Comments on: To Cindy McCain (and anyone who thinks this is the “dirtiest campaign in American history”)

By: Fran

Fran — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 16:03:00 +0000

Fabulous. Another of of my entertainment websites turned into a party for Republican bashing. Might as well hang a sign saying “Republican’s not served here.”

By: Mangesh Hattikudur

Mangesh Hattikudur — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 14:02:00 +0000

I’m sorry you’re disappointed, Valerie. I thought a lot about the lead of the piece before I posted it. But I came to the conclusion that I would have gone after anyone had they made that comment. I only chose Cindy McCain because her words were plastered on 3 different headlines from three different sites I read that day.

This is an educational magazine however, and part of the reason we did an election issue this year was simply to point out that politics has always been dirty.

The idea of our “sacred” founding fathers hiring hatchet men and slinging the sorts of phrases they used is unthinkable, and it’s never mentioned in high school textbooks. But as the post tried to show, politics has always been ugly, and the campaigning of today is no worse than what’s occurred before.

That said, I do appreciate your note. And I also appreciate Witty Nickname’s dialing the tone back and showing such restraint (there were quite a few people on this thread, in fact, who kept the conversation civil, in what could have been an even more vicious debate). The mental_floss staff is full of both Republicans and Democrats, and we don’t have a company stance on Mrs. McCain as a person. We just wanted to set the record straight that however guilty the two campaigns are of pushing spin on the public, neither actually matches up to the dirty tricks played by politicians past.

By: Valerie

Valerie — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 10:53:00 +0000

She has the right to her opinion and your ”rebuttal” might be interesting in itself if presented neutrally but to use it as a way to slap her down is uncalled for.

Surely there are other public figures out there you could go after right now who deserve it much more: Barney Franks, Jeremiah Wright, Chris Dodd, Olbermann (his untruths are so frequent, it’s ridiculous)…

A web site like this one is best when the authors avoid showing their political colors, you know. Not everyone who reads you is of your opinion and many people would prefer to come here knowing that they’re not going to have to read your anti-whatever venting.

Why can’t there be sites that just stay neutral, for pete’s sake? If I want politics, I’ll go to the blogs of my choice.

By: kate

kate — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 02:30:00 +0000

The party newspapers of the 19th century were really something else. I’d agree that on the whole, they were a lot more slanderous. However, they were also a LOT more creative and a lot more poetic about it, so however untrue most of it probably was, it’s sure a lot of fun to read! “Hideous hermaphroditical character”? That’s gold.

By: Becca

Becca — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 23:09:00 +0000

gdbeal- Aaron Burr spent the bulk of his exile in London (the house on Craven Street) however he also spent time in France, Germany, Scotland, Denmark, and Sweden.

By: gdbeal

gdbeal — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 22:50:00 +0000

Aaron Burr fled to France not England.

By: Mike

Mike — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 22:05:00 +0000

Chalk this site up to another one inundated with the “Democrats can do no wrong” crowd. I’m not much of a politics follower and I was willing to look past Miss Cellania’s daily forecast earth link trying to tell us how we’re ruining the earth because I really like mentalfloss. But like other sites I frequented for the educational and entertainment value, these people have to turn EVERY subject into a Bush/Cheney bashing party.

By: Gourry

Gourry — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 21:42:00 +0000

You all better hush up or I’ll call you on my Obama phone spammer. Oops, I mean “Official iPhone Application”

By: Florida

Florida — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 20:17:00 +0000

Witty,

First of all, I’ve seen enough of your commentary to know your a Republican. Its obvious.

Second, if it actually means something to you, sure, Cheney and Bush aren’t the worst president or VP ever. However, there is no doubt they are among the bottom five. And hey, we only just entered the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, so lets not render a verdict when they still have a few more months to see what else they can royally f*ck up.

Third, I’m not sure if you noticed, but Burr, Buchanan, and Pierce all happen to be dead. Not only are Bush and Cheney still alive, but they’re still actively destroying the country and dragging down the rest of the world with it. Osama bin Laden could never destroy America, but Bush and Cheney are sure giving it a shot.

By: Marty

Marty — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 20:06:00 +0000

Hey Witty, What about Harding? I think he is the worst president. And I totally get you on the history. I am consistently bothered by some of the historically inaccurate comparisons both sides use. And I am voting for Obama so nobody has to attack me!