9/7/09
Zel M, a commenter I disagree with as much as I enjoy, asked why we connected the rancor directed at Obama with racism, and I agree it needs to be better-stated. If you're using such charged recriminations, you'd better be ready to back them up, and I'm not sure that's ever going to be easy.
The first problem is this: when describing right-wingers, birthers, Republicans, or whatever term you like, you're forced to use terms correctly and back them up with facts. This is not a courtesy they will extend to you, however, which puts you at a disadvantage before you begin. In other words, if your ideological opponent is happy to call you a Nazi, a Socialist, a Communist or a Fascist without any regard to what those words actually mean, it makes you wonder why you're explaining yourself to a bunch of frothing idiots.
A second problem is the tenor of the debate, which the right-wingers began at "shrieking madness" levels and only escalated from there. The noisest and meanest side in a debate almost always gains its power from reptilian notions, leading someone like Neva to comment "[it's] like they are saying 'he's not my President'", which I would effortlessly extend to mean "This goddamn black guy is not my President."
Prove-able? Certainly not. Pass the smell test? Absolutely.
The third problem is the demographics, which can be subjective, even if the overall picture seems obvious. The primary Obama-haters are 99% white, but moreover, they're overwhelmingly over 50. Let's face facts: people over 50 inhabited a time of institutionalized racism, sexism and homophobia, and most of them never got over it. Many did, to be sure, but show me an average 68-year-old white guy, and I'll show you a racist who makes jokes about fags.
Yes, I know your parents are enlightened. Yes, I know you can provide anecdotal evidence of hundreds of people in their 70s who fought the good fight in the 1960s. That's awesome. It's also not indicative of the vast majority of post-middle-aged white folks in America.
The fourth problem with proving that Obama-haters are racist is simply this: mostly, it's a combination of smaller things that don't mean much by themselves, but become more and more obvious when taken as a whole. One can smell racism the same way my wife can spot addicts and I can identify ex-Mormons.
Like now. We've got these white, 50+year-old wingnuts hurling themselves towards statements like "Obama is a Kenyan nationalist" and "I won't have my kids polluted by his fascist agenda"... I'm sorry, but that positively screams of someone who subconsciously fucking HATES the fact that this "Other" got elected, and has been looking for a safe way to release their bile. As soon as someone broke the "Nazi" barrier, or uttered the word "fascist", these bitter idiots realized such epithets could do all the work of the n-word without actually having to say it.
Not to mention that there has been an overtone - both spoken and unspoken - that says "I don't want universal health care because I DON'T WANT TO PAY FOR THESE POOR MOTHERFUCKERS WHO DON'T HAVE A JOB." You get the feeling that you could get one of these town-hall nutjobs drunk, and they would continue with "I DON'T WANT TO PAY FOR THESE FAT, BLACK WELFARE MOMS, AND I SURE AS HELL DON'T WANT TO PAY FOR THESE MEXICANS SNEAKING OVER THE BORDER, HAVING TEENAGE SEX AND SPEWING OUT MORE BROWN BABIES..."
It's all part of a culture that says "I got mine, go fuck yourself." They would argue it's a culture that says "I got mine because I earned it, and there's no such thing as a free lunch," but of course, to paraphrase the old cliché, most of them were born on third base and thought they'd hit a triple. Even if they came from nothing, they still share the three benchmarks of modern conservatism: rage at possible money loss, disgust for the less fortunate, and resistance towards facts.
Because I'm Lefty McProgressivePants, I posit that anyone who is offended by "sharing the wealth around" and views empathy as dangerous, is a fucking racist, simple and plain. It's a testament to how low the discourse has sunk. To separate the Republicans/birthers/right-wingers from their innate problems with race is like separating the ingredients from a soufflé that has already been baked.
Are any of my theories watertight and beyond reproach? No, and if I turned this blog into a term paper, I'd get an F, and rightly so. But the behavior on the other side of the political divide has been so inexcusably insane that any rational explanation beggars belief. At this stage of the game, I'd say the onus is not on me to prove the right wing is racist, it's incumbent on them to prove they're not.
Posted by Ian Williams at September 7, 2009 11:52 PMIan - It's hard to imagine that the same country in which there was an (alleged) conspiracy to disenfrachise the minority voter in 2000, elected its first black President in 2008.
