When we last met in this space, I was telling you about Frank Rich, the New York Times columnist … about how he was pontificating on healthcare reform … about how the anger out there isn’t really a manifestation of the unhappiness with the way healthcare reform turned out, according to Mr. Rich. Instead we were angry, Frank Rich informed us – or more accurately, fearful – because a black man is president, a woman is Speaker of the House, a Latina is on the U.S. Supreme Court and a powerful congressman is gay.
Painful as it may be to read his tripe a second time, here it is, just so you may recall that either a) you are a bigot or b) Frank Rich is a shameless left-wing twit:
“That a tsunami of anger is gathering today is illogical, given that what the right calls “Obamacare” is less provocative than either the Civil Rights Act of 1964 or Medicare, an epic entitlement that actually did precipitate a government takeover of a sizable chunk of American health care. But the explanation is plain: the health care bill is not the main source of this anger and never has been. It’s merely a handy excuse. The real source of the over-the-top rage of 2010 is the same kind of national existential reordering that roiled America in 1964. …
“If Obama’s first legislative priority had been immigration or financial reform or climate change, we would have seen the same trajectory. The conjunction of a black president and a female speaker of the House — topped off by a wise Latina on the Supreme Court and a powerful gay Congressional committee chairman — would sow fears of disenfranchisement among a dwindling and threatened minority in the country no matter what policies were in play.”
Frank Rich’s predictable observations stem from an episode that might or might not have happened – the shouting of racial slurs at two black congressmen outside the Capitol before the vote on ObamaCare. No need to re-hash that story except to say: no audio proof has turned up to support the allegation. And as for the “spitting” episode which supposedly took place when a white Tea Party demonstrator let loose on a black congressmen – well, video shows it didn’t quite happen that way.
Yes, the demonstrator was shouting at the congressman as he walked by — just as he had been shouting at white members of Congress — but from the pictures it looks like the protestor was guilty of nothing more than saying it and spraying it at the same time. Not nice, but not racist either.
So based on these incidents we not only got Frank Rich’s two cents about racist white America, but also a dirty little piece of work by Colbert King in the Washington Post which ran under this headline:
In the faces of Tea Party shouters, images of hate and history
It gets a lot worse after that. “The angry faces at Tea Party rallies are eerily familiar. They resemble faces of protesters lining the street at the University of Alabama in 1956 as Autherine Lucy, the school’s first black student, bravely tried to walk to class,” is how the column begins.
“Those same jeering faces could be seen gathered around the Arkansas National Guard troopers who blocked nine black children from entering Little Rock’s Central High School in 1957.”
So the tea partiers are no different — no better — than the racist thugs who tried to block integration some 50 years ago.
King goes on. “Tea Party members, as with their forerunners who showed up at the University of Alabama and Central High School, behave as they do because they have been culturally conditioned to believe they are entitled to do whatever they want, and to whomever they want, because they are the ‘real Americans,’ while all who don’t think or look like them are not.
“And they are consequential. Without folks like them, there would be no Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity or Pat Buchanan. There would never have been a George Corley Wallace …
“Hence, an explanation for the familiarity of faces: today’s Tea Party adherents are George Wallace legacies. They, like Wallace’s followers, smolder with anger. They fear they are being driven from their rightful place in America.”
This is nothing less than slander. And shallow slander at that. Even if one or two or three – or 10 or 15 – demonstrators crossed a very bright line and shouted racial slurs, does this mean the rest of the crowd – thousands of others – were also racists? Does it mean that the entire Tea Party movement is rotten to its core? No serious person would conclude that. No serious person would write such nonsense.
But here’s something that seems to have escaped Mr. King and his sophisticated editors at the Washington Post: Yelling racial slurs is indeed hateful, but so is yelling racism just because you feel like it. Yes, some people see a racist behind every tree. Some think it’s still 1957 in America. This is their problem. They should not make it ours.
I suspect we haven’t read or heard the last of this kind of journalistic sludge. Its goal, of course, is to silence critics of President Obama. Who, after all, wants to be called a racist? (By the way, if we really were a bunch of racists, we wouldn’t care!) So be careful out there: if you criticize President Obama for almost anything, you run the risk of being tarred a bigot.
The election of President Obama was supposed to take us to a new better place. He was, we were repeatedly told, not the usual politician. He was The Future. With the election of the first black president in a predominantly white country, race was supposed to fade into the background.
How’s that working out for you?
BERNIE;
I LOVE YOUR COMMENTARY ON THE FACTOR. I KNOW YOU
HAVE TO BE SUBTLE WITH THE EGOIST O’REILLY BUT REMEMBER
HE NEEDS YOU AND OTHERS MORE THAN YOU AND THEY
NEED HIM. WITHOUT YOU REGULAR GUESTS HIS SHOW WOULD
BE BELOW OBERMANN. KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK.
90 pct of the tea party is white
50% of Obama is white.
