# Go To Hell Senator kennedy! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 25, 2006, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074 "2006-02-25T16:19:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/41 "2006-02-26T20:04:19Z")
> [@Weirddave](#): > > No, I don’t think he meant to kill Mary-Jo. The problem is that after the accident, he went to a friends house, (a house with a phone, yet nobody called the police), returned with his friends to the scene of the accident, and when (he claims) they were unable to rescue the girl, he swam the channel and went to back to his hotel, where he called his lawyer and a couple other people for advice before contacting the police. The police didn’t arrive at the accident scene until the next day. Mary-Jo’s body was never autopsied (unusual for a death in such circumstances), so her cause of death is unknown, but rescuers did note a large volume of air trapped in the car, and some have speculated that the girl may have suffocated when the oxygen in this air pocket ran out rather than drowning, in which case a prompt police and rescue response might have saved her life. Of course nobody will ever know for sure. To my mind there is only one credible reason for the delay (a reason that I feel is likely the cause of the Cheney delay as well, FWIW), And that’s that he was drunk, and needed time for the alcohol to clear his system before the authorities became involved. That’s why Chappaquiddick is a little more than “he didn’t mean to kill her”, AFAIK, nobody claims that he did. In other words, he did a version of what probably 99.9% of people in similar situations have done or would do. It doesn’t make him evil, it just means he’s fallible like the rest of us. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/42 "2006-02-26T20:18:01Z")
And, just as i thought, this has turned into a debate over Kennedy and Chappaquiddick, rather than over the OP’s ridiculous assertions or the issue of the Cape Cod wind farm. This is what conservatives and alleged moderates like **stupiddave** are so good at—changing the debate to make it all about the evil libruhls. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/43 "2006-02-26T20:18:17Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > arguably can cause a lot of damage to waterfowl. I asked a friend of mine, who’s in the industry, about this the other day, and according to him claims of bird strike at wind farms are greatly exaggerated by the conservationists. No cite I’m afraid. ---
**Author:** ![Hamlet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hamlet/32/2818_2.png) [@Hamlet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamlet)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/44 "2006-02-26T20:22:34Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > In other words, he did a version of what probably 99.9% of people in similar situations have done or would do. It doesn’t make him evil, it just means he’s fallible like the rest of us. 99.9% of the population would drive drunk, killing a woman, and attempting to cover it up? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9fc348/32.png) [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Flying_Dutchman)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/45 "2006-02-26T20:39:07Z")
Who here can say that when they see or hear about Ted Kennedy in political action Chappaquiddick doesn’t immediately come to mind ? Just imagine O.J. Simpson returning to NBC to comment on the NFL games. ---
**Author:** ![Weirddave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/919ad9/32.png) [@Weirddave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weirddave)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/46 "2006-02-26T20:43:57Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > And, just as i thought, this has turned into a debate over Kennedy and Chappaquiddick, rather than over the OP’s ridiculous assertions or the issue of the Cape Cod wind farm. > > This is what conservatives and alleged moderates like **stupiddave** are so good at—changing the debate to make it all about the evil libruhls. The hilarious part of this accusation is that it was the liberals who brought up the subject of Chappaquiddick in this thread. Read back. Post the first mention of Chappaquiddick or Mary-Jo. Look at who posted it. Then quit yapping. Oh, and if you read back, all I did was fill in Zoe on the details of what happened in 1969. You got a factual beef about what i said, go ahead and state it, otherwise stop flapping your gums. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/47 "2006-02-26T20:45:42Z")
> [@The Flying Dutchman](#): > > Who here can say that when they see or hear about Ted Kennedy in political action Chappaquiddick doesn’t immediately come to mind ? I can honestly say that. Except, of course, on those occasions where jerkoffs not only bring it up, but make it the _only_ issue, ignoring the actual subject of the debate. The real issue, though, is not whether it comes up in people’s minds, but whether it is germane to the subject at hand. Do you honestly think that Kennedy’s position on the wind farm is in any way related to Chappaquiddick? ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/48 "2006-02-26T20:48:10Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > In other words, he did a version of what probably 99.9% of people in similar situations have done or would do. It doesn’t make him evil, it just means he’s fallible like the rest of us. > [@Hamlet](#): > > 99.9% of the population would drive drunk, killing a woman, and attempting to cover it up? Try reading s-l-o-w-l-y, **Hamlet**. 99.9% of people in **similar situations** doesn’t equate to “99.9% of the population.” ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/49 "2006-02-26T20:52:37Z")
