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EarlG

(21,894 posts)
Mon Dec 1, 2014, 12:44 PM Dec 2014
32 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
Pic Of The Moment: If This Is The Smartest Republican Running For President... (Original Post) EarlG Dec 2014 OP
Being a savant at one thing does not preclude being a wacko. immoderate Dec 2014 #1
Jeez... Hissyspit Dec 2014 #2
I am actually amazed how stupid this riversedge Dec 2014 #4
Whow. A successful educated neurosurgeon acting dumb for the GOP ticket!! riversedge Dec 2014 #3
I've said it before - climate scientists don't pretend to know neurosurgery..... groundloop Dec 2014 #5
A neurosurgeon should stick to what he knows. AlbertCat Dec 2014 #28
400,000 years of data Botany Dec 2014 #6
i'm disgusted with him - so much help is needed to reduce racism samsingh Dec 2014 #7
Sarah Palin could take him apart in a primary debate. n/t Mr.Bill Dec 2014 #8
What an idiot. SoapBox Dec 2014 #9
Repubs are confused because winter still happens. Beartracks Dec 2014 #10
interesting DemandsRedPill Dec 2014 #11
Unfortunately, there's something about the process of becoming a doctor SheilaT Dec 2014 #12
Love your post generally. BlueMTexpat Dec 2014 #26
Thanks for your thoiughtful response. SheilaT Dec 2014 #31
Thanks also for yours! :) BlueMTexpat Dec 2014 #32
Thank you for shining a bright light on this EarlG rosesaylavee Dec 2014 #13
A brain surgeon? Well he may have a functioning brain, or he may not have a functioning brain. nt Fla Dem Dec 2014 #14
He needs to stick to brain surgery... Rhiannon12866 Dec 2014 #15
Nice to see it's still all about the Phlem Dec 2014 #16
clearly being a brain surgeon, doesn't require political honesty Sheepshank Dec 2014 #17
Driving home from Denver Saturday, I passed a car mountain grammy Dec 2014 #18
When it comes to medical knowledge, my doctor is "the man". cheapdate Dec 2014 #19
Funny how that works ... Scuba Dec 2014 #20
Kinda put a different twist... 3catwoman3 Dec 2014 #21
He reminds of the "Don't worry be happy" singer. nt BootinUp Dec 2014 #22
He knows better. He's just talking to his base, and you have to sound like an idiot Tobin S. Dec 2014 #23
And The Age of Aquarius turns out as The Age of Stupidity Amonester Dec 2014 #24
Which just goes to show ya.. even if you're a brain surgeon and gop.. they're not shy about Cha Dec 2014 #25
omg, he is really running?! I have a theory ellenrr Dec 2014 #27
I thought you were going to show a picture of a dog turd rock Dec 2014 #29
fine tuned and balanced on time polynomial Dec 2014 #30
 

immoderate

(20,885 posts)
1. Being a savant at one thing does not preclude being a wacko.
Mon Dec 1, 2014, 12:48 PM
Dec 2014

I can't wait for Ben Carson to declare his candidacy.

--imm


riversedge

(69,731 posts)
4. I am actually amazed how stupid this
Mon Dec 1, 2014, 12:53 PM
Dec 2014

talented surgeon is acting and the things he says. whow. Power is everything to him it seems but why give up your soul and credibility??

groundloop

(11,488 posts)
5. I've said it before - climate scientists don't pretend to know neurosurgery.....
Mon Dec 1, 2014, 12:54 PM
Dec 2014

A neurosurgeon should stick to what he knows.

 

AlbertCat

(17,505 posts)
28. A neurosurgeon should stick to what he knows.
Tue Dec 2, 2014, 09:54 AM
Dec 2014

Especially since he doesn't seem to know the difference between climate and weather.... like most of the GOP.

samsingh

(17,571 posts)
7. i'm disgusted with him - so much help is needed to reduce racism
Mon Dec 1, 2014, 02:06 PM
Dec 2014

and successful people who forget what it's like for so many others is a special type of lowlife and scum. clarence thomas also comes to mind

Beartracks

(12,761 posts)
10. Repubs are confused because winter still happens.
Mon Dec 1, 2014, 02:16 PM
Dec 2014

And in their limited capacity for engaging or understanding simple scientific concepts, they think "global warming" must mean "summer everywhere."

And, like all self-righteous peoples, they also have trouble acknowledging that they can be wrong or that there's something they might not know.

To paraphrase Rumsfeld, many Republicans don't know what they don't know, and they're fine with that.

=================

 

DemandsRedPill

(65 posts)
11. interesting
Mon Dec 1, 2014, 02:29 PM
Dec 2014

On the recent trip south for Thanksgiving I saw three bumper stickers for this fool.

Carson 16 it says

All but one car had other bumper stickers calling out their obedience to an ancient Jewish Carpenter or they had 'the fish'

Now this is in the dark blue state of Oregon and we are two years away from any election

Ridicule all we want and see these folks as just sheep but where are the Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren stickers?

