[Parallax]

Jim - never mind that - did you see the monkey family photo?

Why no, I haven't. There's a photo? That's terrible, but surely the Bush one was real. The Democrats would never stoop so low as to do something like that.

[cardinal43]

Back off with the assumptions there cardinal

There wasn't any assuming on my part. I read your statement (actually your question), as supporting those trying to make the point that Obama isn't a native born citizen. If that wasn't what you meant, then my apology. My point was that he is in fact, a native born citizen. Frankly, at this point, I don't really give a rat's a** where he was born. Won't change the fact that he is the POTUS, and he will be for at least another 18 months or so. Might even be POTUS longer (I hope so), but who knows?

[ihasa]

Oh did someone portray Bush's parents as chimps as well? A bit different to comparing Bush himself to a monkey even leaving aside the racist overtones.

[Nesster]

The intent behind portraying Bush as a monkey and Obama's parents as apes is clear for any sensible person to see.

AHA! it has something to do with evolution?

[Ratmagiclady]

Do you think we are a bunch of five year olds here ? Anyone with half a brain knows that the reason why this total birther BS continues is because most Republicans hate that a black man is POTUS.

And immigrants, but, yeah.

And in this particular case, cause they seem to be in favor of the government favoring *anything* that might traumatize someone about their genitalia from an early age or just plain impose religious power over anything under the navel or something, but yeah, the racism bit's pretty obvious, too.

(Still, on the circumcision thing, you know how I occasionally mention that one of RML's little rules to live by is 'When Freud Applies, It's Time To Go?' This is a prime example of why I'd like to get us at least as close to the Canadian border as practicable, ... And there's a lot of things that you can argue about in this world, but cut-up men's wee-wees taken to religious politics probably ain't one of them. )

[GeneV]

Why no, I haven't. There's a photo? That's terrible, but surely the Bush one was real. The Democrats would never stoop so low as to do something like that.

I suspect that if someone had depicted watermelons on the Bush or Clinton White House lawn, it would have had a different connotation, too. This is not the first from this group down in Orange County.

[Ratmagiclady]

I suspect that if someone had depicted watermelons on the Bush or Clinton White House lawn, it would have had a different connotation, too. This is not the first from this group down in Orange County.

More than that, it's a false equivalency: if anyone called Bush 'Chimpy McFlightsuit,' it wasn't cause he and his whole family were black or Irish or anything.

[ihasa]

I suppose when the Whitehouse watermelon patch postcard came out the right wing pundits were all like 'what's racist about watermelons?' like a naughty 6 year old feigning innocence.

[GeneV]

More than that, it's a false equivalency: if anyone called Bush 'Chimpy McFlightsuit,' it wasn't cause he and his whole family were black or Irish or anything.

Just for the record, though, I never liked it when people called the President a chimp, then, either. However, it had no racial overtones when applied to a white man.

[Nesster]

However, it had no racial overtones when applied to a white man.

Yeah, but what about the chimp?

[GeneV]

Yeah, but what about the chimp?

According to scientists, there are three races of chimps, but I don't know which one has been insulted throughout history by comparisons to a human.

[Nesster]

Apart from the bonobos, whose sex habits clearly mark them as degenerate atheist liberals (and aren't chimps at all), there are Western, Central and Eastern races.

Of these, the Eastern variety is clearly now seen as CHINO (Chimp in Name Only) though in the past they were a part of Chimp orthodoxy and proud of e.g. the Rockefeller name.
The Western Chimp was once seen as the outlier, but for the past 30 years has dominated the Chimp world. Wester Chimp society is marked by a strict distribution of bananas to the top males in the heirarchy, and the troop loudly and violently defends this practice against all observers.

The Central Chimps have recently tried to out-Western even the Western ones, it is to be seen how successful this move will be.

[Ratmagiclady]

Just for the record, though, I never liked it when people called the President a chimp, then, either. However, it had no racial overtones when applied to a white man.

Actually, I agree, there: dignity of the office and all, but since Bush's simpering anti-intellectualism and arrogant willful ignorance was much more of a threat to *that* than anyone pointing it out, however uncharitably, I certainly don't think it's anywhere on the same order as the overt racism directed against Obama.

Still, it's kind of part of my own religious culture that comparing people to animals isn't inherently such an *insult,* to begin with, (not that simians would seem to be a popular choice for names or comparisons, nonetheless: I suppose since we're *all* primates, there's not much differentiating about any simian characteristics, but also, the 'unevolved' connotations are pretty obvious. )

Even evolution denialists are quick enough to call someone, particularly of a race or ethnicity they feel 'better than' ...an 'ape,' or portray them as 'chimps:' probably half the reason evolutionary science upset them is cause they were scandalized at the thought of being treated like they thought only black people or Irish or certain others 'should.' So what'd they do, portray Darwin *himself* as a 'subhuman' ape, which was in some ways aligned with his point, but also something the deniers *thought was cutting.* Obviously, the racism of this predates the evolution 'controversy,' but hey, Denial's interesting, eh?

But at issue with a lot of that is the typical GOP/racist/bully thing of acting like they're the ones who've been wronged if they can draw a false equivalency. Bullies always play the victim when they're caught out on something.

[ihasa]

I'm not sure I agree. There's a place for satire IMO. But I'm just not sure there's a satirical point in making Obama into a chimp (or his parents)... doesn't say anything other than 'I'm a big fat racist' when you do that.... because he doesn't exhibit chimp-like tendencies in the slightest, whereas you could easily imagine Bush's heart beating a little faster at the sight of a tyre swing....

[jogiba]

You must really like that picture. You've posted a link to it in two different threads less than 5 minutes apart.
(it had already been posted by someone else in yet another thread)

You people get your cookies looking at that photo but in 2012 you people are dead meat.