This question is raised by a letter published at the Chicago Sun-Times Tuesday in which President Barack Obama thanked a concerned citizen for giving him advice on stopping smoking.
The only problem is it appears Obama wrote "advise" not advice (images right and below courtesy Chicago Sun-Times, h/t NBer Pross):
Doesn't that look like an "s" in the word following "good" and not a "c"? Take a look at the word right below it -- "since" -- and you can get an idea of what Obama's "c's" look like. The "c's" in "Michael" and "much" also look nothing like what's in "advise/advice."
Now, the skeptic might say that his "s's" don't look like what's in "advise/advice" either. For instance, the "s" at the beginning of "since" is different, as is the "s" at the beginning of "so."
But, the "s's" in "Thanks" and "dad's" look like the letter in "advise/advice" suggesting that Obama uses a different "s" at the beginning of words than at the end.
Such seemed lost on the New York Times in its article on this subject Sunday:
About a month later, Mr. Powers received a reply. After thanking him for “the wonderful letter, and the good advice,” the president wrote, “I am returning the picture, since it must be important to you, but I will remember your dad’s memory.”
UPI even corrected it in its headline Tuesday: "Obama thanks man for advice on not smoking."
Somehow it seems Bush-hating media wouldn't have been so forgiving of the former president, or is that me being too cynical?
—Noel Sheppard is the Associate Editor of NewsBusters. Follow him at Facebook and Twitter.
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:::Shaking Head:::
April 21, 2009 - 14:35 ET by Jen7I realize that this site has an agenda....just like a LEFT blog would, but this post is ridiculous. The author analyzes it like it's evidence in a murder investigation.
It very well could be a spelling error, but to call it a 'cover up' by the MSM is just silly. C'mon guys...sheesh.
As you may presently yourself be fully made aware of, my grammar sucks.
Family Guy
Hmmm
April 21, 2009 - 14:47 ET by Eugenia"Potatoe," po-TAW-to, to-MAY-to, to-MAW-to...
You probably don't remember the skewering Dan Quayle got from the fact that he misspelled "potato." Yes, it is silly. And it was silly then. However, the point is that one man's "spelling error" is apparently another man's stupid, ignorant, national-embarrassment no-nothing error, which is how it was seen of Quayle. Therefore, this is the lamestream media refusing to acknowledge any imperfection in their annointed one.
Someone, somewhere,
April 21, 2009 - 15:57 ET by balboaSomeone, somewhere, (probably Olbermann) would have grilled Bush for misspelling advice.
Quayle was a whole other deal, being much more public in nature.
Bal, what is your point here? You mean Quayle was okay to
April 21, 2009 - 16:27 ET by pahuberridicule because he was being more "public in nature" like in a public school?
Remember, also, that Quayle learned to spell POTATOE in school because that's how IT WAS SPELLED THEN. Some still spell it that way now with the E. Remember the E is used to make the vowels long.
The media relished/loved/made love/had carnel knowledge/performed the wild thing with this incident because it was Quayle and because they are extremely hateful and love mocking conservatives.
So, fair play is in order by some in our ranks... jolly good.
jen7 may be available for you ; )
It was much easier to mock
April 21, 2009 - 16:34 ET by balboaIt was much easier to mock Quayle. It was a public event and he "corrected" the kid by misspelling it. And I don't know who these people are that still spell potato with an 'e,' unless you're talking about Abraham Lincoln or U.S. Grant.
And, as has been pointed out, advise v. advice is much more common. YES Obama shouldn't have made the mistake. Pretty dumb to do so.
NO I learned potatoe with an E, as well. This is a wonderful
April 21, 2009 - 16:44 ET by pahuberteaching moment... many schools did so even in the sixties. I know this because that is how I learned it.
"The singular spelling variants "potato" vs. "potatoe" co-existed into
the 19th century. In the 20th century "potato" came to be considered
the correct singular, and "potatoe" considered a misspelling. The
plural remains "potatoes'"." ~ yeah, I know Wikipedia
It does not say when in the 20th centure that the spelling "gods" changed it, but now you are aware that it was taught in our public schools even in the sixties, but at least one school.
