[OAW]

A freshman Republican congresswoman apologized Thursday for telling a gathering in her district that the GOP was still searching for a "great white hope" to stop President Barack Obama's political agenda.

....

"Republicans are struggling right now to find the great white hope," Jenkins said last week. "I suggest to any of you who are concerned about that, who are Republican, there are some great young Republican minds in Washington."

Of course, what she "really meant to say" was .....

At an event at University of Kansas in Lawrence, Jenkins denied she was speaking in racial terms and said she meant only that the GOP needs "a bright light."

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/...mkgkgD9ABCLUO0

Yet another conservative putting their foot in their mouth: Worth the price of admission

Absolutely pathetic attempt to backtrack: Priceless



OAW

[Chuckit]

Do you have any reason not to take her at her word?

[SpaceMonkey]

I'm willing to take her at her word, but it's a pretty amusing flub. I didn't know it was possible to not know the usual connotation of the term.

[turtle777]

Wow. This is gonna be of these discussions where even sayings like "black hole" or "black eye" are interpreted as racist slurs.

Way to go, OAW, awesome thread

-t

[The Final Dakar]

Yeah, she could have picked words better. Still, who gives damn, really. Only the racially sensitive.

[SpaceMonkey]

Everyone knows that what they really need is a thousand points of light, anyway.

[OAW]

Yeah ... "the great white hope" and "the great bright light" are absolutely synonymous! This was the funniest sh*t I've heard all day. The only thing I will enjoy more is reading all the posts here that will abandon all logic and common sense in an attempt to show that her words don't mean what they clearly mean.

OAW

[turtle777]

Maybe she meant the great white knight

-t

[OAW]

Originally Posted by SpaceMonkey 

I'm willing to take her at her word, but it's a pretty amusing flub. I didn't know it was possible to not know the usual connotation of the term.

Oh it's not possible. Not for anyone with more than 2 cents worth of intelligence. The phrase has one meaning. It's always had one meaning. But you are right. It's most amusing.

OAW

[SpaceMonkey]

Maybe a great white whale?

[OAW]

Originally Posted by turtle777 

Maybe she meant the great white knight

-t

Maybe. And maybe white guys burning a cross in the front yard of a black family is just a simple case of arson!

Ok. Ok. I have to get off the floor now. OMG this is just hilarious!!!

OAW

[OAW]

Maybe the great white shadow?

OAW

[olePigeon]

I'm not falling for her tricks. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice... don't get fooled again!

[ironknee]

"i want my country back!" if you know what i mean...

[SpaceMonkey]

I feel like the RNC needs to distribute to its members some sort of instructional video on "pop culture references in racial conflict" just to try to get everyone on the same page.

[olePigeon]

Has she tried tea bagging? I hear that's an affective way to get your message across.

[Laminar]

The town I grew up in was called "The Little White City."

[SpaceMonkey]

Originally Posted by olePigeon 

Has she tried tea bagging? I hear that's an affective way to get your message across.

It certainly is!

[hyteckit]

What better to challenge Pres. Obama, the Great Black Hope, than to find his nemesis, the Great White Hope.

After all Pres. Obama is Black and his campaigned on Hope.

[andi*pandi]

pretending she meant anything other than the true meaning is disingenuous at best.

The Great White Hope - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

By definition, it means a white guy who can take down a black guy. I don't care for seeing racists in every shadow, but come on.

[Chuckit]

Originally Posted by OAW 

Yeah ... "the great white hope" and "the great bright light" are absolutely synonymous! This was the funniest sh*t I've heard all day. The only thing I will enjoy more is reading all the posts here that will abandon all logic and common sense in an attempt to show that her words don't mean what they clearly mean.

OAW

And Obama really thinks there are at least 57 states, right? Because when people misspeak, it's only ever using exact equivalents for what they meant to say.

[hyteckit]

Originally Posted by andi*pandi 

pretending she meant anything other than the true meaning is disingenuous at best.

