Bill O’Reilly has a new scheme for concern-trolling black crime that he apparently thinks will inoculate him from accusations of racism: accuse President Obama, Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Republican Governor Bruce Rauner of “passive racism” for not sending in the national guard to occupy the inner city and sending more African Americans to jail and throwing away the key.
Unfortunately for O’Reilly, it wasn’t hard to see that despite his pretense of caring about victims of black-on-black violence, his real game was ratcheting up hate against his usual targets.
How do we know O’Reilly was only interested in promoting hate and not healing? For one thing, O’Reilly’s prescription was all about punishing Blacks Behaving Badly and not about any kind of real solution:
O’REILLY: It is long past time for a state of emergency to be declared in certain Chicago neighborhoods. It is also long past time for gun-wielding thugs to be punished severely with very long prison terms.
O’Reilly never seems to profile programs that are addressing black crime or its root causes. In fact, when he was invited to visit a black neighborhood to see what measures are being taken, he turned down the opportunity, saying dismissively, “I taught in a poor school. I know what’s going on." That was more than 30 years after O'Reilly's last teaching stint.
Furthermore, O’Reilly has plenty of money and could use his bully pulpit to start some constructive programs instead of just attacking others for not doing enough. For example, last month, Roland Martin challenged O’Reilly to start a Black Youth Summer Jobs program after he complained that so many are unfit for work. If O’Reilly has taken up the challenge, he seems to be keeping it to himself.
Another clue that animosity lay at the heart of O’Reilly’s motivation? His condescending whitesplaining to African Americans and his swipe at many of their icons:
O’REILLY: Finally, a message for folks trapped in bad Chicago neighborhoods: You guys have got to speak out. You have to march, you have to demonstrate and you have to protest. Don’t count on Black Lives Matter or Al Sharpton or Jesse Jackson or even President Obama. They haven’t shown up. They don’t seem to care.
While he was at it, O’Reilly just happened to let it drop that he believes Black Lives Matter, Sharpton, Jackson and Obama are black racists.
O’REILLY: If it were white people gunnin’ ‘em down, you know they’d be in there. If white people were gunnin’ em down, they’d be in there. But it’s black gangs gunnin’ ‘em down.
… My opinion is, they don’t care and because they don’t care, you can slap a passive racism issue on it.
After his Talking Points commentary, O’Reilly debated Kirsten Powers on the subject. She strenuously rejected the notion that it’s racism that has blocked the actions O’Reilly wants taken and she pointed out that the problem is more complicated than his solution would indicate.
But O’Reilly “just knows” his brand of authoritarianism would do the trick.
O’REILLY: If I were the mayor of Chicago, you know this wouldn’t be happening and if I can stop it, they can stop it.
I doubt many people will be fooled by this phony-baloney interest in civil rights.
Though he said most was black he then turn around and implicate that all was black.
No matter the explanations given you wouldn’t understand or don’t want to understand it.
He gave total numbers shot and killed and said the Majority Of The Victims was black.
He then switch the subject and start talking about CRIMES IN BLACK COMMUNITIES.
He didn’t say WHO SHOT THE PEOPLE.
He didn’t say WHAT NUMBERS WAS SHOT BY BLACK PEOPLE.
He didn’t say WHAT NUMBERS WAS SHOT BY GANG MEMBERS OR CRIMINALS.
He didn’t say WHAT NUMBERS WAS SHOT FROM DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.
WHAT NUMBERS WAS ACCIDENTS.
WHAT NUMBERS WAS BY POLICE.
LAST he didn’t say of that number HOW MANY WAS COMMITTED BY OTHER RACIAL GROUPS.
This is how you are lied too and bullshitted to believe A LIE created right before you eyes.
How many of you caught on to how he twisted this story to BLAME IT ALL ON THE BLACK POPULATION?
BY Your comments all of you fell for the LIES and never gave it another thought.
LISTEN WITH AN EDUCATED MIND TO ENSURE YOU’RE NOT LED TO BELIEVE THE LIES THESE PEOPLE ARE DETERMINED TO MAKE AGAINST THE BLACK POPULATION.
Kirsten Powers knows exactly which side her bread is buttered on and she plays her part as dutifully as any Harris Faulkner or Andrea Tantaros. She expresses vaguely liberal viewpoints just often enough for the rubes to feel justified in saying “See, even that rotten misguided liberal bitch knows you go to hell for even thinking about abortion, that Obama is the worst President since Jimmy Softy Carter and that them blacks need to go back to the jungle!!”
It ain’t pretty, but that is the way it is. And it goes from the south side all way to Howard st on the north end. It’s the gang you’re in, not the color of your skin.
It’s so hard to watch her here help bolster FOX News arguments apologizing for police abuse. She accepts the “Ferguson effect” without pointing out Rahm Emmanuel is busy cleaning up police abuse in Chicago:
http://chicago.suntimes.com/opinion/mayor-emanuel-our-next-steps-on-road-to-police-reform/
Which is a major problem I have with this entire encounter. Other than crime stats, Bill offers no facts. Can Kirsten take advantage of this with her own research? Ah, not really. I think she mentions the New York Times once. She’s almost completely unprepared for Bill’s onslaught and gets steamrolled as a result.
There’s no real pushback regarding O’Reilly’s way over the top call for the National Guard to occupy certain black neighborhoods. Kirsten does waffle a tad seemingly questioning it but over and over and over she tells Bill she agrees with him on sending in the National Guard. Seriously?
With all the examples of huge displays of police force using military grade equipment backfiring, how in the bloody h-ll can anyone think National Guard troops lightly or completely untrained in law enforcement is a good idea? Does Bill want riots to justify more race-baiting rants against black culture?
O’Reilly wants to throw the book at violent criminals in Chicago. Is there any indication they don’t? America problaby has the highest rate of incarceration outside of North Korea.
Bill – always the hypocrite – complains his usual targets like Obama don’t visit Chicago to bring attention to the problem. Like this 2015 trip to Chicago where Obama made a speech on this exact topic: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-obama-chicago-gun-violence-met-20151026-story.html.
Whoops, Obama mentioned gun control. No wonder Bill overlooked that one. Kirsten’s defense of our President we’re to assume she voted for: pretty much crickets.
Meanwhile, Bill plays the hypocrite because he refuses to leave the comfortable confines of his FOX studio to make grand speeches on the mean streets of Chicago spewing his right-wing memes. I’m so glad Kirsten pointed this out. But wait, she didn’t.
