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http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/local/article973513.ece

Don't people know not use company servers for questionable content?

Evidently not

Wow. Just wow.

yup... grab your pitch forks and torches, a republican said something that wasent PC.

This isn't that offensive. Certainly misplaced in every way, and an obvious misuse of government channels of communication. But this really isn't that offensive. If it's just a tasteless joke I wouldn't want an elected official losing office over it. If the joke belies actual racist belief then yeah, get them out of there, but this wasn't particularly racist in a meaningful fashion.

This is considerably less offensive then the trash Carlos Mencia built a career off of.

ShumaGorath... you are correct.

but it was a REPUBLICAN that said it..... so it makes the news.

Envy89 wrote:ShumaGorath... you are correct.

but it was an IDIOT that said it.....

Fixed that for you. Being a republican has nothing to do with the level of stupidity shown here. It was an incredibly boneheaded thing for a politician to do. While not overtly racist, like say, a burning cross, it certainly has a racial subtext. It's also the kind of stupid partisan remark that keeps many African-Americans away from the Republican Party. It's a disgrace to the GOP.

And Carlos Mencia isn't an elected official so it doesn't really matter what he says, he isn't making the laws.

Envy89 wrote:ShumaGorath... you are correct.

but it was a REPUBLICAN that said it..... so it makes the news.

Just keep on thinking that. It's cute when right wingers get a persecution complex.

And Carlos Mencia isn't an elected official so it doesn't really matter what he says, he isn't making the laws.

And neither was the email. I make racial jokes all the time. I am not racist. Good racial jokes are just funny. This was not a funny racial joke because it includes a harrowing incident that involved many deaths as part of the punchline.

Q: What do you say to a black man in a three piece suit
A: May the defendant please rise

Note how this joke is racist. Some will find it funny. I found it funny when I first heard it, not because I believe blacks are criminals, but because of its shocking and unexpected conclusion. I do not expect someone telling this joke to his (unexpecting) co workers to headline their political policies with it, though I do expect them to be a tasteless douche if they're telling offensive jokes in a professional setting.

The interesting thing is that message could have been sent as a social commentary rather than a joke and received in a completely different way.

Why did 200k people ignore the Hurricane warnings?

It could have been reworded and forwarded quite openly.

Oh my I find I am in agreement with Orlanth. (looks out window). Nope don't see any pigs flying.

On some issues im a right winger... On some issues im a left winger... It takes 2 wings to fly, and having them both on the right, or boh on the left tends to end bad.

I just calls it likes I sees it.

ShumaGorath wrote:
And Carlos Mencia isn't an elected official so it doesn't really matter what he says, he isn't making the laws.

And neither was the email.

Really? All the time? You find it appropriate for every situation? You have no sense of context?

My point being that poor sense of context doesn't necessitate racism. They could simply be stupid.

Envy89 wrote:yup... grab your pitch forks and torches, a republican said something that wasent PC.

I'm sorry to say it but I've lost most sympathy for "its PC gone mad" defence. I'm no fan of potical correctness being used inappropriately, but "its PC gone mad" is often being used as an apologist sound bite to excuse some truly vile behaviour.

In Britain for example it been sounded to the rooftops recently to excuse a right wing commentator for the BBC who uttered a very racist (yes it was!) comment to a co-worker and as a result was suspended. It wasn’t "PC gone mad", it was racism pure and simple.

Ironically the people (and newspapers) defending this woman were only a few months ago calling for a pair of left wing comedians who did something which was on the whole far less offensive to be publically lynched (or near to as as dammit).

Going back to the story at hand. If it was from her private e-mail address to friends then its no one else's business but if she sent it via her work address then she's a silly moo, has brought her office into disrepute and deserves everything she gets.

Frazzled wrote:Oh my I find I am in agreement with Orlanth. (looks out window). Nope don't see any pigs flying.

I will help you out then.

You know as Presidential Inaugurations are on fixed dates (and I think this is what it is all about) you have more than 24hrs notice to decide whether to turn up. The Hurricane is more unpredictable than Aun'O Bama, at least until he starts legislating.

Aun'O Bama

....

Thats really clever!

This thread is more humorous than the email, and I was busting laughing before I clicked back!

It isn't the joke, it's the person who told it. That makes all the difference. Some redneck telling that same joke or a more inflammatorily worded version in his favorite hole-in-the-wall bar may be equally or more racist, but it doesn't make headlines because only his nitwit buddies will ever hear him say it. It's a much bigger issue when somebody in public office says it, because they should know that everything they do is likely to be under public scrutiny.

