The Toxic Race-Mongering of the Left
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Imagine a world in which leftists, by some magic, were unable to accuse their political opponents of racism. Racism, sexism, all of the various make-believe phobias — these charges were suddenly somehow off-limits during political discussion. Instead, at all the leftist venues — The New York Times , the TV network news departments, CNN and the rest — the commentators had to accept that their political opponents were people of good will with the best interests of the country at heart. They had to ask themselves — and even possibly ask actual conservatives — what it was about border security that seemed important to them, why social spending might be destructive, why Islam might be incompatible with western thought, why teachers' unions were impeding the rise of the poor and so on.
If that magical moment ever occurred, we might start to have an intelligent political debate in this country. But don't hold your breath.
The current status quo serves the short-sighted power aims of the worst of the Democratic party, that is the far left, too well for them to abandon it. Scream racism at every disagreement and you might convince meaning-seeking millennials that leftism provides them a cogent moral framework, you might scare blacks out of noticing that they are thriving under Donald Trump's policies, you might convince women that Trump's boorish words are somehow worse than Bill Clinton's actions.
But the long-term costs of these political gains are great. The constant cries of racism have kept race at the center of the American political discussion long after most Americans would happily let the subject go. The attacks on anyone who demands reform from Islam have allowed radical Islamists to range free in their communities while moderates are unprotected. The anti-male cries of sexism have reduced women to perpetual victims, perpetually dissatisfied with life.
And, perhaps most importantly, leftist race mongering turns leftists into political idiots. It isn't until you engage with your political opponents that you learn the strengths and weaknesses of your arguments and can therefore adjust them or even change your mind entirely. If all you do is scream racism at people, you pump yourself full of self-righteousness and become increasingly radicalized and therefore increasingly at odds with reality and common sense.
A perfect example of the left-wing dynamic occurred on Fox News , of all places, the other day. Conservative political activist David Bossie — a man I know and like — was in a fierce debate with Democrat strategist Joel Payne . As things got heated, David told Payne, "You are out of your cotton-pickin' mind." Payne took immediate exception to the term and left-wing venues immediately declared it a racial slur. As a result, David was temporarily suspended from commentating on Fox and was forced to apologize before he could return.
A short-term victory for leftists, no doubt. It plays into their decades-long project of depicting right-wingers as inherently racist, of making them double-think every word that comes out of their mouths, and of winning arguments, not through reason, but through diversion and personal attack.
But the long-term costs are enormous. "Cotton-pickin'" is a 1950s American euphemism for "damn" that has no racial connotations I'm aware of. It's just something people of the Bossie-Klavan generations say. By using the term to Payne, David demonstrated he wasn't thinking about Payne's race in the least. If he had been, he would have been more careful with his words. Instead, he spoke to Payne as he would speak to anyone. It was man-to-man stuff, one American to another. Payne has now lost the right to be treated like that. He must be — what the left wants him to be — black above everything. Bossie treated him as an equal human, a brother American. Leftism made it so he can't be treated that way. Congratulations, leftism.
On top of this, fake charges of racism give real racism a kind of panache. Since only good non-racist people can be cowed into silence with false charges, nasty real racists, willing to speak their minds, come across as bold and honest instead of like the jerks they are. When you cry Racist Wolf long enough, you leave the real wolf free to roam.
Eventually, one hopes that insightful black Americans will begin to see that while the left's race mongering may offer them the short-term political power of victimhood, the long-term costs in inequality and social exclusion are too high. On that day, the left will have to get by on the strength of their ideas alone. That will not be pretty. https://www.realclearpolitics.com
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the fact is that any person who says something to someone else that raises a concern of its intention is allowed to be determined as IT WAS SAIDWhat does that even mean?
wow it is so funny to me that you have a tough time with every thing someone replies to you with. so ill put it another way. if a person says something that offends someone else then that person is judged on it. kinda like people who drink alot. at some point the comments they make is exactly how they think sober. same thing here, this man had ALL TYPES of different ways to respond to this black man and chose to let his lips open before he thought about it. and as i said before i was watching this live and took it as he meant it.
this mans comment was racist is simple and clear.If it's racist, then why is it used on white people? I have heard that phrase used all my life - including on TV and in movies - and I have never once heard anyone claim it was racist.
its racist when directed in a way that makes someone who KNOWS it to be a negative impact on the past. and for what every reason you seem a bit THICK to the simple understanding that ----black cotton pickers were forced to do so with out compensation. They were LYNCHED and beaten and killed for not complying. thats history and that is something you seem to either not be able to recognize effects how black people feel about white people that say things that DIRECTLY CONNECT TO A WELL DOCUMENTED PERIOD OF THIS COUNTRY'S HISTORY.
