Of Gaffes and Perspective

I forgot to mention the grandfather who Obama said went out the day after Pearl Harbor to enlist. Again, wrong! It was six months later.

Why not just tell the truth?

I think a big problem with this gaffe, on top of all the others, is that Obama seems to invent family stories (that later turn out not to be true) in order to bolster his standing with a particular audience. So he says he was conceived in the civil rights movement of Selma -- off by 4 years. He says the Kennedys helped bring his father to America. Wrong! Now it's the wrong concentration camp. There probably were others, as well.

It's the pattern of embellishment. (And the cumulative effect is what you should be writing about.) Some would call it lying.

If it were HRC, people would be screaming, screaming, screaming at the top of their little lungs about it being lying.

"And can someone tell me how this compares to McCain repeatedly stating Iran is training Al Qaeda, when Iran is Shia & Al Qaeda is Sunni???"

I will. That's another ignorant remark that casts doubt on his ability to be commander in chief.

And can someone tell me how this compares to McCain repeatedly stating Iran is training Al Qaeda, when Iran is Shia & Al Qaeda is Sunni???

Even the most boneheaded FoxNews watcher, should realize that understanding the differences between Iran & Al Qaeda are much more relevant than a historical gaffe regarding WWII.

I could care less what his uncle or great-uncle did...what concerns me is that he running on OTHER PEOPLE'S PATRIOTISM AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS because he has none of his own.

Good for you sir.

Obama and McCain both make gaffes everyday. It makes great fodder for the media. But at least neither of them blames it on campaign fatigue, though McCain surely could.

"My God, if Hillary had given a story about her Uncle with incorrect facts she'd be crucified, and this goes practically unnoticed?"

The fact is that Obama has made a large number of significant gaffes - and is given a pass on it by the left and the media (sorry for any redundancy) that has never been, and would never be, extended to a Republican.

For someone who doesn't shy at gaffes, you spend an awful lot of time shying at gaffes.

Unless the President says 'nuklear', I'm sure.

"...it's also worth noting that despite all the talk about Obama's problems with the Jewish community, he's never mentioned before that his great uncle helped liberate a concentration camp until it came up in North Las Vegas in a conversation about PTSD."

You really have to love how our esteemed media use their facility with words to explain away anything that conflicts with their meta-tale.

Guess what, Tapper. As it turns out, Obama was telling this tale much earlier. But you missed that 'tale' much like you missed this one (what exactly do you do anyway?)

But keep playing catch-up with these CYA postings. You'll just keep on getting more an more irrelevant. It's why journalists are hardly respected anymore. In fact, according to Harris' poll, "Journalists were rated ahead of just seven other occupations: union leader, stockbroker, entertainer, accountant, banker, actor, and real estate agent/broker." (http://www.e-thepeople.org/article/460401/view?viewtype)

That's rich, Tapper. You barely rate higher than actors and real estate brokers. It's gotta hurt :)

then charlie, why in the world did you vote for him?

and ken, the media will continue to help obama, he could not have been in any bigger league that dealing with the very knowledegable sen. clinton. and they help him there. the media' in the tank for obama and they are helping to steal this election.

and mmmom
you should go back and read the top part of jims comments, and the bottom half of charlies.

if obama wins the presidency,
there is trouble ahead with this guy.
he will be the geo. bush of the left.

mmmom -

Is it Germany or Poland that your uncle had visited last year, if he had visited one of the places?

Is it something you do not know, or just Poland being the first thing popped up in your mind.

Well, if this was Dan Quale, Tapper would be all over him and never let him up. Can you spell potato?

But nevermind that Obama thinks there is 58 states.

No, if he screwed up the concentration camp name, let the bloodletting begin. It'll toughen him up and remind him that the big league isn't going to let him jive his way through the nomination.

I voted for Obama in March.

Ordinarily, a story about a great uncle helping liberate a concentration camp, even if wrong in the details, would have made me more curious about the man's family history.

However, added to the 57 states flub, repeated use of wrong wording ("ferment" for "forment") and the rest of the steady stream of misspeaking, it is clear the man doesn't have the intellect to be president.

You entirely miss the point.

This gaffe shows a monumental historical ignorance by one who would be commander in chief.

The war started in Poland. Poland had a massive Jewish population. Americans never came close. The Soviet Army came through Poland. That's why the Poles had to throw the bums out in the 1980's.

Barack Obama, the new Forrest Gump

@justsaying

I agree, I think it is more to the point that obama is not genuine in talks, and as it is always seen, when obama does not have a prepared speech
before him, his mouth gets him in trouble. He always messes up something.
He is not talking naturally, tell a family story. sounds like he is telling something recently told to him, and he is trying to remember what was told, and tell it in a conversational manner, and failed at it.
stories like that when in family groups, you hear often, and you can retell some amount if it with ease, this is a story that you KNOW,
i just think he is not genuine.
I we saw this with geo. bush, and someone should be taking note of this,
obama is underqualfied to be president.
and put that together with not being a good communicator, the dems have made a mistake and will not win in the fall.
the dnc bigwigs, the media have all give obama a pass, and done everything they can to help obama, but one thing they cannot do is save obama from obama
when he is in front of the american people without a prepared speech

for me,
it is not so much the story, as it continues to seem obama really is just a groomed presidential candidate.
if this is a personal family story that has been passed down, he should know this story a little better, and be able to relate it better, listening to him,
he did not come off as if this is a story he was very well familiar with.
and i agree with jake, why hasn't he told this story before? he has been to fl, and talked with a jewish group down there, why didn't he tell it, and it would not have seemed if he was pandering, this would be seen as part of people getting to know him. why didn't he tell.
it is hard to believe he is not just a staged candidate.

I've never been one to shy away from coverage of a gaffe or flub by any candidate, certainly not Sen. Barack Obama - Yeah right and if anyone here believes that I have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you. This whole article was about how great Sen. Obama is and why we should forgive him his gaffes.

My Uncle fought for Irish independence. What does that make me? An Irish hero of some kind? I am my accomplishments not the sccomplishments of my ancestors. And the same is true of Obama. He is what he is. And nothing more or less.