Bless His Heart
Willard Mitt Romney has gone too far this time. The American Thinker tells the story.
“Speaking at LeClaire Manufacturing in Bettendorf, Iowa yesterday, Governor Romney delivered the ultimate Southernese insult to his opponent. (Video link here.) “It is free men and women that drive our economy. Freedom is what makes America work. And President Obama, bless his heart, has tried to substitute government for free people-and it has not worked, and it will never work.”
American Thinker is impressed by the use of BHH by WMR. It is probably written by a clueless yankee. Which is what WMR is, in addition to being an amoral chameleon. For a yankee politician to say bless his heart is simply not appropriate.
The sad truth is that so many southerners despise BHO that it will get little attention. This election is going to be dirty, dirty, dirty. When it comes to gutter politics, there is nothing like a republican. WMR has shown that he will say absolutely anything to get elected. Still, if you are going to use an unfamiliar phrase, you should do it properly.
Bless his heart is derived from bless her heart. It is a genteel expression. The proper use is to refer to the target, say BHH, and then make an unflattering comment about this person. This is best done in a civilized conversation. An example would be “Aunt Martha, bless her heart, thinks she is losing weight, but is still big as a cow”. The spoken commas are important.
By contrast, WMR was making an arm waving stump speech. He spit out the words as though they were rotten meat. This is how a yankee politician uses a genteel southern expression.
Southerners are used to it. It is like people who use y’all in the singular form. As any southerner knows, y’all is the only acceptable second person plural in the english language. It is superior to youse guys, or whatever abomination they employ in New Jersey.
Since he was in Iowa, it is unlikely that WMR had the southern vote in mind when he made that speech. Indeed, the south is solidly red state, as well as red neck. WMR is assured of the electoral votes in Georgia. The electoral college has stolen the vote from the people of Georgia again.
Politicians have been pandering to voters since the photo op was invented. If poorly done, it can have a devastating effect. Here is one story.
A story from McGovern’s campaign for presidency: in an effort to attract Jewish vote in a part of NY city with a large percentage of observant Jews among the “registered voters”, he apparently went to a kosher eatery where, in presence of a crowd of regular patrons, reporters & photographers (don’t know whether there were TV cameras or not) he asked for a “kosher hot-dog and a glass of milk”. His handlers probably told him that observant Jews eat kosher meat; I am sure that he was hoping to impress the target audience with his “wholesome” habits. Unfortunately, little knowledge is a dangerous thing.
This was a comment to another story. “I’m sort of staring at the meat display, lots of salamis and sausages, and then various hams. And the hams’ price signs have all been tagged with festive PERFECT FOR CHANUKAH banners.”
Pictures today are from “The Special Collections and Archives,Georgia State University Library”.
Mack The Knife Is Going To Take It
The second day of the backyard office project is a work in progress. The afternoon session was not as groovy as the first time. The bugs are hungrier, and the wi fi connection went out a couple of times. The front porch has a roof and concrete floor, and is closer to the router. While the ambiance of working in the back yard is greater, wifi reception may prove to be the deciding factor.
There is a story at the Daily Beast this morning, The Long, Strange U-Turn of Twisted Sister’s ‘We’re Not Gonna Take It’. It seems that Dee Snider’s makeup went gooey over VPOTUS wannabe Paul Ryan using the Twisted Sister song, “We’re not going to take it”.
A public statement was made: “I emphatically denounce Paul Ryan’s use of my band Twisted Sister’s song, ‘We’re Not Gonna Take It,’ in any capacity.There is almost nothing he stands for that I agree with—except the use of P90X.” Mr. Ryan’s string pullers knew they were whipped, and issued their own statement: “We’re not gonna play it anymore.”
The smart people in wingnut land are busy this week, trying to pull Todd Akin’s foot out of his mouth. Questions about why legitimate rape is any sillier a concept than just war have gone unanswered.
WNGTI has a twisted history. When it *came out*, it was so revolutionary that Tipper Gore denounced it in the Senate. Soon, it began to be the background sound in commercials. The Daily Beast notes: “No ad, however, rivals the most bizarre commercial to use the song: A 2007 spot for Yaz birth control. A perky chorus of women sings about how they’re not going to take the uncomfortable symptoms of old birth-control pills, and are opting for Yaz instead. “ There is no word on whether Catholic employee insurance would pay for Yaz.
Politicians have long used rocknroll to fire up crowds. When Bill Clinton spoke at the CNN center in 1992, the song was “Twist and Shout”. If the walls of the oval office could sing, that would be their song.
