Right-Wingers Mock Obama's "Ostentatiously Exotic" Pronunciation Of Pakistan

Barack Obama pronounces "Pakistan" correctly, with a soft "a," just like a lot of people who know what they're talking about, including Gen. David Petraeus. Apparently, having completely run out of compelling policy arguments to make, some high-profile conservatives have decided to make this their latest campaign hobbyhorse.

The National Review's Mark Stein, for example, said that Obama prefers the "exotic pronunciation." He added, "[O]ne thing I like about Sarah Palin is the way she says 'Eye-raq'."

This came after the National Review's Kathryn Jean Lopez posted an email that argued, "[N]o one in flyover country says Pock-i-stahn. It's annoying."

Read the whole story here.

Comments

[Shiggity]

This is highlarious... those Republicans sure are stupid... too bad a "SOFT A" is totally NOT the way to describe this, the adjective you WERE looking for is "LONG." He uses a LONG 'A', as opposed to a SHORT one. Morons.

[evekendall]

This is hilarious! General Petraeus says it that way, too? (Shakes head at the stupidity of right-wingers.)

[RockySoldier]

general petraeus pronounces it the same way because it's the correct way. so does this mean that those right-wing critics hate general petraeus, too? why do they hate our troops?

[Frederic]

The US is the only country in the world where a large portion of the population (GOP) is proud to be stupid. Everybody else would try to conceal his stupidity and be more or less ashamed of it., maybe even try to diminish it by activating a few of their brain cells.

But look at the leaders: They are forced to tout stupidity because it is the only asset they have as a distinct definition of themselves. So the lemmings also think aggressive stupidity is patriotic.

[RAStewart]

"This came after the National Review's Kathryn Jean Lopez posted an email that argued, '[N]o one in flyover country says Pock-i-stahn. It's annoying.'"

Uh-huh, well actually, I live in the third-largest American city, home to (among other things) a symphony, opera house, and several museums and universities respected around the world and some of the liveliest music, literary, and theater scenes around, and I'm a lot more annoyed at that condescending "flyover country" cowflop than at how Barack chooses to pronounce Pakistan. But Kathryn Jean Lopez is welcome to fly over my Midwest and keep on flying.

This whole thing shows both the desperation and the reflexive anti-intellectualism that the right wing has descended to. I hardly dare hope it, but maybe enough people will have caught on by now to wrest power out of these troglodytes' hands before it's well and truly too late.

[antaeus]

This is a NO-BRAINER!

Yes, these critics are morons who don't have passports, we get it. But it's also true that there's an old anglophone tradition of resisting non-English phonology even when we borrow the word: note Englishmen who still pronounce the "t" in "valet," etc. How hard would it be to recognize this cultural quirk and just pander to it? I mean, would it be that hard?

[DocManhattan]

It's not just an anglophone tradition (think about the Francophone pronunciation of "le camping", for instance). But these days, that kind of an attitude is an embarrassing anachronism. Travelling has never been easier, trade has never been more global, cultures never more intermingled.

Our leaders, above all, need to reflect this. And if they don't ... well, we get what we've had over the last eight years.

[jmbates]

Hey, that thar OBAMA guy (weird name, gives me them shivers, don't cha know? an' why's his skin some "color"?), him's one o' them elistisists, huh? I spose this-here Pakist-thing is somewhar, but YALL KNOWS WHAT I HEEARD HIM DO? He said: (gotta go slow to git this right): " I don't have a second house"

DAM Eliteisist! He shoulda said like me: "I ain't got me none o' them othern house things, by gumm."

Then he'd be NORMALLLL! Just like I IS!!

[theone718]

This was WONDERFULLY debunked, even GENERAL PETRAEUS says it like Barack Obama.

[3rdIDArmyMom]

Senator Obama pronounces Pakistan correctly. If only our President could pronounce Iraq correctly, instad of calling it EYE RACK since the day he made us invade it, maybe he wouldn't piss them off so much. While we're at it, how about "W" pronouncing the word "nuclear" instead of calling it "NUCULAR". How embarassing to our Nation.

[LiberalDemIda]

How is this surprising? Right-wingers take pride in their ignorance - wear it like the Made-In-China flag pins even. They believe ignorance is something to aspire to rather than deplore.

As all tr0//s here prove time and time again.

GObama/Biden '08/'12!

[RockySoldier]

as evidenced by the popularity of garbage formulaic soccer-mom country music, the git-er-done crowd, and the popularity of jim belushi.

[dwillisno1]

All good Americans know that people in other countries should learn to pronounce the names of their country the way it is pronounced in "flyover country." Apparently they think Larry the Cable Guy is serious.

[bonchesva]

How petty. The democrats are not degrading McCain because of his speech impairment/lisping, whatever you call it! They know Obama's going to win and they can't stand it.

[ritenow]

I'm sure they have no problem with the fact that Palin cannot pronounce nuclear - and she's the energy expert! LOL

[YankeeCanuck]

Pack-istan, Eye-raq, Eye-ran. Eye ain't never visitin. Why should I learn to say it?

Reverse snobbery, my friends. It worked for Bush-- do you think they speak like that in Connecticut?
I mean Connect-eye-cut?

[dsmyre]

Pronounce Pakistan properly = bad.

Pronounce nuclear "nook-kew-lur" (like Bush & Palin) = good.