We're Screwed[W:62]

[Gathomas88]

There was no reason whatsoever to assume that they were Indians either. There's no reason to make any assumptions.

:roll:

Right, because we all have endless hours in the day to devote to carefully considering all the different ways that we might potentially offend each and every new overly-sensitive doofus we meet before saying something to them.

Give me a f*cking break. I'll say and do what is expedient, first and foremost. Anyone who is offended by it has my blessing to be so.

 

[opendebate]

:shock:

This guffaw should have been good for a laugh on both sides of the aisle

That was exactly my intent.

This thread actually turned out to be rather enlightening. Sad, but enlightening.

 

[sangha]

:roll:

Right, because we all have endless hours in the day to carefully consider how not to offend each and every new person we meet before saying something to them.

No, because it's a widely known fact that the US employees who deal with foreign nations are often descended from parents that came from that nation.

Give me a f*cking break. I'll say and do what is expedient, first and foremost.

Thread is not about you

 

[Gathomas88]

No, because it's a widely known fact that the US employees who deal with foreign nations are often descended from parents that came from that nation.

Thread is not about you

He should have checked the schedule to see who he was talking to before shooting his mouth off. That much I will grant you.

 

[eohrnberger]

Why is he a "tard," exactly? Anyone could've made that mistake.

I mean... Really, what else are you supposed to think when you see two very Indian people, with two very Indian names, sitting side by side at a function like that?

There was no reason whatsoever to assume that they weren't Indians given the information he had available.

The worst he's guilty of here is not doing his homework before going in, and having an (admittedly somewhat smarmy) play for "P.C." brownie points blow up in his face.

Why be reasonable? Why give the guy the benefit of the doubt?

Especially when you can unfairly excoriate and score points for someone from the other side?

What's the political motivation?

Liberals. Speak oh so highly of tolerance, yet render none of it themselves.

 

[opendebate]

and having an (admittedly somewhat smarmy) play for "P.C." brownie points blow up in his face.

I mean... Really, what else are you supposed to think

Lot's of things.

The worst he's guilty of here is not doing his homework before going in,

That is a large part of my point.

As if not doing his homework isn't enough, we have his little gem...

Clawson had no political or government experience. He ran primarily on his 11-year tenure as CEO of an auto supply company, Hayes Lemmerz. His record became a source of controversy during the campaign, when opponents noted the company had multiple safety violations, including a massive explosion that killed one employee. He also closed seven plants, filed for bankruptcy and defaulted on the company’s pension obligations. (The federal government picked up the $93.7 million tab.)

and

Both officials had been introduced to the Committee as representatives of their respective departments.

and

it's unclear if at any point Clawson realized his mistake, despite the existence of a witness list distributed to the various members detailing Biswal and Kumar's positions.

and

During the hearing, he repeatedly touted his deep knowledge of the Indian subcontinent and his favorite Bollywood movies

 

[Gathomas88]

Lot's of things.

That is a large part of my point.

As if not doing his homework isn't enough, we have his little gem...

Clawson had no political or government experience. He ran primarily on his 11-year tenure as CEO of an auto supply company, Hayes Lemmerz. His record became a source of controversy during the campaign, when opponents noted the company had multiple safety violations, including a massive explosion that killed one employee. He also closed seven plants, filed for bankruptcy and defaulted on the company’s pension obligations. (The federal government picked up the $93.7 million tab.)

To be fair, it should be noted that most Congressmen skimp on such things; leaving it to their aides.

"Political experience" is also really neither here nor there, as most of it tends to be useless bureaucratic bunk anyway.

However, I will grant you that his business record is questionable, and that he was unwise to sound off so conspicuously before checking his "Ps" and "Qs" first.

One would hope that he learns a valuable lesson from the embarrassment this event causes him.

 

[Gathomas88]

Both officials had been introduced to the Committee as representatives of their respective departments.

and

it's unclear if at any point Clawson realized his mistake, despite the existence of a witness list distributed to the various members detailing Biswal and Kumar's positions.

and

During the hearing, he repeatedly touted his deep knowledge of the Indian subcontinent and his favorite Bollywood movies

He might very well be a clueless meathead, or he might've simply made a newbie mistake. It's hard to say at this point.

