# 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:** 1510
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2016, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30182 "2016-07-19T19:19:42Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > I don’t think any of them are ignorant of the history of racism. They are simply and utterly tone deaf, and sensitivity of how they might offend others is not a sense they cultivate or care about. Politically, sure. But people don’t have a right to be offended by everything just because it resembles something that was offensive in another time and place and isn’t meant to offend now. ---
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2016, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30183 "2016-07-19T19:22:05Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > That’s not “less racist” – that’s just “more ignorant about racism”. If it was some obscure racial slur, then maybe it wouldn’t say anything about them, but this is a great big obvious thing about our history of segregation, and not knowing about it (or knowing but not realizing that this could be so connected) doesn’t make someone less racist – just ignorant or foolish. Why doesn’t it make him less racist too? He looked at a sign and didn’t see race in it. Suppose a foreigner came here and didn’t know our history and made this mistake. Would you castigate him for it? Would you say he’s somehow more racist than an American who noticed the mistake? ---
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2016, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30184 "2016-07-19T19:23:26Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Racist jokes aren’t a reasonable comparison, IMO – the “white elevator” thing wasn’t a joke, and it wasn’t taken as a joke. It was a mistake that seemed to hearken back to segregation, and that’s the kind of thing about the history of racism that everyone should know. Mass ignorance about this kind of thing is very different than not knowing every racial slur, and this kind of ignorance, when widespread, makes progress a lot harder. I think they’re a perfect demonstration of my overall point - that ignorance of racist ideas can be a sign of less racism. ---
**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:** [July 19, 2016, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30185 "2016-07-19T19:35:40Z")
> [@lance\_strongarm](#): > > Why doesn’t it make him less racist too? He looked at a sign and didn’t see race in it. > > Suppose a foreigner came here and didn’t know our history and made this mistake. Would you castigate him for it? Would you say he’s somehow more racist than an American who noticed the mistake? I would judge a visitor very differently and wouldn’t castigate them for not knowing about American history. > [@lance\_strongarm](#): > > I think they’re a perfect demonstration of my overall point - that ignorance of racist ideas can be a sign of less racism. I strongly, strongly disagree with this point – ignorance or knowledge of racist ideas and the history of racism is a sign of absolutely nothing with regards to racism – plenty of racists know almost nothing about the history of racism, and plenty of non-racist people know tons about it. I see no reason whatsoever why they would be correlated. In fact, I think racist Americans probably know _a lot less_ about the history of racism and discrimination, in general, than Americans who aren’t racist. Do you disagree with this? ---
**Author:** ![Trion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ccd318/32.png) [@Trion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trion)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2016, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30186 "2016-07-19T20:12:55Z")
> **[New Explanation For Melania Trump's Plagiarism: Twilight Sparkle Said It First](https://jezebel.com/new-explanation-for-melania-trumps-plagiarism-twilight-1783926574)** > > RNC Chief Strategist Sean Spicer has revealed his newest strategy for defending against plagiarism accusations directed towards Melania Trump’s speech on Monday, a speech that was very easily shown to rip off Michelle Obama’s speech from 2008. It... Melania, I’ve watched Twilight Sparkle. I respect Twilight Sparkle. Twilight Sparkle is a friend of all ponies. Melania, you’re no Twilight Sparkle. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2016, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30187 "2016-07-19T20:23:21Z")
Gee, I leave for an hour and see that 80% of the new posts are from\*\* lance\*\* … and I bet over half the posts on this page are. Start your own thread, or at least give others a turn, man. Or just go outside and rest your fingers. ---
**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:** [July 19, 2016, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30188 "2016-07-19T20:30:08Z")
> [@Trion](#): > > [http://theslot.jezebel.com/new-explanation-for-melania-trumps-plagiarism-twilight-1783926574](http://theslot.jezebel.com/new-explanation-for-melania-trumps-plagiarism-twilight-1783926574) > > Melania, I’ve watched Twilight Sparkle. I respect Twilight Sparkle. Twilight Sparkle is a friend of all ponies. Melania, you’re no Twilight Sparkle. Actually, that was RNC Chief Strategist Sean Spicer. I really doubt Melania had anything to do with it. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2016, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30189 "2016-07-19T20:31:12Z")
> [@Trion](#): > > [http://theslot.jezebel.com/new-explanation-for-melania-trumps-plagiarism-twilight-1783926574](http://theslot.jezebel.com/new-explanation-for-melania-trumps-plagiarism-twilight-1783926574) > > Melania, I’ve watched Twilight Sparkle. I respect Twilight Sparkle. Twilight Sparkle is a friend of all ponies. Melania, you’re no Twilight Sparkle. pfffffffffffffffffffffft If Trump were an MLP character, he’d be one of the big villains who appears in the two-part season opener, where he marches in, decrees himself “Emperor Trot”, and declares that Ponyville is going to be destroyed by Zecora’s people unless everypony lets him kick the others out. The second part would be all about the Mane Six teaming up with Zecora to prove that they’re stronger together than they are divided and his apologizing to Princess Celestia for the error of his ways. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2016, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30190 "2016-07-19T20:50:42Z")
Does this mean that if Trump wins he will copy Mr. Obama’s policies the way his boopsie has copied Ms. Obama’s speech? ---
**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:** [July 19, 2016, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30191 "2016-07-19T20:54:13Z")
Boopsie! Where do I know that term from? Wasn’t there some rich guy TV character who referred to his SO by that? Thurston Howell? Michael from _Newhart_? Somebody like that. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2016, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30192 "2016-07-19T21:04:39Z")
