Bullying Story: Mitt Romney's Macaca Moment?

The guy's a sociopath...or worse. (0.00 / 0)

Just like George Allen, who was also a nasty little sadist --
dragged his sister upstairs by the hair, attacked her boyfriend with a pool cue, threw his brother through a sliding glass door, etc. Willard's an animal abuser (frequently a prelude to violent crimes against humans) and a sadistic bully, who also happens to be a Coward with a capital C. Why on earth would we let this sociopath anywhere near the White House? That would be insane.

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by: lowkell @ Thu May 10, 2012 at 21:28:23 PM UTC

Actually, more like a "psychopath" (0.00 / 0)

Psychopathy...is a personality disorder characterized by a pervasive pattern of disregard for the rights of others and the rules of society. Psychopaths have a lack of empathy and remorse, and have very shallow emotions. They are generally regarded as callous, selfish, dishonest, arrogant, aggressive, impulsive, irresponsible, and hedonistic. Despite this, psychopaths are often superficially charming with an intelligence higher than the average individual.

Source

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by: lowkell @ Thu May 10, 2012 at 21:45:15 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Also, add in pathological liar (0.00 / 0)

n/t

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by: lowkell @ Thu May 10, 2012 at 21:46:37 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Typical (0.00 / 0)

Apparently what Romney has is typical of all republicans these days. That dude that beat Luger looks like a serial killer.

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by: Jim B @ Thu May 10, 2012 at 22:01:58 PM UTC

Mitt Romney's Macaca Moment? No (0.00 / 0)

In this bazaar world, this will solidify at least 30% of the population who finds nothing wrong with bullying.  Another 10% are meh about it. This perversely will improve his standing among conservatives. Sad, but true.

This does though, add to the narrative of a blank slate that has been running for President for 7 years. Drip drip drip. He's being defined and not by his choice, but by the choices he made.

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by: Mike1987 @ Thu May 10, 2012 at 22:04:21 PM UTC

I'm not sure if it is a Macaca moment (0.00 / 0)

On the one hand, Allen's Macaca moment came in the present day, and it was in the context of trying to understand him today that the incident required that we investigate his past.

This is simply an incident out of Romney's past, and the truth of the matter is that none of us wants to be, or even ought to be, judged by the stupidest thing we did in high school.

That said, Romney has shown himself over the course of this campaign to be something of a mystery. Since he seeks to pander to whomever he is talking to at the moment, I don't think anyone really has a good sense of who he is as a person, or what he truly believes. And that includes his supporters, a large percentage of who back Romney not because of Romney, but because they oppose Obama.

As a result of that, I think it is plausible that people will latch onto an incident like this in an effort to fill in the blanks on who we might actually elect as president. And what we are seeing is not pretty. And so it can become a macaca moment for him.

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by: aznew @ Thu May 10, 2012 at 22:24:44 PM UTC

This incident confirms a LOT of things many of us (0.00 / 0)

have thought about Willard for some time: he's a pathological liar, bully, coward, etc., and he's been that way basically his whole life. As Willard might say, since he's semi-fluent in French, "plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose!"

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by: lowkell @ Thu May 10, 2012 at 22:27:34 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

"The More Things Change, The More It Is The Same Thing" (0.00 / 0)

I had to ask. I suspect he might too.

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by: Dan Sullivan @ Fri May 11, 2012 at 02:22:11 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

The more things change, the more they stay the same. (0.00 / 0)

That's a more colloquial translation. And with Willard, it's most definitely the case.

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by: lowkell @ Fri May 11, 2012 at 10:14:44 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Only time will tell (0.00 / 0)

We'll see a month from now whether Romney has recovered or if he's still looking as shady as this story & his reaction to it make him look.

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by: TheGreenMiles @ Thu May 10, 2012 at 22:38:10 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Romney's problem.... (0.00 / 0)

...is that all the stories reinforce the same narrative: that of an overprivileged plutocrat who cares a lot for corporate life and money and his people, but has little to no empathy for regular people, animals, etc.  

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by: kindler @ Thu May 10, 2012 at 23:47:17 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Interesting (4.00 / 1)

I think one would remember an attack like that, be they the victim or the perpetrator.  But, if one didn't, they probably wouldn't try and massage the answer.  They would just say "I don't remember that" which just makes them a liar.  Or someone with a bad memory, which doesn't do much to enhance his bona fides to be President.

What he's doing right now is typical tap dancing.  He remembers it, he remembers the kid, he remembers what he did and why he did it.  He's upset that it's come out after all this time, by they don't call them "corpses in the closet", they are skeletons.  They come out, unearthed, decomposed and stripped down after a long time.  And he doesn't really know how to react.  

Republicans say that Obama is just a robot, he can't do anything without a teleprompter.  But Obama has a brain, and the teleprompter is there to keep him on track.  Romney is similar to Bush in that they can't do anything even with a teleprompter.  It has to be prepared, minimized, edited for consumption.  Sort of the way that sports magazines like Sports Illustrated are written at a 6-th grade reading level.  That's why he chronically sticks his foot in his mouth, and not in a funny way, when he goes off script.  He can think on his feet, he just doesn't know how to say it without coming off like a complete snob.

When Joe Biden sticks his foot in his mouth, it's usually a "I can't believe he said that" bit of political incorrectness, or just plain brazen, unadulterated honesty.  With Romney, they're more of the things that a couple of rich guys sitting in the locker room of a private, restricted country club would say after the caddy forgets to clean their golf cleats.  Or when the maid puts the 600 thread count sheets on the bed instead of the 800 thread count.  

