The Double Standard of American Politics - With Commentary from Barga

Post 51

Please remember that the political maps are now located at the end of the posts. I am still unpacking my boxes in my new apartment. You know, it didn't feel like mine until my bed got put in (even though everything was already here)

I was linked from Gaia, Huffington post, some comments on other blogs I participate in, and 5 (yes, 5) different people emailed me to do this entry. Recently, there was a post over at That Minority Thing which happened to discuss the hypocrisy and double standard that exists within politics. I have decided to copy it here and post my responses to each one. As a preview, I find most of these two volumes to be partisan bullshit and not really worth any response. They are comparing a vocal minority to what they think is right, which is pointless in politics.

We need to stop doing this sort of thing, it ruins politics and drowns out legitimate arguments.

My comments, of course, are bolded.

Vol. 1

1. 1. If you’re a minority and you’re selected for a job over more qualified candidates you’re a “token hire.”

   2. If you’re a conservative and you’re selected for a job over more qualified candidates you’re a “game changer.”

      • In this case, both companies have morons in the HR department. One should be hired on merit alone (remember, Merit is not just qualifications, but how you would work with the other members.

2. 1. If you live in an Urban area and you get a girl pregnant you’re a “baby daddy.”

   2. If you’re the same in Alaska you’re a “teen father.” (Actually, according to your own MySpace page you’re an F’n redneck that don’t want any kids, but that’s too long a phrase for the evil liberal media to take out of context and flog morning noon and night).

      • This is an issue of semantics, I do not see the issue here; however, his description of his own self is quite amusing.

3. 1. Black teen pregnancies? A “crisis” in black America.

   2. White teen pregnancies? A “blessed event.”

      • A death is a tragedy, a million is a statistic. The issue here is comparing all black pregnancies to ONE white one. Frankly, there needs to be less premarital pregnancies in all racial groupings.

4. 1. If you grow up in Hawaii you’re “exotic.”

   2. Grow up in Alaska eating mooseburgers, you’re the quintessential “American story.”

      • The difference here is the narrative, you are comparing a living location to a life story. By doing this the right-side is able to argue one is a exotic danger and the other is your stereotypical American. That said, they are equal when the narrative is out (both exotic and both stereotypical).

5. 1. Similarly, if you name you kid Barack you’re “unpatriotic.”

   2. Name your kid Track, you’re “colorful.”

      • Where was the name 'barack' ever called unpatriotic. This seems to be an attempt by the left-side to make it a personal attack WHILE attacking the name of the DS-kid.

6. 1. If you’re a Democrat and you make a VP pick without fulling vetting the individual you’re “reckless.”

   2. A Republican who doesn’t fully vet is a “maverick.”

      • Wait, people were calling Biden a reckless pick?

7. 1. If you say that for the “first time in my adult lifetime I’m really proud of my country” it makes you “unfit” to be First Lady.

   2. If you are a registered member of a fringe political group that advocates secession that makes you “First Dude.”

      • You should be proud of your country as a participating American; however, you need not be proud of its actions. As for the fringe group, Peter O pointed out to me that that was misleading info. Get your facts straight...

8. 1. A DUI from twenty years ago is “old news.”

   2. A speech given without proper citation from twenty years ago is “relevant information.”

      • Both of these are non-issues raised because there is nothing else to say...

9. 1. And, finally, if you’re a man and you decide to run for office despite your wife’s reoccurrence of cancer you’re a “questionable spouse.”

   2. If you’re a woman and you decide to run for office despite having five kids including a newborn with Downs Syndrome… Well, we don’t know what that is ‘cause THAT’S NOT A FAIR QUESTION TO ASK!

      • As far as I am aware Edwards was never challenged based on his commitment (or lack thereof) to his wife. If he was, and it was by the same party that is defending Palin, then we have an issue.

   Vol. 2

10. 1. If you get 18 million people to vote for you in a national presidential primary, you’re a “phoney.”

