Incredible speech

[Pointedstick]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=p ... Fb6NU1giRA#!

This guy really blew me away.

[Benko]

A great speech and an amazing personal story i.e. grew up in inner-city Detroit, Carson was a self-described “horrible student with a horrible temper.”?  and winds up not only a doctor, but director of pediatric neurosurgery at Hopkins (a very  high power place).

[moda0306]

I am a bit torn on this.

His backstory was extremely inspirational. His focus on aggressive education support was agreeable.  I also found his point on how to engage people that you disagree with to be very mature.

However it was all a little bit melodramatic, and the religious aspects to it were a little bit nauseating. His implication that religious Christians are the main victim of speech limitations seemed more like Bill O'Reilly than I would've liked.  Additionally, he lamented about how deficits in our debt is going to destroy us, but then went on to say that taxes are too much of a burden.  The former makes my skin crawl more than the latter (in fact I agree with the latter), but the combination is getting real old. The inclusion of more health savings accounts into our healthcare system isn't going to balance our budget. Nor is it going to help families much without the means to pay for health insurance especially if they're uninsurable.

In the end, he seemed like a conservative Barack Obama.  An inspirational story and good speaking skills, combined with a lot of quasi-inspirational fluff.

[Pointedstick]

I'm not in the least bit religious, and didn't find the religious parts nauseating, personally. He seems like a very genuine and faithful man, but not one who wants to force religion onto others. I think he was talking about all sorts of PC pseudo-censorship, not just being unable to wish people a merry Christmas. And on that, I heartily agree with him. Our political and social climate makes it all but impossible to have a public discussion on a variety of subjects without encountering feigned shock or accusations of racism, sexism, bigotry, extremism, hatred of the poor, elderly, children, or the unborn, you name it.

I find it incredibly frustrating when someone tries to shut down a debate by suggesting that I'm just some kind of discompassionate monster whose views are obviously so far out of the mainstream that I should just shut up. I encountered it all the time in college and a disappointing amount since graduation.

[moda0306]

PS,

I see what you're saying, but I don't get the Christmas thing.  I truly think there are more religious yahoos that seem to be offended by "happy holidays" than any line offended by "Merry Christmas." For the record, I don't consider having public areas use the term Happy Holidays to be the least bit inappropriate... Especially if their decorations are going to be up for a month and a half.

Also, those aren't the only labels thrown around... Here are a few more:

Socialist, communist, statist, pacifist, dependent, godless, immoral, unpatriotic, terrorist, islamist, etc.

This axe cuts both ways. In the heartland of the US there are a lot of "real Americans" that resent the debates I try to have.

Maybe this is our respective surroundings getting to us .

He did seem very thoughtful.  I just don't like the religious right thinking they are the only victims of PC culture. Depends who you're engaging with.

[Benko]

Moda,

I'm not sure I really understand.

PC is not being able to say that a bald man is bald, having to call him follicularly challenged, or not mention the topic at all for fear you might offend him.  PC is the anti-deformation league getting upset at saturday night live for well anything.

What does this have to do with saying someone is liberal, conservative, statist, john bircher, or any label you care to name?

PC is controlling speech to avoid offending people and it sounds like you are saying that you object to certain labels because you are offended?  or??

[moda0306]

Benko,

I was responding to PS's statement that he hates the labels others try to attach to him to silence him in debates. I was pointing out that both sides have their labels. We'd all probably agree that labels, while certainly a result of free speech, tend to serve to silence people when used by others.

I'm not really offended by labels, just trying to show that Christians (and libertarians) aren't the only victims. This speaker is strongly implying otherwise, IMO.  It nauseates me a bit to hear it. Of course, not to a point where I want to use sarcasm or labels to shut him up, but to where his speech has very limited impact.

[Benko]

Got it.

But his speech has enough impact on at least some people that there are already calls and an article in the WSJ on him for president.

[Lone Wolf]

What a great speech!  Thanks for posting, PS.

