Shirley Sherrod/Andrew Breitbart

[DanOregon]

There's really no way for the administration to fix this. And if I were Sherrod, I'd tell them where to shove it if they called and offered me my job back.

This makes two bogus stories Breitbart has successfully peddled. Maybe next time, the real media won't be so quick to hitch their wagons to this bum steer with an agenda.

Here's a thoughtful take from a thoughtful conservative on this:

http://theweek.com/bullpen/column/205190/shirley-sherrod-and-the-shame-of-conservative-media

When people talk of the "closing of the conservative mind" this is what they mean: not that conservatives are more narrow-minded than other people ? everybody can be narrow minded ? but that conservatives have a unique capacity to ignore unwelcome fact.

I thought Frum's take on the two different types of Conservatives was interesting. There does seem to be a strain of "rat****ers" that still exist and thrive, seemingly trying to settle past scores and slights from the Nixon era.

 

[Boom_70]

I've read and watched the entire speech. It's not a speech that you would want a Federal Govt official to give. It was ill conceived and divisive in it's entirety.

Take this quote:

"There are jobs at USDA and many times there are no people of color to fill those jobs because we shy away from agriculture. We hear the word agriculture and think, 'Why are we working in the fields?'" she said.

"You've heard of a lot of layoffs. Have you heard of anybody in the federal government losing their job? That's all I need to say."

 

[Ben_Hecht]

I was reading NewsBusters today and found Brent Bozell's column criticizing the mainstream media for not jumping on the story when the video came out pretty funny.

The liberal mainstream media that doesn't fall for far-right dirty tricks is obviously biased.

The entire Bozell family has been a veritable fount of unintentional hilarity
for many, many years.

 

[Ben_Hecht]

From Bill O'Reilly earlier this week talking about the New Black Panther story. I wish the words truth and journalism showed up somewhere. I guess that doesn't matter in cable news?
"There is a growing split about how the news is covered in this country," O'Reilly said. "The old guard mainstream media makes decisions based upon ideology, race and elitism. The new media, of which Fox News is a part, covers what Americans believe is important to them. That's why we are a dominant No. 1, and I submit we have far more influence than the network news does."

. . . and we owe so, so much of it to Loofah Boy.

 

[Boom_70]

I've read and watched the entire speech. It's not a speech that you would want a Federal Govt official to give. It was ill conceived and divisive in it's entirety.

Take this quote:

"There are jobs at USDA and many times there are no people of color to fill those jobs because we shy away from agriculture. We hear the word agriculture and think, 'Why are we working in the fields?'" she said.

"You've heard of a lot of layoffs. Have you heard of anybody in the federal government losing their job? That's all I need to say."

I'm sure if she thought in 1986, when she gave the speech, that someone would try and take down the NAACP with an edited version of her remarks 24 years later she would have been more careful.

Huh ? She gave the speech this past March.

You are no better than the media who ran with altered tape yesterday.

Get your facts straight.

 

[sportsguydave]

I've read and watched the entire speech. It's not a speech that you would want a Federal Govt official to give. It was ill conceived and divisive in it's entirety.

Take this quote:

"There are jobs at USDA and many times there are no people of color to fill those jobs because we shy away from agriculture. We hear the word agriculture and think, 'Why are we working in the fields?'" she said.

"You've heard of a lot of layoffs. Have you heard of anybody in the federal government losing their job? That's all I need to say."

I'm sure if she thought in 1986, when she gave the speech, that someone would try and take down the NAACP with an edited version of her remarks 24 years later she would have been more careful.

Huh ? She gave the speech this past March.

You are no better than the media who ran with altered tape yesterday.

Get your facts straight.

The situation she refers to in the speech happened in 1986, which is probably what Dan meant. There's really no reason to be a jerk, Boom.

 

[D-3 Fan]

1. That was a bull**** move by Breitbart.
2. No matter how the WH spins this, they look bad. Period. End of story.

Now, the WH is throwing Vilsack under the bus as a CYA for themselves: http://blogs.desmoinesregister.com/dmr/index.php/2010/07/21/vilsack-under-fire-from-right-and-left/

This was one of those times in which Vilsack could have told the WH "Whoa, wait a minute here. Don't you think we need to talk to her first and get her to explain those quotes from 25 years ago?"

Instead, ****ing "groupthink" and pulling the trigger too fast came back to bite them in the ass. The same goes to the NAACP for piling on her. She has accepted the apologies, however if I was her, I would have told the NAACP and the WH to **** themselves behind a mountain.

Mitch Albom is on line 3...

