success as a free society refutes the validity of their ideas.
Posted by: RayJ at December 09, 2011 12:24 PM (pI/IV)
FTFY
Alas, not a starter though, in a private prep school, in Hawaii.
Posted by: toby928© at December 09, 2011 12:24 PM (GTbGH)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 04:16 PM
But you already are erg. Anyone who dares to investigate any private muslim schools is branded a racist, and the full force of the Justice Dept is brought down on that person
But of course as tolerant, enlightened, and brilliant intellects your words alone will convince the hardcore muzzies to toss their Korans in favor of Howard Zinn, right?
Posted by: The Fixer at December 09, 2011 12:24 PM (Y+DPZ)
Posted by: Berserker at December 09, 2011 12:24 PM (FMbng)
What I resent is him acting like it is all because he is in office, like there was no plan long before his ass got anywhere near the controls.
I am grateful that he continued what was started by his predecessors, and didn't decide to blow it all off, which is what I was afraid he'd do.
But he is sticking his head so far in the sand with the overall Islamic jihadi threat that you can't help but be nervous.
And I don't care what anyone says, he has obviously absorbed the world view of the country he spent his younger years in with regards to Jews and Israel.
Posted by: MissTammy at December 09, 2011 12:25 PM (SsG4J)
Posted by: kbiel at December 09, 2011 12:26 PM (T5155)
FTFY
Alas, not a starter though, in a private prep school, in Hawaii.
Posted by: toby928© at December 09, 2011 04:24 PM
Old teammates say that his prima donna attitude even back then was way over his talent level. According to Barry, the coach didn't bench him because he sucked, he was benched because the coach wouldn't let Barry play HIS game
Posted by: kbdabear at December 09, 2011 12:27 PM (Y+DPZ)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 04:15 PM (48wze)
I'm sorry, are we being trolled? Hard to tell since trolls generally do what they do to bring about an emotional response from the target. I'm just not feelin' it, pal. Maybe I'm just jaded, I guess. Try harder, please.
Posted by: troyriser at December 09, 2011 12:27 PM (vtiE6)
Alas, not a starter though, in a private prep school, in Hawaii.
Still, pretty fly for a half-white guy.
Posted by: nickless will probably get accidentally banned again soon at December 09, 2011 12:28 PM (MMC8r)
School vouchers are bad, see? Only wealthy 1%-ers like Barack Obama should be able to send their kids to good schools.
And I wanted to add that Hayek would have voted for Obama.
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 12:29 PM (z0HdK)
The whole intelligence thing is based on a circle jerk of leftists cramming their nose up other leftist's asses, then they put out the narrative that they are smart, when their whole make up revolves around a failed system that killed 100 million people in the 20th century.
Or this one:
their whole fucking fart sniffing existence has been in a bubble of like minded retards who encouraged them to be the same type of asshole as their professors are.
Hopefully the rest of the country will wake up pretty soon and notice that none of these emperors are actually wearing any clothes.
Posted by: MissTammy at December 09, 2011 12:32 PM (SsG4J)
You know as much about unprecedented emergency security measures as you do about fucking, ergie
But don't let us ruin your frenzy of fapping to Michael Moore fantasy films
Posted by: kbdabear at December 09, 2011 12:34 PM (Y+DPZ)
I love George Soros because he's a classic liberal.
I'm also very un-partisan. Did I tell you that?
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 12:34 PM (z0HdK)
There's an article somewhere with an interview of an ex girlfriend of Ayers and she has a lot of nasty things to say about him.
Posted by: MissTammy at December 09, 2011 12:36 PM (SsG4J)
I have WON THE DAY, WINGNUTZ!!!
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 12:37 PM (z0HdK)
unlike Kos where all agree Obama and Nancy, and Reid are the shmartest freaks in america.
Posted by: willow at December 09, 2011 12:40 PM (h+qn8)
Posted by: 4rc at December 09, 2011 12:44 PM (/qJmo)
Posted by: Wall-E at December 09, 2011 12:45 PM (48wze)
Posted by: Jypsea Rose at December 09, 2011 12:45 PM (digkk)
willow beat me to it. This "echo chamber" gets downright vicious with differing opinions! Scary sometimes.
