# Stupid Republican idea of the day **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 26, 2009, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897 "2009-03-26T18:48:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1281
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25602 "2015-11-18T15:11:51Z")
Maybe somebody should tell him about the Voice of America? ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25603 "2015-11-18T15:38:58Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > Maybe somebody should tell him about the Voice of America? [Well:](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voice_of_America) > [@](#): > > A 1976 law signed by President Gerald Ford requires the VOA to “serve as a consistently reliable and authoritative source of news.”[1] The VOA Charter states: “VOA news will be accurate, objective and comprehensive.”[1] So, it really wouldn’t serve the purpose. ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25604 "2015-11-18T16:14:32Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > [Ted Cruz says that there is no danger from Christians committing acts of terror.](http://www.addictinginfo.org/2015/11/16/ted-cruz-claims-that-christians-do-not-commit-acts-of-terrorism/) Well according to Republican theological understanding, any self proclaimed Christian who commits an act of terrorism isn’t a _true_ Christian, on the other hand any Muslim who doesn’t commit acts of terrorism isn’t a _true_ Muslim. They also don’t put salt in their porridge. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25605 "2015-11-18T16:35:07Z")
Forgive a niggling point of Republican theology, a quibble. A true Christian, by definition, cannot commit a terrorist act. They sometimes take actions that are misunderstood by persons of weak faith. Killing a doctor is an unfortunate necessity to rescue an unborn child, for instance, but is absolved by the faith of the actor. But since Islam is a dark and unholy travesty, no action by a Muslim can be similarly absolved because the faith is false. ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25606 "2015-11-18T16:39:50Z")
“No Jew in the history of the world has ever used the term ‘Judeo-Christian.’ Because it means ‘Christian.’” – Elon Green ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25607 "2015-11-18T18:55:44Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > [Well:](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voice_of_America) But wouldn’t it be a ton of fun to have an official news station and an official propaganda station operating side by side? I say this has to happen! ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25608 "2015-11-18T19:01:41Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > [John Kasich’s bizarre new plan to defeat ISIS: Beam Judeo-Christian messages around the world.](http://www.salon.com/2015/11/18/john_kasichs_bizarre_new_plan_to_defeat_isis_beam_judeo_christian_messages_around_the_world/) > > And he’s the **moderate.** > **[Politics - U.S. Political News, Opinion and Analysis](https://www.huffpost.com/news/politics)** > > The latest news on Congress, campaigns, elections, policy and everything politics from HuffPost. > [@](#): > > The Ohio governor says he would create the new agency to promote the values of human rights, democracy and the freedoms of speech, religion and association. Kasich says the information would be distributed in the Middle East, China, Iran and Russia, to compete with the propaganda and misinformation purveyed by Islamic militants. > [@](#): > > The agency’s “job would be fundamentally to revive what we used to do when we beamed messages into the former Soviet Union,” he told NBC News in a subsequent interview. “We need to beam messages around the world about what it means to have a Western ethic, to be part of a Judeo-Christian society. It means freedom, it means opportunity, it means respect for women, it means freedom to gather, it means so many things.” Can someone tell me what exactly is wrong with this? I mean he’e using Judeo-Christian ethic to describe human rights, democracy, freedoms of speech, religion, and association. I mean is this really much different than Radio Free Europe? Which is what Kasich even alludes to. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25609 "2015-11-18T19:07:34Z")
> [@ISiddiqui](#): > > Can someone tell me what exactly is wrong with this? I mean he’e using Judeo-Christian ethic to describe human rights, democracy, freedoms of speech, religion, and association. He’s defining “what it means to have a Western ethic” as meaning “to be part of a Judeo-Christian society.” You could call it a slip of the tongue if you like, but defining our country by conformance to a particular strain of religion, all others being at best tolerated, is \*not \*consistent with our principle of religious freedom - and that is \*not \*one of the things he listed as defining our societal norms anyway. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25610 "2015-11-18T19:17:29Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > He’s defining “what it means to have a Western ethic” as meaning “to be part of a Judeo-Christian society.” You could call it a slip of the tongue if you like, but defining our country by conformance to a particular strain of religion, all others being at best tolerated, is \*not \*consistent with our principle of religious freedom - and that is \*not \*one of the things he listed as defining our societal norms anyway. Well, I suppose you could make a case . . . Europe is sometimes called “post-Christian” because of declining belief and practice there, yet it remains and always will remain a “Christian civilization” in some sense, its customs and world-view and morals having been so profoundly shaped by Christianity. And it’s the same with the U.S. In the same sense, Dar al-Islam will remain an Islamic civilization even in some far future where most people don’t pray daily and almost never go to mosque and are merely what you might call Ramadan Muslims. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25611 "2015-11-18T19:20:13Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > He’s defining “what it means to have a Western ethic” as meaning “to be part of a Judeo-Christian society.” You could call it a slip of the tongue if you like, but defining our country by conformance to a particular strain of religion, all others being at best tolerated, is \*not \*consistent with our principle of religious freedom - and that is \*not \*one of the things he listed as defining our societal norms anyway. This is not exactly a rare idea, that the US and Europe have a Judeo-Christian ethic that has resulted in human rights, democracy, and the various freedoms we’ve been granted. There is nothing that makes Kasich into a non-moderate by using the term as a stand-in term for ‘Western human rights’. And yes in his speech to the National Press Club he did specifically say “freedom of religion”. ---
