# Where was Barack Obama, to stand for Democracy? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 12, 2015, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597 "2015-01-12T03:49:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 24
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2015, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/461 "2015-01-19T15:38:20Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Yeah, except we were right, as shown by the fact that the majority of Americans sides with us now. [Appeal to Popularity? Logical fallacy.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argumentum_ad_populum) ---
**Author:** ![Double\_Foolscap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/85e7bf/32.png) [@Double\_Foolscap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Double_Foolscap)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2015, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/462 "2015-01-19T15:39:58Z")
> [@chappachula](#): > > Here ya go: > [White House apologizes for not sending top officials to Paris unity march | Charlie Hebdo attack | The Guardian](http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jan/12/white-house-apologizes-not-sending-top-officials-charlie-hebdo-march-paris) > > As formy comment about the 50 heads of state, I suppose I’m a bit overstating things. A quick google for “fifty heads of state +Paris” turns up dozens of news reports saying “50 heads of state marched…”, etc etc .I assumed those reports to be accurate.But a closer reading of the articles shows that many of the 50 were not the number-one person in their country. > But Germany and England were among those who _did_ send their number-one leader…In the international fight against terrorism and in defence of freedom of speech , the president of the USA is more important a world leader as prime ministers Cameron and Merkel. > And Obama should know that, and act like a leader. In a “you probably know this already” nitpick: David Cameron is not the Head of State of Great Britain. “Number-one leader” is closer, though, as we only let the Queen have actual power if she promises not to use it 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2015, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/463 "2015-01-19T15:47:58Z")
> [@Superdude](#): > > [Appeal to Popularity? Logical fallacy.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argumentum_ad_populum) In politics, it’s the only objective measurement. There is no other objective way to determine if a President is doing a good job or not. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2015, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/464 "2015-01-19T15:50:06Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > In politics, it’s the only objective measurement. There is no other objective way to determine if a President is doing a good job or not. Agreed. A good job _politically_. Policy of course is another matter. ---
**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:** [January 19, 2015, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/465 "2015-01-19T16:18:47Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Yeah, except we were right, as shown by the fact that the majority of Americans sides with us now. So does that mean Obama was right in 2008 and 2012, but not in 2010 and 2014? ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2015, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/466 "2015-01-19T16:21:13Z")
> [@Peremensoe](#): > > Agreed. A good job _politically_. Policy of course is another matter. How does one measure Policy objectively, when there are multiple sides to every issue? ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2015, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/467 "2015-01-19T17:03:31Z")
Boy, wouldn’t it be great if international diplomacy was conducted by straight-talking, no-nonsense means, none of this silly bullshit about saving face and dignity! “No, honey, those jeans don’t make your butt\* look\* big, your butt _is_ big and some silly faggot named Calvin Klein ain’t gonna do anything about that! Hey, I gotta be honest, here!” No. No, you don’t “have to”. A husband has many jobs, being “brutally candid” is on the job list for prospective _ex_-husbands. We are married to Europe, France is half of Europe, the other half is Germany and that’s a problem right from the git-go. Over and above that, things get complicated. “But of course we would love, love, love it if President Obama would personally attend!” _(Mother of God, don’t! Please. please, no! There are at least a thousand men in Paris alone who would totally love to be the one to kill your ass and wouldn’t give a shit if they die doing it! If you are here, we will shit ourselves every time someone pops one of those plastic packing bubbles!..)_ “The President would love the opportunity to express his solidarity with the French people in person, but certain scheduling conflicts make that far too difficult. And, of course, this sort of thing is precisely why we have ambassadors…” _(In a pig’s ass! Obama could whistle up an airplane and be there in four hours is that’s what was called for, but you guys don’t need the problems and we don’t need to up our trank dosage to max… Fuck that shit, here’s an ambassador, she gets shot, we get another bundler, no biggie…)_ “Naturally, we regret the President’s decision, but we are an understanding and forgiving people, and rush to assure our American friends that this will not, in any way, hamper our future relations and cooperation.” _(Thank God! Look, we’re gonna have to pretend to be a bit miffed, here. Dignity, you know? Can you guys, maybe…)_ “We certainly respect and understand the feelings of the French people, and regret our error in not sending someone of the appropriate standing and dignity, like maybe God Almighty Himself…” _(Gotcha. Copy that, covered your ass and ours, we cool…)_ ---
**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:** [January 19, 2015, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/468 "2015-01-19T17:29:34Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > “But of course we would love, love, love it if President Obama would personally attend!” For that matter, was Obama even _invited_ in the first place? ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2015, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/469 "2015-01-19T18:26:48Z")
Still waiting to hear from our esteemed right-wing contingent just what specific harm they think was done to either anti-terrorism efforts or US-French diplomatic relations by Obama’s failure to show up for a parade in Paris. Aside from 15 hand-wringing points on the big partisan political scoreboard, that is. ---
