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“The languages used by the astonishingly diverse cast include Spanish, Berber, Japanese, sign language and English. The misunderstandings multiply accordingly, though they tend to be most acute between husbands and wives or parents and children, rather th
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“The cantankerous supermodel Naomi Campbell was, as you know, arrested in London for assault on her drug counselor…Now she has decided to let it all hang out on Oprah! Well, who doesn’t? Jump on a couch, adopt a child, harangue the help, Oprah is there
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“sometimes hearing white politicians — yes, white politicians — accuse blacks of pulling out race in a situation where whites were the original perpetrators really chaps my ass. Snow is a Grade A quaint douchebag. End of story…”
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“Records the Freedmen’s Bureau used to reconnect families — from battered work contracts to bank forms — will be placed online in part of a new project linking modern-day blacks with their ancestors.”
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Thanks Deb! On ‘ghetto’ parties: “white people find pleasure in insulting non-white people while at the same time safely “slumming” for cheap thrills in that non-white world, all the time oblivious to the moral and political implications.”
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“Black high school graduates earned $23,498 compared to $25,823 earned by Hispanics, $28,289 earned by Asians and $30,197 earned by Whites. Blacks with bachelor’s degrees earned $42,342 while Whites earned $53,411, Asians earned $47,912 and Hispanics ea
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“She also said that none of David’s extended family had visited him at the orphanage during his entire stay there…Notice she used the word “extended,” though, and that David’s father is immediate, not extended, family.”
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“In San Francisco, father and son Rene and Rio Yañez co-curate a multi-cultural interpretation of the tradition. Their exhibit is called ‘The Light of the Heart for the Shadow of the Soul.” Independent producer Robynn Takayama shows us how this Day of th
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“while the two groups of strivers may gravitate toward each other because of cultural and language similarities, their intersection can also be fraught with odd tensions and broken expectations, say researchers, employers and workers.”
Carmen Van Kerckhove is co-founder and president of
IkoIko wrote:
So Tony Snow is a therapeutic stream of water or air that cleansed the “body politic”? Leaving aside for a moment, that Snow isn’t a politician (though he is “white” as the driven snow, granted), is this the best insight, commentary, and analysis that people of color can come up with? Or was that even the point in the first place? No wonder we don’t show up more on MSM…
I hate to break the news, but until things change, there are going to be a lot of “white” politicians, (whatever that means). But, their “whiteness” doesn’t determine their badness or weakness when it comes to race, any more than a “politician of color’s” background will determine their power, longevity, or effectiveness on racial issues when in office– assuming “racial issues” even factors into their platform or agenda.
Look, I saw the show, and read the full transcript from the 10/25/06 5pm “Hardball” show (not the other edition) is on the MSNBC site:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15414353/
TheThink didn’t mention that Rep. Ford was interviewed by Norah O’Donnell (a white pundit) live at the University of Tennessee just before Matthews (the white host) interviewed Tony Snow (said feminine cleansing product), so Snow would have had a chance to listen in on Ford’s comments.
***SPOILER ALERT***
Regarding the ad, Matthews began by framing the question as an ad, by an independent group within the RNC, in which the RNC approves the content. and asked if Snow approved the content. Snow then said “I haven‘t actually seen the ad. I have heard a lot about it.” That’s your first clue right there, and should have been enough of a tip off.
In public affairs, a person hiding something instinctively says, “I think…”, while an innocent person instinctively says, “I believe” or “I know”. Watch a talking head next time…
The real crime? That Matthews fell for Snow’s real goal (which you also missed out on) by playing not only the offending segment, but the whole damn spot for the *second* time on his show!– just for Tony’s “benefit”.
They knew the clip had already been played once, and managed to get it played once more! Stop getting so hung up on the “denials”.
Geebus of course Snow et al. know what they’re doing!!! Every time you buy into attacking the denial, you’re forcing more attention on the ad itself.
So the RNC got what it wanted yet again, and the ad pays for itself way past what it was supposed to do. Get it now?
The questioning then shifted to Matthews hitting Snow three times with the “are Republicans trying to make Ford’s race *and* private life a campaign issue”.
As icky as it was, Snow then did a solid deflection using combination of the following points: (1) That’s for the RNC to say not me; (2) Ford is a big boy and should be able to handle himself when any attacks are thrown his way, just like Corker does, but those attacks aren’t coming from the GOP; and (3) this should be a race run on issues not innuendo.
So whose/which “racial cavity” is Tony Snow cleaning now?
Get angry, be mad, point fingers, denounce all things “political and white” by all means.
Definitely vilify this ad, maybe boycott the stations running it. But don’t fall for the GOP’s game by focusing on all the “denials” on just the Harold Ford campaign. That’s what *they* want you to do, and it truly is a “tar baby” waiting to happen (and I’m not afraid to use the term btw).
Ford finally picked up on it this week and let it go. Voters are smart enough to see through it too, I know it.
Joe Conason’s 10/27/06 piece in Salon still nails all this better than I could ever say. Definitely worth the read if you have time. Pure history, no conspiracy:
http://www.salon.com/opinion/conason/2006/10/27/rnc_ad/
FWIW: Carmen made this point earlier, but Ford made his own background an issue the minute *he* introduced into the campaign in such a tentative manner. The GOP didn’t have to do a thing. My $0.02 again: If Ford had been more upfront about it, the GOP would’ve had no choice but to leave it alone.
Ford’s other mistake: as a conservative Southern Democrat and African-American, he chose to run on a “values” platform. You’re picking a fight with the GOP by doing so, because they consider that their turf, so they will do everything to poke holes in your character. Your personal life, your family, etc.
It may be messy, but it’s “fair game”. He does not deserve the racist crap slung his way, but he can’t crawl and hide from it either. He’s facing it much better than before, and win or lose, he’s run a strong mature campaign.
Posted 29 Oct 2006 at 4:28 am ¶
Gandalf Mantooth wrote:
IKO
On what planet are you living that the Ford campaign brought the ad upon the candidate by bringing up his race as an issue (we can only assume you’re talking about the flap over his grandmother)? Everyone knew that the GOP was going to find some way to exploit the issue at some point in the campaign, and the Ford campaign was well prepared with the short “kicking the dog” ad.
On Babel I suggest folks take other reviews into account, like the one running in the Voice this week. I can’t celebrate this films Crash lite view of “multiculturalism,” especially in view of their trotting out of the West’ s tired obsession with the sexuality of young Japanese women.
Posted 30 Oct 2006 at 4:46 pm ¶
IkoIko wrote:
Gandalf: Rattle your sabre in the right direction. I said twice without hesitation that Ford has clumsily introduced his own race as a factor in the overall campaign vis-a-vis his family and his own background. I did not suggest that he “invited” the racist ad or smear campaign thrust upon him– no one does. I literally said as much in the paragraphs preceding said postscript. Ambiguity and reluctance, once one introduces the public to “meet” or “investigate” “my family” always leads to trouble for any candidate– especially a person of color.
As I’ve said before, ads be damned, just say up front who and what you are and go from there, especially if you’re running in the South, and you’re the most conservative member of the Congressional Black Caucus…
And you don’t want to know what “planet” I’m from…
Posted 30 Oct 2006 at 8:56 pm ¶
Gandalf Mantooth wrote:
I said twice without hesitation that Ford has clumsily introduced his own race as a factor in the overall campaign vis-a-vis his family and his own background.
By which you imply that he brought it on himself. In what other way could one possibly parse the admonition?
How does one ambiguously and reluctantly be a POC in public? You suggesting he shaded being Black?
Posted 31 Oct 2006 at 2:34 am ¶