Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Bald-faced lies department
The Washington Post reports:
The president recalled that as a boy living in Hawaii, he would perch on his grandfather's shoulders and watch the space capsules land in the Pacific Ocean.
Oh. My. God.
He'll probably get a pass on this one, though. The paper's reporter, by using the verb 'recalled' instead of the more skeptical (and appropriate) verb "claimed," demonstrates she'll believe anything.
Splash, out
Jason
UPDATE: The White House website transcribes the President's remarks thus:
I should note, just personally, I grew up in Hawaii, as many of you know, and I still recall sitting on my grandfather's shoulders when those capsules would land in the middle of the Pacific and they'd get brought back and we'd go out and we'd pretend like they could see us as we were waving at folks coming home. And I remember waving American flags and my grandfather telling me that the Apollo mission was an example of how Americans can do anything they put their minds to.
So it was the Post's screw-up, not a lie by the President. Consider this post retracted, with my apologies.
The president recalled that as a boy living in Hawaii, he would perch on his grandfather's shoulders and watch the space capsules land in the Pacific Ocean.
Oh. My. God.
He'll probably get a pass on this one, though. The paper's reporter, by using the verb 'recalled' instead of the more skeptical (and appropriate) verb "claimed," demonstrates she'll believe anything.
Splash, out
Jason
UPDATE: The White House website transcribes the President's remarks thus:
I should note, just personally, I grew up in Hawaii, as many of you know, and I still recall sitting on my grandfather's shoulders when those capsules would land in the middle of the Pacific and they'd get brought back and we'd go out and we'd pretend like they could see us as we were waving at folks coming home. And I remember waving American flags and my grandfather telling me that the Apollo mission was an example of how Americans can do anything they put their minds to.
So it was the Post's screw-up, not a lie by the President. Consider this post retracted, with my apologies.
Comments:
What you're not understanding is Obama's grandfather was 20 miles tall, so when Obama perched on his shoulders he could see multiple hundreds of miles from Hawaii where the splashdowns actually took place.
Next we'll be hearing how Obama shot 11 holes-in-one the first time he ever golfed and finished 38 under par. Oh, wait, that's Kim Jong Il, sorry.
Next we'll be hearing how Obama shot 11 holes-in-one the first time he ever golfed and finished 38 under par. Oh, wait, that's Kim Jong Il, sorry.
Maybe he had to perch on his grandfather's shoulder in order to see over others shoulders the storefront tv showing the landing.
# posted by 
: 8:59 AM
: 8:59 AM
Also, I think most of us a capable of mis-recalling things from when we were eight years old.
# posted by : 9:00 AM
: 9:00 AM
Mis-recalling? sure.
Making shit up? defintely!
Apparently The One hasn't progressed much since then.
I remember watching the landing. I was 6 and change. Most everything else in that year was a blur, but that I remember clearly.
Somethings stand out. Eyewitnessing a splashdown would be one.
Making shit up? defintely!
Apparently The One hasn't progressed much since then.
I remember watching the landing. I was 6 and change. Most everything else in that year was a blur, but that I remember clearly.
Somethings stand out. Eyewitnessing a splashdown would be one.
I'm no fan of the current administration, but in the President's defence it was never quoted that he witnessed the splashdown, it is entirely possible that the reporter (or the President) got confused between the splashdown and the Hornet arriving in Pearl, which I'm sure was an event heavily attended by the Hawaiian population.
# posted by : 1:14 PM
: 1:14 PM
This is the relevant part of the quote from whitehouse.gov...
"I should note, just personally, I grew up in Hawaii, as many of you know, and I still recall sitting on my grandfather's shoulders when those capsules would land in the middle of the Pacific and they'd get brought back and we'd go out and we'd pretend like they could see us as we were waving at folks coming home."
It sounds to me like he's trying to say that he watched them come back in to port, with the usual complete lack of eloquence and coherence that we should all expect by now when he's not staring unblinking at a teleprompter.
I'm every bit as surprised that the WaPo reporter completely blew it as I would have been if it had turned out that Obama was lying.
"I should note, just personally, I grew up in Hawaii, as many of you know, and I still recall sitting on my grandfather's shoulders when those capsules would land in the middle of the Pacific and they'd get brought back and we'd go out and we'd pretend like they could see us as we were waving at folks coming home."
It sounds to me like he's trying to say that he watched them come back in to port, with the usual complete lack of eloquence and coherence that we should all expect by now when he's not staring unblinking at a teleprompter.
I'm every bit as surprised that the WaPo reporter completely blew it as I would have been if it had turned out that Obama was lying.
# posted by : 4:54 PM
: 4:54 PM
Not so fast with your apology. Adalie over at the Post says this,"...As I understand it, Obama was living with his mom and stepfather in Indonesia between 1967 and 1971. That roughly leaves 1962 or 63 to 1966 when he might have both been small enough to sit on his grandfather's shoulders yet conceivably remember doing so. During those years, the wikipedia splashdown list includes only about 2 or 3 anywhere near Hawaii. Those were at least 1,000 miles north of Hawaii. So Obama. What was there to watch?"
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