Ellington

The MississippiforMcCain Web site is truly acting like a cyber-moron at the moment. We just turned up this general swipe at "another lefty"—who, it turns out, is a guy with radical, inconsistent (at best) views at best who wrote a letter to the Ledger the McCain crowd doesn't like. George Lambus wrote to the Ledger complaining that:

Carroll County in Mississippi has been from its inception a hotbed of Klan activity, now if Sen. John McCain's great-grandfather was once a sheriff there, what does that say? Apples don't fall far from the tree!

So, the McCainians apparently did a Google and found this letter from the same wacko in the JFP, in which he shocked our sensibilities with his lambasting of young, black males, even as he stated that he is himself black. This letter is one of the more notorious that we have ever received here, and even drew a response from our former assistant editor, Natalie Collier, who is black.

The fun part, though, is to watch the Mississippi McCain crowd try to use these whacked-out letters to paint the whole "lefty" crowd (presumably anyone not supporting their geezer).

Listen up, Mississippi Republicans: This kind of illogical, ignorant witchhunt for "lefties," coming from the party that perfected the southern race strategy in Mississippi, is why your party is in trouble with younger generations. This is not real; it is stupid, and it is reminiscent of the "communist" and "liberal" bashing of past years.

Try something new, please.

Previous Comments

ID

117930

Comment

You can't mean that someone actually implied that just because one's ancestors allegedly made a major lapse in judgment, You'd be doomed in the present day? As for extremists... neither side needs them.

Author

Ironghost

Date

2008-04-09T13:23:06-06:00

ID

117931

Comment

I'm not sure I follow your snark this time, Iron? Why don't you just say what you mean? How does your post relate to this? And for God's sake, don't be carting out poor-little-picked-on-white-man routine again that you call on anytime people try to have an intelligent race conversation here. It's a joke, and I can only assume at this point you mean it as such.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2008-04-09T14:05:18-06:00

ID

117932

Comment

Your negative use of the word "geezer" paints a pretty ugly portriat of the JFP.

Author

QB

Date

2008-04-09T14:25:33-06:00

ID

117933

Comment

Isn't that what that pinhead in the article is all but accusing McCain of being just by implying his four-times great-grandfather was the sheriff of a backwards county in darker times? There's no information that I've ever seen which could accuse McCain of being that backward. As for race discussions, I know I'm not wanted in those except as a punching bag for extreme liberals. Don't blame me for that.

Author

Ironghost

Date

2008-04-09T15:21:19-06:00

ID

117934

Comment

Whatever, Fat Harry. You think we're ugly no matter what we say! I don't know if you've noticed, but John McCain is, er, old, and a bit strange-acting on occasion. Guess you would think the JFP was horrifying if we labeled John McCain an "octogenarian" as well. How horribly rude of us to call an old man old. THE HORROR! Do you actually look up words before you pounce?!

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2008-04-09T15:21:43-06:00

ID

117935

Comment

Iron, the point of my post is that the man who wrote those letters acts rather crazy, regardless of what he's writing about. He has slammed not only McCain, but Kamikaze, Peterson, young black men as a whole and a whole list of other people who exactly card-carrying conservatives. There's not a discussion to be had about his comments—unless you or those fools on that blog try to make it sound like all "liberals" or "lefties" (or "communists" or whatever) are saying what he is saying! Let me give you another example that might more sense to you: A blog posts that what a Larry Craig or a Pat Buchanan or the CofCC says is just more proof that all "righties" are the same. Wouldn't think that was very intelligent, would you? Iron, I've never seen you try to participate in a race discussion. You seem to always make fun of them, or start yelping about how all that wasn't your fault. It's kind of hard to take either of those responses seriously enough to even punch you around on them.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2008-04-09T15:28:28-06:00

ID

117936

Comment

Geezer - from www.m-w.com: geezer Main Entry: gee·zer Pronunciation: ˈgē-zər Function: noun Etymology: probably alteration of Scots guiser one in disguise Date: 1885 : a queer, odd, or eccentric person —used especially of elderly men Wikipedia says he's 71: born August 29, 1936. That's elderly. Hey! Iron was born on that date, but much later. Ironic, huh? :) He's been a POW: that could make one odd or eccentric. Sounds like the shoe fits.