In 2010, Karen Handel paid $93,000 to facilitate an appearance by Sarah Palin. The theme music for that event was “We’re not going to take it.” After the speeches, the song was played over, and over, and over. A week later, Ms. Handel lost the runoff.
Dee Snider is not the rebel he used to be. The video embedded here shows thinning hair, and much less makeup. His tweets show that he is not totally gone establishment. @deesnider Did I mention how great it is to see my grandkids again? We miss @tweetjesse and his family so much! #heavymetalgrandpa @deesnider In West Hollywood in search of perfect leather officers cap for outfit on #HollistonTV. Cool reception at gay leather shop. #whatamiwood?
Pictures are from “The Special Collections and Archives,Georgia State University Library”.
This was written like William Gibson.
Coat Of Many Colors
Someone on facebook said that it is a shame Molly Ivins is not around to comment on the weird goings on. Yes, Ms. Ivins has gone to that BarBQ in the sky, but we still have Margaret and Helen. They are still blogging up a storm, even if it is someone’s grandson that does the writing. The small print they use is evidence that a youngun did it. What old person can read type that small?
PG knows about cntr + +, and decided to visit. There was a dandy post, Two Wrongs Make a Right Wing Republican Ticket. Here are a few quotes, and then we will explain what this has to do with Dolly Parton forty years ago. Lets hope that the wig in that video has been replaced.
HELEN: That Obama even ran as a black man and wouldn’t you know it – he’s still a black man. Romney is a white guy. Which is probably why so many people in the Tea Party are so excited about the Romney/Ryan ticket – neither are black. I’m sorry, Margaret. That was low… even for me. Obama’s color has nothing to do with it. He’s black. So what. In contrast to Obama, Romney is a man of many colors. Nope. He’s just a white guy.
What I meant to say is that Romney is white but he has a coat of many colors. No, that’s not right either. That was Donny Osmond. Margaret, what is that expression about a horse of many colors? You know. The one that means you can’t trust Romney any farther than you can throw him?
I can’t think of the expression right now, but what I am trying to say is that you can’t throw Romney very far. He’s too rooted to his principles and an unwavering commitment to his beliefs. Like the way he was pro-choice and now is not because it would prevent him from being a Republican president. And how he believed that government-controlled healthcare was needed and now it isn’t because it would prevent him from being a Republican president. And how he was proud of his record at Bain Capital but only the good stuff. If anything bad happened it was on a day when he called in sick…
Two faced! That’s what I meant to say. It had nothing to do with the color of his face or his coat at all. And I am not even sure why I was thinking about a horse. … Now I know why I was thinking about a horse. Paul Ryan is a horse’s ass. If you are a woman under the age of 39, you might want to trust me on this one. Never vote for a horse’s ass. I mean it. Really.
MARGARET: If I recall, Helen, you were under the age of 39 for about 59 years. Howard says that the expression about a horse changing its colors is a racing term and you should just stick to what you know. I’m not sure about this Ryan fellow, but Howard sure likes him. Of course, Howard’s a numbers guy too. The last thing I need is another budget in my life. I haven’t had a new coat in 40 years much less a coat of many colors.
When PG saw this, he thought about the song, “Coat of many colors”. The b side was by Porter Wagoner, “Coat of many sequins”. COMC is about a woman who is too poor to buy her little girl a coat at the store, so she makes a quilt. The other kids make fun of her, but little Dolly knows that the coat is really made of love. Mitt Romney never had a coat of many colors.
The song talks about a story in the Bible. PG had heard about the story, but didn’t remember the details. He must have been daydreaming in Sunday School when that story was taught. With the help of google, Genesis 37 appears, as if by magic. Pass the popcorn.
2 These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren; and the lad was with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives: and Joseph brought unto his father their evil report.
3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colours.
4 And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him.
Ok, hold on for a minute. Israel had at least two wives. The Biblical definition of marriage must be between a man and two women.
The story gets a bit weird here. Joseph has this dream, where he becomes the boss hog brother. The other brothers decide something needs to be done, that Joseph needs to die. Reuben tries to help Joseph, and has a plan to save him. Joseph is stripped of the coat of many colors, and placed in a pit, with no water. Before Reuben can sneak Joseph out of the pit, a camel caravan comes by. Twenty pieces of silver change hands, and Joseph is sold into slavery. The brothers decide to pull a cover up, and make it look like Joseph was dead. Reuben made another sandwich.
