Left: Wayne LaPierre is a 'tired old white guy'

[IndyDave1776]

Yes, a tired old white guy clinging to the past. Could you imagine what would happen if a conservative commentator had said something like calling Jesse Jackson a washed-up old black guy? Why is it considered acceptable for the left to sling racially dismissive comments, but not vice-versa? If this were a sensible approach (i.e., anyone 'old' is automatically devoid of acceptable thought), then why did the Constitution survive the deaths of those who participated in the Constitution Convention?

Politico Reporter: NRA Spokesman ‘Tired Old White Guy’ | Tea Party

 

[rambone]

If that reporter gets to be the spokesperson for the "Left," who gets to be the spokesperson for the "Right"?

 

[Que]

I've read posts where Jesse Jackson and others like him were called everything in the book. If the same thing were said about, let's say, any conservative person of the day, what would happen? Both sides throw stones and then cry over the bruises when they are thrown back.

 

[04DarkShadowGT]

I've read posts where Jesse Jackson and others like him were called everything in the book. If the same thing were said about, let's say, any conservative person of the day, what would happen? Both sides throw stones and then cry over the bruises when they are thrown back.

This man speaks the truth.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

I'm not sure how Romano thinks anything Bloomberg or the other gun grabbers are doing anything but the same tried and true tricks. They're using the deaths of school children, teachers, movie goers, etc. to try to ban anything related to gun ownership as they possibly can. I have posted before that I think LaPierre may not be the strongest spox for today's gun owners--on that, I could agree with her.

 

[IndyDave1776]

If that reporter gets to be the spokesperson for the "Left," who gets to be the spokesperson for the "Right"?

I've read posts where Jesse Jackson and others like him were called everything in the book. If the same thing were said about, let's say, any conservative person of the day, what would happen? Both sides throw stones and then cry over the bruises when they are thrown back.

I would not consider this individual an anointed spokesperson, but there isn't a chance in the universe something like this would fly by silently in the other direction.

As for Jesse, I have heard him called plenty of things, all of which were based on behavior and/or character (or the lack thereof). Conversely, I have heard much reportage suggesting that any criticism of a black leftist (Obama, for example) is inherently racist as opposed to, as stated and argued, focused on destructive anti-American policies. There is a strong element on the left that seems unable to understand that the point at issue is not race, but rather that some people would be sorry in any color.

 

[beararms1776]

I think the age group is getting younger. I'm pretty sure your considered an old guy and a liability when your in your 40's but actually starts when your in the late 30's.

 

[qmikep]

He is a "tired old white guy". The NRA desperatley needs to replace him with a more assertive public spokesman.

 

[IndyDave1776]

He is a "tired old white guy". The NRA desperatley needs to replace him with a more assertive public spokesman.

I would say that the problem is that he represents the organization well as it operates. The NRA needs to be more assertive. The first 6 years of GWB/GOP congress was the best opportunity in my lifetime to straighten out a lot of old problems and the NRA sat back mumbling 'enforce the existing laws' when it should have loudly said 'eliminate unconstitutional infringements'.

The thing that struck me is the way that it has somehow become acceptable for one group to make an issue of race and to a lesser extent age, but if a conservative were to do that, it would be shouted down on every news program, paper, and magazine we would see as 'racist'. Seriously, going the other direction we have heard plenty of charges of racism for observing the obvious truth that Obama's ideas lack any useful merit without having said anything pertaining to race, but this is somehow acceptable.

 

[Rhoadmar]

The thing that struck me is the way that it has somehow become acceptable for one group to make an issue of race and to a lesser extent age, but if a conservative were to do that, it would be shouted down on every news program, paper, and magazine we would see as 'racist'. Seriously, going the other direction we have heard plenty of charges of racism for observing the obvious truth that Obama's ideas lack any useful merit without having said anything pertaining to race, but this is somehow acceptable.

I've also noticed that conservatives more often than liberals self correct when another conservative does exhibit racist or misogynistic acts.

 

[IndyDave1776]

I've also noticed that conservatives more often than liberals self correct when another conservative does exhibit racist or misogynistic acts.

Exactly. Leftists circle the wagons no matter how indefensible the action or person they are defending. Conservatives say to the liberals, 'Don't attack our guy. We'll do it for you!'

 

[Phil502]

It's generally very PC to make a joke of White people but mention a Black mans race and it's on baby......thats the problem.

 

[Rhoadmar]

Exactly. Leftists circle the wagons no matter how indefensible the action or person they are defending. Conservatives say to the liberals, 'Don't attack our guy. We'll do it for you!'

For the left, more often than the right, the ends justify the means.

 

[Que]

So, OP, overall this is a thread discussing race, correct?

 

[BrianJacobsen]

So, OP, overall this is a thread discussing race, correct?

Seeing as it is specifically about race, what's the problem Que?

Also, I call BS on your assertion that both sides do this. Want to convince me? Show me one example from ABC, CBS, or NBC where a person makes a comparable comment about a Black or Hispanic without being upbraided.

