Obama cracks Special Olympic joke

[Preston_79]

President Obama sat down with Jay Leno on Thursday for a late-night TV interview that spanned a range of topics -- from the economic crisis to the presidential dog -- and even, at one point, featured the president joking that his bowling ability was suitable for the Special Olympics.

The bowling comment was a reminder of his poor performance on the lanes last year during one of his campaign stops. Obama bragged to "The Tonight Show" that he recently bowled 129 on the White House alley.

"It's like Special Olympics," he said.


I know retards and their handlers will be very offended by this joke.:D

And for real, bragging about a 129? With a score that low he probably couldn't even qualify for the Special Olympics.

[Potter82]

Well I am offended!!... that's a much better score than my usual. Admittedly not the brighest thing for Obama to say but I have no doubt that the media reaction will be 10x as stupid.

$1,000 that tomorrow we will hear Limbaugh & other Republican talking heads, who are always saying that liberals are far too sensitive and quick to take offence at off-handed remarks and who pride themselves on being un-PC (aka the Michael J. Fox incident), will nevertheless pounce on this as being "insensitive" - all the while acting completely oblivious to their own hypocrisy.

[Vong]

I'm just waiting to see Bill O'Reilly castrate Obama for this...

[Badbird]

I'm just waiting to see Bill O'Reilly castrate Obama for this...

Which is fitting, because Bill is actually completely retarded.

A 129 isn't bad for someone who isn't good at bowling. My highest score ever was 165, but I usually average about 110. Though I don't play much. Bowling is kinda expensive.

[shoe1985]

I am terrible at bowling, and my highest score ever was a 120.

As for the joke, I don't believe any harm was meant by it. It is like saying you are a baseball player, but your skill level might not be even good enough to get to the minors. Just him saying he is not skilled enough at bowling, big deal.

[Homyrrh]

If he has the audacity to say that, or more appropriately, the testicular fortitude to say so, I laugh respectfully.

[QUENTIN]

He'll get some shit for this.

How retarded of him.

[hasselbrad]

I knew those "Obama has an IQ of 125" messages that keep popping up were bullshit!

[Potter82]

I knew those "Obama has an IQ of 125" messages that keep popping up were bullshit!

well to fair, it's still higher than the IQ of people participating in the special olympics lol

seriously though, I am so tired of those ads, they are complete BS and they are EVERYTWHERE! For instance, on Facebook I keep getting this message saying "your friend's IQ is 124, 115, etc." try to beat their score!. First off, there is no way in hell that the friend identified as having a 124 IQ is anywhere close to being that bright. She's a nice girl but she's no rocket scientist & I sincerely doubt she ever did the test. Notice how they never seem to be below 100 even though that is the average last time I heard -Interesting isn't it?

These messages are clearly just randomly generated and are not based on an actual test score. Same goes for the ones regarding, Bush, Obama, etc. If I ever see one which says Palin's IQ is 130 or something I will lose it though.

[Badbird]

So did the joke even air, or did NBC edit it out?

Oh, and my IQ is 130. I took a test once. I guess I'm smarter than the President.

[Bourne101]

From CNN

Attention on the Special Olympics skyrocketed Thursday when, in a quick and clearly unscripted moment, President Obama exhibited the power of words during his history-making visit with Jay Leno.

While joking on The Tonight Show about his bowling prowess (during last year's campaign trail he shamefully scored 37 in a game), Obama said he'd been practicing at the White House lanes and boasted to Leno, "I bowled a 129. It's like -- it was like Special Olympics or something."

The comment during the taping of the show prompted Obama to pick up the phone on Air Force One and call Special Olympics Chairman Timothy Shriver to preemptively apologize for the remark before it hit television screens. He also reportedly invited Special Olympic athletes to Pennsylvania Avenue to hit the lanes and give him tips or shoot some hoops.

The president "expressed his heartfelt and sincere commitment to work with our athletes and make this country a more accepting place for people with special needs," Lum, the organization's president, said.
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What Obama said on The Tonight Show adds to the discussion that's needed to raise awareness and has proven "an incredibly important and seriously teachable moment," Lum said.

From playgrounds to the "top rungs of our leadership, including our president," he said Americans have plenty to talk about and learn when it comes to stereotypes and how words can sting.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vE0yAEvVsUo

Haha, he invited some Special Olympic athletes to the White House to bowl... priceless.

[The Postmaster General]

So did the joke even air, or did NBC edit it out?


Yeah, my wife saw it and was telling me about it. She said it was pretty cringe-inducing.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vE0yAEvVsUo

Haha, he invited some Special Olympic athletes to the White House to bowl... priceless.


Ah man, that's classy - he's going to let them annihilate him on the lanes. Seriously, never before have I wanted to see a president shit his pants in public - just so I can learn the coolest way to handle that.

[Brando @$$ Fat]

Faux pas. Not a very presidential joke to crack, but certainly not a big deal.

The best bowling score I ever got was a 68. No joke.

[Homyrrh]

So did the joke even air, or did NBC edit it out?

Oh, and my IQ is 130. I took a test once. I guess I'm smarter than the President.
Haha. Props.

[Badbird]

Okay, I saw the clip. The quote is taken way out of context.

He says he bowled a 129, then everyone starts cheering and he jokes that it like the Special Olympics - them cheering for his "low" score, not the score itself.

Which, frankly, is what the Special Olympics does. They cheer for everyone, even the losers.

No need for bunched panties. I'm sure he didn't really mean anything he said in his apology. In fact, when his wife asked how his day was, he probably said "Ah, I offended a bunch of retards and then had to say I was sorry."