Author

Lady Havoc

Date

2008-04-09T15:28:31-06:00

ID

117937

Comment

Funny thing is, I use "geezer" to mean an elderly person who is probably a bit out of touch with modern times. McCain certainly fits that description. But he may well fit this more archaic definition as well.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2008-04-09T15:35:18-06:00

ID

117938

Comment

Well, I didn't want to get technical, but the character of the JFP was maligned. I had to help straighten it out. :)

Author

Lady Havoc

Date

2008-04-09T15:38:41-06:00

ID

117939

Comment

Thanks, Lady. I think your quick trigger finger was great. I wish more people would visit the dictionary on occasion. ;-)

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2008-04-09T15:39:48-06:00

ID

117940

Comment

Going by the dictionary's definition of "geezer", McCain's a queer? Quick, somebody call Hagee and Parsley to tell them about it! (BTW, no harm intended to those who are gay or lesbian. Just seeing the word "queer" to describe a geezer gave me a chuckle)

Author

golden eagle

Date

2008-04-09T15:53:17-06:00

ID

117941

Comment

It does seem eccentric (at BEST) to curse people out on the Senate floor (saying "F you" a la Dick Chaney) or challenge people to fist fights as McCain supposedly has done. Who says elderly white men don't get any breaks? If Obama (or Clinton for that matter) had cursed out fellow congressmen it would be on FIXED news 24/7. With Hillary they'd take the sexist angle as proof that a woman would be too emotional to be president. If it were Obama, it would be proof that he is in fact an angry black man who doesn't need to answer the telephone at 3 a.m. while little white girls are trying to sleep :-).

Author

FreeClif

Date

2008-04-09T16:28:15-06:00

ID

117942

Comment

He is fired up and ready to go?: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-ymHdbd_tU

Author

FreeClif

Date

2008-04-09T16:47:23-06:00

ID

117943

Comment

golden eagle: Thats why I purposely avoided the queer part of the definition. I didn't want to insult our gay and lesbian friends. :)

Author

Lady Havoc

Date

2008-04-09T16:52:40-06:00

ID

117944

Comment

Wow, that's my birthday TOO!! I was born exactly forty years later. I don't know how to feel about that.

Author

Lori G

Date

2008-04-09T17:07:58-06:00

ID

117945

Comment

Can you imagine if Hillary, Romney or Obama were caught using a slur?Do you think the media would never mention it just because they apologized later?: See: "John McCain's racist remark very troubling" published on Thursday, March 2, 2000 By KATIE HONG

Author

FreeClif

Date

2008-04-09T17:10:34-06:00

ID

117946

Comment

Here's the link and beginning of that piece Whitley just mentioned: On his campaign bus recently, Sen. John McCain told reporters, "I hated the gooks. I will hate them as long as I live." Although McCain said he was referring only to his prison guards, there are many reasons why his use of the word "gook" is offensive and alarming. It is offensive because by using a racial epithet that has historically been used to demean all Asians to describe his captors, McCain failed to make a distinction between his torturers and an entire racial group. It is alarming because a major candidate for president publicly used a racial epithet, refused to apologize for doing so and remains a legitimate contender. Contrary to McCain's attempt to narrowly define "gook" to mean only his "sadistic" captors, this term has historically been used to describe all Asians. McCain said that "gook" was the most "polite" term he could find to describe his captors, but because it is simply a pejorative term for Asians, he insulted his captors simply by calling them "Asians" -- a clearly disturbing message. To the Asian American community, the term is akin to the racist word "n!gger." You know, the word "geezer" is too kind for that old goat who can't figure out a better word to call his small group of Asian captors than a racial perjorative used by the nation's worst bigots to refer to all Asians. And it's remarkable that, somehow, Fat Harry is so offended by my saying saying "geezer," but I bet you money he defends McCain's "gooks" epithet. Some things are so predictable that you can't make it up.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2008-04-09T17:19:11-06:00

ID

117947

Comment

And I say this as someone who used to think McCain was pretty cool, and independent minded. But now he is selling out for Republican votes, and so much I didn't know about his own corporate shenanigans and his approach to people he doesn't like that I'm having a hard time finding any respect for him anymore. Sad. I thought he was one of the good ones. Now Chuck Hagel is officially my favorite Republican, present company and Matt Allen excluded, of course.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2008-04-09T17:21:19-06:00

ID

117948

Comment

McCain even seems to have gone off on his wife also. this is another one that if it were one of the lucky guys it would still be on FIX news 24/7 even though it was 15 years ago: http://rawstory.com/news/2008/McCain_temper_boiled_over_in_92_0407.html

Author

FreeClif

Date

2008-04-09T22:27:08-06:00

ID

117949

Comment

I'm not going to let you use McCain's age as an excuse to not support him. And yes, he is an idiot for using that term to describe his captors. This is 2008 and while I would completely hate the guards of the Hanoi Hilton too, a presidential candidate has GOT to watch what he says.

