# GWB: The Greatest President Since Abraham Lincoln **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [April 16, 2004, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371 "2004-04-16T15:19:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/1 "2004-04-16T15:19:53Z")
No kidding, that’s the argument I faced yesterday. From an elderly woman who works here (and happens to be the mother of the two owners of the firm). I was discussing something on the national economy with my publisher and mentioned that I really disliked GWB because of his economic policies. That’s when this woman jumped in. Then I got hit with “Well, if we hadn’t knocked over Iraq then your daughter would have to do it” (appeal to emotion). Then I got hit with “When you get as old as I am you learn some things.” (appeal to authority) Then I got hit with “Andy, you didn’t tell me you hired a damn democrat!” (ad hominem) Christ on a crutch. I think even GWB’s supporters (of which I’m not one) wouldn’t make the GWB-Lincoln thing here. Her argument for that was that GWB, like Lincoln, stuck to his principles when the polls were against him. Or something like that. Maybe. I’m still stunned at the comparison. Stunned. ---
**Author:** ![Fish\_Cheer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fish_cheer/32/17179_2.png) [@Fish\_Cheer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish_Cheer)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/2 "2004-04-16T15:29:08Z")
The danger of him being shot in a playhouse is minimal, I’d say. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/3 "2004-04-16T15:31:08Z")
GWB doesn’t have any facial hair, nor does he have a propensity to wear really cool hats. But both of their wives have names that end in “A”. Maybe she has something there. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Moto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de0a6/32.png) [@Mr.Moto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moto)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/4 "2004-04-16T15:44:17Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > GWB doesn’t have any facial hair, nor does he have a propensity to wear really cool hats. But both of their wives have names that end in “A”. Maybe she has something there. You don’t have anything here. Lincoln’s wife was Mary Todd. ---
**Author:** ![Genghis\_Bob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/45deac/32.png) [@Genghis\_Bob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Genghis_Bob)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/5 "2004-04-16T15:59:34Z")
> [@fishcheer15](#): > > The danger of him being shot in a playhouse is minimal, I’d say. I though Lincoln was shot in the head. . . 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Siege](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dbc845/32.png) [@Siege](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siege)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/6 "2004-04-16T16:05:40Z")
Rimshot indeed! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/7 "2004-04-16T16:05:45Z")
> [@Mr. Moto](#): > > You don’t have anything here. Lincoln’s wife was Mary Todd. Yes but if you say it in _pig_ latin it is AryMa. You should have just agreed that she was old enough to know. ---
**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:** [April 16, 2004, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/8 "2004-04-16T16:06:23Z")
Lincoln’s wife had a bush. Bush’s wife owns a Lincoln. Bush didn’t win the popular vote. Neither did Lincoln. Lincoln got shot. Bush drank lots of shots. I think you get the idea… ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/9 "2004-04-16T16:08:23Z")
[ul] [li]Both of their names begin with a letter of the alphabet.[/li][li]They were both born in the United States of America.[/li][li]They were both inaugurated in Washington, D.C. which is, get this, the CAPITAL of the United States of America.[/li][/ul] I could go on, but why bother? Blind. All of you are blind. The parallels are amazing. ---
**Author:** ![Orbifold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/779978/32.png) [@Orbifold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orbifold)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/10 "2004-04-16T16:25:12Z")
It sounds like the woman’s argument is a variant of “They laughed at Einstein, they laughed at Galileo!” To which, of course, the correct response is “They laughed at Bozo the Clown, too.” Any idiot can stick to the wrong principles. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/11 "2004-04-16T16:25:40Z")
> [@Mr. Moto](#): > > You don’t have anything here. Lincoln’s wife was Mary Todd. Pishposh. If you take into account that I was thinking of Martha _Washington_, I’m all over this shit. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/12 "2004-04-16T16:26:24Z")
> [@Hamlet](#): > > Lincoln’s wife had a bush. Bush’s wife owns a Lincoln. Ha! ---
**Author:** ![Knorf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/58956e/32.png) [@Knorf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knorf)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/13 "2004-04-16T16:46:53Z")
> [@Hamlet](#): > > Bush didn’t win the popular vote. Neither did Lincoln. Although Lincoln did not win 50% of the popular votes in 1860, he was the candidate who received by far the most popular votes among individual candidates, which is something Bush certainly cannot say: 1860 presidential election: Candidate; Popular Vote; Electoral Vote Abraham Lincoln (Republican); 1,865,908; 180 John C. Breckinridge (Democratic); 848,019; 72 John Bell (Const. Union); 590,901; 39 Stephen A. Douglas (Democratic); 1,380,202; 12 other; 531; 0 In 1864, Lincoln won more than the plurality. Note that this was a secession election: Abraham Lincoln (Union); 2,218,388; 212 George B. McClellan (Democratic); 1,812,807; 21 other; 692; 0 ---
**Author:** ![Netbrian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71e660/32.png) [@Netbrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Netbrian)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/14 "2004-04-16T16:47:33Z")
I actually had a similar argument to this appear as an editorial in our campus newspaper, along with some comparisons of the civil war to the Iraq War. I am truly weak-minded for not seeing those obvious similarities before. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/15 "2004-04-16T17:01:34Z")
There are four letters in Bush. There are seven letters in Lincoln. Seven minus four equals three, and three is a mystical number. In addition to that, add three to seven, you get ten. Subtract four, you get six–which is TWO threes–like two presidents. This kind of thing really freaks my shit entirely out. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/16 "2004-04-16T17:16:57Z")
> [@](#): > > Her argument for that was that GWB, like Lincoln, stuck to his principles when the polls were against him. They had polls in Lincoln’s day? What did they do, go from door to door? ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/17 "2004-04-16T17:18:31Z")
So, the Iraq war has more to do with the Civil War than it does Vietnam? Holy crap, the situation is worse than I thought!! ---
**Author:** ![Eureka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/74df32/32.png) [@Eureka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eureka)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/18 "2004-04-16T17:21:19Z")
I think the elderly woman would get along well with my exasperating classmate(EC). EC likes Bush because she likes his mother(that was the conversation stopper, especially since we were in class and the professor wanted to get back on topic). EC also seems to have strong republican tendencies(forgivable, even if I don’t share them) and trusts Bush but would not trust Gore to make appropriate decisions about what should be classified information and what should be made public. EC has also amused me repeatedly by trying to persuade people that she is older than they think she is. She insists that she is old enough to remember Watergate, they say she was just a child. I shake my head in amusement because I know darn well Watergate was before I was born, and therefore my knowledge of it is exceedingly limited. ---
**Author:** ![Neurotik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/91b2a8/32.png) [@Neurotik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neurotik)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/19 "2004-04-16T17:29:34Z")
> [@Diogenes the Cynic](#): > > They had polls in Lincoln’s day? What did they do, go from door to door? I’m fairly sure they seceded. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371/20 "2004-04-16T18:02:46Z")
> [@Diogenes the Cynic](#): > > They had polls in Lincoln’s day? Yeah, but they considered themselves East Prussians. They had to change their name because the jokes don’t flow right when you substitute “East Prussian.” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gwb-the-greatest-president-since-abraham-lincoln/240371.md?page=2)