[inglourious basterd]

No..it wasn't smart, but I really appreciated his candor and the laid back nature of his interview. I also think that Leno had some great questions for him.

Overall, I feel that Obama was very genuine in his interview with leno and was generally pretty funny. The special olympics moment was a slip that was a misstep, but it's not the absolute worst thing that could be said on the spectrum of things. It's not going to kill him. And I think he's taken appropriate steps to address the issue. For starters, he apologized to the Special Olympics immediately and before the show aired.

If you guys haven't seen the clip, you could read a transcript of the interview here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/20/us/politics/20obama.text.html?bl&ex=1237694400&en=c98cbbdc54d8b635&ei=5087%0A

[The Postmaster General]

Okay, I saw the clip. The quote is taken way out of context.

He says he bowled a 129, then everyone starts cheering and he jokes that it like the Special Olympics - them cheering for his "low" score, not the score itself.

Which, frankly, is what the Special Olympics does. They cheer for everyone, even the losers.

No need for bunched panties. I'm sure he didn't really mean anything he said in his apology. In fact, when his wife asked how his day was, he probably said "Ah, I offended a bunch of retards and then had to say I was sorry."



That's not what he was joking about. Where do you get that from? He was just equating his skills to a handicapped player, but he somewhat undermined the Special Olympics as a slip. It's no big deal either way, but you are taking it all in a direction and I'm not following where you're coming from.

[inglourious basterd]

Video:

http://www.hulu.com/watch/63558/the-tonight-show-president-obama---full-interview

Whether you agree with him or not...It's a really fun interview....definitely worth watching.

[ilovemovies]

The best bowling score I ever got was a 68. No joke.

That's more in line with what I do now.

Back in 8th or 9th grade, when I was actually a part of a bowling club, I did fairly decently. But then years passed with me not doing any bowling. Now I suck INCREDIBLY bad. I need to start bowling more often again so that maybe I can get myself to get good again.


As for the joke, if anybody is actually offended by it, then this just proves Clint Eastwood to be absolutely 100% correct. Not that I didn't agree with him even before this.

[Homyrrh]

That's more in line with what I do now.

Back in 8th or 9th grade, when I was actually a part of a bowling club, I did fairly decently. But then years passed with me not doing any bowling. Now I suck INCREDIBLY bad. I need to start bowling more often again so that maybe I can get myself to get good again.


As for the joke, if anybody is actually offended by it, then this just proves Clint Eastwood to be absolutely 100% correct. Not that I didn't agree with him even before this.
Yes.

[Badbird]

That's not what he was joking about. Where do you get that from? He was just equating his skills to a handicapped player, but he somewhat undermined the Special Olympics as a slip. It's no big deal either way, but you are taking it all in a direction and I'm not following where you're coming from.

I just saw the reaction in a very different way. He joked about pulling off a 129 and people jokingly applauded. The applause went on for a little too long for just a 129. To me, we was making a joke about the audience being "too kind" for applauding his low score and then he said "it's like the Special Olympics." Meaning, they cheered even though he sucked.

That was my take.

[countchocula]

Since we're on the subject of bowling, I once scored a 214...with a ramp (for disabled people).

You have all been pwned. Suck it.

[Homyrrh]

When I was at a second grade pbirthday party I went 124 WITH bumpers. Witness this.

I have since then, in one round, bowled zero through four frames.

[Preston_79]

What better way to correct the error in judgment than to invite some mentally handicapped players to the White House and have a friendly bowling competition. I'm sure Obama would get schooled, and he would get some good press and make some special people very happy.


I know this guy wants a piece of the action.
http://media2.tbo.com/mediamanager/2009/mar/20/7037_Kolan_McConiughey.orig-max-640x640.jpg

[inglourious basterd]

I just saw the reaction in a very different way. He joked about pulling off a 129 and people jokingly applauded. The applause went on for a little too long for just a 129. To me, we was making a joke about the audience being "too kind" for applauding his low score and then he said "it's like the Special Olympics." Meaning, they cheered even though he sucked.

That was my take.

While it wasn't smart - by any means - for him to say what he said, is what he said particularly shocking? Obama was keeping it real. It was an error in this case, but I'm glad that he didn't just censor himself to be PC and fake. People make slipups in speech every day. I think he took the right steps afterward.

[Criminal Rock]

Although it wasn't the most PC thing to say I don't believe Obama was malicious with that comment at all. He apologized, and those who were offended deserved an apology.

[The Postmaster General]

Why does everyone equate political incorrectness with being shocking? It's just a step of manners. I don't get why everyone thinks it's uptight to be offended by someone using disparaging language, especially because it's usually white guys who are being uptight about other people being "uptight."

Seriously? I mean, I can't fucking believe some people would agree that the world is a sadder place because we can't describe people based on their nationality. THAT was what Eastwood was talking about - Boo-fucking-hoo badass geriatric who's a glorified teen idol is crying about his pussy hurting because he can't call his friend "Jose the Mexican." --- I mean, are you fucking kidding me. THAT is what you people think the problem is with the world? Not that people complain and get offended, but that people complain and get offended about people complaining and getting offended, and go on fucking rants and crusades about it out of a sense of entitlement. Mr. Eastwood feels entitled to not be PC, and is crying about it, and for the fuck nuts life of me I can't get how people can say "He's telling it like it is." No, sorry, he's bellyaching about how it is, and telling it like it used to be.

Entitlement - that's a much bigger problem than political correctness. Whether you think you are entitled to not have to be PC, or whether you think you are entitled to live a life free from offense - you are all the same. I'd be willing to bet the only difference between Clint Eastwood and Spike Lee to half the half-brains in the world is their own tastes in music.