In making your argument against charges of racism, it seems like you indict yourself with a key element in your article Bernie. This assertion strikes me as odd: “Rich’s predictable observations stem from an episode that might or might not have happened – the shouting of racial slurs at two black congressmen outside the Capitol before the vote on ObamaCare…no audio proof has turned up to support the allegation.” Audio proof? How about taking the black congressmen at their word, Bernie? Why does their own account seem so implausible? Why is it inherently untrustworthy and flawed? THAT seems like a racist assumption to me. Also the spitting incident which “supposedly” took place? Again, why not take Rep. Cleaver’s account as proof enough? Rep. Cleaver was a part of the original civil rights movement and is a man of incredible integrity. He said he hadn’t heard language or experienced treatment like that since his civil rights years. So in 50 years, this is the first time he’s chosen to play that old “race card”, Bernie, during a vote for health care reform? Doesn’t seem like a solid argument to stand on.
By this reasoning, is Barney Frank’s separate, independent account of people yelling “faggot” and yelling at him with exaggerated lisps also fabricated? Why didn’t you work that into your argument? There’s playing the race card, which happens occasionally sure, but then there’s people not calling out racism and excessive, incendiary, and hateful rhetoric when it’s more than warranted. The latter seems to be what’s called for here by the right, regardless of how widespread these attitudes are in the Tea Party movement (they managed to reach these 3 congressmen, so it’d say it reaches pretty far). But they instead seem to be bending over backwards downplaying it, saying it’s only a few bad apples, and instead irrelevantly and irresponsibly making this more an issue of the victims here and whether they’re actually telling the truth. This is shameful, and if not racist in it’s own right, extremely misguided.
Let me put this to you – imagine Sarah Palin walked thru a crowd of anti-war protesters, or pro-health reform supporters and she came out of it claiming people had screamed “bitch” or “right-wing whore” or something at her. Would you and Bill O’Reilly be combing thru whatever audio or video you could find to see if she was in fact telling the truth? I can’t imagine that ever happening on the O’Reilly Factor or Fox News. She would be taken at her word immediately, it would be a lead story for 2 weeks, and if any searching of videotape was undertaken, it would only be to find evidence to support her claim, not in an attempt to discredit it. The 3 black congressmen who heard and experienced these things should absolutely be given this same credibility. Have we gotten to a point where EVERY single claim or statement by anyone associated with the side that’s not your own under suspicion and assumed to only be made with ulterior motives?
Bernie, Didn’t the people who participated in the original Boston Tea Party, board someone else’s ship, seize cargo that they didn’t own and throw it into Boston harbor to render it useless? What better role model could people like Sarah Palin and the hard right wing follow?
The Boston Tea Party of 1773 was the high point of a resistance movement against the Tea Act, recently passed by Parliament. British colonists believed the Tea Act violated their rights because it was passed by a legislature in which they weren’t directly represented.
Controversy over taxation had begun in the 1760s when Parliament decided to directly tax the colonies in order to raise revenue for England. The Whig Party argued that, since the colonists did not elect members of Parliament, they should not be taxed by Parliament. Rather, they should be taxed only by their own colonial assemblies.
The Boston Tea Party was not really about high taxes. It was about taxation without representation. And it was about colonists who had begun to think of themselves, not as British subjects living on a different continent, but as Americans.
The Tea Party began a chain of events that led to the Revolutionary War of 1775. In England, all political parties had turned against the colonies in the wake of the Boston Tea Party, while the revolutionaries in the thirteen colonies, once dismissed as unpatriotic rabble-rousers, quickly gained support from their fellow “Americans.”
The Boston Tea Party of 1773 has come to symbolize the right of the people to rise up against oppressive government. The Tea Partiers of 1773 were, indeed, great role models, and the unpatriotic, rabble-rousing revolutionaries who led them are remembered as true American heroes.
Carrie,
My post below is directed at Wil, not at you.
When someone takes something from you (your job, your money, your freedom), do you not react to take it back? Are you actually taking the side of King George III? Do you even have any concept of what it means to be an American? Or are you another ill-educated public-school product who went to a nice liberal university? Do you truly hate America that much that you would wish to see it (and, by extension, all of us) reduced to mere slaves in a totalitarian regime a la Venezuela? You, sir, are an idiot. (And I should be soundly thrashed for feeding the trolls, but sometimes you people really twist me through the ceiling.)
Dan, Post your email address and I will send you a copy of my DD-214. I bet you never earned one!
What does your supposed military record have to do with anything?
Gee Wil, Bush and McCain both have a DD-214 … Obama doesn’t … does your logic apply to those people too?
You, me and many others are Veterans. I am one who loves his country and is proud of our great traditions … such as our courage to stand against injustice.
“When injustice becomes law resistance becomes duty” Thomas Jefferson
More hypocrisy from the loving Left, this from Maxine Waters:
http://www.breitbart.tv/off-the-hook-hypocrisy-rep-waters-used-to-love-vulgar-outlandish-protest-rallies/
thanks Kathie … just put it up on the site … under Bernie’s Daily Briefing …
I agree with Frank Rich that “the tsunami of anger” has little to do with the health care issue itself; the fact that our system needs improvement is largely uncontested. The consequences of health profiteering are likewise fairly obvious: “twice the per capita cost of comparable countries” which is having a very real effect on the quality of living in this country, as the UN standard of living survey for 2009 clearly corroborates.
