lol - sometimes it's hard to spot the straw dude
Posted on 05/24/2009 4:03:39 PM PDT by Joiseydude
How many times have we heard the president set up a strawman only to knock it down with ease in order to sell one of his policies?
Too often to count. The president has populated a virtual field of scarecrows with his rhetoric and finally, someone is calling him out on it.
(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...
To listen to President Obama, a veritable army of naysayers has invaded Washington, urging him to sit on his hands at the White House and do nothing to address any of the economic or national security problems facing the country."There are those who say these plans are too ambitious, that we should be trying to do less, not more," Mr. Obama told a town-hall-style meeting in Costa Mesa, Calif., on March 18. "Well, I say our challenges are too large to ignore."
Mr. Obama did not specify who, exactly, was saying America should ignore its challenges.
Similarly, the next day in Los Angeles, Mr. Obama took on Wall Street and Washington, two of his favorite straw men. "I know some folks in Washington and on Wall Street are saying we should just focus on their problems," Mr. Obama said. "It would be nice if I could just pick and choose what problems to face, when to face them. So I could say, well, no, I don't want to deal with the war in Afghanistan right now; I'd prefer not having to deal with climate change right now. And if you could just hold on, even though you don't have health care, just please wait, because I've got other things to do."
Former Nixon speechwriter Bill Safire is familiar with the practice and identifies the rhetorical trick; "Take your opponent's argument to a ridiculous extreme, and then attack the extremists." He added, "That leaves the opponent to sputter defensively, ‘But I never said that.'
Safire also gave some clues on how to identify when a strawman argument was on the way:
The telltale indicators that a straw man trick is on the way are the introductory words "there are those who say" or "some say."
"In strawmanese, you never specify who ‘those who' are," Mr. Safire said. "They are the hollow scarecrows you set up to knock down."
It is maddening to listen to Obama set these scarecrows up one after another and knock them down, only to be praised by the MSM for his courage for making "the tough choices."
Let's see if some other media outlets pick up the theme of Obama's strawmen and run with it.
I like how he says we are in deep financial trouble because we don’t have universal health care. So, it’s actually going so SAVE us money. Good one.
He thinks getting rid of CO2 is another was to save money.
Actually, as I mentioned on a thread yesterday (the attack on Obama’s anti-Cheney speech in the NY Daily News), at least half a dozen writers have been noticing these straw men in the past few days—and have used the term to criticize it.
It’s a habit of malignant narcissists like Obama. Everything is always somebody else’s fault. Never Mr. Perfect Obama’s fault. “I’m perfect, so somebody else must have made this damned mess.”
Inherited ping.
Not my fault ping.
Nothing about this con man Obama -or whatever his name is- would suprise me. As fas I am concerned we are all living a fraud.
It's news when someone at the New York Times is fair - nice news - but still news.
Helene should be careful -- she'll be in the next round of "staff reductions" if she keeps this up.
Next strawman to come down the pike may go something like this.
Gun ownership causes violence, therefore....
Some strawmen will come to life. Even the MSM is starting to see how anti-free speech Obama is becoming. They will turn on him. I used to believe he would serve only one term—I now believe he will not make it though his first four years. 2010 the Republicans take over both House and Senate. 2011 the impeachment for corruption in office. That’s my prediction.
Mr. Obama’s backers say his use of straw men does not approach the level of former Vice President Dick Cheney. Indeed, just Thursday, Mr. Cheney offered this one: “I might add that people who consistently distort the truth in this way are in no position to lecture anyone about values.”
“Intelligence officers of the United States,” Mr. Cheney said, “were not trying to rough up some terrorists simply to avenge the dead of 9/11.”
Impeachment for corruption will work wonderfully if the Kenyan has to release his birth certificate. Actually, that would be impeachment for fraud. Right now, I’ll take impeachment for a bad hair day...
The MSM is uhappy with the Magic Muslim because he is refusing to bail them out like he bailed out his Wall Steet and Detroit campaign contributors. But the MSM will fall back into line as they always do.
Psychotics! *Failure In Chief*,reminds me of Casey Anthony. Barry and Casey have identical psychotic,
Personality disorders.
There are some who say I am crazy for thinking Obama is a spawn of the devil. If I don’t warn people now they will never notice it themselves.
/s
LOL, I've seen that used around here more than a little.
“There are some who say “, wet straw smells funny!!
That's understandable.
With the Congress we have now, it will never happen. 0 could be on live TV holding up a convenience store and the Rats would say it was Bush’s fault.
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