Other than the hypochrisy by the left, which I believe is the only point of the story, I don't care if Obama misspells words... we all do...not a big deal, actually.
Don't forget the real story behind Quale's potatoe
April 21, 2009 - 16:09 ET by Kingfish17I saw the actual full length footage of Quale's Potatoe miscue. Quale was set up. He was given an index card with the incorrect spelling of the word "potato" by a teacher at a school. When a kid in a spelling contest wrote "potato" on the chalkboard, Quale had him add an "e" on the end of it so it matched the card.
Yea, Quale should have known better.
http://toolsofrenewal.com/?p=1586
To this day, Quale is ridiculed about a simple spelling error.
It's not the spelling errors. It's the double standard.
Well I know that potato was spelled with an E by some schools.
April 21, 2009 - 16:34 ET by pahuberSomewhere, the E was lopped off...
Sorry, using Wikipedia here... I don't often trust it, but
The singular spelling variants "potato" vs. "potatoe" co-existed into
the 19th century. In the 20th century "potato" came to be considered
the correct singular, and "potatoe" considered a misspelling. The
plural remains "potatoes'".
Anyhow, you are totally correct...double standard.
Jen, Did you write to the
April 21, 2009 - 15:01 ET by Chris NormanJen,
Did you write to the media protesting their magnification of every mistake from Dan Quayle? Did you note to them that they have an agenda? As noted above by Eugenia = here, it's not necessarily the importance of the specific instance being cited, but it's how the media covers it - if they cover it at all.
The "Mainstream" Media: By liberals. For liberals.
I for one forgive the media
April 21, 2009 - 15:10 ET by candanceThey're still trying to recover from being misunderestimated, along with figuring out the meaning of nucular. Bush's errors were such a big problem we heard about them almost daily.
just like a LEFT blog
April 21, 2009 - 15:29 ET by Dan The Man 2just like a LEFT blog would, but this post is ridiculous.
Yes I guess its not like pronouncing the word nuclear as nuklar, yes teh press made little over that. Wake up Jen stop teh koolaide.
Nuke em til they glow then shoot em in the dark.
Jen7 - it really, really,
April 21, 2009 - 15:42 ET by Free StinkerJen7 - it really, really, bothers you that Obama is being caught making these mistakes, isn't it?
Actually, I think Noel meant
April 21, 2009 - 15:59 ET by balboaActually, I think Noel meant they were covering up the spelling error by simply not mentioning it, not that there was a concerted, conspiracy theory "cover-up" to the error.
Wrong place...
April 21, 2009 - 16:23 ET by CortillaenWrong place...
Typical balboa, defend the
April 21, 2009 - 20:23 ET by LiberalliesTypical balboa, defend the indefensible.
the FACT is that Quayle was made of and his political career destroyed for a spelling error. The media could careless about Obama's gaffes.
The media is silent on Obama's gaffes.
Please do tell, how ill you defend Obama saying to an Austrian report during his Apology Tour in Europe that Austrians speak Austrian?
I realize you're trying to
April 21, 2009 - 20:47 ET by balboaI realize you're trying to pick a fight here, but I was actually backing up Noel.
I don't think you were,
April 22, 2009 - 07:27 ET by bretzysdudeI don't think you were, bal. You were using some points claiming how Quayle had to be covered by the media and Obama wasn't.
Noel, I don't think we
April 21, 2009 - 14:43 ET by LiberalliesNoel,
I don't think we have to imagine that if it had been a Conservative politician making such a gaffe the media and the left would have gone crazy. Shall we say Dan Quayle and potato? Of course back then it was ok to criticize a politician (Conservative) because it was not a distraction. Now, Noel, have you not receive the President's memo? You know better than to distract from more important issues.
