# Jim Inhofe is a dumbass **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 1, 2010, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586 "2010-12-01T21:14:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2010, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/1 "2010-12-01T21:14:53Z")
For many reasons. But this is his latest episode of dumbassery: **Senator Won’t Ride Horse in ‘Holiday’ Parade** > [@](#): > > Have you seen any instances of the word “Christmas” being replaced by the considerably more ethnic “Holiday”? Sen. Jim Inhofe sure has. And now that his hometown “Christmas” parade is a “Holiday” parade, he’ll keep his horse stabled…“I did not do so last year because I’m not going to ride in a Christmas parade that doesn’t recognize Christmas,” he said. “I am hopeful that the good people of Tulsa and the city’s leadership will demand a correction to this shameful attempt to take Christ, the true reason for our celebration, out of the parade’s title. Until the parade is again named the Christmas Parade of Lights, I will not participate.” ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2010, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/2 "2010-12-01T21:17:58Z")
[He’s not that interested in aviation safety matters such as reading Notices to Airmen, either.](http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/inhofe_senator_closed_runway_texas_faa_investigate_203537-1.html) > [@](#): > > The FAA has confirmed it is investigating the Oct 21 incident in which Inhofe landed a Cessna 340 on an occupied closed runway at Port Isabel-Cameron County Airport, Texas, He was reportedly carrying three others in the light twin when he made the landing on a runway bearing oversized painted Xs, a large red truck, other vehicles, and construction workers. The workers were using loud equipment at the time and didn’t hear the plane’s approach, so one person ran to warn them. It gets better: > [@](#): > > [TulsaWorld.com](http://TulsaWorld.com) reports that Inhofe said he was unaware of the runway’s closure NOTAM because of “a bad relationship he has with one individual, who the Senator said declined to take his phone calls before the flight and did not tell him about the NOTAM.” In the Washington Post’s coverage, Inhofe said an airport official “hates me, I don’t know why.” Don’t expect any action to be taken against him, obviously. Different spanks for different ranks, ya know. ---
**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:** [December 1, 2010, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/3 "2010-12-01T21:37:40Z")
Ah. The annual ‘War on Christmas.’ It never fails to warm the cockles of my black icy heart. I figure at the rate that we secular-humanist-God-hating-atheistic-fascist bastards are removing Christ from the public sphere … we’ll be rid of Christianity as a whole by the 52nd or 53rd century. I can’t wait. ---
**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:** [December 1, 2010, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/4 "2010-12-01T22:06:20Z")
What holiday is the parade for? The word “holiday” connotes a false sense of inclusion. Certainly there are several holidays celebrated this time of year, yet “holiday” serves to obscure them all rather them bring any of them to the fore. Even the plural “holidays” is preferable to the singular “holiday” in this context. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2010, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/5 "2010-12-01T22:12:59Z")
Boy, you can barely see that hair, it’s been split so fine, **Moto**. The holidays encompass everything from Thanksgiving to New Years. This isn’t a difficult concept to understand. Holiday when used as an adjective does not require a plural to refer to multiple holidays. I can go on a winter holiday vacation that spans Christmas and New Years and nobody would bat an eye. A holiday event acknowledges and celebrates other religions _while not excluding Christmas_. That’s the kicker that cracks me up; he’s pissing about because Christmas doesn’t have the spotlight, not because it’s being excluded. Were it something specific to Christmas, I might agree. I don’t think December 25th should be renamed Holiday Day or a tree should be called a Holiday Bush or anything. But a parade is just an event that doesn’t have any specific ties to Christmas, it’s just a winter celebration. Why not include the Jews and Muslims in the festivities? ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2010, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/6 "2010-12-01T22:18:24Z")
How ever will the parade continue without the Senator? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2010, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/7 "2010-12-01T22:19:44Z")
> [@Mr.Moto](#): > > What holiday is the parade for? [For a number of holidays celebrated around this time of year.](http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=16&articleid=20101201_16_A13_CUTLIN814019) > [@](#): > > Larry Fox, the parade board’s chairman, explained the name change in a response to a letter to the editor that appeared last year in the Tulsa World. Despite its historical and common name, Fox said, the parade has always required that entries display a holiday - not necessarily Christmas - theme. > > “Moreover, the parade has always welcomed participation and viewing by all Tulsans, whether or not they celebrate Christmas,” he said then. > > To more accurately reflect the actual theme, and to better evidence that inclusiveness, the parade’s board, with the concurrence of its primary sponsor, approved the deletion of the word “Christmas” from the official title of the event, Fox said. > > “By no means was there any intent to offend those who observe Christmas,” he said. ---
**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:** [December 1, 2010, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/8 "2010-12-01T22:38:41Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > Why not include the Jews and Muslims in the festivities? We certainly can, and should. But wouldn’t it be better to do so by calling things by their actual names, like Islamic New Year, al-Adha, Hanukkah and 10 Tevet? Especially since these holidays are considerably different from each other? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2010, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/9 "2010-12-01T22:42:52Z")
Are you suggesting they call it “The Tulsa Christmas, Hanukah and Islamic New Year Parade of Lights?” Because I think the signage alone would cost a fortune. ---
