Caption this - Al Gore with the ladies

You have to understand that photos in his house like this are staged for a reason, just like the deep public kiss. The family is attempting to portray him as a loving sexy dad (heavy emphasis on the sex part). They've been doing that for years now.

Yes, it's the oldest trick in the political book, the family photo. They're all staged, Republican and Democrat alike. I don't think that excuses false incest accusations.

He got his wish, now we're free to interpret the appropriateness of the images and the sexual overtones in whatever they're feeding us. Doesn't it seem weird that Karenna is closely involved in things like him having a perfectly arranged package on the cover of Rolling Stone and having Tipper talking about Al sleeping in the nude? Karenna is constantly trying to Alpha-male sexualize him (for the voters of course).

I still don't see the problem. A young woman knows what other young women like. It's politics.

The point is that his daughter's near obsessive involvement in her father's sexuality and virility are very public.

This is the first I've heard of it. Even so, if that's what her role is in his campaign, then that's what she does. It shouldn't mean anything else.

That was a major political miscalculation if you don't want people joking about it and noticing the very thing they're used to seeing presented by the Gore family -- even if that particular photo was designed to be innocent.

I think the photo is innocent and I know many families who have pictures like these.

Happygal: I saw your posts on the other thread. I'm glad someone agrees with me. I thought I was the Lone Ranger there for a while. Falsely implying incest crosses a line and is wrong.

Talk about overreacting, nobody is accusing him of sexually assaulting his daughter.

Oh please. You know exactly what you were trying to imply.

People are just pointing out the "loving closeness" with daughter #2 and the close involvement with his sexuality by daughter #1 is a bit strange. And it just so happens his boss was Bill "oral sex isn't even sex" Clinton. No need to be shocked..."shocked!" at the snickers. It's called parody, you can relax now.

I am relaxed. I'm used to this kind of stuff. You guys get off on this silly stuff and Chelsea bashing. It doesn't play well to the maases though, let me tell ya. It looks especially mean-spirited and cold to pick on young women regarding anything other than their politics. I just think there should be opposing views on this stuff so that people know that not all conservatives are so retentive. My original post was a five word post so I didn't exactly freak out over this. It's gone on and on from there.

I feel more sorry for Richard Gere after SNL mentioned him last week having a happy anniversary with his gerbil.

There's a big difference between a gerbil and a daughter.

Spycatcher keeps pinging me. Am I supposed to ignore him?

Please do. Or at least lighten up Francis. Maybe you should have just ignored the whole thread. Caption threads are goofy humor. Nobody but you takes it seriously. I tried being reasonable with you and your objections but you kept at it and won't get a clue.

Bill Clinton doesn't employ his daughter to help shape his sexuality. Al Gore does. Have you ever seen a Smigel cartoon on SNL? Probably not since you're still alive. Political figures who use their willing family to try to shape their public sexuality are fair game for ridicule. If you can't deal with that, too bad. His daughter is old enough to not pose with her hair draped on daddy's crotch if she doesn't want to be a political pawn/joke. Maybe she should take a hint from Ozzy Osbournes oldest daughter and get out of the public eye.

Please do. Or at least lighten up Francis.

Lighten up? How should I lighten up? I think it's wrong to falsely imply incest and that's the simple statement I've said in all my posts after the first one. The only way to lighten up from that is to say it's not wrong. Not gonna happen. Your posts keep changing, mine stay the same. You've went from blaming imagery to blaming Clinton to blaming the daughters to who knows what now. You seem to be searching for justification. I made a simple five word statement and you replied with a long reply. I'm responding. How should I lighten up? Should I ignore you?

Maybe you should have just ignored the whole thread.

I didn't ignore the thread because I think it's important to show that all conservatives are not as cold-natured as the replies on this thread seem to show. Fathers hug daughters all the time, there's nothing wrong with anything in the pictures on this thread. FR is becoming representative of the rank and file conservative. If I see something I disagree with, I'll say something to prove that there are other views. If you don't want replies send e-mail.

Caption threads are goofy humor. Nobody but you takes it seriously. I tried being reasonable with you and your objections but you kept at it and won't get a clue.

But the people here weren't captioning, they were saying it was sick for a daughter to relax with her father. I thought that was an over-reaction and said so. I believe a lot of families have pictures similar to these.

Bill Clinton doesn't employ his daughter to help shape his sexuality. Al Gore does.

So. She's a young woman, she knows what young women like. A lot of daughters want their fathers to look good, don't over-react to that. It doesn't mean anything. "Shaping his sexuality" is a little overboard way to put it anyway.

Have you ever seen a Smigel cartoon on SNL?

LOL That's Least Common Denominator entertainment. I don't pay a lot of attention to prime-time trash TV. I guess I'm not hip to modern crudeness. SNL doesn't have any talent so they do the tried and true...shock entertainment. If you have no talent you say naughty words and put down Christians and people will still watch. LCD. The posters on this thread weren't trying to be entertaining, they honestly thought a daughter should not relax with her father.

Probably not since you're still alive. Political figures who use their willing family to try to shape their public sexuality are fair game for ridicule.