Haven't declared their candidacy yet?

Neither has this clone of Michelle Bauchman

 

SheilaT

(23,156 posts)
12. Unfortunately, there's something about the process of becoming a doctor
Mon Dec 1, 2014, 02:48 PM
Dec 2014

that inspires far too many of them to think they know everything about everything. It's a bit bizarre, in that no other profession is so much like that. Astrophysicists, for example tend to recognize they don't know much about other fields, but doctors? I've more than once heard one say scornfully, "And where did YOU go to medical school?" When I bring up some fact about something outside of medicine that they've gotten wrong.

One reason Elizabeth Warren is scaring so many within the upper echelons of the Democratic Party is that she did not become a United States Senator by going through some years of electoral politics. She had this whole entire life and career outside of politics, and now is bringing her understanding of the world outside of politics into the things she says and supports. And that is upsetting the boat in so very many ways.

You see it here on DU. The support of Hillary Clinton and the animosity towards Elizabeth Warren on the part of so many here strikes me as grounded in that very difference: one has had a life and career within politics, the other has not. And that second is sufficiently different from what's expected, that a lot of people don't like it.

BlueMTexpat

(15,350 posts)
26. Love your post generally.
Tue Dec 2, 2014, 04:28 AM
Dec 2014

But where you lose me is where you say that the "support of Hillary Clinton and the animosity towards Elizabeth Warren on the part of so many here strikes" you as "grounded in that very difference ...." Yes, I love Elizabeth Warren and really hope to see her as US President some day if she ever decides to run.

But Elizabeth herself has said all along that she is not running in 2016. Moreover, most from Massachusetts that I know really want her to continue as their Senator for a while longer and she is doing - and will continue to do - great work as a Senator. She is also managing to get the kind of attention that should help to get the ultimate Dem Presidential candidate to veer towards Dem root policies and beliefs.

It is not so much that the support for Hillary is animosity towards Elizabeth as that Hillary is available to run. If Hillary ultimately declares her candidacy, she is an exceptionally qualified candidate that I will be very proud to support in the primaries even when I do not agree with every one of her stated policies or associates. Should she not win the primaries, I will support whichever Dem candidate that does. For me, one great advantage of Hillary is that she most especially would not free up Elizabeth's Dem Senate seat for yet another challenge by Scott Brown, or someone like him or worse. Another plus is that Elizabeth will continue to drive the GOP and big banks nuts while she is in the Senate and she will be an exceptional ally and/or gadfly for any Dem in the White House.

Of course, if Elizabeth changes her mind and decides to run, we have a new ball game so far as I am concerned.

My point is that it is not so much for one and against the other. It is recognizing the current status quo. That is: 1) neither has officially declared her candidacy and 2) if Hillary does declare, Elizabeth most likely will not. I doubt very much that it will ever come to be a choice between the two - at least not in 2016.

 

SheilaT

(23,156 posts)
31. Thanks for your thoiughtful response.
Tue Dec 2, 2014, 03:01 PM
Dec 2014

Why do you suppose Hillary's declaration she's not really running yet is almost universally disbelieved, while so many race to point out that Elizabeth is not running must be taken as gospel truth?

Another thing that is mentioned frequently, but I don't think very many of us (myself included) is dealing with is the age issue.

Bernie Sanders was born in 1941, Joe Biden in 1942, Hillary Clinton in 1947, and Elizabeth Warren in 1949. I was born in 1948, so it's not as though I'm a twenty-five year old complaining about these old geezers. But it was widely understood back in 2008, that Joe Biden, in accepting the VP slot, would never run for President. He certainly didn't make any such public announcement, but part of that understanding was rooted in his age.

While I greatly admire Bernie Sanders, he's really too old, but if he does run, he has a chance of bringing a genuine conversation to the table of what we want this country to be. Unfortunately, in this country, those sorts of conversations never seem to have a lasting effect. In the end, the establishment, which grows more small c conservative and more insular all the time, closes ranks and doesn't let in any genuinely new people or ideas.

There actually is a younger generation out there, most of whom are largely unknown beyond a relatively small circle, and THAT'S a lot of what concerns me. I suppose at least some of the problem with all of this is that the Beltway Blowhards is that many of them are at least as old as the four Democrats I've named. And of course that they spend all of their time inside the Beltway and within their own very privileged class, which is another problem entirely.

I, for one, do sincerely hope Elizabeth Warren changes her mind, and that Hillary Clinton decides she should get off the stage.

BlueMTexpat

(15,350 posts)
32. Thanks also for yours! :)
Wed Dec 3, 2014, 05:07 AM
Dec 2014

Indeed, there are many great and younger candidates out there. The main issue for the 2016 elections, however, is that almost none of them has universal and national name recognition. This counts for a lot, as a little-known younger candidate who was courageous enough to throw in her hat at a very late date for the MT US Senate race can tell you well. She was literally Montana's Elizabeth Warren and worked tirelessly for the two-month period that she had to make herself known.

