11 ms·

This probably makes me sound really bad, but does someone with the speech issues he has really stand a chance at the presidency? I know his health isn't under

This probably makes me sound really bad, but does someone with the speech issues he has really stand a chance at the presidency? I know his health isn't under his control, and it isn't cool to judge someone because of it...but, as humans, we do, and for someone whose job is to clearly communicate his ideas and inspire with words...he seems to fall short here.

lowkey 3y ago
He is currently polling at 20% amongst democrats and has a higher favorability rating than either Biden or Trump in some polls. All this while facing an unrelenting smear campaign by powerful media interests. Despite his voice issues, his message seems to be resonating amongst Democrats, Independents and even Republicans. He is the only candidate who seems to be gaining support across the political spectrum. I think his message of peace and diplomacy over endless interventionist wars and healing the divide are gaining traction. Let's just hope the powers that be don't decide to give him lead poisoning like they did his uncle and his father.
- marlor 3y ago
  I was waiting for a conspiracy theory to be woven in there, and you didn’t disappoint.
  - lowkey 3y ago
    Please share, what is the conspiracy theory you reference? Did you know the term "conspiracy theory" was literally invented by the CIA to smear anyone who dared to question the official narrative about the JFK assassination? There is ample evidence in recently released documents on the JFK assassination that Lee Harvey Oswald was working with the CIA before the assassination. [1][2] Does anyone honestly believe that Oswald acted alone? Do you still believe that we invaded Iraq because they had WMD? [1] https://theintercept.com/2022/12/19/lee-harvey-oswald-cia-lsd-jfk/ https://theintercept.com/2022/12/19/lee-harvey-oswald-cia-ls... [2] https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/16/us/politics/biden-jfk-assassination-papers.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/16/us/politics/biden-jfk-ass...
    - the_only_law 3y ago
      > The earliest known usage was by the American author Charles Astor Bristed, in a letter to the editor published in The New York Times on January 11, 1863. He used it to refer to claims that British aristocrats were intentionally weakening the United States during the American Civil War in order to advance their financial interests. Those damn CIA time travelers.
      - Gud 3y ago
        Just because someone used a phrase earlier doesn’t mean todays usage traces back to then. It is possible it was used in the 1860s and fell out of use and was popularized by the CIA at the time of JFKs assassination
    - lowkey 3y ago
      I stand corrected on the origin of the term but I stand by the claim that it was weaponized by the CIA to counter those who questioned the official JFK assassination narrative. Here is the 1967 CIA dispatch on the Warren Commission with details: https://steemit.com/history/@thelastheretik/cia-coined-and-weaponized-the-label-conspiracy-theory https://steemit.com/history/@thelastheretik/cia-coined-and-w...
      - DANmode 3y ago
        Popularized. That distinction hamstrings hundreds of otherwise valid conversations on the topic.
- idontwantthis 3y ago
  [flagged]
  - Dig1t 3y ago
    This is the obvious smear campaign that GP was talking about. RFK actually responded to these claims directly, though everyone seems to be conveniently ignoring him. https://twitter.com/RobertKennedyJr/status/1680227322509635595 https://twitter.com/RobertKennedyJr/status/16802273225096355... >I have never, ever suggested that the COVID-19 virus was targeted to spare Jews. I accurately pointed out — during an off-the-record conversation — that the U.S. and other governments are developing ethnically targeted bioweapons and that a 2021 study of the COVID-19 virus shows that COVID-19 appears to disproportionately affect certain races since the furin cleave docking site is most compatible with Blacks and Caucasians and least compatible with ethnic Chinese, Finns, and Ashkenazi Jews. Reading that quote from RFK I cannot take the NYT headline seriously at all, such a far cry from "bigoted conspiracy theory".
    - lisasays 3y ago
