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Arellia
The Quiet One
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Posts: 4425
Location: Dallas, TX
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 Wed Oct 17, 2007 12:21 pm Stephen Colbert... for President? |
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So... I was looking around, and I found all these articles...from the AP, New York Times, etc... that seem to insinuate that Stephen Colbert is actually running for president. I have no idea, because it all sounds like a joke, but no one seems to be saying that it IS a joke.  I really don't get it. What do you think?
| Quote: | NEW YORK - Stephen Colbert has announced his candidacy for president on "The Colbert Report," tossing his satirical hat into the ring of an already crowded race.
"I shall seek the office of the president of the United States," Colbert said Tuesday on his Comedy Central show as red, white and blue balloons fell around him.
Colbert, 43, had recently satirized the coyness of would-be presidential candidates by refusing to disclose whether he would seek the country's highest office � a refusal that often came without any prompting. |
- http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21342607/
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Not the doctor... yet
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TrekkieMage
Office Junkie
Joined: 17 Oct 2004
Posts: 5335
Location: Hiding
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| Wed Oct 17, 2007 1:56 pm |
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I'd be willing to bet he did it as a joke, and the media took it seriously
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squiggy
Stooge Two
Joined: 09 Mar 2004
Posts: 3007
Location: Messing with the fabric of Video Game realities. I'll summon Shiva on you! I SWEAR!
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| Wed Oct 17, 2007 2:35 pm |
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They need him. He SHOULD run.
He'd make an awesome president ^^
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Arellia
The Quiet One
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Posts: 4425
Location: Dallas, TX
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| Wed Oct 17, 2007 3:13 pm |
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Oh, yes. I'd love to see him run. It would be great. I know a lot of people, on his forums, are going to vote for him whether he's on the ballot or not. Be interesting to see how many votes he actually gets.
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squiggy
Stooge Two
Joined: 09 Mar 2004
Posts: 3007
Location: Messing with the fabric of Video Game realities. I'll summon Shiva on you! I SWEAR!
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| Wed Oct 17, 2007 3:33 pm |
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I think he'd be one of few presidents even Canadians couldn't hate.
We loved Clinton, by the way, but what the h-e-double-hockey sticks was with electing Bush.
TWICE?
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Republican_Man
STV's Premier Conservative
Joined: 26 Mar 2004
Posts: 14823
Location: Classified
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| Wed Oct 17, 2007 5:53 pm |
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 It's definitely not going to happen, but it'd be hilarious if it did! A real Man of the Year, lol.
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"Rights are only as good as the willingness of some to exercise responsibility for those rights- Fmr. Colorado Senate Pres. John Andrews
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Founder
Dominion Leader
Joined: 21 Jun 2004
Posts: 12755
Location: Gamma Quadrant
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| Fri Oct 19, 2007 9:28 pm |
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It's a funny thought, but we kind of need someone with geniune experiance to fix the mess we're in. Perhaps one day when we're in a good place, we can have a comedian run for the presidency.
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LightningBoy
Commodore
Joined: 09 Mar 2003
Posts: 1446
Location: Minnesota, U.S.A.
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| Mon Oct 22, 2007 4:00 pm |
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| squiggy wrote: | I think he'd be one of few presidents even Canadians couldn't hate.
We loved Clinton, by the way, but what the h-e-double-hockey sticks was with electing Bush.
TWICE? |
I know quite a few Canadians who really disliked Clinton. Though I don't know very many who especially liked Bush.
Why did we elect Bush? Because he was better than the alternative. TWICE.
Colbert is going to run, and he's going to be successful, and it will be a sad reflection on society. America does not need to elect a FICTIONAL president.
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squiggy
Stooge Two
Joined: 09 Mar 2004
Posts: 3007
Location: Messing with the fabric of Video Game realities. I'll summon Shiva on you! I SWEAR!
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| Mon Oct 22, 2007 4:08 pm |
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| LightningBoy wrote: | | squiggy wrote: | I think he'd be one of few presidents even Canadians couldn't hate.
We loved Clinton, by the way, but what the h-e-double-hockey sticks was with electing Bush.
TWICE? |
I know quite a few Canadians who really disliked Clinton. Though I don't know very many who especially liked Bush.
Why did we elect Bush? Because he was better than the alternative. TWICE.
Colbert is going to run, and he's going to be successful, and it will be a sad reflection on society. America does not need to elect a FICTIONAL president. |
The debate could thus be started thaat Bush was more or less a fictional president.
... 
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Valathous
The Canadian, eh
Joined: 31 Aug 2002
Posts: 19074
Location: Centre Bell
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| Mon Oct 22, 2007 4:09 pm |
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There's a facebook group that formed the day Colbert made his announcement called "1,000,000 Strong for Stephen T Colbert".
So it was formed on October 17th
Today is October 22nd.