I think it's where we differ wildly with the Leftist sites, both in the fact that we DO argue, hard, and also that we don't have that kumbaya, hand-holding, don't-hurt-anyone's-feelings, let's-reach-a-consensus, hive mentality.
Posted by: MissTammy at December 09, 2011 12:46 PM (SsG4J)
Echo chamber!!!!
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 12:47 PM (48wze)
Posted by: Jypsea Rose at December 09, 2011 12:48 PM (digkk)
Only because you are a bunch of RINOS!
Posted by: toby928© at December 09, 2011 12:49 PM (GTbGH)
I am one of them damn dirty Palinista, Honky For Herman, Cracker For Cain and Perrywinkle rednecks your mama warned you about!
Posted by: MissTammy at December 09, 2011 12:54 PM (SsG4J)
Posted by: lori K at December 09, 2011 12:59 PM (LO+hL)
Posted by: Clarence at December 09, 2011 12:59 PM (48wze)
FIFMyself
Posted by: MissTammy at December 09, 2011 01:00 PM (SsG4J)
Posted by: Jones at December 09, 2011 01:17 PM (8sCoq)
Slow Joe doesn't lie you know
Posted by: Rick in MB at December 09, 2011 01:31 PM (2ocJB)
270 Epistemic closure? Was the term "confirmation bias" too pedestrian or something?
How about porcine-cephalic?
Posted by: Jay Guevara at December 09, 2011 01:53 PM (cqydL)
How about porcine-cephalic?
Posted by: Jay Guevara at December 09, 2011 05:53 PM (cqydL)
How 'bout "coprocephalic"?
Posted by: Insomniac at December 09, 2011 01:56 PM (v+QvA)
Posted by: Not Really Spam at December 09, 2011 03:27 PM (o5h2L)
Posted by: The Sojourn ePub at December 09, 2011 04:56 PM (sDk1i)
Posted by: Locked On epub at December 09, 2011 05:16 PM (B8WDu)
Posted by: Who Fears Death ePub at December 09, 2011 05:32 PM (XwRTS)
Posted by: SpideyTerry at December 09, 2011 06:52 PM (iPhUe)
As it happens, my sister actually knew Barry a little bit when he was a sophomore at Occidental College. They took an American Cultures course taught by a Marxist Professor. The experience is still burned into my sister's mind, but not because Barry was in the class. She definitely felt pressured to conform with the anti-American theme pushed by the Prof in that particular class. Barry, per her memory, exhibited no signs of any particular intelligence or smarts in any of the class discussions. Who knows what his grade was, but Occidental was and is quite the hotbed of Marxist orthodoxy so I'm sure he felt right at home before transferring to Columbia the next year, another subject calling for speculation of favoritism. At the time I was a year ahead of my sister and Barry, attending Claremont McKenna College down the freeway majoring in Econ. So this is all pretty personal to me.
Posted by: smokedaddy at December 09, 2011 07:03 PM (f04hD)
Posted by: Another Well-Meaning Nutcase at December 09, 2011 07:27 PM (oBnuJ)
Posted by: sistrum at December 09, 2011 07:56 PM (AyryN)
Hey, it's what Journolist was, by design!
Posted by: docweasel at December 09, 2011 10:07 PM (J0twV)
Not surprising, because a thoroughly stupid and ignorant man uttered it.
Posted by: Blacque Jacques Shellacque at December 09, 2011 10:40 PM (KXXIv)
Posted by: The Fiery Trial ePub at December 09, 2011 11:36 PM (lkCSV)
Posted by: izoneguy at December 10, 2011 06:38 AM (i6Neb)
Intelligent people learn as the grow and are exposed to ideas of others. Obama is welded to the communism he learned as a child. He may have went to college and earn a degree, but he never had any human interactions with others. I doubt he ever join any clubs or teams that were active on campus. He was never a member of a frat. It is strange that no one on campus ever remembers having any contact with the young Barack. He is the man no one ever met and no one knows. Stuck to ideas that died 60 years ago.
Posted by: burt at December 10, 2011 02:52 PM (OzqQM)
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Posted by: TelePrompter at December 09, 2011 10:00 AM (r2PLg)