Ben Carson Origin Story in Question

[Nice Squirrel]

http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/05/politics/ben-carson-2016-childhood-violence/index.html

But nine friends, classmates and neighbors who grew up with Carson told CNN they have no memory of the anger or violence the candidate has described.

That person is unrecognizable to those whom CNN interviewed, who knew him during those formative years.

All of the people interviewed expressed surprise about the incidents Carson has described. No one challenged the stories directly. Some of those interviewed expressed skepticism, but noted that they could not know what had happened behind closed doors.

So you think Ben's story was accurate, embellished, made-up, or delusional?

 

[RavenSky]

Delusional

 

[braces_for_impact]

Of course we don't really know for sure, but I tend to think it's heavily embellished. Part of the fundamentalist Christian narrative is your testimony on how you came to Jesus and how he's changed you for the better. Typically this involves serious exaggeration on the part of the "sinner" when describing their time before Jesus came into their lives. This is the period where we often see claims of Christians that claim they were atheists (code for apathetic, really) and Satanist (code for "I played with a Ouija board once") or drug addicts. I've noticed that often the older the Christian gets, the worse off they were before Jesus.

 

[Tom Sawyer]

At least Trump's insanity makes sense. You know who the guy is and the reasons behind why he's saying what he's saying and it all pretty much fits into the narrative that he's trying to create. It's sickening, but it's understandable.

Carson's insanity is just randomly fucking weird.

 

[AthenaAwakened]

Of course we don't really know for sure, but I tend to think it's heavily embellished. Part of the fundamentalist Christian narrative is your testimony on how you came to Jesus and how he's changed you for the better. Typically this involves serious exaggeration on the part of the "sinner" when describing their time before Jesus came into their lives. This is the period where we often see claims of Christians that claim they were atheists (code for apathetic, really) and Satanist (code for "I played with a Ouija board once") or drug addicts. I've noticed that often the older the Christian gets, the worse off they were before Jesus.

Kinda like how the fish your father didn't catch just keeps growing with each telling of the story.

 

[AthenaAwakened]

At least Trump's insanity makes sense. You know who the guy is and the reasons behind why he's saying what he's saying and it all pretty much fits into the narrative that he's trying to create. It's sickening, but it's understandable.

Carson's insanity is just randomly fucking weird.

It isn't so random.

 

[Tom Sawyer]

At least Trump's insanity makes sense. You know who the guy is and the reasons behind why he's saying what he's saying and it all pretty much fits into the narrative that he's trying to create. It's sickening, but it's understandable.

Carson's insanity is just randomly fucking weird.

It isn't so random.

OK, more "out of left field" than "random". There is a rationale behind it, but that rationale is just way fucked up.

 

[scombrid]

Delusional embellishment. My experience with evangelicals is that the testimony gets more intense as time goes on. The glassy-eyed oohs and aahs that the teller gets from fellow believers reinforces the narrative. I think many come to believe the story that they tell.

 

[maxparrish]

http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/05/politics/ben-carson-2016-childhood-violence/index.html

But nine friends, classmates and neighbors who grew up with Carson told CNN they have no memory of the anger or violence the candidate has described.

That person is unrecognizable to those whom CNN interviewed, who knew him during those formative years.

All of the people interviewed expressed surprise about the incidents Carson has described. No one challenged the stories directly. Some of those interviewed expressed skepticism, but noted that they could not know what had happened behind closed doors.

So you think Ben's story was accurate, embellished, made-up, or delusional?

Only if it has become a badge of honor to have character issues in youth. Perhaps when the left of center role model of character sincerity is "but I didn't inhale", it makes Carson sound "delusional"?

 

[dismal]

If it gets around Carson was a pretty nice kid he'll be destroyed.

 

[Nice Squirrel]

http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/05/politics/ben-carson-2016-childhood-violence/index.html



So you think Ben's story was accurate, embellished, made-up, or delusional?

Only if it has become a badge of honor to have character issues in youth.

I do believe this is a badge of honor and a standard narrative for those who claimed to have been reformed and need to reveal their transformation to the group. "You were, bad? Well I was just as bad, if not worse, but now I am a better person." You see this in drug and alcohol recovery all the time. Nobody was ever an alcoholic that sat on the couch and reality TV, they were all out fucking and fighting and nearly getting killed on a daily basis. Just like Ben was stabbin' people in belt buckles in his life before Jesus.

It's not a badge of honor for the general public, but for born again group conformity. "Street cred" if you may.

 

[T.G.G. Moogly]

Delusional

He's another religious junky. And in Carson's case we don't have proof of anything. We don't have jail or juvenile detention or even witness corroboration. I think delusional is the best word.

What we do know about him demonstrates he's none of the things he says happened. But religious people eat this shit up. His story is typical shit in the world of religious woo. I know a couple people who are exactly the same. If Carson a YEC too?

 

[maxparrish]

Only if it has become a badge of honor to have character issues in youth.

I do believe this is a badge of honor and a standard narrative for those who claimed to have been reformed and need to reveal their transformation to the group. "You were, bad? Well I was just as bad, if not worse, but now I am a better person." You see this in drug and alcohol recovery all the time. Nobody was ever an alcoholic that sat on the couch and reality TV, they were all out fucking and fighting and nearly getting killed on a daily basis. Just like Ben was stabbin' people in belt buckles in his life before Jesus.

