A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day…so check back often….

1. Why was the Bataan Death March brought up? While we’re on the topic, there’s absolutely nothing the modern Japanese should be ashamed of. They haven’t participated in any atrocities themselves. Why be ashamed? Are you personally ashamed of white racism? Unless you are a racist, you have no reason to be. I have no idea why I’m expaining to supposed conservatives why collective responsibility is not a workable formula, but hey… it’s not like there’s many true conservatives here.

2. Now back to my accurate description of WVa and KY as bumfuck country. You can’t simply dismiss the Daily Show report as fake news because they cite real news. Extensively. The vote in those states was to a very significant degree about race, and that alone should alarm you. Of course, Teh Ed already talked about this problem on this very site, but since he (stupidly and baselessly) insinuated that it was somehow a purely Democratic problem, nobody had a quarrel with that.

3. Lastly, what’s most astonishing about those ladies shown in the Daily Show report isn’t that they are stupid racists. It’s that they have obviously never felt any outside pressure for their views, and so they feel free to state them out loud. Which is a characterization of the local society at large and its culture. I recall the recent “OMFG can’t I even say his middle name?” debate. Those bigots did feel like they are under pressure, which is why they couldn’t, in the words of Allah, own the argument and say directly that they had a problem with a person with Muslim roots being President of the USA (my own view btw is that this is a legitimate issue if presented clearly and carefully much like Russian roots clearly should have been an issue (although not an automatic disqualifier) 30 years ago… and I’m a Russian). These women didn’t feel any reservations to say what they thought on TV because in their world those views are normal. And I have every right to make a note of the latter fact.

I can’t begin to describe my disgust at the fact that my fellow Virginians voted him in as our Senator. But I partially blame George “No, really, macaca is a term of endearment!” Allen for that.

Including these people?

freevillage on May 21, 2008 at 10:32 PM

There is nothing funny about the Bataan Death March. The slime that think so should be shot without a trial.

Today, even the Japanese are ashamed of what they did to our soldiers, and would never make light of it. Every year, hundreds of Japanese make the trek to the Arizona Memorial and CRY for the dead Americans.

None of them were even ALIVE when the deed was done.

America has the best of everything – including the absolute bottom.

That’s the nicest thing I can say right now.

Paul-Cincy on May 21, 2008 at 10:29 PM

I get it.
Racism is just a lazy word. You can dislike someone for showing up at your house to babysit and that sitter has tats all over her body, a cig dangling from the lip, you make a judgement based on what you see.
Now if she happens to be black, then you would be called a racist, if white you would be called smart.
Obama makes many stupid remarks, he is a weak leader, and happens to be black. So at any time, under any issue, racism can be called, and a flag thrown.
People are identified by a visual or audio characteristic. Who doesn’t imitate Clinton’s voice, with Obama the outstanding characteristic is that he is Black. The first real candidate for Pres. that is. So naturally that is how he is identified (and he doesn’t shy away from it). Dole had his “hand”,Edwards his hair, Ford stumbled, Hillary cackles, Bush mis-pronounced, Obama is black with big ears…and so it goes.

It’s about race and division. They may all be crackers(just kidding, relax) but they have seen the videos, they have heard the messages and sermons from Wright’s pulpit, they have read and heard Michelle’s not proud of America quips as they look out in the yard at their family plot with fathers, uncles and brothers buried, killed here and overseas the last few hundred years.

They know racism when they see it. They have been there, done that. They don’t care if Obama personally is as clean as driven snow it’s the people around him that creep them out.

These folks, unlike the partisan party faithful, have voted as a block for both repubs and dems all through their recent history. My guess, Hillary votes aside, these Jacksonians will be voting McCain. They vote the person. If there ever was a bedrock Americana they are it. The original Scot-Irish bad boys.

here’s a link to the voting pattern maps

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/17/opinion/17blow.html?em&ex=1211169600&en=7cd28dfc57cb1df2&ei=5087

arizonateacher on May 22, 2008 at 12:31 AM

Webb’s problem is as far as his Senate run, he made his name in Democratic circles by attacking the Iraq war, but they used both his past military service and his book on the honorableness and importance of the Scots-Irish in American history as grounds for deflecting any attacks on him. But the people Webb championed — many of whom live in West Virginia and Kentucky — are looked down at with even more disdain than the Kennedys looked at LBJ and his Texas brain-trust and supporters during the 1960 campaign.

Right now he’s attempting to square the circle and make himself viable as a vice-presidential candidate while not abandoning the image that got him past Allen two years ago. And if Obama does tap Webb to be his VP pick and he has to support all of Barak’s positions out on the campaign trail, he’s going to make Joe Libermann’s twists and turns in 2000 to support Al Gore’s positions vs. his own past stances look like the model of consistency (I would love to see a few Reagan vs. Obama questions tossed Webb’s way, though unless he went on Fox, I wouldn’t expect that to happen).