Members: 479, 017
It's already passed Obama's group, and it about 8000 shy of the Anti-Clinton group (which took them 8 and 9 months respectively) after 6 days. If you refresh the page, you can watch the group grow. I watched it gain 800 members in 5 minutes just now. 2 days ago, so many people joined that it crashed the server temporarily.
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Arellia
The Quiet One
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Posts: 4425
Location: Dallas, TX
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| Mon Oct 22, 2007 4:12 pm |
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Stephen Colbert is not a stupid guy. He has a degree in philosophy, he's a catholic, he teaches the bible to kids... yet he IS a liberal, and speaks his mind very plainly when out of character. If he's serious about this, he needs a good speech, away from his persona... I think he'd win over a lot of people. Also, a president is made up by people he surrounds himself with, more than anything--Colbert has interviewed some great minds, has interests in many fields. I believe he would pick the best people he could find to stock a cabinet. If, that is, he could win, which is still, obviously, a longshot.
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LightningBoy
Commodore
Joined: 09 Mar 2003
Posts: 1446
Location: Minnesota, U.S.A.
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| Mon Oct 22, 2007 4:18 pm |
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| squiggy wrote: | | LightningBoy wrote: | | squiggy wrote: | I think he'd be one of few presidents even Canadians couldn't hate.
We loved Clinton, by the way, but what the h-e-double-hockey sticks was with electing Bush.
TWICE? |
I know quite a few Canadians who really disliked Clinton. Though I don't know very many who especially liked Bush.
Why did we elect Bush? Because he was better than the alternative. TWICE.
Colbert is going to run, and he's going to be successful, and it will be a sad reflection on society. America does not need to elect a FICTIONAL president. |
The debate could thus be started thaat Bush was more or less a fictional president.
... |
Sure, it could be made, but it wouldn't be legit. Agree with him or not, there's no reason to make that argument, being there's no real premise.
Stephen Colbert has admitted in the past, that there is a clear separation between the actor and the character. He is running AS the character. If Stephen Colbert the ACTOR, was running for president, it would be another story, but it doesn't seem that way. Again, America doesn't need a FICTIONAL president!
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Arellia
The Quiet One
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Posts: 4425
Location: Dallas, TX
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| Mon Oct 22, 2007 4:27 pm |
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| LightningBoy wrote: |
Stephen Colbert has admitted in the past, that there is a clear separation between the actor and the character. He is running AS the character. If Stephen Colbert the ACTOR, was running for president, it would be another story, but it doesn't seem that way. Again, America doesn't need a FICTIONAL president! |
Although, the point should be made... the actor is the one who would win. Every sane person knows that the character is making fun of things, and means the opposite of everything he says. If he won, we would not have the character. We would have the actor. Colbert couldn't run a country as his character--it would be against his own beliefs.
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LightningBoy
Commodore
Joined: 09 Mar 2003
Posts: 1446
Location: Minnesota, U.S.A.
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| Mon Oct 22, 2007 4:31 pm |
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| Arellia wrote: | | Although, the point should be made... the actor is the one who would win. Every sane person knows that the character is making fun of things, and means the opposite of everything he says. If he won, we would not have the character. We would have the actor. Colbert couldn't run a country as his character--it would be against his own beliefs. |
How certain of that are you?
One thing I know about Colbert is that he is DEVOTED to the joke. He is a slave to comedy.
I don't think we would get the actor. I think our government would essentially become a big joke.
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Arellia
The Quiet One
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Posts: 4425
Location: Dallas, TX
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| Mon Oct 22, 2007 4:35 pm |
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Colbert is devoted to being a good person. If you've ever seen his out of character interviews, he's very concerned, he even backs off on certain jokes around certain people he respects. Not to mention real things he's done, like auctioning his cast and donating the proceeds to injured soldiers and their families. That was a real gesture, even though it was cloaked with jokes and things. I wouldn't say he's a slave to comedy--yes, if he won, we would see jokes in his speeches. But we would also see sound policies, and good decisions in who he surrounds himself with. You need only to see the kind of people he promotes on his show. Of course, I could be wrong... like I said. What I really want to see is whether or not he starts getting serious.
...imagine Colbert in a debate? Now, win or not, THAT would be interesting.
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TrekkieMage
Office Junkie
Joined: 17 Oct 2004
Posts: 5335
Location: Hiding
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| Mon Oct 22, 2007 6:12 pm |
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I think that, oddly enough, Colbert is far more candid and down to earth than the other candidates.
He's shown himself to be incredibly intelligent and politically savvy. He's got political connections, and has to be up to date on what's happening in Washington.
And as much as Colbert and Stewart really aim to entertain people, they've got just as much relevant information as most news shows. And they *don't* take themselves too seriously. With the kind of satire they do they absolutely must be well versed in the subtleties of the English language as well as the political universe.