In any eventuality, our system is a Democracy. What are you going to do? :shrug:

The "mob" makes these kinds of decisions. Unfortunately, it simply happens to be the case that the "mob" usually tends to prefer suave pretty boys who know how to work a crowd over more qualified candidates.

 

[opendebate]

He might very well be a clueless meathead, or he might've simply made a newbie mistake. It's hard to say at this point.

In any eventuality, our system is a Democracy. What are you going to do? :shrug:

The "mob" makes these kinds of decisions. Unfortunately, it simply happens to be the case that the "mob" usually tends to prefer suave pretty boys who know how to work a crowd over more qualified candidates.

If you can't, out of nothing more than party loyalty, recognize that this was a stupid (not to mention deeply arrogant) move on this guys part then you've got your head shoved pretty far up your keester. I know you can be more objective then that.

I also know that there are "tards" on both sides. No party has a corner on that market.

 

[Gathomas88]

If you can't, out of nothing more than party loyalty, recognize that this was a stupid (not to mention deeply arrogant) move on this guys part then you've got your head shoved pretty far up your keester. I know you can be more objective then that.

I also know that there are "tards" on both sides. No party has a corner on that market.

Didn't I say as much? He was overconfident, and should've checked the schedule (or at the very least listened to who was being introduced) before shooting his mouth off.

However, as you said yourself, he's new to this. Hopefully, he learns something from the experience, and is more cautious in the future.

There's no reason for "partisanship" to be involved at all.

 

[opendebate]

Didn't I say as much? He was overconfident, and should've checked the schedule (or at the very least listened to who was being introduced) before shooting his mouth off.

However, as you said yourself, he's new to this. Hopefully, he learns something from the experience, and is more cautious in the future.

There's no reason for "partisanship" to be involved at all.

I agree. You seem to be defending him for no apparent reason. Thus my comments

 

[Gathomas88]

Both officials had been introduced to the Committee as representatives of their respective departments.

and

it's unclear if at any point Clawson realized his mistake, despite the existence of a witness list distributed to the various members detailing Biswal and Kumar's positions.

and

During the hearing, he repeatedly touted his deep knowledge of the Indian subcontinent and his favorite Bollywood movies

Incidentally, you kind of left out the following. Didn't you? :roll:

It was sure a goof, but dont you think you are overplaying it just a tad? Dood has been in congress for exactly one month and was at a meeting of the House Foreign Affairs subcommittee hearing on U.S.-India relations and the 2 people testifying were of Indian descent. It was a mistake, he owned it, and he apologized for it. How about that...he didnt blame it on someone else, didnt claim he was given bad intel, didnt blame it on a speech writer or flawed teleprompter operator. Just...damn...my bad. He made a conciliatory and respectful comment, and from that...you think we are screwed? Hell...I can t IMAGINE what your head does when certain other politicians get to rolling.

 

[opendebate]

Incidentally, you kind of left out the following. Didn't you? :roll:

I did not find it relevant at all. Apologizing for being an idiot doesn't make him any less of an idiot.

 

[vesper]

I did not find it relevant at all. Apologizing for being an idiot doesn't make him any less of an idiot.

So you found a piece from ThinkProgress, a blog, that promotes progressive ideology and is the only dang group highlighting this Republican who has been in office for 30 DAYS obviously revealing he was not prepared. I have yet to find any major news media outlets pick up this story. Which that in itself makes your title "We're Scewed" over the top. And I have failed to see you start a thread and calling it "We're Screwed" when faced with multiple Democrats that have been re-elected multiple times caught in far worse and make such a claim about them. Your thread should have never been started in the non-political forum. It is partisan politics you should have sought. Before going over the top with a title like "We're Screwed" from a partisan blog, may I suggest you find material from think tanks across the political spectrum to make that case! Because the majority of them are claiming "We're Screwed" and it ain't because of this Florida congressman. Have a nice day.

 

[Muhammed]

It is very possible that Biswal and Kumar are Indian intelligence agents.

 

[sangha]

So you found a piece from ThinkProgress, a blog, that promotes progressive ideology and is the only dang group highlighting this Republican who has been in office for 30 DAYS obviously revealing he was not prepared. I have yet to find any major news media outlets pick up this story.

