# Ask The Patriotic American Intellectual Conservative Christian **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 9, 2010, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234 "2010-02-09T03:41:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 14
**Author:** ![Grapefruit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/73ab20/32.png) [@Grapefruit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grapefruit)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2010, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/261 "2010-02-16T18:44:42Z")
> [@Curtis LeMay](#): > > I told you a few-voting, searching for criminals etc. To expand the question this was in response to: how do you **personally** help out your community? If you’re 13, you can’t vote, so you are not helping out your community at this point in them with that. How are you personally searching for criminals? ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2010, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/262 "2010-02-16T19:22:38Z")
He’s OJ’s boy-wonder? ---
**Author:** ![42fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/4/b487fb/32.png) [@42fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/42fish)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2010, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/263 "2010-02-16T19:59:38Z")
> [@Grapefruit](#): > > How are you personally searching for criminals? Checking under the bed before going to sleep? (Also works for bogeymen.) ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2010, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/264 "2010-02-16T20:37:14Z")
Note to **Curtis** : You’re doing great. I’m glad you’re here. I figure you’re acid testing some of your ideas, and us Dopers are the acid. Is this thread giving you anything to think about, or are you finding your beliefs and ideas to be unaltered? Anything you’re gonna chew over in the future? ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2010, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/265 "2010-02-16T23:17:55Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > Isn’t “intellectual” and “Conservitive Protestant” an oxymoron? There are days I regret encouraging people to come onto this board. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/266 "2010-02-17T00:29:32Z")
What sports teams do you root for? ---
**Author:** ![ToeJam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dfb087/32.png) [@ToeJam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ToeJam)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/267 "2010-02-17T01:33:27Z")
Don’t know if it’s kosher, but I’ll bite, you can easily decline to answer if you don’t want to get involved, though I do know that you do read the Pit (though if you’re not involved then that’s for the best): What’s your opinion/take on the \*\*AT \*\*kerfuffle in the Pit? ---
**Author:** ![adhay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecd19e/32.png) [@adhay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adhay)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/268 "2010-02-17T02:35:53Z")
> [@ToeJam](#): > > … What’s your opinion/take on the \*\*AT \*\*kerfuffle in the Pit? I’ll get back to you. ---
**Author:** ![adhay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecd19e/32.png) [@adhay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adhay)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/269 "2010-02-17T02:42:35Z")
Much ado about nothing. I recommend **Curtis** stay out of it. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/270 "2010-02-17T02:53:56Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > LeMay’s SAC forces would have had no ability to defend us against the Soviets if they really wanted to attack us. LeMay was obsessed with the idea that we should simply nuke the Soviets preemptively. He was a nutcase with a bombing fetish. > > I also don’t think he deserves to be let off the hook for being George Wallace’s running mate just because he claimed that he personally wasn’t a racist. I don’t find a meaningful difference between between being a bigot who supported segregation or a non-bigot who supported segregation. The difference between being George Wallace and being George Wallace’s bitch is too negligible to be expulpatory. LeMay did not support segregation at all-he believed however that Nixon and Humphrey would both be too weak on Communism. And General LeMay did improve and strengthen the Air Force. From Wiki: > [@](#): > > After World War II, LeMay was briefly transferred to The Pentagon as deputy chief of Air Staff for Research & Development. In 1947, he returned to Europe as commander of USAF Europe, heading operations for the Berlin Airlift in 1948 in the face of a blockade by the Soviet Union and its satellite states that threatened to starve the civilian population of the Western occupation zones of Berlin. Under LeMay’s direction, C-54 cargo planes that could each carry 10 tons of cargo began supplying the city on July 1. By the fall, the airlift was bringing in an average of 5,000 tons of supplies a day. The airlift continued for 11 months—213,000 flights that brought in 1.7 million tons of food and fuel to Berlin. Faced with the failure of their blockade, the Soviet Union relented and reopened land corridors to the West. Though LeMay is publicly credited with the success of the Berlin Airlift, it was, in fact, orchestrated by General Lucius D. Clay and successfully implemented by Lt. General William H. Tunner, as pointed out in Andrei Cherny’s 2008 book, The Candy Bombers: The Untold Story of the Berlin Airlift and America’s Finest Hour. (However, as Cherny points out in his book, LeMay was happy to take