• This is a political forum that is non-biased/non-partisan and treats every person's position on topics equally. This debate forum is not aligned to any political party. In today's politics, many ideas are split between and even within all the political parties. Often we find ourselves agreeing on one platform but some topics break our mold. We are here to discuss them in a civil political debate. If this is your first visit to our political forums, be sure to check out the RULES. Registering for debate politics is necessary before posting. Register today to participate - it's free!

The fear of not being racist enough

NWRatCon

Eco**Social Marketeer
DP Veteran
Joined
Mar 6, 2019
Messages
25,766
Reaction score
23,376
Location
PNW
Gender
Male
Political Leaning
Other
There has been a lot of virtual ink spilled about the GOP being in thrall to Trump and its radicalized base. They operate from fear, not principle. The opposition to judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, however, exposed a level of debasement only previously fully displayed at Trump cabinet meetings.

Numerous GOP Senators praised her acumen, qualifications and intellect - even extolling the historic nature of her elevation - then vowed to vote against her. Claims were made that she was "radical" - always devoid of evidence - and "soft on pedophiles", which was not only laughably untrue, but openly hypocritical.

No, what is really driving the opposition is not politics, but good old-fashioned racism, and not the systemic kind. That is not to say all of the Senators in opposition are themselves racist (although some of them hide it poorly), but the fear of being perceived as "not racist enough" for the MAGA-infused "base" of their party.

Rather than standing on principle, or having a cohesive philosophy or coherent, consistent criterial basis for determining "qualification" for a Supreme Court candidate, they fall to pablum and openly disingenuous criticism to cover their fear. It's frankly disgusting and embarrassing. This is what the GOP has devolved to - surrender to the Klan. White flag, white robes; the distinction is immaterial. What is relevant is the whiteness.
 
but the fear of being perceived as "not racist enough" for the MAGA-infused "base" of their party.
An anecdotal example, but I like to follow far right groups online and hang out in their spaces to watch them. About two years ago I managed to get into a private Nazi/fascist telegram chat. I remember some poor regular far right conservative also found their way there and when another member asked him if he was racist and he said "no", he was laughed at by the other members of the chat who the pestered him as to why he wasn't racist. They promptly spammed the usual crime and IQ "statistics".

I think the backslide we are seeing in the GOP started with the culture war. They spent so much time criticizing the Democrats every time they put a minority group in any position of power as "forced diversity", that now they are afraid of looking like they've "folded to the woke mob" themselves.

I think that is why it is so important to be critical of certain rhetoric. Even a non-racist republican has to be against a Black justice for fear of coming off as "too Democrat" for their base. They've walked themselves into an ideological corner with only one direction they can go in. Things have gotten alarmingly worse since even 2016. In the last month it seems like it has become socially acceptable to just be homophobic again.
“The bill that liberals inaccurately call ‘Don’t Say Gay’ would be more accurately described as an Anti-Grooming Bill,” Pushaw wrote Friday on Twitter.

“If you’re against the Anti-Grooming bill, you are probably a groomer or at least you don’t denounce the grooming of 4-8 year old children,”

Just a public statement from the press secretary of one of the largest most influential members of the GOP that draws a comparison between being gay and being a pedophile. Nothing to see here.
 
Last edited:
... In the last month it seems like it has become socially acceptable to just be homophobic again...

And racist. But much longer that just the last few months, IMO.
 
There has been a lot of virtual ink spilled about the GOP being in thrall to Trump and its radicalized base. They operate from fear, not principle. The opposition to judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, however, exposed a level of debasement only previously fully displayed at Trump cabinet meetings.

Numerous GOP Senators praised her acumen, qualifications and intellect - even extolling the historic nature of her elevation - then vowed to vote against her. Claims were made that she was "radical" - always devoid of evidence - and "soft on pedophiles", which was not only laughably untrue, but openly hypocritical.

No, what is really driving the opposition is not politics, but good old-fashioned racism, and not the systemic kind. That is not to say all of the Senators in opposition are themselves racist (although some of them hide it poorly), but the fear of being perceived as "not racist enough" for the MAGA-infused "base" of their party.

Rather than standing on principle, or having a cohesive philosophy or coherent, consistent criterial basis for determining "qualification" for a Supreme Court candidate, they fall to pablum and openly disingenuous criticism to cover their fear. It's frankly disgusting and embarrassing. This is what the GOP has devolved to - surrender to the Klan. White flag, white robes; the distinction is immaterial. What is relevant is the whiteness.
.... Congratulations on meeting ridiculous, hyperbolic accusation in kind?
 
