I do not know the answer to the “why” question. My question is more about what it would take to bring some civility back to our political speech. Apparently, it was OK to shout “you lie” to the Pres. and to let a Supreme Court Justice “mouth” his self-serving legal response on TV. Truly anything goes.

According to democracynow, the rightwing purge continues in Honduras. Gettin’ those nasty union & civil rights leaders.

Niiice. NYC closed 19 public schools but is doling out millions to charter schools founded by politically connected folks, like one founded by a billionaire hedge fund manager.

he was bothered by the “common message of intolerance for the opposition.”

Really?

Just got back from 2 weeks in Colombia. Uribe is normalizing relations with Ecuador, and is seeking to do the same with Chavez in Venezuela. Seems it’s being realized that smmooching too much with Estados Unidos is not a great career move.

Even though I was the sole gringo on campus, it was encouraging to see all the “Yankee Go Home” graffiti adorning the buildings at the National University in Bogotá.

Interesting. Thanks for the observations. In what capacity were you there?

The only thing I’ve heard about Honduras is that the U.S. did it to draw a line in the sand over the lefties increasingly gaining power in Latin America. Sad, disgusting, standard fare.

As usual, I agree substantively with Keith’s moral and political vantage point.

But he grounds it basically in an emotional and psychological appeal.

He seeks to enlighten others about the foolishness of racial prejudice. And if some refuse to be enlightened, then to shame them instead.

But he does not delve deeply enough into why racism persist. And it does by and large because the ruling class uses it divide and conquer folks of different racial and ethnic backgrounds in order that they don’t focus too much attention on class divisions instead.

For liberals like Keith racism is a character flaw. Yes, I agree. But it also reflects the flaw built into a political economy that necessitates any and all methods that keep the folks on Main Street at each other’s throats instead of at the throats attached to the tiny % of men and women who own an enormous % of the wealth and income in this country. And around the globe.

Send him an email with your point as a suggestion for another special comment.

Was in Colombia solely for pleasure. It’s not well known as a tourist attraction by US citizens, but Europeans know it’s a fabulous place to visit.

The U.S. just can’t keep its filthy hands out of Central America. It’s a sexual turn-on for some, just like torture.

Seems a stretch to be hoping to bring in civility, with the audience doesn’t appear to have the intellect to look after its own interests.

Nor is it unusual to hear calls to eliminate Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. A remarkable number say this despite having recently lost jobs or health coverage.

How are things going with Hugo? I distrust anything I read about him in the media.

Not new. Remember the Monroe Doctrine. U.S. lost its presence with all the anti-Muslim wars, so thought it would catch up in Honduras. Because it was small enough to be a U.S. victim.

You’d think that with all the U.S. interference in Latin America, the place would be a political and economic heaven. Just another example of how the PTB are never judged by the outcomes of their actions.

You are right to distrust what you read in the media here. Venezuela is struggling because oil revenues have declined, but he’s still the spiritual leader of Latin America because of his defiance of the imperialists in the US.

Mornin’, BT, pups

Uribe making nice with Chavez et al while at the same time welcoming US military at its bases to allegedly help fight FARC?

the ruling class uses it divide and conquer folks of different racial and ethnic backgrounds in order that they don’t focus too much attention on class divisions instead.

They tap into white prejudice against blacks and immigrants.

Honduras may have a right wing govt supported by us at the moment but I don’t think it will last the decade.

That has me questioning whats going on.

the place would be a political and economic heaven.

I had to laugh at that. My impression after my third trip to Colombia in the recent past is that the people in that country at least are the most happy where there is the least US interference.

Valid point, but he is in the process of having the constitution amended so he can run for a third term. He has to wear an anti-imperialism hat as well. Must be getting PR pointers from someone (Rove? Rahm?).

Irony humor. Second best after gallows humor.

