# 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:** 1309
**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 12, 2015, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26162 "2015-12-12T21:25:41Z")
> [@BigBlue](#): > > Yes, but the reason why the joke doesn’t work is that Scalia doesn’t struggle to perform his duties in a competent fashion. Therefore there is no parallel. No, you are entirely correct. It is inappropriate to describe him as “incompetent” or “struggling”, a better word would be along the lines of “malfeasance”. He seems to be very deliberate in his general efforts to subvert the proper functioning of the court. There is no place for ideology in justice. ---
**Author:** ![BigBlue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@BigBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigBlue)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2015, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26163 "2015-12-12T21:34:47Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > No, you are entirely correct. It is inappropriate to describe him as “incompetent” or “struggling”, a better word would be along the lines of “malfeasance”. He seems to be very deliberate in his general efforts to subvert the proper functioning of the court. There is no place for ideology in justice. Thank you ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2015, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26164 "2015-12-12T21:53:26Z")
> [@BigBlue](#): > > . . . Scalia doesn’t struggle to perform his duties in a competent fashion. . . . That’s true. He fails to perform his duties in a competent fashion completely without struggling. ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2015, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26165 "2015-12-12T23:34:37Z")
> [@BigBlue](#): > > Yes, but the reason why the joke doesn’t work is that Scalia doesn’t struggle to perform his duties in a competent fashion. Therefore there is no parallel. So you are arguing that Black scientists really do struggle? That is the logical corollary to your statement the there is no parallel because Scalia doesn’t struggle. ---
**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 13, 2015, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26166 "2015-12-13T01:30:20Z")
> [@j666](#): > > So you are arguing that Black scientists really do struggle? That is the logical corollary to your statement the there is no parallel because Scalia doesn’t struggle. In the first place, Scumlia never said anything about black scientists, he said that black _students_ struggle in the better colleges. But **BigBlue** ’s point is that Scumlia does not struggle, per se, because he does not even vaguely attempt to be fair and just. He has basically already decided how to vote, based on his own opinions, interests and financial backers. He does not have to “struggle”, he is a natural asshole, doing what comes naturally. ---
**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:** [December 13, 2015, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26167 "2015-12-13T01:46:06Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > In the first place, Scumlia never said anything about black scientists, he said that black _students_ struggle in the better colleges. Excuse me: > [@](#): > > “One of the briefs pointed out that most of the **black scientists** in this country don’t come from schools like the University of Texas,” he said. “They come from lesser schools where they do not feel that they’re — that they’re being pushed ahead in classes that are too fast for them.” > **[Justice Scalia: Aspiring black scientists may do better in 'lesser schools'](https://www.statnews.com/2015/12/09/justice-scalia-black-scientists/)** > > Justice Scalia said that aspiring black scientists may do better in “lesser schools” rather than in "in classes that are too fast for them." ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26168 "2015-12-13T02:33:23Z")
Isn’t U Tex where they didn’t let Dubya in because he wasn’t smart enough? ---
**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:** [December 13, 2015, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26169 "2015-12-13T02:55:02Z")
That was third grade. ---
**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:** [December 13, 2015, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26170 "2015-12-13T03:52:46Z")
Today’s stupid Donald Trump idea of the day: “[There are 6.5 million people over the age of 112 drawing Social Security](http://crooksandliars.com/2015/12/trump-tells-media-fact-check-his-lie-6).” When pressed for a source, he told the press to go look it up. A local TV news here in Sacramento actually referred to “The Donald Trump fact check of the day” on another topic tonight. ---
**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:** [December 13, 2015, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26171 "2015-12-13T03:59:45Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Today’s stupid Donald Trump idea of the day: > > “[There are 6.5 million people over the age of 112 drawing Social Security](http://crooksandliars.com/2015/12/trump-tells-media-fact-check-his-lie-6).” > > When pressed for a source, he told the press to go look it up. > > A local TV news here in Sacramento actually referred to “The Donald Trump fact check of the day” on another topic tonight. What’s truly shameful is that almost all of them are dead. FRAUD! FRAUD! FRAUD! FRAUD! 😃 I’m actually surprised he didn’t claim _that._ ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26172 "2015-12-13T04:35:34Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > What’s truly shameful is that almost all of them are dead. > FRAUD! FRAUD! FRAUD! FRAUD! > > 😃 > I’m actually surprised he didn’t claim _that._ He did. He was at a rally and taking questions. Someone asked him about the future of Social Security. His answer, to the extent it was intelligible, was that he would save Social Security through reduction in waste, fraud, and abuse, and through overall economic improvement via (you guessed it) tax cuts. His evidence for the claim of massive waste, fraud, and abuse was that 6 million long-dead people were still collecting benefits. The linked article explains that one SSA database does list 6.5 million people over 112 as still “active”, but they were all correctly listed in SSA payment records and were not receiving checks. I watched the clip in the linked article and liked how Trump kept saying he wanted to make the US rich "again ". Uh, the US is pretty rich right now. That wealth is not necessarily distributed to my liking, but money is one thing we’re not short of. I also notice that when Trump relays an anecdote about a conversation he had, the other person in the anecdote always calls him “Mr. Trump”. His anecdotes always go like: “I was talking to a guy the other day, and he said, ‘Mr. Trump, you have to do something about these brown people.’” He wants us to know that everyone always calls him Mr. Trump. ---
**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:** [December 13, 2015, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26173 "2015-12-13T06:19:42Z")
[Muslim-owned cafe firebombed.](http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/12/13/muslim-owned-cafe-defaced-with-nazi-graffiti-then-firebombed.