Inkless Wells

Inkless Wells

Paul Wells on all the latest out of Ottawa—along with the occasional post about jazz. Follow Paul on Twitter: @InklessPW

In the race for most surreal national politics…

by Paul Wells on Tuesday, September 15, 2009 11:49am - 37 Comments

…Canada’s going to have to settle for the silver yet again.

I don’t know about you, but now I’m always going to wonder what Teenage Republican Camp was like in South Carolina in 1966.

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  • http://intensedebate.com/people/Jack_Mitchell Jack Mitchell

    Voiceovers in a Southern accent just haven't been the same since Shelby Foote passed on.

  • http://intensedebate.com/people/Lord_Bob Lord Bob

    Yeah, us Canadians always get the second-best. I went to Teenage Progressive Conservative Camp in 1966, and it was just a bunch of guys in baby blue sweaters talking about how when they grew up they'd never make a coalition with the separatists and socialists (the Teenage Bloc Québécois Camp was across the river, which was a neat trick since they weren't going to exist for another twenty-five years but that was just proof of how clever those French bastids really were).

    Also, while I did meet a woman there, unfortunately for me it was Elsie Wayne.

    • Dave

      Dood, Elsie Wayne was a man.

      • Bob Beck

        … who got real snippy whenever anyone suggested she "just shut up about it."

  • http://intensedebate.com/people/jolyon jolyon

    It is like husband and wife are playing good/bad cop. Joe Wilson has raised a lot of money from those two words, 'you lie', and is fast becoming a hero on the right. Roxanne comes along and calls her husband a nut, does a little eye roll when she found out that it was her husband yelling at president, but says he's a good guy none the less. Awesome double team.

    And the ad reinforces idea that American politics is really different than from what we get up here. It is unfathomable that a Canadian pol would produce a tv ad like Roxanne's.

    • http://intensedebate.com/people/Jack_Mitchell Jack Mitchell

      "It is like husband and wife are playing good/bad cop. Joe Wilson has raised a lot of money from those two words,"

      IIRC his opponent raised $100 000 in a couple of days.

      • http://intensedebate.com/people/tigerinexil1428 tigerinexile

        You're behind.

        Both Wilson and his opponent have raised a million bucks each.

        • http://intensedebate.com/people/Jack_Mitchell Jack Mitchell

          Jesus.

  • Blues Clair

    Hilarious.

    Mom, Dad made a mess again…

  • http://intensedebate.com/people/SisyphusThis SisyphusThis

    Speaking as a recovering Tim's addict, caffeine withdrawal can be a terrible thing.

  • Sea Otter

    I could quit anytime I want, I just choose not to. :-)

  • http://intensedebate.com/people/Crit_Reasoning Crit_Reasoning

    I'll speculate: Lots of heavy petting but a few home runs, usually by the guys who let their crew cuts grow longer. Worn old photos of Vice President Nixon and President Eisenhower. The favourite sport was draft dodgeball (the winners got sent to the National Guard enlistment tent).

  • http://www.intensedebate.com/people/Crit_Reasoning Crit_Reasoning

    I'll speculate: Lots of heavy petting but a few home runs, usually by the guys who let their crew cuts grow longer. Worn photos of Vice President Nixon and President Eisenhower. The favourite sport was draft dodgeball (the winners got sent to the National Guard enlistment tent).

  • http://intensedebate.com/people/Jenn_ Jenn_

    Oh! I didn't realize . . . silly me. Here I thought we should be judging politicians by their actions (which includes apologies). How much simpler just to ask their wives who we should vote for! After all, if the leader's wife says she loves him, what more could we possibly want in a leader?

    I can't decide whether this reflects more on the Republicans or on their target audience. That this ad is put out to change anybody's mind on anything is a testament to one or the other.

    • MJ Patchouli

      Jenn, Jenn, Jenn — don't forget, in Canada, the Conservative party leader's wife is also the leader — co-leaders, apparently. So even if you don't like Harper (and really, who does?), you can always vote for his smiley-faced, yet kind of stringy-looking wife, and rest assured that she has equal pull as party leader. That Harper — he doesn't make a move without her leadership approval! That's why Baird was hanging out with her all the time — she's got pull; in fact, she IS the pull!

      She no longer wears her wedding ring in public, but she's every bit the leader harp is — unlike the entire not a leader camp over at the Liberals. And that Zsuzsanna Zohar — she's had the nerve to have her own career all along. Also not a leader.

  • jay

    Did you see the size of those people in the photo from the restaurant? America needs Weight Watchers as the public option.

    • Orson Bean

      I laughed out loud at that one. Nicely played.

      I'll always remember the first Chicken-Fried steak I had served to me at a diner in America's heartland. Quite possibley the most unhealthy thing I've ever had served to me as food. I also remember a restaurant down in New Orleans that served pecan pie, and when you ordered it, they would ask you if you wanted it deep-fried.

  • Mulletaur

    11 years, really ? I hope they didn't have it off during that time after telling all those Yankee teenagers about the benefits of chastity until marriage. Hmmm.

