Real America? Read Between the Lines, it's All There in Black and White

Just when you thought the political discourse couldn't sink any lower, now we have the idiotic notion of "real America", which is just the latest word the Republicans have redefined (along with gaffe, liberal, socialist, activist, celebrity, and elitist) to mean little more than agrees/disagrees with me. Well, OK, perhaps this time it means a little bit more.

We have the idiot Michelle Bachman claiming there are congressmen who are, like Barack Obama supposedly is, "anti-American", but when pressed by Chris Matthews to name one, hid like a surrendering coward behind empty scare words.

Then there is Nancy Pfotenhauer claiming that "the Democrats have just come in from D.C. and moved into Northern Virginia", but that's not "real Virginia", which she takes to be the part of the state that is more southern. Funny, you could easily substitute another, much more inflammatory word in there for "Democrats" couldn't you? Naw, that can't be what she is getting at?

Of course where inflammatory stupidity is concerned, no one compares to the VP in waiting, Ms. Palin, who claims "real America" is in small towns where they are very "pro-America". Gee, small towns, ie, not big cities. Hmmm, what demographic group disproportionately occupies the big cities? Perhaps it will be clearer to think of them as the "inner cities". Got it now? Well, if you don't, perhaps some of Palin's supporters can explain it to you. You can be forgiven for thinking this is 1968 instead of 2008, or Alabama instead of Ohio.

"If he wins, the black [sic] will take over. He's not a Christian! This is a Christian nation!"

"When you got a nigra running for president, you need a first stringer, and he's definitely a second stringer."

"Obama and his wife, Im concerned that they could be anti-white, that he might hide that."

"I don't the fact that he thinks us white people are trash."

They aren't even hiding it any more. There stands Palin in a barn, literally surrounded by hay bales and hayseeds spewing this "real America" crap. All that's missing is the sheets. McCain says he's all about straight talk, so here's some straight talk: "Real America" is code for "White America", and you're reading this from one of the most ardent anti-affirmative action, anti-reparations, anti-anything-Jesse Jackson-is-for people there is. But let's call a spade a spade here: John McCain's campaign is playing the nigger card, plain and simple. "The black[s] will take over". They will move into your neighborhood and take over. That's the message the bullshit express is sending.

I never bought the line that the GOP played to racism, but this is so blatant one can't ignore it. They aren't even hiding it any more in many cases, and in others, the try to hide it but do a piss poor job of it. Watch the women at about :56 of this clip ramble and fumble for why she doesn't like Obama, and sounding downright Palinesque in the process:

"Just the whole Muslim thing and everything, I mean everyone is still kind of, a lot of people forgot about 9/11, but I don't know, it's just kind of unnerving"

Forgot about 9/11? Are you shitting me? And this is supposed to be real America? What's unnerving lady? Come on, you can say it: it's unnerving to think of a black man as president. That's all, that's what you know enough to be ashamed of, but not enough to let it go. It's so 1960.

And yeah I know, Obama has some ignorant voters too. However, once again comparing the two is like comparing Biden's ~5 year mistake to Palin's near century one. General ignorance is something we can all get behind changing. This sort of racism, however, is not only denied by some, but supported and fueled by some. Palin is not doing this accidentally. Do you think the barn surprised her?

The GOP has sunk so low it is willing to display it's racism blatantly rather than lose this election with some class. They could learn a lot from Al Gore, and let's hope they get a chance to show half the class in defeat that he did. I'm not holding my breath.