Incredibly, I wasted a little personal time and did some more research for you. I hope you learn by example and seek knowledge for yourself instead of just blindly listening to talking heads on TV with a political agenda who play the race card when they have no argument.
incredibly YOU seem to not understand or choose to be a bit thick in realizing I DONT GIVE A DAM about political anything. i was a witness to ANOTHER white person bring up a reference point that offends black people based on the historical fact that DIRECTLY or INDIRECTLY effects how this man would feel based on knowing of who did the cotton picking.
The Meaning And Origin Of The Expression: Cotton-Picking
Some key points:
again this is not about what the words means for the millionith time it is WHAT FEELINGS are felt based on the words used. and again its very clear that you dont seem to get that any other phase would have been reasonable.
So if the phrase has some rich and long history of being racial slur, it's a pretty well-kept secret.
We also use HISTORY for jobs thats called a resume.....Yeah, that's a person's personal history. This is the third time you have ignored that distinction.
are you going to try to suggest that you would just sit there and not reply to that persons inaccuracy
well you are clearly lacking in some kind of understanding of the word RELATION-- it means something that is not exact but can be compared to the topic -- and stop acting like you are not bringing this crap up-- you talked about history-- YOU DID...and i am reminding you that we use history to DEFINE EVERYTHING IN OUR LIVES---
and thus my point is you dont get to try to suggest that what happen years ago doesnt count because this black man lives in todays society.
Do you not see how far off-topic you are? The guy on TV didn't claim slavery never happened. He just used the
phrase "cotton-picking" with no racist intent whatsoever. And the race card player decided that it could only be a racist attack. Because, after all, when you're on TV, the big thing you want to do is sneak in a few racial slurs! /s Don't you see how dumb that is?
nobody said he brought up slavery or suggested it did not happen---- i said and other have pointed out that the referance he made is a negative event to black people based on the REAL ACTIONS OF THOSE WHO WORKED , LIVED OR DIED on cotton picking farms that this man and many blacks know occurred.
please dont be obtuse----there are enough examples of being racist all the time. with the age of technology, weekly anyone can find a national story on the "oops i didnt mean to say that racist comment" so please dont be silly. people have lost t.v. shows , jobs, families and ended careers over choosing to be insensitive about there comment.
its so funny how you can diminish someone elses experienceThis guy never had the experience of being a slave. Saying so doesn't mean slavery didn't happen. It just means it didn't happen to him . Just like genocide didn't happen to me . And even if he had been a slave, "cotton-picking" historically has not referenced blackness or slavery. It references what a pain in the butt it is to
now either you are full of crap or you are just lacking a basic education if you think for a minute this last comment is supposed to be taking seriously.
lots of shit dont happen to a individual but it happens to the same types of individuals. and so for someone who spoke of your fellow country men being forced to deal with geniocide. I can imagine alot of them are rolling over in there graves watching you type such ignorance based on a documented period in your cultures time line.
again i see you didn't answer the question of what you would do if a Turkish person said no body performed a genocide on Armenian people.
Again to answer that question is an example of taking your point and putting it right back where it belongs. Because an honest person knows to answer that question means they get the point of how it must feel to have a white people remind a black person of a time when blacks did pick the cotton.
You are acting like the Turkish government which is why i understand your having a tough time with this.
The Armenian genocide was the ruthless slaughter of millions of Armenians by the Turks of the Ottoman Empire. In 1915, during World War I, leaders of the Turkish government set in motion a plan to expel and massacre Armenians. By the early 1920s, when the massacres and deportations finally ended, between 600,000 and 1.5 million Armenians were dead, with many more forcibly removed from the country. Today, most historians call this event a genocide: a premeditated and systematic campaign to exterminate an entire people. However, the Turkish government still does not acknowledge the enormity or scope of these events.
