Paul Ryan's marathon

If you feel I've directed vitriol at you, I apologize. That wasn't my intent. Pointing out what I think is a very distressing inconsistency on your part is my intent. That might sound like vitriol to you, but, really, it's an act of charity to point out when someone may be making a serious error in judgment.

The problem with the Biden thing is that it's a false equivalence. A true equivalence would be this:

Imagine that some guy down at the bar, or, at a barbecue or something, had the exact same conversation with you that Hewitt had with Ryan. And imagine that, later, you found out that, rather than 2:50-something fast guy, he turned out to be 4:01-not so fast guy. Now ask yourself: Would you think this guy was BS-ing you? If your answer is honestly 'no', then, well, that seems to be a pretty strong departure from the Rojo we've come to know here.

Of course, the same can be asked of those - including me - who are jumping on Ryan (if I've directed vitriol, it's been at him). What would I think about this guy at the barbecue? I can honestly say I would think he was a somewhat pitiful liar. Not exactly the guy who is likely to pull Romney's chances out of the crapper. And that's the final point I want to make. Or points: 1. The race for the presidency is not close. At all. If you look at the electoral college, Romney has virtually no chance of winning this thing (check out Nate Silver's blog - yes, I know he's lefty, but his record in 08 was nothing short of impressive). None of us 'libs' as you call us, have anything to gain by piling on Ryan except to defend the integrity of the sport. 2. The so-called-liberal media has been portraying the race as very close for a while and, in my opinion, under-reported Ryan's lie. This should be big news. Others, as you say, might disagree, but only, I think, because they don't take running and times seriously. I never thought that you would count yourself among that crowd.

I agree that the Obama campaign is desperate and the biased media is doing everything in its power to manufacture a scandal to hurt the Romney/Ryan campaign.

Biden plagiarized speeches and had to drop out of the 1988 Democratic presidential election campaign as a result. However, ever since Biden ran as Obama's running mate in 2008, the media has glossed over this scandal as if it didn't exist.

"I think he's full of it. I've lived in Colorado all my life-48 years-and am a fairly avid climber-and I've barely got 40 peaks."

Agree competely. I am a midwestern flatlander and have done a few 14'ers (OK - 2 - you got me). I've done two of the easier ones (Pikes Peak marathon and a hike up Beirstadt(sp?))on a quick weekend visit. These were extremely tough coming from low altitide. Unless he lived in Colorado for a while or this a life long quest of his there is no way he has done forty.

Is this 40 14'ers a claim that he made personally or is it campaign puffery that is being circulated but not attributed directly to him?

Can he please provide a list of those 40 peaks?

blaize wrote:

"I think he's full of it. I've lived in Colorado all my life-48 years-and am a fairly avid climber-and I've barely got 40 peaks."

Agree competely. I am a midwestern flatlander and have done a few 14'ers (OK - 2 - you got me). I've done two of the easier ones (Pikes Peak marathon and a hike up Beirstadt(sp?))on a quick weekend visit. These were extremely tough coming from low altitide. Unless he lived in Colorado for a while or this a life long quest of his there is no way he has done forty.

Is this 40 14'ers a claim that he made personally or is it campaign puffery that is being circulated but not attributed directly to him?

I don't know. Here's where I read about it:

He's a pathological liar.

There are 55 peaks over 14,000 feet in Colorado, not 54.

Guy O'Leighken wrote:

I don't know. Here's where I read about it:

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_21386184?stopRedirect=true

That is one of the most nauseating articles I've ever read.

So we have somebody that "apparently" is in good shape because he does some lame P90X stupid exercises. However, there is no objective evidence of him being an athletic or even being in shape. How fast can he run a mile or a marathon? 100 meter sprint? Bench press?

We just have one miserable 4:01 marathon jogged when he was 20. Why cultivate a persona of being athletic when you are probably not? I personally know some people that "look" strong or fast but SUCK at sports AND track/cross country. Dudes that get spent by running 10 minute miles and can't sprint worth jack either.

Guy O'Leighken wrote:

I don't know. Here's where I read about it:

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_21386184?stopRedirect=true

Is this article a proposal?

I thought the Republicans are the ones who are opposed to same sex marriage???

Again. You are ignoring the fact that he clearly stated he was "fast" after the host said "Holy Smokes ...". Then people checked on it.

As for the follow-up: What is he supposed to do - not answer? That would be worse. So he answers by giving the marathon and wrong year. He does not correct the time but, once people check into it, he quickly comes out with a story about misspeaking. He spun it.

This is not a media conspiracy. He misled an audience about his running prowess. There is no way a former personal trainer runs a hour marathon and then calls himself "fast".

People keep redirecting this to Biden plagiarism controversy in some sort of relativist argument. Biden was called on that and had to drop his 88 campaign. It has been brought up repeatedly over decades and he had to live with it. Biden never got a free pass for that.

Like I said earlier, the biggest issues are lies about policy or the reasons for policy. This is just a lie about running but it certainly was a lie about running.