That being said, I agree with you on the demographic of racism. Each succeeding generation will produce better people than the one before it.
Josie, I agree with you in principle. Human beings are becoming more and more evolved as time goes on. I have to believe this to keep from going insane when I hear a Glen Back (how did this nut job EVER get a gig with ANY media outlet?), Rush, La Coulter, the screaming Birthers, anti-health care ranters...
I have long felt that the animosity toward Obama is largely rooted in racism, even though there are certainly enlightened non-racists on the right who simply have a different philosophy, and the legitimate right to disagree. But they are not the screamers, and the screamers get the attention. If you saw this tongue-in-cheek feature on Al Franken's civil discourse with some right wing questioners, well, it makes the point:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FkhLD32gA2s
I'm over 70, a history and politics junkie, an Obama supporter (even when he isn't perfect), and a devout Lefty-McProgressivePants. And I can't watch TV "news" any more. I won't live long enough for the aging racists to die out and the unenlightened factions of the young conservatives to learn empathy and compassion. But I have to believe it will hapen.
Our 1st grader will sure as heck be watching Obama's speech today at his school. I am really curious who, if anyone, in his class has chosen to opt out.
I don't think it's just a matter of "I got mine." Much of the populist right are relatively poor. They have, however, been okay with this b/c they have historically received what DuBois called the "wages of whiteness"--a status boost they get in this country from their race. (The existence of this extra non-monetary wage is one of the best answers to that old chestnut "Why no American socialism?" but that's a whole other thing.) Anyway, viewed through this prism, the apparently batshit reaction of the mobile home wing of the populist right begins to make some sense. If a black guy is president now, clearly they're not getting as much of that old psychological wage as they used to. And it's just not enough to supplement their shitty actual wages anymore.
"I got mine, go fuck yourself." This, exactly. It's the shameful underside of our individualistic "don't tread on me" fixation with self-reliance. That would work fine if, as you say, Ian, everyone started on third base. And stayed there and scored home runs. But circumstances of birth and the capricious twists of ill fortune that can visit ANYONE in the course of a lifetime require us to step up and provide for fellow citizens *when they need it*.
I read an interesting blog post by a black woman yesterday that used the word "bigot" instead of "racist." Perhaps it's splitting hairs, but "bigot" seems less inflammatory and not tied to race alone. So, I suggest that the birthers, deathers, Muslim-conspiracy theorists, and rabid anti-Obama fanatics in general may indeed share a deep vein of bigotry toward this president who is so different, superficially, than any before him.
"To separate the Republicans/birthers/right-wingers from their innate problems with race is like separating the ingredients from a soufflé that has already been baked." - SOUFFLE?!? Go back to Cuba, Frenchy! /tongue-in-cheek ness.
I'm not making a brief for the populist-right reaction to Obama. I'm saying that it can be understood as a historical phenomenon and not just as a collection of nuts. I'm saying that if you buy the idea that poor white people have been content to remain poor in the past so long as they could hang onto that all-important white identity, their poverty becomes a much bigger problem in a society where white skin is not the signifier of superiority it was once assumed to be. And at the intellectual level that these people operate, there's no clearer sign of the diminished importance of "whiteness" than the election of a "black" president. Cast another way, poor white trash are becoming poor trash period. And for these people, that's a crushing psychological blow. Not saying it's right or justified; just saying it is.
Ian,
Have you been quoted by any famous right-wingers yet?
'Cause it's coming...
When I argue with the conservative wing of my family, I desperately try to hold myself to a higher standard. When, on the day of Ted Kennedy's death, a cousin stated "when a murder dies, shouldn't we all just shrug and say 'good riddance'" I defriended him on facebook.
When I try to argue, I am always met with the same thing. "The left is the one who called Bush a Monkey! THEY CALLED HIM A MOUTH BREATHING IDIOT! They insinuated that he skipped out on his military duty as a kid, and that he was a coke fiend. The said that he only went to war for oil" and I have to keep saying "*I* didn't SAY THAT."
Say what you want, I'm sure it feels cathartic and powerful, but make no mistake- screeds like this don't fix anything. When my in laws read this, it confirms their assumptions about reactionary leftists who don't understand their point of view.
