Rachel Maddow explained last night that the right-wing tactic of characterizing black people -- like, say, former USDA employee Shirley Sherrod -- as being racist against white people is nothing new in this country. In fact, as Maddow documented, "the political strategy of terrifying white people about the threat posed by black people" goes back to the 1960s, with the campaign of Alabama Gov. George Wallace, and the "Southern Strategy" that was a part of Richard Nixon's presidential campaign.
Maddow continued that now, "making white people feel like they are victims of black people" is one of the "Fox News agenda items" designed to fear-monger about race.
Watch:
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
dickday
July 22, 2010 12:16 PM
I have seen this before; what Rachel is talking about. I totally agree with her.
The New Right is the same as the Old Right. No change except there is a little more political correctness nowadays. They do not use the 'n' word except the peasants during the 'rallies'. They do not scream for segregation.
The New Right even purchases minorities to help sell their agenda.
In the end:
SAMO SAMO!!
Just more media savvy is all!!
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L0ngT0m
July 22, 2010 12:25 PM
It's really too bad that idiot Vilsack bought the Fox news/Breitbart story hook line and sinker and treated Ms. Sherrod like a piece of gum caught on the sole of his shoe. Had he exercised even a slight degree of judgment, all the attention would be on the crass character assassination practiced by Fox et al. all the time.
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Humpback
July 22, 2010 12:44 PM in reply to L0ngT0m
I actually think this immediate overreaction by the Obama administration might be helpful. If the administration had acted thoughtfully, waiting for the full story to be known, then the right wing would have hammered for days that they were dithering, etc. Even when it came out what we know now, it would not be dramatic or telling, just the same old right-wing smear until the story loses its legs.
But this dramatic reversal for Vilsak, while embarrassing in the short-term, has caused a more obvious focus on Breitbart and Fox and right-wing tactics in general. It might really force the middle-of-the-road voters, who generally do not pay attention, to come away understanding that there is a segment of the media actively lying to them.
That might actually be progress.
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Hank
July 22, 2010 4:46 PM in reply to Humpback
I agree, without the total overreaction by Vilsack this thing would just sort of die like the ACORN sotry. Now it's become something, at least.
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again
July 22, 2010 4:58 PM in reply to Hank
I agree. I think so far it's all in our Democratic favor.
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pbuchberg
July 22, 2010 6:56 PM in reply to Humpback
I agree. Further, I'm not so sure I agree with all the criticism of Vilsack. Honestly, how long of an investigation process would have been tolerated by the Right or the Left in the case of an accused employee who actually turned out to be a racist? I can see why Vilsack thought he needed to make an immediate decision even if it ultimately proved to be the wrong decision. It's certainly too bad Shirley Sherrod was put through hell, but I think the blame lies with those who slandered her, not those who (temporarily) fired her.
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blkblt
July 23, 2010 10:56 AM in reply to pbuchberg
How long an investigation? How about an hour and a half? Firing a long time employee over a two minute video on the internet without giving her a chance to defend herself is reprehensible.
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crystalstair
July 23, 2010 2:03 PM in reply to blkblt
Thank you! I can't believe folks are justifying Vilsack's reaction or finding the pony in the pile. The administration looked beyond foolish. There were other options between "dithering" (doing nothing) and throwing Sherrod under the bus. How about administrative leave? How about pointing to the source and standing up for your employee until the facts are know (which it turns out took about 20 minutes more).
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The Commenter Formerly Known as NCSteve
July 26, 2010 4:48 PM in reply to crystalstair
No one's apologizing. Or saying they were playing 11 dimensional chess. They're just saying that they got lucky and stupided themselves into a situation that worked out for the best for them, at least politically. It happens.
Christ, you can't even say something that sounds like praise if you're not paying attention without triggering the outrage reflex.
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JEP07
July 22, 2010 1:03 PM in reply to L0ngT0m
so lets blame the victims of deception for what the deceivers did?
Read Josh's essay this morning about it, he really nails it on the head. With so much culpability residing in the camp of the wingnut media, wasting time trashing anyone else is at best naive and at worst disingenuous.
Josh refers to it as "not only preposterous but verging on obscene." Turning this event into an Obama bashing spree, no matter how many obfuscatological (hey, we all get to coin words, doncha know) side references are made about the real culprits, isn't fooling anyone, but we know it is what some baggers, both tea and fire, plan to do.
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JEP07
July 22, 2010 1:06 PM in reply to JEP07
and no doubt the next layer of this argument willbe "yeah, but you can't let them slide for jumping the gun on this one" which no one is trying to do, if you didn't "get it" that Vilsack was deeply and personally disappointed in his own shortcomings in this issue, you are blind, both physically and spiritually. Or else you are an ideologue who wants to capitalize somehow on other's misfortunes, for whatever reason.
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again
July 22, 2010 5:00 PM in reply to JEP07
I rarely praise Marshall these days, but he is right on this.
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whitesauce
July 22, 2010 4:00 PM in reply to JEP07
I agree. I think it's fine to criticize Vilsack and, by extension, Obama for reacting too quickly, but (1) they have acknowledged their mistake and have apologized; and (2) the bigger problem is that the media can be manipulated into race-baiting by people who lack credentials. I think the media is pushing blame on to the administration to cover their own asses. The White House has taken its lumps; It's time to focus on the media.
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dustbunny44
July 22, 2010 4:43 PM in reply to JEP07
Agree that the Dems pulled the trigger too early, firing Sherrod (before the facts were in).
I also agree with another poster that this somehow, maybe, cleared the story early: if they took their time analyzing, the Breitbarts and others would have been hammering the issue for days, calling for their version of "justice". Did they do this on purpose? I don't know, probably not (there's no evidence for it). But now instead of waiting weeks for the truth like the Acorn story, it's out now that the Sherrod story was a lie.
That said, I don't know what to think going forward. As Rachel says, they will keep doing this as long as it continues to work for them. I guess you should have the facts before acting on rumors. You can't expect news orgs to refrain from publishing rumors.
And in the future any reputable news vehicle that sources ANYTHING from Breitbart should be disgraced. Journalism relies on integrity, and it's been proven many times that he has none.
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Cujo359
July 22, 2010 2:46 PM in reply to L0ngT0m
The "idiot Vilsack" had little or nothing to do with this firing, beyond being part of the chain of command. Sherrod claims that Cheryl Cook, the deputy undersecretary who called badgered her into resigning, said she was getting pressure from the White House. Has Cook been fired or upbraided for lying? Would White House Deputy Chief of Staff Jim Messina have been doing a Snoopy dance if Vilsack had handled this on his own?