      I have never, ever suggested that the COVID-19 virus was targeted to spare Jews. And yet, in his taped comments he said exactly that: “There is an argument that it is ethnically targeted. Covid-19 attacks certain races disproportionately,” Mr. Kennedy said at a private gathering in New York that was captured on videotape by The New York Post. “Covid-19 is targeted to attack Caucasians and Black people. The people who are most immune are Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese.” Of course then he got "caught" and tried to pretend not to have said what he just got caught saying. But there's no wiggling out of it. Try as he may to do so.
      - lowkey 3y ago
        He was referencing this study [0] by the Cleveland Clinic (the second most prestigious medical research institution in the US) which states exactly that. He didn't get "caught", nor did he try to pretend not to have said it. That is pure dis-information. Why do most if not all criticisms of RFK Jr, resort to such easily debunked ad-hominem attacks instead of genuine attempts to refute his arguments? Is it simply that ad-hominem attacks are the last bastion of one with no valid arguments to make? [0] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32664879/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32664879/
- mindslight 3y ago
  > I think his message of peace and diplomacy over endless interventionist wars and healing the divide are gaining traction. It's the right message at the wrong time. It sure sounds noble, "peace". But as an ally to a defending party, it essentially means leaving Ukraine to fend for themselves against Russia's invasion - which would actually be expanding the war. I've made many attempts at following these arguments that Russia is somehow a reluctant party here, and they just never add up. They're always full of assertions hyperlinked to supporting posts that don't actually check out as being true. (But if you don't dig, I can see how they would be persuasive) And just for reference, I was against the Iraq War even before the invasion. I routinely call the US an "empire". I've been generally against the casual US meddling in various foreign countries that is now characterized as the "forever war". But I also understand that it's fallacious to focus on the US as the only possible aggressor, and this situation seems like a straightforward case of Ukraine wanting to avoid being re-subjugated by the Russian empire by choosing to align with the looser business empire of the West. If anything, all of these narratives against helping Ukraine by echoing criticisms of the Iraq War just feel like more terrible consequences of that misadventure. I am all for peace and ending the war in Ukraine. But this is not an American political issue, but rather a Russian one.
  - lowkey 3y ago
    "It's the right message at the wrong time." I respect your position but I firmly disagree. This war was never about saving Ukraine. It is and has always been a proxy war between two super-powers - primarily focused on weakening Russia and seeking regime change. [0] The US and NATO provide arms and funding while the young men of Ukraine are being killed at a rate of 7-1 vs Russia, with nothing to show for it but 300k dead Ukrainian young men. "I am all for peace and ending the war in Ukraine. But this is not an American political issue, but rather a Russian one." I am also for peace and ending the war in Ukraine - and I don't excuse the inexcusable actions of Putin. However, we need to get past the comic book depictions of US/NATO = Good, Russia = evil, and look at the world from the perspective of our opponent if we are ever to end the vicious cycle of endless wars. Russia repeatedly made it clear that bringing Ukraine into NATO was a red-line. Putting nuclear-capable US stinger missiles on Russia's border, 400 miles from Moscow able to decapitate their leadership in minutes was always a non-starter. It doesn't excuse Putin's invasion, but it does explain it somewhat. Imagine if Russia had nuclear capable missiles on the US border, say in Canada or Mexico. We would invade in a second. There are no good guys in war, only lies and propaganda from both sides. I want to see an end to the bloodshed and that requires us to seek peace over escalation. The only winners in war are those who make the guns and bombs. [0] https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/04/18/russia-ukraine-war-us-involvement-leaked-documents/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/04/18/... https://archive.is/0pGKh https://archive.is/0pGKh
esalman 3y ago
A lot of people regularly bash Trump and Biden for being old so I'd imagine they won't have issues with RFK.

