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OMG A Vast Left-Handed Conspiracy!!!

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MoonWater

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You all MUST read this before voting!!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/03/AR2008070303202.html

When Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain take the stage for the presidential debates, attentive viewers may notice both candidates scribbling notes with their left hands. Political junkies will remember that such a curiosity has occurred before: In 1992, all three contenders -- George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Ross Perot -- were southpaws.

In the race for the White House, lefties seem to have the upper hand. No matter who wins in November, six of the 12 chief executives since the end of World War II will have been left-handed: Harry Truman, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, the elder Bush, Clinton and either Obama or McCain. That''s a disproportionate number, considering that only one in 10 people in the general population is left-handed.

For years, left-handedness was not treated as a point of pride, much less a qualification for high office. Remnants of anti-leftiness are everywhere: A right-hand man is indispensable, but who wants a dancing partner with two left feet? The words "adroitness" and "dexterity" derive from the French and Latin words for "right," while "gauche" and "sinister" derive from the words for "left." In the New Testament, the souls of sinners who fail to meet with the Savior''s approval are sent to his left -- and to eternal damnation. No wonder that, well into the 20th century, children who showed signs of left-handedness when writing were forced to switch hands.
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Even today, left-handers are thought to be accident-prone (not true), and a study once showed them to be at risk for early death (it was debunked). But what about their brains? Is it possible that right- and left-handed people -- and presidents -- think differently?

Perhaps. Some left-handers may be better armed for the challenges of leadership because of the way their brains handle language and dexterity (sorry, there''s no other word). For nearly all right-handers, language abilities reside exclusively on one side of the brain -- usually the left, which controls the right hand. But one in seven lefties process language on bo th sides of the brain, possibly because using their left hands during childhood stimulated the development of the right half. So Reagan, Bill Clinton and Obama may have left-handedness to thank for their legendary speaking abilities.

The benefits of being a lefty aren''t only verbal. Many artists and great political thinkers were lefties -- Pablo Picasso and Benjamin Franklin, for example. Lefties are overrepresented among the mathematically talented and are also more likely to find unexpected or counterintuitive solutions on problem-solving tests.

So maybe the number of left-handed presidents isn''t so surprising after all. But why did they only start popping up in the past 50 years? Probably because before that, many lefties were turned into righties by stern tutors and teachers, so few presidents before World War II would have been officially left-handed. In fact, the only known left-handed president before the turn of the 20th century was James Garfield. He was ambidextrous, and legend has it that he could write in Latin with one hand while simultaneously writing the same sentence in Greek with the other. Talk about a way with words.

Then again, we know of no historical evidence to suggest that Abraham Lincoln was left-handed, and he had an even better way with words. The first President Bush, on the other hand, was a southpaw but wasn''t exactly known for his silver tongue (more like a silver foot, in the late Ann Richards''s inimitable phrase). So should we add left-handedness to the requirements for U.S. presidents? As two right-handed scientists, we recommend some . . . evenhandedness.
 

luckystar112

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I''m a leftie and I must say that this made me feel better:

Even today, left-handers are thought to be accident-prone (not true), and a study once showed them to be at risk for early death (it was debunked).
 

goobear78

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My dad is a leftie. Growing up he attended Catholic school and the nuns used to slap his left hand if he tried to write with it, because the left hand is the "devil''s hand"...
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How crazy is that?
 

MoonWater

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It''s beyond crazy. I guess it''s settled tho, they''re both the Anti-Christ. Good luck America!
 

BeachRunner

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Go Lefties! Go Obama! ;-)

ETA: My mom and myself are both lefties.
 

partgypsy

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YAY Leftie pride! I didn''t realize so many presidents were lefties!

I''m a leftie, and my twin sister is a rightie. She teased me that I must have had some insult in the womb to turn me into a leftie (I know we''re harsh on each other with teasing), and has also repeated the "truisms" about being accident prone and early death. Now I''ve got to tell her about the presidential association with lefties to get back at her.
 

Irishgrrrl

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Date: 11/4/2008 12:10:01 PM
Author: part gypsy
YAY Leftie pride! I didn''t realize so many presidents were lefties!

I''m a leftie, and my twin sister is a rightie. She teased me that I must have had some insult in the womb to turn me into a leftie (I know we''re harsh on each other with teasing), and has also repeated the ''truisms'' about being accident prone and early death. Now I''ve got to tell her about the presidential association with lefties to get back at her.
Wow, PG! That''s so cool! Are you and your sister identical other than the right-handed/left-handed thing?
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partgypsy

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We don''t look very similar now, but when we were little we look very similar, in fact some baby pictures we are not even sure who is who. We don''t know if we are identical, my mother never asked because I guess she assumed we were (but sometimes considering our personalities I wonder!) We are both blonde with green eyes, my sister is first born and about an inch taller. I had a birthmark on my right knee she doesn''t have. However I have a mole on my left back, she has a mole same place but on right back. Our prescriptions for our eyes are almost identical, but reversed. When we were talking about this to someone they said that that might mean we are mirror twins. They are identical twins that split a little later than most twins.
I would still like to take that genetic test someday to finally determine what our status is.
 

purrfectpear

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I write with my right hand, but eat with my left (Euro style - fork in the left)
 

misysu2

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Yay Leftie PS''ers! (I''m one too!) We knew we were all geniuses; I''m glad the rest of the world is finally figuring it out as well.
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kama_s

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When I was growing up, I noticed all the smart people in my school were lefties. I know it's anecdotal, but in my opinion, there must be a link between intelligence and manual dexterity! There IS a gene linked to left-handedness, so I dont think we're that far off the mark on this one!

Alas, I am a normal typical rightie...although I do a lot of things with my left hand predominantly (except for writing, which is exclusively right-handed).
 
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