Vilsack may be an idiot, but he's not the one who made this decision. It was the White House.
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LadyBlahBlah
July 22, 2010 2:52 PM in reply to Cujo359
You are a liar. Everyone who was involved actually says the opposite of what you posted. You just want different facts.
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Cujo359
July 22, 2010 3:33 PM in reply to LadyBlahBlah
You're an idiot. Go here:
http://cujo359.blogspot.com/2010/07/were-ruled-by-lying-cowards.html
Follow the links. Get back to me when you actually know something.
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Hank
July 22, 2010 4:49 PM in reply to Cujo359
You want me to prove your theory with a link called were-ruled-by-lying-cowards.html? Seriously?
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Cujo359
July 22, 2010 6:04 PM in reply to Hank
Yes, seriously. You don't have to agree with my conclusion, but it represents quite a bit of effort finding out what the facts were. The individual I replied to called me a liar without knowing the facts. The quotes and links in that article explain why I think what I do.
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EastWest
July 22, 2010 3:22 PM in reply to Cujo359
I call bullshit.
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JEP07
July 22, 2010 3:34 PM in reply to EastWest
again, turning this into a slam-Obama party is purely political, and does nothing to solve the root problem, which is what Rachel has identified so intelligently.
Fear and loathing fomented by Fox... there's the real problem, and until we are willing spend the money it takes to educate the people so they think critically instead of just fearing and loathing on cue, Fox will always have that power.
But, I am guessing the military/industrial machine that Fox literally represents does not want their big piece of American diminished by something like education, it might also discourage people from ignorantly signing up to fight and die for them.
We have created a new myth glory-in-war, but all that old battlefield honor that came from hand-to-hand valor has pretty much been made obsolete by nukes and IED's.
End our addiction to war, and we end our addiction, or at least a huge part of it, to fossil fuels.
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JEP07
July 22, 2010 3:36 PM in reply to JEP07
big piece of "American Pie"...
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EastWest
July 22, 2010 3:45 PM in reply to JEP07
You're right. KO nailed it in the "special comment" on his show last night: Fox News is a political movement that owns a cable network, and their main purpose is to destroy this presidency. His point, that it's (past) time the administration realizes this is an actual war - one with the future of this country at stake - can't be stressed to much.
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Cujo359
July 22, 2010 3:39 PM in reply to EastWest
White House stenographer Ben Smith on Messina's Snoopy dance:
http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0710/In_meeting_Messina_praised_Sherrod_handling.html#
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The Commenter Formerly Known as NCSteve
July 22, 2010 3:37 PM in reply to Cujo359
And you know this how, exactly?
Here's a modest proposal. When you're drawing inferences, especially inferences that are the result of applying ideological predisposition to scanty facts, starting your declarative statements out with the words "I think" or "I suspect" or even "clearly" (the word lawyers use to signal that they're trying to dress a speculative inference up as an uncontroverted fact) will save you a lot really sarcastic, snarky comments. Comments such as "And you know this how, exactly?" and "And clearly you can discern all of this because you have mysterjious mental powers that allow you See Into the Very Souls of People and Discern Their most Secret, Intiment Thoughts From Great Distances."
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Cujo359
July 22, 2010 4:19 PM in reply to The Commenter Formerly Known as NCSteve
I'd have left the links earlier, but for some reason I thought you couldn't do that in these comments. Now that I look back, I think it was embedded links that weren't allowed.
As for the rest, I don't engage in mind reading. Actions speak louder than words, which I think is something that Obama supporters need to learn.
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Scribe57
July 22, 2010 5:48 PM in reply to Cujo359
But what is gained by bashing Obama? Sure, perhaps he's not everything we hoped, but at the very least, he is a massive, huge improvement over the last guy.
Considering the state of the country when Obama took office, perhaps we should wait until at least half of his first term is over before declaring failure.
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Cujo359
July 22, 2010 5:58 PM in reply to Scribe57
He's not an improvement at all. He's extended the power grabs of the Bush years, has completely mismanaged the economic situation, and hasn't done anything of use on health care or financial reform.
I'll "bash" any politician who isn't doing what he should be. I'm not a partisan - I'm a citizen of this country. I don't have bets going on who wins the Congress or the White House.
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JEP07
July 23, 2010 1:11 AM in reply to Cujo359
"I'm not a partisan"
I don't believe you.
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chameleon
July 23, 2010 8:20 AM in reply to JEP07
He's just another firebagger. Read his blogs.
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Signalman
July 23, 2010 10:38 AM in reply to Cujo359
"Actions speak louder than words, which I think is something that Obama supporters need to learn."
Respectfully, there's nothing so special or singular about your perceptions that you can discern the thoughts and motivations of others simply by observing their behavior.
You might want to take care that others don't apply that same standard to you, and in so doing, misinterpret your motives and misrepresent your positions.
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chameleon
July 22, 2010 4:08 PM in reply to L0ngT0m
Get over it. They apologized - let's move on.
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Powkat
July 22, 2010 12:38 PM
Perhaps, not with a great deal of faith, but perhaps, this flap may make Democrats a teeny bit less likely to cave at every smear the guano loco right throws out. And Ms. Sherrod should sue the crap out of Andrew Brietbart.
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CityGuy
July 22, 2010 1:13 PM in reply to Powkat
Agree completely.
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theorajones
July 22, 2010 2:46 PM in reply to Powkat
This isn't the problem.
The problem isn't caused by Democrats reacting to this. The problem is caused by EVERYONE treating Fox News like it's a legitimate news organization. Everyone treating these stories like they are news stories and not partisan agenda items.
The poster above had it--it didn't matter what the hell Obama did. They only admitted this story was false because they realized they could hit Obama on "recklessly responding before all the facts were in, like a wimp."
If he'd waited a day or two, we would right now be debating how "bad" the thing this woman did was, and how much of a problem "reverse racism is" and wow, with the ACORN and Van Jones and Black Panthers don't you all see a pattern here? And the reason we would be having the "Obama is a reverse racist" discussion as opposed to the "Obama is a weenie who caves to the right" discussion is because the discussion we have is whatever the right wing wants us to talk about.