31 And they took Joseph’s coat, and killed a kid of the goats, and dipped the coat in the blood;
32 And they sent the coat of many colours, and they brought it to their father; and said, This have we found: know now whether it be thy son’s coat or no.
33 And he knew it, and said, It is my son’s coat; an evil beast hath devoured him; Joseph is without doubt rent in pieces.
34 And Jacob rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son many days.
35 And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted; and he said, For I will go down into the grave unto my son mourning. Thus his father wept for him.
What a story. Bigamy, slavery, and a dishonored father. Some people call that “The word of G-d”. Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. This was written like James Joyce.
Labelism
Chamblee54 had a post recently about conservatives and liberals. A lot of people see things in those terms. There are other pigeon holes that people get stuffed into. Not only politics, but religion, fashion, and sexual activity are classified, usually by someone who disapproves. Maybe the true religion of our culture is Labelism.
A trip to google city had lots of results. The top result (possibly paid for) is a company called Labelism. You can create personalized labels, usually for an alcohol product. “Welcome to Labelism. The personalised Wine, Whisky, Champagne and Beer gift service where you become the designer & create your own label.”
The always helpful Urban Dictionary calls labelism “The act of judging people by the labels of their clothes. Here are a few examples of labelism: 1(in Abercrombie): I’m so classy. 2 (in Hollister): Me, too. 3 (in American Eagle): Don’t forget me. 1: We all rock! 4 (in Aeropostale): Hey, I’m classy, too! 1: You wish, you wannabe! 2: Yeah, Loser! 5 (in Wal-Mart clothes): I’m pretty classy myself. 1: Eww Get away! You’re poor! 2,3, and 4: Gross! White Trash! Nasty! 5: Whatever, you label whores!”
Ablogspot facility called Quadrilateral Thoughts gets a bit closer to the original concept of this post. “labelism: The tendency to skew diverse particular ideas, events, people, and so forth by grouping them under overly generalized labels in the service of argument.” A few examples are given. “All these statements are logically fallacious, even though they are the stuff of common rhetoric. They take diverse realia and oversimplify them because the human mind has difficulty processing complexity.”
A playground called Young Americans for Liberty comes out as an Anti-Labelist. “If we refuse to be objective in this way, but rather use smear terms and labels, then it is no surprise that more anti-labelites are produced. We become part of the problem rather than part of the solution.”
Labelism dot org is another take. “Labelism- There Must Be For There To Be/Create Create/ Leaving Assupmtion To The Act/Support Support/ Do Good To Be Good/ Look Passed Word Act-RE-Reality=Option/True”
In 2008, MacKenzie Kern was bothered by people labelling each other. “For Stroudsburg Middle School seventh-grader MacKenzie Kern and others her age, words, particularly labels, can harm the emotionally vulnerable. Someone wearing black clothes and dressing in dark makeup is a “goth.” Someone wearing brand name clothes such as American Eagle or Aeropostale is a “prep.” Someone wearing bright, flamboyant colors is a “scene.” And then there are the “skaters,” who ride skateboards, the “jocks,” or athletes, the “nerds” and the “emos,” or emotionally troubled.”
“You’re stereotyping people just because they dress, act or look a certain way or listen to certain kinds of music,” says Kern, who has been called a “hippie” for wearing a T-shirt with a peace symbol. “People have labeled me and I’ve labeled others, which is something I’m not proud of.”
That’s why Kern has taken a stand against “labelism” and is trying to convince others her age to do the same. Every day since March 27, she has worn a white belt around her waist in school and out in public. From one end of that belt to the other are signatures, almost all of which have been put there by children ages 12 to 16 who support her stance. “I feel it’s important to focus mainly on kids in my age group,” she says. “If this generation of kids can set an example by stopping labelism, then maybe future generations can do the same. So far, I have only one signature from an adult, a teacher who told me she believes in what I’m doing and said she’s glad I’m doing it.”
At one point, Kern had 105 signatures on her belt. But for each person who agrees with ending labelism, there’s one or more who say Kern is wasting her time. “I’ve had both students and teachers tell me I’ll never really change anything because most people will go on labeling,” she says. “I’ve even had students who signed my belt tell me they want their signatures removed because they changed their minds. So, I scrubbed off five signatures, which took me back down to 100.” But that won’t stop Kern from trying to raise awareness among others her age.
This post was a good idea that turned out to be boring. The spell check suggestion for labelism is Isabella. Pictures are from The Library of Congress.
Chamblee54 
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