From a Digby post….
Ballot initiatives have been proposed in Arizona, Colorado, Missouri, Nebraska and Oklahoma that would give voters the chance to decide whether they want to do away with affirmative action in government-funded projects and public schools. Link
Perhaps there's still ample time for Ohio, the state where intolerance and hatefulness is already embedded in law, to get in on this liberty-ballot-initiative-train.
Conservatives, and specifically the new brand of modern conservatives, require initiatives appealing to hate and intolerance to be placed on ballots. This tactic usually results in a higher turnout of wingnut evangelical voters. These values voters will always place value in intolerance and hate. And even when unmotivated by lackluster pseudo-conservative candidates, like John McCain, the values crowd can usually be motivated to come out and vote for intolerance. After all, intolerance and exclusivity is what makes the heart of proseltyzing religion, you know, beat.
Let's review the targets of hatefulness currently in vogue within the modern conservative movement.
First, there's the Muslim hate. It goes like this….America is a Christian nation….Muslims attacked us on 9-11….America must now hate Muslims and do everything within it's power to kill extremist Muslims while punishing as many members of Islam as possible in the process. Captured Muslims must be tortured, even though America never endorsed torture before.
If an upstart politician with a Muslim sounding name gains traction with American voters, these modern conservatives must bring that 9-11 Muslim hate down on him, no matter what. Thus the repetition of Obama's middle name and the endless cycle of lies claiming that Obama's allegiance lies with extremist Islam. Steve King (Asshole Republican-Iowa) recently demonstrated how this form of hate works.
Second, there's the intolerance and hatefulness towards homosexuals. Witness the success in Ohio-Mississippi. (Yes, that's one state). I believe Ohio joined in with 17 other Karl Rove instigated state hate initiatives in 2004. The excuse given was that marriage must be protected. Of course, that was a ridiculous excuse, but no matter, it worked out for the haters.
Just as soon as the hateful conservatives in Ohio and in other states found out they could vote against the queers and those living in "sin", they started putting on their boots to go to the polls. This patriotic display of hate and intolerance certainly helped out with the re-election of the criminal George W. Bush. Hey, hate works. That's why modern conservatives embrace it.
Third, the newest target for conservative hate….Latinos. The conservatives really, really wanted to feature Latino hate this election cycle. Coming attractions had Latino hatefulness soaring to the top of the intolerance agenda. Screecher right wing intolerance radio warmed up the audience for the onslaught. But then a funny thing happened on the way to casting votes for hate. John McCain took the GOP nomination. As you know, McCain had a difficult time at first because he didn't demonstrate enough intolerance towards undocumenteds. He led the effort for…..dare I say it…..amnesty. The Straight Talker has been since forced to straighten out his tolerant ways or be mocked by those voters who always vote for intolerance.
Lastly, when in doubt….hate the blacks. Always a good target for righteous, advantaged, conservative whites. If the conservative movement of intolerance cannot parade undocumented Latinos before Americans as their latest group to be despised and rejected as second class creatures (because McCain, you know, voted for amnesty)…..then blacks will do just fine as a replacement.
That brings us to the "strike down affirmative action now" state initiative proposals. The anti-American and intolerant Chief Justice John Roberts has already thrown down over this affirmative action topic. The intolerant and hateful modern conservatives are simply following his lead. Roberts ruled last year, along with his fringe right bench buddies, that attempts to integrate schools is really only favoritism towards a minority and injustice to the majority.
Building on that hateful and intolerant position taken by the Supreme Far-Right Court, state conservatives have come up with a plan to spread the Roberts love, and get evangelical and garden variety haters out to vote at the same time. Hell, if Roberts can strike down school integration, the intolerant and hateful thinking must have gone, the states can put blacks back where they belong about this affirmative action stuff. Thus, the 5 state initiatives to strike down affirmative action.
These hateful leaders, within the overall intolerant and hateful conservative movement, calculated that with an integration rejecting Roberts Court….they could get away with an obvious attempt to re-institutionalize hatefulness. And bring out those hateful and intolerant values voters at the same time. Kind of a two for one Blue Light hate special.
That's the other value of the modern conservative movement, they like bargains.
{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
Why do you use the outdated term "queer" when referring to homosexuals? Isn't "gay" the politically correct term? Frankly, I'm appalled by your application of this homophobic label to a group of human beings for whom you pretend to advocate. We don't want your help! You're making things worse!