the credit for the airlift, particularly after it became an international success.) > > In 1948, he returned to the U.S. to head the Strategic Air Command (SAC), replacing Gen George Kenney. When he took over SAC, it consisted of little more than a few understaffed B-29 bombardment groups left over from World War II. Less than half of the available aircraft were operational, and the crews were undertrained. When he ordered a mock bombing exercise on Dayton, Ohio, most bombers missed their targets by one mile or more. “We didn’t have one crew, not one crew, in the entire command who could do a professional job”[6] noted LeMay. > > In 1952 the 1st Missile Division was activated, having operational control over strategic missiles. > > General LeMay was instrumental in the U.S. Air Force’s acquisition of a large fleet of new strategic bombers, establishment of a vast aerial refueling system, the formation of many new units and bases, development of a strategic ballistic missile force, and establishment of a strict command and control system with an unprecedented readiness capability. He insisted on rigorous training and very high standards of performance for his aircrews, supposedly saying, “I have neither the time nor the inclination to differentiate between the incompetent and the merely unfortunate.” > > On LeMay’s departure, SAC was composed of 224,000 airmen, close to 2,000 heavy bombers, and nearly 800 tanker aircraft.[8] Certainly had the Soviets attacked the Strategic Air Command would have made a difference. > [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > What about it? How does this answer either one of my questions? Do you believe that this story in genesis represents actual evidence that god historical spoke to a character named Abraham? > > Is _The Odyssey_ proof that Athena spoke to Odysseus? > > I ask again, why would an omniscient God need to test people when he already knows what they’'ll do. Whether is symbolic or factually true is beside the point-it shows how God tests people. And I am an Arminian-who believes in the free will of human beings and that God has not yet known every person who will be saved or damned. > [@gonzomax](#): > > Redo the thread. > Ask a right wing person who has no problem with killing lots of people in wars and those perceived as threats, while claiming to be a Christian. > How do you reconcile the obvious conflicts? I think sometimes little evil is necessary to prevent far worse and greater evil. For instance we dropped the atomic bombs on Japan to prevent a long and protracted war there. > [@BobLibDem](#): > > I meant politics. I have by no means read all or even most of your posts, but I’ve yet to see anything that varies in the slightest from what you might hear Rush Limpballs say. I am somewhat more in support of regulation of the economy than Limbaugh or Hannity or Levin. I think tough financial regulations are necessary to prevent another economic disaster. > [@akennett](#): > > You keep repeating that, but you refuse to do anything to answer these questions, from me and others. You claim to be an intellectual, yet you refuse to answer the question in anything approaching an intellectual manner. Why is that? Galatians contains my views on the matter, thus it’d make more sense to read that. > [@Guinastasia](#): > > How were they necessary? (Please elaborate, **Curtis**. No more one sentence answers. This is getting ridiculous) If the Soviets attacked would it be better to have thousands of airplanes and missiles or fewer? America could not match the Soviets in the number of soldiers but it had air and naval superiority which needed to be exploited to win the Cold War. > [@](#): > > **Curtis** – have you ever heard of Smedley Butler? Yes, he was the general who gave the famous “War Is A Racket” quote which is heavily quoted by people ranging from Pat Buchanan to Ron Paul to Noam Chomsky. > [@42fish](#): > > Would this explain why so many of your ‘answers’ are platitudes devoid of insight? > Have you considered changing your name to Curtis Mayfield? It’s close to the original and he was much less of an a-hole than Gen. LeMay. > > In Freakonomics, Steve Levitt suggests that the drop in crime in the 1990s was a direct result of the legalization of abortion. For the following questions, please assume that this is true. > -In your view, would the drop in crime justify legalizing abortion? > -If not, would you be OK with a lesser number of abortions (say 5,000/year) if it produced an identical reduction in crime? > -If not, could you explain why you think it’s okay for the Bush administration to have caused 100,000 deaths in Iraq in furtherance of its goals. Abortion did not cause the drop in crime. Abortion rates have dropped since about twenty years ago yet crime rates are still going down despite the fact that now many of the excess births are now young adults-the most likely age for criminals. And I will not answer questions that require an untrue and impossible hypothetical-you might as well ask “Would you support communism if capitalism collapsed?” > [@Gyrate](#): > > When do you turn 14? August 12th 2010. > [@Grapefruit](#): > > To expand the question this was in response to: how do you **personally** help out your community? > > If you’re 13, you can’t vote, so you are not helping out your community at this point in them with that. How are you personally searching for criminals? Community service. For instance starting this summer I may help at libraries and elsewhere. > [@Guinastasia](#): > > What sports teams do you root for? The Anaheim Angels, Anaheim Ducks, Los Angeles Dodgers, Los Angeles Lakers, and New York Yankees but very mildly. I’m not a sports nut. > [@ToeJam](#): > > Don’t know if it’s kosher, but I’ll bite, you can easily decline to answer if you don’t want to get involved, though I do know that you do read the Pit (though if you’re not involved then that’s for the best): > > What’s your opinion/take on the \*\*AT \*\*kerfuffle in the Pit? I didn’t read that thread in the Pit. ---
