# The racist Tea Party is in love with Herman Cain **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [October 26, 2011, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876 "2011-10-26T16:57:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 13
**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:** [October 29, 2011, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/242 "2011-10-29T02:22:38Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > Well, I guess if **kaylasdad99** had said, “You’re only in high school, so you probably don’t know that’s a shitty word when used as a noun, and it’s meant to dehumanize people,” I probably wouldn’t have quibbled. > > Since the actual statement was that it’s not a noun, though, I felt a correction was in order. You know: for the fighting, and the ignorance, and all. Sorry about that; I work nights and I went to bed not too long after that post. If you look two posts up, you’ll see that I’ve taken care of it. ETA: also, as I pointed out, even though I know he’s only in high school, I **expect** him to know better. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/243 "2011-10-29T04:03:26Z")
If the polls shift and Cain is no longer in the lead in a few weeks, will the Tea Party have fallen out of love and be telling Cain that the baby isn’t his and they never liked his mother and his dick is way smaller than the other candidates’ and he can sleep on the couch tonight but after that he has to find another place? ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/244 "2011-10-29T12:58:30Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Geez man, recheck your prefixes and submit again, willya? :smack: I had to read that several times to find the problem–but you’re right. Obviously the second “disapprove” should say “approve.” ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/245 "2011-10-29T14:03:20Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > If the polls shift and Cain is no longer in the lead in a few weeks, will the Tea Party have fallen out of love and be telling Cain that the baby isn’t his and they never liked his mother and his dick is way smaller than the other candidates’ and he can sleep on the couch tonight but after that he has to find another place? I saw this! The doorbell rings and a voice says “Pizza!” and the naked chick with ginormous…tracts of land…runs to the door, only to realize to her dismay that she has no purse, no pockets, being nekkid, and all. “Oh, dear!” she says “however shall I pay you for this pizza?” The pizza guy leers becomingly and… Wait, I don’t want to give away the plot. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/246 "2011-10-29T14:16:45Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > his dick is way smaller than the other candidates’ Stereotypes notwithstanding? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/247 "2011-10-29T15:13:39Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > It’s my sense that the usage developed as a handy way of permitting people to regard other people as _things_. > > I’m disallowing it. > [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Sorry about that; I work nights and I went to bed not too long after that post. If you look two posts up, you’ll see that I’ve taken care of it. > ETA: also, as I pointed out, even though I know he’s only in high school, I **expect** him to know better. Wow. The arrogance of that statement is breathtaking. It’s one thing to harbor an opinion about the direction language is taking. You’re of course free to think whatever you wish. It’s a far more arrogant thing to correct another on a technical point of grammar when the authorities are against you on the point. At most, you might point out that you harbor some personal disagreement with the weight of the authorities, but the fact that they exist and are are fairly uniform on the point (previously cited [m-w.com](http://m-w.com); see also [dictionary.com](http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/illegal), [the Free Dictionary](http://www.thefreedictionary.com/illegal), [Oxford Dictionary](http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/illegal?region=us), [Your Dictionary](http://www.yourdictionary.com/illegal); and (no linkable cite available) the 1977 print edition I have of the American Heritage College Dictionary. But a more arrogant tactic even than that would be, in the face of such evidence, to announce that you are disallowing the usage, with not a word about your error. An exchange that you begin by chastising another person for their error ought to end with your own mea culpa when it turns out you were wrong. But I do thank you for the tip. Henceforth, I’m disallowing legal abortion, human-caused global warming, US Representative Maxine Waters’ entire career, and Fox’s cancellation of _Firefly_, all things in which the factual record inconveniently conflicts with my wishes. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Parker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/35a633/32.png) [@Richard\_Parker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Parker)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/248 "2011-10-29T15:16:28Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > But I do thank you for the tip. Henceforth, I’m disallowing legal abortion, human-caused global warming, US Representative Maxine Waters’ entire career, and Fox’s cancellation of _Firefly_. Now why would you disallow legal abortion and not abortion altogether? You want illegal abortion to remain? (I’m kidding, of course. But still, we can probably get consensus on 3 out of 4 – that’s worth something, right?) ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/249 "2011-10-29T15:17:30Z")
> [@Richard\_Parker](#): > > Now why would you disallow legal abortion and not abortion altogether? You want illegal abortion to remain? > > (I’m kidding, of course. But still, we can probably get consensus on 3 out of 4 – that’s worth something, right?) I made the list quickly. I’m open to amendments. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/250 "2011-10-29T15:33:54Z")
I am shocked - _shocked_ - to find arrogance about grammar in this thread. ---
**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:** [October 29, 2011, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/251 "2011-10-29T16:08:51Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > Wow. The arrogance of that statement is breathtaking. > > It’s one thing to harbor an opinion about the direction language is taking. You’re of course free to think whatever you wish. > > It’s a far more arrogant thing to correct another on a technical point of grammar when the authorities are against you on the point. At most, you might point out that you harbor some personal disagreement with the weight of the authorities, but the fact that they exist and are are fairly uniform on the point (previously cited [m-w.com](http://m-w.com); see also [dictionary.com](http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/illegal), [the Free Dictionary](http://www.thefreedictionary.com/illegal), [Oxford Dictionary](http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/illegal?region=us), [Your Dictionary](http://www.yourdictionary.com/illegal); and (no linkable cite available) the 1977 print edition I have of the American Heritage College Dictionary. > > But a more arrogant