# Who heckled Obama during his address to Congress? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 10, 2009, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496 "2009-09-10T00:52:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![Death\_of\_Rats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a6a055/32.png) [@Death\_of\_Rats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Death_of_Rats)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/161 "2009-09-10T13:47:33Z")
> [@Leaper](#): > > Well, it’s okay if the President is someone who is actively trying to destroy everything the country holds dear and send it spiraling into a black hole of bankruptcy and socialism from which there is no escape. (According to one blog, apparently there are some Free Republic posters who seem to go with this.) … like George W. Bush? He did two of those things for sure and the bailout may count as Socialism. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/162 "2009-09-10T13:52:15Z")
Yeah, some Dems booed when Bush told a lie about social security, and Republicans once booed Clinton during a SOTU before that, but booing really is just dissent, and is not the same as heckling and namecalling. These lame attempts at _tu quoques_ from the right are really getting tiresome. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/163 "2009-09-10T13:53:59Z")
> [@storyteller0910](#): > > They all should have. > > Is there a point lurking in there somewhere? I seem to have missed what you claimed you would do - “I’ll happily, and cheerfully, call him/her a douchebag and a national disgrace right along with Mr. Wilson”. **Stephe96** has given you exactly what you ask for, but you can’t seem to summon up nearly the same level of outrage until you are goaded into it. See the trouble? Wilson is a douchebag and a national disgrace, even though he has apologized. The Dems who did the same thing get nothing like the same level of invective, even though they didn’t. Funny, that. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Moto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de0a6/32.png) [@Mr.Moto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moto)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/164 "2009-09-10T13:56:17Z")
> [@Stephe96](#): > > It probably won’t matter one whit to the liberal moonbats, but apparently the Dems booed Bush during his speech to Congress in 2005: > > [http://mediamatters.org/research/200502040014](http://mediamatters.org/research/200502040014) So what - Democrats booed Bush and Republicans booed Clinton. While I don’t think any of it is right, it makes the case that Wilson likely doesn’t deserve censure. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/165 "2009-09-10T13:56:47Z")
The Dems didn’t do the same thing. ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/166 "2009-09-10T14:00:09Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Someone questioned the Holy One? > > BLASPHEMY! STONE HIM! > > Regards, > Shodan No. Someone insulted the President of the United States during his address to a Joint Session of Congress, contrary to the rules of his House and to civilized decorum. Accusing Pres. Obama of lying, whether validly or not, ould have been just find when interviewed by Fox news later, in a stump speech to the Fathful down in Columbia, etc. Of course it would have been wrong in that Addison Wilson, not the President, was the liar, in this case, but he could have been criticized on the basis of the facts, for spreading misinformation, at that time. But my parents taught me to respct the Office of the President, even if you happened to dislike the man currently occupying it. It’s part of what makes a civil political system work. Apparently you missed that lesson when you were eight or nine, so it falls on me to explain it to you now. That is why I treated Mr. Bush with respect even when I condemned the criminal activity he and his cronies were engaged in during the past eight years. But if you feel that no respect is due the President acting officially, then may you live to regret the consequences of your action. In any case, some of us belong to a religion that follows someone who said, “Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.” You without sin, **Shodan**? ---
**Author:** ![storyteller0910](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@storyteller0910](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/storyteller0910)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/167 "2009-09-10T14:02:49Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > I seem to have missed what you claimed you would do - “I’ll happily, and cheerfully, call him/her a douchebag and a national disgrace right along with Mr. Wilson”. > > **Stephe96** has given you exactly what you ask for, but you can’t seem to summon up nearly the same level of outrage until you are goaded into it. > > See the trouble? Wilson is a douchebag and a national disgrace, even though he has apologized. The Dems who did the same thing get nothing like the same level of invective, even though they didn’t. > > Funny, that. > > Regards, > Shodan Oh, for Christ’s sake, you’re really being a pathetic pedant here. OK, fine: The Democrats who booed George W. Bush’s State of the Union address were absolute assholes, contributing in exactly the same way to the corruption of the national discourse as Joe Wilson’s outburst. Like Wilson, they abandoned their responsibility to address the issues intelligently, respectfully, and carefully in order to serve their constituents effectively. I emphatically reject this sort of thing as legitimate or in fact anything short of disgraceful, no matter who is doing it. _Now_ are you done with gotcha games? By the way, I think it’s _awesome_ that you think you know my political stance. ---
**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:** [September 10, 2009, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/168 "2009-09-10T14:04:46Z")
I bet your fingers were crossed when you typed that. ---
