Today, in political news, a new name and face arose.
Ben Carson, per his official profile page at Johns Hopkins Hospital
Professor of Neurosurgery, Oncology, Plastic Surgery and Pediatrics
Director, Division of Pediatric Neurosurgery
Co-Director, The Johns Hopkins Craniofacial Center
What makes this apparently smart (look at what he does for a living) man news today?
Catch me below the Fleur-de-kos for the rest of the story...
I first caught him being interviewed this morning, by NBC News reporter Andrea Mitchell on her show, Mitchell Reports on MSNBC television.
This urbane, educated physician, is not just the Director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, MD. Per his profile he is also:
An internationally renowned physician, Dr. Carson has authored over 100 neurosurgical publications, along with three best-selling books, and has been awarded 38 honorary doctorate degrees and dozens of national merit citations.
Then, I see that when speaking on the subject of the current SCOTUS cases before the court in the #MarriageEquality arena, he said something so outrageous that it made the generally non-confrontational Andrea Mitchell pause, obviously stupified, and then proceeds to challenge his statement. Watch here, courtesy of
MSNBC.com
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Did you catch that? He said, in his own words (from Slate.com piece by David Weigel posted on March 23, 2013
Hannitization is supposed to help people. In his long career as a Republican talking head, Sean Hannity has tried to help so many conservatives get out of scrapes by giving them the precious gifts of softball interviews. This week, it didn't work. Ever since Dr. Ben Carson laid into President Obama at the National Prayer Breakfast, Hannity has been bringing his new friend onto the show for a usually snoozy chat on the topics of the day. (This is an improvement from 2012, when the role of Wise Man was played by Dick Morris.)
On Tuesday, it got a little real.
HANNITY: All right, last question, we have the issue of the Supreme Court dealing with two issues involving gay marriage. I've asked you a lot of questions. I've never asked you that, what are your thoughts?
CARSON: Well, my thoughts are that marriage is between a man and a woman. It's a well-established, fundamental pillar of society and no group, be they gays, be they NAMBLA, be they people who believe in bestiality. It doesn't matter what they are. They don't get to change the definition. So he, it's not something that is against gays, it's against anybody who wants to come along and change the fundamental definitions of pillars of society. It has significant ramifications.
HANNITY: And you know, it's interesting, Justice Sotomayor brought up the issue of polygamy and incest. Where does the definition stop and I guess, we'll be debating it for weeks and months to come.
Let me repeat just this one bit:
CARSON: Well, my thoughts are that marriage is between a man and a woman. It's a well-established, fundamental pillar of society and no group, be they gays, be they NAMBLA, be they people who believe in bestiality. It doesn't matter what they are. They don't get to change the definition. So he, it's not something that is against gays, it's against anybody who wants to come along and change the fundamental definitions of pillars of society. It has significant ramifications.
.
In the Andrea Mitchell interview above, when she confronts him with his own words, he has the unmitigated gall to tell her that she and anyone else who doubts him has simply misunderstood what he meant. He apologizes for hurting anyone's feelings, but assures them he doesn't mean that those three groups are all the same. He explains it with a fucking fruit metaphor, starring apples (the evil fruit that Eve succumbed to first) and bananas and peaches.
What he meant, it appears, is just what he said. There is plenty of evidence of his views, over a 30 year career as not just a physician, but as a speaker and author. He is a doctor with strong religious beliefs whose public statements about Marriage Equality are obviously based on those religious beliefs. Including conflating same-sex marriage with pedophilia and bestiality.
Which brings me to something I wrote earlier this week, tangentially connected to this screed.
In this diary, by #TheGreatAndPowerfulKos The Iraq War wasn't the reason for the resurgent Left, Bush was which garnered a lively and angsty series of comment threads, I left this comment...
And before the first journalist chimes in with...
some bullshit "equivalency" remarks about how the Left was just as horrible and disrespectful to George W Bush as the Right has been to President Barrack Obama...
The Left verbally assaulted George W Bush because we knew he was lying us all into a massive land War. Because the man he appointed US Attorney General, and his staff, provided 'legal cover' under which his Administration ordered the use of torture. Torture.
The Right has verbally assaulted President Barrack Obama for:
Being black. For having a father who was born in Africa. For not being born an American (even after the President made his official State of Hawaii birth certificate public). For being a Muslim (when he has attended Christian church services his entire adult life). For "pal-ing around" with the Pastor (of his Christian church) who was recorded giving a sermon in which he dared to say, "God damn the United States!" For being a Socialist, a Marxist and a Communist -all at the same time.
There is, sadly, much more but isn't that enough to show the complete and utter difference between the two Presidents and the two Bases which were each energized by the respective presidencies of the two men?
"I like paying taxes...with them, I buy Civilization" -- me
by Angie in WA State on Wed Mar 27, 2013 at 09:39:56 PM PDT
Feel free add to my list in the comments.
We need a 4th Estate which is willing to challenge obvious obfuscators, regardless of their work-related achievements. Even celebrated neurosurgeons who save children's lives can be a bigot and prejudiced against LGBTQ people, and Marriage Equality. Or just stupid about some things and smart about others. Either way, our Free Press owes it to us to expose these people to the light of day, and the ears and eyes of The People.
ps - just found out I have to take my granddaughter to the Clinic for a possible healthcare issue. Thankfully, she is insured under the SCHIP plan (federally and state supported insurance for kids under 18 in WA State), and I can take her to get the care she needs.