# Joe the Plumber and privacy

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-the-plumber-and-privacy/468664>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [October 19, 2008, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-the-plumber-and-privacy/468664 "2008-10-19T21:08:47Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Prelude\_to\_Fascination](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a183cd/32.png) [@Prelude\_to\_Fascination](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prelude_to_Fascination)\
**Post date:** [October 20, 2008, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-the-plumber-and-privacy/468664/21 "2008-10-20T14:54:55Z")

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I could understand if Joe said something along the lines (in asking Obama his question), “IF I wanted to buy the business, and IF I were to make $280,000…”, you know, as a hypothetical. But Joe seems to have put his image front and center as one who actually was going to buy the business, etc., so I find that a bit disingenuous, but forgivable insofar as if McCain hadn’t used him as a symbol during the debate, then Joe would’ve simply faded away. But McCain held him up as a prop, and so I think what the media have done is entirely justified. In fact, IMO, they did their job, same as they did with Palin. They did what McCain’s camp failed to do.

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