Post turtle
Wikipedia on Answers.com:
Top
Post turtle
Post turtle is a phrase that has been used in political discussion of various countries, including the U.S. and Canada,[1] based on an old joke. Various politicians have been referenced by the joke or used the joke, including George W Bush,[2] Barack Obama,[citation needed] Bill Clinton,[3] and Stephen Harper.[4]
The joke
An old rancher is talking about politics with a young man from the city. He compares a politician to a "post turtle". The young man doesn't understand and asks him what a post turtle is.
The old man says, "When you're driving down a country road and you see a fence post with a turtle balanced on top, that's a post turtle. You know he didn't get up there by himself. He doesn't belong there; he can't get anything done while he's up there; and you just want to help the poor, dumb thing down."
Notable usage
William J. Kennedy reviews the book The Natural: The Misunderstood Presidency of Bill Clinton by Joe Klein who quotes Clinton on his own achievement: "If you see a turtle sitting on top of a fence post, it didn't get there by accident."[5]
Molly Ivins[6] is attributed to usage for George W. Bush.
At the 2010 CMAs, Brad Paisley used the phrase in his acceptance speech for Entertainer of the Year.
Steve Benen, lead blogger for the liberal "The Political Animal" at Washington Monthly, refers to Eric Cantor as a post turtle.[7]
A list of old sources is here.[8]
References
- ^ http://www.allistonherald.com/allistonherald/article/118663
- ^ http://politicalhumor.about.com/library/jokes/bljokebushpostturtle.htm
- ^ http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C02E4D91039F937A15750C0A9649C8B63 New York Times
- ^ http://www.canadaka.net/modules.php?name=jokes&op=ViewItems&vid=81
- ^ William Kennedy (2002-03-24). "The Turtle on the Fence Post". New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C02E4D91039F937A15750C0A9649C8B63. Retrieved 2008-09-30.
- ^ Molly Ivins (2003). "Turtle on a Fence Post". CREATORS SYNDICATE, INC. http://www.democrats.us/editorial/ivins042304.shtml. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
- ^ http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/search2.php?search=post+turtle
- ^ Barry Popik (2006). "The Big Apple: “If you see a turtle on a fence, he had help getting there”". Copyright 2004-2006 Barry Popik, New York City. http://www.barrypopik.com/index.php/new_york_city/entry/if_you_see_a_turtle_on_a_fence_he_had_help_getting_there. Retrieved 2008-09-30.
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
Post a question - any question - to the WikiAnswers community:
Copyrights:
Wikipedia on Answers.com
This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Post turtle.
Read more