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Seanette
4th March 2009, 12:57 AM
I was born in 1969, so don't really remember Gerald Ford, but have a vague impression that he was an OK guy, but basically a chairwarmer as President.

So why is it that he's the only US President to have women try to assassinate him? (Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme of the Manson Family, and Sara Jane Moore, for non-US readers)

Was there something about him that just REALLY [bleep]ed women off?
jhunter1163
4th March 2009, 04:17 AM
IIRC Moore was also associated with the Manson Family. He must have just (rule10)ed off Charlie Manson.

ETA: Sorry, I was wrong. Moore was obsessed with the SLA. So, just a random nut.
Holler Hoojer
4th March 2009, 05:14 AM
I am old enough to remember and I always thought Betty Ford's husband was the best friend women ever had in the White House. Betty broke the long silence about breast cancer, followed shortly thereafter by Happy, and suddenly it started being OK for women to consider having mastectomies to save their lives. Betty said publicly she wasn't able to tell her grown daughter when to have sex and that really damped the shrillness of dialogue about women's sexuality. Betty spoke out that abortion belonged in hospitals, not in backalleys. And, she supported the ERA.

And, through it all, decent, respectable Jerry just nodded and supported Betty one hundred percent.
tomwaits
4th March 2009, 07:31 AM
nvm
Springfork
4th March 2009, 07:40 PM
Ford pardoned Nixon. That would be enough to tick off anybody.
tomwaits
4th March 2009, 09:10 PM
Ford pardoned Nixon. That would be enough to tick off anybody.

"tick off" != try to assassinate
Seanette
4th March 2009, 10:28 PM
"tick off" != try to assassinate

:newlol

Attempted murder does seem a rather drastic response to "tick off".
Foolmewunz
5th March 2009, 08:04 AM
Well, young 'uns hop up on ol' Foolmewunz's knee and let me tell you about the olden days.

It seems that Jerry (who Lyndon B. Johnson once noted had played football without his helmet one time too many) was not considered the sharpest knife in the drawer. But it was the 70s and the assassination bug was still going 'round, and it was felt that someone ought to try. So they got the AWAU (Amalgamated Wannabe Assassin's Union) together and couldn't really decide on who'd have the ignominy of taking out Ford. After four days of heated debate and still seemingly at an impasse, someone noted "Hey, I'm not shooting that dunderhead. Heck, that's a chick's job!"

And they all nodded in agreement and handed it over to the women's auxilliary.
Ian Osborne
6th March 2009, 02:06 PM
I think in Frome's case, she wanted to assassinate the POTUS, not specifically Ford, so in her case, it was nothing personal - Ford just had the bad luck to be the incumbent at the time.
Chaos
7th March 2009, 01:26 PM
:newlol

Attempted murder does seem a rather drastic response to "tick off".

Depends on the degree of ticked-off-ness.
WinstonCountyWildman
7th March 2009, 07:07 PM
Believe it or not at one time Ford was a male model for Cosmopolitan and other mags. He was also right handed but wrote with his left hand.
Whiplash
8th March 2009, 04:36 PM
I think in Frome's case, she wanted to assassinate the POTUS, not specifically Ford, so in her case, it was nothing personal - Ford just had the bad luck to be the incumbent at the time.

This is the impression I got as well from a documentary or something that I saw on the History Channel. She was looking to make a name for herself. Her big moment. Wasn't about Ford.