Sep
10
Gaffes, large and small
September 10, 2008 | 2 Comments
I really wanted to take a week off from blogging about the campaign, but events just won’t let me do that. First of all, I might be taking an unpopular minority position on this, but can we really let the “lipstick on a pig” kerfuffle drop already? Obama clearly didn’t mean it as a personal insult to Governor Palin. At worst, it shows, once again, that Obama just isn’t the sharpest knife in the drawer. It was an awkward analogy, but that’s it.
In the end, Jay Anderson has the most sensible take on the matter.
What should not be overlooked is Senator Biden’s comments at a campaign stop yesterday.
“I hear all this talk about how the Republicans are going to work in dealing with parents who have … the joy and the difficulty of raising a child who has a developmental disability,” said Biden, who’s wife is a teacher. “Well guess what folks? If you care about it, why don’t you support stem cell research?”
There are so many things wrong with this statement that I’m not sure where to begin. First of all, all Republicans support stem cell research. What most conservatives don’t approve of is embryonic stem cell research. So let’s make that clear. Second, there is little to no connection between embryonic stem cell research and treatment for developmental disabilities. Finally, it’s a bit insulting that you would, implicitly, chide an individual who has a mentally retarded child for nor supporting research that is both immoral and has no practical application anyway as regards that child’s condition.
As the press eagerly anticipates Senator Governor Palin’s first big gaffe – and believe me, they will amplify it the second she will make one, and being human, she will make one – they should probably keep a camera trained on the human gaffe machine that is Joe Biden.
Update: Jumping Junipers. Credit where it is due, but Mark Shea had just about the exact same reaction to Biden’s comments as I did. Not sure I agree that the Ob’ma campaign is basically dead, though one can hope.
Comments
2 Comments so far
Crankycon,
You’re the first blog I’ve seen that notes the fact that Biden disingenuously omitted the word embryonic. No one has voiced major objection to adult stem cell (you know, the ones that have actually led to results) research. This is in line with liberal lies about Bush banning stem cell research. Never happened. He did stop government funding of ESCR. That doesn’t equal a ban in any way, shape or form.
Slight correction: In your next to last paragraph you identified Palin as a senator instead of governor.
Thanks, largebill. A little brainfart there. At least I didn’t call her Lt. Governor.