The media is covering for Obama like crazy. During his European Apology Tour, Mr. Obama answered a question from an Austrian press member saying that Austrians speak Austrian. Of course, the media said nothing about such a poorly educated gaffe. It is like saying Mexicans speak Mexican. If such a gaffe would have been made by Bush, Palin, etc. the media and the left would have destroyed them.
Sad that our media is so partisan and only cares about which press member is going to be the most sycophantic towards Obama.
I don't know from Austrian,
April 22, 2009 - 07:19 ET by FranksamI don't know from Austrian, but I would argue that Mexicans do speak Mexican, and Puerto Ricans speak Puerto Rican, while you and I speak American rather than British. I could be wrong, but I think that it was Mark Twain who said that Americans and Brits were 'divided by a common language'.
Good advise, errr, advice
April 21, 2009 - 14:46 ET by DontFeedTheTrollsWow, I wrote a letter to Obama about smoking too! He didn't write back though. I'll share with you all.
Dearest Barack;
I hear you are a smoker. I used to smoke too, till the evil doctor made me quit. Seeing as you still smoke I will give you some advice on using smoking to help you be a better President. First, if you are nervous or feeling pressure, light up! Keep smokes in all the rooms you use daily. Don't let anyone try to bully you about laws about not smoking in Federal buildings, just tell them you are President and they are fired. They'll get the message. Second, a good stiff drink always goes good with a smoke, so make sure your servants (yes, that's what 'aide' means) keep a stock of your favorite liquor and plenty of ice available at all times. Third, I find that if someone is annoying, blowing smoke in their face will get them to back down. Good advice for those tricky meetings with foreign leaders! Lastly, always end your day with a big drink and a last smoke in bed. I think you will see that this always puts one to sleep quickly. Have a great 4 years!
D
Keep the ILLEGALS out, join NumbersUSA to send free faxes to your reps.
I told Obama to let the
April 21, 2009 - 14:51 ET by Chris NormanI told Obama to let the teleprompter write his letters - it has spell check...
The "Mainstream" Media: By liberals. For liberals.
What's Up With This?
April 21, 2009 - 14:55 ET by slickwillie2001How did this get into the newspapers? Did the recipient release the letter, God help him, or did the White House? If the former, he's in trouble. I expect he will be audited, and Barney will send ACORN thugs to visit him. If the latter, is this a lame attempt to show that the Bamster is in touch with 'the folks'? Perhaps a reaction to the Wagyu beef party stories and the pizza delivery order to St. Louis?
OT: Gibbs = Obama's McClellan
April 21, 2009 - 14:57 ET by krendlerAnybody see that guy today? One long exercise doing everything possible not to say anything substantive for the better part of an hour. Unbelievable.
OT #2: None of my business really, but NewsBusters should look for another IT group to manage the site. Response time varies wildly from "reasonable" to "very poor" to "I guess the site's down".
It's the code, not the management
April 21, 2009 - 18:35 ET by slickwillie2001I don't think it's ongoing IT management, I'd say it's website construction. This site is like a 900ft long container ship loaded up with every geewhiz piece of cool java code/feature imaginable. Of thousands of websites I visit in a month this one is by far (like by a magnitude) the slowest to load. Firefox plugins used to rate site efficiency generally give it a D or F.
Amen to point number 2!
April 21, 2009 - 19:10 ET by EugeniaAmen to point number 2, Krendler!
Potatos or Potatoes
April 21, 2009 - 14:58 ET by poxomaNow for the left, potatos and potatoes is a sure sign of stupidity. But advice and advise is just a distraction, especially when it came from an Ivy League graduate. Where is the teleprompter??
Potatos or Potatoes
April 21, 2009 - 14:58 ET by poxomaNow for the left, potatos and potatoes is a sure sign of stupidity. But advice and advise is just a distraction, especially when it came from an Ivy League graduate. Where is the teleprompter??
Mr. Preznint: Sharpies are
April 21, 2009 - 15:11 ET by SickofLibsMr. Preznint: Sharpies are only for signing all those autographs. Use a pen or pencil for letters.
(In your case, pencil would be better).
