Homosexual? At Romney's school? That's a forced haircutting

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**Ouze**

It's kind of a long story, but here's the opener:

Mitt Romney returned from a three-week spring break in 1965 to resume his studies as a high school senior at the prestigious Cranbrook School. Back on the handsome campus, studded with Tudor brick buildings and manicured fields, he spotted something he thought did not belong at a school where the boys wore ties and carried briefcases. John Lauber, a soft-spoken new student one year behind Romney, was perpetually teased for his nonconformity and presumed homosexuality. Now he was walking around the all-boys school with bleached-blond hair that draped over one eye, and Romney wasn’t having it.

“He can’t look like that. That’s wrong. Just look at him!” an incensed Romney told Matthew Friedemann, his close friend in the Stevens Hall dorm, according to Friedemann’s recollection. Mitt, the teenaged son of Michigan Gov. George Romney, kept complaining about Lauber’s look, Friedemann recalled.

A few days later, Friedemann entered Stevens Hall off the school’s collegiate quad to find Romney marching out of his own room ahead of a prep school posse shouting about their plan to cut Lauber’s hair. Friedemann followed them to a nearby room where they came upon Lauber, tackled him and pinned him to the ground. As Lauber, his eyes filling with tears, screamed for help, Romney repeatedly clipped his hair with a pair of scissors.

The incident was recalled similarly by five students, who gave their accounts independently of one another. Four of them — Friedemann, now a dentist; Phillip Maxwell, a lawyer; Thomas Buford, a retired prosecutor; and David Seed, a retired principal — spoke on the record. Another former student who witnessed the incident asked not to be named. The men have differing political affiliations, although they mostly lean Democratic. Buford volunteered for Barack Obama’s campaign in 2008. Seed, a registered independent, has served as a Republican county chairman in Michigan. All of them said that politics in no way colored their recollections.

“It happened very quickly, and to this day it troubles me,” said Buford, the school’s wrestling champion, who said he joined Romney in restraining Lauber. Buford subsequently apologized to Lauber, who was “terrified,” he said. “What a senseless, stupid, idiotic thing to do.”

“It was a hack job,” recalled Maxwell, a childhood friend of Romney who was in the dorm room when the incident occurred. “It was vicious.”

“He was just easy pickins,” said Friedemann, then the student prefect, or student authority leader of Stevens Hall, expressing remorse about his failure to stop it.

The incident transpired in a flash, and Friedemann said Romney then led his cheering schoolmates back to his bay-windowed room in Stevens Hall.

Friedemann, guilt ridden, made a point of not talking about it with his friend and waited to see what form of discipline would befall Romney at the famously strict institution. Nothing happened.

Source

Romney has since both given a Reagan-denial while also apologizing..

**alarmingrick**

I can't believe he "doesn't remember"!

**Melissia**

Friedemann, guilt ridden, made a point of not talking about it with his friend and waited to see what form of discipline would befall Romney at the famously strict institution. Nothing happened.

Of course not.

**LoneLictor**

Romney always seemed like a jerkass. Now I know 100% that he is one.

**biccat**

Better or worse than referring to a black student as "Tom"?

**Hordini**

Obviously, it was a jerk thing to do and he should feel bad about it. I don't think anyone would say something like this was okay.

On the other hand, I don't think we should be judging the suitability of political candidates by the stupid things they did in high school. I'm guessing Obama did some stupid stuff in high school too, but I don't think it's a particularly useful part of the political discourse.

I know, I know, it's a crazy idea, but discussing some actual political issues might be a bit more pertinent (and dare I say it, responsible!) thing for the media to focus on, rather than digging up old skeletons from the candidates' high school days.

**Melissia**

I know. That's why I avoided saying anything about Romney, but instead talked about how schools let douchebags get away with practically everything as long as they're popular.

**Chowderhead**

I'm just wondering how the kid who got attacked is doing in life right now.

**dogma**

Hordini wrote:
On the other hand, I don't think we should be judging the suitability of political candidates by the stupid things they did in high school. I'm guessing Obama did some stupid stuff in high school too, but I don't think it's a particularly useful part of the political discourse.

Yep.

Hordini wrote:
I know, I know, it's a crazy idea, but discussing some actual political issues might be a bit more pertinent (and dare I say it, responsible!) thing for the media to focus on, rather than digging up old skeletons from the candidates' high school days.

Unfortunately, that type of thing doesn't generate nearly as much traffic.

Automatically Appended Next Post:

Chowderhead wrote:I'm just wondering how the kid who got attacked is doing in life right now.

I'm wondering if Romney knew Papa Doc.

**generalgrog**

Wow..... something that he did as a teenager in 1965 is news? This is just dumb.

GG

**Hordini**

dogma wrote:
Hordini wrote:
On the other hand, I don't think we should be judging the suitability of political candidates by the stupid things they did in high school. I'm guessing Obama did some stupid stuff in high school too, but I don't think it's a particularly useful part of the political discourse.

Yep.

Hordini wrote:
I know, I know, it's a crazy idea, but discussing some actual political issues might be a bit more pertinent (and dare I say it, responsible!) thing for the media to focus on, rather than digging up old skeletons from the candidates' high school days.

Unfortunately, that type of thing doesn't generate nearly as much traffic.

Sadly, I'm all too aware.

Every once in awhile I allow myself to have a bit of crazy hope, though.

