Political Correctness

These cartoons are compliments of an Ohio friend.  Pattsi Petrie

Gov. Blagojevich is using the surge of violence in Chicago for political reasons.

Blagojevich said the $150 million for his anti-violence initiative, which includes up to 20,000 summer jobs for young people in high-risk communities, isn't an unreasonable amount of money.

"This is an emergency. Children are being shot and killed. And for lawmakers to say we can't do it, that's exactly the reason why there's so much violence out there today and so we're just not gonna take no for an answer," Blagojevich said as he left the youth center surrounded by reporters trying to ask him questions.

Blagojevich's proposal includes spending $30 million to provide summer jobs statewide. He's proposing another $20 million to fund grants for after-school programs and other activities to keep kids off the streets. And he wants to invest $100 million to revitalize neighborhoods, support local businesses that create jobs and help police departments buy equipment, according to his office.

I'm shocked - shocked, I tell you - that anyone would use the deaths of children to push a political agenda.

This was brought up in a separate thread but I thought it may deserve its own.  I've heard a lot of racial nomenclature thrown around lately, the title of the post are just the ones used to describe Barack Obama.  While I'm pretty sure that "African-American" is probably the most accepted term I've seen interviews of black civil rights leaders say that one was even inappropriate for Obama since his ancestry didn't come from slaves.  I've also seen the term used in such an absurdly politically correct way that black Frenchmen were referred to as French African-Americans.

Black seems to be the term that average folks use, regardless of their backgrounds... at least when they don't feel under the microscope of racial tension.  This use of the word seems pretty uncontroversial for this usage as even Merriam-Webster lists it as one of the definitions (it similarly offers a definition of white for racial nomenclature).  This is the term that makes the most sense to me since it doesn't assume that everyone views their genetic characteristics through the prism of national/regional ancestry.

Mulatto is a term, that while generally acceptable seems to be used by conservatives who want to point out that Obama is half-white and/or has little claim to any notion of black heritage.  It strikes me as similar to the term mestizo and rubs me the wrong way personally as I've seen it used as a perjorative.  Something about it just reminds me of the racist mixed blood sentiments of America's past as well as other foreign cultures, the Japanese being the one that stands out in my mind at the moment.

Person of color, while fairly popular these days among many groups (possibly because it's a term that unites all against white people), reallly hits me as a rearranged throwback to colored people.  Given the history of colonial Europe and imperialism by predominately white nations in history to be a fairly useful expression, it just seems inappropriate generally.

I feel pretty comfortable referring to Obama as a black guy, just like I'm comfortable referring to myself as a white guy when the subject of race comes up.  I think it's a bit sad that race comes up so often though.  I'm sure there's some folks out there who want to define Obama by his race as opposed to his positions, but I think that's a far worse throwback to our past..  I think an Obama victory would be a historic moment in our nation's history, finally ending a period of pretty blatant racial similarities of all of our past Presidents.  People who know me closely know, and now all of you, know that I've been tempted to vote for Obama in November just so I can have bragging rights as part of that historic moment.  But I just can't do it.  I disagree with him on fundamental political philosophy, and though in Illinois, which is hands down "Obama country" where a vote to the contrary will probably make a red vote in this blue state even more obviously irrelevant...  I just can't betray my principles like that.

But just so we can get this nonsense out of the way?  What do the rest of you prefer?  My racial nomenclature is fairly adaptable,  I'll use the term that the folks I'm talkikng with prefer as long as it isn't a common perjorative/slur. 

10 Holiday Rules for my family**

**Signature to abide by rules required to enter and partake in the festivities!!

1.  Everyone must check their tiara at the door.  We are not your lowly subjects to pander to your every whim and fancy.  If you want something, get off your butt and go get it yourself!!

2.  No one, not even royalty, may have control of the TV or remote control for more than 30 minutes.  Football is on, for goodness sakes!  We don't care about the damn parade anyway!

3.  If you, your child, or spouse is deemed to be in need of mind-altering drugs as evaluated by me, those will be administered by me personally.  Herbs and bran do not effect behavior and mood--no matter how much you believe it to be true.

