Samuel Johnson famously said that patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.
We need to update that 18th Century aphorism. Today's scoundrels pull the fire alarm of race in order to short-circuit meaningful discussions of poverty, crime and other issues.
We've already heard from Esty Dinur, who carefully quantifies the presence of melanin or lack thereof among the 2,500 Madisonians who attended eight neighborhood listening sessions this past year (Mayor Dave Ciesliewicz's numbers).
We have heard from Master John Peck who rails against "entrenched white-upper-class privilege, economic oppression, xenophobia and discrimination..."
The Progressive Dane political party and its flower strewer in the daily news media, the afternoon Progressive Dane newspaper, are particular practitioners of the tawdry practice. It is the new McCarthyism.
So it is gratifying when the Far Left's promiscuous charges of "racism" backfire. Credit to the student behind The Critical Badger for Russell, how dare you call the College Democrats racist on your blog! The "Critical Badger" explicates: Back in January, the College Democrats endorsed a candidate (that) Austin King... didn't like. As a result, Austin and Wallace worked together to smear Eli Lewein, the chair of the College Democrats at the time, as a racist.
That candidate would have been Eli Judge, a white man, who eventually beat Lauren Woods, a black woman, for the right to succeed Austin King, another white man.
Wallace, who is another white man, wrote a February 21 blog revealingly entitled "UW Madison College Dems: No Blacks Allowed?"
Wallace's beef was that the Young Dems changed the rules to require previous attendance at one of their meetings in order to have standing at its endorsement meeting. A wise move, when you consider Progressive Dane's history of packing meetings with new "members." Even wiser, if you believe -- as the UW Dems contend -- that Progressive Dane intended to pack the meeting with Woods supporters who were not even UW students.
Just think about it: how likely is it that the UW Madison College Democrats are a racist front organization?
The "Critical Badger" blogs, "(Wallace) used race like a weapon in that election and everyone knows it. Racist, no, manipulating race to win? Hell yes."
Here is the Blaska's Blog's new equation: any charge of racism must be filed at the nearest court or civil rights adjudicator, such as the state Equal Rights Bureau. Prove it in court or shut up.
Conservative Andrew Sullivan, in the December issue of The Atlantic Monthly, notes that Barack Obama "knows race is important and yet he knows that it turns destructive if it becomes the only important thing."
He quotes an Obama speech in late September:
When I'm president, we will no longer accept the false choice between being tough on crime and vigilant in our pursuit of justice. Dr. King said: 'It's not either/or, it's both/and.'Gregory Humphrey of Caffeinated Politics took on the same issue -- look for the November 13 response from "Democrat Said," who recycles my Isthmus print column, Democrats need to beat back the attack from local left party."
Credit where it is due:
The afternoon Progressive Dane newspaper entertains the possibility that Bill Cosby may be right after all. Good job by Patricia Schneider. Perhaps someday the newspaper will learn how to bundle the wealth of statistical evidence she provided into an attractive sidebar, perhaps illustrated with charts or, at least, icons.
Memo to Lukas Diaz
Who commented in the last blog:
Lots of people and organizations look "far-left" to Blaska. There's a reason Wayne Bigelow mentioned Blaska's defeat as a big accomplishment. Try not to take him seriously.Lots of organizations do, indeed, look "far left" to Blaska -- none more so than Progressive Dane. Obviously, Wayne Bigelow took me seriously. He and, apparently, the majority of his party this past week, also took the threat of Progressive Dane seriously.
Now they have to differentiate themselves from PD. Crime -- which I have been talking about for many years -- is a good place to start.
Memo to "lukpac"
Who references my blog on the bus pisser incident:
Did Blaska ever stop and think that maybe it is possible that the things *both* people did were wrong and stupid?Yes, Blaska does stop and sometimes he even thinks. Both driver and pisser may have been wrong and stupid but only the bus driver has been charged. Get it? Have I mentioned trolleys lately?
Today's challenge
Will Kyle Nabilcy ever get it?
