Am I the only one who hates how Susan Collins talks?

[backscatter712]

She talks very slowly, with that tone of voice that indicates she thinks we're all six years old and we're in her kindergarten.

It's really condescending.

[seabeyond]

1. it was horrible. as much time spent trying to figure out what was up with the mouth. lol. nt

[JI7]

2. yeah, she sucks so bad, but we need more of her on TV to represent the Republicans

she would instantly turn people off to the Republicans.

[backscatter712]

3. Good point. She should run for President!

:evilgrin:

[seabeyond]

5. but... she made some points. nt

[asdjrocky]

4. Thank you.

I've been thinking this forever.

It always like story time at the pre-school with that bozo.

[TexasObserver]

6. She's the dumbest person in the senate.

She talks slowly because she thinks very, very slowly.

She's utterly clueless. She's a black mark on the illustrious history of Maine senators.

[seabeyond]

7. she took a nonarguable issue and put forth a strong argument. say what you will

and regardless of the way she talks....

she broke apart the argument

[TexasObserver]

12. Susan Collins couldn't break down tic-tac-toe strategy.

Get serious.

[seabeyond]

13. did you listen? do you know what the issue was? ya, she did win the argument. nt

[TexasObserver]

16. Clearly, she impresses YOU.

[seabeyond]

17. lol, actually i was disappointed. i am talking about facts though. those pesky little things

presented in argument. and as people are calling her dumb ect... with no further info. i am wondering if anyone listened to her on tweety tonight.

then maybe, we may actually talk about what was said.

and i think this is the first time in many years that a repug has presented an argument that at the least has merit.

[ChicagoSuz219]

23. I thought Rachel took all her points apart. n/t

[backscatter712]

24. That's what I saw. Collins's GOP talking points failed to impress me. n/t

[ChicagoSuz219]

25. Did you catch Keith's impression of her? Ouch!! n/t

[seabeyond]

40. i didnt see her on rachel. and good if she did. i dont know why it is so hard to

say saw it didnt....

and discuss.

[TexasObserver]

28. Why don't you make the argument, if you think it's so perfect?

Can you put into words what you think she said that you find so enamoring?

Stop telling me you think she hit a home run. Describe what it is about her statement that you think is noteworthy or accurate. We're talking about specifics, not more general claims such as she "presented an argument that at the least has merit."

[comtec]

30. self delete

nvm

[TexasObserver]

31. Why don't YOU make the argument, if you think it's so perfect, then?

I'm uninterested in your critique of my opinion this dumb ass GOP senator from Maine.

If you want to talk, get busy explaining why her statement matters.

[comtec]

44. again, you're attacking the method, not the message

which is a problem on this site, ever since the freepers started posting here.
it seems to have poisoned the well.
the majority of freeps are gone, but their poisonous way of posting lives on.

I won't defend what was said - it's a fucking rethug after all!

but to attack her based on how she says things, is really childish.

*offers a nice cold beer*

there's nothing they can say that we'll agree with.
The best thing is to relax, and work on refining our own message.
because like them or not (LOL and who here does) they are better at framing than we liberals.

[TexasObserver]

49. I'm attacking her because she's terrible. One aspect is her stupidity.

Her stupidity has long been evident in what she says and how she says it.

This isn't new. She's been talking like this as long as she's been in the senate. She's one of those incredibly stupid people who tries explaining things the way others have to explain them to her. She's simple minded, and because she's simple minded, her speech reflects it.

As others have noted, she always talks like she's teaching Kindergarten, which is about the level of her thinking.

If you think she has some speech defect, that's your problem. I think she's got a brain out of gear problem.

[seabeyond]

39. you didn't say if you watched. you didn't ask. didn't want to waste time if your weren't nterested

he brought up always this way.

she says... doesn't mean she agrees

then she went on to explain that he was to consult. not tell. and the reasoning was to go to all the heads to find out if there was background and reason before mirandizing and lawyering up. there was 5-6 weeks before he talked.

whereas if he went right into military, talk would start immediately

it isn't about me being enamoring, or thinking she is perfect. or even happy with her point. or even agreeing with her point. i simply said her argument had points in it.... on an argument i thought did not.

[TexasObserver]

50. That's your explanation?

I now understand why you like her. She speaks in muddled gibberish.

I asked you to explain it. You didn't.

[seabeyond]

53. did i say i like her? i said that her argument made sense. that is all. nt

[alfredo]

52. He started talking immediately after being arrested. After he got a lawyer

he stopped. Because he was treated well (not tortured), the FBI was able to enlist his family to urge him to cooperate. We got actionable intel before he stopped talking, now that he's begun to talk again we can get more detail.

The whole argument by the Reps is if we read him his rights, torture could not be used. They wanted him tortured even though there is reams of evidence to show it doesn't work.

If he had been tortured, they first have to spend a few weeks "softening him up." Then the torture/interrogation begins. The softening up usually takes two to three weeks according to Jane Mayer (The Dark Side).

Torture is about confessing to what the torturer wants you to confess to, or in the case of the Republicans, acting out their rage on a defenseless prisoner.

