yliza's Comments (528)

“With all the rhetoric flying around about this law, people forget why the law was enacted in the first place. During the Jim Crow era, many crimes were perpetrated against African Americans, but local law enforcement refused to prosecute, thus enabling the perpetrators and ensuring that such acts would continue. The Hate Crimes legislation made those crimes federal, so that the decision to prosecute falls on the federal government instead, thus insuring that prosecutions would actually take place.

State Senator Russell, by trying to opt out of the newly expanded legislation, is expressing a desire to enable crimes against minorities and gays without fear of retribution.”

“Am I the only person who noticed who the Islamic conservatives in Egypt sound like, in their desire to force their own moral values on others?”

“Jimmy Carter was a decent president who was trashed and smeared by the Reagan administration after the 1980 election. Half of what anybody these days knows about him is based more on partisan hackery than actual details of his record. If the Reagan administration hadn't overturned everything he tried to accomplish while in office, including stripping the solar panels off the White House, we might actually be energy independent today.

Although why am I bothering. Grudgingly admitting that the Bush administration was "not good" (try "catastrophic", it's more accurate) just to turn around and say this administration is worse exhibits a viewpoint based more on partisanship than fact. No, I don't agree with everything Obama does, but lord knows what kind of shape we'd be in right now if we still had BushCo in office.”

“They're not the most intelligent, why do you keep saying that? They're the greediest and the most ruthless, but they can be downright stupid. Have you forgotten our 43rd president?”

“Not really. Blackwater/Xe owns more.”

“Some people will grow it, others will just buy it. But legalization could fuel small business ventures..­.small growing operations, who will need to buy growing equipment like lights and nutrients and such...hey­, it's a stimulus in and of itself! Our country is insane for not legalizing marijuana.”

“"Arizona's growth might abruptly end. As a state with an economy significantly dependent on continued population growth, I can't imagine people moving here when other states would be more attractive. If Arizona were to opt out of providing a health safety net for its population, it would also be incentive for many of our residents to leave."

I live in South Carolina, which is another state likely to opt out of the public option. I wonder how many of our legislators even consider what a blow to the local economy that would be. This is what happens when you live in a state where they govern from a position of rigid ideology instead of reality. Oh well, at least no South Carolinian is in danger of getting a government funded abortion, that's what's important, isn't it?”

“I agree with you. Please excuse me for not being inclusive enough in my original post.”

“Newsflash: Those are both racist comments as well. Aren't you aware of anti-French rhetoric that refers to quiche or croissants?

Let me be clear here: this is not the equivalent of the hateful rhetoric that is so obviously racist that it can't be denied, this is the insidious, under-the-radar, dog-whistle kind of thing that goes on far too often and provides cover for people who DO have a truly racist agenda.

We need to be aware of it, because almost everyone can probably think of an instance when we have said or heard something similar and thought nothing of it, or at least not at first. Not every person who commits one of these gaffes is a capital-R Racist (although many are), they are merely expressing something that is so ingrained in our culture that it is nearly invisible. It is looking at a person who is different from the "norm" (ie White male) and defining them by THAT rather than who they actually are. Understanding this goes a long way towards addressing the race issues in this country.

And yes, it applies to more than just ethnic minorities: the same can be said regarding women, gays, transsexuals, anyone who is Different.”

“Watermelon is a tasty food, too, but bringing up watermelon with regard to an African-American is racist because of the historic stereotypical connotation.

And I see your point about my use of the word "bad" in the last paragraph. Remove that word, and the context fits. A minority in the public eye carries the burden of everything done by his or her particular group. Were we truly a color-blind society, a Hispanic male wouldn't immediately evoke the image of tacos any more than a White male would evoke an image of Ted Bundy.”

“The apologists are out in force, I see. You don't get it. Let me explain why it's racist.

When you talk about a Latino "eating tacos", you evokes images of race and, unfortunately, negative stereotypes associated with it. There was simply no reason to inject this into a discussion of a NASCAR driver.

This is why images of watermelons, fried chicken, primates and so on are racist towards African-Americans, and why remarks concerning appearance (and hence attractiveness, as if that's a woman's only function in life) towards powerful women are sexist. By bringing these things into the debate, one muddies the waters with stereotypical images, diverting the discussion from the merits and accomplishments of the individual.

The other reason why such a remark is racist can be explained as follows: Does a White male carry the burden of every bad thing a White male has ever done every second of his life? If that were true, one could not look at a White man without thinking of Charles Manson or Ted Bundy. Why does every minority in the public eye have to carry such a burden? THAT is racism.”

