Watch Your Company

During the presidential election, I watched a lot of MSNBC.

Channel 356 was on so much in my house that I knew instantly when they changed Olbermann's hair helmet, and speculated on why they decided to add a little more blush to Rachel Maddow's makeup. Given the choice between the three major cable news stations, MSNBC, despite their ridiculous liberal bias, was the clear winner over the drivel on CNN and the vile hatred on Fox News.

Anyway, one of the frequent commenters on MSNBC is Pat Buchanan. For those of you unaware, Buchanan is an old school racist. He and Strom Thurmond probably exchanged trade secrets back in the day, and Buchanan's never been shy about letting everybody know the world is a better place when white men are in charge.

He recently caught some flack for tossing some red meat to the Republican base and letting them know that it's white folks who have kept the world, or rather America, safe for all these years. He pretty much said that you inferior races, that is everybody who is not white, have been freeloading on the white man's back since they got here. It was typical Buchanan fare, only he made it a little more plain than usual. Check out this article at Racialicious for more details.

I've bristled at Uncle Pat's shtick for quite some time. His entire attitude reminds of just how close we are to the white sheets and snarling German Shepherds. But, what's bothered me the most is the topic touched on in the article. Mainly, why are other white folks so convinced that Uncle Pat is harmless?

One of things I noticed watching Buchanan is that while he may sometimes forget himself, often he's in control of his emotions and his tongue. Basically, when he says some hateful, racist stuff, he knows EXACTLY what he's doing. It typically ain't a slip up.

Yet, I've found that his white colleagues tend to brush off his comments as just "Uncle Pat being Uncle Pat." He's minimized, while at the same time given a national platform. We're told what he has to say isn't important, but he's allowed to spew it to the masses.

But that's not the worst thing. Nah, what's really bad is that the public is fed the ridiculous argument that Uncle Pat is really a swell guy. Several times I've heard Maddow and others talking about having a drink with Pat and enjoying themselves. About how he's really a nice guy behind the gruff, racist exterior.

That is getting old.

Like Bill Parcells, I'm a firm believer in the idea that you are what your record says you are. You can't convince me that when the camera is off, Uncle Pat is a jolly character who doesn't think niggers should keep their mouths shut. No matter how many times you say he's a hoot, it's not going to convince me that he would have no problem reinstating the Fugitive Slave Law and the institution that went along with it.

Honestly, I don't think most of those white folks believe that themselves, at least not deep in their hearts. They know Buchanan ain't right, they just don't want to admit it because that would raise the question of why are they hanging out with a racist prick. Since Uncle Pat actually does remind them of their uncles, and grandparents and even their parents, they don't want to admit that he probably gave Bull Connor tips on how to run the Birmingham Police Department.

We all know that the company you keep reflects your personal values. The people you spend time with influence you, and are a representation of what type of crap you're willing to put up with on a regular basis. So, if you don't mind shooting the breeze with Uncle Pat, what does that say about you?

Well?

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