I really don’t know where this idea that Republicans are racist came from.

Here

Okay, well how about you say that to US Olympic Swimmer Cullen Jones?

Jones won this summer’s 50-meter freestyle event at the pre-Olympic trials in Los Angeles, beating out 2004 Gold Medalist Gary Hall, Jr., as well as former Olympians Jason Lezak and Michael Phelps.

In general this is a great point, but you got some facts wrong here.

Jones is not an Olympic swimmer, although he has the potential to be. The meet at which he just won the 50 was not the “pre-Olympic trials”. It was US nationals, which is used as a selection meet for the Pan-Pacific games, next years’ world championships and the World University Games. It is *not* a selection meet for the Olympics. The Olympic trials are not held until a couple of months before the Olympics in 2008.

Also, Michael Phelps, great swimmer though he is, is not a sprinter and never, ever swims the 50. Jones would undoubtably beat Phelps in the 50, but it didn’t happen at this meet. Even if he did beat Phelps in the 50, it wouldn’t mean that much, as there are probably 20-30 swimmers in the US that could beat Phelps in the 50. Now, if he beat Phelps in the *200*, that would mean a lot.

He did beat Hall and Lezak (who are both sprinters), however, and his time is legitimately very, very fast. It was a 21.9, and only 4 americans have ever gone under 22: Hall, Anthony Ervin (another African American), Tom Jager and Matt Biondi. There is a lot of buzz in the swimming world about Jones now, based on that swim, and he has a great shot at the Olympics in 2008.

Anthony Ervin is an even better example of a great African American swimmer (for now) than Cullen Jones, as he won Olympic gold in 2000, tying with Hall.

Then the effect of the republican “Southern Strategy” begun in 1972 and was partially responsible for George H. W. Bush’s, (”Willy” Horton – who was never referred to as “Willy” his entire life,) presidential success, that marked the end of enlightenment in the U.S.

Prejudice, superstition, (religious charlatans,) and the resurgance of romanticizing the Confederacy were legitimized by the open acceptance of these unwholesome attitudes, and the unstated promotion of them. Disenfranchised racist democrats found a home in the Republican Party, religious freedom began its transformation toward Christian power, and over 70% of the people learned to believe that the dark bogeyman named Satan is a living, breathing entity that walks among us causing all types of anti-social behaviors for which many are certain they will be forgiven because of their overt proclamations of righteousness. They feel confident that forgiveness is theirs when the “End Times” are upon us, because a poorly written book of short stories told them it was true.

The end of the enlightenment occurred on December 12, 2000 when a corrupt Supreme Court legitimized the disenfranchisement of tens of thousands of African-American voters as it raised a new icon of the American Dark Ages to the presidency by the name of George W. Bush.

Confederate flags flew proudly once again revealing a profound lack of understanding that the secession of the Southern states was an act of treason. Prejudice raised its ugly head as many people began to openly express long hidden prejudices that extended to non-whites and most if not all foreigners. Right wing Christians sought to abandon the Constitution to expand fascist control over society through behaving as if freedom of religion does not have the component of freedom from religion. Religious con men once again rose to prominence in society permitting their congregations to return to displaying their prejudices with great vigor and scorn.

The manipulative, divisive and evil Southern Strategy was a success and cancelled advances in social behavior, the understanding of history, and discoveries in the sciences leaving America in the hands of hapless, incompetent and destructive leadership that set out to destroy the middle-class, increase turmoil around the world, and ignore the necessity of excellent public education to satisfy a new god – the god of profit named Greed.

They claimed that the old god wanted it this way, and here we are, torturing people, using paid killers to “assist” the military, killing civilians, being deceitful as a matter of daily communications, ignoring the Constitution, hiding behind self-rightiousness to act as hypocrites, arbitrarily choosing which laws to obey and which ones to break, laughing at the concept that a person is only as good as his word, and dehumanizing ourselves as we dehumanize others.

Welcome to the right wing vision for the 21st century.
Welcome to the late 1930s Nuremberg.

I still think George knew what he was a-sayin’ as he speaks French and grew up at Mama’s knee, but this shameful story is still alive and for that I am grateful to the press.

As am I, and I’m glad to hear the “Welcome to America” part getting more play. Wingers can debate all they want what “macaca” meant, but there’s no mistaking that he said, in effect, “look at this foreign guy” about a native Virginian, just because of the color of his skin.

Run upstairs and grab one while they’ll still melt th’ butter!