What would you say to this freeper?

[Seabiscuit]

My wife has this right-wing uncle who was here for my son's first birthday yesterday and started making comments about all the run down shacks and "projects" in New Orleans before Katrina, and that everyone's better off that they were destroyed in the flood. I couldn't believe my ears, said something about "that's where the poor people lived, and like it or not, they're still people" then got up from the table and left, without speaking to him again all day.

What would you have said to him?

[Floogeldy]

1. I think you handled it well.

Fuck that elitist "I got mine, now you get your's" asshole.

:smoke:

[proud2BlibKansan]

2. I would have slapped him silly

Nothing like a fight at a birthday party.

[chknltl]

12. I have that exact same cardboard shrub in my home.

(In Ref.to cardboard bush in photo),
My kids got it for me, he stands by my front door with a sailors hat made out of a sheet of newspaper. He gets to wear t-shirts from time to time, at first it was my "inxs" t-shirt with a cartoon statue of liberty blowing out her brains. Today he is wearing a t-shirt from the Seattle Hemp-Fest all adorned with pot leaves and such. At night with my blinds closed he casts a shadow on my window which makes folks think that someone is actually standing there peeking out! The newspaper sailors hat has bleached his hair blonder then it should be so I will be removing it soon. I would like to find him a beanie with one of those little propeller blades on it or maybe a tinfoil hat.
ps: I know that was off topic but when I saw that photo I could not resist sharing.

[proud2BlibKansan]

30. LOL How can you stand looking at him in your house?

I would surely gag.

I admire your courage.

Hemp fest t-shirt - LOL :rofl:

[Wapsie B]

3. I don't know if there's anything you could have said

that would register with a person like that. I tried talking sense to some relatives of mine and nothing registers. It's like some of them are truly borgs. And I refuse to raise my blood pressure over such uncaring individuals.

[SaveElmer]

4. A Mind is a Terrible thing to Waste...nt

[anarch]

5. well, you can always try one-upping them

in the "sounding like a nazi" department...you know, trying to say something so outrageous that it exposes their own racism and ignorance. Unfortunately, with too many of these people, they just wind up admiring you and thinking you are on their side when you do this...

Your response seems completely appropriate.

[sakabatou]

6. "Get out of my house."

[bliss_eternal]

7. Good job! You handled it perfectly!

:applause:

I honestly don't know what I would have said... I'd like to think I would have said I wouldn't have the poor insulted in my home...don't know.

:shrug: Again, you handled it well.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

8. I too think you handled it perfectly my dear Seabiscuit.......

The only comment I would make is that I wonder how you sounded? Did you have an edge to your voice? Did you sound angry at all?

If you had, then the message would have had a greater impact...but even without that edge, the message was terrific....

Good job!

:yourock: :applause: :applause: :applause:

[Seabiscuit]

9. I'm not sure how I sounded...

I was genuinely stunned, so I don't think I sounded angry so much as in disbelief. But by the time I said it I was so disgusted that all I could do is leave before I did get angry and say something that might have gotten the guy to cause a scene.

Apparently he said something similar to my father-in-law, who told my wife about it.

She told me about that one the day after, and after I related my story, she was furious.

[Seabiscuit]

10. I'm guess I'm wondering about two things:

1. Since I don't listen to any right-wing hate radio talk shows, but am convinced that this idiot does, and since I know he and a few other relatives who live in his area are in the habit of regurgitating such hate speech (the stereotype of the typical freeper is so true) could it be that what he said is just a repetition of crap floating around the right-wing radio talk shows these days?

2. I see a lot of very creative ideas on DU about how to counter neocon talking points. I just blurted out what I blurted out without having the time to think about it. Can anyone think of a really good phrase or statement to make to counter the offensive BS this idiot spouted at me?

[Blue Diadem]

15. I heard two comments like that on Faux

and that was just flipping through..so if I caught it in a 30 second blip..they were probably saying it alot more.

The first was a reporter..don't know who..but he said something about the houses being mostly shacks and then said..I shouldn't have said that. I almost threw the remote at the TV and later ranted to my hubby about the uncaring a$$ I just saw on TV.

A few days later, I saw Greta getting rather angry with Hannity..saying something like they may have been shacks in your eyes but they were those people's homes. God only knows what crap Hannity was/is spewing.


