Yellow Dogs are a liberal's best friend

St. Petersburg Times ^ | November 12, 2003 | Bill Maxwell

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Bill Maxwell can't seem to remove himself from the share crop picking days of his youth. He is a contradiction. His family encouraged his studies. He writes passionately that blacks need to embrace education and rejects the idea being educated is "acting white." He rails about the self-destruction of the black man but proudly announces he'd rather vote for the party that rejects vouchers, than for a Republican. I'd say the Democratic Party is not your friend Mr. Maxwell, they are your worst enemy.

Mr Maxwell, you write, "The Democratic Party has done the most for us."

I say the Republican Party beliveves you can do more for yourself. The GOP believes in your ablility to succeed. The Democrat Party wants you to need them.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Bill Maxwell: Poetry can provide a powerful surprise*** Stereotype, n., v., a simplified and standardized conception or image of a person, group, etc., held in common by members of a group.

One of my former students wrote the other day expressing concern for her son, a graduating senior at Dillard High School in Fort Lauderdale. Muscular, big and a fast runner, the young man has a college football scholarship.

The problem is that he carries a secret that, if exposed, will subject him to almost-certain ridicule: He loves and reads the poetry of Gwendolyn Brooks, he writes excellent verse and he wants to study English and become a poet of the non-hip-hop kind. I was told of his plight because mine was similar when I was his age, which I had shared with his mother and her classmates.

Like I was at 17, this young man is a victim of one of black culture's self-imposed stereotypes: dark-skinned black males are dumb.

……………….. Why does Colin Powell incite such interest and awe among whites? Why do so many white people think they like him and would vote for him? Because he makes them feel comfortable by defying the old stereotypes about the black male. Fortunately, birth gave Powell fair skin and a fairly decent grade of hair. His environment gave him the blessing of good speech and easy manners, traits that defy the old stereotypes.

I discussed all of these ideas with my former student. What, she asked, should she say to her son about his desire to major in English? I advised her to help him find ways to avoid the stereotypes that will hurt him, that will cause him to play out society's expectations, that will automatically define him.***

_____________________________________________________________

Listen to your own advice, Mr. Maxwell and don't stereotypically hand your vote to the Democratic Party.

[Fledermaus]

Maybe if he didn't live in liberal moron land, he wouldn't be surprised about the term "yellow dog Democrat".

What an idiot.

[samtheman]

So I guess he would vote for Zell Miller over Olympia Snow.

On that vote, I would agree with him.

[Fledermaus]

I mean he wouldn't be surprised "no one" he runs into knows the term. It's like William Buckley, Jr. story of a NY socialite he knew that, at a party, said in 1972 that she didn't understand how Nixon had won a landslide...nobody she knew voted for him.


I think that story has been retold with Nixon and also Reagan in 1984.

[dyed_in_the_wool]

We are, according to Just Politics, "unswerving" party loyalists.

They are, according to dyed_in_the_wool, idiots.

[NYpeanut]

Who is this guy? He writes like he's in junior high.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

The problem is, he isn't an idiot. 90% of blacks aren't idiots. Their devotion to the notion that the Democratic Party "cares" was, is and will continue to be self-destructive. It's one thing to demand equal, non-stereotypical treatment on the American stage, and quite another to cling to the group that's promising to take care of you. You can't have it both ways. Do you want to be respected for your abilities or don't you?

[Cincinatus' Wife]

True but that is hardly typical.

[samtheman]

Of course. I was just wondering if the yellow dogs would follow their own stupid logic 100% of the time. Probably not.

Zell Miller himself has a streak of the yellow-dog in him. Asked why he remains a Democrat he said something to the effect that he was born into a family of Democrats.

What the hell does THAT mean?

[Cincinatus' Wife]

What the hell does THAT mean?

He went on to say that he grew up in the Democratic Party house and yes, the roof leaks and the floor creaks and some people he doesn't know are living in the basement but he's been there longer than they have and he isn't leaving. He said his family, neighbors and friends understand and at his age, that's all that matters.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Blacks did not become Yellow Dog Democrats accidentally. They found a home, a place where they knew that bleeding hearts would do the decent thing - even if the decent thing had unintended negative consequences.

Well, unintended or not, it's time to get the hell out of Dodge.

[samtheman]

How touching.

But his metaphor is all wrong. An old house with a leaky roof does not describe todays demonrats. A rat infestation of an otherwise beautiful old house. That's a more apt metaphor.

But Zell wouldn't like that metaphor, would he? Because then he'd have a harder time using "family" as an excuse to run-with-the-rats.

[patj]

Blacks did not become Yellow Dog Democrats accidentally. They found a home, a place where they knew that bleeding hearts would do the decent thing - even if the decent thing had unintended negative consequences.

Could this be tongue-in-cheek? How could he see the "unintended consequences" and still be a Yellow Dog? Unless, of course, yellow dog means 'brain dead and prrrrrroud of it'.

[metesky]

Without trying, I can think of many ways that Republicans have been intentionally cruel to blacks and other groups.

Name one. Come on Bill, name one.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Could this be tongue-in-cheek? How could he see the "unintended consequences" and still be a Yellow Dog?

It would appear, he's more in favor of the collective than the individual.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Name one. Come on Bill, name one.

I'd like to hear some of those too!

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Zell Miller is going to do the GOP a great service by heading Democrats for Bush. I think he will deliver for his country.

[section9]

The writer is an asshat. I told him as much in an email to him. Of course, I was much more polite.

Be Seeing You,

Chris

[Alberta's Child]

The author of this article is really behind the times. In modern parlance, the phrase "Yellow Dog Democrat" has been replaced by "Blue Dress Democrat."