SoL,For mistakes,
April 21, 2009 - 15:59 ET by Chris NormanSoL,
For mistakes, pencils are better. In Obama's case, for symbolism, I think a pen with red ink would be better. :)
The "Mainstream" Media: By liberals. For liberals.
Right Chris - as long as its
April 21, 2009 - 16:12 ET by SickofLibsRight Chris - as long as its erasable ink
Right. Perhaps we can take
April 21, 2009 - 16:43 ET by Chris NormanRight. Perhaps we can take up a collection and send him one. :)
The "Mainstream" Media: By liberals. For liberals.
No
April 22, 2009 - 07:34 ET by FranksamDear Chris,
I gave at the office, no thanks.
waiting
April 21, 2009 - 15:20 ET by goldboughI'm waiting for Janeane Garofalo to say, "This is a man who doesn't know how to spell." Just like she said conservatives "don't know their history." Also waiting for the endless jokes on latenight TV. Well, I'm not really waiting, cause that would be forever.
stay tuned to foxnews
April 21, 2009 - 22:36 ET by todd333stay tuned to foxnews
He's the...
April 21, 2009 - 15:25 ET by Mike Sargent...SMARTEST PRESIDENT EVER!!!!
...lol.
jpg artifacts
April 21, 2009 - 15:26 ET by katainkentthis was scanned and then compressed considerably so it (the spelling error) may have been more apparent on the original. Its kinda interesting but it still only rates just above the dog purchase... er gift... errr... rescue ;)
I love to help the helpless but I'm not gonna help the clueless ~Dennis Miller
Using the representation of
April 21, 2009 - 15:54 ET by Dan The Man 2Using the representation of the letter as it appears on this blog it is difficult to ascertain a definitive "s" or "c". However it looks to be a "c" because I am biased and because it looks like the "c" in much.
Nuke em til they glow then shoot em in the dark.
I agree that it appears
April 21, 2009 - 16:16 ET by queenofcookingI agree that it appears Obama wrote "advise." This seems to be one of the more common errors people make.
And while we're on the subject, NewsBusters' writers should review their own articles for misspellings! "It's" instead of "its" is a frequent error on this site.
If former President George
April 21, 2009 - 16:24 ET by RagamuffinIf former President George W. Bush made a spelling error in a written
reply to a piece of fan mail, would press outlets have covered for him
or pointed it out?
. . .
Somehow it seems Bush-hating media wouldn't have been so forgiving of the former president, or is that me being too cynical?
You have a psychic handy to answer these pointless questions? This is masturbation pure and simple.
YOU just do NOT get it do you rag. Rag, if you cannot see out
April 21, 2009 - 16:38 ET by pahuberthe little tiny bubble of yours to see the truth what good are you?
I'll bet you soiled yourself over Dan Quayle's little potatoe misshap, eh?
actually
April 21, 2009 - 16:45 ET by katainkentwhen someone sent a sample bit of Bush's handwriting out to be analysed and it was returned with some very positive traits attached it was then questioned if perhaps it was (jokingly) not really his handwriting.
I love to help the helpless but I'm not gonna help the clueless ~Dennis Miller
Analysis
April 21, 2009 - 17:29 ET by slickwillie2001I was thinking as well that this would be an excellent start for handwriting analysis of el Presidente.
Do we know if GWB ever
April 21, 2009 - 22:22 ET by todd333Do we know if GWB ever wrote anything other than his name?
have we all
April 21, 2009 - 16:34 ET by ronforgotten ebonics?
ronny, are you saying that
April 21, 2009 - 16:36 ET by balboaronny, are you saying that "advise" is how T-Pac would spell it? That rappers eschew the traditional spelling with a 'c' in an effort to up their street cred?
Is it a slow media bias day?
April 21, 2009 - 16:44 ET by QueenMumI understand the point, Noel. But this is a bit nit-picky. It's a very common spelling error. For that matter, it looks like the letter in question could very well be a "c". Not really worthy of discussion, IMO.