It's not a badge of honor for the general public, but for born again group conformity. "Street cred" if you may.

I think I understand that politics makes an OP stupid - So Obama's played the street cred of "I was wasting my life on drugs" and Bush's played the street cred of "I had a serious problem with alcohol" as 'badges of honor'. But then, oddly, it is also a "badge" for Clinton to deny he was a drug user because "I did not inhale".

And, even more oddly, it is NOT a badge of honor for Romney to openly regret being a jerk in high school because ummmm...errrr...ugh?

Anyway I guess it's a shame that Clinton and John Tower didn't claim their 'street cred' badges of honor of being a womanizer and boozer (respectively), and finally...we have the WORST of the lot, Ben Carson, confessing to being a jerk when he was always a really nice guy.

Oh dear. It get's worse? Rumor has it he was a boy scout, helped old ladies, and showed random kindness to strangers. What other evidence of good character might we uncover? What a rat.

AKA what a dopy OP.

 

[Nice Squirrel]

I do believe this is a badge of honor and a standard narrative for those who claimed to have been reformed and need to reveal their transformation to the group. "You were, bad? Well I was just as bad, if not worse, but now I am a better person." You see this in drug and alcohol recovery all the time. Nobody was ever an alcoholic that sat on the couch and reality TV, they were all out fucking and fighting and nearly getting killed on a daily basis. Just like Ben was stabbin' people in belt buckles in his life before Jesus.

It's not a badge of honor for the general public, but for born again group conformity. "Street cred" if you may.

I think I understand that politics makes an OP stupid - So Obama's playing the street cred of "I was wasting my life on drugs" and Bush's "I had a serious problem with alcohol" as 'badges of honor'. But it also a "badge" for Clinton to deny he was a user because "I did not inhale". But it is a badge of dishonor for because Romney he regretted being a jerk in high school because...errrr...ugh?

It's a shame that Clinton and John Tower didn't claim their 'street cred' badges of honor of being a womanizer and boozer (respectively), and finally...we have the WORST of the lot, Ben Carson, confessing to being a jerk when he was always a really nice guy - how dare he too?

Rumor has it he was a boy scout, helped old ladies, and showed kindness to strangers. What other non-failures of character might we uncover? WOW.



What a dopy OP.

 

[Tom Sawyer]

I, for one, am glad about Ben Carson.

Trump's schtick has been getting old and his campaign is about a month past its best before date. The GOP needs to start rallying behind a different version of crazy in order to have their campaign remain relevant. Carson has what it takes to helm the nutter ship for a month or so and get us into the holiday season and then someone else can come along to sell them the War on Christmas.

 

[untermensche]

If it gets around Carson was a pretty nice kid he'll be destroyed.

By his own words.

 

[maxparrish]

I think I understand that politics makes an OP stupid - So Obama's playing the street cred of "I was wasting my life on drugs" and Bush's "I had a serious problem with alcohol" as 'badges of honor'. But it also a "badge" for Clinton to deny he was a user because "I did not inhale". But it is a badge of dishonor for because Romney he regretted being a jerk in high school because...errrr...ugh?

It's a shame that Clinton and John Tower didn't claim their 'street cred' badges of honor of being a womanizer and boozer (respectively), and finally...we have the WORST of the lot, Ben Carson, confessing to being a jerk when he was always a really nice guy - how dare he too?

Rumor has it he was a boy scout, helped old ladies, and showed kindness to strangers. What other non-failures of character might we uncover? WOW.



What a dopy OP.

REM-http://i802.photobucket.com/albums/yy306/Uberbah/whoosh.gif

The whooshing sound you are hearing is the air being let out of an OP - the evaluation of 'redemptive' story telling (and whether or not they sell) depends on whose ox is gored. Moreover, anyone lamely hair-pulling over someone who might have considered his youthful behavior as a major shortcoming, when by Obama or Clinton standards that person was a choir boy, is as dumb as it is desperate.

 

[fromderinside]

Ben's married isn't he? Darn.  Condoleezza Rice would have made a perfect mate. Both are archetypal Jungian therapy clients.

 

[Nice Squirrel]

REM-http://i802.photobucket.com/albums/yy306/Uberbah/whoosh.gif

The whooshing sound you are hearing is the air being let out of an OP - the evaluation of 'redemptive' story telling (and whether or not they sell) depends on whose ox is gored. Moreover, anyone lamely hair-pulling over someone who might have considered his youthful behavior as a major shortcoming, when by Obama or Clinton standards that person was a choir boy, is as dumb as it is desperate.

 

[untermensche]

The whooshing sound you are hearing is the air being let out of an OP - the evaluation of 'redemptive' story telling (and whether or not they sell) depends on whose ox is gored. Moreover, anyone lamely hair-pulling over someone who might have considered his youthful behavior as a major shortcoming, when by Obama or Clinton standards that person was a choir boy, is as dumb as it is desperate.

This is wishful thinking.

The man is certifiable.

He is no different from any religious fanatic one might find in Afghanistan or Iran.