# 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:** 149
**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:** [December 23, 2014, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2961 "2014-12-23T22:20:09Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > Another stupid liberal, dodging the question, Another stupid conservative, unable to read. 😃 ---
**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:** [December 24, 2014, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2962 "2014-12-24T00:53:28Z")
> [@Lobohan](#): > > Another stupid conservative, unable to read. 😃 IRL, my name is not actually Poe. ---
**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:** [January 7, 2015, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2963 "2015-01-07T02:37:18Z")
I have a semi-serious question which doesn’t clearly belong in any other thread, so I’m posting it here. Anyway I’m afraid my suggested action for Democratic Congressmen really would be a stupid liberal idea after all. Why didn’t the Democrats vote _en masse_ for Louis Gohmert in the recent election for House Speaker? If even a few GOP’ers joined in, Gohmert would have become the new Speaker! Why is that good? Congress will be controled by a gang of nasty anti-American saboteurs no matter what the Democrats do; by putting Gohmert in charge of the asylum, we could hope that Republican perfidy would become obvious enough even for American voters. Would the GOP have seen through the ploy, and united behind Bohner? The Demos might come up with a plausible reason (“Boehner has been nothing but incompetent, so we felt a change was needed. Gohmert was the alternate candidate the GOP themselves put up.”) Perhaps, with Gohmert Speaker, Boehner and the saner GOPpers would have formed a de facto alliance with some Democrats to overrule some of Gohmert’s rulings. Good idea? Why wasn’t it tried? ---
**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:** [January 7, 2015, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2964 "2015-01-07T02:56:00Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > Why didn’t the Democrats vote _en masse_ for Louis Gohmert in the recent election for House Speaker? If even a few GOP’ers joined in, Gohmert would have become the new Speaker! Because the Democratic Party still believes in good government and governing well, rather than slash-and-burn, victory-at-all-costs politics-and-policy-as-war like the Republicans do. Boehner is an ass, but despite all the Teabagger pressure, he’s still relatively sane. Voting Gohmert in as Speaker is like handing a dirty nuke to a petulant 3-year-old and pointing him toward his pre-school. ---
**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 7, 2015, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2965 "2015-01-07T04:12:14Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > Good idea? Why wasn’t it tried? Because it is the Rs always trying to crash the country when you give them the wheel. Boner may swerve into the ditch, but he will try to minimize the dents and breakage. Somewhat. The Ds want to look like the responsible, adult bunch, using a mercenary tactic like putting Louie in charge makes them just as bad as the Rs. Also, getting a lot of Ds to vote in a unified bloc, for something that tickles their gag reflex, is a pretty tall order. The party of go-alongs is, again, the other one. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2966 "2015-01-07T16:22:04Z")
Michael Moore echoes the conservative talking point that Cuba has won, except for him, that’s a good thing: [https://twitter.com/hashtag/infieldflyrule?src=hash](https://twitter.com/hashtag/infieldflyrule?src=hash) ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2967 "2015-01-07T16:23:47Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > Anyway I’m afraid my suggested action for Democratic Congressmen really would be a stupid liberal idea after all. Your fears are well-founded. > [@](#): > > Why didn’t the Democrats vote _en masse_ for Louis Gohmert in the recent election for House Speaker? If even a few GOP’ers joined in, Gohmert would have become the new Speaker! > > Why is that good? Congress will be controled by a gang of nasty anti-American saboteurs no matter what the Democrats do; by putting Gohmert in charge of the asylum, we could hope that Republican perfidy would become obvious enough even for American voters. So Democrats get someone elected to Speaker so they can blame the GOP. Brilliant idea, if you thinking trolling is good for the country. Come to think of it, you probably do. > [@](#): > > Would the GOP have seen through the ploy, and united behind Bohner? The Demos might come up with a plausible reason (“Boehner has been nothing but incompetent, so we felt a change was needed. Gohmert was the alternate candidate the GOP themselves put up.”) > > Perhaps, with Gohmert Speaker, Boehner and the saner GOPpers would have formed a de facto alliance with some Democrats to overrule some of Gohmert’s rulings. > > Good idea? Why wasn’t it tried? Because it is stupid, and also unnecessary. The GOP does not need to take this kind of trollery seriously, fortunately, and so your half-witted notions remain irrelevant. Look, you lost the elections fair and square. Part of the reason for those losses were that Democrats have stupid, unformed notions about governance. Fortunately, most of them do not share your preference for fucking up the country over recognizing that they lost. Your idea is so stupid that not even a Democrat would consider it. Congratulations on establishing a lowest common denominator for half-wits. Regards, Shodan ---
