Strywever's Comments (2540)

“Aren't you glad she still can? That means that even after you achieve her level of life experience, you too should still be able to get in touch with your silly side! Good news, yes? Age, after all, has nothing to do with state of mind. :-)”

“We'll see how you feel when you, too, are "old." And you will be. (To other "oldsters": The best revenge, no?)

BTW, the young people I know love it when the 'rents let go and have silly fun like this with them. Maybe I'm just blessed with a great group of young acquaintances, but in my experience they're very open and undiscriminatory. What happened to you?”

“Don't communist nations have a different view of free speech than we do here in the U. S.? I'm hoping that's still the case -- even though we might not like the results sometimes, I'd rather see our ugly side than have the government or Google execs "protect" me from it. Wouldn't you?”

“Bingo. I saw self-proclaimed "Christians" complain on this very thread about how liberals paint all Christians with the same negative brush based on comments like those above. But they say nothing against the content of these hate messages. Their silence makes them complicit. They refuse to differentiate themselves by criticizing their fellow "Christians," but expect others to somehow see a difference in them.”

“"Silence"?! A little more exaggeration and hyperbole, please -- I can still detect reality despite your best effort.”

“What a fine example of "exporting democracy" this is!”

“And this form pre-populates content for you -- doesn't give you the option to say anything you'd like? And you can find no other way to send a letter to the WH?

Good lord. I'm surprised you were able to find a way to a ballot box to cast your vote against Obama, given all the communication roadblocks in your way.”

“This woman tries way too hard. You know that line, "Never let them see you sweat"? She's sweating, and it shows. (Metaphorically speaking, that is.)

I've always thought she was a beautiful woman physically, and this kind of costumery smacks of sheer desperation.”

“I'm with you -- with that level of thoughtful, detailed analysis, I certainly feel reassured. (Not. Obviously.)”

“According to the right, we the people need protection from, for example, our own sexuality and from drugs -- including "protections" legislated by government because the right considers us incapable of adequate self-determination in those areas. How, then, is it that we don't need legislated protection from guns?”

“Do you also believe that 11 yo's shouldn't be concerned about racism because it doesn't affect them? Or about about sexism because it doesn't affect them? (Of course those things affect them! If it affects our society, it affects our society's children!)

Inculturated biases affect all of us, every day, whether we are comfortable admitting it or not.”

“Looks like this kid built his own soapbox. "And a little child shall lead them . . ." -- didn't I read that somewhere? Where was that? Oh, yes -- the Bible! (Isaiah 1:10). And doesn't the story go that Christ start preaching as a young teenager?”

“We have gay family friends. Bet you do, too! (Whether you know it or not.)”

“Ahem. As the parent of a now-adult(ish) child, I'm proud to say that I learned at least as much from my daughter while she was a child as she learned from me. She's always been a reader and intellectual questioner, and she developed some pretty strong opinions that differed from mine on occasion -- and in many cases she led me to change my mind.

Never under-estimate young people. I'm still learning from the one I raised and am grateful for the opportunity.”

“Assuming you live in a rural setting, when was the last time someone you know had to dive for cover to avoid being hit by flying bullets from a drive-by shooting, had to replace a window in a city home that had been shot up by drive-by shootists or kids just "goofing around," or had to wait your turn in an ER while the gunshot wounds were treated first? (I live in the relative safety of the suburbs and have experienced two of those three personally.)

Most of us, like President Obama, are capable of recognizing differences between the gun cultures that exist in metropolitan and rural areas. In one setting, they are far more dangerous to people than in the other. Surely you also can appreciate the differences in experience and the resulting perspectives?”

“I am not a fan of guns personally (being a city dweller my whole life and reading far too many accounts of citizens shooting citizens over ridiculous arguments and perceived affronts), but I am capable of recognizing they are part of a different gun culture in rural settings than the gun culture that exists in metropolitan settings. Having spent a fair amount of time in Montana with relatives who hunt to eat, I suspect this boy knew how to handle his gun safely -- or as safely as any 11-yo whose brain is not yet fully developed could.

That said, what if this child had only wounded and enraged the bear? I'm glad things turned out well in this case, but don't think I'd recommend that kids, even in a gun-educated culture, go bear-hunting on their own.”

“She offends me as a woman, in much the same way gold-diggers do -- she wants something she has in no way earned, and has managed to convince herself somehow that she deserves it without serious consideration of the potential fallout and long-term consequences to others.”

“Larry King doesn't need to defend that interview, or that question in particular. It is, after all, *the* obvious question any rational interviewer would ask, considering that Ms. Prejean herself has chosen to make a public issue of her supposedly strong principles in the matter, and she should surely have expected it. Her response was inept and irrational.”

“How did Obama censor the media? What did he prevent the media from saying?

Refusing to help someone develop a negative story about you is not the same as preventing them from airing a negative story. You get that, right?”

“P.S. Everyone has an interesting and valuable story to tell. Everyone.”

“She may inspire us with her ability to overcome a horrific tragedy with grace and strength. She may help viewers who struggles with physical unattractiveness of any kind take courage and soldier on. She may help us put our own problems in perspective.

I'm sure those possibilities would be of interest to many.”

“Who is the woman? If she's not mentioning the woman's name, how will it hurt anything? Surely you were already aware those kinds of stories exist in the abstract, weren't you? You weren't shocked by the mere concept?

So . . . ???”

“She, by her own description, can't stand up to campaign staffers and gave up control of her own "brand," couldn't negotiate so much as a half-million dollar deal, was unprepared to answer questions in an interview she offered to do, and did not adequately vet or have the ability to negotiate satisfactory (to her) conditions for accepting a job that might ultimately have put her in a position to save or destroy the free world.

She (says she) wrote a book about these weaknesses, for pete's sake, and bizarrely apparently expects it to broaden her credibility and appeal. The opposite possibility appears not even to have occurred to her -- that her book and interviews merely illustrate that she lacks the abilities to stand up to strong opposition, succeed in even relatively inconsequential negotiations that are important to her, achieve her goals in so much as a media interview, or even make good choices for herself -- let alone a nation.

She offers many excuses for her inability to effect the results she wants and is quick to blame others, including people with whom one might expect to her to have strong influence -- another profession of her own inability to lead.

Unless she and her followers truly are idiots (always a possibility), it would be a stretch to believe that her true goal could possibly be more than mere fame and money.”

“LOL!”

“Just as she said would be when she accepted the position on a temporary basis. Do your homework. It might keep you from embarassing yourself in public (again).”