_______________

The Blaze stated "Paul Ryan Syas He Misstated Marathon Claim After Runner's World Calls Him Out."

That's not what happened at all.

What happeneds is someone hear the interview and posted about it on LetsRun. Runnersworld saw that and said, "Did he really do that? If so, he's the fastest presidential candidate ever?" They didn't call him out - they emailed the campaign for verification.

The campaign wrote back and Runnersworld the 4:01 marathon - again after Paul Ryan's campaign told them and others what marathon he thought he ran. He thought he ran the 1991 Grandma's marathon. In reality, he ran the 1990 grandma's marathon ( no one is flipping out about that 1 digit he messed up there are they?).

But these outlets make it think like he was caught and then confessed. In reality, no one had any record of any marathon for him, he told them what he ran and the press mis-reports the order of events. It's not a big, big deal, but if you don't think the media is biased your aren't very smart.[/quote]

I agree that the Obama campaign is desperate and the biased media is doing everything in its power to manufacture a scandal to hurt the Romney/Ryan campaign.

Biden plagiarized speeches and had to drop out of the 1988 Democratic presidential election campaign as a result. However, ever since Biden ran as Obama's running mate in 2008, the media has glossed over this scandal as if it didn't exist.[/quote]

Again. You are ignoring the fact that he clearly stated he was "fast" after the host said "Holy Smokes ...". Then people checked on it.

As for the follow-up: What is he supposed to do - not answer? That would be worse. So he answers by giving the marathon and wrong year. He does not correct the time but, once people check into it, he quickly comes out with a story about misspeaking. He spun it.

This is not a media conspiracy. He misled an audience about his running prowess. There is no way a former personal trainer runs a hour marathon and then calls himself "fast".

People keep redirecting this to Biden plagiarism controversy in some sort of relativist argument. Biden was called on that and had to drop his 88 campaign. It has been brought up repeatedly over decades and he had to live with it. Biden never got a free pass for that.

Like I said earlier, the biggest issues are lies about policy or the reasons for policy. This is just a lie about running but it certainly was a lie about running.

_______________

The Blaze stated "Paul Ryan Syas He Misstated Marathon Claim After Runner's World Calls Him Out."

That's not what happened at all.

What happeneds is someone hear the interview and posted about it on LetsRun. Runnersworld saw that and said, "Did he really do that? If so, he's the fastest presidential candidate ever?" They didn't call him out - they emailed the campaign for verification.

The campaign wrote back and Runnersworld the 4:01 marathon - again after Paul Ryan's campaign told them and others what marathon he thought he ran. He thought he ran the 1991 Grandma's marathon. In reality, he ran the 1990 grandma's marathon ( no one is flipping out about that 1 digit he messed up there are they?).

But these outlets make it think like he was caught and then confessed. In reality, no one had any record of any marathon for him, he told them what he ran and the press mis-reports the order of events. It's not a big, big deal, but if you don't think the media is biased your aren't very smart.[/quote]

I agree that the Obama campaign is desperate and the biased media is doing everything in its power to manufacture a scandal to hurt the Romney/Ryan campaign.

Biden plagiarized speeches and had to drop out of the 1988 Democratic presidential election campaign as a result. However, ever since Biden ran as Obama's running mate in 2008, the media has glossed over this scandal as if it didn't exist.[/quote]

twice a runner wrote:

Guy O'Leighken wrote:

I don't know. Here's where I read about it:

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_21386184?stopRedirect=true

That is one of the most nauseating articles I've ever read.

Yeah, nice syllogism:

1. Paul Ryan is a big hunk of virile manhood whose abs make me weak in the knees

2. You won't see 70 year old VP Joe Biden bounding through bolder fields.

Therefore, Romney should be elected president.

The level of analytic reasoning skills among Republican apologists like this guy makes me think that either he's an idiot or he thinks his readers are, or both.

And 'no' I don't believe that Ryan has climbed 40 14 thousand foot peaks. Somebody should ask him. Given that the media is so liberal, I'm sure it will happen any moment now.... any moment...

Top Talent wrote:

There is no way a former personal trainer runs a hour marathon and then calls himself "fast".

Has he ever been a personal trainer? Has somebody checked it?

He also said in the interview that he got a varsity letter as a freshman in high school, which would've been in the '85-'86 school year, given that he graduated in 1989. His high school (Joseph A. Craig High School in MN) is pretty big. So lettering as a freshman is a pretty decent achievement.

His statement during the interview implied that the freshman varsity letter was for soccer or track. But his statement wasn't very clear...it said he was involved in several sports.

Curious to see if anyone has researched this ,I did some quick Google research and see some of his yearbook pictures and high school sports photos. But they are not from the '85-'86 year and they don't answer the question of whether he lettered as a freshman.

Was anyone at Joseph A. Craig High School for the 1985-1986 school year, or know somebody who was? It would be interesting to know if he is listed as a varsity athlete for any sport that year.