[Pointedstick]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=p ... Fb6NU1giRA#!

This guy really blew me away.

I thought it was fine, but I wouldn't say it was incredible or that it blew me away. 

I'm curious what prompted your reaction.

Sure. Looking back, I guess I was more impressed with the man himself than his speech, which was simply a conduit to learning about him. And there weer several things about him that impressed me:

* Inspiring rags-to-riches life story
* Rejection of victim psychology
* Plainspokenness coupled with exceptionally high intelligence; no elitist pretense
* Ballsy willingness to "speak truth to power" by challenging the political consensus at a political event
* Being a subject matter expert willing to offer solutions gleaned from experience
* Sharing his wealth and success by setting up a scholarship program
* Being an amazing black role model

Before anyone calls me racist on the last point, let me share that I used to tutor African immigrant boys in English and found that lack of good black role models was a huge problem for them. All the strong black male icons in the media they saw were rappers, basketball players, or criminals, and their desire to copy those men's behavior was incredibly strong. I felt like I was constantly fighting a tide of poisonous culture.

[Benko]

I thought it was fine, but I wouldn't say it was incredible or that it blew me away. 

PS is very articulate as to why it was an excellent speech and why many people reacted very strongly/positively to it.  Let me echo that he is  intelligent, soft spoken, and an  articulate figure with balls (frequently lacking in those on the right).

"incredible or that it blew me away"
While I don't know you, I can say that as a society we are addicted to adrenalin/excitement and wish to be "blown away" by things.  Hitler gave very effective speeches and probably did blow away his audience, but one can give very effective and game changing speeches, which are low key, and not exciting (at least in the way you are speaking of).

[MediumTex]

Cal Thomas has always reminded me of a casket salesman.

[MediumTex]

Before anyone calls me racist on the last point, let me share that I used to tutor African immigrant boys in English and found that lack of good black role models was a huge problem for them. All the strong black male icons in the media they saw were rappers, basketball players, or criminals, and their desire to copy those men's behavior was incredibly strong. I felt like I was constantly fighting a tide of poisonous culture.

I am going to get off topic a bit here, but I think that the topic of role models for boys is really important.

Has anyone else noticed that the way white men are depicted in popular media has become very cynical and stupid?  The television commercials especially have increasingly used the "dumb husband" storyline to sell everything from cars to yogurt.

While I don't mind all of this that much (though it does bug me), I see my two sons watching TV and I wonder what message is being imprinted upon their minds by all of these depictions of stupid, ignorant, emasculated and dangerously moronic men that advertising bombards them with. 

It can't be good for kids of any sex or ethnicity to see such negative depictions of adult versions of themselves.

[Pointedstick]

TennPaGa, the National Prayer Breakfast strikes me as an example of an inherently political event that the political class tries to pretend is non-political. IMHO, an official yearly event that Congress holds in Washington D.C. and invites politicians to cannot possibly be anything but political, no matter how they might try to cover this fact up by calling it a "National Prayer Breakfast."

[MediumTex]

Cal Thomas has always reminded me of a casket salesman.

I've thought the same (especially since he lost the 'stache).  And the pink tie really seals the look.

I think that the key to being a good casket salesman is to look like you are already partially dead.  I think that this gives you more credibility when describing the features, advantages and benefits of the various models.

***

The "Alum-Eternity" model is very nice.  If you would like I could demo it for you, just to give you a sense of what it looks like when occupied.

[MediumTex]

Most people know me as Bruce Jenner, cereal box model and husband and stepfather to what I like to call a "house-full-a-hos." 

What people often don't know about me, though, is that I actually died in 2005 and when I like to get a good night's sleep there is really no substitute for a well-built casket.  Let me show you a few of my favorite models...

[Pointedstick]

TennPaGa, the National Prayer Breakfast strikes me as an example of an inherently political event that the political class tries to pretend is non-political. IMHO, an official yearly event that Congress holds in Washington D.C. and invites politicians to cannot possibly be anything but political, no matter how they might try to cover this fact up by calling it a "National Prayer Breakfast."