After extensive conversations with colleagues implanted across the political spectrum, it occurs to me that the most vociferous opponents of health care reform that I’ve experienced have little to say substantively on the Health issue. They raise “constitutional issues” & may cry socialism but provide no counter-offer, nor suggestions, in regards to our unimpressive system.
Medicare’s precarious financial position CANNOT be improved if $500 billion…that’s HALF A TRILLION DOLLARS…is carved out of the program.
The law as it stands does not provide for meaningful tort reform. The law as stands does not allow for the purchase of health insurance across state lines. And I’m not talking about “pilot programs” here. I’m talking about MEANINGFUL reform.
Perhaps the best news is that the Obamacare does not have a severability clause. So now it’s in the hands of the courts, and if one part of the whole is tossed out, then the whole may be tossed with it.
We WILL have a chance to do it right: in the upcoming midterms; in the 2012 election. I have every confidence that at least two lawsuits (AAPS) and Walters, Shotwell, Conrad (Mississippi) will succeed on their merits and show Obamacare as having reached too far, at least on its WAY overly broad interpretation and expansion of the Commerce Claus.
So I would advise everyone here to become familiar with the AAPS petition and and the Walters, Shotwell, Conrad petition.
As coverage becomes more universal, the need for specific programs such as Medicare will naturally faze out. I agree that this legislation is weak & devoid of more than a few key issues, but I suppose this is what happens when people want to have discussions pertaining to constitutionality instead of discussions that lead to meaningful reform.
Again, there is merit to this; I am supportive of both petitions & plan on familiarizing myself further with the broader work of AAPS. The most important aspect of this legislation, as I see it, is that we are finally having meaningful discussions about health care reform & better quality of living in the United States.
You cannot say the biggest opponents of the passed health care law didn’t bring forward a counter offer. You either A) are just ignoring it or B) just don’t take the time to research it.
The biggest opponents, the GOP, brought forward a much better plan that went right to the source of high health care and health insurance costs, lack of competition and outlandish tort laws. Those are the corner stones. The government isn’t a genie in a bottle like some think it is. President Obama cast aside any and all opposition as either racist, myths, fear mongering, and lies. This proposed bill was handed to him in it’s entirety at his appearance in Baltimore with the GOP. At the event he was snide, condescending, partisan and polarizing, all things he said he was not and would not be. To even think that opposition would not play his style of ball is absurd. I’ve dealt with him both as a state representative and as a US Senator, and I can assure you that in all those years he has not done one thing to benefit the State of Illinois. He is an egotistical, ideological demagogue with a warped sense of reality.
Here is the opposing health care reform bill that you claim was never proposed.
http://rules-republicans.house.gov/Media/PDF/RepublicanAlternative3962_9.pdf
Thanks for the link, Stephen- I do stand by my initial assertion: the most vociferous opponents of Health Care Reform that I have experienced offer the least substance- no ideas, proposals, support, acknowledgement of issues, et cetera. The key word here is “opponents of health care reform.”
What You have said in NO WAY falsifies this, Stephen. You mention the Republican counter-proposal & make the bare assertion that “I claim it was never proposed.” I claim nothing of the sort.
Lastly, the Republican counter-proposal still constitutes “reform” in itself…. are we to write the GOP off as “opponents of health care reform” when clearly they’ve offered the proposal You’ve linked?
If not, why would You make that bare assumption?
“They raise “constitutional issues” & may cry socialism but provide no counter-offer, nor suggestions, in regards to our unimpressive system.”
You clearly said that there was no counter offer or suggestions. The GOP didn’t oppose health care reform. I don’t know anyone who does. The claims that there are masses of people who oppose health care reform is just a myth. There are, however, masses of people who oppose President Obama’s $900+ bill that doesn’t even get to the heart of the issue. Take note of what I said.
“You cannot say the biggest opponents of the passed health care law didn’t bring forward a counter offer. You either A) are just ignoring it or B) just don’t take the time to research it.”
Notice that the phrase “passed health care” is describing the word law. Health care is not the subject, its the adjective. Sorry for the grammar lesson, but you are twisting my words.
The twisting is mutual. I was clearly addressing “the most vociferous opponents of health care reform”, which according to You seems to mean Republicans. Not to me; that would be far too generalized to pass even the most basic academic scrutiny.
Since the GOP has indeed offered counter-proposals in regards to reform, it would be absurd to make such a statement; You pointing this out was certainly relevant but certainly not a revalation to most of us.
Lastly, saying “offer little of substance” is a far cry from saying “no counter proposals.” As this thread clearly demonstrates, too much political posturing is going on- discussion of non-substantive facts- precisely the point of my original comment!
Again, there are no opponents of health care reform, only the passed bill. What part of that don’t you get? In case you missed it, not one Republican representative voted in favor of the health bill. If they aren’t the biggest opponents of the passed bill, what group is? I think you, like many, mistake what the issue is. The issue is not healthcare reform. The issue is how to reform health care. If we are confusing each other’s words, so be it, but you should discuss the real issue (how to reform health care) not a non-issue (healthcare itself). As always, happy debating, OmEgA.
