# 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:** 273
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2012, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5441 "2012-05-16T18:36:47Z")
I will not believe those aren’t made up without cites. Not that I’m some hard-nosed evidence junkie, but … really? No … fucking really? Those sound straight out of The Onion. ---
**Author:** ![Balance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Balance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balance)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2012, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5442 "2012-05-16T18:49:22Z")
> [@Jack\_Batty](#): > > I will not believe those aren’t made up without cites. Not that I’m some hard-nosed evidence junkie, but … really? No … fucking really? > > Those sound straight out of The Onion. Here you go, for the first one, at least: [http://www.jsonline.com/news/wisconsin/wife-drives-into-chippewa-falls-man-after-vote-argument-ke5bdap-150697635.html](http://www.jsonline.com/news/wisconsin/wife-drives-into-chippewa-falls-man-after-vote-argument-ke5bdap-150697635.html) She tried to drive around him, and he jumped in front of the moving vehicle and got hit. And his brother calls her a “crazy liberal nut”. First, the guy is a knuckle-dragging piece of shit for trying to physically restrain his wife from exercising her right to vote. Second, he’s an utter _lunatic_ for diving in front of a moving SUV. Oh, here’s a link for the other one: [http://www.thestate.com/2012/03/06/2179432/laurens-county-gop-oks-purity.html](http://www.thestate.com/2012/03/06/2179432/laurens-county-gop-oks-purity.html) Even the state GOP leaders think it’s stupid. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2012, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5443 "2012-05-16T18:56:39Z")
> [@Balance](#): > > Here you go, for the first one, at least: [http://www.jsonline.com/news/wisconsin/wife-drives-into-chippewa-falls-man-after-vote-argument-ke5bdap-150697635.html](http://www.jsonline.com/news/wisconsin/wife-drives-into-chippewa-falls-man-after-vote-argument-ke5bdap-150697635.html) > > She tried to drive around him, and he jumped in front of the moving vehicle and got hit. And his brother calls her a “crazy liberal nut”. First, the guy is a knuckle-dragging piece of shit for trying to physically restrain his wife from exercising her right to vote. Second, he’s an utter _lunatic_ for diving in front of a moving SUV. > > Oh, here’s a link for the other one: [http://www.thestate.com/2012/03/06/2179432/laurens-county-gop-oks-purity.html](http://www.thestate.com/2012/03/06/2179432/laurens-county-gop-oks-purity.html) > > Even the state GOP leaders think it’s stupid. The brother’s quote indeed seems like something out of The Onion (Like the classic “why do all those f\*\*\*\* keep s\*_ **ing my d** _?”) However, it seems that the brother was asked what his position on the recall was, rather than on the accident. It was just placed in the article in a way that implied that he was talking about the accident rather than about the recall in general. Of course, since the paper didn’t repeat the reporter’s question, at this point I don’t know the question he was responding to. ---
**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:** [May 16, 2012, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5444 "2012-05-16T19:19:00Z")
Good for her! ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2012, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5445 "2012-05-16T19:58:15Z")
> [@Jack\_Batty](#): > > I will not believe those aren’t made up without cites. Not that I’m some hard-nosed evidence junkie, but … really? No … fucking really? > > Those sound straight out of The Onion. I found [the link I followed](http://theweek.com/article/index/227698/mitt-romneys-1981-arrest-and-4-other-times-he-lost-his-cool). (Firefox History to the Rescue!) The above links to an article about Romney, which might be fun in its own right. (It includes a video of him “losing his cool” with a radio talk show host.) The quotes I posted are from items 1 and 22 of _Today’s FlipBook: Only in America_ linked to from the right-side bar on the above page. (I’d never heard of [theweek.com](http://theweek.com) and it might be similar to The Onion for all I know. :smack:) ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2012, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5446 "2012-05-16T20:13:34Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > (I’d never heard of [theweek.com](http://theweek.com) and it might be similar to The Onion for all I know. :smack:) No, it’s a reputable digest of news from media from all around the world. It does little reporting of its own, but accurately summarizes reports from other mainstream newspapers, TV networks, and Web sites. It is not a parody site like The Onion. (I subscribe to the print edition of The Week.) ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2012, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5447 "2012-05-16T21:19:56Z")
In order to provide balance I think I should give some time to a Republican who has some genuinely smart ideas about possibly achieving [peace in the Middle East](http://thehill.com/blogs/global-affairs/middle-east-north-africa/227517-lawmaker-calls-for-peace-negotiations-between-deceased-arafat-comatose-sharon) > [@](#): > > Rep. Joe Pitts (R-Pa.) is seeing his foreign policy credentials come under fire after calling for Middle East peace negotiations between deceased Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, who has been in a coma since 2006. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2012, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5448 "2012-05-16T21:29:42Z")
Well, you have to admit, those are two men who will never argue with each other. ---
**Author:** ![Punoqllads](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/d2c977/32.png) [@Punoqllads](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Punoqllads)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2012, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5449 "2012-05-16T21:30:36Z")
“Sharon and Arafat were unavailable for comment.” – Times of Israel ---