I think the backslide we are seeing in the GOP started with the culture war. They spent so much time criticizing the Democrats every time they put a minority group in any position of power as "forced diversity", that now they are afraid of looking like they've "folded to the woke mob" themselves.
Completely agree.
I think that is why it is so important to be critical of certain rhetoric. Even a non-racist republican has to be against a Black justice for fear of coming off as "too Democrat" for their base.
There is a consistent "branding" effort but the GOP and it has, as you say, backslid in supporting racism under the guise of it being "just politics." It's not any more than Jim Crow and the Klan were "just politics". It does need to be pointed out, or else it is deemed "acceptable" and normalized.
They've walked themselves into an ideological corner with only one direction they can go in. Things have gotten alarmingly worse since even 2016. In the last month it seems like it has become socially acceptable to just be homophobic.

Just a public statement from the press secretary of one of the largest most influential members of the GOP that draws a comparison between being gay and being a pedophile. Nothing to see here.
The horrendous implication of that claim is important to understand and important to call out for what it is.
.... Congratulations on meeting ridiculous, hyperbolic accusation in kind?
Nope. Just being accurate. Sorry, but facts is facts, man.
 
Nope. Just being accurate. Sorry, but facts is facts, man.

No, you seem to be trying to assign the worst possible intent to people you dislike, because it feels good. Respectfully, your argument here is simply the flip side of the "pro pedophilia" hysterics coming out of the drama crowd on the right.
 
No, you seem to be trying to assign the worst possible intent to people you dislike, because it feels good. Respectfully, your argument here is simply the flip side of the "pro pedophilia" hysterics coming out of the drama crowd on the right.
I'm sorry, my friend, but the distinction is so obvious it's hard to take your complaint seriously. But maybe you don't appreciate the distinction, or the point of the thread.

As I noted: That is not to say all of the Senators in opposition are themselves racist (although some of them hide it poorly), but the fear of being perceived as "not racist enough" for the MAGA-infused "base" of their party.

Not everyone is blatantly obvious about it, but if one cannot appreciate the underlying problem, one is likely to be part of the problem. The point, to be as obvious about it as possible, is that those who use the memes of racists as part of their argument are promoting the worst instincts of the truly deplorable.

We're back to the truism that by failing to correct behavior, one is approving it. Do you approve the disgusting behavior of Cruz, Hawley and Graham at the hearings? And don't you dare try to whatabout it. We're only talking about the behavior supporting racism.

Was their behavior reasonable? Who were they trying to perform for?
 
There has been a lot of virtual ink spilled about the GOP being in thrall to Trump and its radicalized base. They operate from fear, not principle. The opposition to judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, however, exposed a level of debasement only previously fully displayed at Trump cabinet meetings.

Numerous GOP Senators praised her acumen, qualifications and intellect - even extolling the historic nature of her elevation - then vowed to vote against her. Claims were made that she was "radical" - always devoid of evidence - and "soft on pedophiles", which was not only laughably untrue, but openly hypocritical.

No, what is really driving the opposition is not politics, but good old-fashioned racism, and not the systemic kind. That is not to say all of the Senators in opposition are themselves racist (although some of them hide it poorly), but the fear of being perceived as "not racist enough" for the MAGA-infused "base" of their party.

Rather than standing on principle, or having a cohesive philosophy or coherent, consistent criterial basis for determining "qualification" for a Supreme Court candidate, they fall to pablum and openly disingenuous criticism to cover their fear. It's frankly disgusting and embarrassing. This is what the GOP has devolved to - surrender to the Klan. White flag, white robes; the distinction is immaterial. What is relevant is the whiteness.

Where was all this whiteness when the first Bush nominated Clarence Thomas? Did it keep the GOP from confirming him? Well, two Republicans voted against him, but most of the antis were Democrats. Guess they just hated Black people.
 
lol

It's like for a second you thought, "hey, wait, that is strange" and then you just plowed on.

The implicit corollary, since you couldn’t figure it out, is that Thomas did get confirmed by over 40 mostly white Republicans. But okay, I’ll be happy to consider that the two anti Thomas Republicans were as racist as the 41 mostly white Dems that showed their enduring allegiance to the Klan in opposing Thomas.
 
