# 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:** 8
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2015, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/141 "2015-01-27T15:44:14Z")
I suspect he’s angling for a TV show. Although I wouldn’t put Surgeon General in a GOP administration out of reach either. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2015, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/142 "2015-01-27T15:46:31Z")
Maybe Democrats should filibuster his appointment for 6 years should it come to it. ---
**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:** [January 28, 2015, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/143 "2015-01-28T00:18:05Z")
> [@2ManyTacos](#): > > I mean, if he were virtually _any other_ random GOP pol, I could easily write him off as just another Republican lunatic, but in his case he’s so incredibly accomplished in the realm of neurosurgery that I don’t think that words such as _idiot_ or _dumbass_ can justifiably be applied to him. No, he’s an undeniably smart & accomplished guy in the context of neurosurgery - which is certainly nothing to scoff at - but his views on everything else are just so Gawddamned _out there_ & _stupid_ that I honestly can’t even understand how somebody with his intellectual acumen even came to believe such nonsense in the first place. Autism is a spectrum, not a have-it-or-not kind of thing. Temple Grandin, for example, is very intelligent, but she has issues. The fact that Carson is an amazing neurosturgeon means only that he knows his way around cerebral tissue inside crania very, very well. Once he steps outside other people’s skulls, he is just a dude. Could easily be placed somewhere on the autistic spectrum, or maybe he has (or also has) a touch of OCD, or who knows what. It takes a wholly different kind of smart to run a country. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2015, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/144 "2015-01-28T02:50:08Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > … The fact that Carson is an amazing neurosturgeon means only that he knows his way around cerebral tissue inside crania very, very well. Once he steps outside other people’s skulls, he is just a dude … It takes a wholly different kind of smart to run a country. A good inspiring life story helps sell a candidate, and his rise to gifted technician could be a marketing tool. But his having been a gifted neurosurgeon does not qualify him to operate on hearts, let alone do physics, let alone attest to any other smarts other than his technical skills. Okay he ran some departments … that speaks for _some_ executive skills. But I gotta tell you … hospital departments are usually very poorly managed by their physician directors. Yes one can do well in medical school being a bookcase and not a scholar and skilled hands does not mean the mind is all that sharp. Old joke - How does the internist stop closing elevator doors? (Teller puts his hand out.)How does a surgeon stop closing elevator doors? (Teller leans his head forward.) ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2015, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/145 "2015-01-28T03:09:52Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > Well, he was a good and honest man, and he also had experience as a Governor. He also, by the way, did a fair job as President. > > …snip… > Carter did fine. Obama is doing a nice job too, under very difficult circumstances. I did have to laugh out loud at that. Until we elected Obama, Carter was quite possibly the most inept President we’ve had. Obama’s one accomplishment in office is to make Carter look competent. ---
**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:** [January 28, 2015, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/146 "2015-01-28T04:07:59Z")
Here we go again. Can we please limit this thread to discussing Ben Carson? ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2015, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/147 "2015-01-28T04:11:06Z")
> [@2ManyTacos](#): > > if he were virtually _any other_ random GOP pol, I could easily write him off as just another Republican lunatic, but in his case he’s so incredibly accomplished in the realm of neurosurgery that I don’t think that words such as _idiot_ or _dumbass_ can justifiably be applied to him. No, he’s an undeniably smart & accomplished guy in the context of neurosurgery - which is certainly nothing to scoff at - but his views on everything else are just so Gawddamned _out there_ & _stupid_ that I honestly can’t even understand how somebody with his intellectual acumen even came to believe such nonsense in the first place. Experiencing cognitive dissonance, no? ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/148 "2015-01-29T01:57:56Z")
Ben Carson deserves to be attacked for the views he’s expressed. Democrats just need to realize that you don’t have to go straight to a person’s morality or intelligence in order to criticize the things they say. If it was wrong to call John Kerry a coward because he proved his bravery in Vietnam, then it’s wrong to call Ben Carson an idiot because he proved his genius in the medical field. ---
**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:** [January 29, 2015, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/149 "2015-01-29T12:19:01Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Ben Carson deserves to be attacked for the views he’s expressed. Democrats just need to realize that you don’t have to go straight to a person’s morality or intelligence in order to criticize the things they say. If it was wrong to call John Kerry a coward because he proved his bravery in Vietnam, then it’s wrong to call Ben Carson an idiot because he proved his genius in the medical field. Ben Carson might be a genius in neurosurgery, but he’s still an idiot. They’re not mutually exclusive. The things he’s said recently are idiotic. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/150 "2015-01-29T12:32:53Z")
Then it follows that a person can be brave when facing physical danger but cowardly when his political career is on the line. I recall JFK once said that moral courage is rarer than physical courage. ---