lowkey 3y ago

He is currently polling at 20% amongst democrats and has a higher favorability rating than either Biden or Trump in some polls. All this while facing an unrelenting smear campaign by powerful media interests. Despite his voice issues, his message seems to be resonating amongst Democrats, Independents and even Republicans. He is the only candidate who seems to be gaining support across the political spectrum. I think his message of peace and diplomacy over endless interventionist wars and healing the divide are gaining traction. Let's just hope the powers that be don't decide to give him lead poisoning like they did his uncle and his father.

marlor 3y ago
I was waiting for a conspiracy theory to be woven in there, and you didn’t disappoint.
- lowkey 3y ago
  Please share, what is the conspiracy theory you reference? Did you know the term "conspiracy theory" was literally invented by the CIA to smear anyone who dared to question the official narrative about the JFK assassination? There is ample evidence in recently released documents on the JFK assassination that Lee Harvey Oswald was working with the CIA before the assassination. [1][2] Does anyone honestly believe that Oswald acted alone? Do you still believe that we invaded Iraq because they had WMD? [1] https://theintercept.com/2022/12/19/lee-harvey-oswald-cia-lsd-jfk/ https://theintercept.com/2022/12/19/lee-harvey-oswald-cia-ls... [2] https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/16/us/politics/biden-jfk-assassination-papers.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/16/us/politics/biden-jfk-ass...
  - the_only_law 3y ago
    > The earliest known usage was by the American author Charles Astor Bristed, in a letter to the editor published in The New York Times on January 11, 1863. He used it to refer to claims that British aristocrats were intentionally weakening the United States during the American Civil War in order to advance their financial interests. Those damn CIA time travelers.
    - Gud 3y ago
      Just because someone used a phrase earlier doesn’t mean todays usage traces back to then. It is possible it was used in the 1860s and fell out of use and was popularized by the CIA at the time of JFKs assassination
  - lowkey 3y ago
    I stand corrected on the origin of the term but I stand by the claim that it was weaponized by the CIA to counter those who questioned the official JFK assassination narrative. Here is the 1967 CIA dispatch on the Warren Commission with details: https://steemit.com/history/@thelastheretik/cia-coined-and-weaponized-the-label-conspiracy-theory https://steemit.com/history/@thelastheretik/cia-coined-and-w...
    - DANmode 3y ago
      Popularized. That distinction hamstrings hundreds of otherwise valid conversations on the topic.
idontwantthis 3y ago
[flagged]
- Dig1t 3y ago
  This is the obvious smear campaign that GP was talking about. RFK actually responded to these claims directly, though everyone seems to be conveniently ignoring him. https://twitter.com/RobertKennedyJr/status/1680227322509635595 https://twitter.com/RobertKennedyJr/status/16802273225096355... >I have never, ever suggested that the COVID-19 virus was targeted to spare Jews. I accurately pointed out — during an off-the-record conversation — that the U.S. and other governments are developing ethnically targeted bioweapons and that a 2021 study of the COVID-19 virus shows that COVID-19 appears to disproportionately affect certain races since the furin cleave docking site is most compatible with Blacks and Caucasians and least compatible with ethnic Chinese, Finns, and Ashkenazi Jews. Reading that quote from RFK I cannot take the NYT headline seriously at all, such a far cry from "bigoted conspiracy theory".
  - lisasays 3y ago
    I have never, ever suggested that the COVID-19 virus was targeted to spare Jews. And yet, in his taped comments he said exactly that: “There is an argument that it is ethnically targeted. Covid-19 attacks certain races disproportionately,” Mr. Kennedy said at a private gathering in New York that was captured on videotape by The New York Post. “Covid-19 is targeted to attack Caucasians and Black people. The people who are most immune are Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese.” Of course then he got "caught" and tried to pretend not to have said what he just got caught saying. But there's no wiggling out of it. Try as he may to do so.
    - lowkey 3y ago
      He was referencing this study [0] by the Cleveland Clinic (the second most prestigious medical research institution in the US) which states exactly that. He didn't get "caught", nor did he try to pretend not to have said it. That is pure dis-information. Why do most if not all criticisms of RFK Jr, resort to such easily debunked ad-hominem attacks instead of genuine attempts to refute his arguments? Is it simply that ad-hominem attacks are the last bastion of one with no valid arguments to make? [0] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32664879/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32664879/
mindslight 3y ago
> I think his message of peace and diplomacy over endless interventionist wars and healing the divide are gaining traction. It's the right message at the wrong time. It sure sounds noble, "peace". But as an ally to a defending party, it essentially means leaving Ukraine to fend for themselves against Russia's invasion - which would actually be expanding the war. I've made many attempts at following these arguments that Russia is somehow a reluctant party here, and they just never add up. They're always full of assertions hyperlinked to supporting posts that don't actually check out as being true. (But if you don't dig, I can see how they would be persuasive) And just for reference, I was against the Iraq War even before the invasion. I routinely call the US an "empire". I've been generally against the casual US meddling in various foreign countries that is now characterized as the "forever war". But I also understand that it's fallacious to focus on the US as the only possible aggressor, and this situation seems like a straightforward case of Ukraine wanting to avoid being re-subjugated by the Russian empire by choosing to align with the looser business empire of the West. If anything, all of these narratives against helping Ukraine by echoing criticisms of the Iraq War just feel like more terrible consequences of that misadventure. I am all for peace and ending the war in Ukraine. But this is not an American political issue, but rather a Russian one.
- lowkey 3y ago
  "It's the right message at the wrong time." I respect your position but I firmly disagree. This war was never about saving Ukraine. It is and has always been a proxy war between two super-powers - primarily focused on weakening Russia and seeking regime change. [0] The US and NATO provide arms and funding while the young men of Ukraine are being killed at a rate of 7-1 vs Russia, with nothing to show for it but 300k dead Ukrainian young men. "I am all for peace and ending the war in Ukraine. But this is not an American political issue, but rather a Russian one." I am also for peace and ending the war in Ukraine - and I don't excuse the inexcusable actions of Putin. However, we need to get past the comic book depictions of US/NATO = Good, Russia = evil, and look at the world from the perspective of our opponent if we are ever to end the vicious cycle of endless wars. Russia repeatedly made it clear that bringing Ukraine into NATO was a red-line. Putting nuclear-capable US stinger missiles on Russia's border, 400 miles from Moscow able to decapitate their leadership in minutes was always a non-starter. It doesn't excuse Putin's invasion, but it does explain it somewhat. Imagine if Russia had nuclear capable missiles on the US border, say in Canada or Mexico. We would invade in a second. There are no good guys in war, only lies and propaganda from both sides. I want to see an end to the bloodshed and that requires us to seek peace over escalation. The only winners in war are those who make the guns and bombs. [0] https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/04/18/russia-ukraine-war-us-involvement-leaked-documents/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/04/18/... https://archive.is/0pGKh https://archive.is/0pGKh

esalman 3y ago

A lot of people regularly bash Trump and Biden for being old so I'd imagine they won't have issues with RFK.