The End is Not in Sight Yet

Tags

editorial, Jr., March on Washington, Martin Luther King

It has been a momentous week in Washington. That’s saying something, given the gridlock that is the norm there.

If you are not old enough to remember the March on Washington in 1963, well, there was plenty of history to learn from last weekend onward. I was thirteen at the time, so I was aware, though surely not the way I am now.

PBS did a great job, giving us the “music of the March” followed by a great little history lesson of the organization and the organizers, followed by an informative look at Whitney Young, one of the major players who was neglected by the later power players as a “tom”, although nothing could be further from the truth.

Wednesday of course offered us the original speech and those of many others, along with the President’s.

One should not avoid the other “issues” of the March. Women, many of whom had significant jobs in the March organization, were shoved to the back, kept off podiums, and marginalized. (There is probably a whole psychology that could be explored here.) Bayard Ruskin was a major organizer of the march, yet he was completely marginalized given his avowed Communist beliefs and his open homosexuality.

Yet, given that, it was a monumental undertaking and a phenomenal success. It turned the tide of public opinion, and put politicians in a box from which they could not escape. They tried to, to be sure, but after the Kennedy assassination, it was like a deck of cards had collapsed, and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 65, followed quickly.

I wonder how our Republican brothers and sisters viewed the events of the past week. It is unquestioned that they have done all they can to co-opt Martin Luther King, Jr. as their own, calling him a Republican, and announcing or rather pontificating that he would be opposed to much “liberal” legislation.

If I hear, “I believe like MLK did, that you shouldn’t judge a person by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character,” one more time,  I shall vomit. This is always in connection to some anti-African-American statement. Whether it be to vilify another Black actor for “playing the race card” (speaking up for justice for Blacks in whatever venue it is absent), or vilifying anyone who dares defend the “unfair” practice of affirmative action, a quick reference to MLK seems sufficient to establish one’s bona fides as a “non-racist.”

Of course their take on Dr. King is anything but correct. There is no evidence that King was a Republican, and his words suggest that he was a member of neither party. He considered the 1964 Republican platform to be racist, and actively campaigned against Goldwater. He thought little of Ronald Reagan.

What the uber Right refuses to remember is that King was murdered while in Memphis supporting striking sanitation workers. These workers were union men. King spoke out again and again against the economic inequalities that existed and favored redistribution of wealth. He was no fan of capitalism as it existed denying workers reasonable compensation for their work.

At least two of his closest aides had ties to the Communist party. One was an avowed gay man. These are not the signs of a TEA Party wannabe surely. People like Alan Keyes, Allen West, Herman Cain and Clarence Thomas would not have been in his camp, now would he have remained silent to their kowtowing to the white conservative element.

The usual lies about this week were rolled out by the usual players. Billo the Clown O’Reilly blatantly said that Republicans were denied a part in the festivities. This was not even remotely true. Both Bushes were invited, as were Boehner and Cantor. All declined for various reasons.

Such is to be expected of Fox of course, which routinely spouts lies, knowing that a minority of Americans watch them to the exclusion of all else, and will continue in their neighborhoods and blogs, and Facebook walls, to convey the lie to even more unknowing, unthinking individuals. With that Fox’s job is done–the lie will become “truth” to a minority of ignorant-loving TeaBirchers.

Meanwhile, nothing much changes. Fox and other crazy sites will continue to pretend that the Australian athlete who was gunned down, was killed by a couple of “black kids” when in fact there were three, and one was white. They will continue to bellow “why has the President not expressed his outrage?” when of course the two situations (this and the Trayvon Martin case) are in no way linked. Police in Oklahoma have stated again and again that race played no part in the shooting.

But something has indeed changed. John Lewis reminds us that voting rights continue to be a challenge, given that Republican-held state legislatures across the land pass law after law that limits the right to vote–of only those who typically vote Democratic. They are quite blatant in their explanations. There is no racial motivation they proclaim, but only political motives! They thumb their noses at us, claiming that they “have every right to make it hard for their opponents to vote”. Nothing illegal in that.