> [@Weirddave](#): > > The hilarious part of this accusation is that it was the liberals who brought up the subject of Chappaquiddick in this thread. Read back. Post the first mention of Chappaquiddick or Mary-Jo. Look at who posted it. Then quit yapping. So, in your opinion, what was **Stephe96** talking about? > [@](#): > > By the way, Teddy earned his ticket to hell quite a few years ago. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9fc348/32.png) [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Flying_Dutchman)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/50 "2006-02-26T20:53:08Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > Do you honestly think that Kennedy’s position on the wind farm is in any way related to Chappaquiddick? Only to the extent that I dismiss anything he says because he lost credibility for me. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/51 "2006-02-26T21:03:58Z")
> [@Weirddave](#): > > The hilarious part of this accusation is that it was the liberals who brought up the subject of Chappaquiddick in this thread. Read back. Post the first mention of Chappaquiddick or Mary-Jo. Look at who posted it. Then quit yapping. Do you honestly think that **Stephe96** ’s reference was to anything else, given the evidence presented in this thread. If so, perhaps you could enlighten us as to what it was, especially since the poster in question hasn’t got the courage to return to the thread. > [@Weirddave](#): > > Oh, and if you read back, all I did was fill in Zoe on the details of what happened in 1969. You got a factual beef about what i said, go ahead and state it, otherwise stop flapping your gums. This is an out-and-out lie. Your first post in this thread said: > [@Weirddave](#): > > You know, GW maybe went AWOL from the National Guard, it’s not a cut and dried situation by any means, yet people who dislike Bush constantly throw that up in debates concerning anything he does and that’s just fine. Kennedy definitely committed manslaughter and maybe got away with murder, yet anyone who mentions that making a dirty pool partisan attack. Even better, liberals are in a frenzy about the delay in calling the authorities when Cheney accidentally shot a man in the face, yet that’s exactly what Kennedy did in 1969, yet criticizing him for Chappaquiddick is verboden. Double standard much? This is not simply “fill[ing] **Zoe** in on the details of what happened in 1969” (as if you actually know anyway); it is an attempt to make the whole issue about alleged liberal hypocrisy, rather than about the actual topic of the thread. Not only that, your first post is, in itself, factually incorrect, in that you say that “Kennedy definitely committed manslaughter.” If you can direct us to evidence of this, please do so. Otherwise retract your lie. And where, oh moderate one, was your critique of the OP’s partisan conservatism? You _still_ haven’t found the energy to address that issue, have you? > [@The Flying Dutchman](#): > > Only to the extent that I dismiss anything he says because he lost credibility for me. Well, let’s see how easy this is. The fact that you would dismiss anything that a person says due to one single act almost forty years ago means that you have no credibility. This means, of course, that anything _you_ say can also be dismissed out of hand. Which, given your performance in this thread, seems pretty reasonable. ---
**Author:** ![Hamlet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hamlet/32/2818_2.png) [@Hamlet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamlet)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/52 "2006-02-26T21:17:02Z")
> [@samclem](#): > > Try reading s-l-o-w-l-y, **Hamlet**. > > 99.9% of people in **similar situations** doesn’t equate to “99.9% of the population.” Ooooohh. Thanks. So the population that matters is the 99.9% of the people who drive drunk, with a passenger, go off the road into a pond, thereby causing the passengers death? Well shit, in that illustrious company, he’s positively average!!! His actions were a trifle more than “fallible”. But thanks for the correction. Now, I’ll take **mhendo’s** words to heart and avoid this conversation that has absolutely nothing to do with the OP. ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/53 "2006-02-26T23:21:06Z")
As I’ve often said about the Kennedy clan: “It’s easy to be a liberal when you’re rich.” :D:D ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/54 "2006-02-26T23:22:11Z")
> [@Hamlet](#): > > 99.9% of the population would drive drunk, killing a woman, and attempting to cover it up? Yeah, that’s exactly what I said. Fuckin’ putz. ---
**Author:** ![EarthStone777](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7ab992/32.png) [@EarthStone777](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EarthStone777)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/55 "2006-02-26T23:24:17Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > … kennedy doesn’t want it, because he thinks nantucket Sound belongs to him… Heck, didn’t you know that all of Nantucket belongs to them? A couple of years ago, the company I was working for sent a 30’ truck with crew to the Kennedy compound on Nantucket to do some work for the day. When they were finished, the crew chief happened to mention that he was worried they would miss the ferry back to the mainland. The kennedy who was having the work done (I won’t name specific names) said “Oh, no problem.”, hit the speed dial on the phone for the Ferry, and arranged to have it held for them. When they arrived, they discovered that not only was the ferry held, they hadn’t let anyone else onboard yet. Escorted to the front of the line, our truck was