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BEN CARSON IS an actual brain surgeon – and he’s hoping to make it to the White House in 2016.
A high-profile figure in the US for years (he’s huge on the public speaking circuit) we’ve become a little more familiar with Carson in recent months thanks to a series of controversial and often bizarre public statements.
His laid-back debate style couldn’t be further from that of GOP frontrunner Donald Trump – but his pronouncements have often been equally headline-grabbing.
Pedigree
To seasoned observers of the US political scene, his views will have come as no surprise.
After all, this is a man who once described Barack Obama’s healthcare plan as “the worst thing that has happened this nation since slavery”.
Then, of course, there was this:
Here are some other things Ben Carson believes, and has been talking about in recent months…
He later apologised for this – but back in March, Carson told CNN’s Chris Cuomo he “absolutely” believed being gay was a choice, adding:
Because a lot of people who go into prison go into prison straight — and when they come out, they’re gay. So, did something happen while they were in there? Ask yourself that question.
We probably don’t need to point out that there’s no research to back up Carson’s assertion.
Responding to a question during an interview broadcast on NBC’s Meet the Press in September, he described the Islamic faith as inconsistent with the constitution.
“I would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation,” Carson said.
I absolutely would not agree with that.
He made a distinction when it came to electing Muslims to Congress, calling it a “different story” from the presidency that “depends on who that Muslim is and what their policies are, just as it depends on what anybody else says”.
Carson’s call for those caught in shooting situations to tackle their attacker drew criticism from public safety experts back in October.
He made the comments in the wake of a shooting at an Oregon community college that left ten dead.
The White House hopeful said that if he had been present at the attack, he would “not just stand there and let him shoot me”.
I would say, ‘Hey guys, everybody attack him. He may shoot me, but he can’t get us all’.
Just a few days after his comments on the Oregon shooting, Carson was back in the headlines suggesting the Holocaust would have been “greatly diminished” if German Jews had been armed with guns.
Asked by CNN’s Wolf Blitzer about an excerpt from his book A More Perfect Union, in which Carson linked the disarming of German citizens with the killing of 6 million Jews by Adolf Hitler’s Nazi regime, the neurosurgeon said:
The likelihood of Hitler being able to accomplish his goals would have been greatly diminished if the people had been armed.
He added: “there is a reason that these dictatorial people take the guns first”.
Perhaps the statement that drew the most comment of his campaign to date was Carson’s assertion that the pyramids of Egypt were built by the biblical Joseph to store grain and were not, as archaeologists believe, tombs for pharaohs.
He initially made the remarks at a 1998 address at Andrews University, a school associated with the Seventh-day Adventist Church, to which he belongs.
“My own personal theory is that Joseph built the pyramids to store grain,” Carson said.
Now all the archeologists think that they were made for the pharaohs’ graves. But, you know, it would have to be something awfully big if you stop and think about it. And I don’t think it’d just disappear over the course of time to store that much grain.
Carson has defended those beliefs - telling reporters in Miami that “some people believe in the Bible, like I do, and don’t find that to be silly at all and believe that God created the Earth and don’t find that to be silly at all”.
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Maybe the Journalist can ask Eamon why they gave lower tax to the newer diesel cars post 08 and charged the f##k out of petrol and diesel cars pre 08.
@Dave Byrne: To be fair that was because diesel engines have lower CO2 emissions…..However at the time the level of NO2 emissions from diesel cars was not correctly known….
@iComment:
Now you can’t be combating rants with logic, that’s not on around here
We will make allowances as you are only on here 6 months…..
I believe that we can all do our bit to protect the environment but we are a small island in a big world until the big countries like the states Russia and China do make a change we are just pissing in the wind….envoirmentatist s are just pissing in the wind here with their protesting nothing is going to change and sadly nothing ever will
@Michael: Not entirely true – It only takes one small country to make a breakthrough on cheaper alternatives and the other players will be happy to adopt and pay for the privilege.
Imagine if we were that country, and exporting all sorts of new cheaper renewable technology as well as our expertise in the area.
But first we need to lose the notion that we can’t make a dent.
If nothing else, nice clean air. Currently if you are living in certain Irish cities you might as well be smoking with all the crap you take into your lungs just from a walk about.
@Gavin Conran: Well we export all our rubbish as it is so I guess we could start dealing with it at source instead of getting ahead of yourself and renewable technologies.
@Michael: ok we cant change the world but why not make our country as clean as possible, its us that breath the toxics from diesel engines on our streets, its us that cant enjoy our lakes and rivers if they are polluted etc etc
@ThatLJD: Recycling is a crock that isn’t working. The only real solution is to have less humans on this planet
Despite being a wealthy man; how do you expect your ‘target audience’ pay for your initiatives?
Eamonn is like Broccoli,
Possibly good for you,
But impossible to like.
@Niall Power:
Nice one
Some time back someone more educated than myself said that they prefer questions that they can’t answer than answers that they can’t question.
And that is the quandary that Mr Ryan finds himself in.
His remit is total communism, agree with me or else you’re for Siberia.
You do not question my answer.
A facist of the first order.
@Garry Coll: Fascist. At least get the spelling right.
@Garry Coll: A fascist communist?
@Garry Coll: I think he is one best politicians we have, constantly sees the positive changes we can make and is happy to evolve his position and accept new ideas
Ah! The power at any price TD – even over his supposed principles. He lost the public service vote for the greens over the pay cuts – the lower paid and some senior over transferred to SF. In my opinion he’s responsible for the resurgence of SF.
@680199:
I’m sure he would be delighted if that was true as he could then take credit for the subsequent halving of SF councilors (159 down to 81) and more than tripling of Green seats (12 up to 39)
Or will you only give him credit for bad news?
God be with the days when we had 12 years to save the planet…….https://www.bbc.com/news/amp/science-environment-48964736?__twitter_impression=true
@iComment: greens promised poolbeg incinerator would never be built…..
@SFNutters: How about you hold the people who did make the decision accountable.
@Felicity Hensen: the greens were in govt…promised to stop it and didn’t….the others promised to build it and did….you see the problem?
@SFNutters: How much power do you think 6 seats gets you in government?
The environmental scare is the biggest hoax ever.This is a very clever left wing assault on capitalism.
@Robert Dungan: Eh. Temperatures rising is a fact. What is in dispute is whether humans can do anything about it
Willie O’Dea, the total sum of Eamonn Ryan’s political career . Saving Willie’s arse is all he’ll ever be remembered for.
The Dodder back in the headlines 18 years after an 80,000 pounds cleanup following an illegal encampment on its bank
Ryan k*ob end of
The Greens
There is a small party
They’re Called the Greens
Heads up their a55es
Where the real world cant be seen
Once were in Power
What did they do?
They Screwed over people
Like me and You
Made us buy Diesel
Because its so clean
Now the say NO
But what can it mean
Fill in the blanks. C U N TUESDAY!
@Hello DAVE!: I think you’ve made a mess of delivering that joke
Ryan knob end of
Let’s judge him on his deeds, not his words. Useless windbag.
Judge him on his deeds, not his words.
Useless windbag.
If the Greens don’t go into government, Saoirse McHugh will be paving the way for FF/FG to control the Dáil indefinitely. After 2016 election, the socialist parties made the current situation possible by refusing to look at going into government. What’s the point in electing TDs who only want to be shouting from the opposition benches? The objective should be to try to get into government to implement as many of your policies as possible.
Sometimes his inner “neo-liberal” comes out.
Few questions?
Does “inner” mean “on the surface” now?
Does Eamon have a different definition of “in” than everybody else? Is it the exact opposite of what I’m thinking?
He’s correct about public transport
have your say