Allen holds a big lead over Webb. In February, I claimed that this race had the potential to be the best kind of politics. Instead, Webb has turned out to be a one dimensional candidate (Iraq) and possesses all the charisma of cottage cheese. So what do you do when you are losing badly? You take the focus off your candidate and try to whip up a scandal for your opponent and enlist the help of the Washington Post. The lefty Virginia polibloggers are having a hey day over "Macaca". With nothing positive to blog about, who can blame them?
An ill-advised, condescending and probably racist remark is an ill-advised, condescending, and probably racist remark, no matter what your political preferences are. It's a big deal, whether you recognize it or not, and it may well submarine Allen's 2008 presidential aspirations. I'm extremely disappointed in you for trying to dismissively wave this one away. Even other Christian conservatives are willing to call Allen's gaffe out for what it was.
Frankly, and no offense intended, I'm consistently disappointed in your coverage of the Allen-vs.-Webb race. It's clear that you like Allen and you don't like Webb, but it's not clear if you realize the extent to which this seems to color your opinions of everything that's happened in the race.
Finally, can you honestly tell me that if Webb had made such a gaffe, you don't think the "righty" Virginia polibloggers would be hitting it at least as hard?
Posted by: tgirsch | August 18, 2006 at 05:09
If it is true that a) 'Macaca' is a slur used in French to refer to Africans or Arabs and b) Allen's mother or grandparents were French colonials in Tunisia, then the situation roughly parallels the Mel Gibson fiasco. In both cases, the use of the slur may not represent conscious racism, but it may well indicate attitudes absorbed in early childhood and not sufficiently recognized and repudiated by the adult. Since such attitudes, if not consciously confronted, may effect a politician's actions, it seems newsworthy.
The rest of the gaffe (welcome to America, etc) was just condescending and stupid.
Posted by: Nick | August 18, 2006 at 09:34
Nick:
IMO, the rest of the gaffe undermines the idea that the slur was "not conscious racism." It was crystal clear, in context, that Allen was trying to paint the target as an "other," whatever he may have meant by "macaca." (And if he didn't mean it as the Tunisian slur and wasn't calling the guy a "monkey," then what on earth was he trying to convey?)
Posted by: tgirsch | August 18, 2006 at 15:45
Macaca - schmacaca ... this senate race has yet to cover any serious ground ... talk about disappointing. Webb was supposed to be a serious candidate who would force a serious discussion about weighty national issues and issues facing Virginians.
So far the two big events in this campaign ... at least based on VA poliblogging ... are the flag amendment flap and this macaca nonsense.
I guess I was hoping for a race that rose above the norm for American politics.
Posted by: Mr. Dawntreader | August 18, 2006 at 17:17
You go, Mr. Dawntreader!
Posted by: Joe Guarino | August 19, 2006 at 18:16
Jeff:
I don't get it: Allen makes a probably-racist remark, and this somehow reflects negatively on Webb? How does that work?
Frankly, it troubles me that you dismiss the use of a slur as not "serious," and "nonsense." If Webb dropped an N-bomb on somebody, I seriously doubt you'd be writing that off as "nonsense." I suspect you'd take it quite seriously.
I'm not saying the race has been above-board or anything to be proud of, but methinks you put too much of the blame on Webb and too little on Allen. It takes two, after all.
Posted by: tgirsch | August 21, 2006 at 23:07
Be honest. Macaca? Comparable to the N-word? Get real. Macaca means nothing and it meant nothing. If I would have asked you to define macaca three weeks ago you would *never* have told me, "macaca is a racial slur used by bigots". We both know that.
If Allen had named the staffer "Fred", then Fred would have become a racial slur and Allen would have been written up in the Post for making a racist remark.
Lacking a candidate with fresh ideas or the ability to articulate persuasive arguments, the Webb team turned to YouTube to gain ground in the race. It was an effective move. The polls now have these two candidates in a statistical dead heat.
We were hoping for Lincoln-Douglas here in Virginia and ended up with YouTube.
Posted by: Mr. Dawntreader | August 22, 2006 at 06:20
Be honest. Macaca? Comparable to the N-word? Get real. Macaca means nothing and it meant nothing. If I would have asked you to define macaca three weeks ago you would *never* have told me
I'd have defined it as a genus of Monkey, not an ethnic slur, but that's not the point. There has been a specific claim that Macaca does mean something in the culture from which Allen's family comes. If you show that claim to be false, then you can argue that Macaca meant nothing and means nothing.
The issue is whether Allen knew what it meant, not whether his audience knew what it meant. I think it likely that I could come up with slurs from my ethnic background that would be meaningless to most Americans. If I used them in a public setting, that would say something about me, regardless of whether you had to look them up to figure out what I meant.
Posted by: Nick | August 23, 2006 at 09:00
Gee, Jeff, I guess it shocks me that you're essentially taking the view that just because all sins aren't equally egregious, we should simply ignore what are deemend to be "lesser" sins. Or that because we hadn't previously heard of a particular slur, it therefore must not actually be a slur. As Nick points out, there are cultures in which "macaca" (actually, "macaque," I believe) is on a level close to the N-word, and Allen has direct ties to such a culture! And Kevin will tell you that he would have been able to tell you that it was a slur, having lived in an area of New Jersey where it was in disturbingly common use.
But that, after all, is beside the point. The point is, Allen clearly intended to belittle his target, and whether this was racially motivated or not, it's not exactly conduct becoming of a Senator. It's certainly not anything approaching "the best kind of politics."
But in your world, apparently, since it's a guy with an "R" after his name, it's no big deal. And rather than faulting Allen for saying it -- directly to the camera! -- we should fault Webb's camp for complaining about it.
I really think you need to do some soul-searching on this one. You're essentially arguing that reporting the sin of another is a bigger sin that the actual sin itself. This is something you've been inconsistent about in the past.
Posted by: tgirsch | August 24, 2006 at 15:29
http://www.forbes.com/business/healthcare/feeds/ap/2006/08/24/ap2970840.html
Allen on Wednesday tracked down a phone number for Sidarth at the University of Virginia, where the 20-year-old had returned for his senior year, and apologized to him, said campaign manager Dick Wadhams.
"Senator Allen made a heartfelt apology," Wadhams said. "He told Sidarth he thought he would see him on the campaign trail, but Sidarth had headed back to U.Va., so we Googled his name, found his number and the senator called him this morning."
Posted by: Mr. Dawntreader | August 24, 2006 at 15:51