Having just heard Sen Tuberville "explain" that Putin invaded Ukraine because he "needed

[Atticus]

the farmland", I wonder if we might need to have some sort of "exam" that prospective Senators must pass before being seated. I have a few suggested questions that would thin out one side of the aisle.

1. a.) How many letters does our alphabet use? b.) Recite them---IN ORDER.

2. What color is Hawaiian paper money? ( NO GOOGLING )

3. If Mary buys eight apples, eats one, gives one to John and feeds one to her horse, how many apples does she have left? ( NO CALCULATORS
ALLOWED )

4. Name three planets in our solar system. ( OTHER THAN EARTH )

5. Using either hand, pat yourself on the butt. ( THREE MINUTE TIME LIMIT )

IF YOU NEED TO HAVE THE ABOVE READ FOR YOU, RAISE YOUR HAND.



Who could possibly object to such a requirement?

[Lovie777]

1. All I got to say is . . ..

that rocks are smarter than the GQP.

[durablend]

9. The paint on your walls are smarter than the GQP

[ProudMNDemocrat]

2. As massive as Russia is, there are no farms?

Go back to coaching football, Tommy! At least you understand that football is a land acquisition game.

[thucythucy]

3. Number 5 is ableist.

FDR wouldn't have been able to stand up out of his chair unassisted to pat his butt. Ed Roberts, who won a MacArthur genius award and helped found the Independent Living Movement, was paralyzed from the neck down by polio, but intellectually could have run circles around 99% of everyone currently in public office.

And being blind--referring to the "if you need the above read to you"--is not a disqualification for public office, or at least it shouldn't be.

But yes, I agree with your general premise. By and large GQP senators are a disreputable, ignorant, and criminally unqualified bunch. I say "by and large" because there might be one out there who isn't, but I rather doubt it.

[A HERETIC I AM]

13. Seriously?

It’s a JOKE, for crying out loud!

[thucythucy]

14. Right, and that excuses it.

Try posting a racist or homophobic comment, offer the "it's a joke for crying out loud!" excuse, and see what happens.

[A HERETIC I AM]

21. Oh please

It never ceases to amaze me the things some members of this board will take issue with, regardless of how banal or harmless.

I swear I could put up a post containing pictures of puppies, kittens and bunnies and someone will complain it is anti kitten because there was one more bunny than kittens.

You had an enormous amount of choices available to you after reading the OP. You could have had a bit of a chuckle. You could have just moved on. You could have tut tutted to yourself and quietly condemned Atticus as someone who doesn’t share your oh-so perfect sensibilities. But instead you decided to scold him over something so absurd it is beyond being ridiculous.

“Ableist”?!? Really? THAT’S the flag you felt you had to raise?

Jesus Joking Christ patting his ass in front of smoking footlights.



And by the way, “ Using either hand, pat yourself on the butt.” In no way whatsoever is in the same damned state, much less the same ballpark as a racial or homophobic joke or slur.

[Maru Kitteh]

26. WELL DONE HERETIC!!!!

Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant.

[Atticus]

28. I am "Atticus", not "Aristus", ( though being confused with him is sort of a compliment ) and I

am grateful for your response.

I did not respond to my nit-picking critic because I assumed someone would feel as you did and straighten them out . You did so in a better way than I would have.

Again, thank you.

[A HERETIC I AM]

40. My sincere apologies. (Corrected)

As I was typing that, I thought “perhaps I should check the spelling of the name”.

I didn’t. I clearly should have.

Sorry about that.

[Atticus]

43. No problem. nt

[thucythucy]

32. Right, because making an ableist comment

maligning people with physical disabilities is just like posting about puppies, kittens, and bunnies.

Years back people here would defend jokes about rape, because, you know, "It's just a joke." Ha ha.

Then comes #MeToo and hopefully people are a bit more sensitive.

