# Stupid liberal idea of the day **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [April 20, 2011, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086 "2011-04-20T15:35:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 129
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 9:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2561 "2014-10-20T09:30:15Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Sally Kohn blames rhetoric against government for government’s poor performance: > > [http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/18/opinion/kohn-undermining-government/index.html](http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/18/opinion/kohn-undermining-government/index.html) > > She also includes an argument against austerity, which is kind of strange since austerity has never happened. The CDC’s budget has nearly doubled since 2000. Problem is, they have experienced “mission creep”, extending their purview into child safety seats, guns, and obesity. > > The CDC’s mission is to protect America from pandemics. Taking on other missions is why the CDC’s effectiveness is suffering, and why the effectiveness of most government agencies sucks. focus them on their actual priorities and things will get better. Blaming Republican rhetoric rather than Democrats’ wanting the government do have 10,000 “top priorities” is the stupid liberal idea of the day. More bullshit from **adaher**. (And don’t forget that this is the same **adaher** who praised the GOP for arbitrarily slashing in half Obama’s first Ebola-related request, a detailed plan prepared by experts.) The “mission creep” he speaks of is only 5% of CDC’s budget or so. The “gun violence research” which the GOP is so upset about works out to less than 3 cents per American – the GOP will spend more than that running ads complaining about this “waste of taxpayer funds.” I won’t bother to Google to see whether “CDC’s budget has nearly doubled since 2000”; more relevant to addressing **adaher** ’s asinine ignorance is that _ **CDC’s budget is less than it was when Obama took office** _. Perhaps **adaher** misread the thread title and thought he was supposed to post a stupid idea about liberals. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 10:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2562 "2014-10-20T10:16:35Z")
Yes the CDC’s decision to not send a team to Dallas or let that nurse board a plane was because of budget cuts and Republican criticism. So yeah, stupid liberal idea. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 10:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2563 "2014-10-20T10:34:02Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Yes the CDC’s decision to not send a team to Dallas or let that nurse board a plane was because of budget cuts and Republican criticism. > > So yeah, stupid liberal idea. The CDC is liberal? **ETA** Oh yeah, right. Science. Carry on. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2564 "2014-10-20T13:03:14Z")
No, Sally Kohn is liberal, and she thinks government would work better if only it wasn’t “starved” with only $3.5 trillion, and if only people would just stop criticizing it. Not to single Kohn out, as this has essentially been the liberal argument for why government doesn’t do its job very well for about 50 years. It’s always needing more money and more moral support. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2565 "2014-10-20T13:20:37Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > I clicked on the little arrows to follow this string of replies back to its origin. Here’s what I got: > > If “NM” is your way of pointing out that “Obama fucked up seriously yet again”, that may shed some light on why more people aren’t following your cogent political analysis on this board. You didn’t follow the thread far enough back. The NM post was one that I had submitted that I deleted after reflection. Since I couldn’t physically delete it, I simply edited it to read NM. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2566 "2014-10-20T13:23:46Z")
> [@Biggirl](#): > > The CDC is liberal? I fucking hope so. I don’t want them trying to fight AIDS with Bible Camp, lobbying in favor HPV, or any other dumb ass shit like that. ---
**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 20, 2014, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2567 "2014-10-20T14:04:35Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > You didn’t follow the thread far enough back. The NM post was one that I had submitted that I deleted after reflection. Since I couldn’t physically delete it, I simply edited it to read NM. I understand what “NM” means in a post, I really do. I’ve scrolled all the way back to September 1st. There’s nothing from you before “NM” that even remotely justifies this: > [@Clothahump](#): > > This topic is a perfect example. I pointed out that Obama fucked up seriously yet again. Rather than discuss that, you’d rather whine about me being so “angry”. Your ad hominem responses are lame and worthless. I’ll tell you what I think happened. You posted something on the 15th, deleted it, and that started the chain of posts I already quoted. On the 17th you posted about Obama appointing an Ebola czar. In responding to **Lobohan** ’s comment on the first topic, you treated it as if it was part of the second. Not a big deal, and perhaps a bit nitpicky of me to point it out, just thought it would be worth a try to untangle things and see what the response would be. ---
**Author:** ![Knorf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/58956e/32.png) [@Knorf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knorf)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2568 "2014-10-20T14:35:18Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Not to single Kohn out, as this has essentially been the liberal argument for why government doesn’t do its job very well for about 50 years. It’s always needing more money and more moral support. This is utter bullshit. There’s not a single actual liberal argument about which you have the least fucking clue. ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2569 "2014-10-20T18:57:50Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > Sigh. Lobo, give it up. You don’t know shit about what I think or feel, so stop trying to second-guess me. I know what you write. And what you write is the seething vitriol of someone who can’t believe that _once again the evil ones are getting away with something!11_ Because you take in information from a partisan source and live in an echo chamber, you think your beliefs simply can’t be wrong. But consider this, you’re an atheist in Texas. You know how those silly big-box-church people are, with their smug sense that they’re right, and that their facts are unassailable? You’re in the same trap, only with conservative media. In all honestly, Obama isn’t perfect, but he’s not trying to steal our guns, steal elections through voter fraud, give welfare to illegal aliens, or whatever. In all honestly, global warming is supported by the vast vast majority of climate scientists. Over 97%. They argue over the details, but the overall thrust, that the world is warming because we burn carbon is very well supported by the evidence. What you said once about the Sun heating up and Mars experiencing the same amount as us, just isn’t true. It’s a lie that was sold to you, just like the lies that