I guess if Clinton had won, Olbermann would be doing the comment on sexism?
Sorry, but that is a way more pernicious discrimination than racism. I’ve said for years sexism is the blueprint for ALL oppression. Good luck getting men to let go of those willing slaves.
That said, the problem I have with Obama is not at all the color of his skin but that he is a liar and, I suspect was put in position to fool people a little longer that change had really come to America, when it is going along the PNAC way quite smoothly, thankyouverymuch.
It ain’t the Republicans pulling the proverbial football out from the Democrats kicking legs, it’s the whole sorry government doing it to the American people.
So, if the teabaggers want to call Obama a tyrant, they oughta know, they saw it in W…I guess for some, it’s just easier to recognize it in a black man and, for others it’s easier to see it in a white man. See the difference?
Either way, we’re being screwed to the wall, all over the world by the capitalists. I could only wish racism was our biggest problem right now.
So now Olbermann pretty blatantly tells US that if we don’t like Obama, we’re racists…perfect!

I would imagine State has a lot of input as to what Uribe does and does not do regarding Chavez, Morales etc. This is way beyond Rove or Emanuel’s skill level. This is CIA turf.

A good point, that last sentence, but it would be difficult to argue that there is not a strong strain of racism in the Teabagger movement. Like he says, where are the people of color in the crowds?

OTOH you could argue that KO’s Tea Party attack is just another arm of the PTB to destroy any group that threatens them. Any small group coalesces around specific issues and will not be representative of the country as a whole. Otherwise they would be the majority. No movement starts as the majority.

Watching the opening Olympics ceremonies Friday, NBC entertainer Bob Costas made a comment about the summer games in Rio and made a comment on it’s President LuLu. To paraphrase he said Lulu made the comment that he wanted Brazil to do well in the Olympics and quoted him as saying “we don’t want gringos coming down here winning everything (or something to that effect). Costas co-star said it sounds like Lulu has put himself out on a limb at which point Costas said, “let’s see if he saws that limb off (or something to that effect.

how dare anyone question “us’!

Spot on. Extending your argument, the CIA most certainly has input with Rahm.

So now Olbermann pretty blatantly tells US that if we don’t like Obama, we’re racists…perfect!

Its why we don’t like Obama I think. I want him to do more to help people does that make me racist?

nany nany nany I’m more oppressed than you are!

The nerve of SOME people!

Humph!!!

Good morning, Raven …

And all the rest of you Fired-up Lake Dogs!!!

Y’all warm my heart and since I’ve been shoveling snow for a couple of hours, I really appreciate that.

;~)

DW

Oh sure, there’s racism. I just think it’s a red herring at this point.
In fact, I think Obama is a red herring.We “liberals” can pat ourselves on the back at “how far we’ve come” while the monsters steal a little more every day, everywhere.
The masters knew exactly what they were doing when they got O the presidency. They bought time with “hope”

No, it means you’re beating your head against a brick wall.

If the left and the right could miraculously find some common ground, it would pose an interesting dilemna for the PTB.

Yea, if only we had Mao and Stalin.

New post up top…

That’s not it at all. Glad you read that part, tho.
The reason I say this is that the human species cut off one of it’s legs in the evolution marathon. I doubt we’ll get it back either.

Isn’t that one of the points that Olberman made? People focusing on our differences instead of commonality.

Now you’re getting silly

Off to swim in the great capitalist cesspool.

If ya don’t have any progressive radio in your area I just found out that there’s now a WMNF app for yer iPhone. You’ll hafta figger it out yer own self cuz I don’t allow cellphones in my house.

US KIA Irak: 4,376

US KIA Afghanistan: 990

Afghan civilian casualties during Marjah op: 17

Anybody looked at Marjah with GoogleEarth yet?

Iraki and Afghan casualties: estimates vary to over 1.5M

Be good to yourselves, and all other living things.

Namaste

Might as well eat dessert then.

Oh dear, you pore thing, tell us all about it.

We’s all ears.

‘Cept when we’s talkin’.

(((((((Raven)))))))

getting?

