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Author | Topic: The Awesome Republican Primary Thread | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
vimesey Member (Idle past 100 days) Posts: 1398 From: Birmingham, England Joined:
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I think we see this to a greater or lesser degree in all modern democracies. The politicians have become so detached from a reasonably sensible, but totally disinterested and alienated majority, that all the politicians hear are the voices of the rich and powerful; the people who themselves enjoy political power; and the out and out bat crap crazies. The average citizen, who just wants things to work alright, and not get leaned on too much, just gets forgotten.
Add to that the fact that every senior politician I have met (there's been a handful) makes a weasel look like an angel, and Machiavelli look like Mother Theresa, then this sort of s**t is inevitable :-/Could there be any greater conceit, than for someone to believe that the universe has to be simple enough for them to be able to understand it ?
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vimesey Member (Idle past 100 days) Posts: 1398 From: Birmingham, England Joined: |
Yep.
And all the little Neros shall fiddle in manic glee whilst Rome burns.Could there be any greater conceit, than for someone to believe that the universe has to be simple enough for them to be able to understand it ?
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vimesey Member (Idle past 100 days) Posts: 1398 From: Birmingham, England Joined:
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I kind of admire the optimism of any elected official who says "yeah, looks like I did crack, but in my defence, I was so shit faced at the time, I didn't know what I was doing. But hey, back to the day job now folks !"
Could there be any greater conceit, than for someone to believe that the universe has to be simple enough for them to be able to understand it ?
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vimesey Member (Idle past 100 days) Posts: 1398 From: Birmingham, England Joined: |
Meh, kinda sorta.
I take your point, and everyone should be entitled to a little leeway. But if your salary (I'm guessing a reasonably large one) comes out of every resident's pocket; and you are in a position of leadership and authority; then I think that part of your job spec is to behave fairly well - you're representing these people. Same principle as when Clinton got impeached for inappropriate use of his staff. It's a nuanced question as to what standards are expected of our public officers, but I personally think they should be held to higher account than Joe Businessman, who can do all of the crack he wants as far as I'm concerned. (Unless he owes some responsibility to me of course).Could there be any greater conceit, than for someone to believe that the universe has to be simple enough for them to be able to understand it ?
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vimesey Member (Idle past 100 days) Posts: 1398 From: Birmingham, England Joined:
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Faith, here's a question for you - would you be happy for the burden of (non) proof which you apply to Obama's birth, to be applied to something in your own life.
Let's assume, for the sake of argument, that someone mischievously got onto your computer whilst your back was turned, and accessed a site advising people how to convert to Catholicism. You and your friend have a good natured laugh and joke about it, and move on. Some time later, an enterprising investigator finds out you accessed the site, releases the information publicly, and suddenly you stand accused by many of being Catholic. Your denials are strenuous - you produce attendance records at every one of your protestant church's services - your friend publicly admits the prank - your own church and congregation (the people who would know best) endorse your lack of the remotest Catholic credential. And yet nothing convinces the people who are convinced you're secretly in the Pope's pocket. They repeat the claims endlessly on radio shows and TV interviews. The expression "there's no smoke without fire" is spoken a thousand times as a mantra. Conspiracy theorists and those who are easily led continually brand you a Catholic and not worthy of the status of Protestant. And despite the fact that they have no conclusive evidence - despite the fact that all they have is a single question and conjecture - despite the fact that absolutely no amount of evidence you can conclusively adduce can convince them otherwise - you are utterly powerless to stop their fantasy. On the basis of that level of burden of (non)proof, you and other birthers would have Obama removed from office. If that were to be the burden of proof applied to you, in the circumstances described above, you would be drummed out of your church, in all genuine innocence of the alleged transgression. This is what you have to accept as being capable of applying to you, if it's what you want to throw at others.Could there be any greater conceit, than for someone to believe that the universe has to be simple enough for them to be able to understand it ?
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vimesey Member (Idle past 100 days) Posts: 1398 From: Birmingham, England Joined:
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She wasn't born in Kenya. For all we know....Could there be any greater conceit, than for someone to believe that the universe has to be simple enough for them to be able to understand it ?
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vimesey Member (Idle past 100 days) Posts: 1398 From: Birmingham, England Joined: |
They can be incorrect on occasion, I'm sure. It's a tad of a stretch, though, to think that the Hawaiian register office would incorrectly record Hawaii, when they meant (without jurisdiction) to put "Kenya". Or that they fraudulently recorded it around the date of his birth, several decades before he got invested as the big cheese.
Could there be any greater conceit, than for someone to believe that the universe has to be simple enough for them to be able to understand it ?
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vimesey Member (Idle past 100 days) Posts: 1398 From: Birmingham, England Joined: |
And they are both famous for their coffee.
Could there be any greater conceit, than for someone to believe that the universe has to be simple enough for them to be able to understand it ?
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