**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 7, 2015, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2968 "2015-01-07T16:29:36Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Michael Moore echoes the conservative talking point that Cuba has won, except for him, that’s a good thing: > > [x.com](https://twitter.com/hashtag/infieldflyrule?src=hash) If one considers that Cuba is the people and not the government, then it’s a good thing that Cuba “wins” (though I’ll disagree with Moore that America “lost” – I think we both win with the new policy). ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2969 "2015-01-07T16:38:44Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Look, you lost the elections fair and square. Methinks this statement will come back to bite you. That is, if you had any intellectual honesty, lol! :D:D:D ---
**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 7, 2015, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2970 "2015-01-07T16:44:04Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Michael Moore echoes the conservative talking point that Cuba has won, except for him, that’s a good thing: > > [x.com](https://twitter.com/hashtag/infieldflyrule?src=hash) You’re going to need to expand on this a big to explain why this fits the thread. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Jeffrey\_Lebowski](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_jeffrey_lebowski/32/215_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Jeffrey\_Lebowski](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Jeffrey_Lebowski)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2971 "2015-01-07T17:06:44Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Part of the reason for those losses were that Democrats have stupid, unformed notions about governance. Like trickle down economics? ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2972 "2015-01-07T17:07:15Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > If one considers that Cuba is the people and not the government, then it’s a good thing that Cuba “wins” (though I’ll disagree with Moore that America “lost” – I think we both win with the new policy). Would the lifting of sanctions against South Africa been a win for the South African people in the absence of reform? ---
**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 7, 2015, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2973 "2015-01-07T17:13:21Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Would the lifting of sanctions against South Africa been a win for the South African people in the absence of reform? Probably depends on how long they had been in place. Plus, Cuba is totally different. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2974 "2015-01-07T17:27:06Z")
You should research the treatment of gays and blacks by the almost entirely white Cuban leadership. Not as different as you think. ---
**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 7, 2015, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2975 "2015-01-07T17:33:24Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > You should research the treatment of gays and blacks by the almost entirely white Cuban leadership. Not as different as you think. Still massively different. And the other part – South Africa sanctions worked within a relatively short period of time. Cuba’s were in place for decades and did nothing. Instituting sanctions on Cuba in the first place was fine. Keeping them in place for decades, especially after the USSR fell, was pointless and harmful. ---
**Author:** ![Knorf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/58956e/32.png) [@Knorf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knorf)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2976 "2015-01-07T17:55:40Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Brilliant idea, if you thinking trolling is good for the country. The GOP clearly thinks so. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2977 "2015-01-07T18:11:28Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Michael Moore echoes the conservative talking point that Cuba has won, except for him, that’s a good thing: > > [x.com](https://twitter.com/hashtag/infieldflyrule?src=hash) Michael Moore is saying Cuba won, but it is time to give up the game. I thought the conservative talking point was that we should keep up the embargo and non-diplomacy and Obama is wrong to open diplomatic negotiations. ---
**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 8, 2015, 7:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2978 "2015-01-08T07:51:34Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > I think we both win with the new policy). (Post shortened) We only win if they throw in a 2nd base prospect. ---
**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 8, 2015, 9:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2979 "2015-01-08T09:13:21Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > You should research the treatment of gays and blacks by the almost entirely white Cuban leadership. Not as different as you think. It might behoove the U.S. of A. to address the problem of racism within its own borders. It is kind of nontrivial. ---
**Author:** ![DinoR](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dinor/32/2821_2.png) [@DinoR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DinoR)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2015, 9:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086/2980 "2015-01-08T09:29:47Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > And the other part – South Africa sanctions worked within a relatively short period of time. They did precede the change. The willingness to impose them may have had political effects. Economically they didn’t really do [much.](https://ideas.repec.org/p/egc/wpaper/796.html#abstract) I wouldn’t be surprised if the economic effects on Cuba were larger than the ones on SA but that’s just a WAG. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086.md?page=148) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-liberal-idea-of-the-day/579086.md?page=150)