Although this is all pretty interesting stuff, I'm not sure I'm ready to crucify the guy for lacking all virtue. Yes, fibbing about a marathon time may show a deep character flaw. But I'm leaning more towards the conclusion that Ryan is a pretty ordinary guy, with some insecurities and with the tendency to be a bit of a douche bag at times. That is, a typical politician.

Guy O'Leighken wrote:

Huh? How exactly is "mountain climbing, the 10-mile runs, the past as a high school stand-out athlete." of any relevance whatsoever? You are concerned about "a whole false image of himself"? Seriously? Who gives a rat's ass if he was Joe Stud in high school or the class nerd?

The simple fact is that he blatantly lied to try to impress. If that suggests to you that he cannot be trusted so be it. But concerning yourself with some ridiculous studly image is absurd.

You're right that would be absurd. I don't care about the image. But if Ryan's spent years building up a fake image that he thought would appeal to people, then obviously that would be an issue.

And by the way, you totally flew off the handle over a misreading of a pretty simple point.[/quote]

Hey, you're right. I was a bit short fuzed there. Probably had something to do with being exhausted from the 2:18 - 2:19 ( I know it was just a bit under 2:20) marathon I just completed.

A Slightly More Credible Hulk wrote:

Facts always tend to have a liberal bias. This is why conservatives are anti-science, anti-education and anti-media. Global warming is a lie, evolution "may be" a lie, a fertilized egg is a baby, homosexuality is just a lifestyle choice, Saddam had WMD, billionaires create the most jobs, and on and on it goes. Anything who brings facts into the debate is an America-hating socialist.

Well stated.

Also as to Rojo's big relativistic point, yes your bias will distort your perception BUT regardless of someone's perception, there is an underlying truthful answer to the question.

"Is he a liar on not?"

RoJo... Maybe it's time for you and WeJo to stay out of politics. Your last foray was a disaster. Your dad's buddy did a lot to destroy the country.

Unlike many progressives, I don't think Dubya was a horrible person. In fact, he seemed very human. It was the single quality about him that I appreciated. He did a lot to combat AIDS in Africa. He had a way of connecting with the common man.

But he was a miserable failure in office. And this current Liar/Bigger Liar ticket would be a third Bush term with the added bonus of an anti-woman and anti-minority agenda.

Get out of politics. You don't have good instincts.

Link wrote:

Imagine that some guy down at the bar, or, at a barbecue or something, had the exact same conversation with you that Hewitt had with Ryan.

Something like this has happened to me.

In a German internet community centered around political themes I once came up with a survey on the beer mile. I was baffled, when a guy claimed he ran a "real" mile in 3:53 min ("quite good, about ten seconds slower than the world record - but I never ran it again, because I'm more interested in soccer"). It's hard to believe - but when I started another survey on this BS, some people believed this claim and accused me of being envious of him because of this athletic feat.

If political sympathies are at stake, people can obviously accept claims that are even more egregious than those of Paul Ryan.

A way that Ryan could have come through this better is to have said, "well, I only ran one marathon and ran it easy just to try one. Mostly I raced shorter distances in college and did pretty decently."

It would have been a lot harder to contest whether he ran easy for a 4:01 marathon--sure, no doubt someone would have come out of the woodwork and said, "no, I saw him--he was struggling," but it would have been a harder thing to prove objectively.

But it does come across as strange to alter one's time and then use the adjective "fast."

I wonder really why any candidate needs to paint him/herself as some superhuman hero. I'm not asking for a president to be God (who, I'm sure, is pretty busy and hasn't time for this gig, which is probably anyway below Her/His pay grade). I'm not asking for someone to run a 2:50something marathon or climb 40x14k peaks or leap tall buildings in a single bound. Superheroes are fun for comic books and Greek mythology.

I want a human being who has the ability to lead, who espouses policies that I can endorse, and who is as honest as someone in that position can be (in politics, I realize perfection is a pretty high bar to clear).

Despite a lot of obstructionism in Congress, Obama has accomplished some pretty significant things. I'll refer readers to this admittedly partisan site, which does, however, provide more objective links to the items it lists:

http://www.obamadidwhat.org

.

Is he perfect? Has he worked miracles? No. I doubt even he would claim that. I think he came in with a lot of people expecting him to work magic. And I suspect he probably hoped he'd accomplish a lot more than he did.

But the perfect person hasn't emerged to seek the job. So I'm going with him. And this is not b/c Ryan is pulling a marathon time out of a hat (although this doesn't endear him to me), but because I worry that the country will go backward if the R/R team is elected. And we'll be back to the policies that brought down the economy in the first place. If we can stick to what makes our candidate the right person for the job, while acknowledging our candidate's failings, we probably will go a long way toward keeping the dialogue civil.

And if the Brojos want to endorse a particular candidate, even one I don't support, I respect their freedom to do so--and the freedom of others (myself included) to disagree with them. Also want to thank them for restoring this thread, even though I REALLY should be doing other stuff. ;)