We do know OmEgA that nothing comes for free. Even Laurence O’Donnell is now admitting that this is the largest tax increase in American History. I personally believe that high deductible plans, which I currently have the freedom to choose, will shortly be illegal since all health plans must include preventative care. Now bills are being proposed to permit anyone to purchase into Medicare. And now estimates are that we will add perhaps 20 million into health care free of charge.
The complete results of this tax increase will begin in the next few months. Companies that provide health care to employees and retirees will be facing surcharges. Our health insurance rates will increase. And in 2014 the tax increases for those $200k and over will drop to impact the working class.
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/alex-fitzsimmons/2010/03/17/self-described-socialist-msnbc-admits-obamacare-breaks-tax-record
While nothing comes for free, we already have exorbitant amounts of money flowing through our health system- roughly 17% of GDP according to OECD’s 2007 estimate.
This is five points higher than Switzerland (second on the list) & seven points higher than Canada (eigth on the list). Australia falls in at about 8.5% of GDP & ranks 15th on the list. Obviously, our GDP is much higher than these nations so this is an especially staggering statistic. With the money already flowing, & insurance companies boasting record profits over the past few years, foreclosures on the rise- it’s time to dig in & change the way our system operates.
Politifact lightly touched on the “largest tax increase” claim as per the attached link, although I make no assertions on that- & quite frankly wouldn’t be suprised either way. My only hope, then, is to clean it up as much as possible, preferrably in a bi-partisan fashion.
To get directly to the point – your conclusion, “They raise “constitutional issues” …. in regards to our unimpressive system.”, is the result of either ignorance or purposeful obfuscation. – in either case it doesn’t reflect clear thinking.
That’s not my conclusion, that’s a sentence intended to support my conclusion. Whether Your mischaracterization was done in “ignorange” or “purposefully”, it doesn’t reflect clear thinking on Your part. Just because a sentence falls last from a chronological standpoint doesn’t automatically qualify it as a conclusion.
Bernie,
A while back you were pretty vehement about how some Fox personalities (you meant Beck) were lying about the Tea Parties being comprised of people from the GOP, Dems and independents. I saw you on O’Reilly, blasting away almost emotionally. It turns out that they were right and you were wrong. Here’s a new article from The Hill. I generally agree with your viewpoint, but perhaps it’s time to apologize for your prior statements. You’re a stand up person and a good journalist, and you should do it on O’Reilly.
THE HILL
Survey: Four in 10 Tea Party members are Dems or independents
By Sean J. Miller – 04/04/10 03:29 PM ET
Four in 10 Tea Party members are either Democrats or Independents, according to a new national survey.
The findings provide one of the most detailed portraits to date of the grassroots movement that started last year.
The national breakdown of the Tea Party composition is 57 percent Republican, 28 percent Independent and 13 percent Democratic, according to three national polls by the Winston Group, a Republican-leaning firm that conducted the surveys on behalf of an education advocacy group. Two-thirds of the group call themselves conservative, 26 are moderate and 8 percent say they are liberal.
The Winston Group conducted three national telephone surveys of 1,000 registered voters between December and February. Of those polled, 17 percent – more than 500 people — said they were “part of the Tea Party movement.”
“It’s a good sample size,” said David Winston, the polling firm’s director. “It will certainly give us an initial base to follow where these folks are.”
The group is united around two issues – the economy/jobs and reducing the deficit. They believe that cutting spending is the key to job creation and favor tax cuts as the best way to stimulate the economy. That said 61 percent of Tea Party members believe infrastructure spending creates jobs. Moreover, given the choice Tea Party members favor 63-32 reducing unemployment to 5 percent over balancing the budget.
It isn’t a “purely homogeneous” group, said Winston.
The group has a favorable view of Republicans generally but that drops from 71 to 57 percent if they’re asked about Congressional Republicans. Congressional Democrats are viewed very unfavorably by 75 percent of Tea Party members – a uniquely strong antipathy. An overwhelming 95 percent said “Democrats are taxing, spending, and borrowing too much.”
The group also vehemently dislikes President Barack Obama – even more so than those who called themselves Republicans in the survey. Over 80 percent of Tea Party members disapprove of the job he’s doing as president, whereas 77 percent of Republican respondents said they disapprove of Obama. The Tea Party members are also strongly opposed to the Democrats’ healthcare plan, with 82 percent saying they oppose it — only 48 percent of respondents overall were opposed.
Tea Party members are more likely to be male, slightly older and middle income. Almost half the members of the group reported getting their news about national issues from Fox News, 10 percent of respondents said that talk radio is one of their top two sources, which is seven-points higher than the average voter.
Source:
http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/polls/90541-survey-four-in-10-tea-party-members-dem-or-indie
My wife and I are active in charities in Africa and other areas. For those of you who need to call my a racists because I oppose Obama policies let me make this clear.