Shame on you!
Bargains? What a bunch of selfish b*stards.
Let me see if I have this straight:
White conservatives hate muslims, queers, latinos, and blacks.
Yeah, I have it now.
You are a freaking idiot.
newslamp, i think the rev is using the term "queers" in the way those on the archie bunker right would use it. in his case for effect. i may be wrong but that's how i read it.
jimmy: Thanks for stating what I was doing with the word queer. I might also add…..in a country where freaking teevee programs are entitled "Queer As Folks" or some such stupidity….little ol' insignificant me ain't worrying much about my description of right wing maniacs and their linguistic habits.
King: No, I'm not a "freaking idiot". AND, that's simply no way to rebut my post. If, indeed, I am incorrect in my analysis of the hate and intolerance so prominently displayed in the wingnut right…..wherein have I erred?
Limbaugh, Ingraham and the rest…..didn't they spread intolerant hatefulness with their undocumenteds' bashing? Didn't Karl Rove come up with an intolerant and hateful plan with all those gay bashing "marriage protection" initiatives? Are you willing to say the extremist right that is currently the conservative movement hasn't spread a message of hate and intolerance towards Muslims?
And as far as the black issue is concerned….are you willing to say that the GOP doesn't stand for hate and intolerance at the same time you can't find any blacks representing the GOP in Congress?
In the opening song for "All in the Family," Archie Bunker famously pined for "the days of Herbert Hoover, again."
While Hoover was in name a Republican, he was a progressive isolationist at heart who publicly supported prohibition yet drank every evening at the Belgian embassy. He also led this nation into the Great Depression.
Of course, these qualities align Hoover much more closely with today's democrats than republicans.
Thus, Archie was a dem, as were most racists of the early 1970s.
I won't dispute that racism still exists in the Democratic Party. The distinction here is that the GOP has institutionalized
racism as a political powerpoint to capture the racist vote.
What should be disturbing to Ohioans, I think, is how closely our primary voting demographics mirrored Mississippi's. More and more uneducated whites remain in Ohio while more and more educated whites leave Ohio. Stir in the inherent racism of the far-right evangelical nuts…..and Ohio has become a disgrace.
Archie Bunker was on the leading edge of offended white America, not just Dems or GOP'ers….the entire white male nation. Yes, white males were under seige because blacks were given equal rights. White males were victims, somehow. Archie symbolized the trampled down white majority. Ridiculous, but then it WAS teevee.
The real tragedy in all this is Sally Struthers.
There is no need to rebut bigoted rhetoric such as yours. Comments like those are pure ignorance, and those who resort to them ARE freaking idiots. You erred when you started down that path.
You actually expect me to rebut someone stupid enough to equate advocating border security with hating latinos, or someone perverted enough to equate being against affirmative action (and in favor of equality for everyone) to hating blacks ? Your comments don't require a rebuttal, they require a brain transplant.
Here's an example of the Reverend's type of so-called 'argument', that maybe even you can wrap your brain around. Here, rebut this: Democrats are child molesters and drug addicts.
larry: I completely agree about Sally. She was the draw. For me anyway. I already knew too many Archies.
King: Some Democrats are child molesters and drug addicts. No doubt. That doesn't equate into….all Democrats are. It's not a matter of simply calling people names.
The Republican party's strategy as they go about seeking and retaining power is to divide the country along sex, race, and religion parameters. That isn't name calling. That's a methodical campaign that breeds hate and intolerance.
Sure the GOP uses border immigration issues as the hate delivery system, but the appeal is still to hate. Same with the Muslim nonsense. Southern strategy, Willie Horton, anti-Harold Ford Jr commerial, Karl Rove and MCain's alleged black illegimate children….it's always the same.
The GOP should take a lesson from the late Pope. Confess the institutional sins and change their ways.
Well, there you go again, demonizing a policy issue by calling the opposition racist, which stops all reasonable discussion of an issue, appeals only to base emotion, and in this case is designed to blur the utterly valid notion that a sovereign country has an absolute right to secure it's own borders. Then you have the nerve to say the Republican's are the divisive ones, when it's you yourself who is purveying the hate and aborting rationality. Un-freaking-believable.
No small wonder that calling people racist is all you have.