OK, this is either a commentary on the unhinged nature of our political system, the unbelievable strength of coincidence, or, my favorite option, proof that the Masons really do have a nefarious plot to rule the world. It is, in a word, bizzare.
From the Chicago Sun Times: "Barack Obama is related to both President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney." Yeah, that's right. Related. The brief article continues: "Obama and Bush are 11th cousins" because "they share the same great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandparents -- Samuel Hinckley and Sarah Soole Hinckley of 17th century Massachusetts."
And the Cheney connection? "Obama is related to Cheney through Mareen Duvall, a 17th century immigrant from France. Mareen and Susannah Duvall were Obama's great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandparents and Cheney's great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandparents. That makes Obama and Cheney ninth cousins once removed."
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8 comments:
Of course, at that level of "relation," all of us on this blog are probably kin.
why does this count as wheatoblogging?
it's wheatoblogging precisely because of your first comment: at this level of relation, no doubt someone connected to Wheaton is related to all three of the fine gentlemen mentioned in the post. (Perhaps even one of us?! Maybe that's the next chapter in the Dusty saga!) And if news that relatives of a Wheaton graduate are simultaneously in the White House, serving as veep, and running for President from the opposing political party is not worthy of the tag, well, I just don't know what is.
I find it interesting, by the way, that you questioned the wheatoblogging part, but not the Dustyesque part.
Obama had a great response to this whole story:
"I don't want to be invited to the family hunting party."
Now that's comedy.
Kind of story that makes you wonder how such a little factoid came to the attention of the news media. Hmmmmm, it would require an extensive access to genealogies, a particular interest in presidential candidates (maybe, say, a particular stake in a presidential candidate) and a tremendous amount of manpower/time. Well, let me ask you this: what are the chances Hinckley, Soole Hinkley and the Duvall's haven't been washed in the waters of a strange baptism?
So I was talking to a friend of mine at my parish this moring, and it turns out that he is related to GW Bush closer than Obama is, which illustrates the pedigree collapse critique of the story.
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