Yglesias Uses Bigoted Slur To Object To Bigotry

posted at 10:41 am on May 7, 2009 by Legal Insurrection
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Matthew Yglesias is one of the best-known left-wing bloggers who does not hesitate to attack anyone he considers to be bigoted (under very expansive and political definitions). Yglesias blogs at Think Progress, a blog run by the Center for American Progress. Think Progress, much like Media Matters (also started by CAP), scours the internet seeking to find a Republican or conservative who has said a word or phrase which could be construed as or twisted into an insult to some group.

Yet Yglesias resorted to bigoted language in talking about whether Republicans would object to a homosexual nominee to replace David Souter on the Supreme Court. Republican Senator John Thune said that nominating someone who was openly gay to the Supreme Court “would be a bridge too far right now.” Yglesias called this comment “old-fashioned, un-subtle bigotry.”

In that very same post, however, Yglesias referred to a possible heterosexual nominee as a “breeder,” which is a derogatory term for heterosexuals. Using that term is the equivalent of calling a homosexual a “fag.” Sounds like new-fashioned, un-subtle bigotry. I can’t wait to see the Media Matters’ press release.

The very same day that Yglesias resorted to a bigoted slur, Yglesias separately attacked Republican Senator Jeff Sessions, minority leader of the Senate Judiciary Committee, for allegedly making racist comments over 20 years ago. Sessions’ two-decades-old offense was attempting to make a joke that he thought the KKK was “OK” until he found out that some of them were “pot smokers,” and for describing the NAACP and ACLU as “un-American” and “communist inspired.” Sessions claimed the remarks were taken out of context, but Yglesias rejected any such possibility, asking rhetorically, “And on the second [hand] what was the context.” (Italics in original.)

So, what was the context of Yglesias using the term “breeder”? Perhaps it’s time Yglesias and Think Progress practiced what they preach.

Cross-posted with updates at Legal Insurrection Blog

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