And because you weren't apart of it ..........it must not have happened to anyone. SMH!
if a person says something that offends someone else then that person is judged on it. kinda like people who drink alot
And what if the offended person is unreasonably over-sensitive? What if the offended person assumes racism in someone who is definitely not racist? I have already told you that white people use the phrase on each other all the time, so it's simply not reasonable to insist that every time a white person uses it on a black person, it MUST be racism. You have to do more than simply say "I'm offended" to convince me that someone is racist.
its racist when directed in a way that makes someone who KNOWS it to be a negative impact on the past
What "way" is that? What's special about the way that guy said it as opposed to when say, this white guy sings (to his friend) " Keep Your Cotton Pickin Hands Off My Gal ?" You might notice that at about 0:41 he replaces "cotton pickin" with "dog-gone." Is "dog-gone" racist, too? Is there anything a white man can say to a black man that's not racist?
based on knowing of who did the cotton picking
Why in the WORLD would two 21st century men wearing suits and talking about politics be thinking about who picked cotton 170 years ago???
again this is not about what the words means for the millionith time it is WHAT FEELINGS
Screw your feelings! Your feelings don't get to declare what's in someone else's mind or rewrite the freaking dictionary! This is the fundamental problem with the Left these days. You think your feelings are more relevant than reality. It's time to grow up!
the referance he made is a negative event to black people based on the REAL ACTIONS OF THOSE WHO WORKED , LIVED OR DIED on cotton picking farms that this man and many blacks know occurred.
Well, sorry, but the REALITY is that black people don't have some special ownership over the history of picking cotton. Human beings of every color have been picking and processing cotton for thousands of years with and without the help of black people.
But I suppose you probably want to disregard that history. You only care about the history that supports playing the race card, right?
if you think for a minute this last comment is supposed to be taking seriously.
It actually wasn't supposed to be just a comment. It was supposed to link to this video:
Here's the real question for you:
Why do you want it to be true that this guy was being racist? Wouldn't you rather be wrong about that?
And a second question:
What do you know about this guy (outside of the comment that has you so riled) that makes you assume he is racist? Anything?
wow for some odd reason you keep thinking that the Definition is the only to have someone acknowledge the words of Cotton picking. so for the last time it is not about the definition of the word found in a dictionary. But again thats what YOUR type do. you suggest that feelings about a factual event dont matter because a dictionary says so, sit down.
And sadly this is a typical response from someone whose life has NEVER been effected by an event as it has for others, and you keep exposing more and more of your lack of tolerance for the difference between what you think vs what someone KNOWS.
Here's the real question for you:
Why do you want i t to be true that this guy was being racist? Wouldn't you rather be wrong about that?
for fucks sake man, i know because he said it. i dont have to make up anything or prove that he wasnt trying to be racist , he said it and that makes it racist. because as i have said the words invoke a feeling, not a fucking definition. i dont have to be wrong about anything because sadly it happens way to much for me to even question it any more. i mean you either live in a cave or are really good at the ignorance game. roseanne barr, papa johns , the cops in Milwaukee i mean for shits sake man. Do you have excuses for them too.
And a second question:
What do you know about this guy (outside of the comment that has you so riled) that makes you assume he is racist? Anything?
yes because i recall my grandma showing my brothers and me about her mother and grandfather that worked on a cotton farm and the pictures of the MAJORS family. These old photographs was great. but the stories on how SOME OF THEM DIED from those photographs all had to do with the kkk, bad living conditions(little food lots of work) and beatings.
As i said, you dont get to suggest to someone that knows about stuff you have never dealt with. and you surely dont get to BULLSHIT YOUR WAY around facts which i know to be true and history that you cant disregard because you can type it that way.
I leave you with this. just in case you think me going back to far (170 years) doesn't count.
my auntie Marion knew something about the struggle and so as much as you want to peg me into being just negative , she made us all proud. And yet that struggle you cant quantify which still goes on today.
it is not about the definition of the word found in a dictionary
Sure, because why would a dictionary be relevant in determining the meaning of a word?! 
thats what YOUR type do
Yep, my "type" is educated and we're known for looking up words in a dictionary to find out what they mean, as opposed to letting some drama queen with a political agenda tell us what a word means.
your lack of tolerance for the difference between what you think vs what someone KNOWS
Disagreeing on something is not a lack of tolerance. You really need to start leafing through a dictionary. Let me supply you with a dictionary definition of "tolerate"
allow the existence, occurrence, or practice of (something that one does not necessarily like or agree with) without interference.
All I have done here is express my disagreement, while making no attempt to interfere with the occurrence of the thing I disagree with. I am the very personification of "tolerance." On the other hand, you actually keep trying to tell me that I can't say a certain thing or that I should be quiet. I'd say that places you a lot closer to "intolerant" than me. Examples:
YOU DONT get to suggest that
so, sit down
Getting back to your bad argument, though:
pictures of the MAJORS family
Like, who is the majors family and what does that have to do with a guy named David Bosse? I asked you about David Bosse. Did he ever own slaves? What specific actions has he taken or previous words has he spoken that would lead you to believe that his use of the term "cotton-picking" MUST be racist instead of being innocent?
Or do you even refute the possibility that it could ever be used innocently?
">Here's a video you should watch . Advance to 0:16. Is Bugs Bunny being racist?
This is so frustrating. It's the second time in as many days that a link I posted appeared to be working and then didn't. Try this
and answer the question.
Imagine a world in which leftists, by some magic, were unable to accuse their political opponents of racism.
you might say I am a dreamer... but there are probably others as well.
LOL 
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The author is correct. Here's one of many articles about the euphemism:
Some on the left continue to falsely cry "RACISM" because they look for ways to be offended. They've even stooped so low as to say that fried chicken and watermelon are "code words" for racism, even though people of all races like to eat those foods.
I'm old enough to remember, too. I still use it, but I guess I need to stop, because Joel Payne found something new to whine about.
PS - I saw that show. Bossie ran rings around Payne so I'm not surprised that Payne whined. And watch how the idiot Kyle Kulinski doesn't know linguistic history:
What is it with the constant competition on who can be the most flamboyantly offended anyhow?
Gee is this acceptable?
It certainly appears that most of those on the left like to cry racism when they start losing a debate or political battle of any kind. It appears it is all they have left.
Stop making it so easy.
It only looks that way on your seeds after you flag the opposing comments.
I'll be happy to clarify once you get back from being suspended.
"A perfect example of the left-wing dynamic occurred on Fox News , of all places, the other day. Conservative political activist David Bossie — a man I know and like — was in a fierce debate with Democrat strategist Joel Payne . As things got heated, David told Payne, "You are out of your cotton-pickin' mind." Payne took immediate exception to the term and left-wing venues immediately declared it a racial slur. As a result, David was temporarily suspended from commentating on Fox and was forced to apologize before he could return.
I'm not sure how much it's been reported on, but Bossie did mention that he did not have a monitor on, he couldn't see, nor had he ever met Payne. He didn't even know Payne was black.
So many on the left view the world through a prism of race that's their obsession it not surprising. It's not about individual rights, it's about collective rights as a race, sex etc... Nothing angers one of the race obsessed white liberals more than a minority who doesn't act as directed.
Between crying racism and inciting violence they are killing themselves. The only add the GOP needs to run next election is "the unhinged", and they will have plenty more to add to it before November..
The title of this seed is a sweeping generalization, and according to current NT policy should be removed.
I had a comment removed for saying "Trump supporters" instead of "some Trump supporters"
So I await the removal or renaming of this seed.
Wisdom. This is the problem in a nutshell.
Literally no one has ever imagined that "cotton pickin" was a racist slur, until, apparently, the day before yesterday.
