Defining the words, defining the discourse. Schlessinger, NAACP, Breitbart.

[ThatPoetGuy]

Dr. Laura Schlessinger's racist rant has got people riled up due to her use of the N-word. More disturbing, to me, was when she said, "Don't NAACP me!" She was using the "NAACP" as a verb to mean "taking things out of context to distort their meaning."

The right wing propagandists are very good at this kind of thing. Better than we are. How many media figures outside of Olbermann and Maddow will be driving home the message that Breitbart takes things out of context to distort their meaning? Who among our voices would have said "Don't Breitbart me?"

But the right wing will do this. They will "catapult the propaganda" against the NAACP, with their baseless allegations, and the lies will be loud while the truth sits silent.

I went to http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=breitbart to see the definitions. There are a couple of gross-out meanings, which have reached the top, with many thumbs-up, and the ones that drive home the truth -- that no one should trust anything that comes from this spreader of lies -- have been driven down.

Please click on the "thumbs-down" for the raunchy definitions, and click on thumbs-up for the definitions that help drive home what a conscious deceiver this man is.

It won't change the world, by itself, but it's something.

[howaboutme]

1. Dr Laura

Racism is not about words it is about actions.

One could easily say that Dr Laura is an arrogant racist who would be the first to call in the artillery if her own ethnic background was ever condescendingly called into question, just as she repeatedly did to the caller. I would surmise she believes that she is somewhat special and above the racism that average people might display.

That said, I refuse to believe the current media frenzied hype and attacks on anyone who in a moment of irrationality might use what is interpreted as racist speech, as an indicator of a racist person. Speech is a temporary outlet of emotions. It means nothing unless it is repeatedly used. The old euphemism that sticks and stones will hurt but names will never hurt is still true for exceptions.

Racism is about actions and that is what demonstrates real racism. Actions such as hiring and promoting only those who meet certain racist criteria is absolutely racist. The EEO used quotas for years as the criteria and it should still be used within reason. Over or under representation of any group can demonstrate racism unless it can be shown that extraordinary ability is the only criteria that resulted in the success of those over-represented.

[BlueMTexpat]

2. While I concur with much of what you say, the

fact that she threw in the "Don't NAACP me!" made her intentions pretty darn clear to me.