There’s been a lot of ugliness surrounding John McCain’s presidential campaign as of late. One McCain support got a bit of press yesterday after suggesting we “kill” Barack Obama, the Democratic candidate another Republican backer described as a “terrorist.”
Some have equated the statements as hate speech, and journalist Leah McElrath Renna suggests McCain may also be guilty of embracing disdainful semantics:
When McCain uses dehumanizing phrases like “that one” to refer to Barack Obama, he is implementing long-standing military techniques for dehumanizing one’s opponent during wartime. But this is NOT a war, and McCain’s behavior in this context is beyond irresponsible and amounts to hate speech.
According to military wisdom, dehumanization is a necessary technique during wartime because it enables human beings to kill other human beings without hesitation in combat situations.
Think about that.
Oh, we’re thinking about it, Leah. Good and hard, too!
emb
Nah, just good ol’ plain rudeness. Grampy’s being all cranky again.
Wayne
This racism card is just so played out by the Obama camp. Any critisism against Obama is called racist. It’s pathetic really. And the main stream press just eats it up. Sad.
ajax
Wait a minute. This explains a lot. Maybe his entire campaign is attributable to PTSD.
ML
It was certainly rude and disrespectful, but quite a stretch to call it hate speech. McCain was just being his old, crotchety self. Get him some Metamucil.
dvlaries
I live in semi-rural Virginia and this time of year crickets get into the house no matter you do. I suspect, if I printed several copies of that McCain picture -which I’ve never seen before- and set them about the floor, it would scare my every uninvited, six-legged freeloader into silence 😮
John
I don’t think it is racist. In the past, he has been equally irritable and rude to white reporters.
I think it is merely another “Abe Simpson” moment. After McCain shuffles off to defeat like Bob Dole, he can go back to ranting at those kids to “get off my lawn!”
Jesse
My theory is that McCain had to poop during the debate. It explains his crankiness as well as his jetting out of the hall right after the conclusion of the debate. Give the old man a break. He was awkwardly and directionlessly pacing in hopes of not crapping his pants.
Matt
Jesse,
Speaking of poop. I think it’s time for a big girl sit down myself. LOL.
Woof
I agree, had nothing to do with racist, just rude. Does flipping ‘One’ with ‘guy’, change the entire issue?
JJ
I don’t think McCan’t would have had the nerve to refer to a white Senator of the United States in his/her presence.
The fact that he was willing to be so demeaning betrays the racism, if not the words themselves. It reminds of white men calling adult black men, “boy”. I’ve seen it in the movies, and it is very demeaning.
retrofit71
Yeah, obviously it wasn’t planned as a racisit remark, it just came out of his mouth while speaking his thoughts. He really just doesn’t like Obama. Cranky ol man.
DOESN'T REALLY MATTER
As of today, the latest Gallup Poll Daily tracking report shows Barack Obama with a 52% to 41% lead over John McCain.
fredo777
I don’t think it was hate speech, just rude + petty.
I do, however, think there was something very ugly + revelatory about McCain’s level of respect (or lack thereof) when not even looking at Obama during the first debate. The only thing I’ve seen attached to McCain that some might question along racial lines was his voting against MLK Day in Arizona.
JamiesDay
And Senator McCain’s rude remark is going to be his undoing, McCain’s Macaca Moment of 2008 … probably not the October Surprise McCain was planning …
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWSRBQQCfUI
boytroy
Was it racist? I suppose that can never be proven, but it was definitely dehumanizing, undignified and would only come from a persons mouth that feels like they are superior in some way to the person they are referring to. Lets face it, one thing the Republicans lack is class, just look at Palin, look at Bush, look at talking heads like Anne Coulter, Bill O’Reilly and the woman who is on the “View”. The Republicans are definitely the party to the White Trash set, no matter what their economic status might be. They relish in being big mouthed, rude, arrogant and undignified. It makes me sick because I travel all over the world and that is what people have come to think of Americans, just a bunch of ignorant trash, because that is what we have been represented as by the leadership of this country as well as so many of our so called journalist. Obama certainly does not offer everything I wish he did, but at least the world might be able to see that all Americans are not ignorant, racist, undignified hicks because all of us are not.
