Cry Racism! and Let Slip the Dogs of Politics

[Religious Dick]

Cry Racism! and Let Slip the Dogs of Politics
A Commentary by Tony Blankley
Wednesday, July 28, 2010 Email to a Friend ShareThis
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In the last fortnight:
1) The NAACP called the tea party racists; 2) Andrew Breitbart called the NAACP racist; 3) Shirley Sherrod called Republican opponents of Obamacare racists; 4) Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack called Shirley Sherrod racist; 5) many in mainstream media called
Andrew Breitbart racist; 6) Howard Dean called Fox racist; and, 7) it was revealed that liberal journalist Spencer Ackerman proposed calling Fred Barnes and Karl Rove racist.
Thus, through a confluence of bizarrely unlikely events, the vicious act of falsely accusing people of racism became a laughing stock. It went
from being a career killer to a punch line; from villainy to vaudeville; from knife in the back to pie in the face.

It started at about noon Monday when Andrew Breitbart publishes on his website an edited video of Shirley Sherrod (giving a speech to an NAACP audience this spring), which he describes, in part thusly: "Sherrod describes how she racially discriminates against a white farmer. She describes how she is torn over how much she will choose to help him. And, she admits that she doesn't do everything she can for him, because he is white. Eventually, her basic humanity informs that this white man is poor and needs help. But she decides that he should get help from "one of his own kind".

"She refers him to a white lawyer. Sherrod's racist tale is received by the NAACP audience with nodding approval and murmurs of recognition and agreement."

The week before, the NAACP, without evidence, had attacked the tea parties for alleged racism in its rank and file. This is part of a running
smear now about a year old, by prominent Democrats such as Speaker Pelosi, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and legions of Democratic Party support groups that the Tea Party (now identified with by about a third of the country) is racist, Nazi, un-American, etc.
Breitbart strikes back, with evidence (in the form of the video of the audience reaction to the moment in Sherrod speech before she talks of
racial reconciliation) demonstrating anti-white racism in a NAACP audience. The story of the week is thus launched.

Notice, by the way, that he alerts the viewer that "Eventually, her basic humanity informs that this white man is poor and needs help." It's in
the video and it is in the text of Breitbart's original post on the topic. But the mainstream media selectively edits out this exonerating fact in
virtually every story about Breitbart. So the subsequent charges against Breitbart by the mainstream media that his editing was misleading was itself misleading and wrong.

In a seemingly unrelated story just after midnight Tuesday morning (July 20) Tucker Carlson's Daily Caller reported on leaked emails from the
liberal media cabal Journolist in which, when the Rev, Wright issue first emerged during the 2008 campaign, one of the participating liberal
journalists, Spencer Ackerman, proposed defending Obama by using a racial smear tactic:
"If the right forces us all to either defend Wright or tear him down, no matter what we choose, we lose the game they've put upon us.
Instead, take one of them-Fred Barnes, Karl Rove, who cares-and call them racists. Ask: why do they have such a deep-seated problem with a black politician who unites the country? What lurks behind those problems? This makes *them* sputter with rage, which in turn leads to overreaction and self-destruction."
At last, we have the smoking gun that proves to the American public that at least some liberal reporters are quite prepared to make false
charges of racism to advance their liberal political agenda-and to conspire with other like-minded character assassin journalists in the so doing.

So far, there are just two web site stories. But then the White House panics, and turns a couple of, until then, minor web stories into one
of the worst political weeks for any White House since Nixon's many sad examples of terrible political weeks in 1974.

According to Mrs. Sherrod, she is forced to resign her post immediately at Department of Agriculture under pressure from the White House
which was afraid that Glenn Beck was about to report the story of her NAACP speech. (In the Obama version of FDR "The only thing we have to fear is the Glenn Beck Show itself-- -nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance. "
The compliant NAACP then itself apologizes. The next day, more of Mrs. Sherrod's speech becomes available, where she describes how she over comes that first instinct of racial bigotry three decades ago and helps out the white farmer. The white farmer's wife then goes on CNN and says what a nice and helpful lady Mrs. Sherrod is.

