Talk:Flip-flop (politics)

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The term flip-flop has been around since long before the 2004 election cycle; see this press release from the Sierra Club in Sept. 1995. Does anyone know the true eytmology of the term (i.e. when it was first used in a political context)? —Minesweeper 11:23, Oct 29, 2004 (UTC)

It is very old, I corrected the 2004 comment, like most comments of the form 'came to public attention' it really means came to the editor's attention. The term was in use during the 80s. Incidentally the criticism of Heath was that he never tried an economic policy long enough to see the results. I also added in the comment on Sheehan because it demonstrates the exceptional vaccuity of the charge. If you can't change your mind about a war after your kid has been killed in it then what can you ever change your mind on? --Gorgonzilla 16:37, 16 August 2005 (UTC)

I think the etymology is here on wikipedia: a flip-flop is a two-state logic device, which can trigger between a on/off (or yes/no) state. The word came from the noise it made in flipping. To me, it seems that the political term should be reserved for those who, having changed their position, then change it back again, as did Heath. This is not so infrequent among politicians, but is a real symptom. A public figure who simply changes his/her mind based on new evidence, or a change of priorities, is doing what sane people do, whilst one who cannot change is psychologically disabled. Cherrywood 21:51, 14 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] balance

examples seem leading, pov tingys. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 24.128.51.51 (talk) 09:19, 10 April 2007 (UTC).

there also clearly seems to be a reference to george w. bush and john kerry

I don't know this Edward Heath guy, but doesn't it seem kind of pov to be using his picture? Once again, I don't know him, and he could be the king of all flip-floppers for what I know, but wouldn't this violate wikipedia's npov guidelines? - Curseman

[edit] Continued usage

Shouldn't there be a mention of another prominent politician from Massachusetts running for the White House being accused of "flip-flopping"? WAVY 10 22:19, 11 July 2007 (UTC)