I first wrote this in 2009, shortly after President Obama took office. With a little revision and addition, it still seems extremely appropriate. Even if it predates and never mentions Donald Trump.
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I am so tired of hearing about reverse racism.
That’s the big new thing on the right, since they realized that all their cries of “socialism” weren’t resonating with the American people, who apparently decided they had enough of eight years of unbridled capitalism under George W. Bush.
Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., got a big surprise when he went home to talk with voters. Baucus represents one of the more conservative states in the union, and he told voters he was opposed to single-payer health insurance. Montana voters were angry, and polls in the state showed that a solid majority favored what the right loves to call socialized medicine.
Ditto with President Obama’s nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court. A Gallup poll released Tuesday said 50 percent approved and only 22 percent opposed Sotomayor, a higher number than approved of any of Bush’s nominees to the court.
So despite the controversy the media loves to highlight, a lot of Americans seem to approve of the direction Obama is taking us.
So the right wing is playing the race card.
If you listen to them, Obama hates white people and so does Sotomayor. In fact, if you listen to them, nominating Sotomayor to the Supreme Court is the moral equivalent of a Republican nominating former KKK Grand Wizard David Duke.
Now you might be surprised to know that I’m not all that disappointed — and certainly not surprised — to hear Rush Limbaugh saying that about Sotomayor. He is what he is, and he has his audience. But it’s only been this year that the mainstream media seems to be playing up whatever he says. In fact, Rush has gotten more press coverage this year than any year since his arrest on prescription drug charges.
I’m sure he’s loving it.
I’m sorry, though. The last thing we need is white people at the bottom of the economic spectrum thinking that the reason they’re not getting ahead is someone else’s reverse racism.
In my entire career, I lost out on one job because I was white. And I never really wanted to be part of NWA anyway.
Seriously, for all the talk of affirmative action, there is no doubt that being a white male is still the most advantageous position to hold in this society.
So let’s not whine about reverse racism.
My guess is it’s about 97th on our list of national problems, right behind whether we are getting enough calcium in our diets.