This does not happen because Democrats are not savvy enough or tough enough or quick-witted enough or whatever ridiculous standard you want to hold them to. This happens because the rest of the media has decided that Fox News is "legitimate." As long as they believe Fox News is "legitimate," they will act as though the things they are reporting have a grain of truth in them, somewhere.
This sick cycle didn't get started because Democrats caved. Democrats started caving because they saw that no matter what they did, they couldn't win against this partisan media creating stories that was treated like nonpartisan observers reporting stories.
Should Obama have done the morally correct thing in a no-win situation? Yes. He and Vilsack seem to feel like shit about it.
But beating him up for failing to do the right thing in a no-win situation does NOTHING to prevent the next no-win situation. It lets the REAL bad guys--Fox News--off the hook. You are not going after your real opponents here. You are wasting the opportunity to prevent this from happening again. You are REWARDING the perpetrators.
More than that, you are failing the next Shirley Sherrod, who will probably be a good person, but not so fortunate as to have two old white folks from Alabama who want to go on TV and praise her as the savior. You're condemning another innocent, dedicated person to be a victim to the right-wing smear machine.
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uweeb
July 22, 2010 3:17 PM in reply to theorajones
You make a good argument. So did Josh. But, the truth is the administration overreacted because they were afraid of how they'd be portrayed on Fox.
That's makes them look weak and incompetent.
The simple solution, which they apparently never thought of, was to announce that:
"The USDA is putting Mrs. Sherrod on temporary leave until we've had time to fully investigate this matter."
It really was that simple. Then the truth would have came out and the White House wouldn't look like cowardly amateurs.
What they did was meant to say themselves from embarrassment. They did care what was true, but how it would look.
They're quite embarrassed now. That's irony.
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uweeb
July 22, 2010 3:20 PM in reply to uweeb
I meant to say:
They didn't care what was true, but how it would look.
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JEP07
July 22, 2010 3:39 PM in reply to uweeb
...in this age of institutional lies, the truth, or at least the working version of it, IS the appearance, not the essence.
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Scribe57
July 22, 2010 5:43 PM in reply to theorajones
Bingo.
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EastWest
July 22, 2010 2:58 PM in reply to Powkat
Bingo.
One can only hope the administration actually learned something from this. Not only should they not ask, "How high?" everytime the wingnuts scream, "Jump!" they now have a ready-made reason to publicly call a lie a lie.
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Samsohn
July 22, 2010 12:38 PM
Rachel is 90% of the way there...it's REALLY not about race...it's just like Ms. Sherrod said in here speech over 20 years ago...it's NOT white vs black...it's the 'Haves' vs the 'Have Nots'...it's the poor vs the rich...the wealthy vs the rest of us...and it just so happens that most of the wealthy in this country are white people. While I believe some of the stories on Faux News seem like they're implementing racial scare tactics...in reality the news organization has probably convinced themselves that they are providing stories that are not racially motivated, but are aimed at their predominantly white audience, who are scared of the poor people rising up and taking what they deserve in this country. It just so happens that 90% of the time, this comes off in a seemingly racial context.
I give a lot of props to Major Garret on Faux...on Bill Oreily yesterday they were trying to totally avoid the netwroks mistake in handling of the Ms Sherrod case, and Major Garret basically said Fox should be held accountable just as any other news outlet should...and that in general there's a tendency to report anything ASAP, even if it might not be factual, just because it's what the viewers want to see on their network. He denounced that...and it seemed like Bill-O's head would explode.
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superking
July 22, 2010 1:15 PM in reply to Samsohn
Did you watch the whole video? The entire premise was that it's not about race, it's about getting Republican votes by scaring White voters away from the (Black, Radical, Militant) Democrats.
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cwnidog
July 22, 2010 2:54 PM in reply to superking
I did watch the full story and you're right in that the Republicans are targeting low-information white voters to become, as Phillips so wonderfully put it, "negrophobic" (gotta love that term). But the reason for this is essentially economic, to keep the have-nots at each others' throats while the haves take progressively larger pieces of the pie.
Everything the Republican party does is in aid of class warfare.
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It's Pat
July 22, 2010 3:18 PM in reply to cwnidog
Sad thing is people that watch these shows don't realize they are being played and actually believe the big scary black men and those black lazy welfare women are taking everything away from me!
Whats even sadder is this Southern Strategy method has been used before; we know it, we see it, the roadmap trap is right in front of us yet people fall for it time and time again.
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cwnidog
July 22, 2010 3:50 PM in reply to It's Pat
To paraphrase Julie Brown, when it comes to voters the GOP likes 'em big & stupid.
And does their best to keep them that way.
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beelzebubba
July 23, 2010 7:53 PM in reply to Samsohn
I have been saying this for years. It's about color all right, but the color is green.
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madmatt
July 22, 2010 12:38 PM
it goes back to the revolutionary war and discussions on slavery!
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Sedulus
July 22, 2010 12:43 PM
Kudos to Rachel, esp. because Jon Stewart is off. Using the video just catches them with their lies. I believe there is a golden statue of Dr. Goebbels in the main lobby of Fox News. Nevertheless, remain disappointed Vilsack -- a two-term governor -- was snookered by incomplete facts and acted before he knew the story.
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JEP07
July 22, 2010 1:08 PM in reply to Sedulus
like Bleck's gold certificates, it is more than likely just gold plated...
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bdtex
July 22, 2010 12:44 PM
Saw that last night. Sure wish Pat Buchanan was still an MSNBC contributor and a regular on her show. He urged GOPs to go after more of the white vote last year.
http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=32699
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Matt Jones
July 22, 2010 12:48 PM
I think Rachel needs to do a little more research - the "terrify white people" strategy is indeed from the '60s, but it's the 1860s not the 1960s. It was a standard tactic of the Reconstruction-era South to terrify white voters with the threat of "those people" taking over the government. For extra credit, track down some of the discussion around the regulation of cocaine in the early 20th century. A fine example (via Wikipedia):
Of course, the fact that there's essentially NO EVIDENCE of this occurring on any sort of scale didn't stop the prohibitionists back then, just as lack of evidence hasn't stopped the RW noise machine from fabricating stories about ACORN, etc.
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Sedulus
July 22, 2010 2:07 PM in reply to Matt Jones
Well, maybe you are too young but "white backlash" was invented the 1960s. Wallace went North and ran for President 1968; Louise Day Hicks got her start in Boston; William Buckley ran for NYC Mayor 1965 on a platform vs. a Civilian Review Board to monitor the Police Dept.; and of course, Nixon's pick of Agnew at Thurmond's request and adoption of the Southern Strategy, with speeches written by Buchanan! Obama's election unleashed many of these forces once again.
