Posted on 09/30/2005 9:21:21 AM PDT by ex-Texan
Conservative Links Crime Rate and Abortion of Black Babies
A conservative talk show host, William Bennett served in the Reagan administration as education secretary.
WASHINGTON (Sept. 29) - Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid and other Democrats on Thursday demanded that former Education Secretary William Bennett apologize for remarks on his radio program linking the crime rate and the abortion of black babies.
Bennett responded that the comments, made Wednesday on his "Morning in America" show, had been mischaracterized and that his point was that the idea of supporting abortion to reduce crime was "morally reprehensible."
The author of "The Book of Virtues," answering a caller's question, took issue with the hypothesis put forth in a recent book that one reason crime is down is that abortion is up.
"But I do know that it's true that if you wanted to reduce crime, you could, if that were your sole purpose, you could abort every black baby in this country, and your crime rate would go down," Bennett said.
He went on to call that "an impossible, ridiculous and morally reprehensible thing to do, but your crime rate would go down. So these far-out, these far-reaching, extensive extrapolations are, I think, tricky."
On his show Thursday, the anti-abortion Bennett said he was "pointing out that abortion should not be opposed for economic reasons any more than racism ... should be supported or opposed for economic reasons. Immoral policies are wrong because they are wrong, not because of an economic calculation."
Reid, D-Nev., said he was "appalled by Mr. Bennett's remarks" and called on him "to issue an immediate apology not only to African Americans but to the nation."
Rep. Raum Emanuel, D-Ill., said in a statement, "At the very time our country yearns for national unity in the wake of hurricane Katrina, these comments reflect a spirit of hate and division."
Democrat anger over this only speaks to the fact that few of them read books at all.
This will help Bill's ratings.
Bennet should give an apology but he should do it the way democrats offer apologies and make it a conditional apology comparing it with the comments of Jessie Jackson, Al Sharpton, and Louis Farrakhan and others.
$CREW THEM!!!!
I think maybe a lower key apology - for bad phrasing and an insensitive example.
And then move on.
He went on to call that "an impossible, ridiculous and morally reprehensible thing to do, but your crime rate would go down. So these far-out, these far-reaching, extensive extrapolations are, I think, tricky."
Why would they want Bennet to apologize? If they were smart, they'd let his so-called "racism" stay out in the open.
The quote on it's own is a ridiculous non-sequitor, and in it's context, what the Democrats are accusing him of is the exact opposite of what his point was.
Bennett a racist? Tell that to the kids in the Best Friends program.
How about the Democrats get their appology when they appologize and quit supporting Margaret Sanger's Planned Parenthood which has murdered 13 million black children, all in a highminded attempt to create a "thoroughbred race" and to segregate or sterilize "dysgenic" groups
Owl_Eagle(If what I just wrote makes you sad or angry,
Here is my take on the apology that Bill Bennett should offer:
I humbly apologize that a caller to my show raised an argument that has been previously published that increased rates of abortion, especially among low income minority groups might have the effect of reducing crime rates. I also apologize that my comments repudiating this argument were apparently of insufficient clarity for some people to correctly interpret what I was saying. I further apologize that the state of education in America, some 15 years after I served as Education Secretary, is such that language comprehension skills in this country are so inexcusably poor as to result in widespread misunderstanding of my comments.
The Democrats are always running around demanding an apology for one thing or another. Kinda funny, isn't it?
I guess what I am asking is could the moron be right even if he didn't put it very eloquently?
________________________________________
Bill Bennett is no moron. He is also not a racist.
Just kidding. Really.
I'm sympathtic to Bill Bennett. But in a million a years I would have never raised the issue on the air. No sir, no way. Like I said before, Mr. Bennett will be fighting to stay on the air. They did it to Dr. Laura, too, remember?
I just heard the whole context of Bennett's remarks, the libs "outrage' is a bunch of BS.
More hyperbole from the dems. Bennett is in the private domain, he does not answer to any constituents, his opinion is his freedom of speech, end of story.
Read the entire comment. No apology is needed.
Al Sharpton still claims that Tawana Brawley was raped by white cops. Never mind the fact that she admmmitted to making the story up.
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