# Yet another disparity..... \[Cheney shooting\] **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 14, 2006, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526 "2006-02-14T20:56:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2006, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/81 "2006-02-15T21:49:51Z")
**HPL** - that was a good one! Buckyballs, indeed. šŸ™‚ > [@Starving Artist](#): > > :: sigh :: > > One of these days Iā€™ll learn not to post anything unless I have 36 hours to devote to arguing it. Unfortunately, today is not the day. > > Regards. Itā€™ll take a lot longer than 36 hours to be able to find cites to defend a pile of indefensible crap. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2006, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/82 "2006-02-15T22:16:59Z")
> [@FinnAgain](#): > > When you call a man out, it is considered to be poor form not to shoot him, **SA** > šŸ˜ƒ True, but today Iā€™d need a machine gun (or perhaps a shotgun, given both the subject of the OP or the wide range of topics my little post has suddenly engendered around here), but I donā€™t have time to get 'em oiled up and firing. šŸ˜‰ ---
**Author:** ![Merijeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@Merijeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merijeek)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2006, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/83 "2006-02-15T22:28:02Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > I canā€™t believe that, after five years of the pressā€™s cowering sycophancy to the Bush administration, youā€™re still not only trying to pretend like thereā€™s a liberal bias in the media, you actually act surprised to find that people disagree with you on the subject. Youā€™re forgetting that **Starving Artist** is, quite possibly, the single most stupid posting the SDMB. Why are you surprised? -Joe ---
**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:** [February 15, 2006, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/84 "2006-02-15T22:34:38Z")
> [@Merijeek](#): > > Youā€™re forgetting that **Starving Artist** is, quite possibly, the single most stupid posting the SDMB. > > Why are you surprised? > > -Joe Dude, weā€™re in a **Clothahump** thread, and you think _ **Starving Artist** _ is the stupidest poster on the SDMB? Compared to **Humpy** , **SA** is like Cecil himself. ---
**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:** [February 15, 2006, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/85 "2006-02-15T22:38:36Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Dude, weā€™re in a **Clothahump** thread, and you think _ **Starving Artist** _ is the stupidest poster on the SDMB? Compared to **Humpy** , **SA** is like Cecil himself. Yeesh. Makes you wonder if **Clothahump** snuck into **Merijeek** ā€™s room while Joe was off making a sandwich. ---
**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:** [February 15, 2006, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/86 "2006-02-15T22:44:54Z")
**Starving Artist** may show the greatest disparity between eloquence and thoughtfulness, though: heā€™s able to say things elegantly that betray no evidence and no critical thought, but only his own biases and prejudices congealed into a hideous terrine of wrong. Daniel ---
**Author:** ![Merijeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@Merijeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merijeek)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2006, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/87 "2006-02-15T22:55:40Z")
> [@Left Hand of Dorkness](#): > > **Starving Artist** may show the greatest disparity between eloquence and thoughtfulness, though: heā€™s able to say things elegantly that betray no evidence and no critical thought, but only his own biases and prejudices congealed into a hideous terrine of wrong. > > Daniel Wow, that was beautiful. Now what the hell are you saying? Ohhhā€¦that **SA** , while able to put together a coherent thought, has a complete disconnect from reality. **ClothaH2** , meanwhile, is much like the ā€œReagan Smash!ā€ segment from ā€œFamily Guyā€ - pounding away at a brick wall until he gets tired. Tell me if this is what youā€™re getting at: I just see **SA** as dumber because she/he has the potential to show some thought but doesnā€™t. You know, like Iā€™ll look at my dog and say ā€œheā€™s pretty smartā€ and Iā€™ll look at **SA** and say ā€œhe/she is so goddamned stupidā€. But we all know my dog canā€™t work a doorknob and we assume that **SA** can, so technically he/she is more intelligent than my little pupā€¦but itā€™s unlikely anyone would ever comment on it. -Joe ---
**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:** [February 15, 2006, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/88 "2006-02-15T23:07:15Z")
> [@Starving Artist](#): > > Itā€™s bogus to claim a cover up. This isnā€™t the sort of incident that _can_ be covered up. Other people were around; emergency service people had to be called; hospital and police reports would have to be made; etc. > > The press hates this administration and is eager to make it look bad; and itā€™s overly-impressed with itā€™s own role in the nationā€™s affairs and seems to feel itā€™s owed instantaneous notification even when incidents occur in an admistration memberā€™s private life. In that there hasnā€™t been evidence (that Iā€™m aware of) of Administration people trying to hush up those involved, Iā€™ll withdraw the term ā€œcoverupā€. What that leaves is an astonishingly stupid attempt to pretend that nothing happened and that no one would be interesting in the VP shooting an elderly man and putting him in the hospital. Having the news leak out via a private party and then (as the press secretary did) suggest that this is an acceptable way for it to become known is well beyond lame and on into arrogant stupidity. The story is a natural attention-getter. Not releasing it in a forthright manner (and having Cheney stonewall) just makes things worse. It was suggested in USA Today that an appropriate response for the VP would be to go down to Corpus Christi, visit his (ahem) victim, then hold a news conference in the hospital parking lot to express regret and take responsibility. Simple, forthright, intelligent - wait, weā€™re talking about the Bush Administration. Never mind. Maybe Gary Hart will emerge to lambaste this latest instance of ā€œmedia biasā€ and the horror of invading a public figureā€™s private life. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2006, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/89 "2006-02-15T23:08:00Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > Whereā€™s the Baghdad McDonalds or the Samarra Starbucks? No, really: if all the earlier good news was true, surely everybodyā€™s getting ready to open up businesses in Iraq. Whereā€™s WallyWorld? > > Oh yeah, thatā€™s right: theyā€™d be blown up in a day. But other than that, weā€™ve got the insurgency on the run. :rolleyes: And then the Iraqi Shiite clerics (who were the ones that came on top in Iraq) are showing their thanks to one of the coalition members by burning or stepping in the Danish flag and threatening the Danes with death. Yep, freedom is on the march. Even though cartoons are the reason today, the fact is that even before that, the majority of Shiites did want all coalition forces to leave. Right now Shiites are not part of the insurgency, but the longer the coalition forces stay, even those allies will turn against us. Officially, the Iraq government still wants the Danes to stay, but this move IMHO just means that the political leadership is not respected by the Shiite majority, a recipe for future trouble. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2006, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/90 "2006-02-15T23:08:44Z")
> [@Left Hand of Dorkness](#): > > heā€™s able to say things elegantly that betray no evidence and no critical thought, but only his own biases and prejudices congealed into a hideous terrine of wrong. > > Daniel You know, **Daniel** , there is poetry in that line. (And you accuse _me_ of eloquence!) If it werenā€™t aimed at me I might ask to use it as a sig. šŸ˜‰ ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2006, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/91 "2006-02-15T23:23:51Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > The ā€œyardstickā€ for measurement has been preparing the Iraqis to stand on their own. Oh, thatā€™s the new yardstick, is it? My, I remember not so long ago when the yardstick was Iraq becoming a stable, enlightened democracy with religious toleration, close ties to the West, a revitalized economy with tons of overseas investment, vastly increased oil revenue, and fully supported US bases, to provoke a ā€œdemocratic domino effectā€ throughout the whole Middle East. Then the yardstick was supposed to be at least getting the Iraqi infrastructure rebuilt and eliminating the insurgency. Now the yardstick seems to have been reduced to just getting the Iraqi troops minimally competent enough that we can save some face as we leave them to deal with their ongoing guerrilla war, terrorist attacks, and crippled institutions by themselves. Whatā€™s the next ā€œyardstickā€ going to be? Simply enabling the Iraqis to provide covering fire against anti-aircraft attacks as our troop planes depart? The pro-war faction keeps moving the goalposts for how they define success, and hoping nobody will notice that the goalposts have moved. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2006, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/92 "2006-02-15T23:43:26Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > The story is a natural attention-getter. Not releasing it in a forthright manner (and having Cheney stonewall) just makes things worse. It was suggested in USA Today that an appropriate response for the VP would be to go down to Corpus Christi, visit his (ahem) victim, then hold a news conference in the hospital parking lot to express regret and take responsibility. Simple, forthright, intelligent - wait, weā€™re talking about the Bush Administration. Never mind. Yes, the story is a natural attention-getter; and Iā€™ve said, I find no fault with the press reporting it. But letā€™s look at things from what might have been Cheneyā€™s perspective: First, he probably wasnā€™t all that concerned ā€“ given that he had just shot one of his best long-time friends with a shotgun ā€“ with making sure that the press had itā€™s best story of the day in time to make the evening newscasts. He was likely overcome with worry and fear over the well-being of his friend; he was probably having to contend with answering questions at the hospital and perhaps dealing with the police; the Secret Service was probably badgering him to return to Washington or some other place where he wasnā€™t so publically exposed as if word were to get out and the hospital become inundated with reporters, news crews, etc., they couldnā€™t properly attend to his safety; and Cheney himself was probably not desirous of having hundreds of local and national television and print people descend upon the hospital itself, which would only add to the confusion and difficulty of attending to the real matter at handā€¦which was not the timely care and feeding of the news media. Most probably, he only wanted peace and quiet and to let things play out in terms of his friendā€™s well-being and care without having to contend with what would surely become a press frenzy no matter when it was reported. Now, could the situation have been dealt with in what hindsight shows to have been a better way? Certainly! But the fact that it was dealt with in the way it was by no means indicates ignoble or duplicitous intent. ---
