A teachable moment from Marge Simpson—and other notable comments

I’ve been taken by some thoughtful statements made recently. I’ve also been stunned by comments I can characterize only as boneheaded. First, the thoughtful statements, the leadoff coming from Marge Simpson last week.

“I usually don’t get into politics, but the president’s senior adviser Jenna Ellis just said Kamala Harris sounds like me. Lisa says she doesn’t mean it as a compliment. If that’s so, as an ordinary suburban housewife, I’m starting

to feel a little disrespected. I teach my children not to name-call, Jenna. I was gonna say I’m pissed off, but I’m afraid they’d bleep it.”

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“Racism makes a liar of God. It says not everyone is made in his image. What a horrible lie from the pit of hell.”

–From an interview of Gloria Purvis, co-host of the Catholic radio show, “Morning Glory,” published in the New York Times on August 6, 2020.

****

“To my fellow Republicans: I am a white Republican writing regarding those of you who insist on using the phrase “All Lives Matter” instead of ‘Black Lives Matter.’

I say ‘Black Lives Matter’ because ‘All’ didn’t include Blacks when whites said “All men are created equal.’

I say ‘Black Lives Matter’ because ‘All’ didn’t include Blacks when whites said ‘With liberty and justice for all.’

I say ‘Black Lives Matter’ because ‘All’ didn’t include Blacks when whites said ‘All men have the right to vote.’”

–Stanley D. Krider, letter to the editor, The Columbus Dispatch, July 25, 2020

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“We haven’t done any of the things that other countries have done to bring sports back. Sports are like the reward of a functioning society.”

–Washington National pitcher Sean Doolittle, July 5, 2020

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“A good conversation is like a miniskirt; short enough to retain interest, but long enough to cover the subject.”

–Celeste Headlee, March 23, 2017 (I just recently stumbled on this quote).

And now for those bonehead comments:

“I heard it today that she doesn’t meet the requirements. I have no idea if that’s right. I would have thought, I would have assumed, that the Democrats would have checked that out before she gets chosen to run for vice president.”

–President Trump talking about Kamala Harris, August 13, 2020

****

“Editor: I read your article (Mailbox, last Sunday). In your mind, let’s change all of history.

You are an (expletive) liberal. Go Indians! I hope they never change their name.

You are a disgusting person with that article. A vote for Biden will ruin this country for good. Your article tells it all who you are for.

–Glenn Tomazic, letter to the sports editor, The Columbus Dispatch, July 26, 2020, responding to the editor’s support for changing the team’s name.

****

“And I was just in the Oval talking to him [President Trump] about that. “When he says open, he means open in full, kids being able to attend each and every day in their school. The science should not stand in the way of this.”

–White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany, July 16, 2020

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Jack D’Aurora writes for Considerthisbyjd.com

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Comments

Jim Bownas August 21, 2020

Wow!! The quote from Stanley Krider is remarkably thought provoking! What an incredible insight. I’m going to have to rethink a lot of my gut reactions.

And you know, gut reactions are where the rubber meets the road. Let’s face it, we’re all racist after about the second grade. There is no one who doesn’t at least notice the color of another person’s skin. And that notice results in a gut reaction. A gut reaction is neither right nor wrong, it’s just a conditioned response. You can try to recondition yourself, but that’s never completely successful, particularly in stressful situations. What DOES have moral implications is what we do with that gut reaction. We have to govern our reactions cognitively, and not allow them to be governed by our endocrine system. When i get irritated in traffic, for example, and my adrenaline begins to build up uselessly and counterproductively, I have been trained to hum “Like a Bridge Over Troubled Waters” in order to dissipate the hormone and react thoughtfully to the situation. From now on, when I encounter a person of color, perhaps I can make my mantra be “Black Lives Matter, because ‘all’ did not include Blacks when Thomas Jefferson wrote that ‘all men are created equal’”.
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- Bill August 22, 2020
  
  Thanks for putting that into words for me.
  reply

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Jim Bownas August 21, 2020

Wow!! The quote from Stanley Krider is remarkably thought provoking! What an incredible insight. I’m going to have to rethink a lot of my gut reactions.

And you know, gut reactions are where the rubber meets the road. Let’s face it, we’re all racist after about the second grade. There is no one who doesn’t at least notice the color of another person’s skin. And that notice results in a gut reaction. A gut reaction is neither right nor wrong, it’s just a conditioned response. You can try to recondition yourself, but that’s never completely successful, particularly in stressful situations. What DOES have moral implications is what we do with that gut reaction. We have to govern our reactions cognitively, and not allow them to be governed by our endocrine system. When i get irritated in traffic, for example, and my adrenaline begins to build up uselessly and counterproductively, I have been trained to hum “Like a Bridge Over Troubled Waters” in order to dissipate the hormone and react thoughtfully to the situation. From now on, when I encounter a person of color, perhaps I can make my mantra be “Black Lives Matter, because ‘all’ did not include Blacks when Thomas Jefferson wrote that ‘all men are created equal’”.

Bill August 22, 2020

Thanks for putting that into words for me.

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