    2. Get 100,000+ people to vote you governor of the 47th most populous state in the Union, you’re “well loved.”

       • Obama was called a Phoney, or are you talking about Clinton here? Either way, so what. All democrats are phonies and all Republicans are loved to the right-side. The inverse is true to the left-side.

11. 1. SoyAA says: If you are biracial and born in a state not connected to the lower 48, America needs darn near 2 years and 3 major speeches to “get to know you.”

    2. If you’re white and from a state not connected to the lower 48, America needs 36 minutes and 38 seconds worth of an acceptance speech to know you’re “one of us.”

       • Who determined when America knew a candidate; I sure as hell was not asked.

12. 1. If you give your wife a dap on stage, it’s actually a “terrorist fist jab.”

    2. If your daughter licks her palm so that she can slick down your youngest child’s hair on national TV it’s an “adorable moment.” (Seriously, forget about abstinence only, teach these folks some grooming skills).

       • I am not seeing the likeness here. The far-right called the fist jab terroristic, not the majority of the right.

13. 1. DTD SAYS: If your pastor rails against inequality in the United States of America, you’re an “extremist.”

    2. If your pastor welcomes a sermon by a member of Jews for Jesus who preaches that the killing of Jews by terrorists is a lesson to Jews that they must convert to Christianity, you’re a “fundamentalist.”

       • Fundamentalists are extremists. The Jews for Jesus (thus, not Jews) are the exact same as Wright.

14. 1. If you’re a black man and you use a scholarship to get into college, then work your way up to being the president of the Harvard Law Review, you’re “uppity.”

    2. If you’re a conservative and your parents pay your way to Hawaii Pacific University . . . you only have four more schools to attend over the next five years before you somehow manage to graduate (it might be five more school over the next five years. No one has yet verified whether or not Palin was actually ever registered at the University of Hawaii at Hilo. But, you know how shady people are who ever attended any kind of school in Hawaii).

       • The only person I remember calling Obama Uppity was his own Veep candidate: Biden.

15. 1. SeanOcali says: If you’re 18, white, and get a 16 year old girl pregnant “life happens.”

    2. If you’re 18, black, and impregnate a 16 year old girl, you’re a “registered sex offender.”

       • Depends on the state; either way, the law should be above color.

16. 1. If you spend 18 months building a campaign around the theme of “Change,” it’s just “empty rhetoric.”

    2. If one week before your party’s national convention you SUDDENLY make your candidacy about “Change,” that’s “red meat.”

       • What? McCain is not about change, nor is he about Bush, he is about the positions he has always been. Obama is about change (be that good or bad).

17. And your last lesson for the day:

    1. If you are a Democrat, an Independent, or even a moderate Republican, if you’re female, male, white, black, Asian, Hispanic, bi-racial, multi-ethnic, or GLBT, if you’re a Jew, Gentile, Muslim, agnostic or atheist - “Yes, we can!”

    2. If you’re a pitbull with lipstick from Alaska, “Yup, yup!”

       • This just proves my point that this is nothing but a political attempt to create controversy. People, grow up, and act like bloody adults.

*Map Update*

So, when they release roughly 5000 polls in one week this is nearly impossible for me to do. Obama barely gained anywhere and McCain gained a bunch. Look at the polls your self over at Real Clear Politics yourself if you want to see the more recent update (my info is from Noon on Sunday).

With the new polls release Virginia is now in the McCain camp as is North Dakota. Obama lost ground in almost every state, and thus is getting closer and closer to not being a winner (He lost ground in both NH and NM, both would cost him the election by a few votes). Nationally, McCain had a gigantic spike as he is now +2.3. In the EC count, Obama is still winning with 273 to 265, but it is very close. Next week we will see if this is a bounce due to Palin and the Convention or not.

As always, please leave any comments, no matter how large or how small about the contents of this blog post. Also, please leave any comments/suggestions about this site/post as a whole.

Feel free to e-mail me if you so wish too instead.

Thanks,

Robert M. Barga,

Editor of http://whalertly.blogspot.com/

barga.24@osu.edu

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