If voting is our most precious right, then people of color, seniors, students, and all those who threaten to power base of the modern Republican party, will rally to the cause. We will not stand still for this. And the modern NAACP and other battle-savvy warriors in the equality battle will lead us. They are rejuvenated by the behavior of the white power players. As Colin Powell said, this plan will surely backfire on the party. We mean to see that it does.

Dr. King would be proud of not where we are today, for we have much yet to do, but he would be proud of our determination to “let freedom ring”. We will get to the mountain top Dr. King, we will.

The Legacy of Race

Tags

Jr., Martin Luther King, Obama, racism

It is a stunning bit of serendipity that the President’s second Inaugural falls on this day we celebrate as Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. It gives me pause to reflect upon the legacy of Dr. King, and how far we have traveled, and how far, sadly we still have to go.

Because our President is African-American, it is almost inevitable that the rabid minority who detest him with a fervor that reaches to at or near real hatred, are quick to point out (almost always unasked of course) that they are not racists. But they also go further, attempting in some drug-induced phantasmagoria to capture Dr. King as their own. They quote with self-satisfaction two facts: one, that Dr. King was after all, one of them, a Republican, and second they quote from his “I Have a Dream” speech, that they “judge a person by the content of their character and not by the color of their skin.”

To them, this settles the question. If anyone pursues the issue further, they are “race baiting” or “playing the race card”, trying to blame their circumstances not on their own limitations, but rather on a non-existent barrier that prevents them from reaching their goal.

Race still matters in America. No matter how politically correct we are, or how politically correct we witness others being, the ugly face of racism seethes just below the surface. My own father, a man as racist as any could be, became politically correct, dropping the “N” word from his speech, but he could snarl out the word “black” with the same venomous disgust as the other word. There was no mistaking his true views.

History is the long and tragic story of the fact that privileged groups seldom give up their privileges voluntarily. Individuals may see the moral light and voluntarily give up their unjust posture; but as Reinhold Niebuhr has reminded us, groups are more immoral than individuals. (MLK Letter from Birmingham Jail)

Race matters when those on the extreme Right refuse to legitimize the present office holder of the Presidency. Race matters when posters are painted of the Commander-in-Chief as a African Voodoo artist. Race matters when the emphasis is placed on Mr. Obama’s middle name. Race matters when the only African-Americans deemed acceptable are those who uphold the views of the Right that “everyone” now has an equal chance. Race matters when the majority of black Americans are “victims” of the Plantation Democrats, unable apparently to think for themselves, but need the Right to explain to them that “handouts” aren’t real progress.

When Planned Parenthood is attacked as a genocide upon the black race, rather than what it is, an organization that provides the only health care available to millions of women of color and otherwise, race matters.

Race matters when undocumented workers who pay taxes, and work for low wages doing the jobs that most white folks won’t do, raising their families to be hardworking, and law-abiding citizens, are called “Illegals”. When we seek to strip citizenship from their children because they are “anchor babies”, racism is dripping from our lips.

Race matters when our sisters living within the reservations still can be assaulted by non-Native men and get no justice.

Race matters in this country and we refuse to see it and deny it at our peril. For racial hatred is deadly, it eats at the fabric of society and destroys it from within. It keeps us from embracing each other with full acceptance, but mires us in the mud of distrust and suspicion.

We are not a society that is free of racism, any more than we are free of sexism, any more than we are free of our own versions of what is moral and what is not. We are not tolerant about many things, and there are those who say that to be tolerant is  to be accepting of that which we know to be wrong merely to get along. That is not true. To be tolerant is to recognize that we, each of us, do not have a corner on morality. Our version is not THE version necessarily. Being tolerant is being open to the possibility that there are other ways, ways better than ours. For the religious, it means we are open to the work of the Spirit to enlarge our world and to our understanding of Right.

Martin Luther King Jr., was not a Republican because he believed in the tenets of the Republican party, surely not as it exists today. He is not yours, Tea party adherents. He was a Republican because that was his only choice given the Dixiecrat Democrats, who were thoroughly opposed to civil rights for black people.

