Excuse Me, But Didn't McCain and Palin Just Say That the Victims of 9/11 Weren't 'Real Americans'?

Some questions about a colleague's work came up yesterday during a business call. We couldn't ask her about them, though. Why? Because she was somewhere between the 95th and 99th tower of the World Trade Center's North Tower on the morning of September 11, 2001.

Sarah Palin says that the 'real America' is in small towns and formerly red states. She says the people in the cities and in the North aren't 'pro-American.' Yet most of the people who lost their lives at the World Trade Center lived in the cities and suburbs.

Not real Americans? The firefighters who sacrificed their lives by going back into a burning building to save lives? Not real Americans? The friends and colleagues who died in pitch black crowded stairwells in some Boschean vision of hell? Or broke a window and jumped from the 101st floor rather than continue to feel their skin grow hotter and hotter?

Not real Americans? The wives and husbands who continue to grieve, the parents who lost sons and daughters, the children whose healing is yet to come?

They're saying that Northern Virginia isn't the real America, either. Joe McCain says it's "communist." Another McCain spokesperson says it's not even the real South.

Nothern Virginia. You know - where the Pentagon is.

---

(See also, "Dear Florida: Five Ways McCain/Palin Will Make Things Worse For Older Americans")

RJ Eskow blogs when he can at:

A Night Light
The Sentinel Effect: Healthcare Blog
Future-While-U-Wait

Comments

[JC1c1]

McCain, Palin and his little campaign advisor, you know real and fake Virginia have the same mentality of Bush, if you arent with us,you are against us. IF you vote for us, you are American, if you dont you are a Fake American.

Senator McCain I know your arent Bush, but you sure do act like him. Heck you even have the same campaign as him. Robocalls anyone?

[polyfoamworkshop]

Now I know the real difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull, it's not the lipstick folks! It's someone pretending to be qualified for the Republican VP spot. She is reckless and incoherently dangerous every time she speaks. It's really just mind boggling when you step back and listen to her. Ms. Palin has said so many thoughtless, insulting, mean spirited and offensive talking points during her short campaign tour. As I look through their 20th century mindset lens, one can only see a bridge to no where.

[alenaspoppa]

I've cracked the code. I always thought that "Republican Base" referred to the people who are registered as Republicans. But in watching the way the McCain/Palin ticket is running, I think it's apt to use base in this sense as well:

base /beɪs/ "adjective
1. morally low; without estimable personal qualities; dishonorable; meanspirited; selfish; cowardly.

[teach80nr]

I had to see the twisted thoughts of this site once an for all. So I check it out and I find that you say Sarah Palin was saying that cities are not "real america". Really? So if I say that someone from Ireland is the real Irish, Does that make me fake Irish? No, it means my values are different and if you compare City values to Small town values they are very different, with small town values very close to the values of our beginnings here in America. Does that makes cities less patriotic? No it does not, I am from NYC, I was around when the towers fell and trust me McCain/Palin did not call them non-americans.

It is also very troubling that you would use 9/11 in a new campaign, not against George W. Bush, for a political agenda. That is very un-american, if I do say so myself.

[alenaspoppa]

You're kidding, right? You're not comparing apples to apples. The correct comparison would be Irish Catholics saying they are real Irish, thereby implying that Irish Protestants are not.

Secondly, the values between rural and urban people are not necessarily so different. Rural Americans love their families; so do urban Americans. Rural Americans want to live in a nice, safe community they can call their own; so do urban Americans. Rural Americans go to church; so do many urban Americans. I could go on and on.

Perhaps you could name some of the small town values that aren't found in the cities?

[alenaspoppa]

Are these the values you and Sarah Palin find so admirable?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/10/21/campaign-trail-antipathy_n_136507.html

[timm0]

You haven't listened to the full audio of her comments. Not that something like understanding facts - "twisted" tho they may be! - should get in the way of your opinion.

Please excuse me, but I'm not going to "trust you" for anything.

[Phaedrusnyc]

Happy to- from a Palin fundraiser in North Carolina on the 16th, as recorded by a pool of reporters and published in the Washington Post:
"We believe that the best of America is not all in Washington, D.C. We believe- we believe that the best of America is in these small towns that we get to visit, and in these wonderful little pockets of what I call the real America, being here with all of you hard working very patriotic, um, very, um, pro-America areas of this great nation."