The White House panics again and instructs the Sec. of Agriculture to apologize and offer her job back to her. The NAACP then withdraws its
apology and says it was "snookered" by Breitbart (even though it was their event with a room full of their members available to the NAACP last week.)
Then some more of her speech-after the reconciliation of the races section-is made available and includes the following sentences: " I haven't
seen such a mean-spirited people as I've seen lately over this issue of health care. (Murmurs of agreement.) Some of the racism we thought was buried -- (someone in the audience says, "It surfaced!") Didn't it surface? Now, we endured eight years of the Bushes and we didn't do the stuff these Republicans are doing because you have a black president. (Applause) " (Text courtesy of National Review).
In other words, she is accusing up to 70 million Americans (registered Republican voters) of opposing Obamacare because the President
is black-rather than because we disagree with the policy-as we did with Hillarycare in 1994. That is a broad-brush bigoted attitude by Mrs. Sherrod against all of us who opposed the president's healthcare policy. She implicitly accuses all 70 million of us of being racist.

Then Mrs. Sherrod goes on CNN with Anderson Cooper and says she thinks that Andrew Breitbart wants America to return to slavery for the
blacks. And that is the last mainstream television seems to want to present of Mrs. Sherrod live and unedited. After dominating the news for the week, the eloquent Mrs. Sherrod is not invited to a single Sunday show.

And so did the rank cynicism of overplaying the race card turn that dreaded knave into a joker.
Tony Blankley is executive vice president of Edelman public relations in Washington.
COPYRIGHT 2010 CREATORS.COM

http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/political_commentary/commentary_by_tony_blankley/cry_racism_and_let_slip_the_dogs_of_politics

[Kramer]

#8) XO calls Kramer racist.

[Xavier_Onassis]

I seem to get the distinct impression that Religious Dick is a "hit and run" poster. He comes, he posts, and he flees, never engaging in conversation after the initial post.

This article is pretty good, though. Accusations of racism accomplish nothing. Sherrod was more a victim here, because she sought to explain a long personal story of her dealings with racists and Whites, and Brietbart chose to quote her out of context deliberately, Probably more out of a desire to increase his viewership than out of racism. His motives are not better because they are based on personal greed than tribalism. He thrives on hate of any sort, the more sensational the better.

[Kramer]

I seem to get the distinct impression that Religious Dick is a "hit and run" poster. He comes, he posts, and he flees, never engaging in conversation after the initial post.

This article is pretty good, though. Accusations of racism accomplish nothing. Sherrod was more a victim here, because she sought to explain a long personal story of her dealings with racists and Whites, and Brietbart chose to quote her out of context deliberately, Probably more out of a desire to increase his viewership than out of racism. His motives are not better because they are based on personal greed than tribalism. He thrives on hate of any sort, the more sensational the better.

No actually Bieitbart was set up. The person that sent him the video left out important parts that Brietbart wasn't aware of until after the fact. Brietbart should have been more careful but when you have to defend yourself, as he was doing by defending the Tea Party against the NAACP, sometimes in haste mistakes happen. Fuck you, you race baiter.

[Xavier_Onassis]

If Breitbart was "set up", then he is exactly in the situation that Dan Rather was in with that letter about Juniorbush's going AWOL. You sure as Hell cut him no slack.

Breitbart spews venom, and his audience gobbles it up like Tootsie Roll ootsies. He is a dolt if he does not know this. It is his show, he is responsible for lies that slip past him. We never found out whether the letter Rather was lambasted for was true or not, just that it was not typed at the date claimed.

Breitbart, like Rather, needed to do more research. Maybe they had no budget for such things, but Breitbart required less research to check that speech out.

I fail to see how I could possibly be guilty of "race baiting", being as everyone here is, or seems to be,  White. To have a dogfight, you need a minimum of two dogs. To engage in race baiting, you need two "races".

Of course, to you it is meaningless that either of us could share mor chromosomes with Obama than with one another. Race is a primitive concept.