Tea Bag the Democrats before they Tea Bag you the sign in the video said this sounds like a threat or an invitation.

Namaste, SD

I’m depraved on account of I’m deprived!

I pity the brick wall:)

“Help, help!!! I’m bein’ repressed.”

Monty Python

KO’s the one that is focusing on the differences by marginalizing those who don’t go along with his idea of the flow.

depraven

One of my favorite scenes.
Watery Tart!

I’m at my best once I’ve been marginalized, repressed, oppressed, depressed, dejected and rejected. Also.

Maybe so, but I think they are an easy target for marginalizing. I thought it was interesting that he pointed out that the movement is a backlash.
Here’s how it is, as I see it, we are humans. We can strive to evolve, but it’s a very long process and we are a drop in the ocean.

Heh, heh, heh …

Get serious …NOW!!!

How dare you?

(Frivolous, nonsensical, grumpy, old, curmudgeons like us got to stick together, Raven, cuz these young whippersnappers just don unnerstand that their faces are gonna get stuck wid serious frown lines and quivering lower lips and wrinkled noses and all kinda like that there stuff)

;~DW

You is?

I’m shocked.

I
.
.
.
.
.
.
just fell off my chair.

What our moms told us about making faces. Ha! Oh, yeah, I better get serious. I’m a girl. Boo Hoo.

Dats gooood!

:Your eyeballs are gonna get stuck!

The formula for success.

Guaranteed.

Yepper.

We should all try it, sometime.

Yes indeedy.

The answer to “Why?” is quite simple. This country was founded on racism and genocide.

While we’ve largely gotten out of the habit the stench remains.

The only difference between the Tea Party and the KKK is the thread count of their sheets.

Funny how warm and fuzzy alla time doesn’t exactly promote self contemplation, huh?
What doesn’t kill us makes us stronger?

Stronger and grfrumpier, in my case, thank you.

Feurae is warm an’ fuzzy, alla time.

In my case, it increases my insomnia.

Okay. Okay.

I’se all serious now …

Let the day proceed.

That … too.

But it helps if you sleep on it.

I once wrote a poem about my very contented cat. No moral imperatives.
(((Feure))

The teabagger movement is starting to morph into a genuine proto-fascist movement. They have not yet made the small step across to the direct use of violence to further their cause, but I suspect it will not be long. They are already allying with similar groups like Beck’s dupes, the Talibangelicals, and the Militia Movement.

If your assessment is correct, Dr, then do you think that the higher-ups of the federal government will notice and respond appropriately?

I have my doubts.

DW

How about we use Amy Bishop as an example of Obama supporters?

That would be about as fair as depicting Americans mad at Wall Street, Washington, Republicans and Democrats as racist.

The left has been trying to advance this racist meme since the inception of the Tea Party Movement. It has not, and will not work.

Get out of the MSNBC fever swamp and actually talk to independents who view the Tea Party favorably. The more the left tries to smear and marginalize reasonable Americans by hand-picking and highlighting extreme examples to turn into poster children, the more this will backfire.

Yeah, i didn’t see any racist signs at the teabagger gatherings. nope, none.

You miss the point. Are there racists and kooks who support the Tea Party Movement…sure. Just as there are racists and kooks on the far left.

But the Tea Party Movement is broader based than that and the left knows it. The left and the Dems are scared and threatened so they are attempting to marginalize the efforts of well meaning Americans who are summoning broad popular opinion in order to defeat the narrow economic interests of a bloated government and corrupt, crony capitalism. Now that it’s happening the Dems having second thoughts because THEY are the establishment, supporting their cronies. THEY are the incumbents, the OLD, entrenched, corrupt political class.

But, apparently, Indie, you are still hoping that people here, at FDL, will come to see the “light”.

Otherwise you wouldn’t waste your time on us.

Admit it, you actually like a lot of the folks here.

That ain’t hard to do.

Besides, heh, heh, heh, ya know you’re growin’ on us, too.

How are ya doing, ya ornery cuss (being one too, I can say stuff like that)?

