# 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:** 1792
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2017, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35822 "2017-11-30T12:18:53Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Can confirm, I am 274 years old, and remember it well. It was produced by a fairly common technique known as “printing” which involved sheets of a bio-degradable material called “paper”. It was fashionable to place a copy in one’s belt, to signal that one was up-to-date on what trends were “macaroni” and that one could afford the rather exorbitant price of one bee per copy. > > It was not uncommon for unscrupulous vendors to double the price without notice, forcing the customer to enquire in advance as to pricing. Hence, the common expression “Two bees or not two bees, that is the question…”. Go to your room and think about what you’ve done, young man. ---
**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:** [November 30, 2017, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35823 "2017-11-30T12:27:07Z")
> [@Zakalwe](#): > > Go to your room and think about what you’ve done, young man. The Onion’s kayfabe backstory is that it was founded in 1765 as the Mercantile-Onion, by newly arrived immigrant Friedrich Siegfried Zwiebel, who came upon the name by combining the only two English words he knew at the time. **Elucidator** is just playing along. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2017, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35824 "2017-11-30T12:53:44Z")
> [@TonySinclair](#): > > This is the pernicious result of electing Trump, and not throwing rotten vegetables at him every time he lies, which is now almost every time he speaks or writes even in short bursts. Facts no longer matter. The truth no longer matters. > > **How in the world did we get here?** Democracy doesn’t just collapse; this has been years in the making. We could go back to the tactics of the anti-abortion radicals of the late 1980s and early 1990s, who were courted by Reagan’s republican party. The Republicans made the religious right an active part of their party, created a platform for them, and they have increasingly taken over the party. And the thing is, they’re not really devoutly Christian at all – like Al Qaeda, ISIS, the or the Taliban, these zealots just have a thirst for money and power. They enjoy dominating others. And that requires a special kind of view on ‘truth’. And that view is, truth is in the eye of the beholder, or more bluntly, the enforcer. The nexus of religious fundamentalism and race-based exploitative, ‘anything goes’ capitalism have always been a potential weakness of American democracy. It has nearly destroyed our country on more than one occasion (the Civil War, the Great Depression…), and it’s working to destroy the country as we speak. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2017, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35825 "2017-11-30T14:02:12Z")
Just for shits & giggles, here are Thump’s twitter [stats](https://twittercounter.com/realDonaldTrump). ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2017, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35826 "2017-11-30T17:16:54Z")
McCain drinks the Kool-aid. “McCain announces support for tax bill in boost to GOP effort” > **[Senate GOP tax plan hits deficit snag, leaving leaders scrambling](https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/2017/11/30/c2118302-d5e7-11e7-a986-d0a9770d9a3e_story.html?utm_term=.9bed4dde7909)** > > Senate GOP tax bill would add $1 trillion to the deficit, Congress’ analysts conclude > [@](#): > > Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) announced his support Thursday for the GOP’s massive tax bill, in an important boost to President Trump’s effort to overhaul the code for the first time in three decades. > > In a statement McCain said, “This bill would directly benefit all Americans, allowing them to keep a higher percentage of what they earn.”… ---
**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 30, 2017, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35827 "2017-11-30T17:25:01Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > McCain drinks the Kool-aid. > > “McCain announces support for tax bill in boost to GOP effort” > [Senate GOP tax plan hits deficit snag, leaving leaders scrambling - The Washington Post](http://wapo.st/2AlKiag) Maybe he was promised free treatment so he won’t have to sell any of his houses. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2017, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35828 "2017-11-30T17:30:21Z")
Sigh. I had this fantasy that McCain was planning to be the decisive No vote on every major piece of Trump-backed legislation, as his revenge for the “I prefer heroes who don’t get captured” crack. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2017, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35829 "2017-11-30T17:36:53Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > Sigh. I had this fantasy that McCain was planning to be the decisive No vote on every major piece of Trump-backed legislation, as his revenge for the “I prefer heroes who don’t get captured” crack. ☹ Me, too. To top it off, I found out today\* there’s no Santa Claus\*! Oops, should I have put that in a spoiler box? ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2017, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35830 "2017-11-30T17:39:43Z")
> [@thelmalou](#): > > ☹ > > me, too. To top it off, i found out today\* there’s no santa claus\*! Oops, should i have put that in a spoiler box? nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!! :(:(:(:(:(:(☹ ---
