Dan’s watermelon statement wasn’t a big deal, per se. But he has no one but himself and his fellow left wingers to blame for molehills becoming mountains. The left is always dissecting everything anyone says, looking for signs of racism. So when someone on the left makes a mis-statement, the right is only too glad to turn the mirror around. Will Dan and other lefties get the message? Nope.

Another dinosaur heard from….

Second that, writer. I was not offended, shocked, outraged, or disappointed in Rather’s phraseology — however I did predict Steve’s use of the racial-resume’-defense.

The reason his words sparked a backlash is because we have been conditioned for decades that there exists racially tainted interpretations on innocuous speech, forwarded mostly by Rather’s own acolytes. For proof look no further than his interviewer that day, Chris Matthews, who can find racism in most any type of story. Ever since Barack Obama entered the Presidential race campaign this has become a trip-wire for his defenders. (John McCain was tabbed as using racial code when he referred to Obama one time as a community orginizer.) So if Dan is upset at the reaction his words have garnered he has no one to blame but his allies. Point a finger at the guy seated across from you, for starters.

Wow steve, when was the time you defended a conservative, who said something he didn’t mean racially but was slaughtered for it? I never thought Rather was racist, but that the media is biased in their coverage of such things. Thanks for proving that once again.

The etymological root of “apology,” the Greek, adopted into Latin, “apologia” is not to express regrets, but to explain or justify. Rather did that very well. In light of his apologia, I see no need to express regrets. For example, over the years, a hypersensitivity has developed over the use of the word “Mexican,” and rightfully so since so many extreme rightists use the word with the intent to slur a group of people. However, among long-time, native Texans, both Gringo and Hispanic, there is no intentional slur. It merely distinguishes Texans of Hispanic-American heritage from Texans of Anglo-American heritage, much as “Yankee” is often used to refer to any Texas immigrant from any other state and as opposed to native Texans, or it refers to people who live in one of our neighboring Mexican states, Chihuahua (Chihuahua, Ciudad Juárez), Coahuila (Saltillo, Piedras Negras, and Ciudad Acuña, also most of Texas at one time), Nuevo León (Monterrey), Tamaulipas (Ciudad Victoria, Nuevo Laredo, Reynosa, Matamoras). The collective for these neighbors is “Mexican” and it really is like unto referring to a Georgian (but not a Cracker) or an Oklahoman (but not an Okie). Rather has explained his upbringing, in his part of Texas, and this comment explains regarding the upbringing of other native Texans in a different part of our state. This is a wholly sufficient apologia.

So then when Limbaugh explains his use of such terms and justifies them as satire you will now accept that response?

UGH! I get the douche chills reading everyone of TRRK’s comments. The desperate attempt to sound smarter than the room is embarrassing!!!!

Anyway, Rather’s comments wouldn’t have been a big deal if the left wasn’t constantly trying to pin everyone on the right as a racist. It’s apparent the left can’t take what they dole out.

Satire only explains the vehicle, the genre, not the content. It is like saying that racism in a novel is fine, because it is not a non-fiction treatise. Satire can be offensively racist, and from Limbaugh, often is. In fact, everything about Limbaugh is offensive.

By the way, I see he has backtracked on his threat to move out of Amerika, to Costa Rica, if health care is reformed. More’s the pity.

I’m pleased that I have such a profound effect on you, Taxed.

Poor Dan, it’s always someone elses fault for things that come out of his own mouth.

You are only proving the prediction I made on the original Rather posting: every excuse is made for him, and Steve gave us his racial resume’, but Rush is a straight-up racist. You even bore this out in your post above, declaring that when extreme rightist use the term “Mexican” to describe people from Mexico it is a slur.

(BTW, Rush never said he would move to Costa Rica, he said he would go there for medical procedures.)

(BTW, Rush never said he would move to Costa Rica, he said he would go there for medical procedures.)

—

I have no objection to that. I imagine Viagra is much less expensive there. Not to mention OxyContin and Hydrocodone ….

TRRK,
Funny you say about backtracking to move out of America. I remember very clearly Janeane Garofalo and a couple other Hollywood leftest saying the same thing if Bush won the election.
What about having them move first since they said this a few years ago. That would be a start!

And the obligatory Oxycontin reference FTW!

So now we can bring up Rather’s fabricated evidence against Bush’s war record as proof he is lying again here, correct?

Why are you so threatened by “Janeane Garofalo and a couple other Hollywood leftest [sic]“?

By all means, Martini, please feel free to bring up anything you wish. My cat bought up a hairball last night, and I dealt with that, so you shouldn’t bring too much of a challenge.

On a more serious note, Martini, can you tell me why Rush’s illegal drug use and conviction doesn’t bother you? I’m not talking about his hypocrisy. That news is as old the Toll House Cookie recipe. I mean the mere fact that we have a druggie exposes himself daily?

