By now you have heard all about the Maine Tea Party branch that posted a helpful guide for all the Tea Partiers about to file into DC. TBD, Wonkette, DCist and a host of other blogs have written extensively about it; with commentary ranging from the amusing to the predictable.
As soon as the news broke, I couldn’t wait to go through it. I mean, from all the reports it seemed to have absolutely everything I coveted; evidence the tea party is filled with naked racists, absurd characterizations about DC and her residents and a questionable comprehension of the English language. I mean, for a DC blogger, there is scarcely a better source for instant copy. But all I got were quotes like this:
While I was there [in 1998] I stayed in a cheap hotel and had the window open. I was on the third floor. I called home and while I was on the phone there was a burst of 9MM automatic weapons fire in the street. My wife said it was pretty loud and was that the TV? I told her it wasn’t the TV. It was live in the street in Washington, DC, which is more dangerous than Baghdad.
Wait…that…that’s it? I mean — this is bad and all — but isn’t this far more tame than anything you were expecting? Before I get dozens of angry emails about how I cherry picked the quote, you can pick any from the article and likely get the same reaction. Are these quotes ignorant and idiotic? Sure. But weren’t you hoping for something just a tad more incendiary? I mean, Grandma IronCityspy says WAY more racist stuff daily.
The image promised xenophobia that the article couldn't deliver
But maybe my underwhelmed reaction is just because the bar is too high for zealots these days. I mean, compared to what someone like Mel Gibson (and a host of others) continue to say, this stuff is utterly tame. Yes, I know the “Gibson Tapes” were private and not intended for mass consumption, whereas this article was. A fair point, I grant you. But have a look at a 1992 NEWSPAPER INTERVIEW that Gibson gave:
Asked what he thought of gay people, he said, “They take it up the ass.” Gibson then proceeded to point at his posterior and said: “This is only for taking a shit.” When reminded that he had worked closely with gay people at drama school, Gibson said, “They were good people, kind, I like them. But their thing is not my thing.” When the interviewer asked if Gibson was afraid that people would think he is gay because he’s an actor, Gibson replied, “Do I sound like a homosexual? Do I talk like them? Do I move like them?
He later blamed the interview on the fact he had been drinking. Yes, because having a few too many drinks turns people uncontrollably homophobic.
Raising the bar
I am not suggesting the Tea Party guide was anything other than ignorant, but when an organization of such notoriety posts a travel guide to a predominantly African American city, I expect a little more. But with the upcoming elections, there is time yet for unimaginable stupidity. Ball is in your court Tea Party, don’t disappoint me.
-IronCityspy
ispythingsdc@gmail.com
I would say nothing captures the mentality of the Tea Partiers better than this line, “There is of course nothing wrong with many other areas; but you don’t know where you are, so you should not explore them.”
Family Guy tie-in quote: “Hey, you ever wonder what goes on outside these walls?” “Say, that’s dangerous thinking, Jim. You’d best stick to your work.”
I have to be honest, as a resident of the district and a born and raised “city-kid”, I actually appreciate the “you don’t know where you are, so you should not explore haphazardly” advice. For one, I would prefer the crowds of people who don’t know where they’re going not get in my way. Two, it is pretty rational and reasonable to say “hey, you don’t know where you are, you probably look like you don’t know where you are or where you’re going, that makes you a pretty easy target, and with homicide #75 of the year taking place last Sunday morning and involving a 31 year old college student just riding his bike through his own neighborhood, maybe you should stick to the more well-traversed areas of the city.” It’s not the stupidest approach for people visiting a big city they’ve never been to, especially if they’re coming from smaller towns. And it’s not like the populations of the areas these Tea Partiers are being advised to avoid would welcome them – with their American flag attire and fanny packs – with open arms.
ThinkProgress has a fantastic profile of the teabagger that penned the commentary. He is an unabashed birther, referred to Justice Kagan by the N-Word, and apparently joked about President Obama’s death. You stay classy, Tea Party: http://thinkprogress.org/2010/08/25/bruce-majors-profile/