**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:** [January 29, 2015, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/151 "2015-01-29T12:36:01Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Then it follows that a person can be brave when facing physical danger but cowardly when his political career is on the line. Yes – who said it can’t? McCain was brave in some instances and a coward in others. Kerry probably was too. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/152 "2015-01-29T12:39:34Z")
About 100,000 Democratic talking heads and commentators. “How dare you call a war hero a cheese eating surrender monkey!” ---
**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:** [January 29, 2015, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/153 "2015-01-29T13:14:23Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > About 100,000 Democratic talking heads and commentators. “How dare you call a war hero a cheese eating surrender monkey!” I’m not going to take your word for it, but go ahead and argue with them if you want. Why bring it up here? ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/154 "2015-01-29T13:17:59Z")
Just to establish the rules of the game, for future reference. But really, I expect pro spinners to spin. That should not happen on SDMB. EVen if you support a candidate, you should be willing to shrug and say that a particular talking point is nonsense. It’s not like your candidate will lose the election because you weren’t a team player. I like Ben Carson. A lot. But I’m not going to carry water for his dumb statements. Hopefully Dopers will take the same attitude when Hillary’s laying it on thick. ---
**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:** [January 29, 2015, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/155 "2015-01-29T13:23:48Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > I like Ben Carson. A lot. But I’m not going to carry water for his dumb statements. Hopefully Dopers will take the same attitude when Hillary’s laying it on thick. Why do you like him a lot? To me, he’s a smart and skilled neurosurgeon and an absolute idiot, Palinesque in his stupidity, as far as politics. Like really, really dumb. ---
**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:** [January 29, 2015, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/156 "2015-01-29T14:27:54Z")
Yeah, I don’t really get the Carson love. His personal accomplishments are extremely impressive, but every time he opens his mouth I start to wonder if he tried new lobotomy techniques on himself near the end of his career. The Palin comparison isn’t bad, though she had few non-political accomplishments to speak of. ---
**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:** [January 29, 2015, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/157 "2015-01-29T18:27:13Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Why do you like him a lot? To me, he’s a smart and skilled neurosurgeon and an absolute idiot, Palinesque in his stupidity, as far as politics. Like really, really dumb. Hell, even world-famous cardiothoracic surgeons can make dumb mistakes: [All Healthy Living Articles](http://www.everydayhealth.com/columns/daily-checkup/green-coffee-bean-extract-dr-oz-diet-secret-weapon-disarmed-by-ftc/?xid=aol_eh-news_14_20150126_&aolcat=HLT&ncid) ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2015, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/158 "2015-01-30T00:10:09Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Then it follows that a person can be brave when facing physical danger but cowardly when his political career is on the line. > > I recall JFK once said that moral courage is rarer than physical courage. Well, imagine [Audie Murphy](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audie_Murphy) running for Congress sometime in the 1950s, in his home state of Texas. His physical courage is never in doubt. Assume he is sincerely against segregation (no idea if he was). Also assume he wants to win. What public position does he take on segregation? That could go either way, couldn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2015, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/159 "2015-01-30T03:55:41Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Why do you like him a lot? To me, he’s a smart and skilled neurosurgeon and an absolute idiot, Palinesque in his stupidity, as far as politics. Like really, really dumb. How can one not like coming from nothing and being one of the most accomplished physicians of our time? I mean, he’s head of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins. At 33 years old. His story has been made into movies. When Cuba Gooding Jr. plays you in your life story, you’ve been pretty successful. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2015, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154/160 "2015-01-30T04:56:32Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Ben Carson deserves to be attacked for the views he’s expressed. Democrats just need to realize that you don’t have to go straight to a person’s morality or intelligence in order to criticize the things they say. If it was wrong to call John Kerry a coward because he proved his bravery in Vietnam, then it’s wrong to call Ben Carson an idiot because he proved his genius in the medical field. I would consider Carson more **ignorant** than idiotic. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-tell-me-about-ben-carson/706154.md?page=9)