You also had choices in responding to my post. You might have taken some time to consider what I was saying. You might have wondered--"If I were someone in a wheelchair, how would I respond to this 'joke'? Possibly, after years of hearing hundreds of such comments, my patience too might be at an end? After decades of confronting inaccessible buildings and sidewalks and buses, after being told in so many words, 'You're not welcome here,' after hearing comment after comment, joke after joke about "spazzes' and 'cripples' and 'gimps' and 'mouth breathers' etc. etc. etc., maybe I'd be bothered as well? Who knows, maybe such comments come out of a real distaste for people with disabilities, and harmful misconceptions about who they really are? Could it be this fear and loathing of disabled people is so deeply entrenched in our culture that I don't even notice it when it's there right in front of of me?"

Instead, you came back with the usual, "Lighten up, it's just a joke." I suppose I should be grateful you didn't accuse me of being 'woke'--but then again you did come close.

As I said, eventually people will come around, perhaps even yourself included, and the penny will drop.

In the meantime, enjoy your yuks.

[A HERETIC I AM]

42. As explained to you in a post below (which your indignation clearly refused to accept)..

The expression has nothing to do with someone who may or may not be in a wheelchair.

And for the record, the subject of the OP, Tommy Tuberville is completely ambulatory.

Your main paragraph above is frankly a ridiculous read. The statement in question is miles and miles away from disparaging someone in a wheelchair, or even being inconsiderate of such persons.

Writers should not have to, and can not be expected to cater to every single possible affront to what a random someone might consider offensive. This leads to the exact same kind of language policing and pointless vernacular modification that George Carlin spoke about years ago.

The fact that you seem to insist they do says more about how you allow the outside world to affect you than you may realize.

[Iggo]

18. Oh my gawd!!!

[Disaffected]

20. I believe

the "if you need the above read to you" refers to illiteracy.

Your comment about ableism is equally specious (IMO).

[thucythucy]

33. I'm sure that's what the OP meant.

I only point out that it is open for some misinterpretation.

The bit about patting your butt is pretty clear though.

As for "being specious" I have my opinion, and you have yours.

Best wishes.

[nolabear]

23. You've never heard the phrase "can't find his butt with both hands"?

It has nothing to do with mobility. It has to do with mental capacity, as does the requirement that the OP be read. If you believe that requiring a certain level of mental competence is necessary to be in Congress is ableist, well, I’m going to disagree with you there.

[thucythucy]

34. "It has nothing to do with mobility."

Perhaps not as you state it, but that's not what the OP says.

He asks the subject to pat his butt--for which you do need to be mobile.

Mental competence is one thing, physical agility is another.

And yes, I know the OP is joking, just in case there was any question.

But we disagree, which is fine.

[Claustrum]

4. So if Canada wants more farmland, they can come get it from the US?

It makes no logical sense.

[OneBlueDotS-Carolina]

5. Amazing...

Tuberville would mess up a "what is your name, now spell it" test.


Sen. Tommy Tuberville says Russia is still a 'communist country' and is invading Ukraine because 'they need more farmland'

Sen. Tommy Tuberville said that Russia is a 'communist country' in remarks at an Alabama event this week.
He also said Putin decided to invade Ukraine because he "can't feed his people" and needs ''more farmland."
The Alabama Republican, a former Auburn football coach, has a history of flubbing historical facts.

As Russia began its invasion of Ukraine this week, Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama said that Russia is still a 'communist country' and said that Russian President Vladimir Putin was launching an invasion in order to acquire more farmland.

Tuberville made the remarks in a address before the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce billed a "Washington Brief," where he also discussed the pandemic, rumored trucker protests in Washington, DC, and his tenure as a senator so far. His remarks were reported by 1819 News.

"He can't feed his people," Tuberville said, referring to Putin. "It's a communist country, so he can't feed his people, so they need more farmland."

Tuberville, a former Auburn football coach before ascending to the US Senate with the help of an endorsement from former President Donald Trump, sits on the Senate Committee on Armed Services, which has purview over the US military.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/sen-tommy-tuberville-says-russia-is-still-a-communist-country-and-is-invading-ukraine-because-they-need-more-farmland/ar-AAUgBDo

[Captain Zero]

37. So is Tuber ok with the invasion?

I can't tell whether or not he justifying the invasion or just stating 'the facts' as he misunderstands them like a public service to get a free meal at this banquet.