The Great White Hope - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

By definition, it means a white guy who can take down a black guy. I don't care for seeing racists in every shadow, but come on.

Maybe that's where she got her inspiration.

Finding that one White guy who can beat the Black guy.

[Chuckit]

Originally Posted by andi*pandi 

pretending she meant anything other than the true meaning is disingenuous at best.

The Great White Hope - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

By definition, it means a white guy who can take down a black guy. I don't care for seeing racists in every shadow, but come on.

I had heard the phrase but didn't know what it meant until this thread. I thought it had something to do with the shark. When you're speaking, sometimes your brain goes to the wrong words — sometimes even the opposite of your meaning. It's a known property the brain. Heck, I wrote a completely nonsensical word in the first sentence of this post that I didn't catch until rereading. If she's never publicly said anything racist before and nothing else in the speech related to race wars, I see no reason to believe she just suddenly decided, "You know, I'm going to briefly come out with my racism and then deny it." Does anybody actually suppose that was her thought process?

I can see how the term "great, white" might be linked in her mental lexicon to "bright, shining."

[OAW]

Perhaps.

But in light of the rash of "questionable" comments from Republicans lately directed at President Obama I'm not so sure.

South Carolina GOP Operative Apologizes For Racist Tweet Against Obama | TPMDC

Daily Kos: TN Republican Staffer Caught Forwarding DISGUSTING Racist Picture (Updated x2)

U.S. Rep. Geoff Davis to Obama: That boy's finger does not need to be on the button | Crooks and Liars

New GOP "Racist" Headache - Page 1 - The Daily Beast

GOP activist says escaped gorilla was "ancestor" of Michelle Obama - WIS News 10 - Columbia, South Carolina |

And my personal "favorite" .....

Inland GOP mailing depicts Obama's face on food stamp | Inland News | PE.com | Southern California News | News for Inland Southern California

But hey ... maybe they all just "misspoke".

OAW

[Chuckit]

Well, this chick is possibly bigoted, but painting her as a racist because she's white and Republican definitely is.

I mean, imagine if somebody had said "In light of all the 'questionable' actions by black people lately, I'm not sure we can trust Obama," and then linked to a bunch of crimes committed by random black people Obama has never even met. How would you view that?

[ebuddy]

Without a doubt, fools and gaffe-masters are making life awful difficult for non-racist Republicans trying to convince people of the merits of the conservative platform.

[Chuckit]

The lack of merit to the current Republican platform doesn't help either.

[lpkmckenna]

Jenkins is stating what everyone already knows: the current leading voices of the GOP have no hope of election success. Palin? Romney? They need a new, unknown voice because all the known voices sound like morons.

[hyteckit]

Originally Posted by OAW 

Perhaps.

But in light of the rash of "questionable" comments from Republicans lately directed at President Obama I'm not so sure.


But hey ... maybe they all just "misspoke".

OAW

"misspoke" or it's "sarcasm" or just "a joke".

Just today, Rex Rammell, an Idaho Republican gubernatorial hopeful, said he was just joking about hunting President Barrack Obama.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationwo...,4400586.story

"What I would say to all my Democrat Idahoans: Take a deep breath and relax," he said. "We're not going to go out and hunt Obama."

It's just a joke.

[Chuckit]

I'm pretty sure that was just a joke (which has no bearing on whether it was in good taste). Do you really not believe it? Do you think he actually intends to hunt Obama?

[hyteckit]

Originally Posted by Chuckit 

I'm pretty sure that was just a joke (which has no bearing on whether it was in good taste). Do you really not believe it? Do you think he actually intends to hunt Obama?

It's more than just a joke.

Saying it's just a joke is like saying let's lynch Obama is just a joke.

[Chuckit]

YES OR NO: Do you think he actually intends to hunt Obama? This is a binary decision.

If yes, then it was not a joke.

If no, then it was a joke.