the Rolex wearing preachers are spewing on Sunday. > [@](#): > > And above all, stop with the bullshit deflections because you can’t handle the fact that I am right the vast majority of the time. Honestly, I try not to lie. If you were right all the time, I would change my position. I’m a “lefty” but I like nuclear power. Because I looked it up and did research on it. If you’re right about something, show me and I’ll do my best to come around. If I argue with you, it’s not because I think you’re right, and I want to win anyway. I don’t deserve to win if I’m not right. > [@](#): > > This topic is a perfect example. I pointed out that Obama fucked up seriously yet again. Rather than discuss that, you’d rather whine about me being so “angry”. Your ad hominem responses are lame and worthless. This is an example of you being swayed by the packaging of the story. On FOX, or Mark Levin, or The Free Republic, or wherever you heard about it, someone rolled their eyes and said, “Can you believe it, Obama chose an administrator and not a DOCTOR?!!?!” But that’s silly. In reality, administration a large medical project doesn’t require that you be a doctor. It requires that you can control the movement and allocation of assets and resources. Doctors don’t necessarily have that skill. The administrator gets advised by doctors so that he can make the right decisions. Do you think that the architect who built the pentagon needed to be a General? It’s not a scandal or stupid idea that Obama chose an administrator. But you think it is, because of the echo chamber. > [@](#): > > My question to you is this: why the hell aren’t you pissed off about it as well? You should be. But no…it’s more important to whine about ol’ Clothy being the Big Bad for pointing it out. I don’t think you’re bad. I think you’re as well meaning as those good people in the seats of the big-box-church on Sunday. They aren’t bad, or stupid. They’re mislead. To be honest, I’m pretty sure you’re a good dude person-to-person. You work with kids, you’re into martial arts, and some of the non-political posts I’ve seen you make show humor and intelligence. I just think you’re mislead and angry about things that aren’t really that outrageous. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2570 "2014-10-20T22:19:27Z")
> [@Knorf](#): > > This is utter bullshit. There’s not a single actual liberal argument about which you have the least fucking clue. So you agree that Kohn’s argument is ridiculous. Good. ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2571 "2014-10-20T22:34:38Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > So you agree that Kohn’s argument is ridiculous. Good. You’re actually interesting in how utterly craven your arguments can be. No, dipshit, he doesn’t agree. Because your version of Kohn’s argument is made up nonsense that serves the specific post you’re making. You’ll call it something else in the next post, or the opposite in the post after that. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2572 "2014-10-20T22:46:14Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > she thinks government would work better if only it wasn’t “starved” with only $3.5 trillion What’s so annoying about you is that, unlike Clothy and other morons, you’re smart enough to know better. When pressed, you seem to be aware of basic facts, yet persist in prattling gibberish if it seems to support your case. In this case your insistence on the $3.5 trillion number is stupidity, ignorance, or both. Two-thirds of that is mandatory spending like Social Security. Social Security is money transferred from workers to retirees and has little to do directly with government. If you include it to get your scare-figure gibberish, why not include the entire economy? Like Social Security money, the FRB gets “its hands” on lots of money via its clearinghouses. You, OTOH, were the one applauding Congress for cutting $40 million (that’s million with an M) from an initial Ebola-related request, and now accuse the Administration of not doing enough. What a dolt. Gibberish. You’re just all about gibberish. And, BTW, you’ve been caught in lies so often, I’m putting you on notice: I’ll treat all your “facts” as lies unless accompanied with a cite. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2573 "2014-10-20T23:20:17Z")
Choosing to dedicate two thirds of the budget to mandatory spending is, obviously, a choice. Acting as if it’s just something that happened and the government had no say in what their priorities should be is nonsense. We fund entitlements so lavishly at the expense of discretionary spending because that’s what we do. If you think that we should have less entitlement spending and more discretionary spending on things like the CDC, even though the CDC has seen massive spending increases over the years(as well as huge expansions in its mission, way beyond preventing pandemics), then that’s fine. What is not fine is arguing that spending a quarter of all this country produces is “starving” the government of needed funds. It is the very essence, no, the original, stupid liberal idea: This time we’ll get it right, if only we can have another trillion! ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2574 "2014-10-20T23:21:51Z")
I don’t think he’s smart enough to know better ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2575 "2014-10-20T23:24:17Z")
Oh and actually I’ve never accused the administration of not doing enough on ebola. Kohn did. So your post is utter nonsense and you’re a twit to boot. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2576 "2014-10-20T23:53:25Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > you’re a twit to boot. Oh, look! A badge of honor! That’s a little like a Kallikak telling you you’re an idiot. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2577 "2014-10-20T23:54:23Z")
If anybody knows twits (your choice of vowel) it’s **adaher**. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2014, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2578 "2014-10-21T00:00:29Z")
Fellow conservatives, see how they react like a vampire to the cross when you suggest that the concept of big government doesn’t work too well? Always gets a really hostile response. Funny thing is, they still haven’t even addressed Kohn’s argument. Do they agree with it? They won’t say. I’ve never understood the need of non-politician liberals to act like politicians. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2014, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2579 "2014-10-21T00:20:58Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Fellow conservatives, see how they react like a vampire to the cross when you suggest that the concept of big government doesn’t work too well? Tell that to the big government Republicans who want the government to tell people who can get married, and who can have abortions. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2014, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2580 "2014-10-21T00:33:40Z")
You’re right. That’s also stupid ideas. Although on the latter issue, abortion, it’s amazing how liberals suddenly believe that the judgment of doctors and patients is sacrosanct. But for pain management, the government MUST get between the doctor and patient! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086.md?page=128) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086.md?page=130)