**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:** [November 30, 2017, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35831 "2017-11-30T17:48:29Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Can confirm, I am 274 years old, and remember it well. It was produced by a fairly common technique known as “printing” which involved sheets of a bio-degradable material called “paper”. It was fashionable to place a copy in one’s belt, to signal that one was up-to-date on what trends were “macaroni” and that one could afford the rather exorbitant price of one bee per copy. > > It was not uncommon for unscrupulous vendors to double the price without notice, forcing the customer to enquire in advance as to pricing. Hence, the common expression “Two bees or not two bees, that is the question…”. > [@Zakalwe](#): > > Go to your room and think about what you’ve done, young man. > [@Smapti](#): > > The Onion’s kayfabe backstory is that it was founded in 1765 as the Mercantile-Onion, by newly arrived immigrant Friedrich Siegfried Zwiebel, who came upon the name by combining the only two English words he knew at the time. > > **Elucidator** is just playing along. 🙂 I think you’re focusing on the part of **luci** s post that ISN’T an infraction against good judgement… ---
**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:** [November 30, 2017, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35832 "2017-11-30T17:49:33Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > ☹ > > Me, too. To top it off, I found out today\* there’s no Santa Claus\*! Oops, should I have put that in a spoiler box? > [@Slash1972](#): > > nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!! :(:(:(:(:(:(☹ Apparently, yes. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2017, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35833 "2017-11-30T17:52:52Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > Sigh. I had this fantasy that McCain was planning to be the decisive No vote on every major piece of Trump-backed legislation, as his revenge for the “I prefer heroes who don’t get captured” crack. I guess the tumor is growing into the portion of his brain that controls self-respect. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2017, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35834 "2017-11-30T18:41:07Z")
You gotta appreciate the chutzpah of the newest addition to the Republican tax plan, [the trigger.](https://www.politico.com/story/2017/11/30/republican-senate-tax-plan-trigger-270509) If the tax cuts on the wealthy don’t magically spur the economy so as to not add trillions to the nation’s debt, in ways that no economist believes they actually will, then the bill says that this will automatically trigger either tax increases (which we know won’t be the route they take), or cuts to spending on entitlement programs (which is obviously the route they will take). So, we’re going to help the rich which might trickle down to the poor, but if it doesn’t trickle down to the poor, we will further screw the poor. I’m going to get a tax cut here, so why should I be so upset about this? ---
**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:** [November 30, 2017, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35835 "2017-11-30T19:30:20Z")
Their hands have been trembling to wrap themselves around the New Deal’s throat since FDR and they’re finally getting the chance to actually do it. ---
**Author:** ![standingwave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@standingwave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/standingwave)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2017, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35836 "2017-12-01T00:03:24Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > Their hands have been trembling to wrap themselves around the New Deal’s throat since FDR and they’re finally getting the chance to actually do it. Paul Ryan’s been [dreaming of cutting Medicaid](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2017/03/paul-ryan-medicaid) since he was a frat-boy in college. ---
**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 1, 2017, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35837 "2017-12-01T00:59:41Z")
Ryan is one of those things that we are not allowed to call people even in the Pit. ---
**Author:** ![GreysonCarlisle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a87d85/32.png) [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2017, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35838 "2017-12-01T01:00:32Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > Ryan is one of those things that we are not allowed to call people even in the Pit. Oh, Ryan off. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2017, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35839 "2017-12-01T01:10:20Z")
> [@GreysonCarlisle](#): > > Oh, Ryan off. :eek: _\_ ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2017, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35840 "2017-12-01T01:12:10Z")
I’ll Ryan you! _shakes fist_ ---
**Author:** ![GreysonCarlisle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a87d85/32.png) [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2017, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/35841 "2017-12-01T01:21:26Z")
> [@snfaulkner](#): > > I’ll Ryan you! _shakes fist_ Yeah, you Ryan me, Baby. Ryan me _good_. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=1791) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=1793)