**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:** [May 16, 2012, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5450 "2012-05-16T21:42:41Z")
Well, of course it’s my congresscritter…Joe’s an ass. I’m hardly surprised he’s a dumbass. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2012, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5451 "2012-05-16T21:50:08Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > Well, you have to admit, those are two men who will never argue with each other. And each are smarter than the Pitts. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2012, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5452 "2012-05-16T22:03:05Z")
> [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](#): > > Republicans would like to have \*less \*data on which to make decisions. [They’re sponsoring a new bill to reduce the census](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/09/house-votes-cut-census-survey_n_1504748.html). No need for pesky facts! They just get in the way. What part of this is difficult to understand? > [@](#): > > Republicans, acknowledging its usefulness, attacked the survey as an unconstitutional invasion of privacy, arguing that the government has no business knowing how many flush toilets someone has, for instance. They are exactly right and kudos to them for doing this. ---
**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:** [May 16, 2012, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5453 "2012-05-16T22:29:08Z")
I can conceive of no possible reason why the people responsible for water management and delivery would need to know how many fixtures that use water are in use in a given area. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2012, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5454 "2012-05-16T22:35:59Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > They are exactly right and kudos to them for doing this. If it was unconstitutional why would they need to pass a law about it? Couldn’t they challenge it in court? Of course, probably because it is not in fact unconstitutional as clearly the census is in the Constitution and the 'necessary and proper clause in Article 1 Section 8 allows them to ask whatever the hell they want. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2012, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5455 "2012-05-16T23:14:33Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > What part of this is difficult to understand? > > They are exactly right and kudos to them for doing this. What horrifying evil are they protecting us from by removing questions about toilets? ---
**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:** [May 17, 2012, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5456 "2012-05-17T00:03:02Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > What horrifying evil are they protecting us from by removing questions about toilets? Niggers and spics. Please try to keep up. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2012, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5457 "2012-05-17T02:08:27Z")
Does advocating armed revolution in the face of an inability to win an election count as an “idea”? I think it does: “We shall not have any course but armed revolution should we fail with the power of the vote in November. This Republic cannot survive for 4 more years underneath this political socialist ideologue.” —Ponch McPhee, editor of the Green County, Virginia, Republican Committee newsletter After all, it’s worked so well in other places around the world over the last century. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2012, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5458 "2012-05-17T02:12:55Z")
> [@Zakalwe](#): > > Niggers and spics. Please try to keep up. I miss the days when all we to worry about were japs and Jews. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2012, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5459 "2012-05-17T02:14:32Z")
> [@Askance](#): > > Does advocating armed revolution in the face of an inability to win an election count as an “idea”? > > \ > > —Ponch McPhee Not of the dude’s name is Ponch… ---
**Author:** ![Jenaroph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e8c25b/32.png) [@Jenaroph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jenaroph)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2012, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/5460 "2012-05-17T02:17:05Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > What part of this is difficult to understand? > > > [@](#): > > > > Republicans, acknowledging its usefulness, attacked the survey as an unconstitutional invasion of privacy, arguing that the government has no business knowing how many flush toilets someone has, for instance. > > They are exactly right and kudos to them for doing this. You know of course that that’s not the only question the American Community Survey asks. It also[asks about:](http://www.census.gov/acs/www/about_the_survey/american_community_survey/) [ul] [li]race[/li][li]education[/li][li]health insurance[/li][li]disabilities[/li][/ul]And several more factors about this country that are important for legislators to know when trying to create laws that affect their citizens. For instance, if (totally made up number) 19% of citizens over the age of 55 report that they use some kind of mobility device (wheelchair, walker, those little scooters) then perhaps it’s necessary to require all stores to have aisles 3 feet wide, but if only (also made up) .5% of the population over 55 does, maybe it’s an undue burden on businesses. Without the survey, those population numbers aren’t there to help make that decision. But by all means, concentrate on the toilet question. Scrap the whole damned survey, that’ll tell you how many more black people couldn’t afford college or how many more people lost their health insurance in the last 10 years or how many veterans are suffering from closed head injuries, because you think the toilet question is stupid. Sounds about par for the Republican course. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=272) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=274)