C’mon Man!
Biden’s go-to push-back line says more about Joe than he wants you to think.
If you’re running for President of the United States, you should be prepared to be questioned about everything. You should know most of the questions will challenge you. You should know many questions won’t be fair questions. You should know many questions will be hostile questions. You should know how to respond to the full spectrum of types of questions by being courteous, responsive, smart, and in control. “C’mon man” doesn’t do the job. Moreover, “C’mon man” says a lot about Joe that disqualifies him as someone suited to the job of President let alone most any other job.
As an expert on how people communicate and interact, I’m pointing-out the way Joe reflexively uses “C’mon man” reveals he’s not in control. It may seem like a benign personality style of speaking; it may seem like an amusing quirk; but it’s a serious weakness in communication competency, intellectual strength, and emotional stability.
Let’s Break it Down
“C’mon man” is meant to sound “cool” and “hip.” The conjunctive word “c’mon” is slang to convey “get with it” — another slang saying. The word “man” accentuates the hipster vibe of the whole phrase. Pretty cool, right?
Well, if you think it’s not good to put people down without provocation, then the way Joe says, “C’mon man” is not cool. It’s not only a put down, it’s verbally hostile — pretty uncool.
Next, “C’mon man” is a counter challenge to a challenge, or just a simple question, intended to carry the full weight of an explanation or argument. It’s actually absent any explanation or argument. It’s intellectually lazy and puts the burden on the questioner to get with it and think like Joe. What’s absurd is if we think like Joe, we reduce everything to “C’mon man.”
Next, “C’mon man” is unnecessarily defensive. Understanding requires being open to the full range of ideas. Defensiveness shuts down openness. It’s consistent with “cancel culture” mentality. “C’mon man” settles the argument in Joe’s head as if it were a “mic drop.” But it doesn’t settle anything. It reveals Joe’s “got nothing.”
Full Tilt
In the poker world the term “full tilt” refers to a poker player experiencing a string of lost hands who’s “losing it” by increasingly playing desperately, recklessly, and badly. Our friend Joe is on “full tilt!”
“C’mon man” is both an expression and function of Joe’s dysfunction. “C’mon man” makes Joe feel like he’s in control and has the “upper hand” when he’s actually “losing it.” Pathetically he can’t see it. And he can’t see that we do see it.
I was already writing this article when I saw the following montage on Tucker Carlson Tonight. Political montages can be unfair. They can also be brutally fair. The purpose is to make a point. Check it out and decide for yourself.
Just as Joe is an empty-suit place-holder as a candidate for President, “C’mon man” is an empty-idea place holder for thought and substance. It’s fitting that’s Joe’s go-to line… and by proxy, it’s the line with which the Dems are going to make their case to the American electorate.
With the Democratic Party putting up Joe as their candidate for President of the United States, it may make the American electorate think, “C’mon man!”