If Obama picks him as his Veep, this could be huge. The Clinton folks like to tout polls showing Hispanics are reluctant to vote for a black president. Throw in a veep who wants to end Affirmative Action for everyone but blacks, and you could have a major black/Hispanic schism on the left.

when the next state of the Union speech is given all the suits walking in limping to the left – those are the Democrats

Based on the statements you make, some of which are exaggerated, you must have been responsible for electing this partisan, arrogant hack. The man has been an embarrassment since the day he was sworn in.

freevillage on May 21, 2008 at 10:27 PM

Typical.

profitsbeard on May 21, 2008 at 11:36 PM

Home run. Typical.

It’s very simple. The fact is that WVa generally is bumfuck country and more specifically home to many racists. Same applies to Kentucky. Most people would kill themselves rather than live there or even talk to many of their residents.

The Democrats can’t say that, though. Hence the awkward dance.

freevillage on May 21, 2008 at 10:27 PM

Typical Obama supporter.

Obama ‘08: Change you can believe in. Hate you can see with your own two eyes!

The day he started pimping for Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid and the rest of the Democrats, he went headfirst into the toilet. And it had to be a big toilet, considering his fat head.
The America-hating libs need ambitious ex-military schmucks like him for “beards” to hide behind while they gleefully trash this country. They conspired to destroy Allen with all that endless “Macaca” crap in the Washington Post, so Webb peddled his tuchis to get this MSM-produced job.
The ugly freakish scumbag.

It’s from the usual drift of self-entrenching bureaucracies.

The title “affirmative action” meant reaching out, but not lowering standards. For instance, if a town had three daily newspapers, a company advertising for shipping clerks shouldn’t just advertise the position to the upper-crust on the west side. Applicants from any area were then required to demonstrate adherence to timeliness standards, familiarity with weights and measures, packaging methods, etc. After a brief flirtation with this concept, it was noted that all the jobs were still going to those who were better educated and raised in privilege.

So the focus shifted from “equality of opportunity” to “equality of results”, and a bureaucracy was created to ensure that those historically oppressed were given placement opportunities to compensate for past oppression. It could easily be argued that such efforts were justified so long as the individuals compensated had been personally harmed…

But the bureaucracy set up for this purpose would then have to cooperate in its own demise. Instead, like most threatened bureaucracies, it found ways to extend its mandate. And so there was created the concept of an “oppressor class” from whom advantage was to be extracted — whether or not any member of the class had ever actually performed any oppression or whether the “affirmative action” recipient had ever been personally discriminated against.

This melded the “universal outreach” concept from the earliest incarnation with the “redress for wrongs” concept — despite the fact that the larger models that such concepts were part of are fundamentally incompatible. Sandra Day O’Connor noted in one of her later opinions as part of the Supremes that the current situation could not indefinitely continue, and suggested 25 years as an outer limit….then promptly retired.

The very idea that McCain is again supporting a program that some view as rewarding illegal immigrants is certain to attract attention from the same conservatives he’s trying to win over for the White House.

The measure, which would reimburse hospitals for the cost of treating illegal immigrants, has broad support from both parties, including from some immigration hardliners and Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.).

Even some of McCain’s toughest critics on immigration admit it is a relatively benign program. But McCain’s association with it underscores his rift on immigration with the right wing, which sees him as championing amnesty for illegal immigrants.

“It’s another reminder that he’s ‘Amnesty John,’ ” said Mark Krikorian, executive director of the conservative Center for Immigration Studies, who nevertheless has no major objection to the proposal. “It’s another reminder of his role in promoting not just amnesty but promoting illegal immigration in the first place.”

An aide to McCain said the Arizona Republican stands by his position.

What he did in Vietnam was 35 years ago and his books suck

arizonateacher on May 22, 2008 at 12:31 AM

People aren’t allowed to criticize him because of his service to his country? We can be grateful and honor that service while at the same time despising his politics. This sounds like the same ridiculous argument people would make when others criticised Murtha for his severe stupidity.

James Webb was a highly decorated marine during the Vietnam War.

James Webb worked for Ronald Reagan.

James Webb wrote two of the best novels on the Vietnam War: Fields of Fire and Lost Soldiers

James Webb has a son currently serving in Iraq.

I no longer live in Virginia so I do not know what type of job he is doing as a senator. However, this man is a good man and a patriot.

Why has the level of debate sunken to this on Hot Air?

I like this site better when Michelle made funny videos.

Obama has 5 natural constituencies — youth, blacks, the well-educated, men, and leftwingers. Because he’s young, black, well-educated, male, and a leftwinger.

Paul-Cincy on May 21, 2008 at 10:52 PM

Rewritten

…most blacks, leftwinger youth and well-educated.

profitsbeard, great summation, but you forgot Michelle O.