4.  If your IQ is below 110 or you don't agree with my religious, political, or educational beliefs, you need to leave now or risk bodily harm.  I don't have the time or patience to explain my big words and sophisticated ideas.

5.  If you are a size 6 or below, you may not whine and complain about how fat and out of shape you are.  If you do open your mouth to utter such nonsense, you will be forcibly fed 6 pieces of cheesecake.  Deal!

6.  Please sleep in your designated sleep area.  If you choose to fall asleep in the common living areas and expect everyone to whisper and tiptoe around you, you will find all of your hair cut off when you wake. 

7.  Do not expect your mother to wash, dry, and fold your clothes or your family's clothes.  This is not the dry cleaners.  Any clothes left on the floor or in wadded up piles in corners will be burned in a sacrificial pyre on the driveway and used to make s'mores.

8.  If you eat the food, you help wash the dishes and clean up.  Eating and then walking away to "watch" the 2 year old will be license for others to put the dirty dishes in your suitcase for you to take home and wash your own damn dishes.

9.  I don't care if you drive 2 miles or 200 miles, you are expected to walk in with 2 side dishes to share.  Make sure it's enough to feed 20 people and portion sizes will not be controlled or enforced.  Most people do not eat the bird food you seem to like, so make sure it has butter, salt, and heavy cream in the ingredients.  Splenda and Olestra will not be tolerated.  Any dishes not up to specs will be put down the garbage disposal.  No questions asked.

10.  DO NOT under ANY circumstances touch the thermostat!!! We are not stick figures that must enshroud ourselves in polar fleece from toes to nose to maintain normal body temperature.  We like to be comfortable and not sit in a sweat box.  Raising the temp. to above 68 degrees will be construed as an act of war and will be dealt with accordingly.  All windows and doors will be flung wide open and everyone will be required to dance around in their underwear.  Think about it.  Do you really want to see me in my grannie panties????  I didn't think so!

________________________________________________

signature, date, blood type, and name of beneficiary are required, should I be forced to kill you.  Your assistance is appreciated but not required.  Thank you for your support!!

Ugh.

This year's Homecoming parade will kick off at 6 p.m. Friday and will follow the same route as in previous years. However, groups making floats for the parade have a new rule to follow: displaying the Chief Illiniwek symbol in any form will not be allowed, said Jillian Kachel, senior in AHS and parade co-chair.

Kachel said groups cannot use the Chief symbol on their floats, signs, costumes, or T-shirts. She still expects the best of the parade's 35 floats to employ some creative design ideas.

This is going to keep getting more and more ridiculous.

Recently the US Military confirmed that it sought to build a "gay bomb".

The theory apparently is that they would drop this hormone bomb on enemy troops to "turn them homosexual", and thereby make them more interested in sex than fighting.

Our tax dollars at work, I guess...

Did anyone hear the call on WDWS this morning about the Boy Scouts that would not be allowed to recite the Pledge at an Urbana Park on Thursday ? The caller said the Urbana Park District said the Pledge would offend some people and the Park District had received some complaints. I tried to call the director of the District and was told she was in meetings all day today but she would return my call tomorrow.  I will post any  updates as I receive them. It's too bad that the Pledge of Allegiance offends some people, But that is the symbol of the United States. More often than not the people that can't stand to see anyone honor the Flag are the same ones that sneak into this country to reap the free health care and other give aways that Uncle Sam has so generously provided.

If an employer can't find anyone to fill a job at the salary he is willing to pay, can he complain that he has no choices? What if he had an employee quit, and he is really poor... hopeless you might say.. no choice. We need legislation to fill such positions. You want the poor guy to lose everything and become homeless?

I propose that we have a law that allow employers to sue individuals who refuse to work for him based on totally irrelevant criteria. The federal government should pay for these lawsuits. Unless these prejudicial individuals can prove that they had a valid reason to refuse the job offer, they should be fined or forced to work for that employer. The burden of proof will be on the person who refused the job to demonstrate that he had a good reason (I know this seems contrary to the whole "innocent until proven guilty" thing.. but this is such an important issue that we can't let that get in the way.)