**Ouze**

generalgrog wrote:Wow..... something that he did as a teenager in 1965 is news? This is just dumb.

GG

I'm sure it's at least as important as what school Obama (allegedly) went to when he was 6. Besides, it seemed like dumb political news day in the O-tizzle, and it would just seem arrogant of me not contribute.

**biccat**

Chowderhead wrote:I'm just wondering how the kid who got attacked is doing in life right now.

You didn't read the whole thing?

On June 12, 1965, Romney concluded his Cranbrook career at a commencement ceremony at the Christ Church, in which his father delivered a keynote address reported on by the local papers.
...
Forty years on, Mitt Romney accepted the school’s 2005 Distinguished Alumni Award.

A year earlier, John Joseph Lauber died at a Seattle hospital.

**Melissia**

generalgrog wrote:Wow..... something that he did as a teenager in 1965 is news? This is just dumb.

GG

Yes, how DARE we bring up something from a politician's childhood.

Unless it's the Republican party doing it. In which case it's okay.

**purplefood**

biccat wrote:
Chowderhead wrote:I'm just wondering how the kid who got attacked is doing in life right now.

You didn't read the whole thing?

On June 12, 1965, Romney concluded his Cranbrook career at a commencement ceremony at the Christ Church, in which his father delivered a keynote address reported on by the local papers.
...
Forty years on, Mitt Romney accepted the school’s 2005 Distinguished Alumni Award.

A year earlier, John Joseph Lauber died at a Seattle hospital.

Clearly Romney murdered the guy using the Distinguished Alumni Award...

**Harriticus**

Are people really going after him for stupid gak he did in High School? I dare anyone to genuinely say they weren't a dick to someone at one point in the 13 year old to 20 year old period.

**Hordini**

Melissia wrote:
generalgrog wrote:Wow..... something that he did as a teenager in 1965 is news? This is just dumb.

GG
Yes, how DARE we bring up something from a politician's childhood.

Unless it's the Republican party doing it. In which case it's okay.

No, it's still just as stupid when the Republicans do it.

**hotsauceman1**

While i agree with not judging him for HS activities he needs to be judged on how he looks back. It would be a great move for him if he just went to the guys house and apologized with flowers.
But he wont because he wont live up to it.

**LoneLictor**

Harriticus wrote:Are people really going after him for stupid gak he did in High School? I dare anyone to genuinely say they weren't a dick to someone at one point in the 13 year old to 20 year old period.

Yes, but his dickishness was motivated by homophobia and he's done nothing to show that he's not still homophobic. He's done plenty to show he's still homophobic though.

**alarmingrick**

Harriticus wrote:Are people really going after him for stupid gak he did in High School? I dare anyone to genuinely say they weren't a dick to someone at one point in the 13 year old to 20 year old period.

Seems fair to me given the BS about what school President Obama went to as a child.
I had a funny thought, kind of. The President was taken to the school, and given his age,
had no control over where he went to school. Where as Willard made the choice to "bully"
this fellow student. He wasn't forced to, he made the choice to do it.

**sirlynchmob**

See what happens when you don't deal with bullies when they're young. They grow up and want to be president, the ultimate bully.

someone tell the kid who got a haircut to suck it up.

**purplefood**

sirlynchmob wrote:See what happens when you don't deal with bullies when they're young. They grow up and want to be president, the ultimate bully.

someone tell the kid who got a haircut to suck it up.

He's dead...

**Gen. Lee Losing**

LoneLictor wrote:
Harriticus wrote:Are people really going after him for stupid gak he did in High School? I dare anyone to genuinely say they weren't a dick to someone at one point in the 13 year old to 20 year old period.

Yes, but his dickishness was motivated by homophobia and he's done nothing to show that he's not still homophobic. He's done plenty to show he's still homophobic though.

Yes, because the guy was openly gay, right? What? No? He was not openly gay? Just looked weird.

But I guess that Romney used his evil mormon powers to find out that the guy would be gay in a few years! And so if we look to his death certificate, it lists 30 year old haircut as cause of death! Mormon powers on an evil republican!!!

**biccat**

I'm sure everybody likewise has a problem with Obama's bullying:

Spoiler:

**purplefood**

That's not really the same thing IMO...

**dogma**

biccat wrote:I'm sure everybody likewise has a problem with Obama's bullying:

Spoiler:

That's bullying? I thought that's what we called "middle school".

I also like this part of the source article:

The Obama campaign and their lap-dog media buddies seem to want to equate what Romney did with the “School Ties” locker room fight between Matt Damon and Brendon Fraser.

The scene is here (link for brief ass shots that were still tame enough for Youtube), but the essence of it was a fight between two guys in a shower, which seems markedly different from, and less severe than, someone being held down and having their hair forcibly cut.

**biccat**

purplefood wrote:That's not really the same thing IMO...

True, violence against women is much more serious.

**Hazardous Harry**

biccat wrote:
purplefood wrote:That's not really the same thing IMO...

True, violence against women is much more serious.

You really can't be serious.

**Amaya**

biccat wrote:
purplefood wrote:That's not really the same thing IMO...

True, violence against women is much more serious.

Spoiler:

**Bromsy**

Amaya wrote:
biccat wrote:
purplefood wrote:That's not really the same thing IMO...

True, violence against women is much more serious.

Spoiler:

Gyeah... that was like the entire movie The Ring condensed into two seconds.