Palin calls small towns "real America" and "Pro-America." If the definition of "real America" is small towns, than that which is NOT a small town (ie, New York City) is not part of "Real America." QED.

[BobLablah]

Nice logic. I think Cubs fans are "real fans" and "pro-Baseball", so I guess all other fans are not real fans and they're anti-Baseball. I also think Cub fans are the best in the world, so I guess all other fans are bad. Which I guess is true in Philly.

[alenaspoppa]

Um...I think you meant to be sarcastic, but it actually is nice logic. When you say one thing is "the real" this or that, the implication is ALWAYS that the flip side is somehow "less real" or "not real at all."

Are you really this thick-headed?

[CharlesJ]

Thanks RJ for standing up for American. To be honest, I do not believe Palin the damage her words would cause nationally, but she ment what she said. She standing there in front of her supporters, opened her mouth and let the crap spew forth. I remember a while back when Obama was crusified for saying that he understands we are angry, and cling to our guns and religion. Yet very few in the media have the balls, boobs, backbone, spine, guts or what ever to deal with those words. For doing so would drive the McCain numbers down even further and make this a one man race. I ralize what Obama was saying, and that what he said had he thought about it could have been said better. However, having listened to the McCain camp for all these months, I do believe what Palin said was intention, they were trying to shore up their base voters. By making sure they knew that McCain and Palin believe in them and thought they were the real Americans for supporting them. In other words those that do not support the republican party, in particualar the McCain Palin ticket are NOT pro American but more anti American as this is how they want to paint Obama. Thats just my take on it. Thanks again RJ for standing up for American

[yeahriiight]

they have made being american something to be ashamed of.

[BobLablah]

"She says the people in the cities and in the North aren't 'pro-American.'

Could you or one of your readers please provide a link to a newspaper confirming this quote? Or did you just make it up?

[alenaspoppa]

Here's her quote:

"We believe that the best of America is not all in Washington, D.C. We believe...that the best of America is in these small towns that we get to visit, and in these wonderful little pockets of what I call the real America, being here with all of you hard working very patriotic, very pro-America areas of this great nation."

When you have the McCain/Palin team calling these small towns "the real America", referring to northern Virginia as "communist country" (McCain's brother) and calling the rest of Virginia "the real Virginia" as a McCain spokesperson did, it's not difficult to understand the implications. If Obama and Biden were calling New York, Chicago and LA the real America and the best of America, you can bet that people in small towns would understand the implication and be offended by it.

[valkyrie607]

Don't forget, the anti-Americans might also be in Congress, according to Michelle Bachman. She says there should be an investigation and an expose of which members of Congress are anti-American and which are pro-American.

[one4obama]

What, are you too lazy to do a google yourself? Sorry, but if you are THAT lazy, nobody should do your research for you.

[RJ Eskow - Huffpost Blogger]

As your host, I'd be glad to help:

"Palin also made a point of mentioning that she loved to visit the 'pro-America' areas of the country, of which North Carolina is one. No word on which states she views as unpatriotic."

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/10/17/to_avoid_being_depressed_palin.html

"We believe that the best of America is in these small towns that we get to visit, and in these wonderful little pockets of what I call the real America, being here with all of you hard working very patriotic, um, very, um, pro-America areas of this great nation."

http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/10/palin_the_best_of_america_the.php

Next?

[BobLablah]

This is weird, but you are a gracious host. I didn't think you would put up links that prove you're wrong.

The first quote specifically says "No word on which states she views as unpatriotic". I think maybe you just projected that she meant "the North". I think maybe she was talking about Western Pennsylvania, like Jack "There is no question that Western Pennsylvania is racist" Murtha. I hope we can agree that racism is an unpatriotic sentiment.

Again, in the second quote she makes no mention of any specific areas of the country. Can anyone here give me any link to any paper anywhere that quotes Pain saying she doesn't think cities and "the north" are unpatriotic?

.

. Why would you put up links that prove you're worng?

If I say the Cubs have the best fans in America, does that mean Yankee fans aren't good fans?

[haimchaim]

The writing is on the wall..Gov. SP is heading back to Alaska and not be heard from,
till the next hockey tournament her state is holding,in 2009-10..