# 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:** 845
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2014, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16881 "2014-09-20T14:57:15Z")
Oh, man, now I’m hungry for a war with India. ---
**Author:** ![LeeshaJoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e8cbc/32.png) [@LeeshaJoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LeeshaJoy)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2014, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16882 "2014-09-20T14:59:42Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > I’m entirely opposed to war with Mexico. Every time we have a war with somebody, we get a whole bunch of their restaurants. Italian restaurants, Japanese, Vietnamese. Now, think how it would be to have a whole bunch of Mexican restaurants all over the place! Where the hell are all the Iraqi restaurants, then? ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2014, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16883 "2014-09-20T15:17:38Z")
> [@LeeshaJoy](#): > > Where the hell are all the Iraqi restaurants, then? Unlike previous wars in which we welcomed folks who worked with us and needed to get out, we are now blocking Iraqis who are in danger precisely because they were on our side. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2014, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16884 "2014-09-20T15:53:56Z")
[The Iraqi restaurants all seem to be in Phoenix.](http://www.smithsonianmag.com/ist/?next=/arts-culture/amid-heated-debates-iraqi-immigrants-struggle-make-living-arizona-180952433/) ---
**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:** [September 20, 2014, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16885 "2014-09-20T16:27:47Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > Yeah . . . Say, isn’t it about time we taught those damned French a lesson?! Would monsieur like 'iz nuclear mushrooms served \*avec \*or \*sans \*truffle sauce ? :mad:😛 ---
**Author:** ![orangeapples](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7993a0/32.png) [@orangeapples](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/orangeapples)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2014, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16886 "2014-09-20T17:04:11Z")
> [@E-DUB](#): > > Boehner to the contrary, there are plenty of alternatives to “just sitting around” for the unemployed as long as they have adequate income. I’ve been retired for a few years now and don’t spend _all_ day in the holodeck. Society could benefit from more people being unemployed. I support a full-unemployment economy, the post-workers paradise. Someday people will look back and see the wage system as simply another form of slavery. I’m **orangeapples** and I approve this message. I’ll totally vote for you, as often as it takes. Voter ID be damned. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2014, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16887 "2014-09-20T17:30:32Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Now, think how it would be to have a whole bunch of Mexican restaurants all over the place! Looking around Chicagoland, it seems we’ve always been at war with Mexico. ---
**Author:** ![xenophon41](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xenophon41/32/253_2.png) [@xenophon41](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xenophon41)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2014, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16888 "2014-09-20T18:41:35Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > Looking around Chicagoland, it seems we’ve always been at war with Mexico. War is Peace! Ignorance is Strength! Cilantro is Parsley! ---
**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:** [September 21, 2014, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16889 "2014-09-21T17:47:11Z")
> [@xenophon41](#): > > Cilantro is Parsley! Pervert. ---
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2014, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16890 "2014-09-21T18:05:54Z")
And the hits just keep on coming (literally, in the case of Hannity): [http://www.alternet.org/tea-party-and-right/5-totally-vile-right-wing-moments-week-hannity-stands-child-abuse](http://www.alternet.org/tea-party-and-right/5-totally-vile-right-wing-moments-week-hannity-stands-child-abuse) ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2014, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16891 "2014-09-21T20:24:58Z")
> [@E-DUB](#): > > Boehner to the contrary, there are plenty of alternatives to “just sitting around” for the unemployed as long as they have adequate income. I’ve been retired for a few years now and don’t spend _all_ day in the holodeck. Society could benefit from more people being unemployed. I support a full-unemployment economy, the post-workers paradise. Someday people will look back and see the wage system as simply another form of slavery. You are likely to get your wish, thanks to [automation.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Pq-S557XQU) ---
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2014, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16892 "2014-09-21T20:44:28Z")