DW

I’m not upset that the Tea-baggers are angry, I just think they’re angry at the wrong people and institutions. What makes me mad at our current Government is not its size, but who it is representing. In the battle over health care the Tea-baggers have sided with the insurance companies and hate the idea of socialized medicine. I want a separation of Government and corporations, a Government that represents the people instead of business. Tea-baggers seem to want business to become the Government. When Government is used properly it has proven that it can operate public institutions reasonably well. Social Security, Medicare and a number of other Government run institutions have been successful, needing tweeks from time to time yes, but more or less workable for millions of Americans. It’s not Government we should be mad at, but the corporations and their enablers in Washington that have hijacked this country.

No, because Clinton would never have won. Didn’t you watch KO working hard to prevent that?

There are a lot more black head coaches in professional sports than female ones.

Good old Keith. Clueless and self-righteous as ever.

So it’s OK to be prejudiced and hateful – as long as we’re prejudiced and hateful against the bad people, eh?

If I’m prejudiced against those who hold prejudice, if I discriminate against those who discriminate, if I hate to the depths of my soul those who would hate their fellow human beings, that’s still prejudice, discrimination and hate. Oh, but it’s OK now because the objects are the people and things I prefer?

The only way to end prejudice and hatred is to welcome it.

Our country is just too big.
Only the language of hypocrisy translates into every tongue.
Racism is a red herring and America doesn’t torture.

i do see some of this as a build-up, going back to bush or farther, but very little about bush (who superintended much of the bailout) is mentioned or the republican-lead congress, which leads me to the same conclusion.

tea baggers remind one of those ideologue communists, who got so caught up with a romantic interpretation out of all context that they also bought into csarist leadership, which is the same thing as overwhelmingly pinning this on dems or the president – black or white.

Olbermann didn’t say if you disliked Obama you was a racist. He simply pointed out that the crowd of teabaggers were definitely lacking in diversity. He also simply pointed out that it was people like Tancredo who didn’t believe a person who couldn’t spell or properly pronounce a word should be able to vote. The fact of the matter is during the Jim Crow time minorities including women were discouraged from learning and forced to stay at home and in the fields. These people were not only racist, but sexist and bigots. Just for the record, I think Hillary Clinton would have made a great President.

+1

Just go to Grit TV link and watch Rich Rowley’s video on how much of the tea party movement is in fact seen as a breeding ground for new recruits to known White Power organizations.

Keith should invite Rick Rowley on his show and run that same video, that would finally divide people that don’t like the direction of the country from those that have latched on because they are birthers or flat racist. Those people aren’t ashamed because they are from apart of the country where they aren’t held accountable for having this point of view.

This is why David Duke still has a voice, an All White Basketball Leagues can be started, along with refusing to marry an Interracial Couple.

As somebody once said “Only In The South”

If I’m prejudiced against those who hold prejudice, if I discriminate against those who discriminate, if I hate to the depths of my soul those who would hate their fellow human beings, that’s still prejudice, discrimination and hate.

Yeah, that makes a hell of a lot of sense. I guess we should welcome in polite society the views of the likes of the KKK and the Aryan Nations on the basis of being “tolerant.” Please.

We should never be so tolerant as to tolerate intolerance.

I don’t understand people like this at all…

Free Speech allow those views, that does not mean we should have David Duke on opposite Ben Jealous on social policy issues.

Nobody is taking away their right to speak, we have just chosen not to listen to them.

When people are showing up with everything including a N***** sign at these events, the question BEGS to be asked what is the connection and IS there a connection?

The answer is YES there is a connection and when Tom Tancredo is cheered at Tea Party Summit, tells you all you need to know.

If you oppose Obama based on his policies that’s one thing, but to be honest we have to beat back members of our own party for saying we in the blog world are too hard on Obama (not the case at all), so I believe we know where the line is drawn.