As strange as it sounds, the only difference I see between Colbert and other candidates is that Colbert hasn't actually held an office yet, and that seems to be his only flaw as a candidate.
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Republican_Man
STV's Premier Conservative
Joined: 26 Mar 2004
Posts: 14823
Location: Classified
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| Mon Oct 22, 2007 8:24 pm |
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I don't see how people would be able to take him seriously, I really don't. Sure, he might be serious and the real Stephen Colbert if he were president, but when people are considering him and whether or not to support him, they're going to think of his comedic character. Is that a plus? In some ways it is, because he's very appealing. But it's also a big minus because he'd be really difficult to take seriously.
| Quote: | | ...imagine Colbert in a debate? Now, win or not, THAT would be interesting. |
It would be, lol. I'd love to see that.
All this talk of Colbert for President makes me think of the movie Man of the Year, in which Robin William's character Tom Dobbs wins, only because of a computer error, however. I really enjoyed it and thought it very funny, but I remember when it came out everyone talking about a comedian running for president, and now it may well be a reality. But the debates and whatnot were fun in the movie and I'm sure they'd be awesome with Colbert, lol.
I find the Wikipedia article on this whole presidential bid to be interesting. Check it out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Colbert_presidential_campaign%2C_2008
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"Rights are only as good as the willingness of some to exercise responsibility for those rights- Fmr. Colorado Senate Pres. John Andrews
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Republican_Man
STV's Premier Conservative
Joined: 26 Mar 2004
Posts: 14823
Location: Classified
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| Mon Oct 22, 2007 9:01 pm |
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Colbert is officially, to cast any doubt, pursuing his campaign. He's trying to get on both the Republican and Democratic ballots in South Carolina, his home state, for example. This'll be hilarious, lol. I'm wondering where things will go legally and politically.
Btw, his campaign site, which doesn't have much of anything on it but his show, includes petition information. Check it out if you want: http://colbert08.org/
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"Rights are only as good as the willingness of some to exercise responsibility for those rights- Fmr. Colorado Senate Pres. John Andrews
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Arellia
The Quiet One
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Posts: 4425
Location: Dallas, TX
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| Mon Oct 22, 2007 9:04 pm |
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^ I just noticed that. I would help petition... if I knew anyone in SC. Well, at least I know... if the next election is another lesser of two evils for me, I have a third choice!
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squiggy
Stooge Two
Joined: 09 Mar 2004
Posts: 3007
Location: Messing with the fabric of Video Game realities. I'll summon Shiva on you! I SWEAR!
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| Tue Oct 23, 2007 1:41 am |
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IT IS OFFICIALLY OFFICIAL! STEVEN COLBERT IS RUNNING. NOW VOTE FOR HIM 
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TrekkieMage
Office Junkie
Joined: 17 Oct 2004
Posts: 5335
Location: Hiding
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| Tue Oct 23, 2007 3:30 pm |
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He's going to have some issues, apparently in SC you have to have run for an office before in order to be placed on the primary ballot.
But there are still ways around it, we'll see what happens 
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Debra
Sweetest Angel
Joined: 26 May 2007
Posts: 444
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| Tue Oct 23, 2007 3:50 pm |
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SC is my home state lol
Well I don't he will get to be President... Not a comedian... lol I don't really know much about him except he is on tv.
Need someone serious and means business in office. Can you imagine him being president? Be like the movie man of the year... just joking.
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TrekkieMage
Office Junkie
Joined: 17 Oct 2004
Posts: 5335
Location: Hiding
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| Tue Oct 23, 2007 8:11 pm |
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We've already elected an actor to the presidency. And Colbert may not have held an office, but he does know politics very well.
And from what I read Colbert is just aiming to get on the SC ballot for the primaries - he doesn't have any plans for other states. I think he's just trying to see what kind of reaction it gets and to simply see what happens. It's kind of like a socio-political experiment
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Republican_Man
STV's Premier Conservative
Joined: 26 Mar 2004
Posts: 14823
Location: Classified
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| Wed Oct 24, 2007 1:01 am |
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| TrekkieMage wrote: | | And from what I read Colbert is just aiming to get on the SC ballot for the primaries - he doesn't have any plans for other states. I think he's just trying to see what kind of reaction it gets and to simply see what happens. It's kind of like a socio-political experiment |
Probably so. I can just see some people taking it too seriously and claiming he's making a mockery out of the electoral process, lol.
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"Rights are only as good as the willingness of some to exercise responsibility for those rights- Fmr. Colorado Senate Pres. John Andrews
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squiggy
Stooge Two
Joined: 09 Mar 2004
Posts: 3007
Location: Messing with the fabric of Video Game realities. I'll summon Shiva on you! I SWEAR!
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| Wed Oct 24, 2007 1:29 am |
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He'd make a better president then either Bush.
Clinton.. no... no one could be better then Clinton ((Sorry, I'm canadian.))
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