MichelleF-

If you read this piece and came away thinking I’m just another member of the liberal media defending Rather, there’s really no hope for you to ever see things beyond preconceived notions about RIGHT and LEFT.

Instead, what I’ve done is highlight the comment originally when it happened, and called out Rather for dismissing the reaction too easily. As I wrote in the post, I don’t believe the reaction around the media as a whole would be the same if Chris Wallace or Shepard Smith had made similar comments, but the reaction would be the same here.

Rather shouldn’t have justified anything. Nothing he said was offensive. He could have used any fruit or vegetable and people still would have been offended. Being offended is becoming a full time job.

> So when someone on the left makes a mis-statement, the right is only too glad to turn the mirror around

Congratulations, you’re a hypocrite of the highest degree: attacking and lambasting political correctness, but gladly make use it yourself.

Well let me answer this way; may I ask if you are bothered by The President’s drug use in the past? I don’t see how that has anything to do with this thread at all. We have had it pounded in our heads for years to allow people a second or even 8th chance at redemption after that kind of failing in their life. I have been lectured to accept Robert Downey Jr. the chance to keep acting, and Brett Favre to continue playing football. Why shouldn’t Limbaugh be accorded the same decency?

Hell! Ted Kennedy Killed Someone. Oh, wait, are we still bringing up things that have NOTHING TO DO with the topic at hand?

HEY STEVE

Did you receive my email?

Steve,
I was referring to the part where you say, “Rather is not racist in anyway”. The left never gives the same benefit of the doubt to those on the right who say something stupid. Does Maccaca ring any bells? I’d never even heard the word, but the left wasn’t satisfied til Allen was run out of town and his career over. I could give more examples, if you need them. They happen almost daily since Obama because pres.

Your right AikidoJoe,
It is so part of our culture to be offended, It is horrible. No one can say or do anything without being offended.

But it does need to be pointed out how hypocritical the left is with this situation. and how they are the ones who always proclaim they are offended and that every chance they can they will call people raciest to win any disagreement.

MichelleF: So why don’t you separate what you see here at Mediaite (which is not the “left” you refer to) from the media you have a problem with?

ImNotBlue: I did get your email, thanks. Give me a couple hours to look into it, but I’ll get back shortly.

Steve, I respectfully disagree that mediaite doesn’t lean left, and I think alot of others agree with me. I haven’t come across a blog yet, where I can’t tell which way the writer leans (left in each case). I’m not saying I don’t like the site, because I do, just looking for more balance. Thank you for responding.

MORE left wing PROPAGANDA from MediaSPITE!!1 I have written a STERNLY WORDED manifesto and am in the process of REVISING it with more EXCLAMATION POINTS and CAPITALIZED WORDS before I send it off to Dan Abrams!!1 We WILL take this blog back!!1

AikidoJoe says:
March 10, 2010 at 11:56 am

Rather shouldn’t have justified anything. Nothing he said was offensive. He could have used any fruit or vegetable and people still would have been offended. Being offended is becoming a full time job.

—

And, if Rather were from Long Island, he might have used tomatoes, which are frequently sold along the side of the road, or, in Tacoma, apples. The fact is, our common roadside produce is watermelon or dewberries. Watermelon does rather play into a stereotype, hence the apologia.

King, I actually agree with you. It’s getting absurd that every little thing that someone says, is scrutinized. My problem with the whole incident was the difference between how C’s and L’s are treated in the same situation. If it’s a Con. people aren’t satisfied until he or she is run out of town and their life has been absolutely ruined. It’s not that way with a Lib.

Steve Krakauer says:
March 10, 2010 at 12:47 pm

Thanks Steve! I knew you would.

MichelleF says:
March 10, 2010 at 1:10 pm

IMO, Steve’s about as fair as they come on Mediaite… and that’s pretty good. Honestly, I’m not sure which way he goes (if I had to guess, I’d say left on some things, right on some others), but he normally plays it pretty fairly.

There are a number of others… HuffPo castoffs mostly… who fill the majority of the content on this site, and we all know where they stand.

I don’t know why intellectual diversity and balance is such a dirty word in journalism.

Karl Spensen says:
March 10, 2010 at 1:47 pm

Hey Christian… can you tell me what the deal is with the “1”s after all the “!!”? I don’t get it. Is that just part of a more general mocking trait for all bloggers, or do you specifically ascribe that to an ideology as well?

COOL STORY BRO!!1

For the record, I do think Steve is probably one of the fairest, but still a lefty. Now Glynnis and Tommy are ridiculous. I’m fine with lefty’s on the site, just balance it with a few from the other side or don’t claim to be non-partisan.

MichelleF says:
March 10, 2010 at 2:21 pm

King, I actually agree with you. It’s getting absurd that every little thing that someone says, is scrutinized. My problem with the whole incident was the difference between how C’s and L’s are treated in the same situation. If it’s a Con. people aren’t satisfied until he or she is run out of town and their life has been absolutely ruined. It’s not that way with a Lib.