Author

QB

Date

2008-04-10T08:29:31-06:00

ID

117950

Comment

I'm not going to let you use McCain's age as an excuse to not support him Now, isn't that a privileged attitude? Fat Harry, it's not to you to "let" me or anyone else here do, or believe, a damn thing. Where do you get off actually posting those words here as if you have the right to tell us what to think. Get over your damn self, dude. My advice to you is to never say such a thing to me again. McCain's age is not his only drawback, but it is certainly one of them. More importantly is his out-of-touchness, and that can happen at any age.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2008-04-10T09:02:32-06:00

ID

117951

Comment

Not to excuse McCain but he probably used the word gook because that was what the U.S. military used to refer to South East Asian enemy combatants during the Spanish-American War, WWII, Korean War and Vietnam War. The origins of the word is most likely from the U.S. military slang in the Philippines in 1899 but it's origin is still unknown for sure. The U.S. and U.K. militaries have contributed many racial slurs to society over the years. He should not have used the word, but I can see how he would have used it and not meant a racial slur to all Asian.

Author

BubbaT

Date

2008-04-10T09:39:01-06:00

ID

117952

Comment

My grandfather (Korean vet) uses the term "gook" to refer to Asians. I wouldn't put him anywhere NEAR a big red button-if you catch my drift. Its not the term...its the thought behind the term that matters. I give McCain props for all that he did as a veteran, but when I see other people who have served actively in the military (such as Rev. Wright) not receive the same "awe" regarding their service, I get pissed. We cherry pick which veterans we would like to venerate ( and disparage the rest (Kerry, anyone?). Its really ridiculous at this point.

Author

Lori G

Date

2008-04-10T09:56:05-06:00

ID

117953

Comment

Now, isn't that a privileged attitude? Fat Harry, it's not to you to "let" me or anyone else here do, or believe, a damn thing. Where do you get off actually posting those words here as if you have the right to tell us what to think. Get over your damn self, dude. My advice to you is to never say such a thing to me again. Geez, Donna, I'm not telling you what to think. I know better than that! What I'm doing is not backing down from your comments about McCain's age. But since you admit that you consider his age to be a drawback, it's a moot point now. I believe it was Reagan who said he didn't want his candidate's young age and lack of experience to be a factor in the election. Lori, it's not just the fact that he was a veteran. It was the fact that he was a POW for 5 years in a horrible prison, and turned down early release (due to his family connections) because his buddies wouldn't have been released either.

Author

QB

Date

2008-04-10T10:30:13-06:00

ID

117954

Comment

The point, Fat Harry, is that language like you're using is the very thing that makes the non-white-men among you think you guys actually believe it's up to you what we think. "Let"? Come on. I don't converse with people who have so little respect for other viewpoints that they say stuff like that. It's a conversation stopper. The POW stuff is admirable, but it doesn't mean he is qualified to be president. The "gooks" thing alone shows how out of touch he is with American attitudes. Obviously, McCain's age is a drawback. So was Reagan's, frankly, but he talked a better game than McCain is doing now. Oh let me guess: You're not going to "let" me criticize Reagan, either.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2008-04-10T10:39:57-06:00

ID

117955

Comment

Roll your eyes all you want. It's pointless to have a political discussion with you because of your thin skin. Not everyone is a boogeyman, out to use horrible words like "let" to impose their version of the White Power Structure on minorities and women.