Marty
Thanks to the politically-correct police for protecting us from this invidious danger. Without them, I wouldn’t know when to be enraged by seemingly-innocent remarks. My pension may be falling and my job may be in danger, but at least I am protected from demonstrative adjectives.
ben
The remark should be taken in context. McCain and Palin have been playing on prejudices at rallies, telling (white) people Obama is not like them and different and dangerous.
McCain also said the remark in a nasty way, and he snubbed Obama later when he approached for a handshake.
McCain is a legacy boy used to being given a boost from family and position. He’s nasty and entitled. I don’t know if he’s racist himself, but I think he and Palin are exploiting people’s fears of The Other which in this case is largely racial.
dvlaries
Let’s get real.
Rhymes with runt, and it’s he called his own wife in front of witnesses.
http://wonkette.com/376849/mccain-called-his-wife-c-word
If he’s at home with that language toward women, he’s never far from the n-word for someone black, or the f-word for someone gay. Nothing is more democratic than prejudice.
fredo777
Let’s get something straight, though. While I don’t think his comment was an all-out hate crime, it certainly wasn’t a “seemingly innocent” statement, either. It was very much a pointed use of dehumanizing language + says something about McCain’s character (which has been in question for several reasons as of late). It’s also very important to note his body languaqe + posturing during the debate. Did you notice how many times he nestled himself among the audience + turned negative attention toward Obama as if to say it’s “us against him”? That wasn’t a mistake, either.
When the message is being sent to McCain’s followers (some of whom are violently opposed to Obama being in office) that Obama is not worthy of being treated with respect + dignity as a fellow human being + American, it is very dangerous.
fredo777
* language
John
Watch out #6. The so-called REAL John might sue you for copyright infringement. Hahahaha.
CHURCHILL-Y
“That one” – “The one”, all McCain is referring is to his radical associations and his Messiah complex. Not that facts mean anything to the Obamatrons but it is what it is.
Who cares anyways! the election has been decided by african Americans, the media elite and every other non-US citizen. The American people don’t count anymore. We might as well start to sing the new National anthem of this Country as of 2009:
We’re gonna spread Islamic rule
We’re gonna spread Communism
Obama’s gonna change it
Obama’s gonna lead ‘em
He’s gonna change it
And rearrange it
He’s gonna change the world.
March on! People of all heroic nationalities!
The great Barack Communist Party leads us in continuing the Long March ,
Millions but with one heart toward a communist tomorrow,
Underdeveloped and unprotected, disregard the USA in a careless fashion.
March on, march on, march on!
We will for generations,
All forcefully expend our last cries.
Raise high Chairman Obama’s banner, march on!
Raise high Chairman Obama’s banner, march on!
March on! March on! On!
fredo777
Yawn.
More rants from the fear/hatemongers.
Le sigh.
John (yet another John)
Racist has been tossed out against everything. Barney Frank used it as a defense too. (I really didn’t understand that on or the AP article the other day). Everything political jab can’t be racist. If it is raised too much, no one will listen when it really happens. I think it was disrespectful. It was a play on “The One” I AM SO READY FOR THIS TO BE OVER!
bobito
Okay, guys, here’s the deal:
I’ve been informed by someone who lived during the 60’s (in the still-segregated south) that when white people didn’t want to talk about a dark-skinned person using the word “n—-r”, usually because the person they were talking about was present, they said “that one”. McCain is old enough to recall this (although not necessarily capable of recalling it, since he can’t even remember what he just said 2 hours ago). To be precise, they usually said “that’un”.
