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Post by schizophonic on Mar 3, 2009 15:50:04 GMT -5
See, when I first saw this, my brain went through several thoughts: 1.) "What the fuck?" 2.) "No, seriously, what the fuck?!" 3.) "Homeschooled, toted out in front of a large crowd and called a political prodigy by conservatives: I kinda feel sorry for the kid." 4.) "Nevermind, that kid needs a swirly...." 5.) Really. What the fuck? Honestly, I still kind of feel sorry for the kid. That's someone who's had the life sucked out of him at such a young age, and really, he's still more or less a baby. How screwed up were his parents to turn him into that?
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Post by The Lazy One on Mar 3, 2009 16:18:03 GMT -5
I feel a little bad for the kid- I mean, I love politics and I love to rant about them, but there is no way in hell you'd get me up on a stage to voice support for ANY political party. No one's ever called me a prodigy before though, so I guess it evens out.
I just wonder how much of that was him and how much was his parents' brainwashing.
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Post by szaleniec on Mar 3, 2009 16:37:17 GMT -5
I feel a little bad for the kid- I mean, I love politics and I love to rant about them, but there is no way in hell you'd get me up on a stage to voice support for ANY political party. No one's ever called me a prodigy before though, so I guess it evens out. I just wonder how much of that was him and how much was his parents' brainwashing. Mostly the latter, I think. Kid homeschooled by hardcore Republicans is very good at spouting Republican talking points; be still my beating heart. I was always the most political person in my group of friends, but I'd hesitate to say I had a developed political consciousness (which I'd define as the ability to watch a news item and analyse and draw my own conclusions based on a coherent belief system without any kind of prompting) before I was 16.
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Post by schizophonic on Mar 3, 2009 16:52:55 GMT -5
Mostly the latter, I think. Kid homeschooled by hardcore Republicans is very good at spouting Republican talking points; be still my beating heart. I was always the most political person in my group of friends, but I'd hesitate to say I had a developed political consciousness (which I'd define as the ability to watch a news item and analyse and draw my own conclusions based on a coherent belief system without any kind of prompting) before I was 16. I gotta say, I was disagreeing with my parents on politics by the first Clinton election, so I was like 11 or 12. I definitely did have my own political identity at that point, though I've definitely grown since. I'm not going to say I'm typical, especially since I know I'm a nerd who probably only grew as I did because my Dad actively challenged me to develop and interpret for myself. Just that it could be true. On the other hand, I doubt it's possible in a homeschool environment, because it's hardly conducive to open thought processes.
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Post by thunderbeard on Mar 3, 2009 16:58:49 GMT -5
From what I've seen, he's good at dropping big names, but sucks at actually thinking things through. I mean, Sarah Palin and Newt Gingrich?
...But then, that seems to be the Republican way: style over substance.
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Post by peanutfan on Mar 3, 2009 17:26:15 GMT -5
Considering that future Pope candidates were often selected politically around that age and the fact that some religious denominations can legally ordain ten-year-olds...yeah. Good luck with this, Repubs. I'll start listening when his balls drop or when you kick Rush to the curb, whichever comes first.
Actually, that's not entirely fair. Children can make good points and have valid opinions; I've long been of the opinion that both my life and my family's lives would have been better if my father had learned to say "no" to jobs that required us to move so often like I constantly asked him to growing up (I've never lived in one place more than four years in my entire life). The problem is that they're often hampered by lack of practical experience on which to form those opinions, especially in a sheltered, reclusive environment like conservative homeschooling tends to be, and a lot of political issues are too complex for the pat, simple answers that conservatives prefer. Saying a thirteen-year-old is the "future of the party" is probably a bit much, but if he shows back up on the political scene in his adult years, he might be one to keep an eye on.
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Post by szaleniec on Mar 3, 2009 17:50:37 GMT -5
Mostly the latter, I think. Kid homeschooled by hardcore Republicans is very good at spouting Republican talking points; be still my beating heart. I was always the most political person in my group of friends, but I'd hesitate to say I had a developed political consciousness (which I'd define as the ability to watch a news item and analyse and draw my own conclusions based on a coherent belief system without any kind of prompting) before I was 16. I gotta say, I was disagreeing with my parents on politics by the first Clinton election, so I was like 11 or 12. I definitely did have my own political identity at that point, though I've definitely grown since. I'm not going to say I'm typical, especially since I know I'm a nerd who probably only grew as I did because my Dad actively challenged me to develop and interpret for myself. Just that it could be true. I may be overly critical of my own political development, and I did grow up in a similar environment. I'd still hesitate to lower the voting age to 16 as has been proposed, and certainly wouldn't support lowering it further than that. (Had the voting age been 16 I'd have been able to vote in 2001, but as I'd probably have voted Labour this might be just as well. I know they were always going to win, but voting for the government that went to war in Iraq wouldn't have sat easy on my conscience.)
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Post by peanutfan on Mar 3, 2009 17:54:30 GMT -5
I'm probably going to make myself very unpopular with this, but I somewhat tentatively hold the position that the voting age should be RAISED in countries that hold elections, as should the minimum ages for political candidates to run. People should accrue wisdom and experience before being allowed to shape policy.
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Post by JonathanE on Mar 3, 2009 18:06:08 GMT -5
Well, looking intelligent and sharing a stage with Rush, et al, is not a difficult mission.
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Post by ironbite on Mar 3, 2009 18:06:09 GMT -5
Well you know the old saying...out of the mouths of babes come truth.
Ironbite-or in this case talking points.
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King Leopard
Full Member
The ORIGINAL douche canoe
Posts: 201
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Post by King Leopard on Mar 3, 2009 18:17:21 GMT -5
That's fantastic.
Taking political advice from someone who has never held down a job and who only knows about the 70s from what he's read in history textbooks and Austin Powers in Goldmember.
IRL SKYFIRE
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Post by antichrist on Mar 3, 2009 18:31:13 GMT -5
That's fantastic. Taking political advice from someone who has never held down a job and who only knows about the 70s from what he's read in history textbooks and Austin Powers in Goldmember. IRL SKYFIRE George Bush?
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Post by Green-Eyed Lilo on Mar 4, 2009 11:57:17 GMT -5
My mom, who watches Fox News, told me about this kid and thought he was great. I gagged. I'm glad at least that he's home-schooled. It sounds like the other kids would kick his ass in a public school. Also, he at least has the excuse of being only a kid. Maybe somehow he'll be able to grow up mentally as well as physically. We can hope.
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Post by Caitshidhe on Mar 4, 2009 12:10:25 GMT -5
I'll regurgitate what's already been said: I think the kid is brainwashed through years of uber-conservative homeschooling and never being exposed to other opinions besides those of his parents. I mean, he's kind of a good speaker and all, and he may well be a clever boy, but I think his parents are taking advantage of and exploiting him in the same way that parents of unusually pretty little girls exploit THEM in beauty pageants for kids not yet out of pull-ups.
Yeah.
(We can all make our own jokes about how of COURSE the Republicans are a group of people who can be wow-ed by a thirteen-year-old boy.)
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Post by Green-Eyed Lilo on Mar 4, 2009 12:20:32 GMT -5
@ Caitshidhe: I do have to say, I wonder about the parents' motives. I think most caring parents would tell their little aspiring Sean Hannity (or Keith Olbermann) that he's clever and they're proud of him, but it would really help him to go through college and learn a few things about the world before he tries to change it.
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