**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:** [February 15, 2006, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/93 "2006-02-15T23:48:22Z")
> [@Left Hand of Dorkness](#): > > **Starving Artist** may show the greatest disparity between eloquence and thoughtfulness, though: heā€™s able to say things elegantly that betray no evidence and no critical thought, but only his own biases and prejudices congealed into a hideous terrine of wrong Donā€™t forget [the garnish](http://dutempsdesidees.canalblog.com/images/terrine_de_saumon.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![FinnAgain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finnagain/32/12500_2.png) [@FinnAgain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinnAgain)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2006, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/94 "2006-02-15T23:51:09Z")
> [@Starving Artist](#): > > True, but today Iā€™d need a machine gun (or perhaps a shotgun, given both the subject of the OP or the wide range of topics my little post has suddenly engendered around here), but I donā€™t have time to get 'em oiled up and firing. > šŸ˜‰ Well, with respect, and not to dredge up past threadsā€¦ but I do remember a past instance on the subject of media bias where you were making claims and not giving people cites. You know as well as I do that on this board if you make a claim you prove it with a cite. Tossing out an assertion like you have done (an incorrect assertion, by the way), and then refusing to offer cites does nothing to further debate and just ends up being flamebait. Take that as you will. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2006, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/95 "2006-02-16T00:00:06Z")
> [@Left Hand of Dorkness](#): > > Starving Artist may show the greatest disparity between eloquence and thoughtfulness, though: heā€™s able to say things elegantly that betray no evidence and no critical thought, but only his own biases and prejudices congealed into a hideous terrine of wrong I canā€™t believe LHOD forced me to [learn a french word](http://www.answers.com/terrine&r=67). What the Anglo-saxon version [tureen](http://www.answers.com/main/ntquery?method=4&dsid=1555&dekey=T0418300&gwp=8&curtab=1555_1&linktext=tureen) wasnā€™t good enough for you? Jim ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2006, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/96 "2006-02-16T00:21:52Z")
> [@FinnAgain](#): > > Well, with respect, and not to dredge up past threadsā€¦ but I do remember a past instance on the subject of media bias where you were making claims and not giving people cites. You know as well as I do that on this board if you make a claim you prove it with a cite. Sorry, but Iā€™m afraid Iā€™ve been involved in so many media bias arguments around here that Iā€™m not sure which thread youā€™re referring to; but the thing is, **Finn** , not everything a person may say here is cite-provable. If you can point me to a definitive cite, one way or the other, that settles unequivocally the issue of media bias, I would be happy to accept it. But you canā€™t, because no such cite exists. There are only examples pro and con; and to me these do not constitute a ā€˜citeā€™, as the term is intended to be used: which is as proof. > [@FinnAgain](#): > > Tossing out an assertion like you have done (an incorrect assertion, by the way), and then refusing to offer cites does nothing to further debate and just ends up being flamebait. > > Take that as you will. Thank you. The way I will take it is that in regard to subjects like this it really makes no difference as to whether a so-called cite is offered or not; as the cite itself, not being probitive, becomes its own flamebait. But at any rate, most of the stuff I had to back off from earlier (and which I should still be doing now as Iā€™m letting stuff ride that I should be attending to) had to do with several of the things Iā€™d said and not just the issue of media bias. ---
**Author:** ![JonScribe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3be4f8/32.png) [@JonScribe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JonScribe)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2006, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/97 "2006-02-16T00:44:27Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > Yes. 40% is nearly 50%. ā€¦ Just like six inches in nearly 10 inches. ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2006, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/98 "2006-02-16T00:58:10Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Dude, weā€™re in a **Clothahump** thread, and you think _ **Starving Artist** _ is the stupidest poster on the SDMB? Compared to **Humpy** , **SA** is like Cecil himself. See, as thick as he is, **Muthahump** is able to achieve a just noticeable difference in his posts. **SA** canā€™t even do that. Then thereā€™s the fact that he has to announce that he has to go in every three posts. Then thereā€™s the Waltonesque ā€œGoodnight Johnboy! Goodnight Zoe!ā€ routine. Yep, dumb as a fencepost, but without the utility. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2006, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/99 "2006-02-16T01:02:08Z")
**Hentor!** And here I thought you were cominā€™ around and we were gettinā€™ to be budsā€¦ šŸ˜ƒ ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2006, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526/100 "2006-02-16T01:07:47Z")
> [@Starving Artist](#): > > **Hentor!** And here I thought you were cominā€™ around and we were gettinā€™ to be budsā€¦ Iā€™m awfully sorry if I ever gave you that impression. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yet-another-disparity-cheney-shooting/344526.md?page=6)