Whenever I tried to talk up her candidacy here on DU, I was mostly slapped down by others who insisted that their money would be spent better elsewhere. We saw how well THAT went in November. The national organizations also did zilch to help her. The only outside the state supporters were DFA and Emily's List and even DFA never listed her as an endorsee, although DFA certainly helped with initial fund-raising. To me, a Dem Senator is a Dem Senator and has equal weight whether that Senator is from Kentucky or from Montana. Amanda Curtis was an exceptional candidate. The odds were against her this time, but I'm sure that we'll see her again. We need people like her.

I was born even earlier in the 40s than you, "young'un"! We should not count any of our candidates before they have officially thrown their hats into the ring. But, in answer to your question about why Hillary's declaration is almost universally disbelieved while Elizabeth's is not, I believe that the reason is twofold: a) Hillary is literally available - no Dem Senate, US Rep or Governor seat would be in jeopardy if she runs; and b) Hillary has actually run for President already.

In any event, if the GOP manage to steal the 2016 election, we will ALL be left to gnash our teeth and that's in best case scenario. ANY Dem candidate would be better than any GOPer. And that's the truth. We Dems need to keep our eyes on the BIG picture and not engage in petty bickering about which candidate among the many qualified Dems we should support. We should support the Dem nominee. Period.

I am not saying that I believe that you are engaging in petty bickering. Not at all. You raise excellent points. But too many here are. That really has to stop. We can certainly support whichever declared candidate we wish as heartily as we wish through the primaries. But even then, we should stress their positive aspects and why we support those particular candidates and not raise negative aspects for the others. The GOP already does enough of that - why help them do their worst?

rosesaylavee

(12,126 posts)
13. Thank you for shining a bright light on this EarlG
Mon Dec 1, 2014, 02:53 PM
Dec 2014

For future posts on the GOP and climate change, some great but little cited quotes by GOP leaders here ...

Phlem

(6,323 posts)
16. Nice to see it's still all about the
Mon Dec 1, 2014, 03:23 PM
Dec 2014

money and power.

" I'll lie about anything as long as I'm prezident. "

 

Sheepshank

(12,504 posts)
17. clearly being a brain surgeon, doesn't require political honesty
Mon Dec 1, 2014, 03:34 PM
Dec 2014

this dufuss is hedging against all possibilities and trying not to tick off the GOP climate denying base and more especially his peers. In his ruch not assuage his peers, he is adding to the diseased information machine of the GOP.

mountain grammy

(26,573 posts)
18. Driving home from Denver Saturday, I passed a car
Mon Dec 1, 2014, 04:24 PM
Dec 2014

with a "Ben Carson" bumper sticker. Old white guy. Unbelievable.

cheapdate

(3,811 posts)
19. When it comes to medical knowledge, my doctor is "the man".
Mon Dec 1, 2014, 05:21 PM
Dec 2014

When it's a question of political ideology, public policy, arts and literature, civic values, religion and theology, etc. -- he's just a guy.

Tobin S.

(10,418 posts)
23. He knows better. He's just talking to his base, and you have to sound like an idiot
Mon Dec 1, 2014, 08:50 PM
Dec 2014

to make sense to them.

What makes him truly evil is that he knows better and will work to reverse policies set in place to combat global warming.

Cha

(295,929 posts)
25. Which just goes to show ya.. even if you're a brain surgeon and gop.. they're not shy about
Tue Dec 2, 2014, 02:53 AM
Dec 2014

showing how dumb you are if it helps their pandering to the idiots who would believe this drivel.

Mahalo EarlG

ellenrr

(3,864 posts)
27. omg, he is really running?! I have a theory
Tue Dec 2, 2014, 05:42 AM
Dec 2014

that he has a brain tumor that is making him so stupid.
He didn't use to be this stupid.

polynomial

(750 posts)
30. fine tuned and balanced on time
Tue Dec 2, 2014, 12:28 PM
Dec 2014

The Earth ship Enterprise is hurling through the void at tremendous speed that many of us just tinker in thought.

There are scalars and vectors in fields of energy running through space that are out of human visual spectrum in that the earth or the whole galaxy is slicing through this void at huge speeds the average human does not perceive.

An outer galaxy speed of over a million miles an hour, an inner product speed the solar system of thousands of mile per hour, and the day spin of hundreds of miles per hour. In a continuous time on going iteration one speed inside the other that was fine tuned and balanced on time without fossil fuel.

Now take our transportation system of car that very well create the highway Jetstream of never ending traffic. Burning fuel well estimated by the bankers and oil companies. Or the trains, it is estimated only one company like the Union Pacific burns the same fuel as the American Navy annually. So imagine the carbon when the cars, the trains, and industry create to converge.

Today with fossil fuel clouds of varied pressures and temperatures whirling in rates today that do not correspond to a previous time. Exampled by highway thermo streams and industrial plant that can generate a Reynolds number http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reynolds_number that very well blends to convolute to the buttery fly effect into a raging storm in 911 time.

That’s just like the 911 of the famous terrorist attack, they know its happening…Bush and the oil men know…

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