The difference between criticism and mockery is an important one.

[TheWraith]

Hillary and Obama have both been criticized for plenty of things, and they'll continue to be. And criticism can be damaging to someone's campaign. But it's nothing compared to mockery.

Mockery will kill you deader than anything else, because it's pervasive, it's edgy, and it's impossible to defend against. You can't rebut it, you can't spin it, you can't ignore it. It works its way into places where regular political discussion doesn't go, and gets bantered around in bars, hairdressers, and restaurants.

Hillary's been criticized plenty. But the sniper story is not just going to get her criticized. It's going to get her mocked. On every nightly comedy show. Around the water cooler. In forwarded emails. It's going to become a national joke.

Mockery was what killed Al Gore. His personality quirks were satirized, his statements were taken out of context to make jokes, and it absolutely destroyed him. It's why politicians are never supposed to dress up funny.

It's "I voted for the bill before I voted against it." It's "Sure, have a reporter follow me, they'll be very bored," by Gary Hart in 1988. The affair hurt him--the jokes destroyed him.

People can tolerate their leaders being informal, humorous, or even making fun of themselves, but being the butt of a joke can be fatal.

[TwilightGardener]

1. Yep--mockery is just a killer.

edit to add: If the word "jeering" applies...also a killer.

[Genevieve]

2. "People can tolerate their leaders being informal, humorous, or even making fun of themselves,

but being the butt of a joke can be fatal."

I believe that is what first got Obama's supporters so damn angry at Hillary.
When she mocked us -- that speech:

‘Let’s just get everybody together. Let’s get unified. The skies will open, the light will come down, celestial choirs will be singing and everyone will know we should do the right thing and the world will be perfect,” mocking the many states and millions of voters that have voted for him.

That's when I lost any respect at all I had for her.

[flor de jasmim]

3. Let's not forget she has also been the "mocker" as well as the "mockee"

And let's not forget this one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGW38Zy4bJo

Would it be illegal to use this in an Obama ad, does anyone know?

[WDIM]

4. Hillary gets cranky when she is sleepy

and says things she doesn't mean. So you'll have to forgive her.

Is that the mockery you're talking about? :D

I wanna see a skit with Hillary running from a plane screaming "Its bosnia there are snipers everywhere" and all the people just kinda stare at eachother. Then say "she must not of gotten any sleep last night"