Civilization is the progress toward a society of privacy. The savage's whole existence is public, ruled by the laws of the tribe. Civilization is the process of setting man free from men. - Ayn Rand
if it was Bush
April 21, 2009 - 17:32 ET by TjexciteAll one has to ask is How would this be treated by the left and media (yes redundant) if it was Bush or even McCain back before the election.
The nutroots would have been like a pig in the slop. But with Obama it is as it never happened Ministry of truth will be is in full affect for all four years.
Loosing the election still
April 21, 2009 - 22:25 ET by todd333Loosing the election still stings huh
dont worry you'll get another chance to loose
Oh, I see what you did there todd
April 22, 2009 - 01:09 ET by ImAllRightfunny.
And you're likely correct, if the Republican Party runs more candidates like McCain at the top of the ticket, then yes, we will continue to lose.
"Democracy is worth dying for, because it's the most deeply honorable form of government ever devised by man." - Ronald Reagan
How Absurd
April 21, 2009 - 17:30 ET by jabelsonNoel Sheppard has proven himself crazy - but this takes the cake: even HE isn't sure if the script letter is an S or a C - he also gets the point wrong: advise is NOT a wrong spelling - it may be a MISUSE - but it's not misspelled: "“Advice” is the noun, “advise” the verb. When Ann Landers advises people, she gives them advice.
Perhaps he is, but he is
April 21, 2009 - 20:14 ET by Dan The Man 2Perhaps he is, but he is much better off than you. It matters not whether obama used the wrong word or the wrong spelling. He could have used the wrong spelling indicating he did not remember the spelling or he could have used the wrong word indicating ignorance. Either way it seems a harvard law school grad would know the diiference an know to write more legible with a proper writing instrumentas we all learn in third grade. But this is the President of the USA, perhaps some flunkie wrote it as it was above his paygrade or he was tired.
Whatever it looks like it was wrong and there us no analysis because he is the One
Nuke em til they glow then shoot em in the dark.
What we have here is
April 21, 2009 - 19:46 ET by snaggletoothieWhat we have here is positive proof that potatoes are more important than advice to Democrats. But we already knew that from the lousy advice and great meals in the White House.
advise/advice
April 21, 2009 - 22:49 ET by greghanson0bama should have checked with his chief advicer, his teleprompter, to see how to spell advice.
You are right, Bush or Palin would have been skewered for a spelling error, even one as minor as this.
Re Advise/Advice
April 21, 2009 - 23:25 ET by slickwillie2001I expect that this must have led to a high level meeting between Plouffe, Emanuel, Favreau and Axelrod, when they realized that the Bamster had a portal to the outside world that they did not control or approve. I expect that from now on all letters to citizens will go through their office, if they don't simply write them and sign them from the Bamster. This will not happen again.
Obama's "advice"
April 21, 2009 - 23:29 ET by JerPersonally, I felt the odd wording of the final sentence ["I will remember your dad's memory"...huh??] to be more noteworthy than whether the letter in "advice" is an "s" or a "c".
Jer
Cover up?
April 22, 2009 - 01:04 ET by ImAllRightGeez, Noel did you enjoy your jump over that shark?
Was it a Tiger or a Great White?
A couple of days ago it was Gladnick saying that a comment that barely was positive towards that movie "Che" in some little hick town paper meant some liberal conspiracy and today this.
Look guy's, for the most part I like what you post, but if there's no news then please don't STRETCH little nothing's into somethings.
It looks really stupid when you do.
"Democracy is worth dying for, because it's the most deeply honorable form of government ever devised by man." - Ronald Reagan
I'mAllRight sounds like a
April 22, 2009 - 07:30 ET by bretzysdudeI'mAllRight sounds like a troll to me.
Look, Noel's trying to point out that the media covered "potatoe", and then usually won't touch this. It's a double standard, moron!
D*mn it, I get so annoyed by all this crap...
The chief teleprompter should write his letters
April 22, 2009 - 08:23 ET by sevenSo he went to Hawvard?