“I've been waiting for this. Every time I hear a pundit say that there are 60 Democratic votes in the senate I think "Lieberman­...nope, only 59".

He needs to be taken behind the woodshed again. The Democratic caucus has a responsibility to do the business of government, and that means bringing bills to a vote. Don't want to vote for the bill? Fine, don't. But if you don't vote for cloture, you're no Dem, you're an obstructionist. Kiss your senate chairmanships goodbye.”

“I gave up flying when getting on a plane began to mean giving up your civil liberties and right to privacy. Now I take the train.”

“Those who have managed to amass great wealth have only been able to do so because of our system of government, which defines and controls the economic system. This has always been the case, even before the massive deregulation over the past 30 years that has profoundly redistributed the wealth of our nation and made so many billionaires.

Before Reagan, those who benefited so much from our system of government were expected to pay something back. These days, they put a mailbox in the Cayman Islands to avoid paying taxes (although, admittedly, congress is starting to crack down on that). It's time for those who reap the most rewards to give something back, and I don't just mean individuals; this should apply to corporations and large businesses as well. It's only fair.”

“Apparently Republicans were never as popular as believed, they always seem to have to cheat to win elections.”

“Back when I was growing up, being an airline pilot was one of those good-paying jobs. Others that existed at the time were: nursing, teaching, construction, manufactur­ing...I could go on. These jobs didn't pay huge salaries but they did pay enough to support a middle class family. In fact, many of my older relatives lifted themselves from poverty to the middle class by becoming nurses. When I was in college in Connecticut, many of my fellow students were children of workers at Electric Boat (a submarine manufacturer in Groton, CT), or Pratt & Whitney (aircraft manufacturer in East Hartford). Also, back then, most families were single-income families in which the wife stayed home with the kids.

Today, few of these jobs pay enough to support a middle-class family by themselves. Most manufacturing jobs don't even exist anymore. As for construction, that requires an investment in our infrastructure that has been sorely lacking in recent years. Nurses are now overworked and underpaid, as are our teachers. Very few families manage to get by on a single income, making it difficult to deal with sick children or other family problems.

The problem is systemic, and deeper than just airline pilots.”

“They didn't win the next election. Bush was appointed by the Supreme Court, remember?”

“Ms Snowe, didn't you say something about History calling when you voted for the Finance committee bill? Well, it's still calling. You can do the right thing, in which case your legacy will reflect that you were on the right side of history, or you can keep doing what you're doing.”

“"The grain" changed in November, 2008. Prior to that, Faux Newz was all about going WITH "the grain". Thus your hypothesis is erroneous on its face. Faux Newz has lately been about inciting outrage over ridiculous non-issues like czars, but where is the coverage of our broken health care system and its effect on the lives of regular American citizens? Ah, yes, I have to go to CNN or the horrible MSNBC to get that.”

“It isn't about getting favorable coverage, it's about Faux Newz spreading misinformation and doing nothing to inform its audience about issues that actually matter. If you read the article you'd see that Rachel Maddow and Ed Schultz haven't been averse to criticizing Obama or his administration when they feel it is justified, yet they are still perceived as part of a News Organization.”

“I remember that case. It started under the Clinton administration. Then Bush was appointed president and it just kind of faded away. Coincidence? I think not.”

“His conscience doesn't allow him to break the law.”

“Thank you for making this point. If there is one thing Obama has done successfully during his term so far, it's been his leadership at the UN meetings. When is the last time any effort towards nuclear disarmament has even been attempted? It's not a trivial acomplishment.”

“We so desperately need campaign finance reform. Aside from leveling the playing field in electoral politics so that it's the message that gets you elected and not how much money you can raise, it would neuter the power of lobbyists to offer financial incentives to sitting representatives. There are other measures that could be taken to reduce the political power of multinational corporate interests, but this would be a good start.”

“I would love to move to Charlotte, or the Research Triangle, or back up North, or anywhere else but here. Unfortunately, I have the same problem many people do: assuming we could find employment in this horrible economy, we have a house that we probably wouldn't be able to sell. The number of foreclosures in our area is ridiculously high.

I'm not complaining (well, okay a little bit), rather I'm trying to point out that many of us are just plain stuck. It would be nice in such a situation to have representatives who work on the behalf of their constituents. Instead, we have ideological fanatics like DeMint and Sanford of the Appalachian Trail.”