**Author:** ![akennett](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ee59a6/32.png) [@akennett](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/akennett)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/271 "2010-02-17T03:10:44Z")
> [@Curtis LeMay](#): > > Galatians contains my views on the matter, thus it’d make more sense to read that. Really? You wrote Galatians? Wow. ---
**Author:** ![adhay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecd19e/32.png) [@adhay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adhay)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/272 "2010-02-17T03:21:06Z")
**Curtis** , you one funny guy and, if I have anything to say about it, this year’s recipient of the Mark Twain Whoosh Medal. Well done. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/273 "2010-02-17T04:05:41Z")
> [@Curtis LeMay](#): > > general who gave the famous “War Is A Racket” quote which is heavily quoted by people ranging from Pat Buchanan to Ron Paul to Noam Chomsky. That’s it? [He was much more than that](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smedley_Butler) Would you say Butler was unpatriotic? ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/274 "2010-02-17T04:13:18Z")
> [@akennett](#): > > Really? You wrote Galatians? Wow. For instance if you asked me “What are your views on the origin of man”, I’d say “Theistic evolution” and refer you to a biology textbook. > [@Guinastasia](#): > > That’s it? > > [He was much more than that](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smedley_Butler) > > Would you say Butler was unpatriotic? No, he merely was mistaken on some issues. ---
**Author:** ![tesseract](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bb73d2/32.png) [@tesseract](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tesseract)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/275 "2010-02-17T04:32:15Z")
**Curtis** , although I generally don’t agree with you politically and religiously (though I too am a theistic evolutionist), I am impressed with your handling of this thread. As someone said upthread, you are definitely a more nuanced and complex individual than you appeared at first, anbd you obviously have spent a lot of time thinking and reading. I believe you have handled yourself far more maturely than some in this thread, as well. Thanks for starting it and for your responses so far. ---
**Author:** ![akennett](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ee59a6/32.png) [@akennett](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/akennett)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/276 "2010-02-17T05:15:32Z")
> [@Curtis LeMay](#): > > For instance if you asked me “What are your views on the origin of man”, I’d say “Theistic evolution” and refer you to a biology textbook. And how would that be any more an actual answer about your views, especially in light of the fact that you have given yourself the label of ‘intellectual’? Part, a large part, of claiming that is the ability to actually express your own views, not just say “yeah, what he said.” to every question. The latter is the only thing you’ve been able to do with regards to my questions and with many others in this thread. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/277 "2010-02-17T10:48:06Z")
> [@Curtis LeMay](#): > > August Thanks - I just wanted to know when we should stop referring to you as being 13. [Dunno if the mods want to remove the day from **Curtis** ’s post above for security’s sake] ---
**Author:** ![Grapefruit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/73ab20/32.png) [@Grapefruit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grapefruit)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/278 "2010-02-17T17:29:26Z")
> [@Curtis LeMay](#): > > Community service. For instance starting this summer I may help at libraries and elsewhere. I didn’t ask you what you were _going to do_. I asked what you are doing right now. And how are you going to help catch criminals by volunteering at the library? What is “elsewhere”? Do you have formative plans as to exactly what you will do being for your community rather than tentative plans? ---
**Author:** ![Grey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b782af/32.png) [@Grey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grey)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/279 "2010-02-17T17:48:53Z")
The kid is a sheltered 13 year old with all the associated conceits. Why would you expect anything but plans? ---
**Author:** ![B.Serum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/b.serum/32/14266_2.png) [@B.Serum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/B.Serum)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234/280 "2010-02-17T18:47:43Z")
> [@Grapefruit](#): > > I didn’t ask you what you were _going to do_. I asked what you are doing right now. > > And how are you going to help catch criminals by volunteering at the library? What is “elsewhere”? Do you have formative plans as to exactly what you will do being for your community rather than tentative plans? Guys, I think it’s fairly obvious that Curtis LeMay is [Kick-Ass](http://kickass-themovie.com/). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234.md?page=13) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-patriotic-american-intellectual-conservative-christian/528234.md?page=15)