Jimmy Carter was right. It was bound to happen. The combination of the weak economy, the Internet, and the election of Barack Obama as America's first African American president have come together to cause the Republican party and Conservatives to be influenced by white supremacists and white nationalists. I call them the "Confederate-flag-waving conservatives."
(And I don't for one minute think that black nationalists – or Asian nationalists or Latino nationalist or Whatever nationalists - are any more tolerable and certainly just as insane as those who happen to be white nationalists. The operative word for me is "yuck.")
Unlike their ilk of decades past, these racist activists don't always have sheets over their heads, or KKK t-shirts, or even salute Hitler (those guys are jailed). Yes, they do yell, most of the time. Yes, some of them fly the Confederate Flag from the back of their pickups driving through shopping center parking lots.
Look, for those who need a history lesson, the Confederate Flag is a historic symbol of the support of black slavery. OK?
(And for the record, Rep. Joe Wilson, who's "You Lie!" comment to President Obama set off a new conversation on race and politics, did argue for the right to fly the confederate flag, in fact, in 2000 he said "the Confederate heritage is very honorable" and he has not taken back his statements. Rep. Joe Wilson should clarify them; it's possible to fly the flag and not be racist, but that's a rare breed of person from my personal experience.)
Yes, they do include "birthers", tea-baggers, and wingnut fringe types, but not Alan Keyes because even though he's conservative, to those folks he's just another black guy who they don't take seriously.
I can't believe 21st century America has people like that on its shores, but they walk among us. They're the people who send emails of watermelons planted at the White House. The ones who place "black face" photos of President Obama in the succession of pictures of presidents. The sad sacks who make doctored pictures of Obama as a spear-carrying witch doctor. The radio talk show hosts who commonly use unfavorable stories involving blacks to insight white anger. And those who say anyone who accuses them of being racist, is racist; thinking that old trick's going to curb scrutiny of their actions.
The Top-10 dumb lines of Confederate-flag-waving conservatives
These types aren't policy wonks and act more like the cyborgs called "The Borg" in Star Trek TNG. It doesn't matter where I go: an airplane or on the street for that matter, I hear the same line from Confederate-flag-waving conservatives again and again when politics is the subject (maybe this is you). The Top-10 dumb lines of Confederate-flag-waving conservatives:
1.First, I'm a Conservative. (I didn't ask.)
2.I believe in small government (I didn't ask that either, but the idea's batcrap stupid. Government is more than the federal level – its federal, state, and local and of a size that reflects our democracy.)
3.We're in trouble because the wrong people got housing loans. (This sends me through the roof. Who the heck's the "wrong person" and why are you the right one? And do you realize that without a job a person can't pay any kind of loan? So what is the problem then, Huh? Huh? Huh? Duh!)
4.Illegal aliens are taking over America. (First, I didn't ask that either. Second, which ones? The Latinos you're thinking of or the sexy blonde Irish waitress you hit on? When I ask that the answers is always silence because the person never stopped to think that people comes from all parts of the World to be American, and well, it's OK to be a pretty blonde Irish waitress and an illegal alien. )
5.Obama's socialist. (I didn't ask that either. Plus, when I explain how much government's a part of our lives, I get silence on that too. What's really annoying is these so-called conservatives – but are really political racists – show how little they understand about their own country's political economy. It's tragically silly and almost as bad as the percentage of young people surveyed in Oklahoma who don't know who our first president was.)
6.Obama's not American. (I didn't ask that either and by this time you've either driven me to drink scotch-on-the-rocks if I'm on a plane or looking for a way to escape your company if I can.)
7.Rush Limbaugh, Lou Dobbs and Glenn Beck are right. (About what? Again, I really didn't ask and have presented my views in my videos. I hate repeating myself. Plus, by this time, I'm so enjoying the scotch with my salmon-spinach-and-rice dinner I'll listen to anything, even you.)
8.There are "good black people" like Colin Powell. (Again, I didn't ask and if I'm on a plane, I'm asleep by this point, accept to mutter that Powell endorsed Obama for President. The assumption is that every white person is good, but one has to find a good black person. Plus, this is said to a good black person. Me. As I'm trying to sleep. With the scotch and food putting me under.)
9.Asians are the model minority. (I really didn't ask and didn't realize I was on earth to be in a "model minority" contest. Let me sleep.)
10.The "Jews" have our money. (Now, I'm asleep and really pissed off with you for four reasons: the comment, your interruption of my sleep, the fact that my last name is Jewish, and that I've dated a few Jewish women. And that comment was actually said to me and posted on my Facebook page.)
The simple fact that I can list a common line of thinking from these conservative Confederate-flag-waving types is proof that America's school system is in the crapper and has been for some time. What in the world were they learning in school? How to get high? Such a constant, unwavering, thoughtless, uninformed, and race-based view is an attack on intelligent, detailed, critical thinking.
If Confederate-flag-waving conservatives are out of work, that stokes the fire which hardens their views. Right now, some of these folks are so far gone – so "mental" – I doubt they can be reasoned with. They must have someone to hate – someone who doesn't look like them. Our ever-more-well-integrated America gives them a lot of choices of color.
What's the future with these hate-mongers? Well, there's not a lot of them, so that's a good thing. It's just that Fox News does a good job of making them seem like a lot more people than the thousands that have time to dump good hard earned tea they bought with your tax dollars because so many of them are drawing unemployment! .
And on that, Fox News is becoming "wingnut central" for America. Having met some of the Fox News anchors, I know its all an act as they're cool, sane, and urbane, but sadly they've figured out that the Confederate-flag-waving conservatives provide ratings and entertainment for America. People who know Fox News is, well, off, tune in anyway just to witness the next level of craziness, then whine about it. I've not watched Fox News in about a year. I'm not missing a funny moment I can't see on YouTube.
The only hope we have is to get this economy moving. Got that President Obama? We need to produce millions of good manufacturing jobs for low-skilled workers, and give a $5,000 check to every American worker under $100,000 in income – I call it the taxpayer bailout.
That will get everyone, especially the Confederate-flag-waving conservatives, back to work. And you know, maybe when they're in those nice, integrated work places they'll slowly dump that racist mental garbage they accumulated over the years and actually think for a change.
Time will tell.
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