Think about it... an employer being discriminated against because he is gay, or a person of color, or because he thinks he's a she. Or maybe the applicant simply didn't like the appearance of the office. We've come a long way to end discrimination, but I fear we're stopping only half-way. We need to end discrimination on the side of employees as well. You know, they are so greedy, they will just quit and go to another company if they can make more money. Where's the compassion, the humanity? This law will restore such things to the workplace. We need such laws to control the greed and self-interest all too often found in employees.

Marathon Pundit has a story that has this Marine torqued off.  It seems that the Executive MBA program at the University of Illinois doesn't cotton to veterans.  Good enough to take a bullet for you, but not a class from you, eh? Or good enough to use for advertising, but not diverse enough to mix in. 

Broken promises: How "jarheads" got shunted aside at the University of Illinois: A Marathon Pundit series

"So the idea was a go and a press release announcing the program was sent out on March 3 [2006]. In it, the 110 military scholarships was the big news. No other University in the country had ever done something on this scale for veterans. "

The announcement was made.  A free MBA program, targeted at 110 Illinois veterans.  It was big news, getting national attention.  Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld mentioned it.   Soldiers overseas were signing up and being told they were accepted.

But something happened.

Apparently fearing that there would not be enough funds for the program, University official decided to un-accept them, telling them the program was closed ... except that they continued to recruit civilians for the program.  It seems the point was to recruit from the Middle East, all right, but not Americans serving there.  Teaching Americans involves too much paperwork -- the foreigners pay hard currency.

As an alumnus of the University, I am ashamed, and deeply offended.

[h/t: Moe Lane at Redstate]

Rather than have this seep into every other thread that we have this week, let's use this thread to try and keep it in one place.

If you want to gripe, vent, spew, gloat or celebrate the University's "consensus" decision on Chief Illiniwek, please do so here.  If the letters to the editor have you scrambling to respond, please do so here.

I've waited a couple of days to post this, as to allow my anger to subside a bit.  My self-censored take:

• The "consensus process" was a joke.  There was no consensus - this was a decision made by the NCAA, and no other perspective mattered.
• The way the decision was reached and announced was disappointing.  I don't blame the University for the decision (as their path was dictated to them by the NCAA) but I do blame them for clumsiness of delivery.
• The University and the NCAA have just given official sanction to the idea that those of us who supported the use of Chief Illiniwek are racists, regardless of our reasons for that support.
• I hope that the pro-Chief side handles this decision with class and dignity.  If the tradition was worth keeping because of its honor and dignity, this is not the time to squander it. 
• I also hope that the anti-Chief side will handle this graciously.

Yale University is embarrassed by the man for whom it is named. Boston 1775 says:

The Hartford Courant has reported that Yale University will remove a portrait of early benefactor Elihu Yale (1649-1721) from a meeting room because it “shows the wealthy merchant being waited on by a black man with a silver collar around his neck—an unmistakable symbol of bondage.” The college will hang another of its many portraits of Mr. Yale instead. (It seems there isn’t a big market for them outside New Haven.)

The University of Illinois, which was founded after Emancipation, is no less embarrassed by its symbol, and will retire Chief Illiniwek after the last home game on the men's basketball schedule. As commentator Andy Martin said in October, 2006:

Chief Illiniwek—a student who entertains at football games and dances an Indian dance at half time--and who once embodied the University of Illinois as the emblem on almost every document and artifact—is being phased out in deference to the ultimate God of our era: political correctness.

The College of William & Mary, has a controversy over another symbol, a brass cross that has been present in the Wren Chapel there since 1940. To make the chapel less unappealing to non-Christians, the cross is now available by request, rather than being removed by request. Blandness absolves us from the sin of displaying differences.

Multiculturalism, the notion that all cultures are equally valuable and must be preserved, has been turned into a new form of segregation. We must hide from ourselves any evidence of our differences, while claiming to celebrate them. And above all, we must not offend. By sanitizing symbols, the multiculturalists fight against the very diversity they claim to seek.

