# So tell me about Ben Carson... **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [December 2, 2014, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154 "2014-12-02T19:11:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 15
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2015, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/281 "2015-03-22T17:42:33Z")
And the Draft Romney movement gains even more momentum! ---
**Author:** ![Donald\_Rump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Donald\_Rump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Donald_Rump)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2015, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/282 "2015-03-24T17:12:03Z")
Per Dr. Carson, President Obama is a [psychopath](http://dailycaller.com/2015/03/24/ben-carson-president-obama-is-a-psychopath/): > [@](#): > > In a new GQ profile of the potential 2016 Republican presidential candidate, reporter Jason Zengerle shares an unguarded moment with Carson, during which the famed neurosurgeon called President Barack Obama a “psychopath” for his ability to shamelessly lie to the American people. > > Carson reportedly went off on the president after his adviser Armstrong Williams said the president “looks good” during his State of the Union address. > > “Like most psychopaths. That’s the way they look, they all look great,” Carson replied. > > “He’s gotta convince people to believe him,” Williams reportedly responded, “That’s all he’s doing: selling his narrative.” > > **“But he knows he’s telling a lie!” Carson said. “He’s trying to sell what he thinks is not true! He’s sitting there saying, ‘These Americans are so stupid, I can tell them anything.’”** Projection, much, Dr. Carson? ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2015, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/283 "2015-03-24T17:20:33Z")
> [@Donald\_Rump](#): > > You prefer Graham over Clinton, but you would consider Webb over Graham? Explain? Webb has more executive experience than Graham. I’d probably support Graham over Webb, but I’d support Webb over most Republicans in the field. Biden and O’Malley too. Right now these are the Republicans I’d definitely vote for: Graham Jindal Kasich Pence Christie Ones I’d consider voting for if the Dem nominee is someone I can’t stand: Carson Huckabee Walker Bush Paul Rubio Won’t vote for: Cruz ---
**Author:** ![Donald\_Rump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Donald\_Rump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Donald_Rump)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2015, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/284 "2015-03-24T18:24:33Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Webb has more executive experience than Graham. I’d probably support Graham over Webb, but I’d support Webb over most Republicans in the field. Biden and O’Malley too. Ok, it’s just that Webb is pretty much the only candidate who stands for a more restrained foreign policy while Graham is pretty much the epitome of an ideological perma-hawk. So from a policy perspective, the two couldn’t be more different. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2015, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/285 "2015-03-24T19:36:29Z")
I’m not sure what I think about the isolationist view vs. the neocon view and everything in between. I see virtue in Jacksonian foreign policy, Wilsonian foreign policy, and pretty much any mainstream foreign policy ideology. Besides, for me, who to vote for for President is more about competence and integrity than ideology. I vote almost straight Republican for Congress and state legislature. But for governors and Presidents there are more important considerations. The enforcement of the law should be nonpartisan. I trust Jiim Webb. I trust Lindsey Graham. I trust Joe Biden. I trust Hillary Clinton on competence, not so much on integrity. Ben Carson doesn’t yet know the first thing about governing, so I don’t trust him and wouldn’t even if I agreed with everything he said. Managing the federal government is a big job. So basically, if I trust the man, I trust his foreign policy. I don’t think being the world’s policeman is any more or less moral or intelligent than being isolationist. There is virtue and drawbacks in both policies. I just want a person who can conduct foreign policy, whatever policy he or she chooses, intelligently and morally. I have faith that either Graham or Webb would do that. Carson I believe would have the right moral compass, but first he has to figure out who our allies are. That’s kinda a prerequisite. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2015, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/286 "2015-03-24T22:26:33Z")
> [@Donald\_Rump](#): > > Per Dr. Carson, President Obama is a [psychopath](http://dailycaller.com/2015/03/24/ben-carson-president-obama-is-a-psychopath/): > > > [@](#): > > > > … after his adviser Armstrong Williams … Armstrong Williams? Good thing this is not a Pit thread. Carson using Williams as an advisor looks like an invitation to confirmation bias, a sort of ideological monoculture that holds all the promise of cousins marrying. Though, I am probably being unfair, just because every Armstrong Williams op-ed I every read (whether or not I made it to the end) left me rolling my eyes. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2015, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/287 "2015-03-25T01:52:45Z")
I’d never heard of the guy, myself. Here’s more: > **[Armstrong Williams](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armstrong_Williams)** > > Armstrong Williams (born February 5, 1962) is an American political commentator, entrepreneur, author, and talk show host. Williams writes a nationally syndicated conservative newspaper column, has hosted a daily radio show, and hosts a nationally syndicated television program called The Armstrong Williams Show. He is the owner of Howard Stirk Holdings, a media company affiliated with Sinclair Broadcasting that has purchased numerous television stations. Williams is a longtime associate of for... > **[Armstrong Williams | Stories - Washington Times](https://www.washingtontimes.com/staff/armstrong-williams/)** > > Read the latest stories and columns from staff writer Armstrong Williams in The Washington Times. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2015, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/288 "2015-03-25T13:45:12Z")
