No one's death is cause for celebration, but Jesse Helms's retirement from politics certainly was. My take (2002) on the man who banned people with HIV from entering America (you really had to be a special kind of human being to think of that):
He is often referred to...as "Senator No." Better would be "Senator Zero," as in "zero-sum." Reagan made conservatism credible by showing that it could solve problems. It could make headway against inflation, against economic entropy, against communism, even against "malaise." He believed that dynamic change, kindled by the prodigious energies of entrepreneurs and ordinary people, would produce win-win outcomes: a country that was stronger and also more genuinely compassionate, richer but also fairer.
Then there is Helms. In his world, if homosexuals win, heterosexuals lose. If blacks win, whites lose...
The difference between Reagan and Helms is the difference between a conservatism of hope and a conservatism of resentment. There are, I have little doubt, literally millions of Americans who would be conservatives today if not for the snarling visage of Jesse Helms.
In the fullness of time, history may write that Helms, despite his best efforts, did us a favor by helping discredit homophobia. A pity he degraded conservatism in the process.
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ND30, you link to the New Yorker article on Obama as evidence that he has claimed not to be a politician, but I find no such claim in it. There is the quote from his wife that he is not a politician “first and foremost” but a community organizer, which I hope you realize (A) does not constitute a claim that he is not a politician, and (B) is not a statement by Barack Obama. What the article DOES contain is this 1995 quote from him, which proves my point: “What if a politician were to see his job as that of an organizer, as part teacher and part advocate, one who does not sell voters short but who educates them about the real choices before them? As an elected public official, for instance, I could bring church and community leaders together easier than I could as a community organizer or lawyer.” What’s the matter, ND30, does this more complex conception mess with your either/or brain?
I don’t recall seeing evidence that Obama called Geraldine Ferraro a racist, but she plainly IS a racist, unless every charge of racism ever made against a white person is by definition false and in bad faith, just because you say so. I have had the displeasure of watching Ms. Ferraro in several different interviews, and she practically radiates repulisiveness. Oh, and she’s such a victim! Surrogates on various sides notwithstanding, Obama during the primary season repeatedly exercised restraint in response to the undercurrent of racially based crap that was thrown at him by the Clintons. You won’t admit that, will you? Because once you’ve decided to oppose someone, he must be dreadful in every last respect, without the slightest redeeming quality from head to toe. By contrast, I can find nice things to say about both Hillary Clinton and John McCain.
Correction: It was the New Republic article on Obama by Ryan Lizza to which ND30 linked, not the New Yorker piece. In any case, the Obama quote that I pulled has him referring to himself as a politician–a politician with a new approach, sure, but explicitly a politician nonetheless.
RJR offers: “MM, I have better things to do than spend much more time on you, but a couple of quick points.”
My suggestion is, Richard, go do them because you won’t listen to reason or embrace reality… and that’s ok for you because I see you as selling out our gaybrethern just because you want Democrats elected at any cost.
RJR opines: “But those who relentlessly assert a close friendship with that guy from the Weather Underground must think that they themselves have thousands upon thousands of close friends, based on the thin connection between Obama and that guy. That is nonsense and somewhere in your fevered brain you must know it”
BZZZZZZZZT, wrong again guy. I never said/wrote that, RJR. If you’re going to try to indict people here with baseless charges, try making them at least a tad accurate, ok? Truth seems to be a distant friend of yours these days.
As for you clarifying your position that Rev Wright’s HIV/AIDS ministry has utility for defending Wright as being somehow gay-friendly, well, like with many things proven here of late -with you or DUMP it doesn’t really matter what level of proof is provided, you’re just going to dismiss it as unsatisfactory because you’re intent on selling out our gay brethern and that is vitally needed in order for BarryO to move off “Stagant” and get to “Winning” in the polls. I thought this was the Democrats’ year of years and BarryO was supposed to be 10-15-20 points ahead of GeoBush3?
Nope, RJR, it seems your partisanship is too harsh to penetrate with reason, facts or rationality these days. I’m hoping you’ll improve in being open to debate at some point after November… when your self-inflicted wounds heal a bit.
MM: “…it doesn’t really matter what level of proof is provided, you’re just going to dismiss it as unsatisfactory…”
You have never provided proof. Once again, YOU ARE LYING. How are we supposed to take you seriously when you can’t have an honest discussion. It is impossible to debate someone who has shown time and again that they are sociopathic liars. Sadly, that is the only conclusion one can draw from your comments Matt. You are a liar. You are anti-truth. You are not to be trusted or listened to. Thanks for playing, sorry that you are a horrible person with no ethics or morals.
ND30, you link to the New Yorker article on Obama as evidence that he has claimed not to be a politician, but I find no such claim in it. There is the quote from his wife that he is not a politician “first and foremost” but a community organizer, which I hope you realize (A) does not constitute a claim that he is not a politician, and (B) is not a statement by Barack Obama.
To Matt’s point, it should surprise no one that you were unable to find such a claim when you insist that Michelle Obama saying that her husband is not a politician means that he IS a politician. Up is down, black is white, and Obama is always right, even when he’s wrong.
I don’t recall seeing evidence that Obama called Geraldine Ferraro a racist, but she plainly IS a racist, unless every charge of racism ever made against a white person is by definition false and in bad faith, just because you say so. I have had the displeasure of watching Ms. Ferraro in several different interviews, and she practically radiates repulisiveness.
Of course she does. She holds black people and other minorities accountable for their behavior and qualifications without giving them special consideration based on skin color or minority status. It surprises no one that you would find that repulsive; it runs contrary to the entire Obama campaign mentality and is a refreshing change from the usual Democrat orthodoxy.
Meanwhile, let’s again review Obama’s record. He condemns slumlords while taking hundreds of thousands of dollars from them. He condemns banks while he himself is getting preferential treatment on loans. He condemns greedy overpaid healthcare executives while somehow overlooking the doubling of his hospital administrator’s wife’s salary upon his election. He claims to loathe lobbyists, then surrounds himself with them. He insists on public financing, only to jettison it when that would become inconvenient. He condemns racist attacks while he and his supporters state and insinuate that people who criticize him do so out of racism.
And of course, his supporters like you claim that criticizing any of those is “racially-based crap”.
Thanks NDXXX for calling DUMP on his nonsense.
The simple truth is that we’ve pointed out to DUMP and his BarryO worship clutch that BarryO has not one problem in Rev Wright as a racist, bigot and homophobe but two problems because Rev Wright is only eclipsed by Rev Meeks in his hateful bigtory toward gays.
But that doesn’t matter to DUMP because his buds are charged with delivering the gayvote to Masta BarryO.
Like with others here, we provide credible proof and they clap their hands over their eyes, plug their ears and chant “Say it aint’ so, BarryO” in the Hope that Change will get here soon.
When gay, liberal editors over at GayWired draw attention to Rev Wright trying to “fix” his earlier anti-gay remarks with banner type headlines and DUMP misses it, it’s because he’s still in the padded chant room hoping…
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