The far Left wants to take the moral high ground, but the only way they can do it is by changing their own moral rules on a daily basis.
aah its a racist slur when a person says it to someone who actually knows that his race actually PICKED THE DAM COTTON.
come on, there was no other way to express his disagreement. if it means "crazy" why couldn't he just say that.....hummm
maybe a spin of perspective could help you understand why it was a unwise insensitive comment to make.
lets see,
heres a relative example...
a family is at a wake for a member who has died at the hands of a drunk driver. a person like this guy would not ask the family members where they could get a beer, if he did those family members and those who witnessed it ...................would be offended or find that comment to be INAPPROPRIATE.
really.........after noticing the profile name, i am in no way surprised by your response. ugh
and were they paid or not? get a grip!
aah its has nothing to do with TEXAS it has everything to do with your comment style that i have observed over the few months here. always a sense of childish or obtuse replies to people.
cotton picking was done by slaves for years here in america.
and for shits sake people, i dont know many Norwegians, swedes , Germans, Jews, Italians and others i missed, that were forced slaves in this country specifically tasked with picking cotton with out compensation.
so lets all be honest about it.
the fact is that there are still alive some black great grandparents that knew people or themselves, who picked cotton in the south and were not compensated, sadly this mans comments allow for any black person to determine if he said that to push a button or because he is a mindless ass.
he is not a mindless ass.
now if you want to assume he is..........thats on you.
And i am pretty confident that in your family tree, there was no one that was considered a slave and forced to pick cotton.
sheeesh people, it is just so silly to see you seriously think your comment has some kinda validity against a historically documented and experienced event in our country that was directed at one race of people.
well it seems like you want to DISMISS something thats a fact. sadly this shows how much you lack a sense of either, life experiences that allow you to dig up something in your brain to help you see the relevance of this situation or you have chosen to be that type of commentor that appears to not understand the saying " until you have walked in those shoes".
in the end, racism is just a matter of perspective that is based on actual situations.
if you haven't experienced it, its ok but just be honest about it.
if you have then who am i do determine its worth to you. because as i said, maybe you could find something that allows you to relate to this specific situation for this black man.
It doesn't mean "crazy." It's a substitute for "god damned," like "gosh darned," or "mother fuckin." It's a g-rated substitute, though, so it's actually kind of quaint. That's why it's all the more ridiculous that someone would try to pretend it's a racial slur. It's impossible not to roll your eyes.
Except in your example, those people have actually lost someone they personally knew to a drunk driver. It happened in their actual lives.
In this story, the guy he was talking to never picked cotton a day in his life and was never a slave. Sorry, but you don't get to claim slave status just because someone who looked like you was a slave 150 or 200 years ago.
And even then, "cotton picking" was never a racial slur.
of course it is always over played and over used because the person saying that .................has no experience in either it being a part of there life or those before him / her.
i mean for shits sake, this stuff is real, not something that a INTERNET blogger gets to dismiss because it has no validity to them.
now that is the benefit of being on the internet you can pick and choose to engage or disengage based on what makes you feel good about your comment but some people who live in reality and have experienced racism dont get to play the " hoo humm card"
I mean there are many RELATIVE EXAMPLES ...that exists in life.
lets just use one a simple one. so for a fat kid who was made fun of during his school years ends up slimming down as an adult. and as he is out doing stuff , he comes across a group of kids. He notices these kids are calling (hears them) / picking on a fat kid. He says something to those kids to stop it. Because he knows how that feels.(racsim) but a person who has never been over weight (skinny kids) can have your mentality.
and that is just it, a mentality.
as i pointed out .......the ability to acknowledge something that is different from what you have experience is not easy to do.
And sometimes in life it is not always based on what you DO KNOW but what you can honestly acknowledge would be something you are humbled by not knowing or having to deal with.
So are you suggesting that black people didnt die at the hands of cotton farmers , give that a break. sheesh Or the KKK didnt scare them into not escaping , really thats a sad disconnect.
calling this b.s. YOU DONT get to suggest that he doesn't know or recall someone in his own family history or that which has been told. i mean it should not be so hard for you to recall when you were a kid and your grandpa or grandma said " back in the day or we did this or this is how things were done". lets just say in reference to farming( we got a lot of farms up here in MN)
I dont get to tell you that because its 2018 and if you were a farmer i can say " farming is easy and your grandpa didnt have it so bad". Because i see how technology has made it easier for YOU to farm the same land.