Showing pictures of Obama being a Witchdoctor with a bone in his nose or being dressed up as Hitler is basically trying to say he’s not only not the President because he was born in Hawaii but also is saying that’s he’s not one of “us” code for – White Male

If some people really can’t see that, I really don’t understand, I guess you need to be Black for about a year to see my point of view.

Your viewpoint is exactly that of the KKK and Aryan Nations. Just replace “KKK” with “blacks.”

Here, I’ll do it for you:

“Yeah, that makes a hell of a lot of sense. I guess we should welcome in polite society the views of the likes of n***** and w**backs on the basis of being “tolerant.” Please.”

We should never be so tolerant as to tolerate intolerance.

So apply your demand to yourself.

How can they remind you of anything but what the real Tea Baggers are which are Libertarians?

When the movement believes Ron Paul isn’t far enough on the Ultra Right and faces a primary, Houston you have problems and its time to find out just from what rocks these people crawled from under.

http://www.pensitoreview.com/2010/01/04/photo-shows-top-tea-bagger-holding-sign-with-n-word-which-he-misspelled/

So I suppose the federal government should’ve “tolerated” Jim Crow in the South, right? Because that’s the logical extension of your position.

As I said, you’d need to first apply your dictate of “We should never be so tolerant as to tolerate intolerance” to yourself.

Until then there’s not even a basis for discussion.

BTW, I fully support your right to your intolerance. I just don’t agree with it.

I’ll take that as a yes.

Keith’s comments are dead on. Everyone can see it, hear it, read it.

I’ll take that as a yes.

You can take it however you like.

But what I said was I wouldn’t engage with you about this topic until you demonstrated the ability to apply your dictates to yourself, and thus have a discussion. (Note I’m engaging with you now not about your opinion, but about your ability to have a discussion about your opinion.)

Otherwise it’s just like me trying to talk about imagery with someone whose visual system isn’t fully developed. It’s not a productive exercise for either of us.

To paraphrase Mark Twain, “it wastes your time and annoys Blue Texan.”

In other words, you won’t answer the question.

Obama was a member of the racist TUCC group for over 20-years, and the racist doctrine of Black Liberation Theology has been around longer than that. The racist Reverend Leah D. Daughtry was/is chief of staff to Howard Dean and the 2008 Democratic Convention CEO. The Democrat Party’s list of black racists is too long to write here…

That took all of .032 seconds to debunk.

Perhaps if the intolerance demonstrated by a lot of these folks had not already had more than its day in the sun, I’d be more understanding of your point.

You draw a false equivalency between clearly racist, segregationist, White Supremacist rhetoric and what? Minorites? The thing you don’t seem to get is that these ideologies aren’t just words or ideas or quirks that some folks happen to have — they’ve been amply demonstrated in real life time and again, from lynching, to poll taxes to literacy tests (which, FYI, many Teabaggers applauded Tom Tancredo for bringing up recently) to insurance company redlining to police brutality. This is all history! There are real reasons that the KKK and Aryan Nations are more than just ‘folks with different points of view than you and I”

This is not some airless Socratic debate. These are real life concerns about the predictable end result of this kind of rhetoric.

And this karmi person needs to be banned. Sorry if that makes me a ‘black racist’.

Dang, you’re good :)

Yeah…right, Obama rolled Rev. Wright and TUCC Under the Bus for no reason at all.

It is obvious that racists really hate it when you point out their racism. They cry and spit, deny. Because they really do think they are fooling people…all while holding up that misspelled teabagger sign.

James Hal Cone (author of Black Theology and Black Power and Black Theology of Liberation):

It is important to make a further distinction here among black hatred, black racism, and Black Power. Black hatred is the black man’s strong aversion to white society. No black man living in white America can escape it…But the charge of black racism cannot be reconciled with the facts. While it is true that blacks do hate whites, black hatred is not racism.

(NOTE: Cone ignores Merriam-Webster’s full definition of racism, primarily this part – Prejudice : an irrational attitude of hostility directed against an individual, a group, a race, or their supposed characteristics)