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AK Dude
July 22, 2010 3:35 PM in reply to Matt Jones
And of course, there's "Birth of a Nation," probably one of our nation's first uberpopular movies--in which the black people, now capable of voting, take over congress. They start swinging from the rafters and turning it into a monkey house. The KKK star in these.
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pmb50
July 22, 2010 12:50 PM
Rachel is the only one brave enough and smart enough to cover the real story here. While the rest of msm gushes over the tone of Vilsack’s apology Rachel is being a true journalist
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greenmean
July 22, 2010 1:58 PM in reply to pmb50
I have said the same, Rachel reminds me of the old reporters wearing the fedora with the press badge on the brim,pencil behind the ear, give me the facts sir, just the facts. she's the best.
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JEP07
July 22, 2010 12:56 PM
We all really need to ponder the "zero sum game" that both Rachel and Keith have referenced, the fact that so many uninformed people, particularly those prone to prejudice, seem to think doing something to help equalize benefits for all races somehow takes something away from white folks.
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Joekuh
July 22, 2010 2:29 PM in reply to JEP07
It does. It takes away from "the white man's superiority". Can't have that, not in the right wing's world.
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johnnydoughey
July 22, 2010 12:57 PM
Fox News: The name says it all...
foxy: adjective: shrewd, artful, astute, canny, crafty, cunning, deceitful, deep, devious, dishonest, experienced, guileful, insidious, intelligent, knowing, retiary, sharp, slick, sly, subtle, tricky, vulpine, wily
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labman57
July 22, 2010 12:59 PM
The bozos at FOX News are not content to merely report the news, they feel compelled to create news by injecting themselves into the story.
FOX News Network has always had a socio-political agenda, and so henceforth, they will known as FOX PAC -- they are, after all, little more than a political action committee.
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Diomedes
July 22, 2010 1:00 PM
White victimology is one of the strangest, most fucked-up, continuint patterns in our politics. Projecting their own racism on to others to validate their own fear, pretending that all that matters is racial preference and denying that power, real power, is the real factor that drives the social problem of institutional racism.
Hatred of some other group is undoubtedly a necessary condition for racism. But it is not sufficient. Hatred + Power (economic, political, or social power) enables real racism.
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Cheryl44
July 22, 2010 1:15 PM
I wonder if the Vilsack response was much more political than it seems. His actions brought the mainstream press into a story that may have only stayed in that ghetto that is Fox News. If he'd done nothing we'd have to listen to them screaming for months. Not that this will stop the screaming, but now more people are aware of Breitbart's continual lying and race-baiting.
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superking
July 22, 2010 1:17 PM
Did you watch the whole video? The entire premise was that it's not about race, it's about getting Republican votes by scaring White voters away from the (Black, Radical, Militant) Democrats.
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JEP07
July 22, 2010 1:18 PM
When the loathing gets thin, it's time to amp up the fear... which reconstitutes the loathing.
A veritable cycle of futility.
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glblank
July 22, 2010 2:32 PM in reply to JEP07
I feel like we're living in a Hunter S. Thompson novel.
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superking
July 22, 2010 2:53 PM in reply to glblank
He was a documentary journalist, man - we ARE living in a Hunter S. Thompson novel.
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Catchpenny
July 22, 2010 1:19 PM
...Well,I just can't wait for R.N.C. chairman Steele to weigh in on this...L.M.A.O. He has set back racial relations with the republicans decades...lol
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glblank
July 22, 2010 1:19 PM
Scare white people is as old as the country. Denmark Vesey came before the Civil War as did the Haitian slave revolts and the concept of miscegenation, raping yer white daughters, yada, yada. "White Supremacy" is older than the Constitution. Google "north american slave revolts" to get a chronology.
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calbearinillinois
July 22, 2010 4:10 PM in reply to glblank
Nat Turner's Rebellion, anyone?
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Dood_2
July 22, 2010 1:20 PM
I saw this last night and I was relieved to see someone in the media "get it." FoxNews is pushing the Souther Strategy on behalf of the Republican Party. It's just that simple and sad. It is pathetic and cynical in the extreme.
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jdb316
July 22, 2010 2:10 PM in reply to Dood_2
Thing is, they don't even need to galvanize their people in those states anymore. They have the South (outside of Florida) on total lockdown, and have since Clinton left office (if not longer).
The people they need to galvanize are conservatives in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Florida, Virginia and other "swing states."
And I think this goes beyond race alone and is more a matter of the culture war that Thomas Frank describes in "What's the Matter With Kansas?" Many whites, especially older whites and ones from rural areas, think their way of life is being destroyed and blame it on those evil secular-socialist libruhls from the coasts who thumb their nose at them and the minorities who they feel are nothing more than lazy bums.
Race is no doubt a part of it, in some cases a larger part than others. But it is only a part.
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Dood_2
July 22, 2010 3:23 PM in reply to jdb316
It's all about bringing out the vote. And yes race is used to bring out that vote.
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bpe383
July 22, 2010 8:40 PM in reply to jdb316
WOW, your comment on rural people and old people sounds a little racist. I live in VA, rural area, and I’m white. I don’t fit into your stereo-type. Glad to see the Liberal mind set never fails to come forth. Talk and act like you are open minded, and accepting of all until someone disagrees. Then it’s off with their head.