 

[DanOregon]

I deleted the post. I was wrong. She should have realized someone out there would try and make her look like a racist by selectively editing a video of her speech, whether in 1986 or last March.

 

[Boom_70]

I've read and watched the entire speech. It's not a speech that you would want a Federal Govt official to give. It was ill conceived and divisive in it's entirety.

Take this quote:

"There are jobs at USDA and many times there are no people of color to fill those jobs because we shy away from agriculture. We hear the word agriculture and think, 'Why are we working in the fields?'" she said.

"You've heard of a lot of layoffs. Have you heard of anybody in the federal government losing their job? That's all I need to say."

I'm sure if she thought in 1986, when she gave the speech, that someone would try and take down the NAACP with an edited version of her remarks 24 years later she would have been more careful.

Huh ? She gave the speech this past March.

You are no better than the media who ran with altered tape yesterday.

Get your facts straight.

The situation she refers to in the speech happened in 1986, which is probably what Dan meant. There's really no reason to be a jerk, Boom.

Read the quote first then come back to me:

"I'm sure if she thought in 1986, when she gave the speech, that someone would try and take down the NAACP with an edited version of her remarks 24 years later she would have been more careful.

 

[Boom_70]

1. That was a bull**** move by Breitbart.
2. No matter how the WH spins this, they look bad. Period. End of story.

Now, the WH is throwing Vilsack under the bus as a CYA for themselves: http://blogs.desmoinesregister.com/dmr/index.php/2010/07/21/vilsack-under-fire-from-right-and-left/

This was one of those times in which Vilsack could have told the WH "Whoa, wait a minute here. Don't you think we need to talk to her first and get her to explain those quotes from 25 years ago?"

Instead, ****ing "groupthink" and pulling the trigger too fast came back to bite them in the ass. The same goes to the NAACP for piling on her. She has accepted the apologies, however if I was her, I would have told the NAACP and the WH to **** themselves behind a mountain.

Mitch Albom is on line 3...

Again - the speech was given March 27 2010.

Here is another gem:

"You know, I haven't seen such a mean-spirited people as I've seen lately over this issue of health care. Some of the racism we thought was buried. Didn't it surface? Now, we endured eight years of the Bush's and we didn't do the stuff these Republicans are doing because you have a black President."

 

[Boom_70]

Another:

"In Rural Development, there are 129 employees and guess how many of them are people of color? Anybody want to take a guess? That's in Georgia. I got -- there are 129 in my agency. How many? It's more than two. Little more than 12. There are less than 20 of us. We have six area offices in the State and subarea offices offices and when I look at who's coming up the line in the agencies -- in the agency, there are not many of us, 'cause we think agriculture is a bad word. We think it's working in the fields. Some of the best paying jobs you ever want to have, okay? "

 

[DanOregon]

Boom, I admitted I was wrong about the 1986 thing.

I don't get why you think what she said is so bad. She complained that you never hear of someone in federal govt. losing their job (sounds like a Tea Party member). She is encouraging people to work in agriculture because the pay is good (Sounds like a capitalist).

 

[Boom_70]

Boom, I admitted I was wrong about the 1986 thing.

I don't get why you think what she said is so bad. She complained that you never hear of someone in federal govt. losing their job (sounds like a Tea Party member). She is encouraging people to work in agriculture because the pay is good (Sounds like a capitalist).

I see how you became misinformed. You better let Football bat know to correct his post. ;)

As far as speech I understand what she was trying to say but in the context of being a federal official it was ill conceived. Too many of her statements could be easily be misconstrued and turn into a political embarrassment for the Obama administration. She let the cat out of the bag on a lot of things that I'm sure Obama would not want out there for public consumption.

 

[Batman]

Another:

"In Rural Development, there are 129 employees and guess how many of them are people of color? Anybody want to take a guess? That's in Georgia. I got -- there are 129 in my agency. How many? It's more than two. Little more than 12. There are less than 20 of us. We have six area offices in the State and subarea offices offices and when I look at who's coming up the line in the agencies -- in the agency, there are not many of us, 'cause we think agriculture is a bad word. We think it's working in the fields. Some of the best paying jobs you ever want to have, okay? "

How is that quote racist? Substitute "journalism" for "agriculture," and "small newspapers" for "agencies," and you have a quote that largely reflects why so few minorities are in the top end of our own business.

 

[Batman]

What could she possibly sue him for?

Libel perhaps?

And defamation of character. Even with libel as tough as it is to prove, a media law class could take this on as an end of semester project and win.

