Friday, March 23, 2012

Liar, Liar, Liar, Liar, LIAR, LIAR, LIAR,


Rachel Maddow is so much better at this than I am, which might explain why she has an audience and I don't. The above video says what I've been saying about our potential next president for a very long time: that his campaign is based on lies, that he lies like he breathes, that he does so shamelessly, repeatedly, and unrepentantly. The video ought to be watched, beginning to end (okay, people could skip the details about the manufacturing history of Etch-A-Sketch, although it's interesting in its own right) by everyone, left, right, center. Because Rachel is scathing in her clarity. While, as usual, completely factual.

And she's dead on about this: whereas lying is a well-honed part of American politics (it's not illegal to lie in campaign ads), Romney's lying is something far beyond precedent. It's pathological. That a man will repeat things, over and over, that are patently false, lie about doing so, and continue with new lies every day -- whose first instinct when confronted seems to be lying -- is deeply troubling. It'd be so in your kid, your friend, your co-worker. If you cared about them you'd seek ways to get them help. Maybe you'd feel the need to turn them in; or, at minimum, just avoid them.

But you sure as hell wouldn't vote for them to be president of the United States, would you?

This guy is defective in some as-yet undefined but obvious way, a way that probably has its own DSM-IV code. And whatever else it is, whatever you might call it, it ought to be categorically disqualifying for higher office. Categorically. Absolutely.

That Mitt Romney, a blatant, continuous, and transcendent liar, will be the R nominee, will undoubtedly win some states, and might even win the whole thing says much more about who we've become as a country than about him.

But it still says a hell of a lot about him.


6 comments:

  1. Ahhh another beautiful spring day in the A-T-L..
    AKA "The City too busy too hate"

    We WOULD hate you, if we weren't so damn busy.
    So many things to do, NCAA Sweet 16 in town, NBA team...
    HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
    I mean when you lose your NBA team to Oklahoma City...

    Frank

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for your usual insightful analysis, Frank. I don't know how you find the time.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh yeah, like YOUR analysis, that Politicians frequently lie, broke any new ground.
    Whats next, Crap stinks?
    Ike didn't tell Mamie he was boffing Kay Summers, and I think when your name's "Mamie" you expect to get cheated on.
    JFK, probably didn't tell Jackie he was having sex with Marilyn, I think that's a lie of O-mission
    LBJ, didn't really tell the truth bout' Vietnam, and even if he did, holding that beagle by the ears canceled it out.
    MY childhood President, "Tricky Dick", heck, his nick name pokes fun at his tricky-ness.
    in fact the only President in the last 50 years who didn't lie much was Georgia's Own In-Bred, Jimmuh Cartuh.
    And if His Muslim-Faith himself had told the truth, that he won't close Gitmo, Hilary Clinton might be President Now,
    and probably lying bout something.

    Frank

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  4. You're only just noticing that people on the Right collectively display DSM-worthy behaviors?

    - Molly, NYC

    ReplyDelete
  5. Um, no. I think I've been writing about that for several years.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I couldn't let these be the only comments on this post. We all know that politicians lie but that shouldn't impede our ability to be outraged when it happens so blatantly.

    I think that just acquiescing to the obvious because it's so ubiquitous is morally wrong.

    And equating the lies that Mitt Romney has told (is telling) to JFK and Ike's sexual affairs is just stupid.

    Thanks for your blog. I'm glad someone else is outraged and not afraid to say so.

    ReplyDelete

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