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Why You May Not Like Ted Cruz's Face, According To Science (qz.com)

An anonymous reader writes: Ted Cruz pitches himself as an overcomer, an underdog, an outsider who beats the odds. While the Republic candidate has won four states in this nomination race so far, a neurologist says he still faces a big obstacle with voters: his own face. In an interview with Quartz, George Washington University's Richard E. Cytowic said the unusual movements of Cruz's face may make him seem less sincere to the human brain than other candidates. "The normal way a face moves is what's called the Duchenne smile, named after the 19th century French neurologist. So the mouth goes up, the eyes narrow and the eyes crinkle at the outside, forming crows feet," said Cytowic, a professor of neurology. "Cruz doesn't give a Duchenne smile. His mouth goes in a tight line across or else it curves down in an anti-Duchenne smile. So he doesn't come across as sincere at all." Visceral reactions probably drive a lot more of politics than anyone likes to admit; seeming trustworthy isn't the same as being trustworthy, but it sure helps win people over.

8 of 203 comments (clear)

  1. "Appears" Insincere? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    He appears insincere because, guess fuckin' what, he *is.*

    Cruz is a Dominionist. None of this means anything to him except insofar as he can grab the reins of power and usher in some dystopic nightmare fusion of 1984 and The Handmaiden's Tale. Dominionists have been a scary powerful group since the Nixon years and they went absolutely metastaticwhen Bush II was elected.

    If he is not stopped, we're going to end up ruled by the Christian Taliban.

    1. Re:"Appears" Insincere? by MightyMartian · · Score: 5, Interesting

      How is voting for someone who denies what virtually every scientist has known to be a fact for over a century not voting for a religious zealot?

      That is if Cruz is a creationist. I suspect he understands his supporters well and simply apres their ignorance and prejudices.

      --
      The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
    2. Re: "Appears" Insincere? by Type44Q · · Score: 5, Funny

      I very much suspect that Cruz's "insincere face" is a case of causation rather than correlation.

  2. Sincerity by Indigo · · Score: 5, Funny

    The secret of success is sincerity. Once you can fake that you've got it made.
    -- Jean Giraudoux

  3. Never mind his face, I don't like him. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Affordable health care has been an issue for most of my adult, working life. Republicans and Democrats alike have proposed solutions, but until six years ago no one delivered.

    We had a vote. The majority, the fricken majority chose the winner, and the winner delivered on a campaign promise to deliver affordable health care to everyone.

    The fricken majority.

    And he and his ilk have spent six years since then trying to over turn what the fricken majority voted for.

    Is it any wonder nobody likes him?

    1. Re:Never mind his face, I don't like him. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Just reversing the rule prohibiting buying prescription drugs from Canada would dramatically lower the costs for millions of Americans who, despite being forced to buy "affordable health care", are stuck with ridiculously high deductible policies that don't even provide co-pays for drugs until they meet their deductible, which they can't do because their premiums are ridiculously high.

  4. It's not the face itself that turns me off by Opportunist · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It's what comes out of it when he opens his mouth.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  5. Un... goto politifact. Cruz really lies a lot. by Maxo-Texas · · Score: 5, Informative

    I wrote this for another forum which was focused on trump. But basically only 21% of Ted Cruz's statements are true or mostly true. He lies twice as often as Clinton and Sanders and almost twice as often as Rubio. He's facile at lying. Lying is a tool in his tool box. It has little to do with his face.

    From politifact, the Pulitzer prize winning political fact checking site.

    http://www.politifact.com/pers...
    51% of Clinton's statements are all true or mostly true. Another 21% are half true.

    http://www.politifact.com/pers...
    48% of Sander's statements are all true or mostly true. Another 21% are half true.

    http://www.politifact.com/pers...
    35% of Rubio's statements are all true or mostly true. Another 22% are half true.

    http://www.politifact.com/pers...
    21% of Ted Cruz's statements are all true or mostly true. Another 13% are half true.

    http://www.politifact.com/pers...
    8% of Trump's statements are all true or mostly true. Another 14% are half true.

    yes.. 8% is yoooge.

    Trump is saying mostly false statements to outright lies 78% of the time. When caught in a lie, he just lies again.

    I was suprised to see Cruz had such a high lie rating given that he's christian and christians are against the lord of lies but his particular sect does approve of lying in the service of the lord so that may be playing a factor here.

    Trump is almost a full order of magnitude more dishonest however.

    --
    She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.