the first one on, then everyone else was allowed on. This meant that they were also the first ones to get off on the mainland. Sure it was great for our crew, not having to wait 4 hours till the next boat, but it drove home for me the twin points of how the kennedys expect to get their way, and how everyone around them gives it to them. ---
**Author:** ![Weirddave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/919ad9/32.png) [@Weirddave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weirddave)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/56 "2006-02-26T23:44:37Z")
> [@samclem](#): > > So, in your opinion, what was **Stephe96** talking about? Beats the hell out of me, why don’t you ask her? Personally I think Kennedy’s voting record is as good a ticket to hell as one could want, but I’m not the one who said it. Every single person in this thread talking about Chappaquiddick is doing so under the _assumption_ that that’s what Steph was refering to, and has proceded based upon this _assumption_, with no basis in fact. The first poster to mention Chappaquiddick was from the liberal side of the ailse, and away the merry-go-round had swung since. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/57 "2006-02-26T23:45:32Z")
> [@EarthStone777](#): > > it drove home for me the twin points of how the kennedys expect to get their way, and how everyone around them gives it to them. There’s a line in _The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress_ to the effect that Americans have been wanting their royalty back ever since the Revolution deprived them of it. Would be nice to see an America where we no longer treated rich and powerful people, and celebs of all sorts, as royalty. I was thinking about this a week or two ago on account of the local sheriff’s deputy being obviously more easily turned away at the Armstrong Ranch than he would have been at an ordinary home. But it’s just as applicable with the Kennedys, if not more so. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2006, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/58 "2006-02-26T23:52:52Z")
> [@samclem](#): > > So, in your opinion, what was Stephe96 talking about? > [@Weirddave](#): > > Beats the hell out of me, why don’t you ask her? . If it quacks like a duck, … ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/59 "2006-02-27T00:01:49Z")
> [@samclem](#): > > If it quacks like a duck, … …it’ll get hit by a windmill? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Weirddave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/919ad9/32.png) [@Weirddave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weirddave)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074/60 "2006-02-27T00:21:56Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > This is an out-and-out lie. > > Your first post in this thread said: It’s not a lie. The text you quoted was not from my first post to the thread, it was from a text made in direct reply to Zoe (whom I quoted) wondering if Kennedy meant to drive off the bridge at Chappaquiddick. I said no. It is you who is mixing questions and responses from different posts to create the illusion that I am saying something I have clearly not said. You appear to have quite a future in propaganda. > [@mhendo](#): > > This is not simply “fill[ing] **Zoe** in on the details of what happened in 1969” (as if you actually know anyway); Got any factual problems with what I said, or are you all just bluster? > [@mhendo](#): > > it is an attempt to make the whole issue about alleged liberal hypocrisy, rather than about the actual topic of the thread. You’re the one going nuts about liberal hypocrisy. I pointed out a glaring double standard in the posts on this board. An honest person would have looked it it objectively, said 'You know, you have a point", and gone back to the topic at hand, instead you wind up like a monkey, shrieking and screeching and flinging your feces around. You’re as predictable as the tides and as amusing as a clown. > [@mhendo](#): > > Not only that, your first post is, in itself, factually incorrect, in that you say that “Kennedy definitely committed manslaughter.” If you can direct us to evidence of this, please do so. Otherwise retract your lie. What’s to retract? Kennedy committed manslaughter. O.J. committed murder. Neither man was convicted of either charge, but only a deluded fool would argue that they weren’t guilty. :smack: Of course, THAT’S why you’re making this argument. Never mind. Tell you what. Why don’t you strap a woman into your car and drive it into Back River. Leave the scene and come back in the morning. Let’s see what you are charged with. Care to be what it’ll be? > [@mhendo](#): > > And where, oh moderate one, was your critique of the OP’s partisan conservatism? You _still_ haven’t found the energy to address that issue, have you?Well, let’s see how easy this is. It’s not my OP. Why you think I would be obligated to defend it is beyond me. > [@mhendo](#): > > The fact that you would dismiss anything that a person says due to one single act almost forty years ago means that you have no credibility. This means, of course, that anything _you_ say can also be dismissed out of hand. Again, where have I even addressed the issue of Senator Kennedy and the wind farm? I haven’t, mainly because I don’t care very much. I didn’t say that what happened at Chappaquiddick had any bearing at all on the wind farm. That was entirely the creation of those on your side of the floor, creating an issue and then going nuts defending it. It’s kinda like watching a schizophrenic argue with a mirror. Amusing at first, but ultimately it’s just sad. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/go-to-hell-senator-kennedy/346074.md?page=4)