I realize this is old news, but while I was “news hopping”, I did happen to catch an interview that Keith Olbermann (MSNBC) had with Janeane Garofalo (comedienne, liberal activist) which I think is worth confronting.
Her words penetrated my soul and are clear in my mind today, “...this is about hating a black man in the White House…this is racism straight up…nothing but a bunch of tea-bagging red necks." Garofalo was referring to the Tax Day Tea Party which took place on April 15, 2009, in which hundreds of thousands of citizens gathered in more than 800 cities to voice their opposition to out-of-control spending at all levels of government.
During this interview, she continued to mock Conservatives; "this is about racism", "these guys hate that a black guy is in the White House", "these people...Fox news loves to foment this anti-intellectualism", "the Conservative movement has now crystallized into the white-power movement", "right wing has….there’s no shortage of the natural resources of ignorance, apathy, hate, and fear”, “who else is FOX talking to, what is it, urban, older white guys and the women who suffer from Stockholm Syndrome.”
Garofalo is a hostage to her own deranged opinions — straight up! I was appalled by this woman’s words and I resented her implication that everyone who disagrees with President Obama is a racist. Equally disturbing was Keith Olbermann (as usual), savoring every moment of this interview. But Countdown with Keith Olbermann is all about bashing Bush, Conservatives, and FOX News anyway!
Even if you did not agree with or take part in the Tax Day Tea Party, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that this assembly had nothing to do with racism. Is Garofalo that ignorant (or is it just hate for the right?) to think that just because people gathered all over the USA to speak out against the massive spending (the bailouts, the stimulus with all the pork, the budget, and more to come) by this current administration, that they are all racist? I realize that there were a few ignorant, ugly racists in some of the Tax Day Tea Party crowds, and I’m sure you will find some in both the Republican and Democratic Parties, but does one bad apple spoil the whole bunch?
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - Dave Nalle
She certainly is remarkably ill-informed and bigoted.
Interesting bit of news came over my screen yesterday. Apparently she's been invited to and may be attending the Dallas July 4th tea party.
I see riots...
Dave
2 - Diane Branch
I'm suprised about Dave's response. This read more like information that was filtered by a personal viewpoint - thus called an Opinion piece in the Blog Critics family rather than a skewed biased bit of propoganda. Riots? Certainly not based on this.
3 - Dave Nalle
Diane, I was referring to what might happen if Garofolo actually shows up at the Dallas Tea Party on the 4th.
And yes, this is an opinion piece, but if you watch the Garofalo video it's hard not to react similarly.
Dave
4 - Christine Lakatos
Yeah, I was extremely offended by Garofalo and I had to tone it down a few times before my submission to Blog Critics. And, If she showed up at a Tea Party, well wouldn't want to be there! LOL Guys
5 - Mr. Dock Ellis
"let's not turn everything into racist commentary- Obama doesn't"
I have to disagree. Much of what Barrack Obama is about is playing the race card. He's very clever about it. He joked about his race on the campaign trail. This allows him to bring it up. Then he implied McCain better not use the race card against him, implying that McCain is a racist just waiting for his chance. McCain said nothing and Obama smeared him anyway.
This man has been using race all along from affirmative action at Columbia and Harvard Law to his mentor Rev. Wright to sandbagging his own grandmother by saying "she's no more racist than the average white person." Come on. And this is a post-racial president? Baloney.
Actions speak louder than words. Repeal affirmative action. That's post-racial.
6 - Jordan Richardson
Janeane Garofalo was pretty good on that one Seinfeld episode, so I guess she does deserve to be taken seriously in the political realm.
I bet Dane Cook has some interesting political thoughts, too.
7 - Christine Lakatos
Hey Jordan, point well taken, however, I think these are opinions of more than just Garofalo. Plus it speaks volumes to the irresponsibility of MSNBC and celebrities that spread such nonsense. You never know who is watching and may believe the BS! Hey by the way I like Dane Cook, he is funny!
8 - Jordan Richardson
If they are the opinions of more than just Garofalo, let's air those out and let's bring that discussion to the forefront and talk about why celebrities are given so much value in the political sphere. This article just seems to continue to promote the idea, giving her words more validity than they deserve.
If MSNBC wants to do that (I like Olbermann and MSNBC, so let's get that out of the way right now), that's their choice. It isn't as though the other networks don't do the same thing, as the spread of misinformation or "nonsense" on FOX is just as astounding and the celebrity worship (Chuck Norris? Chuck Norris?!) is similar, too.
I think Garofalo was trying to be shocking and possibly even trying to be funny. She doesn't appear on these shows because she is well-informed or because she has a degree in political science or whatever. She appears because she's "entertaining" and therefore expected to say or do something "entertaining." That we sit here and ruminate over what she said simply speaks volumes about the desire to follow celebrity in America.
Up in Canada, if hockey players began to talk about Stephen Harper or something, we probably would laugh it off entirely.
9 - Dave Nalle
Garofolo has to get taken a little bit seriously because she has one of the few surviving left-leaning radio talk shows and people do listen to it and they take her at least as seriously as many on the right take Rush Limbaugh, even if they are smaller in number.