**Author:** ![Gfactor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/169 "2009-09-10T14:05:41Z")
> [@storyteller0910](#): > > Go fuck yourself, buddy. Reminder: [QUOTE=Restricted language in the Pit] The following expressions should not be directed at other posters. * * * go fuck yourself [/QUOTE] > **[Restricted language in the Pit](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=508858)** > > The following expressions should not be directed at other posters. cunt and variants, e.g., cuntlapper motherfucker cocksucker fuck you and variants, e.g., go fuck yourself, fuck off and die suck/lick my dick/cock and variants Expressions not... No warning issued. \*\* Gfactor\*\* Pit Moderator ---
**Author:** ![storyteller0910](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@storyteller0910](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/storyteller0910)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/170 "2009-09-10T14:06:41Z")
> [@Gfactor](#): > > Reminder: > > [Restricted language in the Pit - The BBQ Pit - Straight Dope Message Board](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=508858) > > No warning issued. > \*\* > Gfactor\*\* > Pit Moderator I apologize. ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/171 "2009-09-10T14:06:55Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > I derive amusement from mocking the outrage of people who pretend that they would not immediately spin 180[sup]o[/sup] if the political parties were reversed. So, what you’re saying is, if this was a Republican President, and a Democrat heckled him during his speech, you’d be horribly outraged? ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/172 "2009-09-10T14:07:56Z")
> [@storyteller0910](#): > > Oh, for Christ’s sake, you’re really being a pathetic pedant here. OK, fine: > > The Democrats who booed George W. Bush’s State of the Union address were absolute assholes, contributing in exactly the same way to the corruption of the national discourse as Joe Wilson’s outburst. Like Wilson, they abandoned their responsibility to address the issues intelligently, respectfully, and carefully in order to serve their constituents effectively. I emphatically reject this sort of thing as legitimate or in fact anything short of disgraceful, no matter who is doing it. This is why I am necessary to the boards, and why I am not trolling. I am here to keep you people honest. You wanted to pass this over, and pretend that **Stephe96** did not have a point. You were, in other words, not honest in your debate, until you were forced into it. And you accuse _me_ of trolling. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![storyteller0910](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@storyteller0910](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/storyteller0910)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/173 "2009-09-10T14:11:17Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > You wanted to pass this over, and pretend that **Stephe96** did not have a point. You were, in other words, not honest in your debate, until you were forced into it. This is nonsense. I didn’t want to pass it over. I _responded_, within seconds. I expressed exactly what I felt - they were wrong and they should have apologized. I didn’t use the same words as the last time because, you know, I _just finished typing them_ and I thought context would make my feelings clear. And **Stephe** did NOT have a point. That the Democrats did it once does not make it OK when the Republicans do it. I loathe this sort of politics, from either side, and defending one usage of it by bringing up another usage of it is not “making a point,” because it’s equally reprehensible no matter who’s doing it. ---
**Author:** ![storyteller0910](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@storyteller0910](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/storyteller0910)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/174 "2009-09-10T14:12:57Z")
And again, I’m wildly curious: who are “you people?” To what group do I belong? You seem to know, so tell me: what is my political party? ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/175 "2009-09-10T14:13:08Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > Here’s the thing about **Shodan** : When he actually has a point, he makes it. When he doesn’t, he posts things like the item above. I usually take the latter to mean that he has no coherent counterargument to the matter at hand, and therefore by default he supports the point under discussion. So you mean he’s not actually retarded? But seriously, **Shodan** , what is your point? Is Mr. Wilson not a douchebag until \*\*storyteller \*\*says the Dems behaved douchily for booing W? Or is that irrelevant, and you’re just here to mock people? ---