I'm betting your wife's uncle is repeating what he's heard.

[Seabiscuit]

21. Thank you. Just as I suspected. And yes, he just regurgitates that crap.

If you caught all that on Fox in just 30 seconds, then it must be the latest revolting Rove talking point. What's telling is the use of the word "shacks", the same word my wife's uncle mentioned.

Until Saturday I'd never heard the word "shacks" used w/r/t NOLA.

[July]

11. You did great.

I also like another poster's "Get out of my house."

If he claims to be a Christian, there's always the "whatsoever you do to the least of my brothers . . ." retort. Where are those poor people supposed to live if their homes are destroyed?

[RedCloud]

13. From your mouth to Satan's ears.

How freepers hate being paired with Satan!

[DelawareValleyDem]

14. First, I'd tell him to read

the lyrics to Open Letter to a Landlord by Living Colour.
Then, I'd tell him to shut the fuck up.

[Seabiscuit]

22. I'm not sure he knows how to read.

:shrug:

He's mostly a blowhard.

[StopTheMorans]

16. Hi, freeper, my name is StopTheMorans.

[CBHagman]

17. I think you came up with a concise answer.

Perhaps you could have mentioned that it's a little strange to regard the destruction of businesses, homes, schools, nursing homes, and hospitals; the drowing and displacement of people; and the strain it puts on rescue workers, medical professionals, and the like as a GOOD thing.

One of my co-workers told me this weekend about the unbelievable situations doctors, nurses, and other medical staff were placed in during and after the hurricane. You could ask your uncle if it was the best thing to have hospitals and nursing homes filling up with water and facing shortages of supplies.

In short, I think he was just spouting the usual catchphrases that the right-wing media delivers. I have co-workers who utter nonsense like that on a regular basis, and I generally just leave them unanswered, due to their inability to have an adult conversation about it. They've obviously numbed or suppressed any logic or empathy.

With a relative, it's a different matter, and I think you did the best you could with the situation you were handed.

[proud patriot]

18. "hows' the weather up there ?"

"must be a nice view from up high" :grr:

[Seabiscuit]

31. Now if I could have just said that while

scrunching up my face, turning it all red and round and turn on those flames, it might have been *very* effective!

Or... if I just could have done this: :mad:

[WCGreen]

19. I would have asked him not to speak like that

in front of the children....

[Seabiscuit]

24. Believe me, if any of the children had been near him I would have!

Good point.

[Burma Jones]

20. I would have told him that

the people in those shacks and projects - and trailer parks and dilapidated farm houses are the ones that go fight in our wars and pick up our garbage and do the real living and dying and that I have just about had it with people denigrating these Americans.

You know, like George Bailey telling Mr. Potter off in "It's a Wonderful Life."

Of Course, I also think what you said was right on the money as well.....

[Felix Mala]

23. "It's pretty racist to assume most of those people didn't own those homes.

I'd also add, "For many of them, their entire life savings is tied up in their homes. I would also worry about leaving them with all police and fire protection wiped out by the storm."


A lot of these idiots on the right fail to realize that there was no local response because the disaster had wiped out the ability of any city or state TO respond. This was bigger than any state, save perhaps NY, CA or TX. This was like an atomic bomb going off. This is why we have a federal government!!!

[AnarchoFreeThinker]

25. I guess I'd ask how he felt about JD winning Rockstar INXS

you did a good job with him. just kidding;-

[Seabiscuit]

29. I don't know which made me want to puke more.

JD???

:puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke:
:puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke:
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:puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke:

[ucmike]

26. could have said 'yeah, thank god disasters never strike rich white people'

[bertha katzenengel]

27. I would have called him Babs. "Why, Mrs. Bush! You certainly have

changed since leaving the White House 13 years ago. Why, you've evidently begun to grow facial hair, you dress like a man, you have no breasts . . ."

He sounds exactly like Babs. Asshole.

[Seabiscuit]

28. Now THAT's a reply I would have liked to give.

Unfortunately, it's not subtle enough - even he might figure out I was insulting him.

Babs! LOL!!!

[skoppa]

32. I would say...

.."It's people like you that got Bush re-fucking-elected." :puke: :evilgrin: