UPDATE: Don’t forget to leave a comment below if you want to be entered into next week’s prize drawing! And some of the comments are pretty smart — consider your vote “lobbied.”
And now it begins.
Everyone assumes that the winner of the annual play-in game will have a short-lived victory party, only to be crushed by a #1 seed a few days later. And since the top seed in this case is Al Gore, today’s contestants will have to bring their A-game to buck the trend.
Anything could happen in the Politicos bracket of Deceiver Madness. So let’s treat this as a warm-up for the real thing, shall we?
In one corner, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, who publicly called for an “interfaith dialogue” last year. Seriously.
And in the other corner, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. The former pot-smoker has been busting more pot-smokers than ever. And if you manage to get away with it, he doesn’t want you to satisfy your munchies with anything that tastes good… but it’s fine for him.
Here’s the drill: You have 24 hours (beginning at 9:00 EST today) to vote for the bigger hypocrite. Come back tomorrow to see who won. And make a point of dropping by on Monday, when we’ll have eight — yes, eight — first-round matchups for your voting pleasure.
Reminder: The brackets are available here [PDF] and here [JPEG]. We’ll be updating them as the two-faced and famous begin to fall.
Deceiver Madness '09 PLAY-IN (Politicos bracket): Pick the bigger hypocrite
- King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia (57%)
- New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (43%)
Loading ...Prize-drawing policy: We’d like to avoid making people “sign in” every time they come to the site and vote, but there’s no other way to record each vote as an entry for prize drawings. So here’s the deal: Comments left in each post — not your votes themselves — will register you to win prizes, provided that you give us a working e-mail address with your comments. (Think of it as an exit-poll with a raffle ticket attached.) So after you vote, leave a comment explaining why you voted the way you did, and you’ll be registered for weekly drawings. A maximum of one entry is allowed per person, per poll.
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Hey, I voted. Apparently a comment is also require, so… yeah. Went with Abdullah, incidentally; the whole Cheeze-its/trans-fats scandal doesn’t impress me.
voting for Abdullah merely because the topic for his hypocrisy is more sensitive
I would vote for Abdullah, but voting for him would make me insensitive to a the Muslim people and their religion that is based on love and equality.
….on second thought, can I vote for him twice?
Voted for King Abdullah, because he persecutes people who haven’t even committed a crime – then turns around and spouts a bunch of PC tolerance crap. Now, whether or not pot *should* be criminalized is different question.
The hypocrisy of former pot-smoking politicians is pretty tame compared to the perpetual duplicity of King Abdullah, and the whole house of Saud, for that matter. Toward Western nations they talk about fighting terrorism and having religious discussions, and toward their own people they carry out honor killings against people who convert from Islam to any other religion, and oppress women’s rights concerning ordinary things like leaving the house by themselves.
I voted for Bloomberg, because I love me some Cheez-its and he’s clearly orchestrating a conniving scheme to keep all of the Cheez-its for himself.
I gotta go with Bloomberg. He reminds me of a 4th grade girl on the playground – just plain BOSSY!
I voted Bloomberg mainly because food/pot hypocrites hack me off.
I voted for Bloomberg. The Abdullah thing doesn’t surprise me and I almost expect it.
I voted for the king! Which, if you think about it, doesn’t make a lot of sense at all . . . because traditionally people don’t vote for kings . . . unless you’re in that planet in the first Star Wars movie, I guess.
But, yeah, the whole mayoral thing just wasn’t doing it for me. Wheras the whole interfaith dialogue from the guy who lets “partial decapitations” go on in his country that doesn’t let women breathe without a signed permission slip–now that’s bad. (How do you partially decapitate someone? Do I even want to know?)
I voted for Abdullah….besides his hypocritical bull…that facial hair alone pushed me over the edge to vote for him!
King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia because it is a lot funnier. Really? Interfaith? Can I bring my Bible?
I voted Abdullah because Bloomberg has yet to behead anyone for Twinkie consumption.
Voted for Bloomy- as Ducky says, it’s no surprise what Abdullah says and does as the bull that flows from his mouth is expected. Supporters of Islam have for too long been completely full of it.
King Abdullah wins by TKO.
The following video talks about the problem of endentured children in UAE, but the problem is even worse in Saudi Arabia.
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=8a7_1193454451
UGH! How to choose between these two? Which is the bigger douche? I finally tossed a coin and voted for Bloomberg, but it could have gone either way.
King Abdullah by a landslide.
King Abdullah just cause he smells of deceivement
That’s how I felt OnTheCouch.
Nearly 250 votes and only 18 comments so far.
Why I Voted for Michael Bloomberg: Sadly, someone else already gave my explanation. You expect the Saudi’s to be hypocritical. I suppose you could say the same thing about a politician, but Bloomberg was doomed to my vote because of the trans-fat BS.
I’m not eligible to win prizes, but I voted for the Saudi King. It’s hard for me to compare anti-Cheetos activism with religious bigotry — but these are tough times, and tough choices simply must be made.
King Abdullah
The whole country of Saudi Arabia is one giant hypocrite. Super-strict laws & rules everybody is supposed to live by (no alcohol, for example). But once these people are out of Saudi Arabia….what do you think they are doing when they go to Bahrain or UAE (which allow alcohol)????
I can’t believe That the King of Bigotry is about to lose to the man who likes Cheetos. Seriously.
Seriously… Did CheetoDude get a head start?
Had to go Abdullah. I followed the links in the original post and I’m still shaking.
The Saudi King Abdullah got my vote. The guy is way dirtier that a pathetic pot-head politician. He also got a body-count, which is a big no-no for me.
I didn’t see a selection for Florida A&M. Am I looking at the wrong bracket?
I went with the Saudi — his type of hypocrite is dangerous. Bloomberg is just a namby-pamby.
I voted for Bloomberg because I likes the munchies AND the weed…well, I like the munchies anyway. It’s a bit stinky that he would come down so hard on people for something he is probably still doing.
Murder, Bigotry, Racisim, sexism > Transfat transgressions
I was really hoping Mars, Anon and ss would come and enlighten us again on why America is so mean to this poor man.
I voted for the king. Not because I care but because I had to vote for one of them.
Take that Vlad the Impaler!
If you ask me, the religious win the hypocrite contest every time!
I agree with the Oversneer on this one. Voted for da King.
I voted for the Mayor. Don’t mess with my diet!
No way. Al’s gonna win. GOTTA win. These guys… big zeros.
Let’s see what’s more hypocritical: Advocating food bans while munching on those same snacks or hosting a ‘religious tolerance” conference when your country won’t allow other faiths.
Are you sure that it isn’t time for Peta yet? I’m reeeallly excited to vote for Peta. No? Ok the pile of crap Abdullah.
As there’s enough outsourcing in this economy, voting for the American hypocrite is the only way to get out country back on track.
That, and anyone who messes with junk food needs a kick in the teeth.
The King – hands down.
very tough call but went with the king… bloomy is just a run of the mill hypocrit politico. king ‘dullah is in a whole different class.
Voted for Bloomberg because I’m sick of hearing about pot.
I will Bloomberg any day over someone like the King. And didn’t he or his sons take in Michael Jackson awhile back? That alone gets him my vote.
I think the mayor is the bigger hypocrite. The King was raised to believe what he does – I’m not saying he can’t help being a total douche when it comes to all things religion-based, but he has to struggle against family tradition, religious tradition, cultural traditions – that’s a lot of pressure.
The mayor, grew up in new york, during the hippy times, smoked pot and then turned his nose at it and began attacking his former munchie buddies all to advance his career. Once you’re king, you can’t really get any higher up in that business.
Also – the merged image of the two Bloomberg faces makes it look like there’s a penis in his ear.
I had to go with King Abdullah, as his hypocrisy reaches near-incomprehensible heights.
I voted for Mayor Bloomberg ’cause he smokes pot…and you know…and that’s like…umm, wait…what was I talking about? Wow dude! Check out those clouds man…I bet they can see everything! What was I talking about? Man…I’m hungry!
Bloomberg gets my vote. I’m sick of politicians getting on people for making the same “mistakes” they did.
The last line of Darek’s post was why I voted Bloomberg. It was an aesthetic imperative.
Totally Bloomberg. Can he get any worse ?
Abdullah all the way. He doesn’t want an “Interfaith dialogue” just the positive press that comes with trying to set one of those up.
Voted for the king for his begrudging “pardon” of the rape victim who was going to be lashed. Had the story not leaked out to the civilized world she would have been victimized again like countless other women who are suffering under that culture.
I voted for Bloomberg. At least Abdullah hasn’t banned trans fat from his kingdom.
Yeah, you expect the King of Saudi Arabia to cut peoples’ heads off and stuff, but you don’t expect him to start spouting inter-faith mumbo jumbo like a third-rate tolerance shill. And that’s why he’s got my vote ^_^
King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. Yeah, I spent four years of life in the Magic Kingdom O’Tolerance.
Woo Hoo! The King, has returned!
I knew we would come to our senses…althought Darek’s liberal thinking almost got through to me by excusing the King’s behavior due to his upbringing. Then I relaized I don’t give a shit. You know what is right and what is wrong by the time you are 18 according to the courts, right?
oh.. Prince Abdullah has it covered. Playing it cool for the world asking to have some interfaith dialogue when he rules a only-muslims allowed country and hating people that dont believe in the same and send them to jail. He makes himself look like tolerant but he is quite the opposite.
Bloomberg’s maryjane suddenly seems so insignificant.
Had to go with the pot hypocrite. Anyone who wastes tax dollars to deny people their consolation during an economic meltdown they helped create (and got filthy rich in the bargain) is fishizzle in my book.
Well darek if he was a hippie maybe he’s HAD a penis in his ear. Hey love the one you’re with!
How can you vote against a person calling for an ‘interfaith dialogue’ when textbooks in Saudi schools say that the Jews use the blood of muslim children to make their passover matzo bread?
Forgot to leave my comment earlier…. Bloomberg all the way
Are you serious? Prince Abdullah. Does the mayor even know the crackers have trans fat?
Big ‘ol vote for the King – this one’s for my Jewish homies! I’ll hold your little hat while you sort this douche out.
I voted for Bloomberg, mainly because he looks like a leprechaun, but also because I now know the exact caloric content of my Chipotle order. That’s something I didn’t really need to know, Bloomie.
I tried to vote for the King, but I think I may have voted for Buchanan.
I Voted for the Jew hater Abdullah. Interfaith dialogue? He Beheads people for not being muslim!
Poobah
Mar 6th, 2009 at 3:59 pm
I tried to vote for the King, but I think I may have voted for Buchanan.
FTW!!!
Go ahead & vote for the king. Just don’t forget to cut off your head afterwards.
ahem
*tap tap tap*
Uh. I voted for King Abdullah because I likes him less than Mayor Whatzhizname.
Thank you.
(does that count?)
*scuttles away*
Also – the merged image of the two Bloomberg faces makes it look like there’s a penis in his ear.
I wanna change my vote! Anybody who has a penis in their ear deserves to get the vote.
Had to go with King Abdullah since he as much the poster boy for religious tolerance as Osama bin Laden
I flipped a coin and Bloomberg won.
All considering… Let’s just think about who is more likely to FAIL at sincerity: The man who has to have an election but thinks he’s above all the other “thinking” people in his city OR the man who has indefinite rule through religion, blood, and trillions of dollars?
King AL is all about saying whatever to whomever is letting him roll quietly in billions of foreign currency that day.
I voted for king abdullah…”interfaith dialog”…what happened to calling for jihad against the “unfaithful”? (the “unfaithful”, mind you, iclude fellow muslims as well, if they are not sunni…or if they don’t misinterpret the Quran and the whole religion of Islam in such a perverse radical way that it makes the rest of the muslim world shudder)
iNclude
Abdullah FTW. Bloomberg isn’t even the top in his city, while the King has a totalitarian grip on his country’s hypocrisy.
I forgot to mention sponsoring the jihad against the “unfaithful”
Jrod said everything I wanted to, how typical anymore!
Guess I’m insensitive too, I went with Abdullah. His use of the word “interfaith” was the deciding factor. I have yet to see the King wanting to reach out seriously to people of other faiths if there was no photo op involved.
Isn’t Saudi Arabia Wahabbi Muslim, or do I have that wrong? Isn’t that their brand?
I flubbed. I voted for the King because I was thinking, religious toleration and Saudis? No brainer but then I remembered, Mayor Mike was for term limits before he was against them.
But upon reflection I will stick with King Abdullah. After all, calling for an interfaith dialogue to clear up “problems and disagreements” isn’t as productive as one might think when one of the problems is converting to Christianity being punishable by death. And pot smoking and flip flopping pale against that.
I think the “problems and disagreements” probably involve ironing out whether to stone people to death before or AFTER you bury them up to their necks.
I voted for Abdullah because a lot of uninformed people don’t understand our country’s need to continue supporting Israel like we do. The Muslim countries want to kill them. There is no getting around that – they’ve been specific.
I voted for Bloomie. Besides the pot hypocrisy, let’s not forget that the Liberal joined the Republican party because his fellow Democrats put Mark Green on the ticket, and he was upset that they wouldn’t let him play. Since then, he’s pretty much been a RINO. THEN he pushes through a repeal of term limits – voted on in a referendum – because he and the City council know what the voters want WAAYYY more than the voters who voted for those same term limits.
King Abdullah is a huge hypocrite. He claims to be a friend and ally of the United States but provides financial support to Osama bin Laden through bin Laden’s family.
Throwing my hat into the ring. Voted for the Saudi king because while the mayor busting pot smokers and outlawing Cheetos may be hypocrisy, it’s at least funny.
Pretending to have goodwill towards man when all evidence points to the contrary just makes people with basic tenants, like ethics, shudder in disgust.
Wahabbi? Isn’t that a sauce?
Bloomy is loony. He gets my vote. He probably tokes up in Gracie Mansion every chance he gets.
Bloomberg had an outbreak/outburst of acute super-anal-retentiveness when that footballer accidentally shot himself. It wasn’t enough that the man had a self-inflicted bullet wound; Bloomberg was going to throw the entire law library at him; except of course, the 2nd Amendment because the mayor doesn’t recognize that as law. Bloomberg gets my vote for Douchebag of the Year. He’s also a narcissist, but I guess that’s just part of being a douchebag.
Yeah. He’s a hypocrite. Politics is 90% hypocricy and 90% hyperbole. He’s more of a douchebag than hypocrite. Politicians are always talking out both sides of their faces, so they probably ought to get a pass in this category.
Uh Pat how can you be 90% hypocricy AND 90% hyperbole????? That doesn’t add up to 100%. Hey I didn’t flunk math that bad!
And yes, Saudi Arabia is Wahabbi. That’s Arabic for crazy a** religious freaks who have no sense of humor.
Ok I made that up. It’s really a Muslim sect that tends to be more extremist than Shiite or Sunni.
I voted for Abdullah because of the way women are oppressed in Saudi Arabia. I’m sure I could find lots of reasons to vote for both, though.
Bloomberg’s kind of an ass, but he can’t hold a candle to guy who runs a country on oil profits and “The Lottery”-style stonings. Ok, maybe not that kind of stoning, but it’s almost as arbitrary.
pssst… Catharine…
Hyperbole /haɪˈpɜrbəli/ Spelled Pronunciation: hahy-pur-buh-lee
Rhetoric.
1. obvious and intentional exaggeration.
2. an extravagant statement or figure of speech not intended to be taken literally, as “to wait an eternity.”
Saudi King, because how much more of a hipocrite can you be than to want to kill every person of another religion and try to tell everyone how tolerant they should be, yea right, just like him. What a joke.
Thanks Minnow but I’m still not convinced. Love the sarcasm though!
Dang and I always thought it was hyper-bowl
Sorry that was sarcasm too. FYI my first post was hyperbole too, it was a bit glib and silly. Maybe it didn’t come across that way though.
The King – His is on a grander scale.
I voted for King Abdullah for King of Hypocrisy, even though, technically, you can’t vote for king but you can vote for mayor.
MONARCHY, I CHALLENGE THEE!
King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia for the win!
King Abdullah
Deceiver has lost my respect/interest by engaging in playing games and voting scenarios. Can’t you just stick to pairing what one says to what one does? Like exposing Heather Mills or John Edwards and showing us with an entertaining flair what hypocrites they really are? You’ve lost something in your your quest for “popularity” I guess. Deceiver madness indeed.
I vote for the Mayor. We expect such hypocritical BS from kingie-poo, but for an American leader to behave so stupidly is quite an embarrassment.
The bigger hypocrite has got to be Abdullah, but I voted for Bloomberg – for no other reason than my husband is currently living in Saudi, and I’d like him home in one piece
@ Beige
Beige, Wahabbi is a conservative form of Sunni Islam. It isn’t a separate Islamic denomination. There are two major denominations in Islam – Sunni and Shia. Then there is Sufism and other minor Islamic sects. But Wahabbi is just a form of Sunni.
Sorry, but no American politician even comes close to abdullah, even bloomberg.
Nothing wrong with a little “best of” clip reel, Darla, which is basically what this whole departure is. Lighten up and enjoy the ride — it sure looks like everyone else is having fun!
(Wouldn’t it be hilarious if she won a prize?)
Abby Dullard’s gotta be my man…
i voted bloomberg.. he’s probably just mad he can’t smoke the good stuff anymore!
LOL…it DOES look like Bloomie has a penis in his ear!
That is the funniest thing I’ve seen yet today. But it’s only 5:19 AM.
Gives a whole new visual to the term “d*ckhead”.
@Nati: Thanks for clearing that up. I did think it was a discrete group rather than a sect w/in the Sunnis. Think I’ll go read up on it, actually…
@Darla: Sure, they could stick to that, but how would that be any fun for the rest of us? Quest to be popular? Dude, when you’re as cool as Deceiver, you don’t NEED to quest! But you DO need to give your loyal commenting fans free crap.
Thanks for starting us off with a discussion that for me is “no contest.” King Abdullah wins this one hands down for me. Politicians who clamp down on drugs, food, etc., because they’re “bad for you” (while they exempt themselves from the same restrictions) are a dime a dozen. Unfortunately, we have such politicians everywhere you look.
I’m not saying we should excuse or give up calling out that sort of hypocrisy. What I *am* saying is that presiding over religious brutality is far worse. It’s more dangerous on so many levels, to the point of historical. When you then call for an “interfaith dialogue” you add insult to injury.
I wish I could believe that the King actually meant for a real interfaith dialogue to take place. However, that would require two things: starting with an “interfaith dialogue” among all sects of Islam (and exercising greater respect/tolerance for Muslims of all sects, not just Wahabbis) and not restricting the dialogue to the “big three” of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. A real interfaith dialogue cannot be restricted to monotheistic believers; Hinduism is just as real a faith and deserves a seat at any dialogue table. Don’t Wiccans have a voice in the dialogue? What about atheists, for that matter?
Cracking down on “harmful” substances while partaking of them is hypocritical enough. But trying to act inclusive of religious differences, while brutally enforcing them on your own terms, to say nothing of setting your own terms for inclusion, has a far greater impact on humanity. With longer lasting historical implications.
King Abdulla for the win (lose?). Hypocritical about eating trans-fatty foods or smoking the green stuff while proclaiming how evil it is is peanuts compared to the (eff)ery that is the Saudi King’s mentality on religious “tolerance”.
Y’all are making me want to change my vote. I had mostly focused on Bloomberg b/c he’s the one more Americans had to deal with, and as an American, I’m sort of focused on that. Abdullah (who resembles Bryan Cranston in sheikh drag, but never mind) is looking more and more like he deserves the win, here.
I wanna play too
This poll is closed, but come back on Monday when there will be eight more!
Voted for Abdulla because I think he stole that dish towel on his head from some hotel bathroom.
I’ts got to be Abdullah. He’s the male version of Paris Hilton.
@Beige
Beige, if you do look them up, could you please try to find out if those lunatics are trying to wage their “holy war” on the non-Wahabbi Sunnis as well? I don’t think they are, but I’m not sure. I know that it’s illegal to practice Christianity in Saudi Arabia, that they call people who practice Sufism the “idol-worshippers” (because in Sufism they recognize the saints, they venerate their graves, etc., much like in Christianity) and that they oppress Shia minorities. But what do they think of non-Wahabbi Sunnis? Are they the “infidels” as well? I went through some history books I have at home, but didn’t find anything. I don’t really feel like looking them up online…well, at least not from my computer. Just doesn’t seem like a smart move, Googling the wahhabis. Oh, and I got it wrong a bit – the religious movement itself is called Wahabbism (or Sunni Wahabbism). The word “Wahabbi” is mostly used to describe a person who practices Wahabbism.
A vote here for Abdullah also.
Just a quick note – I’m by NO MEANS condoning what the King has done or will do and by NO MEANS am I saying “Well don’t judge him too harshly – he was brought up to believe what he believed”. It shouldn’t be any surprise that I hate all things religious – when JRod said “You know what is right and what is wrong by the time you are 18 according to the courts, right?” I couldn’t agree more and then was saddened because of everything happening in California right with Prop 8. The proponents of Prop 8 definately knew the difference between right and wrong (18 is the voting age right?) and still chose to wrong a group of people.
I’m not trying to sway the great debate happening on this round of Deceiver Madness but when you’re raised to believe something is wrong, vile, disgusting – no matter it being gays getting married or rape victims being punished for being raped – it’s very hard to do the right thing in the manner, unless pressure is put on you to do so.
Bloomberg was raised one way, acted (during the 60’s/70’s) in a way contradictory to his upbringing and then enacted laws to punish those that did exactly what he did – that’s the ultimate definition of a hypocrite, if you ask me.