Al Sharpton is at it Again (and pictures of Beyonce HOT HOT HOT)

I never thought I would link to FOX News on this blog, but I could not help myself. Al Sharpton went on to Hannity and Colmes and whined about tmz.com's use of the term "roboho" to describe Beyonce Knowles' get up at the BET Awards. First of all, I don't think tmz was too out of line here:





But, hey, the Reverend was there. He knows what he saw!

I happened to have been there that night, because it was the night I did a tribute to James Brown at the BET Awards, and the outfit was a totally clothed outfit. You cannot see anything but her face.

Maybe he had to run to the bathroom during the part shown above. But regardless, the debate focused on two issues. First, whether saying that her outfit was a "roboho get up" is saying that she is a roboho, and second, how exactly free speech plays into this.

Rich Lowry, filling in for the absent Mr. Hannity, asked the Reverend "If a robot were to dress like a prostitute, isn't that the kind of outfit it would wear?" I would have to say the answer is yes. But, this does not mean that I think Beyonce Knowles is either a robot or a prostitute. Indeed, she is neither. She is a performer, who occasionally dresses up like a robotic prostitute. And there is nothing wrong with pointing that out, especially in the context of a joke. Well, the Reverend thinks there's something wrong with it and any use of the word "ho" in any context. Will he go after Santa Clause next?

Har har.

Anyway, the Reverend argues that people are free to use the word "ho" as they wish so long as he is free to express offense. But, as we have seen in the past, Sharpton goes well beyond expressing that he is offended. He campaigns for people who use the word to lose their jobs (or, to make a verb out of a proper noun, he Imuses people). This is not simply engaging in a simple debate about semantics. This is seeking to eliminate a certain set of words from the English language and to punish anyone who does not follow along. He states his goal less harsh tones:

We in the National Action Network have been embarked in a decency initiative.... We're getting ready to do a 20 city vigil where we have asked for the 'N' word, the 'H' word and 'B' word to not be used.

Oh, and just in case you didn't know what the National Action Network means, he provides a helpful explanation:

With the word “National” representing the scope of our activities, and “Network” reflecting the methodology of expansion.

Thanks for clearing that up, Rev.

Of all the problems facing the black community (although the Reverend is quick to say he isn't playing the race card - but the problem is that in Rev's 52-card deck, they're all race cards), the Reverend has chosen this, the use of the term "ho" in off-color jokes, as his crusade. You know, I used to have some respect for the Reverend, when he talked about real political issues and said things that other political figures wouldn't think of saying. He may not have had any relevance in American politics, but at least he was interesting. Now, he's just wasting his and our time.

A Thought Experiment, Part II (the Parties of the Left)

(See here for a full explanation of this thought experiment. Basically, I'm imagining what the political landscape would look like if America had some form of proportional representation, allowing third parties to flourish.)

Here are the parties of the left. I am assuming that the tension between free-traders and protectionist Democrats (and, more generally, between New Democrats and traditional Democrats) will break the party in two. These two successor parties will garner the majority of votes on the left but will be joined by a strengthened Green Party and a small but vocal Black Congressional Caucus.

New Democrats

Archetypical members: Bill & Hillary Clinton.

Base of support: Middle-class suburban voters, voters with college degrees.

Policies: Neoliberal economic policies such as a balanced budget and free trade, combined with social liberalism.

Comments: The New Democrats, masters of triangulation, could conceivably enter into coalitions with parties on the right if the need arose.

Social Democrats

Archetypical member: John Edwards.

Base of support: Labor unions, working class, minorities, the religious left. Strongest in industrial states that suffer from the negative effects of globalization.

Policies: Redistributionist economic policies, economic protectionism

Comments: Very similar to European social democratic parties.

Green

Archetypical member: Ralph Nader.

Base of support: Affluent suburban voters.

Policies: Environmental, dovish.

Comments: The Green Party could draw a surprisingly large percentage of votes. The current Green Party manages to win 4-5% of the votes even in the current system, which makes voting Green counterproductive. It is not hard to imagine the Greens gaining 10-15% of the votes in a proportional system. Its appeal might weaken as other parties adopt environmentalist positions in the face of global warming.

Congressional Black Caucus

Archetypical members: Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson.

Base of support: African-American voters. Strongest support in inner cities.

Policies: Redistributionist economic policies, economic protectionism, support for affirmative action and education reform. Moderate/conservative on social issues like gay marriage.

Comments: The Congressional Black Caucus would probably focus on a few key issues and enter into coalitions with the Social Democrats. It would struggle to take middle-class African-Americans away from New Democrats and Social Democrats.

On My Hatred of Al Sharpton

Here's hoping that title will get the Reverend to call me a racist and invite me on his radio show to apologize.

I'd really like to meet him.

But, nonetheless, I do hate him. He is what I would call "a terrible person." He makes his living attacking people's honest slip-ups, but refuses to apologize for his own. Recently, Sharpton said this regarding Mitt's Mormonism:

As for the one Mormon running for office, those that really believe in God will defeat him anyway, so don’t worry about that.

He claims that that does not mean that he thinks Mormons don't believe in God, but what else could it mean? This, to me at least, seems more offensive than the infamous Imus remark that Sharpton jumped all over. Imus made an off-color joke. Sharpton attacked a whole religion. I see a slight difference here.

Naturally, he refuses to apologize.

After all, he's Al Sharpton for Christ's sake! People apologize to him!