Granted.

Even so, Casket Man has a point, if one believes in manners and custom.

I will confess to not seen or read about prior NPB speeches, so I can't say whether Carson's speech was inappropriate.

I will make the same confession.   And I wholeheartedly encourage a return to discussing casket-men.

[dualstow]

I think that the key to being a good casket salesman is to look like you are already partially dead.  I think that this gives you more credibility when describing the features, advantages and benefits of the various models.

***

The "Alum-Eternity" model is very nice.  If you would like I could demo it for you, just to give you a sense of what it looks like when occupied.

He doesn't just look partially dead, but embalmed!

[moda0306]

Speaking truth to power?  What truth did he speak?

Hsa's will save massive amounts in healthcare costs, AND be a huge help for poor/uninsurable people who can't afford insurance? False and very false.

We have a huge deficit problem, and a huge over taxation problem on the rich?  False, and contradictory, respectively.

PC works against religion mostly?  Um, sigh. No, a lot of different entities push PC attitudes, not the least of which being religious organizations.

Too many lawyers in politics?  TRUE!!

Education should be a huge priority? TRUE!!

I believe those last two, though, have been said by Barack as well.

I always love rags to riches stories and solid role models, but this speech wasn't "speaking truth to power" IMO.

[Benko]

Here's a summary of why I wasn't blown away...

A good speech (for me, at least) will interweave little mini-stories into a coherent whole.  It'll have an over-arching theme.  And the speaker will tell me that theme up front, and keep reminding me of it.  Carson's speech didn't do this.

What you say is intellectually correct and I've learned that when I learned about giving speeches.  So he is not a polished speechgiver.  He can certainly improve if that is relevant for him.  But there are other qualities (many of which PS listed), things that just come across.  I would suspect that a lot of people (who are not liberal/leftist/"intellectual") react very postively to his speech.

[Benko]

TennP,

A speech writing class might not give it a very high grade i.e. it may not meet the criteria which you mentioned, but the other qualities it does have make the lack relatively unimportant.  WHy?  Because he is very real, articulate at getting his points across and many people are eager for someone who can articulate the kinds of things he is saying (and has the balls to do so). So his speech is plenty good enough to make it very appealing and to cause very positive reactions from many people who are not leftists.  He is someone who would not fall on his face without a teleprompter (remember he is a surgeon, and there are no teleprompters in the operating room and especially so when things don't go as expected and one has to improvise).

[Pointedstick]

Benko is getting at a lot of the emotional core of what impressed me. Even though I'll admit his speech skills may be a little raw, that rawness suggests and complements a certain practical-mindedness, toughness, and the weight of hard-won real-world experience. The stories, the tone, the word choice; to me, they all lent authority by way of demonstrating experience and worldliness.

It's a huge contrast with every speech delivered by our president, for example, all of which are superbly crafted and well-delivered, but require days of preparation and an electronic support infrastructure during delivery, often contain little substance, and mostly betray no hint of real character or experience beneath the carefully-chosen words.

[Benko]

It's a huge contrast with every speech delivered by our president,

+1. 

I was trying to be tactful and not state the fact that he is in many ways an anti-Obama, something many in the country (who are not of the left) are hungry for.

[Mountaineer]

It's a huge contrast with every speech delivered by our president,

+1. 

I was trying to be tactful and not state the fact that he is in many ways an anti-Obama, something many in the country (who are not of the left) are hungry for.

+2

I hesitate to say anything more as watching and hearing our president speak evokes such a visceral negative reaction in me that I have trouble remaining objective.

[AgAuMoney]

It's a huge contrast with every speech delivered by our president,

+1. 

I was trying to be tactful and not state the fact that he is in many ways an anti-Obama, something many in the country (who are not of the left) are hungry for.

+2

I hesitate to say anything more as watching and hearing our president speak evokes such a visceral negative reaction in me that I have trouble remaining objective.

+3

I cannot remain objective or say anything nice.