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by: NotJohnSMosby @ Thu May 10, 2012 at 22:52:19 PM UTC

You really believe that Romney is dumb? (0.00 / 0)

Perhaps you want to rethink that.  He may have lots of flaws, but lack of intelligence certainly doesn't appear to be one.

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by: independent in arlington @ Fri May 11, 2012 at 14:41:01 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

No I don't (0.00 / 0)

I just think that he has a medieval mindset that no Democrat or independent - and remaining few moderate Republicans - would agree with.  This comes from his upbringing, his money, his career and his religion.  Whereas Bush really is just a dullard - a lazy, not very keen rich boy - Romney is smart, maybe too smart.  He knows that what he thinks and believes won't play well, so he needs to filter/translate his thoughts before speaking.  That's fine for prepared speeches, but when he's talking off the cuff, the filter/translator doesn't catch everything.  Thus, comments like "I like to fire people" and "I'm unemployed too" are going to pour out constantly between now and when he loses in November.  

Not to break the rules of the family blog, but Romney knows he's full of shit and is constantly trying to compensate, but doesn't know how.  Bush was completely full of shit, but didn't have the brainpan to realize it was bullshit, so he thought he was doing well.  "Good job Brownie"  "Mission Accomplished".  

Guys who, as Anne Richardson once said, "are born on 3rd base and think they hit a triple" just naturally don't know what most people do in life.  Unless they were in the military or worked alongside regular joes teaching in a poor school for a couple of years or something, they'll never be able to relate.  Volunteering at a homeless shelter a day or two a year doesn't make you emphasize with poor people.  You see they're poor, then you hop in your car and go home to the mansion.

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by: NotJohnSMosby @ Fri May 11, 2012 at 18:58:30 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Don't think Romney (0.00 / 0)

is dumb...he believes he's entitled to be President.  It's his turn after all.  We're dumb for not understanding that fact. He went to the best schools; he's held the best jobs; he's made lots of money.  The peons of the world are supposed to understand and think he's wonderful.  None of us are as smart, or as rich so we certainly shouldn't question someone who has been so successful.  

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by: pontoon @ Fri May 11, 2012 at 15:20:44 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I think that perfectly describes Romney's attitude (0.00 / 0)

And it explains why he keeps putting his foot in his mouth, because he knows if he articulates that rationale, he will be doomed.

So, everything he ends up saying just sounds like BS, because that's what it is.

And I don't mean the typical political BS/pablum that good politicians spout. Rather, it is the kind of BS that leaves people, both his supporters and detractors, with the sense that he is not being honest about who he really is. It perfectly explains why he cannot connect.  

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by: aznew @ Fri May 11, 2012 at 15:36:12 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Andrew Sullivan (4.00 / 1)

http://andrewsullivan.thedaily...

I do not believe Romney has no memory of this. I believe he is lying. His absurd statement that he has no memory of the event but that he didn't target the boy for being gay is hilarious for its self-contradiction. A boy who routinely snickered "Atta girl!" when one young gay kid in his class spoke up is not just bashing hippies. I went to an all boys high school in the 1970s. What Romney did was a gay-bashing. [...]

And this matters because today these attacks on gay kids drive many to suicide, others to despair; they wreck lives and self-esteem. It matters that we know that one candidate for president was an anti-gay bully in high school, targeting a weak and defenseless kid and humiliating and traumatizing him. Today, he does the same thing in a larger, more abstract way: targeting a small minority as a way to advance his own power. It gives me the chills.

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by: TheGreenMiles @ Thu May 10, 2012 at 23:03:14 PM UTC

Exactly. It is a PATTERN OF BEHAVIOR. (4.00 / 1)

And it hasn't really changed in 50 years. 1) Bully/sadistic jerk. 2) Coward. 3) Pathological liar.

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by: lowkell @ Thu May 10, 2012 at 23:21:39 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Reminds Me... (4.00 / 2)

This stupid behavior reminds me of some of the things that George W. Bush did when he was young. Or, George Allen when he pulled his sister down the stairs by her hair, broke his brother's arm. Bullies as adolescents show a mean streak and a disregard for others that never completely goes away. "I was young and foolish" is NOT an excuse.

"Gay bashing" has been a favorite sport of the worst kind of bullies. The hell they bring to their fellow human beings never crosses their self-centered, little minds. The worst thing is that their privileged position means they never have to say, "I'm sorry. I was evil." Instead, we get the likes of Romney's "if I made somebody feel bad, I apologize." Feel bad? Try scaring an innocent kid half to death because of Romney's prejudice and meanness.

I shudder to think of Willard Romney in the Oval Office if he confronts a crisis that takes calm resolve and empathetic concern for others. He seems capable of neither. He's just another spoiled rich brat. Proof that he has changed little is in his stupid remark, "I like to fire people." Then, there is the one where he said, "I don't worry about the very poor." Of course, he doesn't. He worries about his rich friends and himself. Oh, and his family...just not mine or yours.

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by: Elaine in Roanoke @ Thu May 10, 2012 at 23:41:26 PM UTC

Romney is a hollow man (0.00 / 0)

Romney reminds me of that old saying "The lights are on, but no one is home." Romney apparently never had to deal with any real adversity when growing up. He has no appreciation or respect for those who are different and he has never really suffered or struggled. It's the suffering, pain, and struggle that build character, promote reflection, and develop empathy. Unfortunately, Romney skipped that part of development. If you knock on his head you will probably hear a hollow metallic sound. He is like a robot which wears makeup to cover the hinges that allow its jaws to move.

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by: commentator1 @ Sat May 12, 2012 at 01:42:40 AM UTC