# 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:** 437
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2013, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8721 "2013-02-20T23:13:09Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > I can’t help but think that if stories like these were disseminated widely, even the American people would catch on to the disgrace that the GOP has become. You assume that the American people care. That so many of them don’t, is the real disgrace. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2013, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8722 "2013-02-21T00:07:54Z")
Congressman Sensenbrenner thinks NASA has a program to defend earth from incoming asteroids, and wants the details. If some Joe who just watched that Bruce Willis movie wrote such a letter, I might give them a pass for thinking that NASA actually has some weapons to destroy cosmic objects. But I expect the Vice Chairman of the House Science Committee to be at least moderately informed on… well, science. [http://sensenbrenner.house.gov/uploadedfiles/20130220152701611.pdf](http://sensenbrenner.house.gov/uploadedfiles/20130220152701611.pdf) ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2013, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8723 "2013-02-21T00:15:46Z")
I’d be very surprised to hear that there wasn’t some sort of NASA program, even if it were only paying some engineers to tell them why it couldn’t be done. Even heard about one on NPR. Rather than trying to hit something moving very very fast with something only moving very fast, maneuver close enough to fire a “shotgun” blast of small, dense pellets. Each one is small, but enough of them hit from the same direction, nudge it into a different trajectory. ---
**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:** [February 21, 2013, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8724 "2013-02-21T00:22:09Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > Congressman Sensenbrenner thinks NASA has a program to defend earth from incoming asteroids, and wants the details. If some Joe who just watched that Bruce Willis movie wrote such a letter, I might give them a pass for thinking that NASA actually has some weapons to destroy cosmic objects. But I expect the Vice Chairman of the House Science Committee to be at least moderately informed on… well, science. > > [http://sensenbrenner.house.gov/uploadedfiles/20130220152701611.pdf](http://sensenbrenner.house.gov/uploadedfiles/20130220152701611.pdf) Honestly, I don’t think that’s a fair assessment of the linked letter. First of all, there is in fact an observation program in place to detect incoming threats (though I don’t know for sure that NASA’s running it), and he asks for details about that. Then he asks how “achievable” are NASA’s plans for eliminating these threats. NASA does in fact have a number of plans (AFAIK they are still in the purely theoretical stages), and it is reasonable to interpret the letter as an inquiry about whether any of these plans are looking promising and/or affordable. The last question really can’t be answered at this point, because choosing different defense systems would mean having different lead times. But in any case, it is not a stupid question. Nor is having such a program a stupid idea. ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2013, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8725 "2013-02-21T00:39:29Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > Congressman Sensenbrenner thinks NASA has a program to defend earth from incoming asteroids, and wants the details. If some Joe who just watched that Bruce Willis movie wrote such a letter, I might give them a pass for thinking that NASA actually has some weapons to destroy cosmic objects. But I expect the Vice Chairman of the House Science Committee to be at least moderately informed on… well, science. Get used to disappointment. It’s probably already been referenced somewhere upthread, but here is a recent [quote] ([U.S. Rep. Paul Broun: Evolution a lie 'from the pit of hell'](http://articles.latimes.com/2012/oct/07/nation/la-na-nn-paul-broun-evolution-hell-20121007)) from congressman Paul Broun, R-GA, who is on the House Science, Space and Technology Committee: “God’s word is true. I’ve come to understand that. All that stuff I was taught about evolution, embryology, Big Bang theory, all that is lies straight from the pit of hell. It’s lies to try to keep me and all the folks who are taught that from understanding that they need a savior. There’s a lot of scientific data that I found out as a scientist that actually show that this is really a young Earth. I believe that the Earth is about 9,000 years old. I believe that it was created in six days as we know them. That’s what the Bible says.” ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2013, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8726 "2013-02-21T15:37:28Z")
A county GOP chairperson in Montana [shared a racist picture on her facebook page.](http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/02/20/1188556/-Montana-county-s-GOP-chairwoman-proves-her-tea-party-bona-fides-with-racist-watermelon-trap-post) Or, maybe it’s just us libtards seeing racism everywhere. Trying to catch a black man with a watermelon as bait? Lighten up, Francis. ---
**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:** [February 21, 2013, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8727 "2013-02-21T15:39:16Z")
Jeez, it’s like Groundhog Day. I’m pretty sure there’s a “Republican official posts/e-mails racist picture” story on each of the 219 pages of this thread. ---
**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:** [February 21, 2013, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8728 "2013-02-21T21:44:06Z")
[Not sure if Louie Gohmert believes the words coming out of his own mouth, or just trolling;](http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2013/02/21/1622561/congressman-says-americans-need-guns-to-protect-the-nation-from-sharia-law/) [QUOTE=Louie Gohmert] [The Second Amendment] is for our protection and the founders’ quotes make that very very clear and including against a government that would run amuck. We’ve got some people who think Sharia Law should be the law of the land, forget the Constitution. But the guns are there… to make sure all of the rest of the Amendments are followed. [/QUOTE] ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2013, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8729 "2013-02-21T21:47:00Z")
_Amok_. Unless they know Gohmert spelled it wrong in his mind. ---
