# Republican Congressman apparently is now synonymous with "Clueless Asswad" **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 16, 2002, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republican-congressman-apparently-is-now-synonymous-with-clueless-asswad/119171 "2002-07-16T03:34:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crankyasanoldman/32/11670_2.png) [@CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrankyAsAnOldMan)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2002, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republican-congressman-apparently-is-now-synonymous-with-clueless-asswad/119171/21 "2002-07-17T04:58:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Sublight \* > \*\* > Granted, that was about 15 years ago, but I’m afraid there are still plenty of lentil-brained morons walking among us. \*\* Alas, you’re right, but I was sorta hoping we weren’t electing them to congress. ---
**Author:** ![Sofa\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/58956e/32.png) [@Sofa\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sofa_King)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2002, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republican-congressman-apparently-is-now-synonymous-with-clueless-asswad/119171/22 "2002-07-17T05:18:10Z")
If I might make a related observation… Most of these Poo-Poo Platter politicians don’t think for themselves, very much. They preside over an office, which represents a district, and the district _tells_ the politicians what to think and say, sometimes according to the loudest, most vehement proponents of the theory of squeaky wheels and grease. Apparently, name-recognition lasts slightly longer than the notoriety with which it is sometimes created. You wanna change that? Three easy steps, for us Merkins. 1. [Find your Representative](http://www.house.gov/writerep/). 2. Get the fuckhead’s address from the same page or related links. 3. _Don’t_ write him or her individually. Instead, go out, get drunk at a bar, get a bunch of like-minded people to sign up with you, and above all _accurately record_ the names, addresses and phone numbers of those who are willing to stand tall before The Man. Don’t bullshit. Then send the dumb sonofabitch your polite but firm ultimatum. Expect some poor college intern to call your house to verify that your like-minded friends are in fact registered voters and honestly give a shit about what they are talking about. Being a Representative is expensive and generally unrewarding unless they receive regular input from the people they represent. So get together, decide on a message (which is probably harder than you think), and send it. You can change the course of politics far faster by scaring the shit out of your resident sociopath than you can by reelecting some new asshole who has favors to pay for the next two years. But if the guy or gal is a true prick, like the abovementioned, why not just get together, write his opponent, and promise to show up come election day? Sending money helps, too, but showing up is what it’s all about when it comes to democracy, and you’d be surprised at how many people consider it a pain in the ass rather than a responsibility. Just look at all those Pat Buchanan supporters in Palm Beach, and what they accomplished. ---
**Author:** ![syncrolecyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f08c70/32.png) [@syncrolecyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/syncrolecyne)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2002, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republican-congressman-apparently-is-now-synonymous-with-clueless-asswad/119171/23 "2002-07-17T05:52:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Michael Ellis \* > \*\*Well, I feel stupid now. \*\* I’ve been down that road. ---
**Author:** ![CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crankyasanoldman/32/11670_2.png) [@CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrankyAsAnOldMan)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2002, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republican-congressman-apparently-is-now-synonymous-with-clueless-asswad/119171/24 "2002-07-17T15:34:04Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by cuate \* > \*\* > > I’ve been down that road. \*\* Hell, buddy, I **LIVE** on that road. Stop by for tea next time you’re passing. ---
**Author:** ![lawoot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/35a633/32.png) [@lawoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lawoot)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2002, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republican-congressman-apparently-is-now-synonymous-with-clueless-asswad/119171/25 "2002-07-17T15:43:04Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Raygun99 \* > \*\*(Yes, I know the puppet isn’t gay, but the Senators apparently think it’s going to be demonstrating proper fisting techniques, or something.) \*\* Just to inject a little levity here, but don’t MOST puppets, by definition, demonstrate “proper fisting techniques”? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2002, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republican-congressman-apparently-is-now-synonymous-with-clueless-asswad/119171/26 "2002-07-17T15:51:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Michael Ellis \* > \*\*Well, I feel stupid now. \*\* No harm, no foul. And thanks to everyone who defended me before I came back to this thread. ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2002, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republican-congressman-apparently-is-now-synonymous-with-clueless-asswad/119171/27 "2002-07-17T15:57:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Klaatu \* > \*\* I would like to see a citation supporting this figure. \*\* The latest I found on the net is from [1999](http://www.uct.ac.za/depts/mmi/jmoodie/anc0.html) > [@](#): > > Levels of HIV infection vary across different geographic regions in South Africa. Of the nine provinces, KwaZulu/Natal continues to be the province with the highest prevalence which showed an increase from 19.90% in 1996 to 32.5% in 1998, but no further increase in 1999. In contrast, the Western Cape, whilst remaining the province with the lowest level of infection, shows a 36.5% rate of increase from 5.2% in 1998 to 7.1% in 1999 At previous rates of increasing, it is quite possible that the infection levels have grown to near 40% in some regions. ---
**Author:** ![JohnBckWLD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d6d6ee/32.png) [@JohnBckWLD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnBckWLD)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2002, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republican-congressman-apparently-is-now-synonymous-with-clueless-asswad/119171/28 "2002-07-17T16:16:10Z")
Q: Why are our lawmakers wasting time on and giving lip to this non-issue when more pressing legislative matters need to be addressed before the summer recess? A: Because we live in a representitive democracy. The whining, complaining and ranting you hear about HIV infected muppets that’s coming from Capital Hill is a result of constiuent complaints coming into the switchboards. Complaints that are no doubt the caused by all the furor on talk radio. IMO: The only way to mute opposition to this and other PBS controversies is to pull the plug on the CPB an eliminate all tax-payer funding. Popular shows like Sesame St. will survive. Why should public funds be used to subsidize program producers who are making million$ on toy, clothing, video and movie franchise sales anyway? You want to provide programming to people use your own money and let the market decide what gets aired and what doesn’t. Either that or you going to have to grin and bear it when certain sectors in society complain about how their money is spent. While they’re at it, maybe someone should look into the personal finances of Bill Moyers ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2002, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republican-congressman-apparently-is-now-synonymous-with-clueless-asswad/119171/29 "2002-07-18T15:54:06Z")
Reading that letter again, I’m struck again by the sheer fatuousness of its tone; the smug assumption that they know what’s “appropriate”. Assholes sound like upper-class Victorians. I wonder if they have any awareness at all of what’s going on in South Africa? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republican-congressman-apparently-is-now-synonymous-with-clueless-asswad/119171.md?page=1)