Because as far as I'm concerned anti-White bigotry is the only respectable bigotry remaining.

 

[Que]

Seeing as it is specifically about race, what's the problem Que?

Also, I call BS on your assertion that both sides do this. Want to convince me? Show me one example from ABC, CBS, or NBC where a person makes a comparable comment about a Black or Hispanic without being upbraided.

Because as far as I'm concerned anti-White bigotry is the only respectable bigotry remaining.

You can call whatever you want. I wasn't referring to race. I was talking about political stones of all sorts. And just in case you have not read it, here is a quote of the rules in regards to discussions about race:

5) Religious and racially based threads of any nature are not allowed on INGunOwners.com.
All Indiana Gun Owners should feel comfortable on this forum no matter their race, religion or color. Everyone is welcome here on INGO and should feel comfortable being associated with this site.

 

[IndyDave1776]

So, OP, overall this is a thread discussing race, correct?

Not exactly.

1. The personal characteristics of Wayne LaPierre have been used to turn the discussion away from the issue at hand to Mr LaPierre's personal attributes in terms of age, race, and charismatic appeal--a tactic that most media outlets would scream up a lung had a conservative commentator done so.

2. Race (which is entirely irrelevant to the merit of a person's argument or the quality of his character) is used at length by left-leaning personages with the blessing of the same media establishments which consider mere disagreement with someone who happens to be of minority extraction inherently racist. This misuse of an historic problem is poisoning both any specific argument in which it becomes injected and our general political climate.

3. Age is being used as an argument to suggest that Mr. LaPierre's position is not valid. As I previously stated, that same argument would suggest that any position taken by our founders is at least equally invalid.

The point is that there is a danger in the fact that so long as it favors the left, it somehow has become acceptable to frame the argument in terms of the personal attributes of the messenger rather than the fact of the matter. In the end, I will take Martin Luther King's position that a man should be judged by the content of his character and not the color of his skin and add to it that he should not be judged by the number or lack of wrinkles on his skin or the color or lack thereof (i.e., gray) of his hair, or how thick his glasses are if he wears them.

Race may be a component of the attack of Mr. LaPierre, but in the end, the problem is far larger in that this was only one of several wrong issues onto which the focus was transferred to from the fact of the matter at hand, and that continuing to allow this will inevitably result in serious problems when the argument is allowed to turn on the personal attributes of the messenger rather than the validity of the message.

The only point at which I address the issue of race is the question of why it has become acceptable for the left to be openly racist without repercussion while the right is accused and demonized for it without actually doing it in many cases. The obvious casualty is the truth when it is disregarded based entirely upon who is speaking it. Then again, this applies equally to the attributes of being old and tired, so, in the end, I could truthfully say that this post is as much about age and/or spryness as any other attribute.

The fundamental issue is that the validity of the argument presented is being ignored in favor of criticisms of the speaker that I would think most civilized people would consider to be off limits.

 

[IndyDave1776]

So, OP, overall this is a thread discussing race, correct?

I just counted. Of 17 posts, 9 directly address (albeit not necessarily exclusively) issues pertaining to or involving race. Of those 9 posts, 3 are yours, leaving the rest of us with 6. Two other posts brush by the issue without addressing it per se, as in the case of quoting the title of the article and then addressing the age/disconnect accusation. The rule in question is duly noted, but I would consider defending the assertion that this thread is a discussion of race a hard sell.

 

[ghuns]

He is a "tired old white guy". The NRA desperatley needs to replace him with a more assertive public spokesman.

Ding, ding, ding, WINNER

I had a high school history teacher who liked to go on and on about how our Founding Fathers were all rich white male landowners. So I finally said to him one day, you say that like it's a bad thing. Many of my relatives fit that description and I don't appreciate you disparaging them. He lost his

Our nation is being run into the ground by tired old white guys. Take a look at the demographics of the political class in this country. But they don't suck cause they are old or white or male. They suck because they are greedy, complacent pigs. It is a rare individual, who rises through the ranks of politics, business, or any large organization, who does not become consumed with maintaining the power that they have spent years accumulating. There is a lot to be said for injecting new blood into an organization from time to time.

 

[ilikeguns]

I've read posts where Jesse Jackson and others like him were called everything in the book. If the same thing were said about, let's say, any conservative person of the day, what would happen? Both sides throw stones and then cry over the bruises when they are thrown back.

This is 100% true. You have read POSTS. What I highly doubt you have heard/read is any such comment on a major media outlet. It has become unacceptable to mention race in any way shape or form UNLESS it is making derogatory comments on older white guys or white rednecks. I firmly believe that race should be left completely out of ANY discussion as it should have no bearing on anything. However it is highly annoying that comments such as the one the OP is addressing have become perfectly acceptable and defended. The left has worked hard to make the word WHITE correlate with intolerance,fighting "progress" and stupid. The left are the truly intolerant ones and should be called out on it.