  • http://intensedebate.com/people/Lord_Bob Lord Bob

    Off-topic, but I just saw that bright yellow "Coyne v. Wells Live!" ad on the right. What a shame it's in Toronto and I'm in Victoria, but if I start jogging now and pack trunks for the Georgia Strait I might just about make it.

    • http://intensedebate.com/people/PhilCP PhilCP

      SHOWDOWN is probably an exaggeration, but I'm sure that it will be both entertaining and thought provoking.

      And thanks to CPAC for their part.

  • http://intensedebate.com/people/SisyphusThis SisyphusThis

    Via Ezra Klein ……

    http://voices.washingtonpost.com/ezra-klein/2009/…

    I know it's funny but the scary thing is it could be true.

  • http://intensedebate.com/people/Gaunilon Gaunilon

    I love it. You heckle Bush during a speech to Congress, you're a run-of-the-mill Democrat. You heckle Obama during a speech to Congress, you're an inordinately rude Republican.

    Standards, standards.

    • Tiamat

      Please point to the elected Democrat who heckled Bush.
      Please point to the elected Democrat who called Bush a liar in the middle of his speech.

      Please also show evidence where the elected Democrat was flat out wrong in their assertion (like Rep. Wilson was – if he had read the bill in question, the language on the issue of illegal immigrants accessing the monies in the legislation is explicitly spelled out).

      • http://intensedebate.com/people/Gaunilon Gaunilon

        Watch the State of the Union speech from 2005. Here, I'll even link it for you. You're welcome.

        Please show language in the bill that excludes illegal immigrants using some kind of check.

      • scf

        Here's another example, separate from Gaunilon's

        Pete Stark, Democrat, calls Bush a liar from the House floor, twice:
        http://gatewaypundit.blogspot.com/2009/09/hypocri…

      • scf

        Tiamat, exactly what do you think will happen when an illegal immigrant arrives at a hospital with a heart attack? According to what you're saying, Obama wants the hospital to slam the door shut. Either that, or Obama is lying. You decide.

        • http://www.intensedebate.com/people/SisyphusThis SisyphusThis
        • http://www.intensedebate.com/people/SisyphusThis SisyphusThis

          Oh, there are lies ….. and there are lies …

          http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/09…

          • http://intensedebate.com/people/SisyphusThis SisyphusThis
          • scf

            Please explain to me what will happen when illegal immigrants require emergency care. Because, of course, it is known that up until this time there were no provisions in the bills being proposed by Democrats that barred illegals from purchasing the public option (if it exists) or from receiving taxpayer-funded care. But most of all, I'm wondering, what will happen? Will they be tossed on buses and shipped elsewhere when they need help?

          • scf

            Why do I bother… you refused to answer my question the first time, so I'm sure you'll ignore it again, the same way Obama fails to answer the important questions.

          • http://intensedebate.com/people/Gaunilon Gaunilon

            Hey scf, what happened to the baby pic?

          • http://www.intensedebate.com/people/Gaunilon Gaunilon

            Hey scf, what happened to the baby pic? Without either it or an account anyone could pose as you.

      • http://www.intensedebate.com/people/Gaunilon Gaunilon

        Watch Bush's State of the Union speech from 2005. Here, I'll even link it for you. You're welcome.

        Please show language in the bill that excludes illegal immigrants using some kind of check. I'll remind you that an amendment to do just that was voted down by the Democrats.

    • Mytilene

      I have been seeing this premise a lot, and constructing this as evidence for asymmetric standards is a little disingenuous. When the Democrats booed and jeered in 2005, it was labelled as unprecedented at the time, even though the Republicans did the same to Clinton in some of his speeches to the House. Up until Joe Wilson, the borderline acceptable behaviour has been snickering and booing but not full out interruption and calling the president a liar during his speech to Congress. Past Presidents, H.W. Bush included, have been called all sorts of terrible things in speeches but outside of Congress. For H.W. Bush, he was a "mass murderer" when receiving an honourary Doctor of Law, and Clinton was berated as a "draft dodger" in his Memorial Day speech. Heck, even Nancy Pelosi got screamed at by Code Pink in 2007 when doing a speech about Iraq. The difference is that in the House, there is a minimum level of decorum, and in recent history, its limits have been tested with booing and snickering from each party when they are in the minority (though really far back in the 19th century, they used to duel and beat each other up). When the House has stringent rules such as prohibiting a member from sitting on a desk while speaking, do you really believe he would not receive any backlash for at best pushing against the tolerable limit of behaviour during a Presidential speech? By testing that limit further, Wilson embarrassed himself with his behaviour and was rightly called on it. No previous heckles or boos or whatever perceived repercussions thereof, especially in other forums, lessens what he did. It was deemed unacceptable in 2005 as it is now period.

  • matt

    This one time, at Teenage Republican Camp, I put the American flag…

  • http://intensedebate.com/people/PhilCP PhilCP

    I enjoyed the music in the video…anybody know the song…and/or who is playing?

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