The Wonkette of Time taking a note.
Posted on 07/07/2006 6:38:51 AM PDT by governsleastgovernsbest
by Mark Finkelstein
July 7, 2006
If you're a Republican senator who makes a remark with insensitive racial connotations, you're toast. Ask Trent Lott. But if you're a Democrat? Hey, no problem! Then again, woe betide the Republican senator who offers an awkward description of the workings of the internet.
That's the world according to Time reporter Ana Marie Cox, who appeared on last evening's Scarborough Country. For those who might have missed the Biden flap, on a recent campaign swing to New Hampshire, Biden told an Indian political activist: “You cannot go into a Dunkin Donuts or a 7-Eleven unless you have a slight Indian accent.”
Sounds like a career-stopper for a Republican. But Cox saw no real problem. She opined that while other things might derail Biden's march to the White House, this wouldn't be it. But when it came to Republican Senator Ted Stevens, Cox wasn't so forgiving. In explaining his vote on a so-called 'net neutrality' amendment, Stevens recently said:
"The internet is not something you just dump something on. It's not a truck. It's a series of tubes. And if you don't understand, those tubes can be filled and if they are filled, when you put your message in, it gets in line and it's going to be delayed by anyone that puts into that tube enormous amounts of material, enormous amounts of material."
Not prose for the ages, granted. But I don't think anyone believes Stevens was suggesting the internet is actually composed of tubes. Seems that he had the concept of a pipeline in mind, a first-in-first-out protocol. In any case, certainly nothing offensive, other perhaps than to some San Francisco techno geeks.
Nevertheless, Cox was of the opinion that Stevens' remark was more likely to prove damaging than Biden's to their respective careers..
You don't suppose the two senators' party affiliations might have figured into Ana Marie's calculus, do you?
Biden, um, plug to Today show list ;-)
“You cannot go into a Dunkin Donuts or a 7-Eleven unless you have a slight Indian accent.”
Sounds like Biden has never been to Dunkin Donuts or 7-Eleven. Not good enough for him, no doubt.
Funny, didn't see any of this in the MSM.
Not prose for the ages, granted. But I don't think anyone believes Stevens was suggesting the internet is actually composed of tubes. Seems that he had the concept of a pipeline in mind, a first-in-first-out protocol. In any case, certainly nothing offensive, other perhaps than to some San Francisco techno geeks.
I'm a tech geek (though thankfully not from San Fran), and I actually think it's a reasonable analogy in trying to explain bandwidth capacity to non-technical folks.
Don't know about Dunkin Donuts, but you'd better have a Pakistani accent in a 7-Eleven.
Given tensions between India and Pakistan, one would think this would cause Biden more problems (among the Indian and Pakistani communities) than just the general "racist" nature of his remarks.
I agree. I see nothing wrong with it.
I think he was comparing the I'net to the tubes at the bank's drive-thru lanes that you put you check or deposit slip into where it's sucked up into the bank in line.............
Thank you, come again. ("Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle")
Thanks, I understood the 'tubes' comment as my husband has used that same analogy to explain why my emails get delayed on occasion.
Alaskan pipeline exposure?
Could be tubes, pipes, .... he (sort of) has the meaning.
Notice that she BACKS AWAY from the racist/Indian-Pakastani topic completely.
"Me want 'em Marlboro and firewater. Give wampum."
The Wonkette of Time taking a note.
No, he was trying to tell the guy that he had many "Indian-American" constituents and that they were a growing part of the Delaware population. It was not intended to be criticism, it was a condescending compliment. Kind of like telling Jesse Jackson "you know, I really liked that Sammy Davis, Jr.".
Am I a bad person because I laughed?
But seriously, screw Biden and screw Wankette. They're both about the worst of their respective class.
OK, I give and I admit
I don't get why Steven's comments are damaging
As for Biden .. he's a Democrat and dems are awlays allowed to insult anyone they want and get away with it
Isn't Cox Wonkette? If so, anything she says should be dismissed as irrelevant and ignored. She's 80% ego, 15% false bravado, and 5% unfunny dirty jokes.
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