Lando 
Posted on 08/14/2004 6:43:37 AM PDT by Lando Lincoln
The news out of Mississippi yesterday was astonishing. Surely everyone witnessed the outrageous display by the Ku Klux Klan, since the media covered it throughout the day.
Grand Dragon Billy Bob Boyle had called a press conference on the steps of the Biloxi City Hall. Bearded, in full Klan regalia, with a pistol strapped to his side, he sneered at the assembled reporters and cameras.
The turnout of news people was large for what normally would be a lightly covered story because of rumors of an ''explosive announcement.''
Nearby, police had set up a chain-link fence to restrain the mob of hecklers. Around the Grand Dragon were armed bodyguards.
The crowd was loud and profane and Boyle defiant as he spoke into the amplified microphone.
''Are y'all gonna let me talk, or are you afraid to hear what I have to say?'' he shouted. ''Are you afraid of the truth? Why, y'all are nothin' more than a bunch of punks and mongrels. Shut the (expletive) up!''
As the mob quieted momentarily, Boyle began to read from a prepared statement.
''Folks think we are opposed to black people and other minorities,'' he said. ''That is not true. We actually support our African-American neighbors, and….''
The crowd's reaction was instant. Jeering and shouting, they began to press against the fence as bodyguards nervously fingered their firearms. Police managed to keep the crowd under control.
''We actually support our African-American neighbors, and that is why the Ku Klux Klan is donating $50,000 to update the voting machines in Mississippi,'' Boyle continued.
''We are doing this because it is a proven fact that black people are too ignorant and stupid to operate the punch-card systems now being….''
The ensuing riot resulted in dozens of arrests and considerable property damage. ''Fortunately, no one got killed,'' said Chief of Police Dexter Trembley.
The national reaction was immediate. Dan Rather, Peter Jennings, and Tom Brokaw denounced the remarks on the evening news. Congresswoman Maxine Waters called for a congressional investigation into ''why those redneck barbarians were allowed out there in the first place.''
The Black Caucus demanded a formal apology from Mississippi's congressional delegation. The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and most major newspapers ran scathing editorials condemning Boyle and the Klan.
Hillary Rodham Clinton blamed President George W. Bush for creating a national atmosphere of ''hate and bigotry.''
Now, if you think this is a work of fiction, you are right. But surely it mirrors what would happen if such a situation actually occurred--or does it?
Unfortunately, it all depends on who does the slandering.
When the California American Civil Liberties Union said that punch-card voting machines would ''disproportionately disadvantage'' African-Americans, Latinos, and Asians, we could only assume the ACLU agrees with our make-believe Grand Dragon: African-Americans and other minorities are ignorant and stupid.
But did you see Dan Rather or Peter Jennings condemn this on the evening news? Did you hear anything from Maxine Waters? The Black Caucus? Did you read any harsh editorials?
The willingness of the left to overlook the most overt of racist remarks or actions by its own, while heaping scorn on conservatives for lesser violations, is stunning.
When NAACP President Kweisi Mfume said, ''We've got a president that's prepared to take us back to the days of Jim Crow segregation and dominance,'' there was no media outrage.
But when Fox News host Bill O'Reilly used the term ''wetbacks'' to describe illegal immigrants, he was pilloried as a racist.
When NAACP Chairman Julian Bond said Republicans believe ''equal rights is the American flag and Confederate swastika flying side by side,'' who on the left complained?
Republican Sen. Trent Lott wished that one-time segregationist Strom Thurmond had been elected president and was hounded out of office.
Perhaps the shameless behavior of the left was in William Shakespeare's mind when he wrote, ''Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.''
Yes, something certainly is rotten, but it is not in Denmark. It is the rotten stench of liberal hypocrisy in America.
About the Writer: Dennis Campbell is a freelance writer and former newspaper reporter and editor, who currently resides in New Mexico. Dennis receives e-mail at denniscampbell@sisna.com.
Lando
Don't confuse Maxine with facts... ;^)
or sanity
This could get interesting. I'll stay tuned. ;)
Lando
Congresswoman Maxine Waters called for a congressional investigation into ''why those redneck barbarians were allowed out there in the first place.''
THAT was exactly the reaction the KKK was looking for Maxine, you dumb-a**!
The double standard is glaring. Democrats will come to the rescue of anyone in their party who makes "racist comments", but the Republicans do not save such people. I think President Bush was right. The minority community should make the parties compete for their votes. By blindly supporting the democrats, minorities are putting all of their eggs in one basket.
And it only took six replies. ;o)
I usually scan stories and I read them according to the source. AP, Reuters, BBC, etc, I will disect to find the truth in them.
I admit I assumed since this was a "landolincoln" input, he had already cleared out the B.S. -- So from now on, I will NEVER trust this source again.
Land-o-Lincoln, by your attempt to insult the intelligence of the readers, you have lost credibility. You should have begun with a 'humor' or other tag.
I thought they were going to touch screens because Democrats in general were just too dam dumb to play with sharp instruments.
Even my 86 year old wheel chair bound mother-in-law can punch out the chad, but then she votes Republican.
I was certain you did.
Seems Maxine is getting all the flack.
Life is good. ;)
Lando
Get a grip. The article was a brilliant contrast of how the media treat statements differently, depending on who made them. That you failed to read carefully is not Lando's fault.
FMCDH(BITS)
Er, maybe this leap of faith at the heart of the article is wrong. Maybe the ACLU is saying that voting machines where the voter punches the card (as opposed to machine-punched) are more prone to inaccuracy or holes not being punched.
Note, this isn't what happened in Florida - that was dem's stuffing too many cards in the machines. And I hate the ACLU just as much as the next guy. But this article seems flawed.
Every morning liberals first adjust their halos, and then sidestep all the trash and garbage littering their house, run out into the street and accuse their Republican conservative neighbors of having untidy domiciles. They should look in the mirror when they choose to brand others as evil and racist hate-mongers.
BUMP
Then the ACLU should have said so. What it said indicated precisely what the article's "leap of faith" implied: Liberal Hypocrisy in its most common everyday form.
You're wrong. According to the article, the ACLU "...said that punch-card voting machines would ''disproportionately disadvantage'' African-Americans, Latinos, and Asians...". Voter-punched machines are less accurate and less reliable than machine-punched machines. Lower income districts probably opt for cheaper machines. A case can be made for being "disproportionately disadvantaged" without saying that it implies minorities are less capable. Stick with what the ACLU actually says, vs. what the author of the article implies it means.
Perhaps a "case can be made." It is you who chose not to "stick with what the ACLU actually says," but to add that "voter-punched machines are less accurate," and to assume that low income districts are minority districts and that low income districts probably would buy cheaper machines.
As you wrote, "stick with what the ACLU actually says." By doing so you may be able to grasp what they meant rather than having to defend what you hope they meant.
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