“I Don’t Care”!
I will continue my opposition no matter what you call me. No matter what you think I am, I know that I am not what you try to paint me. I refuse to be intimidated and I will not bare the guilt you try to place on my shoulders. I refuse to debate the issues of the few who “may have” acted inappropriate at a peaceful protest. I am a motivated working American that is fighting through political action to get this country back on the right track. I refuse to debate the moral differences of our friends like Israel and those that hate us like Iran.
So call me what you want. It doesn’t matter because you have awakened a sleeping traditionalist and I am for the first time in my life a political activatist.
But more importantly, I am not alone.
I’m confused, How can we be labeled racist when our president “has light skin and no Negro dialect” – Harry Reid or “he’s a nice clean boy” – Jimmy Carter.
I don’t see how playing the racist card is helping the cause of the left wing fringe. Folks in the middle hate the racism and playing the racist card the same – it is all cheep shots.
After the beer summit Obama ratings drop down dramatically. The race card play is probably the reason why ObamaCare is not getting the bump in the polls as expected.
Arrogance may pump up the fringe base, but the folks in the middle hate that dirty game.
Even on Easter the Press can’t take off for a single day. Luck have it we have the web. Here is a beautiful Easter story to get our minds off things:
http://americaspeaksink.com/2010/04/easter-day/
Joe, Remember, Those in the media deciding what information to give us are in the top 5% of our income structure.
“Stay the Course”; don’t be fooled anyone. This is quite obvious what the lamestream is up to. It’s so easy to watch them line up their ducks so don’t let it escape you.
The good news is that they are playing their “Ace in the Hold” card so early after the signing of Obamacare. I believe they’re desperate. Again, “Stay the Course”.
Did anyone look who was with obama signing the b.s.health care,bill.They bring in a little Black kid to stand by him. No white, Hispanic ,Asian, french,Latino kids.Just 1 black boy.The boy was sharply dressed, Good looking kid..Clinton did this as well.When it comes to race,the dem’s are always willing to bring it up FIRST. If anyone looked in Bush’s addmin,brought in educated people in the W.HOUSE. Mrs.Rice, Mr. Powell and others.Conservatives think of others as working and involved people, not to put them on show, that people can work them self’s to succeed and be remembered. Not to embarrass them…IF IT WEREN’T FOR ME U WOULDN’T HAVE A PRAYER..THAT’S WHAT THE DEM’S HAVE GIVEN TO THERE PRESIDENTIAL CALLING..NOTHING SHORT OF EMBARRASSMENT..
I just read that Andrew Breitbart has offered $100,000 to anyone who can prove the ‘N’ word was uttered that day. No takers.
T. Boone Pickens once offered $1,000,000 to anyone who could prove Swift Boat commercials on TV were in any way false or that a lie was spoken. No response.
Glen Beck has a telephone on his show for anyone to call and say he’s lying about anything. Zzzzzzzzz
I’m trying to remember if the left or Democrats in general have ever done that. Offered money to prove them wrong. I can’t remember it happening at all. Too bad. I think it would be a quick buck.
Swift Boat Funder T. Boone Pickens Reneges On John Kerry Million …Rich Texas bastard T. Boone Pickens boasted that he would give $1 … Kerry “cannot prove anything in the Swift Boat ads to be untrue,” Kerry should agree ….. much prefer the real thing and see Kerry kick Picken’s butt once and for all. …… It’s a real headscratcher why anyone would find any food for the soul …
firedoglake.com/…/john-kerry-to-swift-boat-funder-t-boone-pickens-wheres-my-million-dollars/ -
As the lawyers say, when you’ve got the law on your side, you argue the law, when you’ve got the facts on your side you argue the facts, but when you have neither the law nor the facts on your side, like Rich, you blow smoke and pound the table.
Regarding the racial trauma that the Deep South suffered during the Civil Rights era, keep in mind that most Southern Whites, indeed the vast majority of Southern Whites either supported the Civil Rights movement, or were largely indifferent to it. Yes, there were Selma Alabama’s and the dogs, nightsticks, and firehoses, and yes there were far too many White and Jewish civil rights activists beaten and even killed by radical White supremacists for registering Blacks to vote, and yet most White controlled media decried these acts of violence and racism and it was because of this that overt Jim Crow style racism came to an end in the South.
As a Jew I am especially infuriated at how large swaths and prominent elements of the African American community has become so deeply infected with anti Semitism and has completely forgotten the fact that much of the Civil Rights movement and the legislation it created was the work of Jewish activists, many of whom even gave their lives so that American Blacks could enjoy equal rights under the law.
But to return to my original point, the Civil Rights revolution succeeded because the White community in America by a large majority supported it. Had it not been for the Viet Nam War, Lyndon Johnson, a dyed in the wool White Southern conservative and one time segregationist, would have won a second term as President, and would have gone down in history not as a President destroyed by the Viet Nam War, but rather as one of the greatest President’s in American history for bringing about racial equality in America, finishing what was started when almost a million White Americans died fighting in the Civil War to end slavery in America.