In a 1994 article for the Chronicles of Higher Education, Nell Irvin Painter, dealing with what she saw as a double standard for black versus white anti-Semitism, wrote:

I'm not advocating hate-speech codes or calling for protests. I am suggesting that various kinds of insult be taken with the same gravity. It is time that we reaffirmed the values of fellowship and decency by admitting that intolerance -- whether anti-Semitism, racism, or homophobia -- intimidates and injures others. Better to reach out to one another and acknowledge that any hateful invective hurts its intended targets -- and should be subject to quick condemnation. It's time to bury accusations of political correctness.

Yet political correctness is exactly what she advocated. And the "hateful invective" that she at that time decried has now been redefined to include anything another group (or even someone who purports to speak for that group) doesn't like. Raise the spectre of offense, and there is no need to assault to gate; its owners will tear it down and ask forgivness. Nothing is now acceptable but the bland, especially in our symbols.

The world is diverse enough. Mankind is bent on diversity, in dividing into groups and allowing each group to distinguish itself. It is innately human to pursue such distinction, and to be alternately repelled by and fascinated with our differences. Furthermore, the repulsion and fascination are inextricably linked; to suppress one is to quell the other.

The Elis are hiding the offending portrait, the better to pretend that it doesn't describe their origins; the Illini will stand ready for battle with no ancient guide to lead them; and those wishing to pray at William & Mary will have to file some paperwork.

It's a small price to pay for bland.

(Cross-posted at Socrates' Academy, my arrogantly pretentious personal blog)

I wrote the parody which follows in the Spring of 2004, when Al Gore and Al Franken were publicly talking about new media outlets, and just before Al Gore's CurrentTV and Al Franken's Air America were unveiled. I haven't seen CurrentTV, but word on the street about it is good. Air America is in bankrupcy. Not the intellectual bankruptcy it displayed from the beginning, but real bankruptcy. I submit this in the spirit of petty partisanship which has made the blogosphere what it is. Also, like all my more recent efforts, the News-Gazette wouldn't have anything to do with it.

MEMORANDUM

FROM: Albert Gore Chairman of the Board National Nuance Network TO: Al Franken Director of Programming CC: Staff RE: Organizational Meeting

I had a more than pleasant lunch experience today at Krannert, not my typical lunchtime haunt.  If I am out of my office at all over the noon hour it is to get a pizza with my friend Jim Owens.  I believe that is all he can eat. But as usual, I digress.  The Wailin' Jennies performed in the lobby, and they are as good a group of three singing and plucking women as their name is bad.  They are a Canadian "folk" group, for lack of a better word, and I had heard one of their songs on the radio and knew they were likely to be good.  On the other hand, they were a folk group, and Canadian.  That sounded bad.  In a pinch, I knew I could squeeze my eyes shut and recite "Rush is right 98 and half percent of the time" to myself when the  obligatory Bush rant began, but it turns out that despite their intrumental and vocal similarities to the Dixie Chicks, they were far too smart for that.  This is similar to how much smarter Emmy Lou Harris is than her good friend Linda Ronstadt.  Fortunately, you don't have to be smart to be a great artist, and unfortunately, great artists are not always smart.

When Emmy Lou played Krannert she found a way to let the audience know where she stood politically without once insulting the president.  I was reasonably sure where the Jenny's stood without them once mentioning Bush.  They did manage to insult their own western Canada cowboy tradition, which unlike the Dixie Chicks, is insufficiently newsworthy to find its way back home.

Why do some artists crave, in addition to affirmation about their art, affirmation about their politics?  Even a group as dim as the Dixie Chicks must know that no good comes from insulting George Bush in Europe.  It is simply an exercise in ego, an ego already plenty well fed.

Some years ago, the Beach Boys played at the Assembly Hall.  Gerri and I had never seen them so we brought our two youngest.  Mike Love actually insulted the morals of our president, who at that time was one of the Clintons.  It was surprising and a little gratifying to know that an entertainer from California had an opinion similar to mine, but even at the time, I wondered how Mike thought it added to the musical experience.  Well of course it didn't, and like Linda, the Dixie Chicks and Larry the DJ, these kinds of political statements are better left at home.

They need a better name, but the Wailin' Jenny's are worth hearing.  Young, beautiful, talented and smart.

 John

http://www.thewailinjennys.com/home.aspx