What you're actually objecting to has nothing to do with whether it was a joke.

[turtle777]

Originally Posted by hyteckit 

It's more than just a joke.

So you think that "hunting down Obama" are his true intentions ?

If you really believe that, wouldn't you have the duty to report this to the FBI ?

-t

[hyteckit]

Originally Posted by turtle777 

So you think that "hunting down Obama" are his true intentions ?

If you really believe that, wouldn't you have the duty to report this to the FBI ?

-t

I said it was more than a joke. What part did you not understand?

Can I shout "FIRE" in a crowded movie theater and then say it's just a joke, and everything is fine and dandy?

Rex Rammell is stirring up the fire especially with its crazy conservative gun crazy base. That's double the crazy.

[Chuckit]

Neither turtle nor I have said that if something is a joke, it's necessarily fine and dandy. That appears to be your conclusion, and I would argue that it is irrational.

[hyteckit]

Originally Posted by Chuckit 

YES OR NO: Do you think he actually intends to hunt Obama? This is a binary decision.

If yes, then it was not a joke.

If no, then it was a joke.

What you're actually objecting to has nothing to do with whether it was a joke.

Binary decision?

Was it a joke? Probably.

Was it just a joke? No.

Was it more than just a joke? Yes.


Is shouting "FIRE" in a crowded theater a joke? Probably.

Is shouting "FIRE" in a crowded theater just a joke? No

Is it irresponsible and shows a lack of common sense? Yes.

[hyteckit]

Originally Posted by Chuckit 

Neither turtle nor I have said that if something is a joke, it's necessarily fine and dandy. That appears to be your conclusion, and I would argue that it is irrational.

Saying it was JUST a joke, is implying it's only a joke and nothing more to it.

Was it a joke? Probably.

Was it more than just a joke? Yes.



Mary J Kopechne death was "JUST" an accident.

hyteckit: It was more than just an accident
Chuckit, turtle: Are you saying it's not an accident? Are you saying Mary J Kopechne was murdered?

It my conclusion was irrational, then your arguments are absurd.

[stupendousman]

Originally Posted by turtle777 

Wow. This is gonna be of these discussions where even sayings like "black hole" or "black eye" are interpreted as racist slurs.

Way to go, OAW, awesome thread

-t

Yeah, funny!

Originally Posted by OAW 

Yet another conservative putting their foot in their mouth: Worth the price of admission

Absolutely pathetic attempt to backtrack: Priceless



OAW

I guess you've got to chuckle when you can. As for conservatives, we just have to check the official White House agenda to see when the V.P. has his next speech to get this kind of comedy!

A better question for this thread is who the Democrats are going to put against whatever Republican challenger decides throw their hat into the ring. Surely Obama isn't going to go for a second term with his current low poll numbers and horrendous track record?

[andi*pandi]

He hasn't even had a full year yet, I wouldn't call that a track record of any sort, never mind horrendous. Think of Bush's first term, subtract 9/11, and would he have been reelected?

[OAW]

Originally Posted by ebuddy 

Without a doubt, fools and gaffe-masters are making life awful difficult for non-racist Republicans trying to convince people of the merits of the conservative platform.

I commend you for being one of the few (if not the only) regularly contributing conservative members willing to acknowledge the obvious.



OAW

[CRASH HARDDRIVE]

Originally Posted by stupendousman 

Yeah, funny!
...the official White House agenda...

OMG! You said _____ House!

Anyway, so has this officially replaced the whole Gates thing as the official 'feigned outrage of the day' with the race-bait coalition? Because the last was getting pretty boring.

[CRASH HARDDRIVE]

Wow, racism abounds:

Racist nature journal.

Amazon, clearly racists.

Time Magazine, racist bastards.

The Washington Post- Evil Racists against Obama

European football- racists.

Racist blogger.

More racist Brits.

Racist political commentary


Yup... absolutely no indication what-so-ever that it's a phrase in common usage that has any context outside of blatant racism. Clearly, use of the term is automatically RACIST!

