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On Tapegate

Last week, courtesy of the L.A. Times, the California public got an inside and unscripted glimpse of what goes on behind closed doors of the Governor's office. What we learned was not a surprise -- that our Governor is a racist, sexist pig. What was even more interesting, though, was the reaction that followed, and what it confirms for me is that our society just does not know how to deal with racism and sexism, no matter how blatant it may be.

For those of you who haven't been following, let's take a look at what our Governor said, entirely in context of a back-room, back-slapping conversation between an elected official and his top staff person:

They move on to Garcia, a Cathedral City lawmaker who is the daughter of Puerto Rican immigrants. On her website, Garcia is described as "born on the Lower East Side of New York to teen parents."

"Bonnie Garcia is great," Kennedy says on the recording. "She's a ball-buster. She's great. Is she Puerto Rican?"

"She seems to me like Cuban," Schwarzenegger says.

"She's not Mexican," Kennedy replies.

"No," the governor agrees.

"But she said something," Kennedy says, "and I thought, I thought she was Puerto Rican."

Then Schwarzenegger offers a theory.

"She maybe is Puerto Rican or the same thing as Cuban. I mean, they are all very hot. They have the, you know, part of the black blood in them and part of the Latino blood in them that together makes it."

Since these comments were made I have heard lectures from George Skelton and Bill Bradley and any number of other Touchy White People that I, and anyone who dares speak out against blatant generalizations based on race and sex, are "overreacting."

To those people I would like to ask: Just what exactly is "black blood," and how does it contribute to making someone "hot"? Call me crazy, but I don't like to hear the Governor of the fifth largest economy in the world throwing around phrases like "black blood." And this is not an isolated incident. As Phil Angelides rightfully pointed out, this is a pattern of behavior from a Governor who has been unable to show the kind of dignity and respect that is required from a major leader in a civilized society.

It may not have political ramifications for him -- how can it when the media and the pundit class have given him a total free pass despite the fact that he has acted like a complete buffoon with no real political convictions, wasted millions of dollars on a failed special election that got us nowhere, and lied through his teeth on several occasions on his path to get re-elected.

What's a little racism and sexism to add to the mix?

Your Comments

daraka said:

Very well put.

C.r.a.z.y.

September 11, 2006 03:57 PM

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