Stranger in a Strange Land ??
Hey Folks,
For a long time I've been aware that it is often difficult for people who are heavily "invested" - whether economically or emotionally - in a subject to evaluate it in a "fair and balanced" manner. For example, slave owners, for the most part, found it impossible to admit the depravity of their "peculiar institution" because with slavery they were the Head Cheese and without it they were just – in nautical terms – the head.
At the same time, it was always my assumption that, while they knew the truth, they simply chose consciously or unconsciously not to admit it. Instead they would implement some form of Orwellian double-think to suppress the truth, and live in denial. A recent number of occurrences on MSNBC's Scarborough Country, however, have raised some doubts.
Joe Scarborough for several days in a row felt the need to attack Rosie O'Donnell - a recent arrival on The View - for supposedly being anti-Christian. Sometime later he spent several days attacking John Kerry for “attacking the troops” via a joke. Most recently he has taken Bill Maher to task for “crossing the line” by outing Ken Mehlman, the head - until recently - of the National Republican Party.
On the one hand, Scarborough seems genuinely concerned that he be seen as a fair commentator. He went so far as to strenuously confront fellow MSNBC pundit Chris Matthews on this point during election coverage. Scarborough, a former Republican congressman, you may know, is the one who shocked fellow conservatives by focusing an entire program on the topic "Is Bush an idiot?"
He quite strenuously pointed out to Matthews during their interchange that, if anything, he had been harder on his "own party" than on the Democrats. If we can trust appearances in this regard, then it is possible that something quite disturbing may have been revealed: these "conservatives" who are invested – consciously or unconsciously - economically and emotionally in racism, sexism, homophobia, classism, religious dominion, and the rest aren't exercising double-think, aren't in a state of denial, but rather are peculiarly retarded intellectually. They can't comprehend a moral, ethical contradiction even if they try, even if it hits them in the face.
For example, Rosie simply said, "Radical Christianity is just as threatening as radical Islam in a country like America - where we have a separation of church and state - we're a democracy." Here's a video:
Rosie: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RXiXwFB9co
Now, one can disagree whether we have separation of church and state, or whether we are a democracy, or where radical Islam and radical Christianity fit on a spectrum; but there is clearly nothing here that remotely can be construed as "Anti-Christian." It just doesn't fly.
Rosie spoke to RADICAL Christianity. That in itself removes the comment from any general reference to Christianity. To say otherwise is nonsense. For example, if I say, "The leaves of poisonous plants are not good to eat," I am not attacking salads.
I found it astounding. There was this educated, middle-aged man, with experience as a congressman, and a regular program on national television going on like someone with brain damage. Rosie hates Christians; the Uke Man hates salads. It was incomprehensible.
As for the John Kerry "joke," all sorts of legitimate criticism can be leveled at Kerry for his "joke," but claiming he attacked the troops is as valid as claiming I attacked salads. What he actually said, probably did unintentionally upset some of our troops, but his problem was ineptness and stupidity, NOT disrespect for the troops. That is perfectly clear. Here's a video:
Kerry joke: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAgaqpy1ov8
Of course there were many Righties who knew it was crap but couldn't wait to smear a Democrat with it. Even Hillary hurried to dump on her competitor. Nothing new there. But Simple Scarborough - jesus h. christ!!! He just zombied along, claiming repeatedly and with certainty that Kerry attacked the troops.
And here is the important part. If he REALLY is trying to be fair, he must be somehow deranged, nuance-challenged, mentally deficient. And if he truly IS that way, how many more earnest right-wing cretins are out there?
And there's more.
Scarborough says he likes Bill Maher but took him to task for telling the world - on Larry King's show - something many of us already had heard: Ken Mehlman is gay. Here's the video:
Bill Maher: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33Jub4Itpm4
Scarborough claimed Maher had "crossed the line." Again, it seems an incomprehensible conclusion. Here is Mehlman the HEAD of a political party busilly drenching the nation in anti-gay rhetoric - and HE is a GAY man!! What can't Simple Scarborough understand? Bill wasn't nice to Ken???
Well, that's true, but how nice was Ken to millions of gays and lesbians? And what about the comment "politics isn't beanbag" that nasty politicians use to justify winning at any price?
As I suggested earlier, if we can trust the appearance that Joe Scarborough does honestly want to be fair and balanced, then he has revealed something new and startling - at least to me: some number, possibly a large one, of right-wingers mean well but are somehow morally, ethically, rationally, and/or intellectually retarded. They are not employing double-think; they are not in denial; they are congenitally deaf, dumb, and blind to things that are glaringly obvious to lefties; they just don't get it.
If true, this is an important consideration for everyone who can and does find glaring contradictions within our society. Thomas Jefferson certainly knew that slavery was wrong; he just couldn’t bring himself to do much about it until he was dead and didn’t personally need his "property" any more.
That is one thing. To combat it, one need only make it personally more destructive to continue the practice than to end it. Rational racists will see the proper option.
On the other hand, if there are a considerable number of these retarded “Scarborough conservatives" out there, what are the ramifications of that? What does it explain? How should it be dealt with? What does it mean?
If it turns out that a large part of the world IS made up of Scarborough zombies, I will have to make a lot of adjustments in how I've come to see the world and how I've come to deal with it.
Onward and upward !!!
