April 09, 2008

Okay, This Takes The Cake


Okay, this takes the cake!

An Illinois delegate for Senator Obama, Linda Ramirez-Sliwinski has resigned.

Why? Because she called some black children, next door neighbors, "monkeys" which offended the parents of the boys, and the police were called.

She was charged with disorderly conduct and fined, because one of the boys was scared, one of the parents was upset, and there is an ordinance there that bans conduct that "disturbs or alarms" people.

"Given the incident, Linda Ramirez-Sliwinski is stepping down as a delegate and will be replaced," said Obama spokeswoman Amy Brundage.

I think that this political correctness stuff has been taken to the extreme. I can understand why Don Imus maybe should have been chastised, somewhat, for his use of the word " 'ho" in reference to the black basketball players. But should he have lost his job over it? Once he apologized, that should have been the end of it, but it wasn't.

Senator Trent Lott made a faux pas, which cost him his position in Congress. A lot worse has been said than what he said, and that by blacks about whites.

And we mustn't forget about Dog the Bounty Hunter, who was made to grovel after his use of the "N" word, which was uttered in a private phone conversation with his own son. After groveling, and giving huge donations to black organisations, it still wasn't enough to satisfy certain people. He lost his show, which was one of the most popular ones on television.

How far is this stuff going to go?

I've noticed, recently, that whenever my 87 year old aunt down home, is telling me something over the phone, and it involves a black person, she will actually spell out the word, "Negro," rather than saying it. For instance, the other day she was telling me about a new employee, or clerk in some store, and she said that she was "a very nice, young N-e-g-r-o woman." I said, "She's what?" and she repeated what she had said. I was flabbergasted! She hadn't spelled out the dreaded "N" word, but simply the word "Negro."

I asked her why she did this, and her reply was that she didn't want to get into trouble. I told her that she wouldn't get into trouble for saying "Negro" and she said that she didn't want to take any chances!

I asked if it really frightens her, and she said that it did.

Now, this aunt is not senile. She is sharp as a tack, still takes care of a home, a few grandkids, still drives, and has never missed voting for any reason, and has, on occasion worked at the polling place there in her town. She was always ready to go toe-to-toe with anyone who critized President Clinton, but now, I am wondering if she will vote for Obama, because she doesn't want to "take any chances."

Okay..go ahead and tell me I am over-reacting. Tell me I'm crazy. As far as I'm concerned, this whole political correctness thing is crazy.

8 comments:

Papa Frank said...

A country that walks on eggshells will eventually smell like rotten eggs.

Mrs. K's Lemonade Stand said...

Uh oh, perhaps I should stop calling my dog and daughter "little monkees." I would hate to have to resign from being their mom.

Jan said...

FF..the stench is getting pretty bad, already, don't you think? :)

Jan said...

Mrs. K..you, and a whole lot of others, myself included!

Is that ridiculous, or what? :)

Anonymous said...

jan...love your blog!
yes...this is getting beyond ridiculous....i have always called my kids [and other people's kids] monkeys when they were playing around. and if they were being naughty then they were "evil monkeys" and had to earn their way out of it with good behavior.
PC will be the death of us if we don't stop it now.

rockync said...

I left a church because it had become "the church of the offended." There were so many people either being offended or being accused of offending, I actually felt worse after attending instead of being edified. We should be cognizant of offensive terms such as the "N" word - it's crude and ignorant and that is why I don't use it. I also don't call Jews by offensive names or Italians or Irish, etc. Calling some kids "monkeys" does seem a bit out of the realm. My mother in law frequently called my children monkeys when they were getting into mischief. If this "country of the offended" gets any worse I may have to leave the country!
BTW - your aunt story reminds me of this thing my mother does; when we talk on the phone and she wants to tell me something she doesn't want anyone to hear, she'll whisper it in Czech. Now, she is usually at home with her doors and windows closed and she lives alone! I finally said,"Ma,who do you think is going to hear you?" So, we laughed about it, but she still does it! Go figure!

Jan said...

christmasghost..welcome to my blog!

I'm glad you stopped by!

Yes, it is ridiculous. I know I certainly have called my boys 'monkey' as a term of endearment, and I can remember being called that many times, myself.

Soon, we will have to consult a directory of acceptable words before speaking, I guess, in order not to offend anyone.

Jan said...

rockync..I agree about the words which are unacceptable and attack a person's ethnicity. I've always made sure that those words were not a part of vocabulary, nor of my children's.

I understand about the church, too..that's a shame, but getting to be a regular thing,unfortunately.

I had to smile about your mom..whispering in Czech. That's a double precaution...smart lady! :)