# 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:** 1562
**Author:** ![Askthepizzaguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askthepizzaguy/32/9405_2.png) [@Askthepizzaguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askthepizzaguy)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31222 "2016-09-14T18:06:42Z")
When there aren’t 10-20 of these bullshit stories written by Republicans passed off as news or important stories, each and every single day, I’ll take your party seriously again. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31223 "2016-09-14T18:09:04Z")
Didn’t the _Federalist_ have a smattering of dignity, at one time? ---
**Author:** ![Lightray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightray/32/391_2.png) [@Lightray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightray)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31224 "2016-09-14T18:13:06Z")
> [@Askthepizzaguy](#): > > More stuff conservatives think is important, from the conservative \*the federalist. > \* > [If You’re Not A Dad, Don’t Go To Dad Events At School](http://thefederalist.com/2016/09/14/youre-not-dad-dont-go-dad-events-school/) > > After all, the really important thing to remember here, is that if you don’t have a dad in your life, you should be made to feel left out and different, and events designed for parent and child should exclude you. Reading the article, it looks like the author _was_ made to feel left out and different, since she herself was raised by a single mother. Except, the author mentions she was estranged entirely from her father - so, since she’s obviously still bitter and angry about it, it must be okay for her to make sure _other_ children are made to feel bad about something outside of their control. That is one twisted-up person writing that article. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31225 "2016-09-14T18:15:22Z")
> [@Askthepizzaguy](#): > > More stuff conservatives think is important, from the conservative \*the federalist. > \* > [If You’re Not A Dad, Don’t Go To Dad Events At School](http://thefederalist.com/2016/09/14/youre-not-dad-dont-go-dad-events-school/) > > After all, the really important thing to remember here, is that if you don’t have a dad in your life, you should be made to feel left out and different, and events designed for parent and child should exclude you. And single moms and their kids. Dad died in Afghanistan and your mom is raising you alone? SHAME!!! ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31226 "2016-09-14T18:16:24Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > [Minnesota Republican candidate for state legislature has a history of praising the Confederacy, calling Lincoln the worst President ever, and calling for Obama to be lynched.](http://www.addictinginfo.org/2016/09/14/republican-candidate-gets-caught-calling-for-lynching-president-obama/) > [@](#): > > West, of course, offered what should be considered a fake apology and claimed he is not the same person that he has been for the last 8 years. > > “I apologize for posting insensitive material,” West wrote in an email. “I’ve taken those posts down because they do not reflect who I am or what I believe.” “I am different person now that I need your vote!” What a coward. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31227 "2016-09-14T18:27:56Z")
> [@Typo\_Negative](#): > > “I am different person now that I need your vote!” > > What a coward. Every single time someone says their own words don’t reflect who they are, I instantly think “no, they’re exactly who you are”. Now, if you’re talking about something you said years ago, then yes, I believe people grow and change, and I’ve certainly changed my beliefs over the years. But if you’re talking about shit you posted last month, then that is exactly who you are. ---
**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:** [September 14, 2016, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31228 "2016-09-14T19:00:00Z")
> [@Lightray](#): > > Reading the article, it looks like the author _was_ made to feel left out and different, since she herself was raised by a single mother. Except, the author mentions she was estranged entirely from her father - so, since she’s obviously still bitter and angry about it, it must be okay for her to make sure _other_ children are made to feel bad about something outside of their control. > > That is one twisted-up person writing that article. That’s not the way I read it. It sounds like there are mom-only events, too, and that the non-gender-specific events are overwhelmingly attended (for various reasons) by moms. I don’t think the dads-only events are there to make kids without dads feel left out, but to encourage all the dads to be more involved in their kids education. I don’t think that’s a bad thing. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31229 "2016-09-14T19:16:24Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > That’s not the way I read it. It sounds like there are mom-only events, too, and that the non-gender-specific events are overwhelmingly attended (for various reasons) by moms. I don’t think the dads-only events are there to make kids without dads feel left out, but to encourage all the dads to be more involved in their kids education. I don’t think that’s a bad thing. I read it that way also. Not sure how effective it would be, but it seems good-intentioned. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31230 "2016-09-14T19:20:31Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > That’s not the way I read it. It sounds like there are mom-only events, too, and that the non-gender-specific events are overwhelmingly attended (for various reasons) by moms. I don’t think the dads-only events are there to make kids without dads feel left out, but to encourage all the dads to be more involved in their kids education. I don’t think that’s a bad thing. I don’t think anyone thinks that’s a bad thing but the author of that piece is a twisted angry crazy person and she wrote some twisted crazy angry things: > [@](#): > > The pushback against “Donuts with Dads” and other like events ultimately reflects that some in our society consider fathers essentially useless. “Muffins with Moms” is unobjectionable, as moms are viewed as irreplaceable, but “Donuts with Dads” can be diluted enough to eliminate the dad part of the breakfast. What other events? What “pushback”? Who considers fathers “essentially useless”? Who views moms as “irreplaceable”? And she may just have some deep-seated issues with the loss of her own father from her life, as **Lightray** pointed out: > [@](#): > > Growing up, I was that kid in my elementary school class making “Mommy-Daughter Day” crafts while my friends were making Father’s Day equivalents. Even among the several children of divorce I was unique: I was the only one in the class completely estranged from my father. I understand better than most children’s feeling of loss without a father figure, which is why I’ve become such a cheerleader for fathers as an adult. Kids need their fathers, and their fathers are not replaceable, even by their mother. > > It wasn’t my friends completing crafts for their dads that reminded me of my missing father; I felt his absence every day regardless of how and whom my friends were celebrating on a Sunday in June. > > Now, more than ever, fathers need to be reminded of their importance and be expected to show up physically, financially, and emotionally. The “more than ever” part comes in because fewer and fewer men are doing their job as biological parents to their children. She’s angry and hurt, still, that her father was not a part of her life and any attempt to limit or demean or _not enshrine_ fathers is going to be met with ire by this lady, IMO. She’s fixated on “fatherhood” without having a clue what fathers really are or do, because she didn’t have one. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31231 "2016-09-14T19:30:50Z")
