tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24739165.post1095377550244150715..comments2023-10-31T08:45:32.158-07:00Comments on The Northern Muckraker: There's lies, damn lies, and then there's President ObamaDouglas Hesterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08294368746311073234noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24739165.post-71197517815593512082010-09-15T01:50:15.598-07:002010-09-15T01:50:15.598-07:00Believe it or not, I actually can talk about bat b...Believe it or not, I actually <i>can</i> talk about bat behavior. My faculty advisor at the University of Maryland was Gerry Wilkinson, one of the foremost bat authorities on the East Coast if not the entire country. Send me an email if you wish - I would also be delighted to talk about that topic with you, perhaps offline over lunch or something - I fear everyone else here would be bored silly ;)Douglas Hesterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08294368746311073234noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24739165.post-64415092800273002932010-09-14T17:39:58.504-07:002010-09-14T17:39:58.504-07:00Rock on :) And thanks for the clarification of you...Rock on :) And thanks for the clarification of your intent.<br /><br />Although, I disagree that the untruths in question are impulsive (on the contrary, they appear to be premeditated). And I have yet to see compelling evidence that <i>any</i> President is not an incessant public truthbender. It's kind of a given to me. <br /><br />I'm also not sure how many discussions I'm up for. Politics are definitely way out of my comfort zone. If you ever want to talk about the correlations between cone/rod ratios and diet in both diurnal and nocturnal bats, I would be delighted.Betsynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24739165.post-5880733134686762212010-09-14T16:40:07.270-07:002010-09-14T16:40:07.270-07:00Betsy,
Welcome and thanks for contributing to the...Betsy,<br /><br />Welcome and thanks for contributing to the discussion. I know from talking to you in person that you don't often care to engage in such debate, so I'm honored that you've chosen to do so here. I am positive that you will add some much-needed perspective from an alternate viewpoint.<br /><br />You do make a valid point about the President's lying (we can at least agree that there is an abundance of that from him, right?) perhaps not rising to the level of pathological, although your definition of that status included both "impulsive" and "out of habit", which in my opinion are bars that Mr. Obama's truth-smashing easily hurdles. The fibbing seemingly is done for a purpose, I'll grant you that, so I'll change the description used in the post to "incessant". <br /><br />As for my creative use of subjective adverbs, it is done mostly for entertainment value and not to add the "ambience" of bias, as I think that my biases are already very clearly delineated in my writing. I believe that every person has some biases and preconceived notions; I can do no more than be completely honest and upfront about them so that my views on subjects can be placed in the proper context.<br /><br />What I try to do around here is to creatively illustrate my opinions on freedom and fairness issues through commenting on topical stories in the hopes of sparking lively debate and general entertainment for all involved, as well as to shed some much-needed light on abusive government employees and policies. I really hope you stick around awhile to contribute to the fun ;)<br /><br />I'll see you soon at the Village.Douglas Hesterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08294368746311073234noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24739165.post-24373009868044725762010-09-14T11:14:51.924-07:002010-09-14T11:14:51.924-07:00Betsy, what our gracious host is saying is that ou...Betsy, what our gracious host is saying is that our President has a habit of lying about anything and everything.<br /><br />Remember waiting periods before signing so people could read laws? Health insurance reform would save money and reduce the deficit? Vigorous enforcement of open records? You go down the list, all of Obama's promises expire when politically inconvenient.<br /><br />He is a pathological liar, one who makes Bill Clinton look honest in comparison.Bike Bubbahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08193546045614393425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24739165.post-41677723342585535412010-09-13T23:37:00.658-07:002010-09-13T23:37:00.658-07:00While I agree with you (I think, at least) in that...While I agree with you (I think, at least) in that it's a bloody shame that the war continues, particularly when we are given misleading information about its perpetuation - I must protest at the use of the term "pathological lying." Lying, I can/will neither yea or nay. Pathological, I will definitely nay.<br /><br />Pathological lies are impulsive, purposeless, and out of habit. There is no cause to lie, no motive, simply following the path most traveled because it's the only recognizable one. In this case, there definitely a recognizable motive to lie: garnering public support. Perpetuating a public image of a peacemaker. In other words, political gain.<br /><br />A pathological lie might sound something like, "I had lasagna for dinner," when really he had Chinese, or, "I saw this really neat yellow and blue dog the other day!" when really, no such thing happened. These lies have no purpose, they don't further his cause, and they appear to be impulsive.<br /><br />It would appear, to the casual observer, that you are using a statement fallacious in nature (see: loaded or complex question, except you rephrased the question in the form of a request) to illustrate or indicate nothing, only invoke an emotional response from your readers. If this is indeed the case (and please, correct me if I'm misinterpreting your words), it undermines the credibility of your arguments. It, and your interjections of subjective adverbs such as "smugly," "proudly," and "vehemently." Being subjective, they don't contribute anything of value to the information you present. Again, it would appear that they exist simply to add the ambience of bias.<br /><br />Then again, I may be misinterpreting the point of your entry: is it intended to be an illustration of your opinion, or a serious critique of political affairs? Or something else entirely?<br /><br />Either way, the "pathological liar" sentence does not sit well with me.Betsynoreply@blogger.com