Fair game for false inuendo and gossip? OK. I didn't get that memo.

If you can't deal with that, too bad.

I can deal with it. I have every day. Crudeness is becoming more and more hip and we're surrounded by it. No one cares about honesty anymore. It's OK to just throw out baseless accusations. I'm making you question your rightness in throwing out your false inuendo though because of the way your excuses wandered. You tried three or four different ones. :^)

His daughter is old enough to not pose with her hair draped on daddy's crotch if she doesn't want to be a political pawn/joke.

Oh, now. You're being silly.

You're over-reactingMaybe she should take a hint from Ozzy Osbournes oldest daughter and get out of the public eye.

I think most of the public sees this for what it is. A father-daughter relationship not unlike millions of others in this country. It amazes me that your so offended by a daughter resting up against her father but the crudeness of your false inuendo doesn't bother you at all.

From the WashPost:

.... Thankfully, Gore is now cleanshaven.

"I was surprised at apparently how very few people were neutral," he said.

"I was surprised at the amount of attention it got. That was just astounding," Tipper said. "But men don't have that many ways to change -- or as many ways as women do. Know what I mean?"

"No, I don't," Al replied.

"Clothing choices, for instance," Tipper explained. "I can wear pants. I can wear a skirt. I can wear a dress."

"I could, too."

"Yeah -- you and J. Edgar Hoover," Tipper needled. At which both groaned: "Oooooooh!"

----------------

More on this psychofest here

Have you heard why Michael Jackson has his children's faces covered up?

He's already started with the plastic surgery.

Thought you might enjoy that relatively innocent joke about Jackson and his children (hint: The joke isn't really about the kids, they're just foils for the target) Of course in Gore's case, the additional irony is that his aren't little children and they still play along in the politics of crafting Gore's sexual image for the public. And yes, contrary to your naivite, that does make them fair game for humor. IT'S A JOKE. GET A GRIP. NO ONE IS REPORTING THE GORES FOR SEX CRIMES. In fact I don't know anyone who even sees Gore as a sexual person in the least (until seeing this suggestive photo maybe), and that's why they have been trying so hard to show he is! Instead he comes across as creepy and weird like Michael Jackson.

You obviously failed to grasp the reason people didn't caption the photo -- because they were all so creeped out by his mature daughter's head in his lap. 90% realize the innuendo comes from the staged photo and they responded to it viscerally. 10% like yourself have a naive and incomplete understanding of the Gore campaign PR image crafting. It's not that the photo couldn't be innocent if it was a candid shot of a non-political family. It's that Gore's image has been carefully managed to make him look sexual to compensate for his eunuch image.

Have you heard why Michael Jackson has his children's faces covered up? He's already started with the plastic surgery. Thought you might enjoy that relatively innocent joke about Jackson and his children (hint: The joke isn't really about the kids, they're just foils for the target)

That's funny. But if the Michael Jackson joke was about incest, it wouldn't be funny in my opinion. There's a line that shouldn't be crossed.

Of course in Gore's case, the additional irony is that his aren't little children and they still play along in the politics of crafting Gore's sexual image for the public. And yes, contrary to your naivite, that does make them fair game for humor.

I disagree. You can't accept the fact that I disagree with this simple statement. In your opinion incest jokes are funny, in my opinion, they're not. Can't you agree to disagree? I simply made my post to prove there are some conservatives that won't go to that low point for a joke or to show coldness. In your opinion daughters shouldn't relax with their fathers, in my opinion, I don't see anything wrong with any picture on this thread. I'm proving to any lurkers that not all of us are so puritan that we can't look at something as innocent as the pictures on this thread and go apeshit. Simple as that. I'm not trying to change your mind. You have a standard for political discourse, mine is different and I wanted to show that to those that may be offended by this crudeness that not all of us are like this.

IT'S A JOKE. GET A GRIP. NO ONE IS REPORTING THE GORES FOR SEX CRIMES.

Look again at the posts on this thread. Most of the people here didn't take it as a joke, they actually thought it was wrong for a daughter to relax with her father as in the first photo. I think that's silly.

In fact I don't know anyone who even sees Gore as a sexual person in the least (until seeing this suggestive photo maybe), and that's why they have been trying so hard to show he is! Instead he comes across as creepy and weird like Michael Jackson.

To you maybe. I don't see anything creepy about that picture.

You obviously failed to grasp the reason people didn't caption the photo -- because they were all so creeped out by his mature daughter's head in his lap.

And I want to prove that not all of us are so cold-natured. She's barely on the side anyway.

90% realize the innuendo comes from the staged photo and they responded to it viscerally. 10% like yourself have a naive and incomplete understanding of the Gore campaign PR image crafting.

Not naive at all. Every political family photo is staged, get used to it. How many political family photos do you see that aren't? You're naive to think that only some politician photos are staged. They all are.

It's not that the photo couldn't be innocent if it was a candid shot of a non-political family. It's that Gore's image has been carefully managed to make him look sexual to compensate for his eunuch image.