*GRR!!!*
*FEIGN OUTRAGE!**

[SpaceMonkey]

It's easy to come up with counter-examples if you want to pretend that context is not important.

[CRASH HARDDRIVE]

Originally Posted by SpaceMonkey 

It's easy to come up with counter-examples

Of course it is- it's a very commonly used phrase.

Context of course is important- there's been nothing to show the context in which it was used in this case had anything to do with racism.

But I realize racism in 2009 isn't defined in any way shape matter or form by the context in which someone meant something, by the track record of the entire rest of their life, by thier actions, intentions, or anything else.

Racism in 2009 is defined by people's willingness to take offense at words and phrases, regardless of context, intention, or track record.

So keep going with that anger! GRR!!

[Chuckit]

Originally Posted by SpaceMonkey 

It's easy to come up with counter-examples if you want to pretend that context is not important.

It's easy to find racism if you go around assuming that any use of the color white is racist.

Like I said earlier, as far as I can tell and certainly as far as OAW has demostrated, there IS nothing in the context of this woman's speech to indicate that she was trying to call for a race war.

[SpaceMonkey]

I'm not trying to say that Jenkins meant it as a racist remark or that she wants to start a race war. I just think it's equally ridiculous for people like Crash to dismiss a negative reaction someone might have to the remark, given that the term has a well-established origin in a racial context. People are allowed to have negative reactions to it. That's not "race-baiting".

You know, it's an empathy thing.

I don't give a sh!t what she meant. People were rightly offended, she should have apologized, and I'm glad she did.

[OAW]

Originally Posted by SpaceMonkey 

I'm not trying to say that Jenkins meant it as a racist remark or that she wants to start a race war. I just think it's equally ridiculous for people like Crash to dismiss a negative reaction someone might have to the remark, given that the term has a well-established origin in a racial context. People are allowed to have negative reactions to it. That's not "race-baiting".

Indeed. Every "counter example" that Crash posted involves a simple "play on words" that involves the color white. Now of course, these are certainly innocuous uses of this phrase. And no one could reasonably interpret the meaning as being "racial" because race wasn't part of the context in the slightest in most of them. And where it was the phrase wasn't used to denote the white who would defeat the reigning black "champion" (as in the original meaning of the phrase) ... but instead the phrase was turned on its head to denote the black who would be the "champion" of large segments of the white population.

But in this situation ... in this example ... you have a white woman telling a very likely all-white audience that the GOP needed a "great white hope" in order to "stop President Barack Obama's political agenda" in the context of "Obama [being] elected as the nation's first black president in response to an audience question." IOW, there is no play on words here. There is no turning the phrase on its head. Given the circumstances, it's obvious that the phrase was used in its original meaning.

Now to equate a "great white hope" in this particular context to a white iPod, a white Kindle, or a white shark simply demonstrates the absolutely amazing, though definitely not surprising, level of denial that exists among some of our more conservative friends.

OAW

[Shaddim]

Waiting for Obama to rename the "White House", because, you know, it's insensitive.

[hyteckit]

Originally Posted by Chuckit 

It's easy to find racism if you go around assuming that any use of the color white is racist.

Like I said earlier, as far as I can tell and certainly as far as OAW has demostrated, there IS nothing in the context of this woman's speech to indicate that she was trying to call for a race war.

So you are agreeing that when Jenkins said the "Great White Hope", she was referring to the color white?

CRASH HARDDRIVE just brought up a bunch of examples where "white" is referring to the color white:

White toothpaste
White Kindle
Great White Shark
White jersey
About white people
White house


Oh look, they are all referring to the color white.

However, Jerkins said white wasn't referring to the color white. She said she meant bright light.


I wonder if the 3 examples of the "Great White Hope" Jerkins mentioned were 3 white guys.

[hyteckit]

I guess we all agree that "Great White Hope" was referring to the color white.