If you read the article at the link, you'd see that it was originally reported by Foreign Affairs

 

[StillBallin75]

Meet The Congressman Who Assumed Two Senior U.S. Officials Were Foreigners | ThinkProgress

What a tard. Seriously, how tired are you of seeing idiots like this in positions of power. How do people like this get elected?! This is not about whether or not you agree with their positions on various issues or whether or not you deem them ridiculous, this is about being so clueless (not to mention smug and arrogant. That smirk made me want to punch this guy in the head) that you say something this patently stupid.

As a racial minority this kind of behavior is a lot more real for me. From people asking me on a weekly basis "where are you from," to "I LOVE Chinese food/culture/music" and I'm like what the **** ever dude.

Lesson is stop making assumptions about people due to their appearance that they're any more exotic/special or less American than you are.

Thought this video was relevant:

 

[X Factor]

Wow X that actually hurt my feelings. You disappoint me.

My first post back has to be an apology to you.. :3oops: I was being an ass and I am sincerely sorry.

 

[opendebate]

My first post back has to be an apology to you.. :3oops: I was being an ass and I am sincerely sorry.

Thanks. We all have bad days. No worries. Hope whatever was eating at you has passed. I like you X and for the record that hasn't changed a bit.

 

[Lord of Planar]

Meet The Congressman Who Assumed Two Senior U.S. Officials Were Foreigners | ThinkProgress

What a tard. Seriously, how tired are you of seeing idiots like this in positions of power. How do people like this get elected?! This is not about whether or not you agree with their positions on various issues or whether or not you deem them ridiculous, this is about being so clueless (not to mention smug and arrogant. That smirk made me want to punch this guy in the head) that you say something this patently stupid.

At least it wasn't Bobby Jindal making the mistake, since he is also Indian-American.

I did a quick search for hearing on C-Span, but didn't find the video. I would like to see what was said before that. I don't know about Arun and Nisha both were born in India. They were appear to have been arguing for India. Maybe what he said wasn't so stupid...

Arun M. Kumar

Nisha Desai Biswal | 40 Under 40 Leaders in International Development — Washington, DC

 

[Lord of Planar]

He "punked" himself. lol


That was very funny. It's too bad the woman didn't let him in on the joke so we could see that stupid smirk wiped off his face.

Maybe she was trying to figure out his angle, since she was born in India?

 

[FluffyNinja]

I think age has a some to do with it also. Nancy Pelosi is not near as sharp as she used to be, and that was never a terrible lot. Some people also keep their marbles better than others. My parents in their late 70's and up till the end were smarter than I've ever been.

These politicians should have some age related qualifier or test, so they're not serving as an incompetent. I'm not normally an ageist, because the poor old souls don't have much left in this world, but we can't let misplaced sympathy cause anymore problems with Congress than it already has.

Maxine Waters has never been "sharp".........you cant lose what you never had. :lol:

 

[Lord of Planar]

Well...

I found the video:

Subcommittee Hearing: U.S.-India Relations Under the Modi Government | House Committee on Foreign Affairs - Ed Royce, Chairman

It is a static background until 1:16:09 because it started late.

Clawson starts speaking at 2:16:29.

Until you watch the video, judgment of his intelligence should stay in check, else you speak out of ignorance.

Also...

A recent election in India elected Arun Kumar. Same name as one of the two witnesses.

Arun Kumar - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Indian general election, 2014 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Here are the written statements of the two witnesses:

http://docs.house.gov/meetings/FA/FA05/20140724/102538/HHRG-113-FA05-Wstate-BiswalN-20140724.pdf

http://docs.house.gov/meetings/FA/FA05/20140724/102538/HHRG-113-FA05-Wstate-KumarA-20140724.pdf

Now before you all claim he should have seen their title in the statements, keep in mind how busy these people are. They often have others read such things and summarize them.

The comedy of it is that two people born in India were chosen to do this. What ever happened to being colorblind in appointments? Obviously, Obama isn't colorblind.

I am now about 15 minutes into the video after finding the relevant point for you all. I may or may not listen to the whole thing, but I think the mistake is understandable.

 

[d0gbreath]

I laughed, but then I felt bad for all concerned. Then I read his apology. It's over.

 

[X Factor]

Thanks. We all have bad days. No worries. Hope whatever was eating at you has passed. I like you X and for the record that hasn't changed a bit.

Thank you. Same here, for real.