As far as the story and Rachel Maddow, I think it’s funny. Here is a story about not getting all the details before you speak, and yet Rachel and so many other left wing media persons still failed to get all the facts, or maybe they just don’t care because it gave them a chance to bash FOX NEWS? So they thought. But once again they only showed their true colors, and bias. For the record, Sherrod’s forced resignation came before her story, or video appeared on fox. Sherrod mentioned Glenn Beck in her interview? Why? He (Glenn Beck) didn’t even talk about her story until Tuesday, and supported her, and bashed the USDA for firing her. This is true as I checked it out myself. Not sure how this is some right/white agenda? He supported her. If Rachel and the rest of the media claim Glenn Beck is/was wrong about Sherrod, then that would mean she is a racist correct? Let me spell it out a little better. Glenn Back said she is not a racist, and should not have been fired. Rachel Maddow, Sherrod, and the rest of the media are blaming Glenn Beck and others on FOX. If Glenn said she is not a racist, and the left wing says he is wrong, and so forth, then that would mean she is a racist? Ya’ll should be a little more careful about lashing out against the right. They are not always right, but you can’t assume they are always in the wrong. Careful what you say without facts. Bill O’Reilly did lash out before checking all the facts; he did man up and admit he was wrong. as did Laura Ingram on Fox. Haven’t seen Matt Lauer man up and admit he was wrong for stating that the tape was hashed, spliced, and edited. Why would Matt Lauer say this with no proof? The tape hadn’t been. Bill O’Reilly just failed to view the whole thing. This was wrong. Isn’t that the point of this whole thing? Others in the media have not corrected their facts about Sherrod being let go before the story aired. In fact I think they are still blaming FOX, and Sherrod has been on CNN all day blaming FOX. Funny if you ask me. Seeing as how Fox wasn’t the cause, and at least one show did stand by her on FOX. For the record O’Reilly didn’t cover the story until 8:50pm Monday long after Sherrod had been asked for her resignation. Not sure Rachel Maddow is as sharp of a knife as one person mentioned, or maybe she has an agenda? How can Rachel even say ACCORN was made up or something along those lines? There is tons of proof against them, and their wrong doings. People please be honest with yourself. All these shows are slanted in some form or another. Just be smart and honest with yourself and don’t be so bent on your political view to not admit bias when you see it. They all have bias. It’s human nature. If you think otherwise then you are more closed minded then you think.
Fact is she was let go before the story aired, and there are many people who should have viewed the whole tape, and I think many thought/assumed that if the USDA fired her that they must have viewed the tape in its entirety and found her guilty. This was wrong for others to assume someone else had done the work. Now Sherrod is making herself look bad by talking to news media outlets all day bashing FOX. It would appear she has an agenda. Fox didn’t cause her firing period, end of story. So, why is she still bashing them? Personal reasons I feel. I have to say the more she says the more I begin to think there is more to this story than meets the eye, and she may not be as innocent as she wants us to think. Sorry for any typos in a hurry.
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JEP07
July 23, 2010 1:06 AM in reply to bpe383
O'rielly, is that you?
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Signalman
July 23, 2010 10:45 AM in reply to bpe383
MEGO
My Eyes Glaze Over
Try tightening up your writing and inserting a few paragraph breaks. Solid "C" work, but I know you can do better.
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JEP07
July 22, 2010 1:24 PM
Anyone else notice that John King seems to be acting as Brainfart's advocate/lawyer/protector?
He's definitely jumped up on my list of poundits worthy to ignore. He has really lost some credibility, with me at least, on this issue. And that was hanging by a thread in the first place.
He also seems to be bent on somehow relating every issue to Obama, he's sounding a lot like a media version of our resident Obamafrogs, croaking "obamadidit" obsessively, but I don't recall him every holding Bushfeet to the fire, when it was so much more appropriate.
Anyone else noticing that "True Colors" are really shining through because of this event?
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willia451
July 22, 2010 2:15 PM in reply to JEP07
John King is the poster child for being promoted to the level of your incompetence. He's in over his head. Its painfully obvious. And even more painful to watch.
Instead of information and analysis, we just get one tierd screed after another from the latest and greatest partisan hack he can pull off the internet. Or worse.
The only show on CNN worth a damn is Fareed Zakaria GPS. Beyond that, you can have it all.
John King should have stayed on as CNN's head "magic wall" guy (at least that was somewhat entertaining).
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chameleon
July 22, 2010 3:00 PM in reply to willia451
I didn't realize anyone watched CNN anymore. They are worthless - kind of like Faux News Lite. I agree totally with your post - and that's why some of us have eased up on posting here because of the stupid comments made here and the constant whining about a President who works hard every day and has accomplished much in such a short time. Do any of these whiners ever stop to think where we would be if we hadn't elected him. It is a very sobering thought indeed and one the whiners and complainers need to think about every time they open their mouths to bitch and complain.
I wasn't happy with the way things were handled in the Sherrod case either but at least they righted their wrong and apologized. Would we have ever seen it from Bush and his minions - never.
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It's Pat
July 22, 2010 9:28 PM in reply to JEP07
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greenmean
July 22, 2010 1:48 PM
Rachel is the sharpest knife in the drawer.
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djMikulec
July 22, 2010 2:33 PM in reply to greenmean
Rachel's the only knife... in a drawer full of sporks.
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EastWest
July 22, 2010 3:29 PM in reply to djMikulec
Beautifully put.
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July 23, 2010 11:28 AM in reply to greenmean
Pulitzer candidate
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bentbill
July 22, 2010 2:07 PM
I just wish the broadcast industry had the "cajones" to award Rachael an Emmy for her reporting of Faux news.
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Sedulus
July 22, 2010 2:12 PM
Bentbill-- agreed: Jon Stewart already has an Emmy. He often compiles these Fox (and Rush) videos and just let the blowhards destroy themselves. Rachel is smart, qualified and now shows up on "Meet the Press," so encouraging for her and the TV media. Can you imagine one of the Fox bozos with a PhD.?
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Langx
July 22, 2010 2:15 PM
Since we cannot comment on the John Marshal article I'll do it here.
The problem is not that Obama is the bad guy in this.
The problem is that his administration continues to be pussies to the GOP smear machine.
He only seems to show a spine when the outcome is already known or fighting against progressives.
That's the problem.
Are you fired up.
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willia451
July 22, 2010 2:39 PM in reply to Langx
Stop whining. I hear this quite a bit. And its just plain wrong. As long as President Obama is sitting in the White House, at least we don't have to worry REGRESSION. If it’s reasonable and can be passed, he'll sign it (remember the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act? Marvelous!). And he'll put open minded, empathetic folks on the SCOTUS. And he's put real teeth back into our regulatory agencies (SEC, CTFC, etc.). And if the Republicans do take over Congress one day, he'll veto their sorry asses into the ground if it’s something that doesn't make sense to do.
The list of what he has accomplished over the last two years is endless.
What's the matter? Pissed because he hasn't delivered the Progressive Utopia you expected?
WTF? Maybe you'd like Dubya back? Or Palin? OMG!!!
Comments like these are why I don't come out here very often anymore.
Too much whining.
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Spyder308
July 22, 2010 2:40 PM
Scare tactics is how the republican party got a slim majority of Americans to re-elect the shrub. Even after we lost two landmarks in NY City and New Orleans under his watch. It works, we are a bunch of sheep looking for a messiah.