McCain didn’t say “that guy”, he said “that one”. If people want to read that as racist, there is historical basis for their assessment. Whether or not it was intentional is anybody’s guess, since McCain meant to say that ‘the American workforce is strong’, and he said ‘the fundamentals of the economy are strong’ by mistake. And he probably doesn’t remember saying any of that by now, either.
In any case, John 24, I am with you on being ready for this to be over.
CHURCHILL-Y
@ John (yet another John):
Well now, get used to it hun because that’s the Obamatrons and the Messiah’s weapon of choice. Just remember it when things become even more dark in the US for GLBT people and those same GLBT groups supporting him now question him about his inertia or apathy, guess what they will be called.
anokie
I don’t know if it was a racial dig, but I do get the logic behind the dehumanization aspect of this tactic. I do think that in McCain’s mind he is at war. McCain’s campaign has been poorly executed, however, Obama has re-written as to how to campaign against the Rovian tactics, good for him.
Ed
This wasn’t hate speech, but it was snide and disrespectful nevertheless. I hope this sticks to McCain like white on rice.
http://www.voteforthatoneshirts. com
Ed
sorry – messed up the link on that last post, lol
http://www.voteforthatoneshirts.com
Jeff
McCain was referring to that candidate voted for the bush energy bill this candidate didn’t.
McCain is being smeared as a racist because he said that candidate voted for Bush’s bill this one didn’t.
McCain likes to point that out to get away from Bush.
McCain has a black daughter.
You Obama supporters won he is the next president.
Can you stop smearing McCain now.
fredo777
McCain is being called a racist because he is disrespectful + doesn’t hide his disdain very well, which might be misconstrued as racism.
I don’t think he’s a racist based on that, just that he’s full of shit.
CommieCanuck
“The great Barack Communist Party leads us in continuing the Long March, Millions but with one heart toward a communist tomorrow, Raise high Chairman Obama’s banner, march on! March on! March on!”
This is wonderful! At long last, America has finally come to its senses!
Debout, les damnés de la terre
Debout, les forçats de la faim
La raison tonne en son cratère
C’est l’éruption de la fin
Du passé faisons table rase
Foules, esclaves, debout, debout
Le monde va changer de base
Nous ne sommes rien, soyons tout
C’est la lutte finale
Groupons-nous, et demain
L’Internationale
Sera le genre humain
Mr C
I didn’t think it was racist at all. It was just RUDE.
Now as for Churchill-Y that’s racist. But those are contributed from family attributes.
IDIOT
Mr C
@ No. 30 · Jeff
McCain’s daughter is dark skin. She is from Bangladesh. She is not a African American.
I don’t think he is a racist. But that girl isn’t Black.
James
Petty is right, and its not coming from McCain.
fredo777
Like hell it isn’t. He was even petty at several points during the last debate.
Dacato
@Churchill – Y
Since you are so convinced that McCain and Palin are a better choice, I would like you to answer two simple questions. And please, no bullshit ranting about how the election is already decided.
1. How do you explain Sarah and Todd Palin’s association with the Alaskan Independence Party? She talks about being patriotic and yet is associated with a radical anti-American group.
2. McCain and Palin talk about giving citizen’s more choice with less government interference, correct? How then do they explain their stance on the desire to overturn Roe vs Wade? By overturning this ruling, would this not be an example of the government making decisions for women?
These are just 2 examples of the hypocrisy that the Republicans seem to ignore. How do you explain this?
Mr C
@No.37·Dacato
My Dear, He will find a way to blame African Americans for this. See Boo this is why he has become so eradicated with angry feelings to minorities i.e African Americans.
When Obama won the nomination for the Dems she became RED with evilness due to the lost Hillary Rodham Clinton and has been spewing vicious statements about African Americans, Obama and his wife ever since. So now the new girl Sarah Stalin has become his new hero.
So it’s nonsense he could never answer anything as intellectual as your question you just posed to him.
Just pray for the lost soul that is Churchill-Y
Heart to Mouth
Luke 6:45
“A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.”
Mccain surprised himself, when there is no script to read.!!!