If we had done as the Republicans wanted there would be doubt over anything he told us. Also if we convicted him using evidence obtained under torture, he would be a martyr in the eyes of the militants.

[seabeyond]

54. i agree. but that isnt my point. and not what i was saying. and i was going off what tweety and

collin said.

that is all

i would not haev made a big deal about this. it was the posters that did not watch the interview and were saying shit about her being stupid. i expected stupid too. i expected there not to be a counter argument. all i am saying is, the woman had a counter argument. no more. no less

[alfredo]

61. I don't remember their reactions, just her rattling off right wing talking points.

[spanone]

63. you think she convinced america that Obama is soft on terror?

[seabeyond]

66. i think it made sense to people who before saw no argument. nt

[Hannah Bell]

34. what? she spouted a bunch of lies. she didn't argue anything, she just lied.

i also would like to hear your paraphrase of her "argument".

she's a moron. she can hardly talk. she's a windup doll that spouts whatever bullshit her minders tell her to, for money.

[seabeyond]

41. post #39. what were the lies? nt

[Hannah Bell]

56. post 39 = gibberish

no clue what it means. i'm talking about rhe tv appearance where she maintained, e.g., non-citizens in us courts/military courts have no right to a lawyer.

[Mz Pip]

11. Dumber than

Kay Bailey Hutchinson or Saxby Chambliss? Or that Bunning twit? Or Inhofe? Or Vitter?

The more I think about it the harder it is for me to come up with a Republican senator who doesn't have the IQ of Cool Whip.

Maybe Coburn. Can't stand the guy's politics but he doesn't strike me as stupid.

[TexasObserver]

15. Yes, dumber than all of them.

Dumb is a different quality than evil. She's aggressively stupid. Even if she was a Democrat, she'd be painfully stupid.

Now, Inhofe. You may be on to something there.

[vssmith]

47. Saying things like that accomplishes nothing

[backscatter712]

51. No, but it's fun!

:evilgrin:

[BlueIdaho]

8. No fan of Collins

But she sounds like she suffers from essential tremor disease - the same disease Katherine Hepburn suffered from at the end of her life.

Now, her hypocrisy and lack of character are a completely different issue.

[seabeyond]

10. ya. something is up. there isnt the tremor though, like hepburn. nt

[BurtWorm]

57. She has a kind of dystonia, like Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Spasmodic dysphonia, to be exact.

[BlueIdaho]

62. Thank you!

I'm no fan but poking fun at folks because of their speech patterns is school yard bullshit.

[KingFlorez]

9. She's not very good at speaking

She sounds like she's recording a message for her answering machine.

[opihimoimoi]

14. In my book...she represents her voters...enough of them sent this disabled person

to the SENATE....how wonderful of them....

[notadmblnd]

18. I hate the way she speaks, but for a different reason.

To me she comes across as mentally incompetent, like it actually hurts for her to form words in her mind and get them through to her mouth.

[SoCalDemGrrl]

19. I think she has mild Parkinsons or something-her voice quivers. I worked

for many years with a man who had Parkinsons and thats exactly how he sounded. Early stages probably, but
that shaking, quivering quality is NOT normal IMO.

[DRoseDARs]

37. The official explanation is it's the accent of the part of Maine she's from. I don't buy it either.

Then again, sometimes someone speaking with a slow Southern drawl sounds like they're in the middle of a stroke... (That's was an off-color joke, chill the fuck out.)

[eShirl]

38. ha, thats a BS explanation (my opinion as a native Maineiac)

a couple decades ago, whatever it is that is causing it either wasn't there yet or wasn't as noticeable

[Gormy Cuss]

55. +1 from another native Mainiac.

It's not a Maine accent. As mentioned downthread it's caused by spasmodic dysphonia.

[Withywindle]

20. Yes, Oh God.

It's not just bad teleprompter reading. She sounds like someone who doesn't actually speak any English at all but has memorized the words phonetically. Like the singer of a tribute band from Poland I heard busking with Creedence songs in Berlin once.

[Bitwit1234]

21. I can't take my eyes off that dyed coal black hair. Who in the hell

does she think she is kidding dying it that color.

[ChicagoSuz219]

22. Her voice is like fingernails on a blackboard... Yikes!! n/t

[global1]

26. How Does Somebody Like Her Even Get Elected?.....

It never ceases to amaze me as to what 'we the people' elect to such high offices. She has a terrible presence. How did she campaign? How did she get people to vote for her?

[DJ13]

27. No, she sounds just fine to me

[Staph]

29. I hate the words, but not the voice.

She sounds to me like she has spasmodic dysphonia, just like RFK Jr. and Public Radio host Diane Rehm. If so, she probably speaks slowly simply to make her voice understandable.

[Hannah Bell]

32. she talks like mr. rogers.

[Raine]

33. I can't stand her and that arrogant attitude of hers. nt

x(

[malaise]

35. I doubt it

It reminds me of the worst chalk moments on blackboards

[annabanana]

36. I would have found her insulting while

I was in kindergarten!

