Harvard professor compares Obama to Felix the Cat: black and lucky

ProSense

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Wed Aug-12-09 02:47 PM
Original message

Harvard professor compares Obama to Felix the Cat: black and lucky

Edited on Wed Aug-12-09 02:52 PM by ProSense

Via Krugman:

Are there no editors?

Wow. I was airborne when Niall Ferguson published this:

President Barack Obama reminds me of Felix the Cat. One of the best-loved cartoon characters of the 1920s, Felix was not only black. He was also very, very lucky. And that pretty much sums up the 44th president of the US �

I cannot fathom the state of mind that led Ferguson to think this was a good way to introduce a column; admittedly, it doesn�t really distract from his larger point, since as far as I can tell he doesn�t have one.

But what I really can�t fathom is how any editor could think this was a good thing to appear in the FT�s pages. I occasionally use an unfortunate turn of phrase; when I do, my copy editor politely suggests that I find another. And if it�s borderline, Andy Rosenthal will weigh in. I don�t think anything like this could show up in the Times � certainly not as the lede.

Meanwhile, James Fallows has the best line:

I look forward to Ferguson�s discussing this over a beer with his Harvard colleague Henry Louis Gates.

Update: And he�s a whiner, too.

Edited to add link and remove quotation marks from title.

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Akoto

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Wed Aug-12-09 02:48 PM
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1. Ferguson made Olbermann's Worst Persons last night for this. n/t

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izquierdista

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Wed Aug-12-09 02:50 PM
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2. And the professor

is played by John Bolton.

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BlooInBloo

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Wed Aug-12-09 02:52 PM
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3. Poor, poor downtrodden bigots.

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PretzelWarrior

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Wed Aug-12-09 02:53 PM
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4. Niall Ferguson is like a disposable diaper. White and full of shit.

Yeah....this comparison thing is kind of fun!

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TwilightGardener

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Wed Aug-12-09 02:54 PM
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5. Was this the same dude that did that PBS show extolling the greatness

of Milton Friedman's shock doctrine meddling in Chile, etc.? Not surprised.

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Renaissance Man

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Wed Aug-12-09 02:58 PM
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6. How long?

How long until a DU'er runs in this thread and says that this has nothing to do with racism?

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ksoze

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Wed Aug-12-09 03:00 PM
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7. Felix the Cat compares Harvard professor to Casper the Ghost: white and probably wearing a sheet

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AspenRose

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Wed Aug-12-09 05:03 PM
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8. He's an ass.

That's the same email he sent me after I called him out on his bullshit.

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slampoet

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Wed Aug-12-09 06:07 PM
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9. Felix the Cat? Could he use a newer cartoon, one from after the New Deal?

Edited on Wed Aug-12-09 06:07 PM by slampoet

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