tactic even than that would be, in the face of such evidence, to announce that you are disallowing the usage, with not a word about your error. An exchange that you begin by chastising another person for their error ought to end with your own mea culpa when it turns out you were wrong. Well, fuck me for valuing your good opinion, **Bricker**. I erred factually, and responded to my correction with a dismissive joke that, while intended to convey my contempt for the lexicographers who allow the usage to stand without the same sort of caveat one would expect to accompany any other slur (a contempt which, I hope that you, as a man of goodwill share), merely came off as arrogant (appropriate, I think, as I _was_ arrogating authority to myself ;)) I’ll come in again below, with the admonishment as it probably should have been delivered. > [@Bricker](#): > > But I do thank you for the tip. Henceforth, I’m disallowing legal abortion, human-caused global warming, US Representative Maxine Waters’ entire career, and Fox’s cancellation of _Firefly_, all things in which the factual record inconveniently conflicts with my wishes. We might yet find common ground. Designated Hitter [del]Abomination[/del] (oh, all right) “Rule:” allowed or disallowed? ---
**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:** [October 29, 2011, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/252 "2011-10-29T16:10:38Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > Ie illegals. Same for Swedish, Botswanan, and Kiribati nationals who are illegally here. Even though you’re only in high school, I expect you to realize that the use of the word “illegal” as other than an adjective is reprehensible, on account of the fact that its very existence in noun form is a device to permit people to regard other human beings as things. Please substitute this for post 217, now retracted. ---
**Author:** ![magellan01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@magellan01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magellan01)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/253 "2011-10-29T16:59:48Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Even though you’re only in high school, I expect you to realize that the use of the word “illegal” as other than an adjective is reprehensible, on account of the fact that its very existence in noun form is a device to permit people to regard other human beings as things. Says you. I and many others it find it a helpful word. It points to the fact that they are here illegally. The same way we refer to people who cheat on their taxes as tax cheats. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/254 "2011-10-29T17:08:54Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > I’ll come in again below, with the admonishment as it probably should have been delivered. Thanks, and sorry in turn for what be seen as a teensy bit of overreaction. > [@](#): > > We might yet find common ground. Designated Hitter [del]Abomination[/del] (oh, all right) “Rule:” allowed or disallowed? Disallowed as an offense against the laws of man and God. ---
**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:** [October 29, 2011, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/255 "2011-10-29T17:10:38Z")
Rock on, Brother! Power to the people! ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/256 "2011-10-29T17:14:32Z")
> [@magellan01](#): > > Says you. I and many others it find it a helpful word. It points to the fact that they are here illegally. The same way we refer to people who cheat on their taxes as tax cheats. Or 21st century Republicans as Misinformeds. ---
**Author:** ![magellan01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@magellan01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magellan01)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/257 "2011-10-29T18:52:34Z")
> [@Lobohan](#): > > Or 21st century Republicans as Misinformeds. You’re confusing “misinformed” with “people who don’t agree with Lobohan”. By the way, you never commented on the substance of this: [QUOTE=magellan01] [QUOTE=Lobohan] Herman Cain believes like they do, he has the same lack of intellect… [/QUOTE] Oh really? [/QUOTE] [QUOTE=Wikipedia] Cain grew up in Georgia[20] and graduated from Morehouse College in 1967 with a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics. Accepted for graduate studies at Purdue, Cain received a Masters in computer science there in 1971,[21] while he also worked full-time as a ballistics analyst for the U.S. Department of the Navy.[22] [/QUOTE] [QUOTE=magellan01] I didn’t know that a degree in mathematics and an advanced degree in computer science, with real-world work as a ballistics analyst were such tell-tale signs of lack of intellect. Not to mention his great business success. Interesting take you have there on intellect. [/QUOTE] Do you still think Cain lacks intellect? If so, how do you square that with his education and accomplishments? ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/258 "2011-10-29T19:21:42Z")
> [@magellan01](#): > > You’re confusing “misinformed” with “people who don’t agree with Lobohan”. > > By the way, you never commented on the substance of this: > > Do you still think Cain lacks intellect? If so, how do you square that with his education and accomplishments? Oh he’s certainly not very smart. I imagine he worked very, very hard to pass his classes. He’s charismatic, to crowds that don’t value intelligence, like Republicans. He’s likely a strong worker. But he doesn’t even have the grit to educate himself on the basic elements of political knowledge necessary to run for president. He doesn’t know what a neocon is. He doesn’t understand that he’s actually pro-choice, so he fumbles like a child caught sneaking a cookie when asked. He doesn’t understand his own taxation program. His foreign policy notions are childish and cartoony. Do I think he’s subnormal, probably not. But he’s certainly not sharp. Hard work and luck and charisma can lead to success. And in his case it did. Good for him. But he isn’t qualified to run the country. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/259 "2011-10-29T19:25:37Z")
> [@Lobohan](#): > > He doesn’t understand his own taxation program. His foreign policy notions are childish and cartoony. Oh, come on! Talking about Ubeki-beki-beki-beki-stan-stan isn’t _cartoony_. What cartoon would be that lame? ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/260 "2011-10-29T19:30:09Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > Oh, come on! Talking about Ubeki-beki-beki-beki-stan-stan isn’t _cartoony_. What cartoon would be that lame? I honestly could see Bugs Bunny saying that. Like 1:55 in this video: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFAulpHi0kA](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFAulpHi0kA) ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2011, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876/261 "2011-10-29T19:37:22Z")
> [@Lobohan](#): > > I honestly could see Bugs Bunny saying that. > > Like 1:55 in this video: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFAulpHi0kA](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFAulpHi0kA) Damn, you win. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876.md?page=12) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-racist-tea-party-is-in-love-with-herman-cain/600876.md?page=14)