Ex-President Carter sends condolences to Kim Jong-un

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• I was only three when Carter was elected, but how the hell were people back then so blind to vote for this idiot? And why do I get the feeling three year olds today will be asking the same question thirty five years from now?

  • It was a couple of things -

    First, he was running against Gerald Ford. No brain surgeon, he. On top of that, Ford was Nixon's VP.

    Now I personally don't think Watergate was anywhere near as bad as the media made it out to be. It wasn't all that much worse than what the gov't does every day (in all aspects of being scumbags and parasites - not just wiretaps and coverups).

    But the perceptions were what they were, right or wrong. Gil Scott-Heron opined in one of his poem/songs "But the man who tried to steal America will not do time". Really? That's what you're goig with, Gil? Some wiretaps of the opposing political party and a subsesquent coverup constitute "stealing" America? Time to adjust your priorities, Mr Scott-Heron.

    But I digress.

    Ford also got a run for his money during the primary from Reagan. That probably decreased Ford's support from the more conservative side of the republican party (same thing was part of Carter's undoing 4 yrs later, when Teddy the Swimmer challenged Carter in the Dem Primary). Also, Ford was never elected (appointed as veep) to national office, and he was previously in the House. So even though he was president for a couple of years, IMO he was perceived as less than a truly national figure by many.

    Carter was an unknown, a governor, and came off as somewhat conservative. He was apparently religious. He was a farmer - perceived as a real, down-to-earth guy. It was a great PR job. No different than questioning Bush's qualifications because he was "just a governor" even though he was in Texas, while Clinton's qualifications were never questioned, and he was governor of Arkansas - arguably one of the most incosequential states in the US. Or Quayle was an idiot, while Algore is a genius. Bottom line - a lot of people wanted a change, and Carter seemed like a good way to go.

    That, IMO, was in the infancy of the People-magazine approach to elections. Clinton was that approach reaching its peak. No thought as to real presidential qualifications - just vote for someone based on the same level of analysis you give to deciding whether to watch one program or another. Vote for Clinton because Dole is boring. "Dole sucks" Roseanne Barr (or was that Rosie?) proudly announced to the loud cheers of the audience. That this is what is passed off as humor, or that she was right is beside the point. What is tragic is that this is what constitutes political analysis for too many voters.

    • Andre, I gotta tell you, I learned more about the 76 election reading your post than I ever learned about it in history class. I remember (vaguely) during the 80 elections, my parents who were at the time Democrats (mom still is, my dad later became very conservative) both abandoned Carter (mom went Reagan, dad went Anderson). I think I get it now, and I still think people like my 3 year old nephew and my 4 year old neice will be wondering why America was so blind as to vote for Obama when they're my age. Now I'll be able to explain it to them. Thanks for taking the time to lay it out so rationally.

    • Carter's bid at re-election was my first time voting. I hadn't paid much attention to politics, but I had recently become an apprentice in the International Union of Operating Engineers. So naturally, they signed me up to vote, and started in on the usual indoctrination. It was all about voting for Carter, how he was such a great man, did wonderful things for the country, and Reagan was such a know-nothing fool, evil, lying,.......

      I thought that Carter was being shoved down my throat a little too forcefully, so I started paying attention to what was going on around me, what his policies actually were, what Reagan had done as Governor of California.

      I decided that I was born an American, lived my life as an American, and would die an American. Being a Union member was just a small part of my life, not the dominating force.

      I voted for Reagan.

• maybe carter can go over there,and farm for peanuts outta jong's dead asshole.

• "Wishing a new communist dictator ”every success”..."

  Did anyone ask Jimmuh, "success at what?"

  Didn't think so.

• Is that lame excuse for a peanut farmer ever going to do something the benefits the people of this country?

  • He never did while in office, why start now?

• Who gets Kim's massive porn collection? I remember hearing about that, does that go with the leadership possition?

  • Perhaps this is why Jimmy's being so nice?

    • Does that mean he is lusting in his heart again? that's kinda dangerous at Peanut Sacks age....Could cause a stroke or if things go right for more than four hours it might fall off...

• Democrats: TEA Party dangerous.
  Kim Jon Il enlightening.

• He is the democrat party representative in this matter. They all admired Kim Yuck Foo (or whatever) for being able to forge the country they want for us and to control the masses as they are want to do.

• The Useful Idiot in Chief.