Williams is pretty good at what he does though. Carson got himself a good advisor. The guy’s trying, but like most doctors, Carson is a bad patient. Plus the word Carson should have been looking for was “sociopath”, something that most good politicians probably are. Why would someone who went to medical school not know the difference between a psychopath and a sociopath? ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2015, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/289 "2015-03-25T16:49:11Z")
Why would anyone who went to high school not know about evolution? Shit, never mind med school! ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2015, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/290 "2015-03-25T18:05:48Z")
Carson knows about evolution, it just conflicts with his religious beliefs, so he rejects it. But he’s not ignorant of evolution. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2015, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/291 "2015-03-25T18:07:28Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Carson knows about evolution, it just conflicts with his religious beliefs, so he rejects it. But he’s not ignorant of evolution. If he rejects it, he’s ignorant of it. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2015, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/292 "2015-03-25T18:11:01Z")
Not true at all. Many liberals reject the idea that increasing minimum wage costs jobs. That is a rejection of the law of supply and demand. I’m sure they all know what it is, they just don’t like it. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2015, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/293 "2015-03-25T18:11:27Z")
If he embraces medieval superstition in general, he’s ignorant in general. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2015, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/294 "2015-03-25T18:17:14Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Not true at all. Many liberals reject the idea that increasing minimum wage costs jobs. That is a rejection of the law of supply and demand. I’m sure they all know what it is, they just don’t like it. This isn’t true – some minimum wage increases will absolutely cost jobs, but not necessarily all. Raising the minimum wage from 10 cent to 20 cents an hour would cost zero jobs. It depends on the numbers one is talking about. We can look at history and find minimum wage increases that did not result in fewer jobs. So you’re the ignorant one here, if you are insisting that _all minimum wage increases_ must cost jobs. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2015, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/295 "2015-03-25T18:17:56Z")
Yeah, well, try electing a candidate who doesn’t believe in a medieval superstition. I’d sooner take a candidate who actually believes in his superstition than a candidate who is only nominally a member of a particular cult. Lying, IMO, is a greater crime than any other. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2015, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/296 "2015-03-25T18:19:45Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > This isn’t true – some minimum wage increases will absolutely cost jobs, but not necessarily all. That’s because there could be other factors at the time that overwhelm the minimum wage increase. > [@](#): > > Raising the minimum wage from 10 cent to 20 cents an hour would cost zero jobs. It depends on the numbers one is talking about. We can look at history and find minimum wage increases that did not result in fewer jobs. Zero net jobs. Not zero jobs. Someone, somewhere, actually many people in many places, lose their jobs when the price of their labor goes up. > [@](#): > > So you’re the ignorant one here, if you are insisting that _all minimum wage increases_ must cost jobs. No, I"m insisting that the scientific principle that raising the price of something gets you less of it is one of the most well supported principles around. That’s why it’s called a Law and not a Theory. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2015, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/297 "2015-03-25T18:20:31Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Not true at all. Many liberals reject the idea that increasing minimum wage costs jobs. That is a rejection of the law of supply and demand. I’m sure they all know what it is, they just don’t like it. That’s not a rejection of the law of supply and demand. It’s an acceptance of the fact that there are exceptions to every law. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2015, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/298 "2015-03-25T18:21:03Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Yeah, well, try electing a candidate who doesn’t believe in a medieval superstition. We generally _do_, no matter what face they put on for public consumption. > [@](#): > > Lying, IMO, is a greater crime than any other. Really? You’re excusing _treason_ in the other thread. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2015, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/299 "2015-03-25T18:23:34Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > That’s not a rejection of the law of supply and demand. It’s an acceptance of the fact that there are exceptions to every law. And that S&L is not necessarily adequate to describe a modern economy, in particular because it does not account for amplification effects. The more people who have more disposable income, the more they spend it on things that create more jobs, etc. This is not a complicated subject, at least not for those who don’t worship the Laffer Curve and supply-side voodoo. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2015, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/300 "2015-03-25T18:25:29Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > We generally _do_, no matter what face they put on for public consumption. > > Really? You’re excusing _treason_ in the other thread. There is no treason going on. If you’re going to persist in using that word I don’t want to hear about Ben Carson and “psycopath”. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154.md?page=14) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154.md?page=16)