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ejg3
July 22, 2010 2:46 PM
The GOP tactic is classic divide and conquer politics found all over the world. If the sheep analogy is continued it can be called scare 'em and snare'em.
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SW
July 22, 2010 2:51 PM
Yes, I understand that the real scum in this story is the right wing noise machine and jumping on the administration is sort of like blaming the victim. However, I really can't begin to describe how disappointing it was to have a cabinet level official of this administration swallow the bullshit coming from this source without making sure that it was valid. The only infernence one can make is that they still feel that there was some validity to the bullshit about ACORN that this asshole fabricated. And that is really discouraging. After all of the evidence indicates that he pulled the same shit in that episode. Furthermore, it reminds of the Wen Ho Lee debacle when Bill Richardson was perfectly happy to throw a DOE employee under the bus to turn down the heat on the so called spy scandal at Los Alamos when it turned out that there was really no evidence that this guy did anything at all. These people are supposed to be managers of people who work for them. How are they expected to motivate them and inspire them when they seem perfectly willing to sacrifice them at least provocation? Now, in Vilsack's defense he seems to be genuinely remorseful, but that doesn't change the fact that he really does have something to be remorseful about.
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Winston Smith
July 22, 2010 2:52 PM
Too bad only the choir watches this.
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goddamncousin
July 22, 2010 2:57 PM in reply to Winston Smith
good god, I know.
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a SC mom
July 22, 2010 2:58 PM in reply to Winston Smith
another "choir" watched -- Little Green Footballers -- and actually agreed with Rachel. the title of this diary is misleading:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2010/7/22/886479/-Little-Green-Footballs-Blames-Rachel-Maddow-In-Ongoing-Scandal
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Dood_2
July 22, 2010 3:20 PM in reply to a SC mom
Yeah agree about the choir bit, but I think Breitbart's carelessness actually laid bare rights new "southern strategy." He made obvious to everyone that which was only known to those who pay attention this. FoxNews wants white people mad and scared about the big bad black people. Their cover has been blown.
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JEP07
July 22, 2010 3:55 PM in reply to Dood_2
...when "the choir" represents the top 10% of the IQ pool, there's an inevitable cultural trickle-down effect, even if the knuckledraggers at the bottom don't get it, so many in between do.
No offense meant UGG....
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goddamncousin
July 22, 2010 2:57 PM
epiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiic
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a SC mom
July 22, 2010 3:03 PM
"the political strategy of terrifying white people about the threat posed by black people" goes back to the 1960s,"
actually -- it was used for Prohibition. read about David Okrent's book, "Last Call: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition":
...The temperance movement may have used these other causes to win support, but banning alcohol in the United States soon proved to be highly unpopular. Mobsters made millions of dollars from illegal alcohol sales. ...
AND:
On the political beliefs shared by a majority of Prohibitionists
"It largely had to do with a xenophobic, largely anti-immigration feeling that arose in the American Middle West, that arose among white, native-born Protestants. It also had a strong racist element to it. Prohibition was a tool that the white South could use to keep down the black population. In fact, they used Prohibition to keep liquor away from black people but not from white people. So you could find a number of ways that people could come into whatever issue they wanted to use and use Prohibition as their tool. The clearest one, probably, was women's suffrage. Oddly, the suffrage movement and the Prohibition movement were almost one and the same — and you found organizations like the Ku Klux Klan supporting women's suffrage because they believed women would vote on behalf of Prohibition."
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=126613316
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EastWest
July 22, 2010 3:34 PM
One thing Rachel didn't explicitly state, but that showed up clearly in many of the Fox "News" clippings she showed, is how often that video clip of the Really Scary Black Men was shown in split screen with a Pretty White Girl. No dog whistles there....
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kunda311
July 22, 2010 3:54 PM
These guys just totally project their sickness onto other people. They are the corrupt, the liars, the ones who try to steal elections - but they accuse others of the exact same things they do.
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Salmo
July 22, 2010 3:58 PM
Rachel actually pulled these punches. Notice the historical bits did not include Lee Atwater's confessions regarding the Bush campaign in '88, not did it include the Rove directed 2000 Bush campaign attack on John McCain's daughter. With a staff as good as hers, Rachel's omissions were deliberate. My guess is that it reflects "direction" by her senior management.
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chameleon
July 22, 2010 4:09 PM in reply to Salmo
Assume much? You don't know diddly about the direction of her senior management. I love how you folks presume or assume to know so goddamned much about what others do witout firsthand knowledge of any of it.
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ericf
July 22, 2010 4:21 PM in reply to Salmo
I suggest two other explanations. One is that time is limited. The other is she was stating that this is an old pattern, but she's focusing on recent months and current conservatives. I suppose that's really one explanation, but unless we find some inside info, that seems a more likely explanation.
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ladyfractal
July 22, 2010 6:35 PM in reply to Salmo
I disagree. Quite honestly, this meme has such a long provenance in this country that Rachel Maddow could have devoted the entirety of her show last night, just to this tactic, just from a historical perspective, and merely glossed over how this has been used repeatedly, confining herself to just the 20th century and would have filled up the entire hour without commercials.
The tragic thing is that FOX will continue to do this, Breitbart will pay no price for this, he'll still be an A-list conservative next year and will probably get a standing ovation for 'exposing racism at the highest levels of the Obama administration' next year at CPAC. What's worse, is that in 18 months when the 2012 campaign is in high swing there'll be another 'incident' like the one in October 2008 when a young white woman was 'assaulted by a black man' who 'carved a B in her face' in order to intimidate her into voting for Obama. It'll be all over RedState and BigGovernment and every other right-wing outlet. FOX will make it their story of the day unless Jesus or dinosaurs return to the Earth (and maybe not even then) and all of the low-information voters, all of the folks who were gleefully looking at this as confirmation of their own bias, every person who accuses non-whites of 'playing the race card' no matter how egregious the offense, will forget that this happened. What they will remember--and what FOX will remind them of--is that 'an Obama official resigned because of racism'. And when it is pointed out to these folks that this isn't how things happened, they will claim that this is just a myth of the 'liberal, lamestream media'. The worst of it, though, is that other media outlets will take up the meme and forget what FOX did with this story, or the ACORN story, or the Black Panthers and treat it like a news organization. They will trot out 'balanced experts' and the message people will walk away with is "some people believe that Breitbart edited the video and that there was more to the speech, other people insist that the video makes it clear that Sherrod was being racist".