Martin Luther King Jr., was not in favor of simply having an even playing field, which you Tea party adherents claim. Such doesn’t exist in the first place. And secondly Dr. King spoke often about the inequality of wealth in this country and its dangers. In fact he wondered whether capitalism was a viable economic model if it resulted in such inequality and poverty at the bottom of the pyramid of society.

Martin Luther King Jr., died while engaged in support of sanitation workers in Memphis. He supported unions and knew that they were the only viable means of securing fair wages and safe working conditions for all workers.

Look within yourselves. We must each look within ourselves. Racism is insidious. Find it. Eradicate it.

   

 

 

‘nuf said?

You Can’t Make It Up!

Tags

crazy media, Election 2012, Geraldo, GOP, Hank Williams, Jr., Mitt Romney, Music, Paul Ryan, teabaggers, Todd Akin

 

 

See that guy to the right? The one paying attention to Paulie? That’s an idiot.

Yep. If he pulls down his pants, you will see it tattooed on his butt: “I am STUPID.”  I swear. It’s there.

I’m sure you already heard. Toddikins fashions himself something of a gynecologist you see. It  seems to him, based on his vast experience, that no woman who is LEGITIMATELY raped, need fear pregnancy, since  her HORMONES create some kind of super killer fluid that kills the sperm of a rapist. Only ILLEGITIMATE rape victims get pregnant, which is how you tell the difference between a real victim and one of them sly girls who is just angling for an abortion.

You see, Redisgusticans think of women as sneaky sly creatures who are always trying to put something over on men. After all, it was a woman who ate from the apple and then with seductive wiles talked poor old Adam into taking a bite too.

That’s why their bills (Ryan agrees) use the term “forcible” rape–to catch the bad girls and make them be mothers against their will. Oh, I forgot, it’s for the baby. Except that they don’t like food stamps, day care, or aid to single mothers. The “care” stops at the delivery room.

∏

Speaking of Paulie boy, who is, as  I said, opposed to abortion in all cases except when three doctors, a priest, and a Republican have certified that the mother’s life is forfeit without it, (okay I stretch the truth a tiny bit), likes to rock and pump iron to the tunes of Rage Against the  Machine.

As happens all too often when it comes to GOOD music, the authors of same are none to pleased to be associated with the likes of Paulie and his ilk. This has led to innumerable numbers of cease and desist orders being filed against various GOP contenders over the ages.

Well, RAM can’t prevent Paulie from listening to their music of course, but they sure can tell him what they think of him and his policies. Paulie is apparently too obtuse to realize this on his own, so Tom Morello from the band took a moment to ‘splain to Paulie that they would just as soon he keep his 1% lips closed as it referred to them.

Read his remarks in Rolling Stone. Just a snippet to whet your whistle:

Don’t mistake me, I clearly see that Ryan has a whole lotta “rage” in him: A rage against women, a rage against immigrants, a rage against workers, a rage against gays, a rage against the poor, a rage against the environment. Basically the only thing he’s notraging against is the privileged elite he’s groveling in front of for campaign contributions.

∏

So I was thinkin’. I do that regularly in case you were wondering. It how I come by my sparkly personality and amazing wit. I am humble beyond belief too. Trust me on that.

Well, anyway, the GOP does have their go-to bands. There is always has-been Ted Nugent. He’s always ready to whip up some dirty cat-scratchin’ if called upon. And then there is good old space cadet, Hank Williams, Jr., whose Sr. is rolling in his grave in embarrassment no doubt.

Anyway, as I was sayin’, you remember Hank was taken off Monday Night Football for his nasty remarks about the President, which he said were “wildly taken out of context.” I’m not sure what his excuse is now.

At the Iowa State Fair, he said this:

“We’ve got a Muslim president who hates farming, hates the military, hates the U.S. and we hate him!”

According to the newspaper, this was met with applause. I don’t doubt it was, given that only toothless Muckersville rejects walkin’ barefoot with moonshine jugs in hand, were likely to be at the “concert.”

Just last month Hankie Donkey, told Rolling Stone that:

“We’ve got a President that does a call to the Koran or Mecca or whatever,. . . .”

indicating he cannot tell the difference between a book and a place. When Hank sleeps, the IQ of the planet goes up ten points.

