The Ronald Reagan Advice Generator

[DrKPhd]

A friend and I came up with the idea to do a Ronald Reagan Advice Generator, but no matter what question you asked, it always said, "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" I also added a feature where it takes an extra 5 seconds to display that every time, and if you try to report a bug, it just throws you back into the loop.

I hope you enjoy it!

http://www.weeklyminute.com/reaganbot/

[MyshkinCommaPrince]

1. It works.

And now I feel better about my problems. Blocked toilet? Socks don't match? The solution is apparently the destruction of the Berlin Wall. Which is already accomplished! So everything's rosy. I'm going to listen to "Right Here, Right Now" on a loop, now, until I get a nosebleed.

Really, though, interesting idea. I was a dumb kid during Reagan's second term, so I probably missed some things. Would this be the most significant Reagan idea, for good or ill? Possibly I'm a bit confused. That could just be my caffeine dosage for the day wearing down.

[DrKPhd]

2. Well...

My friend came up with the idea fully-formed and presented it to me. So I'm not exactly sure what it means, either, but I'll tell you the interpretation I had while I was coding it:

Essentially, I think it means that people (read:Republicans) continually turn to Reagan for advice on modern-day issues, but all they really find is a collection of sound-bites that, though they appear to have relevance, are actually just dated political theater. And not only is it dated political theater, but it's endlessly repetitive political theater.

Additionally, the site is designed to trap unsuspecting viewers into greater and greater time commitments, as they wait for the Reaganbot to "think," which is actually just a delay. This mirrors the false reflection an ideologue will pretend before giving an orthodox answer. (This also wastes the most time of those who repeatedly ask the Reaganbot questions, who are convinced that Reagan actually does have some advice to give them, so it has an element of automated trolling in it.)

A friend of mine asked, "What if I want advice for building a wall? What then?" I said, "The Reaganbot is always right: perhaps in attempting to destroy the wall, others will realize its significance and rebuild it."

TL;DR We're making fun of people who think Reagan has all the answers.