 

[Boom_70]

Another:

"In Rural Development, there are 129 employees and guess how many of them are people of color? Anybody want to take a guess? That's in Georgia. I got -- there are 129 in my agency. How many? It's more than two. Little more than 12. There are less than 20 of us. We have six area offices in the State and subarea offices offices and when I look at who's coming up the line in the agencies -- in the agency, there are not many of us, 'cause we think agriculture is a bad word. We think it's working in the fields. Some of the best paying jobs you ever want to have, okay? "

How is that quote racist? Substitute "journalism" for "agriculture," and "small newspapers" for "agencies," and you have a quote that largely reflects why so few minorities are in the top end of our own business.

Where did I suggest that quote was racist?

 

[Batman]

Another:

"In Rural Development, there are 129 employees and guess how many of them are people of color? Anybody want to take a guess? That's in Georgia. I got -- there are 129 in my agency. How many? It's more than two. Little more than 12. There are less than 20 of us. We have six area offices in the State and subarea offices offices and when I look at who's coming up the line in the agencies -- in the agency, there are not many of us, 'cause we think agriculture is a bad word. We think it's working in the fields. Some of the best paying jobs you ever want to have, okay? "

How is that quote racist? Substitute "journalism" for "agriculture," and "small newspapers" for "agencies," and you have a quote that largely reflects why so few minorities are in the top end of our own business.

Where did I suggest that quote was racist?

Maybe I was just bored, but it seemed like that's where you were heading with your previous posts.

 

[Boom_70]

Another:

"In Rural Development, there are 129 employees and guess how many of them are people of color? Anybody want to take a guess? That's in Georgia. I got -- there are 129 in my agency. How many? It's more than two. Little more than 12. There are less than 20 of us. We have six area offices in the State and subarea offices offices and when I look at who's coming up the line in the agencies -- in the agency, there are not many of us, 'cause we think agriculture is a bad word. We think it's working in the fields. Some of the best paying jobs you ever want to have, okay? "

How is that quote racist? Substitute "journalism" for "agriculture," and "small newspapers" for "agencies," and you have a quote that largely reflects why so few minorities are in the top end of our own business.

Where did I suggest that quote was racist?

Maybe I was just bored, but it seemed like that's where you were heading with your previous posts.

Not at all. Just suggesting that it was a clumsy speech for a Federal Govt employee to give. My bet is that the Obama administration was more upset about the overall content than the flash point farmer story.

 

[Batman]

Another:

"In Rural Development, there are 129 employees and guess how many of them are people of color? Anybody want to take a guess? That's in Georgia. I got -- there are 129 in my agency. How many? It's more than two. Little more than 12. There are less than 20 of us. We have six area offices in the State and subarea offices offices and when I look at who's coming up the line in the agencies -- in the agency, there are not many of us, 'cause we think agriculture is a bad word. We think it's working in the fields. Some of the best paying jobs you ever want to have, okay? "

How is that quote racist? Substitute "journalism" for "agriculture," and "small newspapers" for "agencies," and you have a quote that largely reflects why so few minorities are in the top end of our own business.

Where did I suggest that quote was racist?

Maybe I was just bored, but it seemed like that's where you were heading with your previous posts.

Not at all. Just suggesting that it was a clumsy speech for a Federal Govt employee to give. My bet is that the Obama administration was more upset about the overall content than the flash point farmer story.

My apologies then. I guess I really was just bored ;D

 

[beardpuller]

Here is what I think: The Obama administration and the "mainstream media" need to stop letting disingenuous, corrosive ****heads set the agenda for what must be responded to/apologized for. I nearly lost my lunch over Bob Schieffer -- an actual respected journalist -- having to explain why he interviewed the attorney general of the United States and didn't ask about some bull**** Fox News hobby horse of a story.
Schieffer was much more gracious than I would have been. My answer there would be: "I don't ask questions just to fulfill some partisan talk show host's political agenda."
And if I'm Obama and somebody asks me to fire one of my people over something a scumbag like Andrew Breitbart comes up with, my answer would be, "kindly go **** yourself."
This administration needs to figure out that it is not engaging in a reasoned debate with well-intentioned opponents. It's at war with people whose objective is not the betterment of America, but the defeat/discrediting of Democrats.
Obama was elected President of the United States, not to shrink government or apologize for "black racism" (really a serious, pervasive problem, yeah, right), but to get the government working to help people again. Anything that distracts from that goal, he needs to ignore. And he needs to forget his fantasy that reasonable people on the other side will help him get things done. With this issue, as with so many others the past two years, we see that is not the opposition's agenda. It is "find something that can make this guy look bad." Over and over and over.
There. Now I feel better.