∏

Some people ought to wear a sign that says: train wreck occurs when I open my mouth! One of those person’s is Geraldo Rivera, washed up has-been and never very good journalist who comes on Foxy now and then and says really stupid things.

So, GR was visiting Fox and Friends (who would want to be one of them?), and they were discussing a top person in Homeland Security who was on leave for sexual harassment charges and discrimination against men.

Following the completion of the “discussion” about this “scandal” (which nobody else heard about), GR interjects an entirely new subject which is really what he wanted to talk about.

“I have a question, is this subtext of the Department of Homeland Security scandal — that there is some kind of lesbian cabal, that it’s a same-sex takeover of the big agencies?”

“I don’t know, it seems like everyone is talking around it,” Geraldo said, as he picked up steam. “Is that really what people are saying? That men are disadvantaged because women and specifically lesbians are ruling the roost there?

You remember GR right? The guy who basically said that the Trayvon Martin was killed by George Montgomery because he wore a hoodie, which as everyone knows, makes everyone think you are a gangsta.

∏

And that is purely enough crazy for one day. You have now established that you are sane. Go about your day.

What’s on the Stove? sweet chile cilantro bbq chicken, corn salsa, and steamed broccoli.

Related articles

• Hank Williams Jr. at Iowa State Fair: We’ve Got a Muslim President Who Hates Farming, Hates the Military, Hates the U.S. and We Hate Him! (blacklistednews.com)
• ‘Rage’ guitarist rages against Paul Ryan’s love of ‘Rage’ (politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com)
• Paul Ryan blasted by Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello (ctvnews.ca)
• Furor over Republican’s ‘legitimate rape’ comment (english.ruvr.ru)
• Missouri GOP senate candidate: “legitimate rape” victims rarely get pregnant (newblackwoman.com)
• Dumb ass of the week, vol. 1 (gnosticbent.wordpress.com)

 

Well, It’s Not as if They Want Those Votes!

Tags

Election 2012, Gingrich, Jr., Martin L. King, Obama, racism, right-wing insane, Romney, Santorum, Sports

They have lots of time on their hands in Myrtle Beach I guess. Just so you know, from L-R, it’s Romney, Newt, Huntsman, Perry, Santorum and Paul.

While we were busy doing other things (getting totally immersed in the new show Alcatraz), the clown show was doing its level best to wow ’em in South Carolina. True to form, when we miss a rare debate, we miss the best of them.

Juan Williams had the unmitigated (it’s always unmitigated by the by) gall to question Newtster as to whether his “little black boys becoming janitors” might be a bit, ya know, talking down to darker folks. For this he was roundly booed by the good citizens of drawl.

Similarly, we understand that Mr. Mittens made some remark about his Mexican heritage  and for that he was also booed. That story is another of those, “you cannot make this stuff up” moments. When Mormons were being persecuted in the US, Mittens grandpa took the family down to Mexico, and they stayed there for some time, and Mittens papa was born down there. When the Mexican revolution broke out he moved the family back to the US–get this–as illegal aliens. Sooo, I’m thinkin, Mittens needs to go back to Mexico and get at the back of the line. Fair is fair after all.

While Mittens may be inevitable at this point, the right-wingers are intent on making it clearly known that they don’t want no Black and Hispanics muddying up their white GOP waters. I rather think their desire will be accommodated come next November. But, as the Rightie-Tightie’s are quick to point out, there ain’t no bleepin’ racism in Merika no more!

It used to be that the GOP could always make an issue out of crime. Crime being down everywhere, they have pretty much lost that issue, but both Frothy Mix and Mittens assured everyone that no dirty ex-felon would ever pull a lever in a voting booth if they had their druthers. So there.

¶

Andrew Sullivan, who writes for the Daily Beast, has by all accounts a great article on the Obama Administration accomplishments to date in Newsweek. Given what he has had to work with, it’s actually pretty amazing. And remember that it was Obama that pushed the stimulus, which contrary to all GOP rhetoric has been successful. It has been Europe who refused his suggestions and opted for austerity, that finds itself in deeper and deeper trouble. While our economy is certainly not robust, it has been making a steady climb upward for more than ten straight months.

