positive, constructive ideas

Thanks to Nevsky for this movie. And, I probably should give a thanks to George Allen Jr. for enlivening our poker night discussing his crazy racial slurs.



For a thorough explanation of the event, we can turn to the Daily Press of Hampton Roads, VA.

The volunteer, a 20-year-old Fairfax County native of Indian descent named S.R. Sidarth, had been filming Allen last week at public appearances around the state for the Webb campaign. Sidarth said Allen should apologize for singling him out and calling him a name that sounded like "Macaca" at a campaign stop Friday.

Of course, all of this is meaningless without context. Daily Press, how nostalgic is George Allen for the "Old South?"

Allen once hung a Confederate flag in his home as part of what he described as a historical flag collection. As a young lawyer in Charlottesville, he once hung a noose in his law office, which he said was part of a collection of Western memorabilia. As governor in the mid-1990's, Allen issued a Confederate History Month proclamation that made no mention of slavery.

And last spring, Allen acknowledged a new revelation about his past when the liberal-leaning New Republic magazine unearthed a high school yearbook photo showing a young George Allen wearing a Confederate flag pin on his shirt collar.

It is truly tragic when your own racism comes out in the open by using a racial slur your staff throws freely around the office. Hmmm...how about the right-leaning editorial board of Charlottesville's own Daily Progress? Are they going to buck their party stripes by failing to justify the senator's comments?

“Let’s give a welcome to Macaca here. Welcome to America and the real world of Virginia,” Allen told the GOP campaign rally.

What’s wrong with Mr. Allen’s comments?

To start with, why is Mr. Allen saying “Welcome to America” to an American citizen from Fairfax County who is attending UVa?

Could it be because of the gentleman’s skin color?

Of course, Daily Kos points out that George Allen should have known better.

UPDATE: Atrios notes that "makak" (and variations) are recognized racial slurs aimed at North Africans. According to Wikipedia, Allen's mother is of European and Tunisian extraction.

Hmmm...so, we're saying that George Allen should have known better. As Nevksy opined tonight, "Ockham's Racist Razor" demands that either George Allen is a racist or a total idiot. Either way, do we want him representing us as our senator? If Jim Webb can't make political hay out of this, then he doesn't deserve to be elected senator.