American Apologies

Via Huff Post:

“At a campaign event in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Lieutenant Governor and gubernatorial candidate Ron Ramsey (R) said that freedom of speech, guaranteed by the First Amendment, may not apply to Islam because it could be considered ‘a cult.’

During a question and answer session, an attendee said that he was concerned with an ‘invasion’ from ‘the Muslims.’ Ramsey responded that the uproar over a ‘mosque’ (in reality, the expansion of an existing Islamic community center) is justified because Sharia law is ‘scary’:

‘… I’ve been trying to learn about Sharia law. I’ve been trying to learn what it is: not good, if that’s what’s going on. You can even argue whether being a Muslim is actually a religion, or is it a nationality, a way of life, or a cult — whatever you want to call it — and we do protect our religions. But at the same time, this is something that we are going to have to face.’”

Via AP:

“A federal judge is blocking Arizona from implementing a state law that eliminates domestic partner benefits for gay and lesbian state employees.

U.S. District Judge John Sedwick on Friday issued a preliminary injunction that requires the state to still make family health insurance available to gay and lesbian state employees who have established relationships that meet standards set under state administration rules.

The judge also dismissed part of a lawsuit challenging the prohibition but left another part intact, allowing the suit to continue.”

Arizona: Land of the Free (Unless You’re Brown or Gay)

Via CNN:

“One of the most outspoken gay critics of the military’s ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy said Thursday that he has been discharged from the Army. Lt. Dan Choi, who was arrested in March for handcuffing himself to a White House fence in protest of the policy, released a statement saying he had been honorably discharged.

Choi, a 2003 West Point graduate who is fluent in Arabic, was an infantry platoon leader, serving with his unit in Iraq in 2006 and 2007. He admitted his sexual orientation publicly for the first time last year on MSNBC’s ‘The Rachel Maddow Show,’ prompting the Army to initiate proceedings to discharge him.

More than 12,500 gays have been booted from the military since ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ went into effect.”

As if there wasn’t enough evidence that this archaic policy of prejudice needs to go ASAP.

redguard:

A Mississippi school district has agreed to pay a recent high school graduate $35,000 in damages and adopt a policy prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation, according to a statement released Tuesday by the American Civil Liberties Union.

The National Tea Party Federation, an organization that represents the Tea Party political movement, has kicked out conservative commentator Mark Williams and his Tea Party Express because of a blog post in which he satirized a fictional letter from what he called “Colored People” to President Abraham Lincoln. He had written the letter a few days ago in response to a resolution by the NAACP that called on Tea Party leaders to crack down on racist elements in the movement. He later took the letter down. Here it is:

Dear Mr. Lincoln

We Coloreds have taken a vote and decided that we don’t cotton to that whole emancipation thing. Freedom means having to work for real, think for ourselves, and take consequences along with the rewards. That is just far too much to ask of us Colored People and we demand that it stop!

In fact we held a big meeting and took a vote in Kansas City this week. We voted to condemn a political revival of that old abolitionist spirit called the ‘tea party movement’.

The tea party position to “end the bailouts” for example is just silly. Bailouts are just big money welfare and isn’t that what we want all Coloreds to strive for? What kind of racist would want to end big money welfare? What they need to do is start handing the bail outs directly to us coloreds! Of course, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People is the only responsible party that should be granted the right to disperse the funds.

And the ridiculous idea of “reduce[ing] the size and intrusiveness of government.” What kind of massa would ever not want to control my life? As Coloreds we must have somebody care for us otherwise we would be on our own, have to think for ourselves and make decisions!

The racist tea parties also demand that the government “stop the out of control spending.” Again, they directly target coloreds. That means we Coloreds would have to compete for jobs like everybody else and that is just not right.

Perhaps the most racist point of all in the tea parties is their demand that government “stop raising our taxes.” That is outrageous! How will we coloreds ever get a wide screen TV in every room if non-coloreds get to keep what they earn? Totally racist! The tea party expects coloreds to be productive members of society?

Mr. Lincoln, you were the greatest racist ever. We had a great gig. Three squares, room and board, all our decisions made by the massa in the house. Please repeal the 13th and 14th Amendments and let us get back to where we belong.

Sincerely

Precious Ben Jealous, Tom’s Nephew
NAACP Head Colored Person

Via AP:

“Minutemen groups, a surge in Border Patrol agents, and a tough new immigration law aren’t enough for a reputed neo-Nazi who’s now leading a militia in the Arizona desert.

Jason ‘J.T.’ Ready is taking matters into his own hands, declaring war on ‘narco-terrorists’ and keeping an eye out for illegal immigrants. So far, he says his patrols have only found a few border crossers who were given water and handed over to the Border Patrol. Once, they also found a decaying body in a wash, and alerted authorities.

But local law enforcement are nervous given that Ready’s group is heavily armed and identifies with the National Socialist Movement, an organization that believes only non-Jewish, white heterosexuals should be American citizens and that everyone who isn’t white should leave the country ‘peacefully or by force.’”

Via AP:

A billboard ordered and paid for by the North Iowa Tea Party shows Obama, Hitler, and Lenin, on South Federal Avenue in Mason City, Iowa. It was later taken down by the group.

Message sent to me by a TRUE AMERICAN PATRIOT:

“I don’t know what you’re apologizing for. Be proud of your country, or move to Europe where liberal ideals and huge social programs are more accepted.

America is too generous. We give out exponentially greater amounts to disasters in other countries than other nations. I mean, how much money did China send to Haiti last year? A few million at best, and their economy is booming.

I just think it’s sad to see how many people in this country think it’s cool or okay to be ashamed of their nation.

By the way, conservatism isn’t about being afraid of change. It’s about making political decisions based on rational economic information.”

Now which one of you told a Tea Partier about my site?

Sarah Palin gets owned by…Bill O’Reilly? To be fair, it’s not much of an accomplishment to make her look stupid, considering she does most of the work herself.

Glenn Beck to Liberal Media: ;_;