¶

Now this is no gossip column, I want that to be perfectly clear. But good grief, how can one pass up juicy stuff like this:

It seems that Santorum’s wife, Karen, who is now a rabid anti-abortion crusader, used not to be well, so inclined.

It seems Karen, before she met the Rickster, was the “live-in” love for many years of one Tom Allen, a Pittsburg obstetrician, abortionist, and t0-this-day outspoken advocate of a woman’s reproductive freedom. He knows Karen quite well, having delivered her himself. Karen was into older men at the time. Karen was 22 when she remet Allen, then 63. Their affair lasted six years.

You cannot make this stuff up.

So, if you wonder how Frothy Mix gets all those perverted notions in his little noggin, well, . . .just sayin’.

This ranks high on the scale of Newtzpah!

¶

 I re-heard part of Martin Luther King, Jr’s Letter from a Birmingham Jail last night. I have to go read the entire thing. It is powerful stuff. MLK was an extraordinary and eloquent writer. You can go read it here.

¶

Call me crazy, but I find articles like this intriguing. Do Sports Build Character or Damage It? The Chronicle of Higher Education weighs in, and makes for an entertaining and thoughtful piece. The comments are good too.  This all from a professorial perspective. How else would Plato, Hector and Lawrence Taylor end up in the same place?

¶

Betty White turns 90 today, and is busy, healthy, and funnier than hell. She gives me hope.

¶

You guys probably don’t read the Blaze much. I don’t “read” it either, but I do check out the headlines and read the comments of one’s that I am sure will be “hot”. One of the most dangerous and compelling tools in the Blaze readership arsenal, is their willingness to “boycott” all those bad folks they find. Mostly they are Hollywood types and of course whole broadcasting networks, most of them in fact. They have boycotted so many people I can’t keep track. People like Morgan Freeman, and Spielberg, and Ron Howard, and George Clooney, and so forth.

The boycotts are because they are black and are “playing the racist” cards (code for reminding us of our damn bigotry), or they are supporting that racist/socialist/communist/fascist/Muslim jihadist/half-black/Merika-hatin’ Obummer dude.

I always feel sorta bad for ’em. They got nothing to watch, nothin’ to read, nothin’ to do except fume. They are down to Rush and Glenn and WorldNewsDaily. Gotta be rough.

And I can tell that all those Hollywood types are sweating out these boycotts. I mean the must be losing pennies a month. Rough.

¶

What’s on the Stove? Something called Smashed Tacos. And today’s posting will be an awesome Autumn Squash soup.

Extraordinary Words: Musings on the state and ethical behavior (suitably vague huh?)

Related articles

• Before Karen Met Rick (politicalwire.com)
• Political Predictions (hidinginurcloset.wordpress.com)
• Romney Shrugs Off Attacks (thedailybeast.com)
• Video: Gingrich vs. Juan Williams on the “food-stamp president” (hotair.com)

I’m So Snarky in My Longjohns

Tags

American History, founding fathers, Health care, Jesse Jackson, Joe Lieberman, Jr., Martin L. King, Michele Bachmann, NAACP, Right-wing wonkettes, Rush Limbaugh, Sarah Palin, teabaggers

She’s Baaaaaaccckkkk! Indeed, caught in a time warp, the Goodie two-shoes Sherry has been stifled, and Evil Snark, arguably the “real” thing is back!

Know ya been missin’ all the satirical madness that we so like to shovel to ya!

Okay, it was MINUS eighteen freakin’ degrees this morning and I’m grouchy.

I been a preparing for this event for a week, and though we survived it with no frosted fingers or nose, and the water still running, I’m tired of carrying a week’s worth of clothes on my back all day. It’s leftovers today, and I’m not lifting much more than a finger ’bout anything else.

I’ve spent some free time on The Blaze. It is a right-wing rag, supposedly tied to Beck, but I’ve not seen a word uttered by him there. The articles, if you can call them that, are trite, uninformative, selective in their reporting, and otherwise dull. But the comments, oh the comments are just precious. That is, if you are looking to see what the lowest 1% of the IQ in America is thinking. Again if you can call it thinking.