**Author:** ![Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brown_eyed_girl/32/3574_2.png) [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brown_Eyed_Girl)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2010, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/10 "2010-12-01T22:48:32Z")
> [@Mr.Moto](#): > > We certainly can, and should. But wouldn’t it be better to do so by calling things by their actual names, like Islamic New Year, al-Adha, Hanukkah and 10 Tevet? > > Especially since these holidays are considerably different from each other? No, it wouldn’t be better. It’d be unwieldy. That’s why one word suffices. What do all those things have in common? You got it. They are all holidays. Ergo, a parade that encompasses any and/or all seasonal holidays is appropriately a Holiday Parade. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2010, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/11 "2010-12-01T22:52:12Z")
> [@Mr.Moto](#): > > We certainly can, and should. But wouldn’t it be better to do so by calling things by their actual names, like Islamic New Year, al-Adha, Hanukkah and 10 Tevet? Are you suggesting multiple, faith-specific parades, or just one parade with a really long name? ---
**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:** [December 1, 2010, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/12 "2010-12-01T22:52:48Z")
No. But calling it the Parade of Lights seems like it would be fine - in a similar fashion Pittsburgh has been marking the start of the season with a Light Up Night for fifty years without any controversy at all. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2010, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/13 "2010-12-01T22:54:41Z")
Yes, that would be fine. Holiday Parade of Lights is also fine. So what’s the problem again? ---
**Author:** ![Ichbin\_Dubist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/51bf81/32.png) [@Ichbin\_Dubist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ichbin_Dubist)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2010, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/14 "2010-12-01T22:58:13Z")
> [@Mr.Moto](#): > > No. But calling it the Parade of Lights seems like it would be fine - in a similar fashion Pittsburgh has been marking the start of the season with a Light Up Night for fifty years without any controversy at all. But then Jim Inhofe would rather curse the darkness. This is what gets called “the culture of victimhood” when conservatives are mocking liberals. (And let’s not forget Tết Nguyên Đán, people.) ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2010, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/15 "2010-12-01T22:59:49Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > Yes, that would be fine. Holiday Parade of Lights is also fine. So what’s the problem again? The Holiday Parade of Lights - Featuring Jesus, savior of retail business. ---
**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:** [December 1, 2010, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/16 "2010-12-01T23:03:05Z")
Well, there wasn’t anything inherently wrong with holiday or holidays - until a bunch of risk-averse bureaucrats started applying this term to Christmas even in places where this was inappropriate. For several years the Christmas tree in Washington DC was officially a “holiday tree” until someone with sense officially named it a Christmas tree again. Certain members of the public, by no means restricted to conservatives or Christians, found this fairly ridiculous. Many did not care for it. And this distaste has unfortunately affected the use of the word “holiday” in general. At this point were I doing marketing for the Tulsa Chamber of Commerce, I would just call it the (Tulsa) Parade of Lights for the reasons I stated above. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2010, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/17 "2010-12-01T23:04:37Z")
Parade of Lights is too close to Festival of Lights, total non-starter. I suggest Parade for December. ---
**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:** [December 1, 2010, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/18 "2010-12-01T23:09:17Z")
> [@Gangster\_Octopus](#): > > I suggest Parade for December. Unnecessarily discriminates against November and January. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Eonwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eonwe/32/240_2.png) [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2010, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/19 "2010-12-01T23:09:46Z")
> [@Mr.Moto](#): > > No. But calling it the Parade of Lights seems like it would be fine - in a similar fashion Pittsburgh has been marking the start of the season with a Light Up Night for fifty years without any controversy at all. The word “lights” connotes a false sense of illumination. Certainly there are several people celebrating that aren’t lighting any sort of lights this time of year, yet “lights” serves to obscure these folks. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2010, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586/20 "2010-12-01T23:10:27Z")
> [@Mr.Moto](#): > > Certain members of the public, by no means restricted to conservatives or Christians, found this fairly ridiculous. Many did not care for it. And this distaste has unfortunately affected the use of the word “holiday” in general. In other words: either Inhofe is too stupid to figure out that the term is being applied properly in this case, or he’s an asshole who knows the term is perfectly appropriate here, but doesn’t care because he believes Christmas is the only one that counts or is pandering to voters who believe the same. By the way, the Tulsa parade is on December 11th. So it’s closer to the Islamic New Year and the start of Hannukah than it is to Christmas. That’s one more reason it makes sense to call it a holiday parade. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jim-inhofe-is-a-dumbass/562586.md?page=2)