Sean Hannity apparently thinks that going on a tear portraying Dr. Ben Carson as a victim of liberal racism will somehow make his own record of bigotry and race-baiting disappear. Or maybe make us forget. But some of us cannot and will not. Sadly, Tavis Smiley either didn’t know or else overlooked it when he appeared on the Hannity show a few nights ago.
Smiley started out strong. As King Conservative Victim Hannity whined that black conservatives “better be prepared to be demonized” by the left (and never mind how Hannity demonizes black liberals), Smiley replied that if he had known Hannity “would go this route, I would have brought my violin.”
Smiley was evidently there to promote a “Latino Nation” event. Which gave Hannity an opportunity to incorrectly rant that the AP stylebook now prefers “undocumented immigrant” to “illegal immigrant.” So I can understand how Smiley would not want to make a fuss. But, though I speak as a white woman, I do not see how anyone can give him a pass on his racial hate mongering. Ever.
Hannity worked himself into a martyr’s lather as he ranted, “If you’re called a ‘house negro,’ I would think you’d be very angry.”
Well, maybe Hannity thinks Smiley would. But Hannity certainly would not if someone said anything like that about a black liberal. How do I know? It has happened repeatedly on his show.
For example: Two guests, one of whom was Donald Trump, accused American blacks of being racist for voting for President Obama.
One Hannity guest accused blacks in Memphis of supporting an African American candidate in a racialized primary because they are “so racist” that they are stuck in the 50’s. Not only did Hannity not challenge that outrageous statement, he refused to allow his other guest to do so.
Even worse, Hannity just a few weeks ago mounted racial attacks on Congressman Keith Ellison, characterizing him as a black “equivalent” of the KKK.
Plus, Hannity has a long history of cozying up to bigots.
And speaking of cozying up to bigots, he’s still palling around with the guy who thanks God for slavery and likens slave ships to flying coach in an airplane: It’s a tough ride. But you’re happy when you get to your desitination.
Instead, Smiley, probably inadvertently, validated Hannity by saying it had happened to him when he criticized President Obama. Smiley went on to make the legitimate point that Dr. Carson must get “ready to take the heat” if he’s going to enter the political arena.
Hannity, of course, didn’t leave it there. He was on a righteous crusade to cast himself as some kind of white, conservative Martin Luther King. “I think it’s really important that this rhetoric end, ” he said with great flourish. Sure he does. Except when it comes from his own side. Or his own mouth.
It’s just a shame that a credible personage like Smiley let him get away with this charade.
Ellen,
Please do not delete the latest comment from the Fox gNOpig Propaganda loving troll.
It is important to show the kind of idiot we are dealing with.
AAP,
I’m leaving all the comments up. But I’m also going to ask you to stop the name calling. It inflames our discussions and brings on more of the same. You make insightful, informed observations and I think they would be more powerful that way, too.
Thanks,
Ellen
All you have done is try and insult three highly educated and accomplished black men – two of whom grew up dirt poor, without providing a shred of evidence that anything they have written is factually incorrect.
I’m sure Kevin, Double nickel and the Faux-Patriot will be thoroughly impressed with your Obummer-quality brilliance.
His response post to me makes very little sense, indulges in name-calling, and simply repeats the same debunked material he previously attempted to present.
I believe he may not have read my post to him, as he did not address any of the points I made to him. But that may never have been his intention. It appears he is simply trying to stir people up.
I’d recommend ignoring such a poster.
The moron trying to head-fake us that he is a Patriot, insulting the memory of all true Patriots, seems to be confusing childish insults with the intelligence and facts that he is lacking.
Here is a black journalist explaining how you commie-libs have screwed his people to the wall since LBJ and continue to do so.
http://townhall.com/columnists/larryelder/2013/04/04/foxs-juan-williams-gets-it-half-right-on-guns-n1556817
Quote:
Economist Walter Williams says that census reports from 1890 to 1940 show that blacks were actually slightly (SET ITAL) more (END ITAL) likely to marry than whites -? therefore their children were slightly more likely than whites to be born into a nuclear, intact family.
Enter President Lyndon Johnson’s “war on poverty.” Johnson established “neighborhood centers,” whose workers went door-to-door, apprising people of their welfare “rights and benefits.” Welfare rolls exploded — increasing 110 percent during one three-year period in the ’60s. Instead of helping the needy, the “war” helped turn the needy into welfare dependents.
How do we know that the well-intentioned but misguided “war on poverty” actually increased welfare dependency? We asked the poor. In 1985, the Los Angeles Times published the findings of a poll that asked both poor and non-poor people the following question: Do young, poor mothers “often” have children to get additional benefits? Most non-poor people (44 percent) said no. But 64 percent of poor respondents agreed that young poor women “often” have children to get additional welfare benefits!
Unquote.
Read these contents and weep for your ignorance:
http://www.federalobserver.com/2011/09/14/blacks-file-class-action-racial-discrimination-suit-against-obama-democrats/
http://newstalkcleveland.com/2413697/black-conservatives-featured-in-rev-c-l-bryants-new-film-runaway-slave/
During the 8 years of Bush the deficits averaged 3.5% of GDP and the unemployment rate averaged 5%. The national debt increased by $4 trillion in 8 years funding 2 wars of liberation. Under Obummer’s 4 years the deficits have averaged over 10% of GDP, the unemployment rate has averaged 9% and the national debt increased by $6 trillion in less than 4 years with both wars winding down.
Wise up.
American Eagle, have you perchance posted here under other identities? On the other hand, don’t answer that. We’ll just get to meet another sock puppet.