- Uke Man
For a long time I've been aware that it is often difficult for people who are heavily "invested" - whether economically or emotionally - in a subject to evaluate it in a "fair and balanced" manner. For example, slave owners, for the most part, found it impossible to admit the depravity of their "peculiar institution" because with slavery they were the Head Cheese and without it they were just – in nautical terms – the head.
At the same time, it was always my assumption that, while they knew the truth, they simply chose consciously or unconsciously not to admit it. Instead they would implement some form of Orwellian double-think to suppress the truth, and live in denial. A recent number of occurrences on MSNBC's Scarborough Country, however, have raised some doubts.
Joe Scarborough for several days in a row felt the need to attack Rosie O'Donnell - a recent arrival on The View - for supposedly being anti-Christian. Sometime later he spent several days attacking John Kerry for “attacking the troops” via a joke. Most recently he has taken Bill Maher to task for “crossing the line” by outing Ken Mehlman, the head - until recently - of the National Republican Party.
On the one hand, Scarborough seems genuinely concerned that he be seen as a fair commentator. He went so far as to strenuously confront fellow MSNBC pundit Chris Matthews on this point during election coverage. Scarborough, a former Republican congressman, you may know, is the one who shocked fellow conservatives by focusing an entire program on the topic "Is Bush an idiot?"
He quite strenuously pointed out to Matthews during their interchange that, if anything, he had been harder on his "own party" than on the Democrats. If we can trust appearances in this regard, then it is possible that something quite disturbing may have been revealed: these "conservatives" who are invested – consciously or unconsciously - economically and emotionally in racism, sexism, homophobia, classism, religious dominion, and the rest aren't exercising double-think, aren't in a state of denial, but rather are peculiarly retarded intellectually. They can't comprehend a moral, ethical contradiction even if they try, even if it hits them in the face.
For example, Rosie simply said, "Radical Christianity is just as threatening as radical Islam in a country like America - where we have a separation of church and state - we're a democracy." Here's a video:
Rosie: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RXiXwFB9co
Now, one can disagree whether we have separation of church and state, or whether we are a democracy, or where radical Islam and radical Christianity fit on a spectrum; but there is clearly nothing here that remotely can be construed as "Anti-Christian." It just doesn't fly.
Rosie spoke to RADICAL Christianity. That in itself removes the comment from any general reference to Christianity. To say otherwise is nonsense. For example, if I say, "The leaves of poisonous plants are not good to eat," I am not attacking salads.
I found it astounding. There was this educated, middle-aged man, with experience as a congressman, and a regular program on national television going on like someone with brain damage. Rosie hates Christians; the Uke Man hates salads. It was incomprehensible.
As for the John Kerry "joke," all sorts of legitimate criticism can be leveled at Kerry for his "joke," but claiming he attacked the troops is as valid as claiming I attacked salads. What he actually said, probably did unintentionally upset some of our troops, but his problem was ineptness and stupidity, NOT disrespect for the troops. That is perfectly clear. Here's a video:
Kerry joke: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAgaqpy1ov8
Of course there were many Righties who knew it was crap but couldn't wait to smear a Democrat with it. Even Hillary hurried to dump on her competitor. Nothing new there. But Simple Scarborough - jesus h. christ!!! He just zombied along, claiming repeatedly and with certainty that Kerry attacked the troops.
And here is the important part. If he REALLY is trying to be fair, he must be somehow deranged, nuance-challenged, mentally deficient. And if he truly IS that way, how many more earnest right-wing cretins are out there?
And there's more.
Scarborough says he likes Bill Maher but took him to task for telling the world - on Larry King's show - something many of us already had heard: Ken Mehlman is gay. Here's the video:
Bill Maher: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33Jub4Itpm4
Scarborough claimed Maher had "crossed the line." Again, it seems an incomprehensible conclusion. Here is Mehlman the HEAD of a political party busilly drenching the nation in anti-gay rhetoric - and HE is a GAY man!! What can't Simple Scarborough understand? Bill wasn't nice to Ken???
Well, that's true, but how nice was Ken to millions of gays and lesbians? And what about the comment "politics isn't beanbag" that nasty politicians use to justify winning at any price?
As I suggested earlier, if we can trust the appearance that Joe Scarborough does honestly want to be fair and balanced, then he has revealed something new and startling - at least to me: some number, possibly a large one, of right-wingers mean well but are somehow morally, ethically, rationally, and/or intellectually retarded. They are not employing double-think; they are not in denial; they are congenitally deaf, dumb, and blind to things that are glaringly obvious to lefties; they just don't get it.
If true, this is an important consideration for everyone who can and does find glaring contradictions within our society. Thomas Jefferson certainly knew that slavery was wrong; he just couldn’t bring himself to do much about it until he was dead and didn’t personally need his "property" any more.
That is one thing. To combat it, one need only make it personally more destructive to continue the practice than to end it. Rational racists will see the proper option.
On the other hand, if there are a considerable number of these retarded “Scarborough conservatives" out there, what are the ramifications of that? What does it explain? How should it be dealt with? What does it mean?
If it turns out that a large part of the world IS made up of Scarborough zombies, I will have to make a lot of adjustments in how I've come to see the world and how I've come to deal with it.
Onward and upward !!!
- Uke Man
1 Comments:
HI Tom,
You've posed some very interesting questions based on your observations. Wish I knew the answers. Sometimes I think they truly are stupid and just don't see themselves as they are but as they THINK they are. This allows them to continue their behavior and sleep well at night. Good work. Sondra
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