**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:** [September 10, 2009, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/176 "2009-09-10T14:14:38Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > You wanted to pass this over, and pretend that **Stephe96** did not have a point. Part of \*\*Stephe96’s \*\*point was that the Democrats who booed George W. Bush’s State of the Union address were absolute assholes. So in light of \*\*storyteller0910’s \*\* comment, which read, in part: > [@](#): > > The Democrats who booed George W. Bush’s State of the Union address were absolute assholes … … I’m forced to offer the following query: What the fuck are you talking about? ---
**Author:** ![Fantome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Fantome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fantome)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/177 "2009-09-10T14:14:49Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > And you accuse _me_ of trolling. Well, when you skip right over posts 162, 165 and 166 to make an irrelevant point, it makes one wonder. ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/178 "2009-09-10T14:19:14Z")
[QUOTE=Restricted language in the Pit] The following expressions should not be directed at other posters. * * * go fuck yourself [/QUOTE] You LIE! ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/179 "2009-09-10T14:20:49Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Actually, it’s option #3 - I am making fun of your position. I derive amusement from mocking the outrage of people who pretend that they would not immediately spin 180[sup]o[/sup] if the political parties were reversed. > > You are trying the old dodge - anyone who disagrees with the groupthink is trolling. > > I do actually believe this is laughable. So I laugh at it. > > Feel free to report my post, if you actually believe it is trolling. It isn’t, so nothing will be done. > > Regards, > Shodan Well, count me as one person who was on record – **as I pointed out earlier, and you yourself commented on it** – that respect for the law and for the Office of the Presidency prohibited such behavior in 2001. So what you’re saying is that I should have made sure that people realized that you were part of a criminal conspiracy to subvert the democratic process and hand the Oval Office over to the crook from Crawford? Because if we don’t respect the rule of law and decorum in public life, then that’s exactly what I should have done. Think about how many American boys’ blood has been spilled in Iraq in a war entered into on false pretenses. How many people hve been tortured. (Ask **Scylla** whether waterboarding is torture.) The broad from Regent University who was slipping her fellow theocracy advocates into positions of power in the Justice Department. You’re guilty of conspiracy to commit all those and other crimes – unless you think that there’s a time and a place for political debate, and a formal address by the President to Congress is not one of them. **Bricker** gets this. He’s as opposed to the Obama health care plan as you are. But he knows there’s a time and place for everything, and that Addison Wilson was out of line – in fact, he was harsher than Speaker Pelosi about it. Try taking a keaf from his book on how to behave in civil society. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2009, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496/180 "2009-09-10T14:24:17Z")
> [@E-Sabbath](#): > > So, what you’re saying is, if this was a Republican President, and a Democrat heckled him during his speech, you’d be horribly outraged? No. As demonstrated, it happened in 2005, and I made no objection. The hypocrites are on the other side. It happens in 2005, and no one on the SDMB objects. It happens in 2008, the parties are reversed, and thus the libs flip-flop instantly. > [@storyteller0910](#): > > I responded, within seconds. I expressed exactly what I felt Yes, you did. You expressed what you felt - not very much. Wilson does it, and he is a douchebag and deserves censure and so on and so on. The Dems do the same, and there is a rather tepid mention that they should have aplogized, just as Wison did. Nothing more than that. Like I said, the outrage is quite selective. > [@MeanOldLady](#): > > But seriously, Shodan, what is your point? Is Mr. Wilson not a douchebag until storyteller says the Dems behaved douchily for booing W? Or is that irrelevant, and you’re just here to mock people? My point is exactly what I have stated repeatedly - when a Republican does it, it is a big deal. When Dems do it, it isn’t. You people have the political depth of a teaspoon. Although you are partially correct - I have no chance of convincing the people hereabouts who cannot grasp a concept beyond “Dem good, Republican bad”, with some exceptions, and so mostly have to derive amusement from laughing at what fools you make of yourselves. For example - > [@Polycarp](#): > > So what you’re saying is that I should have made sure that people realized that you were part of a criminal conspiracy to subvert the democratic process and hand the Oval Office over to the crook from Crawford? How pathetic. Regards, Shodan [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-heckled-obama-during-his-address-to-congress/509496.md?page=10)