Now, regarding your upbeat contribution to this discussion, I find it fascinating that you ignored the specific references in my post to actual left wing websites and programming. I repeat my statement that I have seen no indication of journalists and pundits at Counterpunch and Democracy Now! calling Ben Carson racist names. I’ll even expand that to the Pacifica Radio Network. Since you have provided no response to my statement in that area, I must assume that you’re conceding that point.
As far as MSNBC goes, that’s not so much left as it is liberal Democrat. Please look up the difference between these two modes of thought as it doesn’t help you to conflate them. But I still find it entertaining that you consider MSNBC racist. So you believe that Rachel Maddow is a racist? And Chris Hayes and Lawrence O’Donnell too, right? And you’re spotlighting, of all people, Chris Matthews? Really? I could see someone trying to accuse Al Sharpton of having a history of racial animosity going back 30 years, and I haven’t agreed with a lot of statements, particularly when it’s clear to me he’s just trying to rile up his listeners. But if we’re going to talk about Al Sharpton, then let’s also talk about the multiple racist statements made by right wingers including radio hosts Rush Limbaugh, Don Imus, John & Ken at KFI in Los Angeles, not to mention featured guests on Fox, like Donald Trump and Ed Klein. And let’s not even get into Wayne Allyn Root…
Next, you go off on a tangent and quote a rant by Larry Elder without even identifying him. And in that rant, he’s bringing up a single poll conducted in 1985 as definitive proof of your contention of “what you libs have done to blacks”? And that’s your whole argument? Are you kidding?
Next, you tell another poster that “Obama did not have any qualifications or experience, not even a job in the private sector.” Please present your proof of any of this. Since you will not be able to find it, allow me to point you to, at the least, President Obama’s wikipedia page, wherein you can find an extensive cataloguing of his life and experience, including his years of work in politics in Illinois and in the US Senate, not to mention his private sector work as an attorney working with groups in Illinois. You see, it’s one thing to say that he didn’t have as much political experience as, say, John McCain did as of 2008, and I would agree with that statement. But when you say he didn’t have ANY experience, you immediately debunked your own position. See the difference?
You then repeat the Fox News talking point about how black Americans are somehow “the biggest victims of his policies”. Yeah. Please show how all the current problems happening today are directly the result of the policies of President Obama. Since you will be unable to do so, allow me to remind you that actually, the harsh economic conditions predated Obama’s presidency, and he’s been working against the tide to try to stem them. As you know, he’s been obstructed at every turn by the GOP in Congress, even when they did not have a majority, on the basis that the GOP thought they could somehow prevent him from being re-elected if they just folded their arms and yelled “NO!” in unison to his policies. If you’re going to endorse that approach and then blame the fallout solely on the person you’ve been opposing, that would be what we call “disingenuous.”
Finally, Ben Carson has been applauded for his achievements by people on the left and the right. He has been criticized recently for grandstanding in front of the President and then trying to parlay that into fame on Fox News. He has been appropriately criticized for offensive comments he made on the air. As for this notion that “white and black liberals are trying to dismiss and destroy him”, please provide some proof. Which black liberals or left wingers are trying to destroy Ben Carson and how are they executing this dastardly plan? By calling him out for making offensive comments? By noting that his recent actions have not helped him make his case? Even right wingers are making the same statements, including Dana Perino.
But I think you knew all this before you dangled that line in the water.
I agree it was silly because they have been the biggest victims of his policies.
Dr. Ben Carson is exactly what Dr. King dreamed about, and white and black liberals are trying to dismiss and destroy him instead of using him as an example of what more of them should aspire to.
Just look at the vile comments here by someone head-faking us with the name Average American Patriot. Some patriot.
Here a recent article by a black journalist about what you libs have done to blacks:
http://www.gopusa.com/commentary/2013/04/04/foxs-juan-williams-gets-it-half-right-on-guns/?subscriber=1
Quote:
Enter President Lyndon Johnson’s “war on poverty.” Johnson established “neighborhood centers,” whose workers went door-to-door, apprising people of their welfare “rights and benefits.” Welfare rolls exploded — increasing 110 percent during one three-year period in the ’60s. Instead of helping the needy, the “war” helped turn the needy into welfare dependents.
How do we know that the well-intentioned but misguided “war on poverty” actually increased welfare dependency? We asked the poor. In 1985, the Los Angeles Times published the findings of a poll that asked both poor and non-poor people the following question: Do young, poor mothers “often” have children to get additional benefits? Most non-poor people (44 percent) said no. But 64 percent of poor respondents agreed that young poor women “often” have children to get additional welfare benefits!
Unquote.
I wish Smiley would have brought up that left wing commenters do not make the “Uncle Tom” comments Hannity is alleging – unless Hannity is referring to people commenting angrily in the open response sections of blogs. I’d very much like to see who at Counterpunch or on Democracy Now! referred to Carson as an “Uncle Tom” because I don’t believe that happened. So Hannity is making a straw house argument and he knows it. Smiley could have made a stronger position by forcing Hannity to identify the people saying what he alleged. Smiley didn’t want to do this, clearly. I wish he would have.
What was even more offensive was Hannity’s near-dismissal of Antonio Gonzalez, asking him one back-handed question almost as a way of making a gesture toward the “kids’ table”. (I won’t even get into Hannity mispronouncing the name William Velasquez…) Gonzalez was specifically there to promote the Latino Nation with Smiley but Hannity’s only acknowledgment of it was to demand that they include Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz. Gonzalez was happy to talk about Rubio’s potential contributions but corrected Hannity about Cruz, noting that Cruz is a more inflammatory figure. (Which has been Cruz’ M.O. since he got into office for what will hopefully only be a single term – after which he’ll clearly go for a high-paid commenting post at Fox)