[TexasProgresive]

42. Can't stand her either but she suffers from spasmodic dysphonia.

same as Diane Rehm. If Collins was to the left of Boxer you wouldn't have any trouble with her speaking voice. What's important is what she believes and how she votes and that is bad.

Edited to add:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spasmodic_dysphonia

Edited again to add:

Notable people with spasmodic dysphonia

* Keath Fraser, Canadian author who has documented the challenges and treatment of his condition in the book "The Voice Gallery: Travels With a Glass Throat" (2002). < [http://www.thomas-allen.com/ThomasAllenPublishers/catalogue/0-88762-101-5.htm The Voice Gallery - Thomas Allen Publishers - Thomas Allen & Son Limited[br />

* Linda Thompson, British folk-rock musician. http://www.nowtoronto.com/issues/2002-10-17/music_feature3.php |title= Thompson's Trials: UK Folk Rock Great Makes Triumphant Return to the Stage |accessdate=2007-08-23 | date= 2002-10-17 |work= Tim Perlich, NOW Toronto>

* Scott Adams, the creator of the comic strip "Dilbert". http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15446515/GT1/8618/ |title= 'Dilbert' creator recovers from rare disorder |accessdate=2007-07-30 | date= 2006-10-27 |work= Associated Press>

* Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/25/fashion/25bobby.html?ex=1308888000&en=4366351657b8045b&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss |title= Another Kennedy Living Dangerously |accessdate=2007-07-30 |last= Liebovich |first= Mark |date= 2006-06-25 |work= The New York Times>

* Johnny Bush, country & western musician and songwriter. http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=SAEC&p_theme=saec&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAFE8396F19EF1A&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM |work= San Antonio Express-News |date= 1998-04-29>

* Diane Rehm, an American public radio talk show host. http://wamu.org/programs/dr/diane_rehm/ |title= About Diane Rehm |accessdate=2007-07-30 |work= WAMU 88.5 American University Radio>

* Darryl McDaniels of the rap group Run DMC

* Mary Lou Lord http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=BG&p_theme=bg&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=100D6882D4430C7F&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM |work= Boston Globe |date= 2004-02-19>

* Andy MacWilliams Former radio broadcaster for the Cincinnati Stingers, Chicago Blackhawks and Cincinnati Cyclones.

*Frank Allison < [http://www.frankallisonmusic.com/ Frank Allison > ]

*Susan Collins, Junior Senator from Maine

* Katharine Hepburn

http://en.academic.ru/dic.nsf/enwiki/6081979

[janet118]

45. That explains why I have a hard time listening to Diane Rehm and

Robert Kennedy Jr. The difference is that Diane and Robert are worth the trouble. Susan Collins isn't. She lies while staring dully into the camera like a ventriloquist dummy.

[Jennicut]

46. Very true. I awlways thought something was odd with her voice.

Well, her talking points are terrible at the very least.

[mwb970]

43. She seems to lie constantly, which is a turnoff for me.

Then again, she is a republican, also a big turnoff for me. That explains the lying, which is obviously in the DNA of today's "conservatives". What a truly worthless group of people.

:eyes:

[pipi_k]

48. I don't find it condescending, but it is painful to listen to n/t

[TheKentuckian]

58. She's got that Bobby Jindal/Mr Rogers thing going on strong

and worse she's a muddleminded liar.

I don't get this convincing argument bullcrap at all.

She was utterly unable to defend her hypocrisy of not saying a contrary word for 7 or 8 years on the exact same issues, she like the rest of the "Terrah" screamers thinks that being accused of certain crimes means there is no need for presumption of innocence, she pretends these rag tag criminals are a sovereign army, she wrongly believes a supposedly independent Justice department needs to consult with her or anyone else when a crime is committed in US territory, she eagerly conflated an active military person who commited his crimes on a military base with a criminal action in US air space, and is another active cheerleader for torture that is illegal under both US and international law.

Sorry, but Suz is a lying, unAmerican, anti-Western Civilization, do nothing dipshit troll that acts and talks like the American people have IQ's lower than the average shoe size that has pretended to be moderate by following Snowe around and keeping her mouth shut as much as possible.

Increasingly, I think moderate and resonable are perceptions about pitch and tone rather than actual content of the arguments or policies themselves. I don't get how you can believe in the basic precepts of western culture or American ideals and not find her lamebrained "points" as anything but revolting and insulting.

[mochajava666]

59. It's her facial expressions are arrogant tone that chafes me

[Spirochete]

60. She reminds me of a female Forest Gump

with none of the pleasantness or charisma. How does this drone manage to get elected in a blue state, anyway?

[Faryn Balyncd]

64. no

:hi:

[ProgressOnTheMove]

65. Well to be f air she is talking to voters that think Palin is qualified so it adds up.

[Maine-ah]

67. I didn't vote for her, and I don't like her very much

but have we sunk so low here on DU that were going to make fun of people with disabilities? Seriously, attack her on her policies, her votes...etc...

[LWolf]

68. I don't know who Susan Collins is,

so I don't know "how she talks."

Don't tell me. I'm not interested.

If I did know who she was, and didn't like the way she talked, I wouldn't listen to her.