I'm sorry, but Joe the Plumber was one depraved person.

[kpete]

Last edited Mon Aug 28, 2023, 10:00 PM - Edit history (1)

Joe the Plumber, who just died at age 49 of pancreatic cancer, had this to say in an open letter to the parents of children in CA who died in a 2014 gun massacre

“I am sorry you lost your child. I myself have a son and daughter and the one thing I never want to go through, is what you are going through now,” he wrote. “But: As harsh as this sounds ― your dead kids don’t trump my Constitutional rights.

That was one depraved person.

https://news.yahoo.com/conservative-activist-joe-plumber-dead-175302162.html#:~:text=In%20an%20open%20letter%20to,through%20now%2C%E2%80%9D%20he%20wrote.
https://www.eschatonblog.com/2023/08/happy-hour_0684225701.html#comment-6265738064

[Lunabell]

1. Gun humpers are scum.

Evil scum.

[Attilatheblond]

2. Joe the Liar?

As I recall, he wasn't really a plumber.

[democratsruletheday]

3. Correct....just more BULLSHIT from another RWNJ

wasn't a plumber and his real name was Sam. Shoulda been Sam the Tool Man cuz he was in fact a tool. And now....he's dead. Meh.

[Attilatheblond]

5. Thanks for the reminder that his name wasn't even Joe

Had forgotten that lie.

[William769]

4. Maybe that's why he's dead.

[spike jones]

6. IMO, gun ownership is a sign of mental illness. If you own a lot of guns, you are very sick. n/t

[70sEraVet]

11. I remember when the media started covering the Branch Davidian story, and a news anchor ...

started talking about the number of guitars David Koresh had collected, as if that were proof of his insanity. I remember thinking, "Hey, I've got THREE guitars -- does that make me 1/10th as crazy as David Koresh?"
I don't believe that an enthusiasm for firearms = mass murder. A guy who collects WW1 weapons, or Revolutionary War muskets, is NOT going to go on a shooting spree.
BUT, whenever there is a very notable mass shooting, the sales on that particular gun goes through the roof. I would love to see a temporary ban on the sales of that particular weapon. Enough time for the hot heads to cool down.

[liberal_mama]

7. Yeah, he was awful. What kind of a person, a father himself, would say something so horrible?

I was so disgusted when I heard that. No mercy or compassion at all.

[usonian]

8. In the old days, plumbers got a dose of lead for their efforts.

Molten lead was used to seal pipes. Bad stuff.
The Romans used it in their aqueducts and there went their damn empire.

Must be something new these days. Perhaps the glue that they use in PVC pipes.

Not a fun job.

The name comes from plumbum, latin name for lead.

I'm not in favor of any job that drives a person crazy, with one exception: parenthood.

[hunter]

17. The solder used to join copper pipes contained lead...

... when I was doing that kind of work as a young adult. It was banned in 1986 but a lot of "free-dumb" loving plumbers (licensed or not) continued to use lead solder because it's easier to work with.

Sometimes I'd run into guys who bragged about this and their sketchy sources for lead solder, last I remember in 2006.

"Joe" seems to be the sort of guy who'd do that. It's certainly possible he sniffed PVC glue too.

[Takket]

9. what is even more depraved is that SCOTUS backs him up

[AdamGG]

10. Did he ever even own a plumbing business?

He didn't went he ambushed Obama with his questions about the taxes he would have to pay on a business he'd never owned. In the interim, did he ever establish any kind of business, or was he just a complete ginned up fraud?

[Cha]

12. Stupid MF who's dead now?

Too harsh?

[Wonder Why]

13. You don't need to apologize. It wasn't your fault. :-)

[DemocraticPatriot]

14. I remember his name, but I do not remember what his argument was,

except that it was "anti-Obama"....



RIP, joe....

[Tribetime]

15. I'm in Ohio was licensed provided Healthcare

For employees...he was never a licensed plumber....handyman plumbet

[dchill]

16. Dead man not even walking.

He went through some things.

[Grumpy Old Guy]

18. I had forgotten about that.

What an a$$hole!

[Orrex]

19. It's a shame that he wasn't born with pancreatic cancer

[Demobrat]

20. Pancreatic cancer, huh?

Almost makes me believe in god.

[dlk]

21. That type of intentional cruelty shows a deep pathological streak

What a vile man he was, completely devoid of any human compassion or empathy, like a psychopath.

[ailsagirl]

22. That is outrageous!!!!!!!!!

[Hassler]

23. Newsflash for Joe the Plumber's Helper: pancreatic cancer trumps

Your sick gun obsession.

[MontanaMama]

24. Don't be sorry

for calling out crazy and damaged. He’s was pathological.

[Lady Freedom Returns]

25. Dead, but the way of thinking lives sadly on.

[Demobrat]

27. Yes. He spoke for millions of good old gun totin' Merkins

who would proudly say the same.

[NJCher]

26. I remember this well

but not for the same reason as everyone else. Bear with me 'cuz this is a good story, even if it is a bit long:

Right before the "Joe the Plumber" encounter with Obama, I had a plumber in to deal with my infernal bathroom sink drainage problem. This guy had done work at my house before and his name was "Joe". Whenever a plumbing problem would arise around this house, we would say, "Call Joe the Plumber."

So on that particular occasion, Joe was working on the problem and running his mouth with this, that, and the other thing. He was kind of a philosopher/plumber. Always had a smartass remark for every situation.

After he fixed my problem he sat down where I was working to give me my bill. He knew I worked as a professor in media and that I taught advertising. He decided to hustle up some free advice, so just like a plumbing client would, he asked what I thought he should do about the fact that he was losing out on the Manhattan commuter market. The problem was, as he described it, that when someone from our town/area (Northern NJ suburbs) needs a plumber, they put off calling a plumber until they get to their office, where they do it on their employer's time (and let's face it, they have to because that's the only time during the business day that they have). Most of the people around here commute to Manhattan for their work. Thus he thought he was losing business because these people just did an internet search for a plumber and he wasn't being chosen because he had no "internet presence."

Besides SEO, I suggested he make an internet presence by starting a blog with his philosophical observations. Call it "Joe the Plumber." Have a few practical plumbing tips here and there, that sort of thing. Not that he really had anything that interesting to say, but I thought that people around here would be amused at their plumber having a blog, especially one called "Joe the Plumber."

So he got his free consultation, gave me his outrageous bill, and left.

About a week to 10 days later this whole thing with Obama and Joe the Plumber exploded. He called me up and asked me how I knew that was going to happen. I said did you start the blog? 'Cuz if you did you would have had a skazillion hits and you would go viral for being the "real" Joe the Plumber. This guy had such a distinctive personality, offbeat wit, and Jersey accent that he would have stolen the show from Wurzelwhatever. As a media/PR person I know I could have promoted this character to the media and they would have loved to tell the story of the real "Joe the Plumber."

But he never started the blog. Lost opportunity.

p.s. I guess it's a bit much to expect a plumber to start a blog on his own. I should have offered to help him but he wasn't paying me.

[Chainfire]

28. As a retired master plumber, all I can say is that Joe must have sniffed the PVC glue...

The only thing that explains both the horrible judgement and the cancer...

[dalton99a]

29. The guy was an asshole and an idiot.

[treestar]

30. This is honesty at least

I suspected this was where they stood. They deflected with conspiracy theories about Sandy Hook. But this is where they truly stand.

[Qutzupalotl]

31. "I know this sounds harsh, but I'm going to say it anyway."

That's the problem with the whole mindset right there. Fuck your feelings, I let my dogma trump my humanity, oh and I reserve the right to shoot people.