With a public platform for her opinions she influences others and presumably speaks for some of them as well, which suggests that this sort of bigotry is more widespread than we'd like to believe.
Dave
10 - El Bicho
Why would you be "delighted and extremely moved that we finally elected an African-American for our President" if you "disagree with President Obama, not because of his skin color, but because of his policies"?
As phrased that makes absolutely no sense.
11 - Dave Nalle
Makes sense to me, EB. We can all embrace the concept of racial diversity in the White House in general. While some of us may feel less sanguine about the policies of this particular administration -- having nothing to do with race.
Dave
12 - El Bicho
btw, love the irony of extolling people in the media for using confusion and division matched with a book by Laura Ingraham, who does just that. Intentional?
13 - Jordan Richardson
Janeane Garofalo still has a radio show, Dave? Last I heard she was off the air in 2006.
14 - Bliffle
The article states:
"I am open-minded and I don’t always agree with my political party, thus I prefer to get the news and political commentaries from both sides (left and rightâ€"Liberal and Conservative). That way, I can form balanced opinions on issues (political or not) of the day."
I'm going to argue against the strategy of reading both leftwing and rightwing sources to try to see The Truth and form your own opinions.
In fact, IMO I think that this strategy is BOUND to lead one into error.
IMO both left and right have vested interests in bashing each other, and thus they ferret out information with which to belabor the other side. Thus we learn a lot about what each dislikes of the other. But we usually (in my experience) learn little about the issues that can inform our own choices. It's anti-liberals vs. anti-conservatives.
Do you suppose that by studying the Arctic and Antarctica that you would learn anything about the temperate zones or the equator? I don't think so.
Right and left commentors WASTE all their time trying to 'one-up' each other, and refute the others argument, thus leaving things more uncertain than before, and the truth more difficult to discern.
Have you ever tried to use Photoshop (or some other such editing program) to correct a distorted picture? This is nigh impossible even with simple color distortion, to say nothing of spatial distortion. Just as "two wrongs do not make a right" so two distortions do not make it right.
And that leads a person down the wrong path in pursuit of Red Herrings: indeed, the Red Herrings were usually created by the commentors.
Even reading adversaries for citations (in those few occasions where provided) is a frustrating experience. Very often they are just political "echo chambers" that the opponents favor. Sometimes they even refute the advocates point!
So, I encourage you to cultivate your own sources, hopefully with accurate and impartial data. Opinions alone are useless, even when you access a universe of opinions.
15 - Dave Nalle
I didn't realize she was off the air, Jordan. Air America as a whole went off the air here some time ago, so I'm not entirely in touch.
IMO she was one of the more listenable people on Air America from my limited exposure, if you could stand her views. Not as boring as Franken or as idiotic as Randi Rhodes.
Dave
16 - Inquisitive
Where is the love?
17 - Christine Lakatos
Dave and Diane, thanks for understanding what I was trying to say in this article. I realized this article would generate some controversial commentary, however, IMO I don't think ALL the news sources (whether right or left), are distorted. And I never stated that they are my ONLY source for gathering information. But I do appreciate your point, Bliffle. Where is the love? LOL
18 - Bliffle
I'll be interested in reading one of your articles when it's not about the latest pissing contest between left and right entertainment stars.
19 - Christine Lakatos
Bliffle, I have one here on Blog Critics in the Sci Tech category that has nothing do with politics, movie stars, and the media. Diets: Hope or Hype?
20 - Fernando Escobar
Is it me or do those BC Posters tilting to the left seem to be fixated and/or more focused on race than the more conservative posters?
21 - Baronius
Fernando - heh. It's not just on BC, either.
By the way, are you new to this site? If so, welcome aboard.
Hello also to Christine. It looks like this is your first Politics article. You and Fernando will find that we're kind-hearted people who merely seek each other's destruction.
22 - Dr Dreadful
Fernando and Baronius:
And yet, what's the declared political viewpoint of this article's author?
23 - Christine Lakatos
Baronius, thanks for the warm welcome, however, not all comments are that warm! All Good though! LOL
Dr. Dreadful: are you asking me, the author of this article?
24 - zingzing
fernando, it's just you. everyone around here seems to be fixated on race. just go see the articles about the new scotus appointment.
christine, decent article, if a bit of hyperbolic frothing over something a little minor. there were, of course, some racists present at the tea-bagging ceremonies. it's a given that racist republicans are going to be some of the most outspoken opponents of obama's policies. (and there were plenty of them to see on television and in print, the ones with placards with "obama=islamofascism" or "hussein=fashionista is lambo turkey" or whatever.)
no one really thinks they were ALL racists, or anywhere near, not even ms. jg. however, they ALL must have flunked history if they think they were mimicking the original tea party in any way. they completely missed the point, or totally screwed it up. silly republicans.
25 - Christine Lakatos
Thanks zingzing, but do you really think the entire article is "deliberate and obvious exaggeration just for an effect"? I don't think it is minor when Conservatives are labeled as racist, but then again I am one of the sensitive types. But maybe I shouldn't be, considering the source-- Stockholm Syndrome??
You may be right about the tea party statement: The Boston Tea Party had to do with the 1773 protest by colonists in Boston against the British government: the resistance to taxation of tea , but I thought is was a party in Boston! LOL