Most people who disagree with President Obama are foreign policy hawks and fiscal conservatives. President Obama almost never talks about the wars, and, because of what he has inherited, he has to basically shrug at deficits. There are really good reasons to disagree with our President without even considering the color of his skin.
chm - I think you nailed it perfectly.
are you really saying that i'm a racist if i don't agree with obama's "spread the wealth" doctrine? please tell me you're joking.
chm, that's an excellent point. There are always entire continents of ideas that I'd never think of, were it not for the comments.
Sean, I agree in principle, but I think there are places for genteel exchanges, and I'm not interested in it. The time for meeting madness with rationality is over, as far as I'm concerned.
F-minus. You fail. What you've written is "a testament to how low the discourse has sunk," and I think it's people like you that have dragged it there. In my experience the left is much better about describing their own problems when trying to diagnose those of their opponents; I could easily turn your words around and provide plenty of evidence to back it all up.
I hope you're not this angry of a person in real life; if so, you've got some serious issues dude. If you haven't reproduced yet, please don't.
Craighill, I don't know you, not even a little bit, but I think that there is certainly an argument for, and plenty of evidence showing, that the bulk of the national movement(s) against President Obama is based on old-fashioned racism. Are you racist? No idea, but your probably well-reasoned arguments against Obama's policies fall on deaf ears when all we hear is "WE WANT OUR COUNTRY BACK!" from the nutcases that are also working against the President. I would refer you to the old saw of "Not all Republicans are racist, but most (my change from 'all') racists are Republicans.
I would also like to add that Sean's criticism of the Left, over the past 8 years, sounding much like the Right now, is valid. One caveat, however, is that the screeds against President Bush were based in fact. President Bush DID skip out on his national guard duty, it has been widely and independently reported that he was an alcoholic and drug addict, and he did resemble a monkey from time to time (however, as we are cousins to apes and resemble hairless chimps, I don't really see this as an insult unique to President Bush). Finally, although he may not actually be an idiot, his poor public speaking makes him sound like an idiot, and in a business where perception is reality (politics) I would expect better from a politician, especially the president. The criticisms against President Obama as being a foreigner, a Marxist, a Socialist, etc etc etc have been shown false, so I am not sure how the foundations of the criticisms can really be compared.
John Galt, are you the same joker that used to pollute the MySpace political forums? The tone of your post is incredibly familiar.
Maybe the 'J' in jbooger stood for John....?
Hi Ian,
I'm only 35, but I can't watch TV "news" either Mom.
Unless I want a good laugh...or cry.I give you credit, Ian, no matter how frothy this makes you--you still keep looking for a solution and a way to somehow 'communicate'. (Even though it's impossible to communicate effectively when everyone is YELLING.)
Come visit us in Maui~it's guaranteed to bring the blood pressure down. :o)
Aloha,
Lisa
Ayn Rand was a terrible writer and an even worse student of human nature, but she did do us all one favor, to wit: if you see a comments section message with the name Howard Roark or Dagny Taggart or John Galt, you can skip to the next message without fear of having missed something important.
i've got to stop being shocked by just how low these republicans or conservatives will go without any shame. i don't really know what to call them, i mean, is this really the republican party of 2009? are they really espousing conservative principles?
regardless, i know there was a lot of disgust and rage and hatred with bush and his administration. and in the early years, there were legitimate questions about his legitimacy as president. but there still existed restraint - a certain deference to authority - I remember the gracious Al Gore bowing to history. Now instead you have the vicious snarl of Dick Cheney smearing our President.
these people lack grace, common courtesy, historical perspective, self discipline and awareness. what i'm so very afraid of is that those who do have those qualities, will be drowned out or shot down.
bridget
Yeah Bob, I've heard all the old Ayn Rand crap, but don't blame me for my parent's sense of humor. Or lack thereof. And no, Kevin; I don't do MySpace. Or Facebook. Or Twitter.
I sure like the selective memory on display here by Ian & bridget and others. I remember the disgust and rage and hatred during the Bush Administration, but I don't recall much restraint, deference or graciousness. Seriously; Al Gore, gracious? You're joking, right? Were you listening to the same guy I heard? He may have accepted the outcome at first, but when he came out of hiding (and put aside the comfort foods) he was one hateful guy. Still is.
Again, the left displays the remarkable ability to imprint discern their own sins in the actions of others. Remove the plank from your own eye before helping us to remove the speck from our own.
JG, your parents saved the rest of us a lot of time. Kudos to them.