**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:** [February 21, 2013, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8730 "2013-02-21T22:00:50Z")
[Amuck](http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/amuck) is a perfectly cromulent word. ETA: If it wasn’t, how would we ever have watched _[Duck Amuck](http://vimeo.com/23806273)_? ---
**Author:** ![rogerbox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/76d3ee/32.png) [@rogerbox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rogerbox)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2013, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8731 "2013-02-21T22:08:51Z")
Who says Sharia Law should be law of the land? Usually on conspiracy theories you can at least find one loon espousing any given view, but I’ve only ever heard it from Republicans that they’re saving us all from Sharia, I’ve never actually heard anyone claim they wanted Sharia law in the USA. It’s like conspiracy theory nuttery squared. **BLACK HELICOPTERS!!!** ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2013, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8732 "2013-02-21T22:19:11Z")
> [@rogerbox](#): > > Who says Sharia Law should be law of the land? Some people. ---
**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:** [February 21, 2013, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8733 "2013-02-21T22:19:58Z")
> [@bup](#): > > _Amok_. Unless they know Gohmert spelled it wrong in his mind. Would you doubt that Gohmert could find a way to do that? ---
**Author:** ![rogerbox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/76d3ee/32.png) [@rogerbox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rogerbox)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2013, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8734 "2013-02-21T22:25:42Z")
> [@Mollie\_Magill](#): > > Some people. Is that a Fox News style “Some people are saying…” ? ---
**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:** [February 21, 2013, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8735 "2013-02-21T22:28:08Z")
> [@rogerbox](#): > > Is that a Fox News style “Some people are saying…” ? You’re not saying this, you’re just asking the question. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2013, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8736 "2013-02-22T07:45:41Z")
> **[HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News](https://www.huffpost.com/)** > > Read the latest headlines, news stories, and opinion from Politics, Entertainment, Life, Perspectives, and more. > [@](#): > > …China has banned Buddhist monks in Tibet from reincarnating without government permission… ---
**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:** [February 22, 2013, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8737 "2013-02-22T08:47:00Z")
When reincarnation is outlawed, only outlaws will be reincarnated. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2013, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8738 "2013-02-22T13:31:32Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > [HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News | HuffPost](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2007/08/22/china-bans-reincarnation-_n_61444.html) From the linked article: > [@](#): > > According to a statement issued by the State Administration for Religious Affairs, the law, which goes into effect next month and strictly stipulates the procedures by which one is to reincarnate, is “an important move to institutionalize management of reincarnation.” This really, really reads like something from _The Onion_. I don’t see how you can report on this with a straight face. When this goes into effect, I’d love to see the (translated) Required Forms (“Request for permission to Reincarnate in a Higher Form” – “I’m soory, but our records indicate that you haven’t acquired sufficient karmic points to reincarnate as a human being. Please choose one form of animal from the folowing list…”) I’d like to see their Handbook of Standards and Practices. Surely reincarnation is something that can only be improved by Chinese Bureaucracy. ---
**Author:** ![Strassia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e8c25b/32.png) [@Strassia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Strassia)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2013, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8739 "2013-02-22T13:42:23Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > From the linked article: > > This really, really reads like something from _The Onion_. I don’t see how you can report on this with a straight face. > When this goes into effect, I’d love to see the (translated) Required Forms (“Request for permission to Reincarnate in a Higher Form” – “I’m soory, but our records indicate that you haven’t acquired sufficient karmic points to reincarnate as a human being. Please choose one form of animal from the folowing list…”) > I’d like to see their Handbook of Standards and Practices. > Surely reincarnation is something that can only be improved by Chinese Bureaucracy. First, how is this Republican? Second, if I remember correctly, prior to Chinese takeover, Tibet was ruled by a monk class that had ritualized reincarnation where after a monk or lama died, they would seek out and identify the new incarnation who would be taken from his parents and set up as a the new feudal lord. I believe the Chinese government has been trying to figure out how to co-opt that for a while now. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2013, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/8740 "2013-02-22T13:56:54Z")
> [@Strassia](#): > > First, how is this Republican? Beats me, but I couldn’t possibly resist comenting. Ask **'luci** why he put it in this thread. > [@](#): > > Second, if I remember correctly, prior to Chinese takeover, Tibet was ruled by a monk class that had ritualized reincarnation where after a monk or lama died, they would seek out and identify the new incarnation who would be taken from his parents and set up as a the new feudal lord. I believe the Chinese government has been trying to figure out how to co-opt that for a while now. Ritualizing reincarnation (what does tat even mean? you can ritualize particular events involved with reincarnation, but “ritualizing reincarnation” is like “ritualizing existence”) may be o ne thing, but “stipuloating the procedures” is another. Unless this reeport was badly or incorrectly trabnslated, it’;s also hilarious. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=436) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=438)