[Kramer]

If Breitbart was "set up", then he is exactly in the situation that Dan Rather was in with that letter about Juniorbush's going AWOL. You sure as Hell cut him no slack.

Breitbart spews venom, and his audience gobbles it up like Tootsie Roll ootsies. He is a dolt if he does not know this. It is his show, he is responsible for lies that slip past him. We never found out whether the letter Rather was lambasted for was true or not, just that it was not typed at the date claimed.

Breitbart, like Rather, needed to do more research. Maybe they had no budget for such things, but Breitbart required less research to check that speech out.

I fail to see how I could possibly be guilty of "race baiting", being as everyone here is, or seems to be,  White. To have a dogfight, you need a minimum of two dogs. To engage in race baiting, you need two "races".

Of course, to you it is meaningless that either of us could share mor chromosomes with Obama than with one another. Race is a primitive concept.

I don't think that Rather has ever apologized or admitted any errors, Brietbart did because he's a stand-up guy and Rather is a piece of shot.

[Amianthus]

I seem to get the distinct impression that Religious Dick is a "hit and run" poster. He comes, he posts, and he flees, never engaging in conversation after the initial post.

I get the impression that he's a sock puppet.

[BT]

I seem to get the distinct impression that Religious Dick is a "hit and run" poster. He comes, he posts, and he flees, never engaging in conversation after the initial post.

I get the impression that he's a sock puppet.

Not sure of the relevance but you both would be wrong.

[sirs]

I seem to get the distinct impression that Religious Dick is a "hit and run" poster. He comes, he posts, and he flees, never engaging in conversation after the initial post.

I've noticed Tee & Xo largely doing the same.  Tee obviously more so than Xo.  In fact, most of the time there's no "hit" involved.  Just the "run".  At least Xo, hits occasionally

[Xavier_Onassis]

I give up on conversations with Kramer and sirs, because there is no further point of adding anything.
I have not noticed that RD responds to comments on his posts, but if he does, it is rarely.

Tee usually carries on a conversation so long as questions are unanswered. When someone starts blathering about how he wants to kill everyone, I can see why he fails to respond.

Perhaps BT can tell us who or what he knows about the Dick, who does not appear to be particularly religious to me.

[BT]

Perhaps BT can tell us who or what he knows about the Dick, who does not appear to be particularly religious to me.

Again, i question the relevance. Either you agree with what he posts or you don't. You are free to explain either of your positions, if so moved. His choice of names is no more revealing than your choice of names, and probably less contradictory to your stated positions.

All requests for personal information concerning a poster should be copied to the EFF and accompanied by a duly authorized subpoena.

[sirs]

I give up on conversations with Kramer and sirs, because there is no further point of adding anything.

And Xo complains how debate can't occur here.  It can't when substantive posts are either ignored or ridiculed.  It can't when folks, for whatever misconstrued personal reason, fail to set an example by responding to substantive questions/issues being made.  It can't when folks, driven by ideolgy, are unable to take substantive criticism of their positions, and cry fowl, or simply not respond.

You and Tee give up on the 1 thing that makes the 3 Dead Horse Saloon great.  Your choice, so best not complain about it any more

[Kramer]

I give up on conversations with Kramer and sirs, because there is no further point of adding anything.
I have not noticed that RD responds to comments on his posts, but if he does, it is rarely.

Tee usually carries on a conversation so long as questions are unanswered. When someone starts blathering about how he wants to kill everyone, I can see why he fails to respond.

Perhaps BT can tell us who or what he knows about the Dick, who does not appear to be particularly religious to me.

knock off the drooling moron comments and labels and you might get a better result with me.

[Xavier_Onassis]

Kramer, you are offensive to everyone, and deliberately so. Plus, most of what you 'know' is not true.

In the event that you have not noticed, you only get insults from me when you insult me.

[sirs]

In the event Xo hasn't noticed, Kramer's insults usually follow Xo's (or Tee's) initial attempt to ridicule and demean the point he was making, with the apparent obligatory moron-like reference within said response