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2015, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/470 "2015-01-19T19:37:47Z")
> [@El\_Kabong](#): > > Still waiting to hear from our esteemed right-wing contingent just what specific harm they think was done to either anti-terrorism efforts or US-French diplomatic relations by Obama’s failure to show up for a parade in Paris. Aside from 15 hand-wringing points on the big partisan political scoreboard, that is. The French must be so taken aback by his lack of attendance that none of the French political leaders can even muster a response. I’m glad so many GOP officials have stepped up to the plate to let Obama know just how upset the French really are about this. Historically the GOP has been so good about building a good relationship with France it only makes sense they can proxy themselves for French leaders now. All in all on this issue if the French were bothered by this they’d have said something, they aren’t shy about being critical of the US. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2015, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/471 "2015-01-19T19:58:23Z")
> [@boytyperanma](#): > > The French must be so taken aback by his lack of attendance that none of the French political leaders can even muster a response. I’m glad so many GOP officials have stepped up to the plate to let Obama know just how upset the French really are about this. Historically the GOP has been so good about building a good relationship with France it only makes sense they can proxy themselves for French leaders now. > > All in all on this issue if the French were bothered by this they’d have said something, they aren’t shy about being critical of the US. It’s another one of those non-issues that righties and fucking morons like **adaher** love to flog, hoping that their fake outrage will inflame the rest of us to the point where we’ll vote for the next dipshit to be disgorged from Republican clown car. They’ll continue to parrot the same inane bullshit until they feel they’ve “won” the argument because nobody is bothering to respond any longer. It’s not debate, because it’s a non-issue. It’s not even discussion, because they keep repeating the same tired crap. It’s just blather and should be ignored. ---
**Author:** ![doorhinge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@doorhinge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doorhinge)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2015, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/472 "2015-01-19T20:27:31Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > For that matter, was Obama even _invited_ in the first place? Were they holding a memorial golf tournament afterward? Obama would have been pissed to have missed that. 😃 ---
**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:** [January 19, 2015, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/473 "2015-01-19T20:42:04Z")
> [@doorhinge](#): > > Were they holding a memorial golf tournament afterward? Obama would have been pissed to have missed that. 😃 Get it? It’s funny because Obama likes to golf, and he is unique among US presidents in that regard! No other president would _ever_ prioritize a golf game when there serious world events happening! [Now watch this drive.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3p9y_OEAdc) ---
**Author:** ![andros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@andros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andros)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2015, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/474 "2015-01-19T21:02:59Z")
> [@doorhinge](#): > > Were they holding a memorial golf tournament afterward? Obama would have been pissed to have missed that. 😃 BWAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Awesome joke, as usual! :D:D:D ---
**Author:** ![doorhinge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@doorhinge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doorhinge)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2015, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/475 "2015-01-19T21:04:56Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Get it? It’s funny because Obama likes to golf, and he is unique among US presidents in that regard! No other president would _ever_ prioritize a golf game when there serious world events happening! I didn’t know golfing U.S. Presidents were unique. 😕 I assume Obama wasn’t invited because his particular skillset, such as it is, wasn’t needed. ---
**Author:** ![andros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@andros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andros)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2015, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/476 "2015-01-19T21:09:20Z")
Stahp!! You’re killing me, you suave hilarious sonuvagun!! ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2015, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/477 "2015-01-20T03:53:17Z")
> [@Peremensoe](#): > > Agreed. A good job _politically_. Policy of course is another matter. The problem is that the job of President consists of so many policies that whether or not he’s doing a good job depends on your priorities. and what his priorities should be should be related to what he was elected to do. Like for example, change politics, less spin, more straight talk, more accountability. Oh wait. ---
**Author:** ![Eonwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eonwe/32/240_2.png) [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2015, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/478 "2015-01-20T04:00:55Z")
Anyone here who is a member of the party of Freedom Fries and is bending over backwards to take issue with Obama in this circumstance should be disgusted with him/herself. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2015, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/479 "2015-01-20T04:15:39Z")
It must be a big issue. Otherwise the President wouldn’t have felt the need to blame someone else for the decision. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2015, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597/480 "2015-01-20T04:21:16Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > It must be a big issue. Otherwise the President wouldn’t have felt the need to blame someone else for the decision. blahblahblahblahblah [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597.md?page=23) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-was-barack-obama-to-stand-for-democracy/709597.md?page=25)