Warpcrafter! How dare you I find your use of "Redneck" offensive and demand it be stricken from the record! They prefer Sons of the South!.... OK now to actually be serious. I agree that using a work Email was the biggest mistake. Whatever you wanna do in your own life with your friends is your own business, but marring those you work with is just plain stupid. But also I do find myself laughing at jokes like that, not at a racist angle, but from shock value as Shuma said. Sometimes the best laughter is the kind that happens when you are not sure what else to do. Hell my favorite thing being of Irish decent is a good Irish joke.... sadly there aren't enough!

bleh, more PC crap.
its allright to try and enforce it, but not everyone will take to it.

for example, im sure everyones dad's / grandparents still talk alot about the old days, which now i guess would be classed as racist due to thier views?

i was allways brought up to call a spade a spade, i comment everything as i see it and speak my mind.

JD21290 wrote:for example, im sure everyones dad's / grandparents still talk alot about the old days, which now i guess would be classed as racist due to thier views?

That would of course depend entirely upon the views said people held would it not ?

Because clearly being anti racist is just some modern fad that will never last. It's not like there's any even comparatively recent history where people weren't actually in favour of racism. Or something.

I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and assume it was a poor choice of phrase rather than a cheap racist shot with regards to your last "thought" there.

Pro tip : it's really worth thinking before you "speak your mind". Minor details like "facts" and "context" and other BS modern lefty rubbish can otherwise leave you looking kind of ignorant.

Well, she's not an elected or governmental official, from what I've seen. It looks like she's an official within the state party for the Florida GOP, which makes this a different issue. The GOP, especially in the south, has been trying to undo their history of less than eager support for racial equality. They're also trying to avoid the sort of BS scandals that turn attention away from the parade of problems Obama's nominees all seem to have. It's bad politics and that often means an operative loses their job.

As for the racial component of the joke itself, Katrina is seen by many in the black community as the greatest modern example of how government fails to protect the urban poor, particularly minorities, to the same extent as suburban and rural folks. Given the extreme property damage and loss of life in the Hurricane, and the lukewarm federal response (which may or may not have been FEMAs fault) many people see the response a Tornado in the great plains or flooding in the northeast gets, and starts to wonder why such misery existed for so long in New Orleans.

It is this perception that the joke mocks: it suggests that the people that were stuck in the Hurrican were lazy and/or stupid, and while that may be true, nobody likes to be stereotyped or told that they're suffering was their won fault.

It was a stupid mistake, and while I hate to see anybody loss their job over it, the Florida GOP might fire her for only reason anybody in professional politics gets fired: they figure somebody new can help them win more elections.

JD21290 wrote:bleh, more PC crap.
its allright to try and enforce it, but not everyone will take to it.

for example, im sure everyones dad's / grandparents still talk alot about the old days, which now i guess would be classed as racist due to thier views?

i was allways brought up to call a spade a spade, i comment everything as i see it and speak my mind.

Sure, you can do that, but I bet you aren't a politician. The essence of politics is nuanced, semantic debate. Calling something as you see it is fine and dandy insofar as you don't care if anyone agrees with you. But being a leader, which is what politicians are supposed to be, requires generating consensus.

There are a few general rules in life that rarely get trumped. One of the best is that if you’re going to tell an off-colour joke make sure you know your audience, and don’t do it in a work environment unless you really know your audience. This woman failed that, and did it while working in a very racially sensitive environment (politics) at a very racially sensitive time (first black president). No surprise she’s paying the price.

And yeah, the joke is racist and shame on anyone that laughed at it. At its core there isn’t even a joke in there, the enjoyment to be taken from it is in reinforcing a racist view that the people trapped in New Orleans were trapped due to their own failings. Pathetic really.

There’s plenty of laughs to be had with racial humour, playing on stereotypes and clichés. It isn’t even that hard to judge what’s a decent joke, unless you actually are quite racist, at which point it becomes a minefield.

"We are moving forward, and the Republican Party does not tolerate any kind of racist remarks of this kind."

Hahahahahahahahahaha.

Sorry, couldn't resist.

At least her apology was funny.

Basically, "You guys suck. By the way, I'm sorry. So there."

It was hardly a joke. I mean, even Russell 'Not Funny In Anyway, Shape or Form' Brand is funnier than that!

Far more of a racist statement if you ask me.

To hell with racism I just think it's moronic to live below sea level. If nature designed a place to try and kill you / be uninhabitable.... move on. Not saying the great loss of life isn't a tragedy, but Earth wanted it under water and it ended up that way.

Most of Holland is places the Earth wants underwater, but the Dutch spend the time and money to have a country.

Aztralwolf wrote:To hell with racism I just think it's moronic to live below sea level. If nature designed a place to try and kill you / be uninhabitable.... move on. Not saying the great loss of life isn't a tragedy, but Earth wanted it under water and it ended up that way.

Most of the world would be uninhabitable without an expenditure of effort. Civilization, that thing we all live in, is predicated on the notion that we can shape our environment to our needs more efficiently than we can shape our needs to the environment.