Fairness is in the eye of the beholder, I suppose. To me, your editing of the OP was unfair. cmac's subsequent responses make it appear as if your criticism did not miss the mark, at least not by much, but I still see no justification for your deletion of the substantive part of the OP.

Uhh excuse me but --Who's Paul Ryan?

Yes, this one is off the rails. Too bad. Good subject.

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Las Vegas NV

I don't know where you're coming from on this one. Bot has yet to get what I'm talking about on this topic, and this over a period of several years.

Ryan has the comportment of a Jehovah's Witness proselytizer. He's seen the truth and can't wait to share it with the yearning masses. There's a glaze over his eyes in interviews, that of a person who hasn't stopped to consider that there might be more to the picture than what he's found so far. And the substance of his remarks reinforces that.

I'm sure this happens in science also - I've read of cases like that - where some researcher thinks he's found a big breakthrough and pushes it hard, becoming more attached to the notion that he's discovered something big than he is to accurate, impartial science.

To suggest that people don't use non-verbal clues on a daily basis is absurd. Often enough, such info can be erroneous, based on prejudice of some sort. But in general, such info is useful. Do you go with the salesman who has a dark, sinister energy behind the smile or the guy you feel genuinely comfortable with?

The contrast between Mitch Daniels and Romney, for example, is striking. Daniels has a calm assurance that bespeaks maturity, Romney is just odd, sort of a manufactured personality. My take is that the general public agrees with that assessment, the guy has a hard time getting traction. He will not be POTUS.

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Living more frugally is a good subject. Ryan is a wet behind the ears zealot.

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1986 300SDL, 362K
1984 300D, 138K

It's not about trying to live frugally, it's about trying to head catastrophe off at the pass.

- Peter.

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1981 240D 4spd stick. 347000 miles. Deceased Feb 14 2021
2002 Kia Rio. Worst crap on four wheels
1981 240D 4spd stick. 389000 miles.
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1972 Cadillac Sedan DeVille
1971 108 280S

I should clarify. Your OP was along the lines of (a) Ryan looks goofy and (b) his proposal has no merit. Botnst quoted the first part, replaced the second part with "...", and then tried to make fun of you for judging Ryan because you think he looks goofy. To me, that sort of editing is what Fox News does.

Your subsequent comments, though, make the valid point that non-verbal clues inform our opinions about people, whether we like to admit it or not. Botnst is free to criticize that viewpoint, which is what I meant when I said that his blast did not miss the mark by much. That does not mean that I agree with his criticism, just that it was legitimate for him to take the contrary view.

Anyone who believes that non-verbal clues do not affect his views of the positions taken by politicians is probably not being honest with himself.

Romney might be too good looking. One of the late night comedians said that his announcement video the other day looked like a commercial for an erectile dysfunction medicine.

One of the challenges advertisers and politicians face is making ads that don't look like parodies. There is so much parody out there with you tube and all, that it's kind of hard to tell the real thing sometimes.

I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing to have a little wet behind the ears enthusiasm in our elected leaders. Fresh attitudes are good. Energy is good. It can be argued that the status quo is how we got here, no?

Besides, we are now talking about reducing government, polls show most people believe this needs to happen. How is another question. Ryan has some of the answers, probably not all of them.

But, at least he isn't like Barney Frank who is so jaded that when pressed on an issue he reverts to the statement: "that is a complicated issue" - it is a condescending stance. As if the lowly citizen is too stupid to understand the inner workings of government.

I don't get that vibe from Ryan, at least.

__________________
DS
2010 CL550 - Heaven help me but it's beautiful
87 300D a labor of love
11 GLK 350 So far, so good
08 E350 4matic, Love it.
99 E320 too rusted, sold
87 260E Donated to Newgate School
www.Newgateschool.org - check it out.
12 Ford Escape, sold, forgotten
87 300D, sold, what a mistake
06 Passat 2.0T, PITA, sold

Las Vegas NV

How was my selecting the portion that I selected unfair? I agree it was not the main point of his argument. But WTF, had he stuck to his argument then I would not have followed, at ludicrous speed, his tangent of wackiness.

What you call, "his substantive" portion is debatable, I mean in whether it has substance. But that's one of those 'everybody has one' things.

Your non-verbal cues are like most non-verbal cues, as subjective as prayer, astrology or ouija boards. In each case, after the fact, you can always find evidence of proof that you were right. Yes, that's a proof. But it's not a falsifiable proof. Doesn't mean it is false. Just means it has no basis in objective reality that can be tested.

You want to believe it? Fine with me. I would not trust a bridge built to those specs. I would not trust your physiognomic reading or phrenology as a guide to a man's character, either. I'll give it equal weight to whomever casts a man's horoscope or necromances a ouija board. I'm very democratic when it comes to that sort of evidence.

It’s that kind of hysterical demagoguery Ryan’s depending on.

With regard to Obama’s speech yesterday, I’ve yet to hear a Ryan/GOP/TPM supporter respond to the following:

And if that voucher isn’t worth enough to buy insurance, tough luck – you’re on your own.

Is that what the right is actually advocating? What are seniors to do – on a fixed income – if they can’t afford healthcare? Simply go off somewhere and die?

Again, I’ve been asking rightists this for about the last 24 hours with no substantive response, just some vague ‘that won’t happen,’ or ‘someone will take care of them.’ Who will take care of them? Adult Children? What if the senior has no adult children or they can’t afford healthcare for the senior. Religious organizations and other private non-profits? They can’t afford to accommodate seniors now who have Medicare, much less those who will have no insurance under Ryan’s inane ‘plan.’

As noted, Ryan and his supporters are deranged zealots – and his budget plan is the actual receipt for catastrophe.

Perhaps conservatives in this venue might be able to answer the question.

Thats he kind of obfuscation those addicted to the welfare state are depending on. It doesn't matter what seniors or anywone else for that matter, will or will not be able to do when the US is no longer able to service it's debts. Promises that cannot be kept are worthless and if the US assumes that the chinese will be prepared to bankroll its unfunded liabilities forevermore it is gravely mistaken. Ryan's plan is flawed, but at least it's a recognition of the deep crap we are in (which is not news by the way) and an attempt to tackle it. The opposition are simply living in denial. I'm not remotely interested in Obama's speech. I'd be far more interested in his plan if it existed.

- Peter.

__________________
2021 Chevrolet Spark
Formerly...
2000 GMC Sonoma
1981 240D 4spd stick. 347000 miles. Deceased Feb 14 2021
2002 Kia Rio. Worst crap on four wheels
1981 240D 4spd stick. 389000 miles.
1984 123 200
1979 116 280S
1972 Cadillac Sedan DeVille
1971 108 280S

^^^ Exactly on point.

Then please splain to me why much of the savings, such as it was, that was hammered out recently was shuttled over to the pentagon - more money than they asked for is what I heard on the news, though I can't yet find a link.

Apparently our freedom will be forfeit if we don't spend a few hundred times more than it costs to run NPR instead on obsolete weapons systems, some of which the Pentagon has been trying to say they no longer want.

It's almost funny: hard core Rs celebrate Reagan for spending the USSR under the table on defense, apparently unaware that we too were/are spending ourselves under the table. It took longer for us for obvious reasons.

But who am I kidding? Hawks hear talk like this and say, aloud or otherwise, "Yada, yada, yada."



The true third rail.

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Te futueo et caballum tuum

1986 300SDL, 362K
1984 300D, 138K