# photo-op -- cleaning clean pans **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [October 15, 2012, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752 "2012-10-15T05:41:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/21 "2012-10-16T02:07:34Z")
This is just pathetic. I mean, I get the fakey staged photo-ops. Its politics, it happens in every campaign. And I don’t know if we can blame Ryan. But we can sure blame some staffers for some piss-poor work. They couldn’t have called ahead and cleared it with the admins? They couldn’t find out _what time the the fucking food was served???_ And then, they should have packed up once the opportunity for a realistic photo-op was over. No harm, no foul, we’ll try again tomorrow. The candidate was badly served by his staff, IMO. ---
**Author:** ![Enter\_the\_Flagon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Enter\_the\_Flagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enter_the_Flagon)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/22 "2012-10-16T02:20:26Z")
The point, though, is that he cares so very much about these poor people with their dirty soup pots that he’s willing, at considerable personal sacrifice, to endorse even greater tax relief for the overburdened Job Creators. Then maybe we can close these filthy soup kitchens once and for all, since they only serve to foster a spirit of dependency on Big Government among the Lazy Poor. ---
**Author:** ![Nazarene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nazarene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nazarene)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/23 "2012-10-16T02:45:41Z")
I am willing to concede that Ryan himself probably had little to do with planning and executing the stop, and likely had no idea they hadn’t obtained permission. He knew he was pretending to wash clean pans though. He knew it was phony and staged. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/24 "2012-10-16T02:54:09Z")
What I read is his staff did call and ask if it was okay, and a volunteer not authorized to say yes, said yes. That was good enough for his staff. Pretending to wash already-clean pans is about as lame as it gets though. Just because his staffers screwed up is no excuse for Ryan to go along with it. It was obviously past closing time (you really think Ryan would willingly get near poor people?) and most of the volunteers had gone home. ---
**Author:** ![bengangmo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@bengangmo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bengangmo)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/25 "2012-10-16T03:04:04Z")
> [@Jesus of Nazareth](#): > > I am willing to concede that Ryan himself probably had little to do with planning and executing the stop, and likely had no idea they hadn’t obtained permission. He knew he was pretending to wash clean pans though. He knew it was phony and staged. Yeah, But that he has created an environment where a) his staff thought he would be ok with it b) they didn’t think to tell him and he didn’t think to object Says quite a lot though doesn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/26 "2012-10-16T03:16:55Z")
> [@Jesus of Nazareth](#): > > So Ryan horns his way into a soup kitchen after it’s closed, gets his picture taken fake-washing clean dishes for a few minutes (literally for a few minutes, the entire stop was 15 minutes), and it turns out he never bothered to ask anybody about this or get permission. sounds like he did this in record time too. ---
**Author:** ![Nazarene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nazarene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nazarene)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/27 "2012-10-16T03:20:23Z")
I’m pretty sure most of those places have industrial dishwashers anyway. I don’t think too many of them actually hand wash anymore. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/28 "2012-10-16T03:20:39Z")
Won’t somebody please think of the children? Having a Dad with such total OCD that he comes across a pile of clean dishes, and has to wash them. And he makes you do it, too! ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/29 "2012-10-16T03:20:44Z")
I find this more despicable than I probably should, but dammit, helping in a soup kitchen by washing clean pans is repellant. There are enough poor people in the country, Mr. Ryan, that you could actual find real ones to help, and genuine dirty pots to scrub. Instead, you climb right over them in an attempt to be the Vice President. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/30 "2012-10-16T03:23:16Z")
> [@Jesus of Nazareth](#): > > I’m pretty sure most of those places have industrial dishwashers anyway. I don’t think too many of them actually hand wash anymore. A Hobart, which he apparently remember from his youth. A Hobart is a device for cleaning dishes and parboiling the hapless. ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/31 "2012-10-16T03:52:54Z")
Don’t Hobart that plate, my friend… ---