If I may, I greatly appreciate the number of intelligent responses within this forum. If racism is to be the topic of discussion, shall we mention the fact that at no time, that I can recall, has anyone ever gained wide spread media attention to the lack of indigenous people involved in politics. Am I to assume that, in general, we are to still see the Native American as too savage to understand the political system to be involved? Or, and I hope this is the truth, we have been so caught up in the side show quality theatrics we now call "political" debate, that we have completely forgotten an entire race?
 
If I may, I greatly appreciate the number of intelligent responses within this forum. If racism is to be the topic of discussion, shall we mention the fact that at no time, that I can recall, has anyone ever gained wide spread media attention to the lack of indigenous people involved in politics. Am I to assume that, in general, we are to still see the Native American as too savage to understand the political system to be involved? Or, and I hope this is the truth, we have been so caught up in the side show quality theatrics we now call "political" debate, that we have completely forgotten an entire race?

You haven't heard about white victims?
 
Yes, I have. Have you heard of the Trail of Tears? When Thomas Jefferson forced the people, that helped him in New Orleans to defeat the British, to abandon the only home they knew so white settlers could have the land for the prospecting of gold that was rumored to be in hidden there? Granted, he was the only president to get the nation out of debt, but we also suffered the greatest depression the nation has ever known.
 
Yes, I have. Have you heard of the Trail of Tears? When Thomas Jefferson forced the people, that helped him in New Orleans to defeat the British, to abandon the only home they knew so white settlers could have the land for the prospecting of gold that was rumored to be in hidden there? Granted, he was the only president to get the nation out of debt, but we also suffered the greatest depression the nation has ever known.
That was Jackson, not Jefferson, but your points are valid, if a bit off topic. On the other hand, that's consistent with the smear campaign against Senator Warren.

When negroes were first emancipated, they preferred to use the term "Colored" to black or negro for self-description (hence the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People). That was because of the negative connotations associated with those terms. Then, that term was coopted by racists to distinguish "white" from any minority, lumping them all into one category.

Then the term African-American became prédominant, expanding to include various hyphenated groups, including Native-American, which had the added advantage of being historically more accurate. But that process of hyphenation led to even more divisions.

That is how the term "person of color" came to the fore, because it was inclusive rather than divisive. The downside, though, is that we get back to the whiteness/non-whiteness divide, which makes it simplistic for the simple mind. That is the mindset that the racist-affiliated play upon when the employ the memes in public conversation.

Racial oppression is a blot on our national history, no doubt, and it is not confined to African Americans, but has been public policy against Native-Americans, Asians and Latinos from various nations. Some here would like to take us back to those "Good ol' days".
 
Last edited:
Here's a related question: when does one go from "pandering" to a "fellow traveler"?
 
There has been a lot of virtual ink spilled about the GOP being in thrall to Trump and its radicalized base. They operate from fear, not principle. The opposition to judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, however, exposed a level of debasement only previously fully displayed at Trump cabinet meetings.

Numerous GOP Senators praised her acumen, qualifications and intellect - even extolling the historic nature of her elevation - then vowed to vote against her. Claims were made that she was "radical" - always devoid of evidence - and "soft on pedophiles", which was not only laughably untrue, but openly hypocritical.

No, what is really driving the opposition is not politics, but good old-fashioned racism, and not the systemic kind. That is not to say all of the Senators in opposition are themselves racist (although some of them hide it poorly), but the fear of being perceived as "not racist enough" for the MAGA-infused "base" of their party.

Rather than standing on principle, or having a cohesive philosophy or coherent, consistent criterial basis for determining "qualification" for a Supreme Court candidate, they fall to pablum and openly disingenuous criticism to cover their fear. It's frankly disgusting and embarrassing. This is what the GOP has devolved to - surrender to the Klan. White flag, white robes; the distinction is immaterial. What is relevant is the whiteness.
the damage done to the nation by Fox and extremist media will ultimately lead to civil war imo.......generation after generation of white working class folks raise their kids to be white supremacists because their parents did......Murdoch created Fox to give these people voice because he knew he could make millions by doing so.......
 
If I may, I greatly appreciate the number of intelligent responses within this forum. If racism is to be the topic of discussion, shall we mention the fact that at no time, that I can recall, has anyone ever gained wide spread media attention to the lack of indigenous people involved in politics. Am I to assume that, in general, we are to still see the Native American as too savage to understand the political system to be involved? Or, and I hope this is the truth, we have been so caught up in the side show quality theatrics we now call "political" debate, that we have completely forgotten an entire race?

Completely forgotten two races. Get that straight. Oh, BTW, indigenous Americans are not categorized as a "race". What are you talking about? Who has forgotten what?
 