I learned something about the black experience. After Jesse Jackson spoke about the dream of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was still in part unfulfilled, I learned that I had it all wrong about MLK. It turns out he was not against the Vietnam war, not in favor of a redistribution of wealth in America, and a whole lot of other progressive things. No. I learned the extreme RIGHT wonkettes “revere” the man because:

MLK was for EQUAL justice – not social justice!

and this:

Jessie Jackson hijacked the dream, kidnapped the dream, raped and murdered and buried the Dream in an unmarked grave decades ago. It’s people like Glenn Beck and the Tea Party that are resurrecting the dream. Jesse,  pucker up and kiss ass you race baiting freedom hater.

and this:

The National African-American Communist Party (NAACP) – is more of the problem than solution for the 13% black community. They just perpetuate the woo is me mentality and tell the blacks that in fact they ares second class citizens and deserve the white handouts! – They should be thankful there was slavery and their ancestors were brought to America. Anytime they want to go back to their heritage country we will donate the travel expense.

And let’s not leave out the history lesson:

If it was not for the Founding of the United States of the Americas slavery would still be the labor of choice in whatever Empire would have come to power in today’s world.

What I have concluded, is that MLK was a wonderful person, but Jesse Jackson, the NAACP, and all African-Americans who don’t “know their place” are vile awful creatures. That doesn’t make these Right-wingers racists. Naw, they just are tellin’ it like it is.

My favorite comment so far is this one, from the never-ending defense of sista Sarah:

Palin is like the statue of liberty with a torch that will absorb all the evils of the progressive left – and stands taller for it.

Ah, yes, I can see it in my mind. Can’t you? The little granny glasses perched upon the statutes nose? A rifle slung across her back? The book binding with the words: Dominationist Christianity: NOW.  Who wouldn’t love that!

***

And then there is Michele Bachmann, claiming that, not to worry. Repeal of the Health Care Act won’t mean anything bad for those with pre-existing conditions. Why no, the “free market place” has handled it in the past, and will in the future, just fine. Yes, we know how they did it in the past. We can imagine how they will in the future, crazy woman. (Crazy eyes trails Obama in Iowa in straw polling by 18 big ones, in case you were concerned.)

***

Don’t forget that Michelle Obama is in the news again. The Crazies are pointing out that she is responsible for the slight uptick in pedestrians getting hit by cars. All that crap about eating better and getting more exercise has got people walking, and thus wandering into cars all over America. Lord, can’t that woman concentrate on flower arrangements or something?

***

Don’t know if ya heard. But Joey (I’m pissed) Lieberman had a debate with Arianna Huffington on Morning Joe the other day. Topic: WMD’s in Iraq. Lieberman continued to suggest that there was “good reason” to believe they were there. He cited the Duelfer report as support. When Huffington called him out on it and said that it did not support his contention, Lieberman shot back: “I don’t think you’ve read it, sweetheart.”  Okay Joe, another good reason why saying goodbye is such a good feeling for us all.

***

Political Irony has a nice list of  political jokes. They are worth linking up, but this one was reported everywhere, and is classic:

“I want you teabaggers out there to understand one thing: while you idolize the Founding Fathers and dress up like them, and smell like them, I think it’s pretty clear that the Founding Fathers would have hated your guts. And what’s more, you would’ve hated them. They were everything you despise. They studied science, read Plato, hung out in Paris, and thought the Bible was mostly bullsh*t.” – Bill Maher

***

Rush Limbaugh appears to be winning the race between Beck, Palin and himself, to of utter insignificance in the world. Even the right (you are sitting down I hope?) is critical of the tubbo’s recent mockery of the Chinese President, Hu. Mo has the story and links.

***

Okay, enough for today. I feel much better. See ya tomorrow if we don’t get frozen into icicles or ‘sumpin’.