Johnson was controversial. The programs he championed gave money alright but might also be blamed for the break down of Black families by encouraging fathers not to marry by giving single mothers free money and food.
And it’s a shame that not a few vocal Black leaders denegrate Jews. But whether Jews march with Blacks for civil rights, use rubber bullets and give Gaza away for free, or set an example for the world on how to turn a rocky desert into a vibrant free country, we can’t seem to escape the reoccuring scourge of anti-semitism.
There’s something everyone’s been missing.
The left is looking for bug goals. The civil right was a big deal in the 1960s. Now they want to fill like they’re doing something meaningful again.
So they invent racism when it doesn’t exist. This gives them a new goal to fight for.
Mr. Goldberg, The truth is, society is controlled by a few hundred corporations, a bunch of centralized government agencies, and a dozen giant media corporations, all united in with the same few thousand people shuffling constantly back and forth in a revolving door of leadership–well, of course conspiracies.
course, the Old Boys’ Club doesn’t want you to know the Old Boys’ Club actually exists.
What does everything you wrote have anything to do with the topic of the article?
Let’s say that a few hundred corporates are running the world. Does that fact (false, I think. They have influence, though) allow people to smear others? Call them ‘racists’, as Mr Goldberg showed here?
Bernie;
Race might ‘fade into the background’ when a moderate to right minded black person holds the office. Then, only the extreme left would be shouting ‘Uncle Tom’ to an indifferent nation.
The low tactic of branding political opponents as racist was predictable, as the true agenda of this administration came into focus for reasonable and patriotic people.
And, of course, they forget to mention that most (if not all) of those racist remarks in the years leading up to the Civil Rights movement came from (wait for it)…Democrats.
No… (wait for it)… conservatives!
Happy Easter Wil. God loves you even though you deny him.
Was the tea party ‘racist’ attack by the media a set up? Some interesting reading from biggovernment.com:
http://biggovernment.com/jhoft/2010/04/02/it-was-a-setup-state-run-media-conspired-on-racist-tea-party-attack/#more-100686
http://biggovernment.com/abreitbart/2010/04/02/barack-obamas-helter-skelter-insane-clown-posse-alinsky-plans-to-deconstruct-america/
Dear Cousin Bernie: Holy cow! You just ripped another blue darter through the press box. It’s almost not fair. Almost. Man, I love spring training!
The Left only care about first amendment rights for themselves. They are only tolerant of those with whom they agree. They are responsible for spewing the most vile hatred and racism against those they disagree with. They attacked George Bush, Dick Cheney and Condoleeza Rice in the most vicious ways. In Condi Rice’s case, she was subjected to unbelievably vile, racist attacks by the Left. Where was the media outrage then? The progressive media either ignored or applauded such attacks. And by the way, how peaceful and loving are the Left? Look back at 40 years of anti war rallies and anti government demonstrations conducted by the Left, going back to the Vietnam war. Enough said. Bill Ayers, Bernadine Dohrn and the Weather Underground? I think we are all aware of their methods.
I’m sick and tired of the selective outrage and slander by the progressive media. They’ve had control for over 40 years, my entire lifetime, and it’s time for a change.
Bernie. What the Republicans are doing as politics I call it treason. All they are proving is that it’s easier to destroy America than it is to fix it. All one has to do is look around at the way the country is today and know that it was the Republicans that did it to us. I think it’s time to call it like I see it.
When you are out to make America fail, it’s treason.
Republicans did good things.
Ron, The only reason for a Republican Party, is to cut the taxes of the very wealthy. Everything else, is window dressing!
Wil, how long is your arm?
Does it reach far enough so that you can get everything you believe you are entitled. How many jobs have you had that came from a poor person? What is the tax rate on your income or due you just live off of the government?
That just shows how deep your head is buried in the sand. You can’t be that ignorant of the world around you. Can you ?
Wil, I used to agree with you. Then I realized the benefits of the Right. We’re people with flaws but not simply greedy white rich guys. We tweek the past. The Left wants to jump into uncharted territory under the guise of ‘change’ for the better. But the ‘change’ isn’t necessarily better…and some of us don’t want to experiment.
Wil, I debunked your arguments in several previous posts. No point in repeating them now if you didn’t understand them then.
What a delicious irony! THIS guy calling the politicians who are resisting, “a small group who is attempting to concentrate into their own hands an almost complete control over other people’s property, other people’s money, other people’s labor – other people’s lives,” treasonous. It is also ironic that this phrase was first uttered by a president against corporations, but in actuality government making this attempt is far more serious, since government has a monopoly of force behind it. The treason here is the administration and Congress attempting this unconstitutional power grab. If they succeed the rest of us fail, and I for one am very glad that some in the Republican Party have finally grown a backbone and are pushing back against this fascism.
CBS and ABC’s first quarter ratings showed their lowest numbers since 1987, while NBC was spared a drop in ratings due its coverage of the Olympics. And what is the New York Times’ take on this?
According to the NYT: “ The number of viewers watching the three shows together – more than 24 million in the first quarter – continue to dwarf any news program on cable.”
So let’s examine this piece of logic. All three lamestream networks are losing viewership each year, while Fox gains viewers each year. Yet there’s nothing to worry about because when you add all three mainstream networks together, they still beat Fox.
Now that’s some twisted logic, folks.
No mention by the NYT of their own declining readership.
The NYT should thank both of its supporters
It wasn’t tea partiers who kicked a black man, Kenneth Gladney, to the ground at a town hall meeting, beat him senseless, and called him the “n” word. It was SEIU members, one of them black.
Carrie, That story has been debunked! Please try to keep up with current events.
Wil, was the video tape of that event just figmant of your imagination?
“Carrie, That story has been debunked!”
By whom, Wil?
Your drug trips don’t count as debunking.
Wil, you’re a LIAR! I have friends who were at the Russ Carnahan event, and WITNESSED Kenneth Gladney beaten by thugs from the SEIU. My friends SAW it happen.
Who did your “de-bunking” – the Daily Kooks or the idiots at the Huffington Post?
In a televised interview, Kenneth Gladney stated that he was handing out “Don’t Tread on Me” flags when a black SEIU member asked him, “Who in the _______ is selling this ______ here?” The black union thug then asked, “What kind of n______ are you to be giving out this stuff?”
The black union thug was joined by a white union, thug, and they began hitting Gladney in the face. When he fell down, they kicked him in the back and stomach.
David Brown, Gladney’s lawyer, released this statement:
Kenneth was attacked on the evening of August 6, 2009 at Rep. Russ Carnahan’s town hall meeting in South St. Louis County. I was at the town hall meeting as well and witnessed the events leading up to the attack of Kenneth. Kenneth was approached by an SEIU representative as Kenneth was handing out “Don’t Tread on Me” flags to other conservatives.
The SEIU representative demanded to know why a black man was handing out these flags. The SEIU member used a racial slur against Kenneth, then punched him in the face. Kenneth fell to the ground. Another SEIU member yelled racial epithets at Kenneth as he kicked him in the head and back. Kenneth was also brutally attacked by one other male SEIU member and an unidentified woman. The three men were clearly SEIU members, as they were wearing T-shirts with the SEIU logo.
Kenneth was beaten badly. One assailant fled on foot; three others were arrested. Kenneth was admitted to St. John’s Mercy Medical Center emergency room, where he was treated for his numerous injuries. Kenneth was merely expressing his freedom of speech by handing out the flags. In fact, he merely asked people as they exited the town hall meeting whether they would like a flag. He in no way provoked any argument or altercation, as evidenced by the fact that three assailants were arrested.
(This incident was caught on tape, and has been broadcast on national television several times, although ignored entirely by the lamestream media).
Jana, Kenneth Gladney is the black conservative who is the current poster boy for the thug right. His account of a beating at the hands of union members is pretty suspect. And considering the history of black conservatives willing to do anything for a buck, I’d take the testimony of Kenneth Gladney with a giant grain silo of salt.
Kenneth Gladney is not a “poster boy” for anyone. His “account” of the beating was bolstered by videotape, taken by bystanders and played on national television, and by eye witnesses.
Further, I don’t think black conservatives are “willling to do anything for a buck.” Frankly, I think it requires courage to be a black conservative. I prefer the Kenneth Gladneys of the world to the black liberals who cry racism when there is none to be found.
You said it was debunked, Wil. We’re still waiting for you to show said debunking.
Your snide little accusation won’t be enough in this case.
Watch the tape:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTXBOgPCh9w&feature=player_embedded
Kenneth Gladney ia a liar!
“I’d take the testimony of Kenneth Gladney with a giant grain silo of salt.”
Judging by that statement, I’d take anything from you with a “giant grain silo of salt.” And the tape hasn’t done anything to debunk his story!
Wil,
You are an Obamazombie idiot. Only see what you want to see, only hear what you want to hear. You sir, are a danger to this Republic.
Were the Republicans also racist when they defended Clarence Thomas against a liberal media that got incensed at the thought of a conservative black man?
Jana, They defended a black man against the word of a black woman! I don’t believe Anita Hill was lying, do you?
Yes, I believe she was lying.
I also believe she was used by a desperate left wing who could not “Bork” the Thomas nomination. Once again Wil, you are an idiot.
Chas, you’re absolutely right. The left wing couldn’t stand the idea of a conservative black man on the Supreme Court, and they used an emotionally troubled woman to go after him.
Their goal may be to silence critics, but it’s a strategy that will backfire. Instead of silencing people, it’s just making them angrier than ever. I’ve known a few angry people in my life, and I’ve never known any of them to retreat in silence. They usually come out swinging.
That is exactly what’s happening right now. Ordinary Americans, concerned by the growth of the federal government, are being labeled as racist, not by their neighbors or the bully in the school yard, but by a major political party.
We’re not going to shut up and go home. We’re going to fight back.
So rich/king have come to the concluesion that 99.9% of us r racist. What part of that .01% do they live in, but of course they e-mail back and forth to each other to slue there hatered who do not belive as they do.Now there go to real good losers.