[chocolatpi]

6. Reminds me of an episode from a reality show.

Stacy: How many states in the US.

Georgi : 48 states(he has a green card)
Stacy: No, It's 51

Producer: That's 50 states
Stacy: Ohhh

www.statista.com › number-us-states-by-yearNumber of US states by year since 1776 - Statista
Jul 06, 2020 · Along with the fifty U.S. states, there is one federal district (Washington D.C., the capital city), and fourteen overseas territories, five of which with a resident population (American

[ck4829]

7. Why do we put up with this? Why are we OK with this?

Tuberville is paid by people who are overworked/underpaid in jobs they are overqualified for. And yet, he's just in there, replacing a guy who was actually qualified.

This system is broken.

[Caliman73]

19. We are okay with it because Politics has been devolved into a popularity contest

rather than a contest of policy and leadership.

People voted for Tuberville because he coached at Auburn. His fucking Senate page has "Coach Tommy Tuberville" on it and sections like "Coach's Bio".

Same reason why California elected Arnold Schwarzenegger as governor when Gray Davis was recalled. California ended up with a 9 billion dollar hole in our budget that took Governor Brown another two terms to fix.

Politics should be about what plans the politician has to make people's lives better, not about stupid ads and gimmicks.

The education system is broken, our moral compass is broken.

[hatrack]

24. Oh, and he owns libtards, which is the #1 consideration in Alabama

[Caliman73]

25. How? By punching himself in the nuts?

Is being an idiot and having less knowledge about the world than a 3rd grade child, "Owning the libs"?

[PurgedVoter]

8. The Republicans will object because it's CRT

Damn those Cathode Ray Tubes!

[OMGWTF]

10. That guy also said it's okay to have insider trading because otherwise no one would

run for office unless they could make money from it. He actually said, "I was paid millions of dollars to go away." Red states suck. I want a divorce from these taker state fidiots that are destroying our entire country.

[Ferrets are Cool]

11. I'm just so proud of my senator.

Alabamians would elect a pig before they would elect a Democrat. That is how much we as Democrats are hated down here.

[A HERETIC I AM]

12. Needs some picture questions

[Norbert]

15. Naming the three branches of government was enough to stump old Tommy.

[Iggo]

16. Lebensraum.

Yeah, I’ve heard this song before.

[Initech]

17. I kind of want them to take the IQ test from Idiocracy.

[rgbecker]

22. "Person, Woman, Man, Camera, TV"

Should be required for Presidential candidates also.

Oh, and let's see the tax returns.

[3catwoman3]

27. Maybe he was hit in the head too many times while playing football.

He apparently doesn't know this:

List of countries (and dependencies) ranked by area
# Country % of world landmass
1 Russia 11.0 %
2 Canada 6.1 %
3 China 6.3 %
4 United States 6.1 %

[Whiskeytide]

29. Can I finally get an acknowledgement that he ...

… is the dumbest man in Congress? I’ve been saying this for more than a year now, but no … you people keep trying to claim that YOUR congressperson is dumber. Please. I don’t want to hear it anymore.

[Blue Owl]

30. Next he'll invade Egypt for their grain pyramids

[Ilsa]

39. Best one yet! nt

[Volaris]

31. Tommy TuberHead could have help with that exam and still fail.

[Kid Berwyn]

35. Tuberville is a NAZI.

That’s why Hitler felt entitled to Ukraine: “Lebensraum.”

[Stuart G]

36. K and R..Tommy is a very low watt bulb..Like 3 watts in his skull. Ain't too smart, more like 1 fart

[Mr. Ected]

38. Low intelligence Americans should expect similar representation in Congress

However, in a perfect world, they'd be greatly outnumbered. It appears that we don't live in that perfect world.

[robbob]

41. Someone should point out to this asshole

That when Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union they used that precious farmland to feed Russia while starving the Ukraine, killing over 2 million people in the process. Is he suggesting they do it again?