**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:** [November 18, 2015, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25612 "2015-11-18T19:55:34Z")
> [@ISiddiqui](#): > > This is not exactly a rare idea, that the US and Europe have a Judeo-Christian ethic that has resulted in human rights, democracy, and the various freedoms we’ve been granted. There is nothing that makes Kasich into a non-moderate by using the term as a stand-in term for ‘Western human rights’. > > And yes in his speech to the National Press Club he did specifically say “freedom of religion”. Judeo-Christian human rights include slavery, women-as-chattel, disdain for homosexuals, and xenophobia. To the extent our societies have gotten human rights, it’s largely by throwing Judeo-Christian ethics in the garbage. ---
**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:** [November 18, 2015, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25613 "2015-11-18T19:59:16Z")
Because Ben Carson can’t be wrong less than twice a day, [here’s a detail of a map his campaign released today.](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/11/18/ben-carsons-campaign-made-a-u-s-map-and-put-a-bunch-of-states-in-the-wrong-place/) Are there any graphic designers who read this thread and can say how this mistake was made? To me it seems that it would take much more effort to get the map this wrong than to get it right. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25614 "2015-11-18T20:09:40Z")
Ben Stein: [Obama hates America because he’s black](http://www.rawstory.com/2015/11/ben-stein-obama-has-a-strong-hatred-of-america-because-hes-part-black/) They’ve finally stopped pretending. ---
**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:** [November 18, 2015, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25615 "2015-11-18T20:16:34Z")
> [@Biggirl](#): > > Because Ben Carson can’t be wrong less than twice a day, [here’s a detail of a map his campaign released today.](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/11/18/ben-carsons-campaign-made-a-u-s-map-and-put-a-bunch-of-states-in-the-wrong-place/) > > Are there any graphic designers who read this thread and can say how this mistake was made? To me it seems that it would take much more effort to get the map this wrong than to get it right. I’m a graphic designer, and I’d say it looks like he grabbed the map, but didn’t select Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut and then dragged the map down, so that the aforementioned states shifted up relatively. It looks like Connecticut is overlapping the top of Vermont, but since they’re the same color they look like one unit. That’s what I’d assume anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25616 "2015-11-18T20:26:39Z")
[Bill O’Reilly tells Muslims how not to be discriminated against.](http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/oreilly-harris-zafar-muslims) ---
**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:** [November 18, 2015, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25617 "2015-11-18T20:31:51Z")
> [@Lobohan](#): > > I’m a graphic designer, and I’d say it looks like he grabbed the map, but didn’t select Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut and then dragged the map down, so that the aforementioned states shifted up relatively. It looks like Connecticut is overlapping the top of Vermont, but since they’re the same color they look like one unit. > > That’s what I’d assume anyway. Sorta. But it looks like he did away with Connecticut all together and then decided, what the hell? Why not put Massachusetts on top of Rhode Island? Certainly all that cutting and pasting isn’t easier (and certainly not more correct) than just grabbing another map of the U.S.? I’m thinking either his campaign, or even Ben himself, is out to sabotage his campaign. Especially after yesterday’s interview with Dr. Carson’s foreign policy mentor. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25618 "2015-11-18T20:36:55Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > [Bill O’Reilly tells Muslims how not to be discriminated against.](http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/oreilly-harris-zafar-muslims) And admits he’s an “unsophisticated thinker.” ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25619 "2015-11-18T20:39:37Z")
> [@](#): > > I’m thinking either his campaign, or even Ben himself, is out to sabotage his campaign. Especially after yesterday’s interview with Dr. Carson’s foreign policy mentor. The Carson campaign, in the person of Ben’s best buddy (who has no official job with the campaign), responded to those comments by saying that the _New York Times_ had taken advantage of “an elderly gentleman”. ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25620 "2015-11-18T20:45:03Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Ben Stein: [Obama hates America because he’s black](http://www.rawstory.com/2015/11/ben-stein-obama-has-a-strong-hatred-of-america-because-hes-part-black/) > > They’ve finally stopped pretending. I know that when I hate someone, the first thing I do is make sure they have access to healthcare. And while it’s debatable what can be attributed to Obama, a 5% unemployment rate, soaring stock market, and $2.00 gasoline don’t strike me as particularly effective instruments of loathing. ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/25621 "2015-11-18T20:47:24Z")
> [@Biggirl](#): > > Because Ben Carson can’t be wrong less than twice a day, [here’s a detail of a map his campaign released today.](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/11/18/ben-carsons-campaign-made-a-u-s-map-and-put-a-bunch-of-states-in-the-wrong-place/) > > Are there any graphic designers who read this thread and can say how this mistake was made? To me it seems that it would take much more effort to get the map this wrong than to get it right. I think this is brilliant. Everyone is talking about how the map is jacked up rather than how repellent the message is. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=1280) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=1282)