Author

QB

Date

2008-04-10T12:34:36-06:00

ID

117956

Comment

Well, that's a predictable response. Tell someone you're not going to "let" them criticize your choice for president, and then lash out again when you're called out on it. Congratulations on your originality. It doesn't take thin skin to call out something so blatant, dude. In fact, it takes thick skin to dodge you boyz who want to control the conversation all the time by telling the rest of us what you'll "let" us say or think. The bottom line is: Your opinion isn't worth more than any other person's here. I know that can be hard to take. Meantime, I don't remember any effort here by you to have a political discussion. It's usually drive-by insults that amount to people who don't agree with you sucking—you know, like this one that sent us on this tangent in the first place: Your negative use of the word "geezer" paints a pretty ugly portriat of the JFP.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2008-04-10T12:46:37-06:00

ID

117957

Comment

Lori G- People tend to honor the "warriors" and not the ordinary soldier. McCain was a "warrior", military family, decorated for bravery, POW..etc. Kerry was a "reluctant warrior", in his own book he said "I didn't really want to get involved in the war, When I signed up for the swift boats, they had very little to do with the war. They were engaged in coastal patrolling and that's what I thought I was going to be doing." "However, his second choice of billet was on a river patrol boat, or "PBR", which at the time was serving a more dangerous duty on the rivers of Vietnam. He proved to be a warrior and was decorated for bravery. Rev. Wright- I had no idea who he was a month ago and didn't know he was even in the military till you mentioned it. He was a Marines, was a Navy Corpsman ,then joined the Navy and served on Pres. Johnson's medical team, the White House awarded Wright three letters of commendation, but he was not a "warrior". Even though he did serve his country honorably his service is not noticed anymore than a truck driver at a Army base in Kansas.

Author

BubbaT

Date

2008-04-10T16:21:06-06:00

ID

117958

Comment

Lori G- People tend to honor the "warriors" and not the ordinary soldier That's a very sad statement. I assume you're not condoning this habit? Think of how many "ordinary soldiers" die in our wars.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2008-04-10T16:28:38-06:00

ID

117959

Comment

No I'm not condoning this habit. It takes all the truck drivers, cooks, medics, clecks..etc for an army to work and to give the "warriors" the equipment they need to be heros. It's a sad statement but I think a mostly true statement, you never read in history books or hear on the news about ordinary soldiers just the "warriors". Anyone who has served in a war should be honored.

Author

BubbaT

Date

2008-04-10T17:08:35-06:00

ID

117960

Comment

BubbaT-My grandfather was in Korea (as I mentioned). During this war he received three Purple Hearts because he carried two of his friends out of the battle field on his back...one of them was dead. He carried the dead one because, as he held his hand and watched him die, he promised his friend he wouldn't let him die there-alone. And, he did all this with a cracked skull. A cracked skull he received the day previously by being at the receiving end of a rifle butt. He wrapped his head up with bandage and told his CO he was "fine" and headed back to defend his friends. My grandfather was a "warrior" and nobody knows his name. He's also 76 years old, only five years older than McCain...and I wouldn't let him run a kindegarten class because of all his traumatic issues. McCain's use of the word "gook" proves to me he hasn't yet worked through all his "traumatic" issues. Picking and choosing the service men you wish to "honor" and bestow with the word "warrior" is a slippery slope. And, you offend ME by assuming that I don't know the difference or don't understand service to your country. I would say "screw you", but it might be against the user agreement.

Author

Lori G

Date

2008-04-10T19:17:03-06:00

ID

117961

Comment

Why are you offended by what I said, You said "We cherry pick which veterans we would like to venerate" all I did was state that through out history that the "warriors" tend to be more talked about than the ordinay soldiers, that's why some are venerated more than others,I made no assumations about what you know or don't know. It's been that way since cavemen drew pictures on cave wall. I would agree your grandfather is a "warrior" If you go back and read my post I said "Anyone who has served in a war should be honored. "

Author

BubbaT

Date

2008-04-10T21:36:11-06:00

ID

117962

Comment

I am with you Lori G. My father also fought in Korea. He was in one of the first "integrated" units. He witnessed so called "friendly" fire between soldiers of different ethnicities (that is putting it mildly). He saw heavy combat. He is four years older than McCain. He received three bronze stars for combat related heroism; however he still suffers from PTSD type symptoms such as a quick temper and sleep disruptions. He is still upset about discrimination that he witnessed and experienced. He still has trouble even talking about the war. I would feel better with someone between him and the proverbial red button. do we want someone still suffering war-related stress with a hair trigger temper in that spot?

Author

FreeClif

Date

2008-04-11T09:03:44-06:00