**Author:** ![Anduinel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@Anduinel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anduinel)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/32 "2012-10-16T04:00:07Z")
I can’t get too upset about a politician faking a photo op (likewise, I sincerely doubt the President spent any significant amount of time [actually working the phone banks](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mbwkqyWyUU1qzhkvho1_500.png)). I can get pissed off that Ryan and his staff did their play-acting in a way that might hurt an organization that’s actually trying to do some good, though. Did Ryan or his campaign at least make a donation, or did they just snap and run? ---
**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:** [October 16, 2012, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/33 "2012-10-16T04:15:02Z")
> [@Enter\_the\_Flagon](#): > > The point, though, is that he cares so very much about these poor people with their dirty soup pots that he’s willing, at considerable personal sacrifice, to endorse even greater tax relief for the overburdened Job Creators. > > Then maybe we can close these filthy soup kitchens once and for all, since they only serve to foster a spirit of dependency on Big Government among the Lazy Poor. Don’t close them, privatize them and run them for profit. They’ll inevitably become leaner and more efficient, part of a great juggernaut of prosperity. Maybe we could call it, and I’m just throwing out ideas here, a “restaurant”. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/34 "2012-10-16T04:44:55Z")
It sounds to me like they wanted to show just how generous and decent a man Paul Ryan is and they demonstrate this by having him wash clean pans. I think Joe Biden got this one right during the debate: “Stop talking about how you care about people. Show me something. Show me a policy. Show me a policy where you take responsibility.” When George W Bush pulled such photo ops _at least_ he was pushing a policy, specifically that of faith-based methods for treating addiction. As far as I can tell, this stunt was wholly empty. Not the worst thing a politician can do frankly. But it is, nonetheless, pathetic. Why conservatives find this charlatan with his [phony plans and phony numbers](http://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2012/03/very-non-serious-paul-ryan) to be inspiring provides a sad commentary on their utter credulousness. ---
**Author:** ![Nazarene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nazarene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nazarene)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/35 "2012-10-16T04:52:50Z")
The GOP has been trying to sell him as some kind of fiscal whiz, and the media did not really challenge that before he was put on the ticket, but Biden made him look rather callow in the debate. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/36 "2012-10-16T05:09:22Z")
> [@bengangmo](#): > > Actually once they’ve decided just what the news is they will be, I mean is it.. > > 1. Poor people don’t need help (plenty of private donors) > 2. Soup kitchen rejects Republican assistance in partisan move > 3. Intrepid Republican finds dangerously dirty dishes being used in soup kitchen Paul Ryan takes a break from campaigning to spend some time helping out at a local charity. His staff made sure to schedule his visit at a time that wouldn’t interfere with normal activities. The director of the charity says he wouldn’t have let the Democrats do what Ryan did. ---
**Author:** ![bengangmo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@bengangmo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bengangmo)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/37 "2012-10-16T05:11:58Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Paul Ryan takes a break from campaigning to spend some time helping out at a local charity. His staff made sure to schedule his visit at a time that wouldn’t interfere with normal activities. The director of the charity says he wouldn’t have let the Democrats do what Ryan did. - clap clap clap\* ---
**Author:** ![Nazarene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nazarene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nazarene)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/38 "2012-10-16T05:43:32Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Paul Ryan takes a break from campaigning to spend some time helping out at a local charity. His staff made sure to schedule his visit at a time that wouldn’t interfere with normal activities. The director of the charity says he wouldn’t have let the Democrats do what Ryan did. Holy cow, I almost quoted this post to berate it, It took me a second to figure out it was satire. Well done. Watch out Fox doesn’t steal these talking points and try to use them seriously. ---
**Author:** ![Gagundathar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a183cd/32.png) [@Gagundathar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gagundathar)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/39 "2012-10-16T05:57:01Z")
Well played, **Little Nemo** , well played. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752/40 "2012-10-16T07:24:38Z")
Thank you. I took Bullshit as a second language in school. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/photo-op-cleaning-clean-pans/637752.md?page=3)