The Tea Partyers are gonna have to step up their tsunami of anger if they’re going to get anywhere NEAR the vile, vicious, over-the-top invective thrown President George W. Bush’s way for the eight years of his Presidency. Funny how the lamestream media has seemingly forgotten all of that. Of course, they were part of it, so I guess it’s a bit easier for their selective memories to forget it.
Hey wait, Get it right;
“if you are against OBAMACARE you are a BABY EATING CANNIBAL homophobic RIGHT-WING NUT JOB racist!”
Come on people, STICK TO THE SCRIPT please.
“Who, after all, wants to be called a racist? (By the way, if we really were a bunch of racists, we wouldn’t care!)”
Well, I’m not a racist and I don’t care. Except in the sense that it emboldens me. For some reason, I am not perturbed by a lying fascist thug calling me a racist. The fact that they have resorted to this deceitful tactic shows that they are losing the argument. I just hope that the rest of the American public wakes up enough to cause most of them to also lose their jobs in November.
Nice article. You hit the nail on the head with this one. It is hard for me to get a grip on the whole generation of the problem – the reflexive calling racists by the lame press those that legitimately criticize this administration. And there seems to be a desire to use this as a tool in hopes of controlling the opposition and ending debate. As mentioned, rightfully, no one wants to be called a bigot or racist.
It does make me wonder though if the over the top use of these inflammatory words is causing the meaning of the term “racist” to loose it potency. It seems the charges are beginning to be used a joke. It is like the boy that cried wolf.
You can also add Leonard Pitts. What’s funny is that the only people that seem to see color any more are the “victims.” A black liberal journalist calling someone entitled, pot meet kettle!
Bernie, you can add Eugene Robinson to your list of sludge-shovelers.
So..I am a conservative white female. So, according to Mr. Rich and Mr. King, I guess that also means I am a racist (Obama), hate white men (Reid), and hate white women (Pelosi). Who is left for me to like, Asians, Islanders, etc?? Get real! I can think someone is an idiot without taking into consideration their race or gender. The problem with the ‘lamestream’ media is they are always telling me what I think and how I feel. No thanks, got it under control.
You are absolutely correct Michelle! Lobs–give us a break from your bigotry.
Is there anyone in the Lamestream media or inside the Beltway who has a clue why people are really angry? It has nothing to do with what Frank Rich is writing about.
No, Bruce, they don’t have a clue. They hang out with each other, go to the same social events, and reinforce each other’s worldviews. Frank Rich knows as much about middle America as I know about Iceland.
People like Frank Rich are the reason the NYT is going bankrupt.
Bernie Goldberg is one of my heroes. Thanks to him for continuing to tell it like it is.
I seem to recall that Bush had a number of minorities on his cabinet. I was glad about that, not angry.
I wonder what Doctor Rich’s diagnosis might be? I await his diagnosis and treatment plan for me.
IS Pelosi female?
Another great piece by Bernie. I’m sure Wil Burns doesn’t think so but then again who cares what he thinks.
Marc. Of course not, it’s so much more fun to get a bunch of people together (who agree with each other) and then have them openly agree on various subjects. Seriously, who likes debating issues with people?
Marc, there is some question that Wil has the capacity to have any thought process from the amount of “Kool Aid” he must of consumed.
Wil, your tactics are to:
1. Change the subject when you have no solid argument to make
2. Totally ignore challenges to your arguments
3. Attack your opponent on a personal basis
You’d earn an “F” in high school debating.
I know it’s tough to realize that the “Obama-mania” that was supposed to last a generation actually lasted about three months. Maybe the next time around, Democrats won’t run a Presidential candidate standing in front of Greek pillars or draped by 15 waving flags. Y’all kinda look stupid right about now. How’s the hopey-changey thing working out for ya.
BTW, you didn’t bother to respond to my facts (real facts, not the kind of B.S. you spout) on the Kenneth Gladney case. Why am I not surprised?
How’s the hopey-changey thing working out for ya.>>
Carrie, For me, I am doing great and as for the country, things are getting better. Remember, Bush left Obama with two wars raging, deeply in debt and a recession.
If things are going well in America, why did Obama spend 17 minutes and 2500 words explaining his vision of spreading the wealth around to a woman who complained about being over-taxed?
If this woman’s view of taxation wasn’t shared by the majority of voters, he could have cut her off with a two-sentence retort, like, “Hey, STFU, lady. The rest of us think it’s patriotic to pay more taxes.”
Hello, VAT Tax. Goodbye, Obama. It’s been real.
Carrie,
Obviously, Wil is a plant put here by Bernie himself for “comic relief.” It’s like a comedian who pays some guy to heckle him during his standup routine.
Pay him no mind.
So………..what’s changed?
Let’s see…country deeply in debt (and sinking deeper)? Check.
Two wars raging (and a surge in Afghanistan that made all the leftwingers blanch)? Check.
Recession? Check. (And soon to be check again, as we double-dip later this year.)
Whatever’s in that sandbox that you’re snorting must be some pretty good $#!+. You should consider sharing. You’ve lost enough brain cells already.