The Winter of Our Discontent

Tags

civil discourse, Jr., Martin L. King, Obama, Right-wing estremism, sociology, Tucson memorial

This photograph, enlarged and framed hung in the courtroom of George W. Crockett II, in Recorder’s Court, Detroit, Michigan. Later, after the Judge had retired and become a US Congressman, it hung in the courtroom of his son, George W. Crockett III, whom I was privileged to work with and call friend.

I never failed to notice and sometimes contemplate  it as I sat awaiting a case being called, or perhaps during some portion of a trial. It always impressed me, this thoughtful, deep thinking man, carrying so much weight upon his shoulders.

King, I am told, ultimately moved to a “redistribution of wealth” point of view. He opposed the Vietnam war. He of course promoted and insisted upon a passive resistance approach in the Civil Rights movement. He learned his non-violence from Gandhi, at least in part. No doubt, he learned a great deal of it from Jesus of Nazareth.

How odd, how very ironic that we are fresh from violence a mere week ago. On this day we contemplate peace, and unity, civil discourse. How ironic that we are so strident in our speaking, so hateful in our speech.

I wonder. Are we a people, Americans that is, who are suspicious by nature? Do we distrust as part of our North American DNA? Sometimes I think so. But I am stymied as to why it seems so much worse now. Or maybe I am not. Maybe I’m just not sure.

I have read a good deal over the past few days, some small amount on virulently right-wing blogs and sites. I concentrate on the comments. And vicious is about the kindest words I can find.

All the glowing tributes to the fine speech by our President are gone. But to most of these commenters, they never had anything glowing to say, they merely waited until it was okay to spew. And spew they do.

The Right and Fox now accuse the Obama administration of distributing t-shirts at the memorial with the words “Together We Thrive.” Commentors screamed that there was “rock the vote” below the words, proof of course. None of this was documented of course, and of course it was exactly wrong.

The University of Arizona said the t-shirt and saying originated with them and that the sub-logo said “Tucson & American”. This is ignored, not fitting the agenda.

Worse, a photo has been moving around that shows Obama on the jumbotron at the auditorium. At the bottom are the words “applause.” Self-righteous horror at the ugly use of propaganda, used to make people applaud for the president, using the memorial in such a political way. “That ‘s the way of libtards,” one screeched. (Wouldn’t the use of libtard be an inappropriate bastardization of retard?)

The truth? This was close captioned for the hearing impaired, and when there was a pause for applause that erupted, the word applause served to notify the deaf why the president had stopped speaking.

The University has since explained that all the plans for the service were made by them, with the sole exception of security where the administration had input. None of this of course is mentioned by the Right Wing Media wonkettes.

There is no desire to know truth, since desire informs truth.

Similarly, but for different reasons, the British and American medical community have made it most clear that the British doctor who claimed that autism was in at least part caused by juvenile inoculations is a fraud. His study has been determined to be utterly fraudulent, his medical license stripped. No study (at least 5) have replicated his findings.

Still, lay people, surely wanting only the best for their children, continue to support the doctor and argue that there is some “massive conspiracy” to hide the truth. Why always comes down now, to “the only way to get research dollars is to go along with the prevailing ‘truth’.”

I find this hard to believe. As hard as I find it to believe when evolution is the topic, and the same argument is made. People simply don’t waste their entire professional lives on research they know to be bogus. People want to be noted for accomplishments, not being cogs in some massive grant scheme to benefit? who exactly?

Yet, people are not trusting. More and more doctors report that their patient’s parents don’t trust their advice. Having no expertise, they scurry to the Internet and discover “truth” for themselves. Yet, the Internet is chock full of charlatans, those who are making a living or better playing to fear and anger of this type.

I don’t think we are more suspicious than we have ever been. But I do think we have access to more information of fraud, and that causes us to think we should investigate better ourselves, and that leads us to sources we have no clue about. We are not equipped to determine which are legit and which are not.

I’m not sure how we work our way out of this dilemma, but surely we must. We are fast becoming in this age of information, horribly uninformed. And worse, we think we are MORE informed than others. How to negotiate this miasma of crazy to brilliant “information” is the problem we face.

If we cannot agree on what are legitimate sources, then civil discourse of the type envisioned by King and so many others will forever elude us.

Any ideas?