General Discussion

kpete

(71,996 posts) Wed Apr 16, 2014, 10:49 AM Apr 2014

"nice" people can't be racists"

from a comment to TPM re: "Hard To Handle"
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/hard-to-handle

Let me tell you about my grandfather. He was a burly hard-working man with a close black friend that his children considered an uncle. His favorite musician was Louis Armstrong. He cried whenever we left his house to drive home, because he would miss us so. He cooked for three generations almost every Sunday. At least six of the nurses from his the hospital where he died attended his funeral after becoming so attached to him. He was one of the sweetest and toughest men you can imagine.

................................

He was a "kindly old guy," and most of my Republican family would be furious with me for calling him a racist, because he gave food to poor black families, he worked with and hired black men and women. He didn't attack anyone, he wasn't vicious, and I loved him. But just because he didn't firebomb houses doesn't mean he wasn't a racist.

But my grandfather also never published "endless articles taking about mooching black 'animals', impending race wars and embattled whites and not dissimilar stuff about Jews," as you note that Ron Paul did.

Ron Paul may come across as a "kindly older man." But his newsletter gave comfort to and encouraged violent racists all over the country, and he and his supporters should be extremely concerned (I'd say "horrified&quot that he bears some responsibility for this tragedy and others like it. Based on the "ferocious" defensive response, it seems that his supporters are.

(more, from a comment at TPM)
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/thoughts-on-hard-to-handle

7 replies

= new reply since forum marked as read

Highlight:

"nice" people can't be racists" (Original Post) kpete Apr 2014 OP

knr hedda_foil Apr 2014 #1

Being from the South, I know lots of "nice" old people ... dawg Apr 2014 #2

That's the way it's - it's a tribal mentality el_bryanto Apr 2014 #3

The Good Samaritan. dawg Apr 2014 #4

I would agree with that - and there are other examples el_bryanto Apr 2014 #5

Indeed, all the religions I have learned about have something positive to offer. dawg Apr 2014 #6

As we approach the Mid and General elections Hutzpa Apr 2014 #7

hedda_foil

(16,375 posts)

1. knr

Reply to kpete (Original post)

Wed Apr 16, 2014, 11:12 AM

Apr 2014

dawg

(10,624 posts)

2. Being from the South, I know lots of "nice" old people ...

Reply to kpete (Original post)

Wed Apr 16, 2014, 11:24 AM

Apr 2014

who are racist to the bone. Some of them can be so sweet and kind otherwise. It's hard to reconcile. It's like they have somehow compartmentalized people of other races as being something "other" than people.

el_bryanto

(11,804 posts)

3. That's the way it's - it's a tribal mentality

Reply to dawg (Reply #2)

Wed Apr 16, 2014, 11:28 AM

Apr 2014

Only the people who belong to my tribe really count as people, and all of the rules for how I should treat other people (humanely, kindly, charitably) only really apply to my tribe.

Much of the growth of ethics over the centuries has been to enlarge who you consider to be your tribe, until it is everybody.

Bryant

dawg

(10,624 posts)

4. The Good Samaritan.

Reply to el_bryanto (Reply #3)

Wed Apr 16, 2014, 11:45 AM

Apr 2014

Many people miss the point of that story. They think "Samaritan" just means someone who does kind things.

But to the audience Jesus was speaking to, Samaritans were the no-count, rotten, nasty "Other". The Good Samaritan story was one of many attempts good teachers have made throughout history to fight against that ingrained notion of tribalism.

el_bryanto

(11,804 posts)

5. I would agree with that - and there are other examples

Reply to dawg (Reply #4)

Wed Apr 16, 2014, 11:48 AM

Apr 2014

from many different religions and belief systems.

Bryant

dawg

(10,624 posts)

6. Indeed, all the religions I have learned about have something positive to offer.

Reply to el_bryanto (Reply #5)

Wed Apr 16, 2014, 11:58 AM

Apr 2014

I'm Christian, but I also take great inspiration from Buddhist teachings. Judaism and Islam are sister-faith's to mine, and both their teachings are great sources of inspiration and beauty.

Hutzpa

(11,461 posts)

7. As we approach the Mid and General elections

Reply to kpete (Original post)

Wed Apr 16, 2014, 12:21 PM

Apr 2014

be prepared to see these condescending, consolidating and over sympathetic articles to start popping up all over the place. You'll hear
stories of how someone's grand-father who supported racist theory has now seen the light, stories of family members changing their
racist tradition over night with the hope that doing so may help shed some light of leniency to a candidate who is the grand son of Jim
Crow (not relatively, but figuratively) to become the president of America.

No amount of polishing is going to change what Ron Paul wrote about black people, all this is done just so his son can be put into
some kind of favorable position as to being tolerant to other races.

The good news is that this is 2014 and the bad news for them is that that generation of people that gets fooled easily with a dangling
carrot are dying off, so it makes for a good entertainment from some of us watching from the sidelines knowing what the outcome will be
to see a bunch of wasted dollars spent on a candidate, that everyone knows is not going to win a general election except their narrow
minded, tunneled vision handlers.

Hey nothing wrong in making money, right? RIGHT??

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