This is why conservatives lost in '98. Everyone was so worried about Monica when there was a treason charge that could've been pursued, or mabe even a Ron Brown crash investigation. When you puritans say that a daughter is not allowed tro relax with her father and talk sex this sex that, you're offending half the people in the country. Not smart in politics. Save the extreme moralism for the church pew.

I guess you haven't been paying attention to other Michael Jackson jokes, Jay Leno's jokes about Angelina Jolie and her brother, the Gore campaign's frustrations with his asexuality, this thread, or a dictionary.

I don't watch Leno, nor do I know who Jolie is.

You've completly missed the point, the humor, the irony, and used several words incorrectly, including "puritan." If anyone on this thread is a Puritan, too afraid to deal with the sexual overtones deliberately created by the Gore family, it's you.

I'm not afraid of anything. I spoke out against crudeness, that doesn't mean I'm afraid of the discussion about crudeness. I speak out against high taxes all the time, that doesn't mean I'm afraid of discussions about high taxes.

And as you project your puritanism on others, we're not allowed to joke about it either. Next, you'll be telling everyone to "get thee to a nunnery." Time for you to grow up and lighten up.

I didn't tell anyone to shut up. I told you twice when I first began to discuss this with you that I was not here to disrupt your thread, but to offer a different point of view for any lurkers who may have been offended by the crudeness and cold-natured posts that are on this thread. You've tried and tried to convince me that incest jokes are OK but I'm not buying it, nor do I have any delusions about changing your standard of political discourse. In your world these things are fine, in mine they're overboard. In your world the types of photos that are on this thread are overboard, in mine they're not. We both have different standards. You've let yours be known, I've let mine be known. You can't accept that?

By the way I don't have a low opinion of you because of this thread, I just don't think you realize how offensive these threads are to a lot of normal people. Independents decide elections and they don't understand these kinds of attacks on normal behavior.

You still aren't getting that others see that the crudeness is in Gore's lap, in the context of his whole campaign to make him seem like a sexual animal. We all cringe. And when people joke about something that makes them cringe, it's not simply for laughs, or to be cold, it's to relieve the discomfort. That's part of being human.

You really need to broaden you understanding about people and cultural norms, and not boil it all down to some bizarre oxymoron in you mind where people are being "crude puritans." I got your point from your first post and gave you the benefit of the doubt, but you're still missing the political point completely and have no sense of humor whatsoever. The joke is about the publicity photo in the context of the Gore family campaign to make him a sex symbol. It's not about actual incest, it's about how they like to play up daddy's sexiness and leave us guessing.

Most of us don't understand how anyone could think there's anything "normal" about a young woman in her 20s putting her head on her father's lap. We're not joking about incest, we're commenting on what we perceive as strange behavior.

That's exactly my point and the reason why I thought it was important to offer a different point of view. To you and most of the posters on this thread you can't imagine a daughter relaxing with her father in way as shown in the picture. I'm afraid you're contributing to the stereotypes the media likes to lay on us that we're cold, distant, and robotic. A lot of fathers and daughters have this kind of closeness and there's nothing wrong with it. There's another thread with this picture on it where this same argument broke out. Here's a comment by a freeper responding to spycatcher (I hope she doesn't mind me repeating it):

WHAT? WHAT? WHat is the cultural difference?
Please educate this innocent Irish girl.
Is it WRONG all of a sudden for a teenage girl to lay her head on her dad's lap and watch TV?

Is that perverse?
I'm 30.
If I'm watching telly at home, I often stretch out along the couch and put my head in my daddy's lap. And he may even stroke my hair.

IS that perverse all of a sudden??????

Are Republicans all of a sudden making something normal, perverse?

I'm sickened by the previous post in respect of AG's daughter. And the person who made it, is a sick mutha-*** in my mind. Humour is one thing. And this isn't.

I really believe you're offending a lot of normal people and are providing fodder for those that like to stereotype us.

You still aren't getting that others see that the crudeness is in Gore's lap, in the context of his whole campaign to make him seem like a sexual animal.

And you think this picture is a big part of that?

We all cringe. And when people joke about something that makes them cringe, it's not simply for laughs, or to be cold, it's to relieve the discomfort. That's part of being human.

Yes, you can joke all you want and make people cringe all you want, it's how you make your point. But I'm not like that, I prefer a less crude approach. I think it's important to show that we're not all alike. You have your ways, I have mine.

You really need to broaden you understanding about people and cultural norms, and not boil it all down to some bizarre oxymoron in you mind where people are being "crude puritans."

LOL No, I'm doing just fine. I want to be me, not you or anyone else. To each his own. I don't place a lot of importance in following the herd in the crudeness department.

I got your point from your first post and gave you the benefit of the doubt, but you're still missing the political point completely and have no sense of humor whatsoever.

I have a sense of humor, it just doesn't extend to areas that hurt people and incest jokes are very offensive and hurtful.

The joke is about the publicity photo in the context of the Gore family campaign to make him a sex symbol. It's not about actual incest, it's about how they like to play up daddy's sexiness and leave us guessing.

That's too much of a leap for me to accept to the point of false inuendo and taking a chance at being wrong and a false accusor. To me it just looks like a family photo. The Kennedys were masters at this kind of stuff and everyone tries to do it.

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