They'll continue to get away with it until--I don't know what.
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ejg3
July 22, 2010 4:18 PM
I agree with the argument of Ms Maddow but note that the Scare Em and Snare Em technique in politics is not uique to this country or to racial issues -- religion, country of origin and sexual orientation have also been the focus of scare tactics and we shouldn't forget the Know Nothings ranting against Catholic immigrants or the 1920sh KKK which expanded its racist agenda to add Anti Catholicism and Anti-Semitism.
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Catchpenny
July 22, 2010 4:18 PM
...Well,I just can't wait for R.N.C. chairman Steele to weigh in on this...L.M.A.O. He has set back racial relations with the republicans decades...lol And just out of curiousity,Is it really a good idea to have foreign ownership of a major media outlet? I mean that since the regulations changed some years back regarding "equal time" for opposing views,it seems like things have gotten a bit (Hunter S Thompson)wierd without the laughs,of course...
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JEP07
July 22, 2010 4:39 PM
Just had a deep thought, thought I'd bury it here.
When pondering the hows and where's of it all, the "why" suddenly started swimming around in the brainwash.
And it struck me, the fomenting of racial fear and loathing has a very specific effect; it keeps the middle class and the poor divided.
Think about the civil war. How did those southern gents get those poor southern whites, whom they considered trash, to fight that profane war for them?
They scared them with the same tools Fox News now uses.
So my thought was "Why are they perpetuating these racial divides NOW?
Because if the races were ever unified as a real middle class, the uber-wealthy neocon gobal corp types would never be able to control our democracy. And only by fomenting that fear and loathing can they continue to use those same fearful people full of loathing to retain their stranglehold on government itself, to pass or not pass laws for the benefit of that wealthy class.
If southern whites weren't so weak-minded, they would realize that most blacks are in the same place they are, as far as class goes, anbd we would unify into a very powerful force for democracy.
But the media-owning class has made certain that not only aren't those southern whites (and middle-class whites all across the country for that matter) educated properly, they are spoonfed Foxisms all day long.
If the bigots ever get past their prejudices, the wealthy class will no longer hold the key to controlling government, unless they fix every ballot box in the country (which is never out of the question.)
So to simplify;
Q.WHY do Fox and the rest of the MSM promote racial diviision and fear and loathing in their audience?
A, To protect the political power of the upper class.
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GreenMoon
July 22, 2010 4:39 PM
A very intelligent piece by Rachel, yet again. She did a really good job of connecting Fox dots. I just wish she had a larger audience - her wisdom and research are not being heard by many.
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chameleon
July 23, 2010 8:25 AM in reply to GreenMoon
The people you wish were listening to her wouldn't believe anything she said anyway. Forget about those people - without serious intervention they will never change their minds. The work Rachel does is critical and I'm just glad she has a forum to be heard.
As I have said before, what Rachel does is real journalism. What is done here at TPM and other websites (save a few) is reporting not journalism. Her's is more Edward R. Murrow-esque.
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laborlawyer
July 22, 2010 4:46 PM
In the last few days I've been reminded of concepts I learned decades ago: Class struggle and false consciousness. They explain a lot of what's happening in America right now. Marx didn't have the right answers, but he sure knew the right questions.
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Hank
July 22, 2010 4:52 PM
And, if there's anyone out there with any influence at all in the Obama Administration, it's time to shun FOX news. Give them nothing but silence, do not call on their reporters, allow no one on their network. President Obama could be the second coming of Jesus and still they would try to destroy him.
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laborlawyer
July 22, 2010 5:55 PM in reply to Hank
Not only the Administration, but every liberal/progressive. Every time Alan Colmes, Bob Beckel, Mara Liason, Juan Williams et.al- not to mention Dennis Kusinich- go on the air, it adds a false veneer of respectability. If they want to be the far right's megaphone, let them, but don't legitimize them.
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Phoebe Fay
July 22, 2010 5:22 PM
I saw this last night and felt like applauding when it was over. It's so rare in our instant news world for someone to really approach a topic with perspective. Rachel's the only one I know who does it consistently.
As several people have noted, it really is about using race to keep people divided and scared. Sometime in the '80s, the late Mike Royko wrote a great column about people using racial/ethnic divisions to give a sense of superiority to their pathetic lives. Each of the illustrations he created ended with "I may be (poor, ignorant, etc.), but at least I'm not a (name a minority or ethnic group)." Even members of oppressed groups played the at-least-I'm-not game with other groups.
I've remembered bits of that column for more than 20 years because it helped me understand so much of what went on. Sadly, it could still be written today.
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Signalman
July 23, 2010 10:53 AM in reply to Phoebe Fay
Phoebe Fay, if you could find and post a link to an archival version of that Royko piece, I'd be most grateful. It sounds very much like something I'd enjoy reading and keeping, and I'm sure my wife would be quite interested in it as well.
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Phoebe Fay
July 23, 2010 10:46 PM in reply to Signalman
I haven't been able to find it online. I wish I could. Royko's stuff was inspirational to me when I was studying journalism a lifetime or so ago.
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sherifffruitfly
July 22, 2010 6:31 PM
Unfortunately, Maddow didn't draw the obvious conclusion from her otherwise-stellar piece:
Calling black folks cowards for not stopping a strategy made by white folks, for white folks, is pretty fucking shitty. Digby, etc. should be listening, but I'm sure they're too busy blaming Obama for something else right about now. And forever.
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Godwhacker
July 22, 2010 9:38 PM
Fox News is a joke and a national embarrassment. We should all be ashamed that this is our #1 cable news channel.
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jimson
July 22, 2010 9:47 PM
Wow.
It all fits together.
Unfortunately for the Fox News die-hard, anything Maddow says is lies and "liberal bias", they look at her the same way we look at Glenn Beck, with derision and distrust.
The "scare-white-people" strategy will continue to work as long as corporations like Fox News keep pushing it, like someone pushing a wheel down the road, it just needs a tap every once in a while. It's not going to stop, because there will always be power hungry demagogues around to stir up racial hatred for their own gain.
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BhamGran
July 23, 2010 10:35 AM in reply to jimson
It won't stop until strong pushback overwhelms the demagoguery.
What about a strategy of militant civiity?
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Mark P. Kessinger
July 22, 2010 10:43 PM
This was Rachel Maddow at her finest. And given how high that bar was already, that's saying something!