If I may, I greatly appreciate the number of intelligent responses within this forum. If racism is to be the topic of discussion, shall we mention the fact that at no time, that I can recall, has anyone ever gained wide spread media attention to the lack of indigenous people involved in politics. Am I to assume that, in general, we are to still see the Native American as too savage to understand the political system to be involved? Or, and I hope this is the truth, we have been so caught up in the side show quality theatrics we now call "political" debate, that we have completely forgotten an entire race?
I don't think that this is entirely accurate anymore:

REP. SHARICE DAVIDS CONGRATULATES REP. DEB HAALAND ON HISTORIC NOMINATION AS SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR

Davids and Haaland were the first two Native Americans to be elected to Congress - in 2018, both Democrats, for some reason...

"I want to congratulate my friend and sister Deb Haaland on her well-deserved and historic nomination for Secretary of the Interior. For the first time in our nation’s history, a Native person will oversee an agency tasked with protecting our federal lands, including the millions of acres of Tribal land, and upholding the federal government’s trust responsibilities to Tribes. I can think of no one more uniquely qualified and prepared to lead the Department of Interior and advise the President, particularly during a crisis that has disproportionately impacted and harmed Native communities."

Naturally, Kansas GOP’s redistricting plan targets Rep. Sharice Davids (The Hill)
 
I’ll be happy to consider that the two anti Thomas Republicans were as racist as the 41 mostly white Dems

1. The Repubs didn't have ideological objections. If there were ideological problems, the other Repubs would have noticed them. So you see we know 100% the Repubs that voted against him were racists. They got no other beef.

2. Repubs were all white?
 
Where was all this whiteness when the first Bush nominated Clarence Thomas? Did it keep the GOP from confirming him? Well, two Republicans voted against him, but most of the antis were Democrats. Guess they just hated Black people.
LOL! Really?

Republican Senators Seem Pretty Fired Up to Get Rid of Some Civil Rights​

https://ballsandstrikes.org › Articles Archive
Mar 23, 2022 — There's so much to unpack here. There's the obvious Justice Thurgood Marshall erasure; Jackson was 21 when Marshall retired from the Court, so ...


 
1. The Repubs didn't have ideological objections. If there were ideological problems, the other Repubs would have noticed them. So you see we know 100% the Repubs that voted against him were racists. They got no other beef.

2. Repubs were all white?

More dodging of the point that the Dems who opposed Thomas must be no less racist than the Republicans who opposed Brown.

The fact that no one has answered this point speaks volumes.
 
LOL! Really?

Republican Senators Seem Pretty Fired Up to Get Rid of Some Civil Rights​

https://ballsandstrikes.org › Articles Archive
Mar 23, 2022 — There's so much to unpack here. There's the obvious Justice Thurgood Marshall erasure; Jackson was 21 when Marshall retired from the Court, so ...



I’m sure the idea of erasure provides you with ideological comfort, but you can’t prove it any more than the OP could prove his assertions.
 
That was Jackson, not Jefferson, but your points are valid, if a bit off topic. On the other hand, that's consistent with the smear campaign against Senator Warren.

When negroes were first emancipated, they preferred to use the term "Colored" to black or negro for self-description (hence the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People). That was because of the negative connotations associated with those terms. Then, that term was coopted by racists to distinguish "white" from any minority, lumping them all into one category.

Then the term African-American became prédominant, expanding to include various hyphenated groups, including Native-American, which had the added advantage of being historically more accurate. But that process of hyphenation led to even more divisions.

That is how the term "person of color" came to the fore, because it was inclusive rather than divisive. The downside, though, is that we get back to the whiteness/non-whiteness divide, which makes it simplistic for the simple mind. That is the mindset that the racist-affiliated play upon when the employ the memes in public conversation.

Racial oppression is a blot on our national history, no doubt, and it is not confined to African Americans, but has been public policy against Native-Americans, Asians and Latinos from various nations. Some here would like to take us back to those "Good ol' days".
Thank you for the correction, I appreciate your attention to detail. I'm afraid that, as a whole, Americans have lost sight of our past. My intention is not to create a new topic. As a nonrez native, I have spent my entire life watching people of various races playing the part of "native" that I can not believe that the genocide of an entire race brings people to arms when we are discussing the wars over seas, but we can neatly forget this country has been consistently built on soil saturated with the blood of a people that only wanted to survive in peace with the colonists that have now become a parasite on the world as a whole. Though, if you feel I am in error, please search for Raphie Mays commentaries on "Indians".
 
Back
Top Bottom