—

I simply think the labels may have simply outlived their usefulness. I don’t find much which conservatives espouse these days to reflect a core conservative philosophy in its traditional sense, and I find that some of the strongest proponents of liberal causes live the most traditional of lives. I think we have all become too cynical to appreciate the individual element. As a liberal, I am told I must be pro-choice and anti-capital punishment, which seems a bit disjointed. As a Catholic, I am told I must be anti-choice and anti-capital punishment. Consistent, I suppose …. What I have ended up with is an individual, White Christian male who is pro-choice but who is as opposed to abortion as the most virulent of so-called pro-lifers, who spends some of his time and treasure trying to work with individuals and groups to help make carrying a child to term feasible and even attractive, and who spends some of his time and treasure fighting the death penalty but who understands the human need for justice which has an element of revenge in it.

Well said King.

YES BALANCE is what we need!!1 For every Glynnis and Tommy, let’s have a True American Patriot who’s not afraid to CRITICIZE the SOCIOFASCISTS!!1 Who will STAND UP against the COMMIE propaganda that is FED to us by the LIB MEDIA!!1 I swear, I have NEVER EVER EVER read a critical thing about Olbermann on this site!!1 It’s ALL about Beck, who is perhaps the GREATEST journalist of our TIME!!1

No Jim. I hate political correctness and the far left practices it constantly. Giving Rather and other lefties a taste of their own medicine is good for a laugh. Do I think Rather’s watermelon statement was offensive? No. If someone on the right had made a similar statement, would you be on here having a stroke over it? Yes.

TRRK, you are without doubt the most two-faced person I’ve ever known of and I’m OLD and have seen a LOT of two-faced people.

As the fellow linked in the comments to the previous post, the whole “watermelons” thing sounds like a Texas saying and if you ask me, other fruits and vegetables wouldn’t work because they aren’t considered as special; they’re available for considerably longer periods of time and while you might slam on the brakes for a good-priced watermelon or some peak-season berries, apples and fresh corn are a dime a dozen.

As for the “oh, my god.. he’s being racist because whenever I hear watermelon, I think of a black man” meme: I don’t know that anyone was offended beyond a handful of over-sensitive twenty-somethings and while I’m addressing memes… I’m kind of tired of the whole “imagine if a conservative had said such a thing” comments which always get flipped around to “if he/she were a liberal, it’d get swept under the rug” when the shoe’s on the other foot because in the end, there’s always someone somewhere, who will call people out for a questionable comment.

It’s a world wide web.

BTW: Steve – In addition to agreeing with your idea and the general blog consensus that Dan didn’t mean anything with his old saying, I also agree with your analysis that he still doesn’t have a full grasp on new media. Though, if I were a guy known for my Ratherisms and if I had employed a documented regional colloquialism only to have it blow back in my face, I’d too be looking for someone to blame.

Oh, and perhaps the equivalent may be Lou Dobb’s almost using the phrase “cotton-picking”, when he was saying that people may not be keen on discussing race because their words or choice of language could be used against them. Of course, it too died down within a couple of days.

Mag, you’re right that someone’s going to be offended no matter how innocuous the statement. However, tossing out the ‘you’re a racist’ accusation is a left wing thing. They’ve turned it into a science.

@writer: I put the “you’re a racist” thing more in the lap of the “netroots”, which Chris Matthews used as shorthand to describe the often young, not particularly informed, faddish “liberals”, who frequent places like the Daily Kos and the Huffington Post.

IOW: I’m a self-described progressive, who has been active in the Democratic Party for about thirty years and I don’t want to claim them. So, I simply thank them for the vote and roll my eyes, when their back is turned.

Just curious as to how many of these comments happen to be from members of the “race” that supposedly has been offended by Mr Rather’s comments. The very presumption that a white person can address the issue with any level of knowledge or authority as to the impact of racism upon those to whom it is directed, is in and of itself ‘racist’.

More Black people “took exception” to Mr Rather’s reference to the way our President speaks, than the watermelon analogy. So he thinks Mr Obama is not a good salesman. Even though —– He sold the majority of the popular vote and the electoral college that he deserved a shot at the presidency…but I digress.

The comment about how “well” he speaks is racist. It sets speaking well as an exception for attractive, well educated Black men. Mr Rather is not the first to advance what is believed to be a compliment – but is instead extremely condesending.

To deny the inference of racism in polictics, the media, the corporate community, housing; lending, the prison system, etc is ridiculous. It’s there – often institutionalized; sometimes very subtle, other times overt and often times it is DEADLY. You cannot legislate a person’s heart or thoughts. Out of the heart the mouth does speak!! Peace y’all. We really do know what’s up!!!

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