Oh, yes, Evil Captor, that was all part of the calculus when I postulated this idea. It started as a lark when I got sucked into a “debate” with a free market type at a party about twenty years ago. I could have argued from a traditional liberal viewpoint but where was the fun in that. So instead I basically made up and justified, on the fly, a system that I labeled “Mechanized Social-capitalism”. The essential problem, I argued, is that market capitalism as we know it becomes unsustainable when automation and computerization allow for an ever-reducing workforce while still requiring a stable, if indeed not expanding, consumer base. It was all a joke at the time and when my pigeon was let in on it we both had a good laugh. The thing is, and this is kinda scary, I’m starting to think that I was on to something. I said that the basic Communosocialsit precept of “From each according to his ability, to each according to his need” was too conservative. No, the answer is, “From each machine according to its ability, from each human according to his inclination, to each human according to his desire.” 3D printing is making me think that it may come sooner rather than later. I recognize that this is kind of OT for the pit topic at hand but maybe not since Republicans will surely oppose any of the steps that would get us from here to there. ---
**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 21, 2014, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16893 "2014-09-21T21:05:04Z")
FOX commentator thinks the [US should start profiling Muslims, praises the use of internment camps against the Japanese during World War II](http://www.forwardprogressives.com/fox-news-finally-loses-uses-success-japanese-internment-camps-advocate-profiling-muslims-video/). I wonder if he wants the US to start interning Arab Christians, too? ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2014, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16894 "2014-09-21T21:31:36Z")
> [@E-DUB](#): > > Oh, yes, Evil Captor, that was all part of the calculus when I postulated this idea. It started as a lark when I got sucked into a “debate” with a free market type at a party about twenty years ago. I could have argued from a traditional liberal viewpoint but where was the fun in that. So instead I basically made up and justified, on the fly, a system that I labeled “Mechanized Social-capitalism”. Robert Anton Wilson beat you to the punch by about nineteen years. ---
**Author:** ![Wolf333](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf333/32/3460_2.png) [@Wolf333](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolf333)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2014, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16895 "2014-09-21T21:34:26Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > FOX commentator thinks the [US should start profiling Muslims, praises the use of internment camps against the Japanese during World War II](http://www.forwardprogressives.com/fox-news-finally-loses-uses-success-japanese-internment-camps-advocate-profiling-muslims-video/). > > I wonder if he wants the US to start interning Arab Christians, too? There’s no such thing, silly. ---
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2014, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16896 "2014-09-21T23:13:54Z")
Miller, the only Wilson I’ve read was the Illuminatus Trilogy and don’t remember much delving into economic theory in that, what with the reanimated Nazis crashing the rock festival and all that other stuff. I did draw on some SF economics as I made my case, notably Harrison, Reynolds and some aspects of Trek. But most of it was from my own imagination, and if I duplicated the work of others, so be it. It’s so hard to have an original thought these days. ---
**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 22, 2014, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16897 "2014-09-22T00:29:00Z")
> [@E-DUB](#): > > It’s so hard to have an original thought these days. QFT. I get most of the stuff I put on Facebook right here. Just kidding. Please don’t ban me. ---
**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 22, 2014, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16898 "2014-09-22T02:49:19Z")
Rick Perry: [If Joan Rivers had had the procedure done in Texas, she wouldn’t have died, because of Texas’s strict anti-abortion laws](http://www.liberalamerica.org/2014/09/21/rick-perry-joan-rivers/). ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2014, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16899 "2014-09-22T13:55:32Z")
Georgia Republican Gov. Nathan Deal: Georgia has the highest unemployment rate in the country because [the Bureau of Labor Statistics is cooking the books](http://www.salon.com/2014/09/22/gop_governor_has_hilarious_theory_for_his_states_terrible_unemployment_rate/). > [@](#): > > Deal’s comments resurrect one of the most entertaining of the various conspiracies that have flourished under the Obama administration: BLS trutherism. This is the simple belief that when economic figures released by the Bureau of Labor and Statistics are good for Democrats, then the Obama administration is making them up. Or more generally, the Obama administration is exerting political pressure on the BLS and its algorithms. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2014, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/16900 "2014-09-22T19:53:04Z")
[Latest GOP ad targeting women’s votes.](http://www.salon.com/2014/09/22/gops_stunning_condescension_new_ad_shows_why_they%e2%80%99ll_lose_women_again/) Ill-conceived to put it mildly. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=844) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=846)