Doonesbury. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stainless_steel_rat/32/5727_2.png) [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stainless_Steel_Rat)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2016, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30193 "2016-07-19T21:17:39Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > Boopsie! Where do I know that term from? Wasn’t there some rich guy TV character who referred to his SO by that? Thurston Howell? Michael from _Newhart_? Somebody like that. Most as a character in _Doonesbury._ Married to B.D. As to the lance vs. several argument, I concur with Boyo’s ‘tone deaf’ comment. I don’t think anybody on the RNC or doing the planning ever thought about it being a racial issue; the sections (IIRC) on the convention floor are Red, White, and Blue and the signs were to help people get to where they had to go. But, that said, _somebody_ should have looked at those signs, figured that people would take pictures of them and take them the wrong way (I knew what they were trying to do and wasn’t offended, but it did lead to a moment of eye-rolling). I mean, how hard would it have been to Make it just a block of White, followed by “section elevators?” It might still have attracted pictures, but it would have been much clearer and less controversial. But nobody apparently imagined that someone would see it and take and post a picture of the sign, with all the history behind it. So, tone deaf. IMHO as always. YMMV. ---
**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:** [July 19, 2016, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30194 "2016-07-19T21:18:48Z")
> [@lance\_strongarm](#): > > I think they’re a perfect demonstration of my overall point - that ignorance of racist ideas can be a sign of less racism. If you’re 3 years old, maybe. But for adults, that doesn’t wash. Not in the least little bit. ---
**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:** [July 19, 2016, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30195 "2016-07-19T22:11:02Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > I’ll hope for a day when racism is no longer a significant force, and not looking at that sign and thinking about race might be a (positive) symptom of this, but I think it needs to be in that order. In the present, that kind of ignorance is a hindrance to progress rather than a sign of progress. > [@](#): > > I look to a day when elevators will not be judged by the color of their sign, but by the content of their car. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2016, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30196 "2016-07-19T23:28:36Z")
> [@lance\_strongarm](#): > > What you’re saying is that someone DID know, and just didn’t care or actually wanted to embarrass the party. Of course I’m not saying that. I don’t see how you can possibly manage to get that out of what I said. I’m saying that your “didn’t know or didn’t think” speculation doesn’t actually make anybody involved look less foolish. And I don’t think anybody’s seriously suggesting that this was a “deliberate racist act” or even a “reckless racist act”. What seems very likely is that somebody came up with some kind of cockamamie color scheme to distinguish elevator blocks and/or other parts of the convention center, and the people in charge of vetting signage, displaying the typical Republican tone-deafness concerning racial issues, didn’t notice or didn’t care that it would remind many people of the “good old days” of segregation. Remember, the Republicans are not exactly in a position to laugh off oversensitivity about accidental connotations of racism as though nobody could possibly think that they meant it deliberately. Especially not this election cycle. We have seen a crapton of evidence that there are still plenty of Republicans who **do** mean racist insults and discrimination deliberately, and it behooves the presumably more enlighted GOPers at the national level to avoid inadvertently associating themselves with that attitude. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2016, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30197 "2016-07-20T01:47:28Z")
Close the thread; the stupidest Republican idea ever, which can never be equaled, has just occurred. The Republican party has just nominated an egomaniacal con-man as their candidate for President of the United States. ---
**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:** [July 20, 2016, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30198 "2016-07-20T03:49:53Z")
So the GOP thinks talking about Benghazi is a jobs program? ---
**Author:** ![raventhief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raventhief/32/4_2.png) [@raventhief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raventhief)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2016, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30199 "2016-07-20T04:34:03Z")
> [@BigAppleBucky](#): > > So the GOP thinks talking about Benghazi is a jobs program? Yes, it keeps the congresscritters busy investigating it over and over and over again! ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2016, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30200 "2016-07-20T07:31:54Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > I think the “old chestnut” is **marshmallow** ’s brain. It’s a pithy radfem observation that I’ve seen in various formulations around feminist circles for the better part of a decade, [here’s an example from three years ago.](http://hedonisticparadise.tumblr.com/post/51950019278/conservative-men-think-women-are-private-property) I don’t know its origin, but the sentiment is right out of the old sex wars from the '80s. > [@raventhief](#): > > Wow. That is spectacularly repulsive. I am not property at all, and I don’t see ANY way that liberals seem to think of me as “public property.” Liberals support the selling, commodification, and objectification of women’s bodies in porn, prostitution, mass media marketing (TV/movies/commercials), and beauty culture. They also generally encourage women to be as promiscuous as possible, whether it’s called free love or no strings attached. This is all called empowering, but it’s really just repackaged patriarchy. > [@Trinopus](#): > > Huh? Which is it, please, that is trying to make abortion illegal? You’ve got it backwards, goofus. You’re right. Religious conservatives want women barefoot, pregnant, and in the kitchen. Hence, they think women are _private property_, not public. So it’s not backwards. ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2016, 8:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/30201 "2016-07-20T08:14:56Z")
> [@marshmallow](#): > > Liberals support the selling, commodification, and objectification of women’s bodies in porn, prostitution, mass media marketing (TV/movies/commercials), and beauty culture. They also generally encourage women to be as promiscuous as possible, whether it’s called free love or no strings attached. This is all called empowering, but it’s really just repackaged patriarchy. There’s so much wrong going on there, I don’t even know where to start. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=1509) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=1511)