At that point you would suggest to me that farming was harder back in time because YOU KNOW or heard or saw pictures of your grandpa or great grandpa or heard stories on how THEY HAD to do the same work which took twice as long.
history is just that and facts and truth that dont change over time...you and a few others just have a tough time being honest it about it. and for a black person like this guest and others who saw this exchange live......it can be taken just as he meant it.
again from someone that has no relation to picking cotton which effected the lives of those forced to do it without compensation.
sadly arent there enough racial slurs going around, wow.
wow you really got this disconnect down pat.
so for the person who is worried about other peoples ass. the point is that your cut out qoute actually supports how SAD it is that this time FACTUAL EXISTED in our country.
and whats worse is again the ability for you to look at your self or family tree and try to figure out if SLAVES was any part of it.
thus if it is not .......like it was for many black families around this country, you dont get to disqualify how someone would feel if a comment made REMINDED THEM OF THOSE FACTS of those he knows in his own family history or those he had heard about that are clearly documented by your quote above.
No, that's not what I said. Pay attention, please. You gave an example of people who had personally suffered from something (losing a family member to a drunk driver). The fact that they're at a wake shows it happened to them personally.
You want to compare that with slaves and cotton farmers in the 1800s and claim that such history is somehow relevant to the life of a city-dwelling, 100% free black-skinned political pundit making a nice living shooting his mouth off on television. That's a joke!
You're trying to expand it now. Now you want to include family history. Sorry, but family history won't cut it. I had Armenian grandparents who fled Turkish genocide. That doesn't make ME a victim of genocide anymore than Mr. TV pundit is a victim of slavery. And I actually knew my grandparents! I guarantee you Mr. TV Pundit has never met any family relation who was a slave or even a family relation who personally knew another family relation who was a slave.
the fact is that any person who says something to someone else that raises a concern of its intention is allowed to be determined as IT WAS SAID.
and your thinking a person in 2018 this black cant reflect on his family history..................give it a break...........we ALL USE OUR family history to justify things.
so your need to be one of "those" folks who reply indicating that there is no validity to this black man because its 2018 is silly. this mans comment was racist is simple and clear.
By the way business companies use there history to suggest WHY there product is better then the NEW one. We also use HISTORY for jobs thats called a resume.....
since you brought it up( lets check your honesty level)
you said your parents escaped a Turkish genocide..... but what if one of your parents, parents did not as a fact. and then a Turkish guy got on t.v. and said the "genocide " never happened to an Armenian. (cough cough)
are you going to try to suggest that you would just sit there and not reply to that persons inaccuracy, because you know they are lying...........because ..........................your family knows he is lying..............................why......................................... because its in your family history.
WOW its so funny how you can diminish someone elses experience and then act as if genocide against your people is not something that you cant seem to acknowledge would be a RELATIVE experience that occurred here in a america to black folks.
Wow how many of your people died and your acting this way ....................what a sell out and embarrassing for those Armenians that didnt make it out alive.
What does that even mean?
If it's racist, then why is it used on white people? I have heard that phrase used all my life - including on TV and in movies - and I have never once heard anyone claim it was racist.
Incredibly, I wasted a little personal time and did some more research for you. I hope you learn by example and seek knowledge for yourself instead of just blindly listening to talking heads on TV with a political agenda who play the race card when they have no argument.
The meaning and origin of the expression: Cotton-picking
Some key points:
Furthermore, Merriam-Webster (famous publisher of dictionaries) makes no mention of it's "obvious" racial conotations:
Not even the list of synonyms sounds remotely racist:
So if the phrase has some rich and long history of being racial slur, it's a pretty well-kept secret.
Yeah, that's a person's personal history. This is the third time you have ignored that distinction.
Do you not see how far off-topic you are? The guy on TV didn't claim slavery never happened. He just used the phrase "cotton-picking" with no racist intent whatsoever. And the race card player decided that it could only be a racist attack. Because, after all, when you're on TV, the big thing you want to do is sneak in a few racial slurs! /s Don't you see how dumb that is?
This guy never had the experience of being a slave. Saying so doesn't mean slavery didn't happen. It just means it didn't happen to him . Just like genocide didn't happen to me . And even if he had been a slave, "cotton-picking" historically has not referenced blackness or slavery. It references what a pain in the butt it is to