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+thedailybeast%2Farticles+%28The+Daily+Beast+-+Latest+Articles%29&ref=yfp) > [@](#): > > When police catch the man who allegedly burned down a Somali-Muslim owned restaurant in Grand Forks, North Dakota last week, their first task will be to determine his motive. Regardless of what authorities find, the arson feels like an act of terrorism to the Somali-Muslim community there. > > Two days before Matthew Gust allegedly sent his 40-ounce Bud Light bottle filled with gasoline crashing through the window of Juba Cafe, someone had vandalized the restaurant popular with the Somali-Muslim community by painting a crude Nazi SS logo on the window with “go home” beneath it. And we’re supposed to keep out Muslim refugees because…? ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26174 "2015-12-13T06:29:05Z")
What if the fire had spread to the business of an American next door? Likewise, if we shoot Muslims on the street, how many innocent Christians will get caught in the crossfire? Collateral damage to Americans is why we shouldn’t just blow these people up all willy nilly. It’s much better to bomb them with drones in their own countries. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 7:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26175 "2015-12-13T07:41:37Z")
A Christian accidentally killed during a Come to Jesus, Go to Hell action might be considered a martyr, having been unjustly killed for Jesus’ sake, albeit accidentally. Martyrs in the Christian faith, like martyrs in the Islamic counterfeit, are ensured a certain and sure place in Paradise. Which is to say, it looks very, _very_ good on your Permanent Record. The Christian martyr eagerly awaits transition to an Eternity of singing praises and adoration. The Muslim martyr, I’m given to understand, has a different set of expectations altogether. I don’t recall if there is any mention of singing. ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 10:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26176 "2015-12-13T10:13:41Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > [Muslim-owned cafe firebombed.](http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/12/13/muslim-owned-cafe-defaced-with-nazi-graffiti-then-firebombed.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+thedailybeast%2Farticles+%28The+Daily+Beast+-+Latest+Articles%29&ref=yfp) > And we’re supposed to keep out Muslim refugees because…? What are you, stupid or something? There was a terrorist incident involving Muslims just last week. I think it was in Grand Forks, ND. ---
**Author:** ![BigAppleBucky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigapplebucky/32/178_2.png) [@BigAppleBucky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigAppleBucky)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26177 "2015-12-13T17:18:01Z")
[All Politicians Lie. Some Lie More Than Others](http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/13/opinion/campaign-stops/all-politicians-lie-some-lie-more-than-others.html?smid=fb-nytimes&smtyp=cur&_r=1) I do not know how strong the correlation is, but the more lies told, the better the support among the GOP primary voters. Percent dishonest: Ben Carson 84% Donald J. Trump 76% Ted Cruz 66% Dick Cheney 59% Rick Santorum 55% Carly Fiorina 50% Marco Rubio 40% Lindsey Graham 34% (Only Republican with no ‘Pants on Fire!’ ratings) Chris Christie 32% Rand Paul 32% Joseph R. Biden 32% Jeb Bush 32% Bernie Sanders 28% (No ‘Pants on Fire!’ ratings) Hillary Clinton 28% Barack Obama 26% Martin O’Malley 25% (No ‘Pants on Fire!’ ratings) Bill Clinton 24% Bernie Sanders had the highest true rating of only 54%, followed by Hillary at 51% and Bill at 50%. Carson was way down at 4% true, Trump at 7%, then there is a jump up to Cruz who tells the truth 22% of the time. The highest Republican was JEB!, who was true 48% of the time. But he’s also down at, what, 3% in the polls. He needs to tell more lies to have a shot at the nomination. To “earn” a ‘Pants on Fire!’ rating, not only does the person have to be stating a lie, it has to be a stupid lie. ---
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2015, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26178 "2015-12-13T17:42:04Z")
I find politifact ratings to be a terrible measure for anything. Thier own articles can differ from the rating. ---
**Author:** ![Frostillicus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Frostillicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frostillicus)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2015, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26179 "2015-12-14T16:17:45Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Today’s stupid Donald Trump idea of the day: > > “[There are 6.5 million people over the age of 112 drawing Social Security](http://crooksandliars.com/2015/12/trump-tells-media-fact-check-his-lie-6).” > > When pressed for a source, he told the press to go look it up. > > A local TV news here in Sacramento actually referred to “The Donald Trump fact check of the day” on another topic tonight. The actual number is 13. I was surprised it was that high. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2015, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26180 "2015-12-14T17:48:22Z")
Well, at least we have a good way to identify Trump supporters now - just ask them what the number is. His bloc isn’t real big on fact-checking. ---
**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 14, 2015, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/26181 "2015-12-14T19:27:38Z")
> [@Frostillicus](#): > > The actual number is 13. I was surprised it was that high. 13? Wow, a full Death Pool list. Not many points to be had from that, though. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=1308) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=1310)