August 31, 2005

Left-Wing Arrogance

I got the following email in my box this morning. I wonÂ’t shame the guy by posting his name.

Date: Aug 31, 2005 1:05 AM

Subject: do you plan on writing anything about the hurricane?


Not as important as voter fraud or Cindy Sheehan?

Glad to see you have things in perspective. When you can't gas up your Hummer you might change your tune

Actually, I had tried a couple of times to write about the hurricane. But as often happens in times of overwhelming tragedy, I find that mere words just are not sufficient. So I’ve refrained from posting rather than post some cliché-ridden item about the horror of it all and wailing “Oh, the humanity!” Others have done a significantly better job of addressing the subject – especially Michelle Malkin. Their words have not failed them, while mine have.

So instead IÂ’ve written about stories that I find important that I think could be missed in the crush of Katrina coverage. If that strikes others as uncaring, too bad.

Ultimately, I think this writer is a bit confused. Does the presence or absence of a post about the hurricane on this blog determine what is or is not important? Is RHYMES WITH RIGHT the standard by which the importance of a story is judged? If it is, no one has told me. So either this guy vastly over-estimates my importance as a media source, or I vastly under-estimate that importance.

And while I may not be writing about the hurricane and its devastating impact that does not mean that I am doing nothing. The writer doesnÂ’t know whether I am sending money or to whom it is going. He has no way of ascertaining whether or not I am doing anything for the refugees that have fled into my own community in the face of this disaster. No, he chooses to interpret silence as apathy.

Now I’ve not played politics with the storm. I’ve not asked why Cindy Sheehan and her fellow terrorist-backers are not down in New Orleans instead of traveling the country to undermine the war effort (Did you know that while everyone else travels by bus, Cindy hops a plane to the next destination? Orwell was right about some animals being more equal than others.) Doesn’t she care about the devastation? I’ve not heard her address the crisis with her “unquestionable moral authority”. Why doesn’t this writer hold her to the same standard that he wants to hold me? Heck, what about the fuel being eaten up by the buses and the planes used in her anti-American endeavor?

And we won’t get into the question of one of the writer’s favorite haunts, Americablog, where the owner has played politics with the decision by the president to stay in Crawford and continue with some speaking engagements instead of returning to Washington immediately – and would have played politics by criticizing a decision to return to Washington immediately if he had. The writing there about the disaster has been so incredibly insincere – as have been the comments posted there by my email-critic.

As for the issue of my car and gas prices – I’m a teacher in an 80% minority urban school district with a high poverty rate. What out-of-touch planet does this liberal fool live on if he believes I drive a Hummer? My car is seven years old and gets 30+ MPG. I need it to, because I drive 20+ miles each way to school. I’d love to know what he is driving and what he does for a living/how much he makes. I’m guessing he is a trust-fund baby who is seeking to assuage his liberal guilt by attacking conservative rather than giving away the money that feeds his lifestyle..

Posted by: Greg at 02:01 PM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
Post contains 631 words, total size 4 kb.

1 As a liberal, I have nothing to say here other than to hand my head. I don't even think it's worthwhile to point out the doofuses on the right who are guilty of similar idiocy. Suffice it to say, we both have idiots on our side.

Posted by: Dan at Wed Aug 31 16:09:27 2005 (aSKj6)

2 Reminds me of the guy who accused me of never having worked at physically hard jobs or in retail when I spoke out against the bashing of Wal-Mart by the left. He obviously didn't check my blog and find out that I served in the Army (that takes care of the hard physical labor issue). What he didn't know, because he stereo-typed me, is that I've worked retail and fast food, because I needed a job. It's the same old story. You are a neo-con (he assumes), you aren't playing emotional politics with the Hurricane, and thus you must be well to do and driving an expensive SUV, which is his image of all those who are not bleeding heart left.

Posted by: Eric at Wed Aug 31 16:52:15 2005 (Oc3Xt)

3 And for me, hurricanes will always be a source of particular dread.

At 13, my mother, little brother, and I had to ride out Typhoon Pam (either a category 4 or 5) in our house on Guam. The louvered windows in on-base housing were sheet plastic, and started to blow out of the frames during the first couple of hours of the storm -- we spent 16 hours holding them in place. And Dad was at work.

Posted by: Rhymes With Right at Wed Aug 31 22:53:30 2005 (OByup)

4 Dan -- I agree.

Posted by: Rhymes With Right at Wed Aug 31 22:54:36 2005 (OByup)

5 Dad at work?? You guys were literally holding down the fort and where was your Dad in all this?

Posted by: mcconnell at Thu Sep 1 10:07:20 2005 (CQ3Yp)

6 Dad was an officer in the Navy, on the staff of Comander Naval Forces - Marianas Islands. Because his particular job dealt with the deployment of every member of the military in the region, he was required to be on duty in the headquarters building on Nimitz Hill. We didn't see him for a 36 hour stretch beginning when he left for work the morning the storm was due to hit until dinner time the day it blew on past.

It wasn't the only time -- we didn't see him for 72 hours when the evacuation of Saigon began the year before, doubling the island's population with refugees.

Posted by: Rhymes With Right at Thu Sep 1 12:07:56 2005 (eC8R5)

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