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ChrisL
July 23, 2010 12:58 PM
This is nothing new, but not just going back to the 1960s -- it goes back to white colonial fears of slave rebellions, re-invigorated by episodes like the Nat Turner rebellion in the 1830s, and again after the Civil War in justification of lynching murders by supposed black rape threats, re-invigorated under Jim Crow by cultural items like Griffiths pro-Klan film "Birth of a Nation," shown in the (Democratic "Progressive") Wilson White House, and later "Gone With the Wind." This is deeply rooted stuff.
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rico5
July 23, 2010 1:05 PM
I come from South Carolina Rachel and if you read V O Keys classic book Southern Politics you will find that race baiting has a long and storied tradition going back well over a century. Pitch Fork Ben Tillman comes to mind as an example from well before R Nixon was a twinkle in his father's eyes.
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BigJim
July 23, 2010 3:18 PM
I am not Obama bashing. I voted for him, I worked as a volunteer on his campaign, I donated money to his fund. I dig President Obama, end of sentence.
However, I don't believe Obama has the steel necessary to confront the divisive issue of race. He is too preoccupied with the possible negative consequences, to chance vindication on principal. He wants to avoid at all costs race defining his tenure. As a strategy fine, but as a tactic unrealistic, in view of the right wing destroy at any cost agenda.
The knee jerk reaction to the Sherrod incident can only come from the top. The proper action should have been administrative leave, followed by a through investigation, which would have taken all of fifteen minutes. Being armed with the truth, he could now denounce the entire anti Obama regime for what it is, and at the same time extend the olive branch. He rather than Sherrod would have been the hapless victim.
Question: Where is the woman that called Sherrod three times demanding her resignation telling her to pull over to the side of the road, and text in your resignation, before the story breaks on the Glan Beck show this evening? Why is she unviable for comment or interview?
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DugFmJamul
July 23, 2010 8:34 PM
Rachel Maddow is a yellow journalist of the highest order and does not have an ethical bone in her lesbian 6 foot body, lies beget lies and she lies with her fellow progressive architects of conjecture!
I Hate Democracy
Restore the Republic and the Constitution to its rightful place in Government
CHEERS...
GOOD NIGHT NOW!
p.s. Due to the volume of lying, emotional and hateful remarks by progressives directed at me, I will no longer reply to any post filled with personal attacks, vulgar language or obscenities.
If you expect a reply from me act nicely!
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Phoebe Fay
July 23, 2010 10:49 PM in reply to DugFmJamul
Then I'll nicely ask you to provide one actual example of Rachel lying. Must involve specifics and facts. Dare you.
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BrightLightsBigCity
July 25, 2010 8:59 AM in reply to DugFmJamul
Specifically, what did Rachael Maddow lie about in her report?
Fox News attracts people who need eye candy and brain candy.
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DugFmJamul
July 25, 2010 4:37 PM in reply to BrightLightsBigCity
This is an outright lie, MSNBC or anyone else for that matter does not and I repeat for further penetration into your thick progressive skulls, DOES NOT have any real physical evidence that Fox News has set an agenda filled with items designed to instill fear among the races.
Rachel's statement is pure opinion and progressive conjecture based on an outright lie.
I win and both of you two losers...lose...like usual.
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BrightLightsBigCity
July 28, 2010 9:01 AM in reply to DugFmJamul
Uh.... NO! Fox News has a Republican bent. Always has. They are the mainstream conservative media in the country along with de facto chairman of the Republican Party, El Rusho. The Republican Party sponsored the Southern Strategy to scare the Southern white society in the 60's and 70's. Go back to 8th Grade history class, dude. Maybe you and 1/2 Governor Palin can "remediate" yourself.
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DugFmJamul
July 28, 2010 10:24 AM in reply to BrightLightsBigCity
You got it wrong, the bent is towards objectivity not republicanism.
MSNBC is so in the back pocket of the Obama Administration and the progressive movement to even to suggest they can be objective is so laughable it makes one cry. Besides the "Folks" have decided which news agency is more objective and void of yellow journalism...FOX NEWS. MSNBC is a sewer filled with yellow journalists claiming to be objective reporters, no one believes them, even progressives know this truth but will never ever admit it to the general public.
Come on you know better, don't you?
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BrightLightsBigCity
July 31, 2010 9:41 PM in reply to DugFmJamul
never responded to the Southern Strategy remark which was in Maddow's presentation and is fact; but, when did Fox News ever let the truth get in its way of reporting? That is all.
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DugFmJamul
July 31, 2010 10:29 PM in reply to BrightLightsBigCity
Because it had nothing to do with Maddow's lie, sober up and get then back to when you thinking clearly.
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BrightLightsBigCity
August 8, 2010 10:25 AM in reply to DugFmJamul
Again, you never responded to Maddow's point or my extension of it concerning Fox's bent for scarc tactics. You seem to have difficulty focusing. Now, go back to sleep.
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DugFmJamul
August 8, 2010 10:36 AM in reply to BrightLightsBigCity
You seem to be rationalizing away Maddow's lie while discrediting Fox News at the same time, living the 'Progressive Lifestyle' is not a common sense way to go thru life.
End your indoctrination by seeing thru MSNBC's propaganda machine.
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BrightLightsBigCity
August 8, 2010 11:05 AM in reply to DugFmJamul
Again a non-response response. I'm going on. Bye.
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DugFmJamul
August 8, 2010 11:56 AM in reply to BrightLightsBigCity
I did respond, but your indoctrinated mind could not fathom the answer.
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riceroni
July 24, 2010 6:12 PM
Once again Dr. Rachel Maddow hit's it out the park and tell it like it is!
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DugFmJamul
July 25, 2010 11:48 PM in reply to riceroni
"Once again Dr. Rachel Maddow hit's it out the park and tell it like it is!"
Then you must approve of MSNBC and Maddow lying about Fox News, correct?
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whiterosebuddy
July 24, 2010 8:38 PM
"Growing up in a culture permeated with prejudice, imbibing it, so to speak, with their milk, millions of white Americans find that Negroes are useful screens to hide themselves from themselves. Repeated studies have shown that Negro hate is, in part, a socially-sanctioned outlet for personal and social anxieties and frustrations. From this standpoint, racism is a flight from the self, a flight from freedom, a flight from the intolerable burdens of being a man in a menacing world."
Lerone Bennet Jr. Ebony magazine 1965
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