So she has daddy issues. 😛 ---
**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:** [September 14, 2016, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31232 "2016-09-14T19:31:00Z")
[John Bolton thinks the US should overthrow the Iranian government.](https://mediamatters.org/video/2016/09/13/foxs-bolton-if-we-had-real-president-us-could-overthrow-iranian-government/213033) ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31233 "2016-09-14T19:44:20Z")
Didn’t we already try that in 1953? Well, it lasted until 1979. I guess by 2042 Bolton will probably be dead anyway, so any misery caused by another revolution won’t be any skin off his nose… ---
**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:** [September 14, 2016, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31234 "2016-09-14T19:45:02Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > She’s angry and hurt, still, that her father was not a part of her life and any attempt to limit or demean or _not enshrine_ fathers is going to be met with ire by this lady, IMO. She’s fixated on “fatherhood” without having a clue what fathers really are or do, because she didn’t have one. YMMV. Who says father’s need to be enshrined? She may not know what fathers do, but she knows that she missed out by not having one. Think of it as something of a safe space. How much have we heard about places, conferences, business that are created for women or minorities to meet their needs or exchange ideas without being drowned out and overwhelmed. I don’t need to know what happens there; if the people who do go find them of value, then they serve a need. Well, if 90% of the parent involvement at this school is from moms, maybe the dads need a space that caters to them and where they won’t feel overwhelmed. I don’t think it’s enshrining fathers to say that they have something helpful and different to contribute, and should be encouraged to be more involved. ---
**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:** [September 14, 2016, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31235 "2016-09-14T19:49:04Z")
White males had a “safe space” until pretty recently. It was called the United States Congress. ---
**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:** [September 14, 2016, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31236 "2016-09-14T19:49:07Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > [John Bolton thinks the US should overthrow the Iranian government.](https://mediamatters.org/video/2016/09/13/foxs-bolton-if-we-had-real-president-us-could-overthrow-iranian-government/213033) Promoting democracy means that we choose their leaders for them; gotta love it. ---
**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:** [September 14, 2016, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31237 "2016-09-14T20:04:34Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > White males had a “safe space” until pretty recently. It was called the United States Congress. Any white male was invited to take part? I thought you had to be elected, or something. Damn, I’m sorry I missed it. I just think that if we want to encourage more diverse groups to participate in things that they’ve traditionally felt left out of, and we can do that by listening to and addressing their specific contributions and concerns, that it shouldn’t be dismissed out of hand. If the idea is valid in one area it should be valid in others, too. That men were favored in so many areas for so long doesn’t mean that dads in a Worth, Texas, school don’t have something to contribute now. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31238 "2016-09-14T20:06:13Z")
RE: John Bolton Exactly, perfectly wrong. What we need is for Iran to evolve, a gradual change from enemy to neutral and, eventually, friend. Easy? No. Worthwhile? Oh, Hell, yes! Happily, we have such statesmen as Mr. Bolton and the prescient Mr Trump. Can anyone doubt that his remarks suggesting we might go to war with Iran if they make rude gestures will smooth the way to positive engagement? ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31239 "2016-09-14T20:41:36Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Can anyone doubt that his remarks suggesting we might go to war with Iran if they make rude gestures will smooth the way to positive engagement? In Republican ‘behind the dog whistle’, “It’ll let those fuckers know who’s boss!”. Can’t possibly allow this moderately wealthy, modern nation of 100 million people sort out their own shit and decide their own future, can we? I mean, who the fuck do those people think they are messing in the affairs of the nations around them, the US? NO! Messing with other nations is OUR thing! ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31240 "2016-09-14T20:54:45Z")
Corrupt them with cell phones and Beyonce videos. Cruel, perhaps, but the body count is lower. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/31241 "2016-09-14T21:03:10Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > Who says father’s need to be enshrined? She may not know what fathers do, but she knows that she missed out by not having one. > > Think of it as something of a safe space. How much have we heard about places, conferences, business that are created for women or minorities to meet their needs or exchange ideas without being drowned out and overwhelmed. I don’t need to know what happens there; if the people who do go find them of value, then they serve a need. Well, if 90% of the parent involvement at this school is from moms, maybe the dads need a space that caters to them and where they won’t feel overwhelmed A safe space for the most favored, most privileged group on the planet? :rolleyes: A safe place for what? Doing the right thing and being involved with their kid’s educations? Why do they need a safe place for that? Who do they feel threatened by? Who is making them uncomfortable? Are you sure there’s a problem that needs to be addressed by having a “safe place”? :dubious: > [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > I don’t think it’s enshrining fathers to say that they have something helpful and different to contribute, and should be encouraged to be more involved. What you say and what she says are two different things. If you’d care to comment on her comments, feel free. But restating her arguments against this woman’s actions and against what she supposes other people want and are trying to do as bland generic policy statements contributes nothing notable to this discussion IMO. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=1561) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=1563)