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TONGUE TIED ARCHIVE
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September 03, 2005The Confederacy Revisited
Well, here I am back again! I didn't stay away for long, did I? I am back only to remedy an omission, however. I feel I should mention that I received a HEAP of emails about my comments on America's North/South war. My comment was that from my perch in faraway Australia, it looked to me like the war was about power, not slaves. Cynical old me!
Only one of the emails I received disagreed with me. The rest were supportive and some were -- Ahem! -- decidedly robust -- suggesting that Lincoln differed from Hitler only in that Lincoln was the bigger hypocrite etc., etc. A lot of people really gagged on that "malice towards none" in the Second Inaugural address. So I feel that I should post here at least one of the emails I received. The one below seems short and sharp and to the point:
"Actually, "The War for Southern Independence" was started when the Southern Territories seceded from the Union over unfair taxation policies. Slavery was not really brought into play until Lincoln wrote the Emancipation Proclamation which freed slaves ONLY in the Southern regions he no longer had legal control over. This was done to gain the support of blacks both free and enslaved. Lincoln was the first President to never have owned slaves, only because his family was too poor, but he was openly segregationist. If you look into the history, not the basic BS taught in public schools, the Northern states received almost all of the slave ships. Also compare the dates that the Northern States abolished slavery".I stress that I am NO expert on American history and you could fill a whole library with books that have been written about the war so I acknowledge that any generalization about it is bound to have its problems. I do however note that EVERY other country in the world (as far as I know) freed its slaves WITHOUT a war. So that suggests to me that the American war was about a lot more than slaves.
What I think that truly sensitive people (as distinct from pseudo-sensitive Leftists) might do well always to be aware of, however, is the depth of feeling that the war still evokes among many Southerners. And that feeling is not going to go away soon. Go to Yorkshire in England and ask the typical Yorkshireman what he thinks of Lancastrians. You will get an earful. And THAT goes back to the Wars of the Roses, which ended around 500 years ago. It almost helps you to understand the Irish! (And I have got a lot of Irish in me -- of which I am proud -- so I can say that!).
I am still getting lots of good-humored email from people who are proud to be called all sorts of names as grandparents and quite a few people have had fun with my suggestion that sporting teams might have to be named after flowers in the future. A couple of people have pointed out that "Gladioli" would be no good as a team name because the word is derived from "Gladius", the word for a sword in ancient Rome!
12:10 AM 
Auf Wiedersehen
Well, this is my last day here as a fill-in blogger. I might however still put something up occasionally here if I come across something particularly amusing or ridiculous. One idea I have been toying with is that I might become the weekend blogger here. Readership of all blogs is well-down over the weekend (apparently a lot of people do their blog-reading at work!) but there are still lots of people who DO read blogs over the weekend. So not this weekend but maybe next weekend you may log on and find me here. In the meantime, you can always find me on Political Correctness Watch and Dissecting Leftism. I tend to put longer postings on Political Correctness Watch and short, sharp postings on Dissecting Leftism.
Comments? Email John Ray
12:09 AM
Team names: It Gets Worse
As we all know by now, for reasons best known to themselves, the NCAA have forbidden college sporting teams from using American Indian names for themselves. "We cannot go on honouring those disgusting Indians can we?" is my guess about their real thinking. The NCAA have however cried "uncle" in at least one case, where the Seminole Indians made clear that they were happy to have a team named after them. But the assault on any name that sounds too rough, tough or masculine continues. We know that the Batavia "Bulldogs" have been told they were too rough and tough but now note this excerpt about "The Spurs":"I wonder why no one has publicly objected to the name we have given to our wonderful NBA championship basketball team. The one and only purpose of spurs is to inflict pain on a horse to make the horse start quicker or run faster. Spurs are also used to inflict pain on rodeo animals to make the broncos and steers buck more violently. Also, the sharply pointed rowels, as depicted in the Spurs logo, are prohibited under the rules and regulations of both horse racing and professional rodeo".I think the busybodies are not going to be happy until all teams are called things like "The Pansies", "The Gladioli", "The Hollyhocks", "The Daisies" etc. But "The Roses" would probably be too thorny, however. New Zealand have a famous sporting team named "The All Blacks". I wonder how long that will last? Perhaps they will have to be renamed "The Slightly Dark".
Comments? Email John Ray
12:09 AM
Airforce Forbidden to Mention Religion
The excerpt below tells the story. The attack on the faith that made America continues:"The Air Force issued new religion guidelines to its commanders yesterday that caution against promoting any particular faith - or even "the idea of religion over nonreligion" - in official communications or functions like meetings, sports events and ceremonies. The guidelines discourage public prayers at official Air Force events or meetings other than worship services, one of the most contentious issues for many commanders. But they allow for "a brief nonsectarian prayer" at special ceremonies like those honoring promotions, or in "extraordinary circumstances" like "mass casualties, preparation for imminent combat and natural disasters."When will Americans rise up and reject this intolerance of their historic culture?
Comments? Email John Ray
12:07 AM
The Utter Failure of Political Correctness
This survey from England must be causing weeping and wailing and garnishing of teeth (Yes. I know it's "gnashing") in feminist and teaching circles. I suspect all the propaganda that kids get shoved down their throat these days has backfired. Excerpt:"The survey of almost 1000 girls aged between 15 and 19, conducted by a mobile entertainment company, TheLab, found that many young women's favoured role models were men's magazine models, with C-list celebrities Abi Titmuss and Jordan ranking higher in the hero worship stakes than author J. K. Rowling, The Body Shop founder Anita Roddick, and feminist Germaine Greer. Almost half the respondents listed Titmuss as a role model, while 9 per cent chose Rowling and only 4 per cent Greer. Offered a selection of occupations, 63 per cent said they would rather be a men's magazine model than a doctor, teacher or nurse. The second most popular choice was "lap dancer", at 25 per cent, with teachers trailing at 3 per cent".I love it!
Comments? Email John Ray
12:05 AM
Report Cards that no Longer Mean Anything
This report is from New Zealand but it could be from lots of places. Schools now often try not to tell parents how well their kids are doing at school because it will hurt the self-esteem of those who don't do well, or some such. So end of year report cards tell parents that every kid is "satisfactory" or some such. That lazy kids need their self-esteem hurt a bit is not admitted. It has got to the point where parents have no idea what a report card means any more. But the conservatives in New Zealand have had enough. They are pledging to bring back report cards that mean something. Excerpt:
"National Party Leader Don Brash today announced that National will introduce 'Plain English Reporting' in schools so that parents know how well their children are doing in the classroom and can get help if necessary. ''Parents have the right to know if their child is reading, writing and using numbers at the expected standard or if they are falling behind. But too often they are served up with politically correct reports that give them no clear idea of their child's progress," says Dr Brash.
12:04 AM
Incorrect to Mention Allergies
In Britain, Barclay's is one of the biggest banks. But they still goofed by "offending" allergy sufferers in one of their TV advertisements. Here is the story (the Brits refer to TV as "the telly"):
"A Barclay's commercial showing a man suffering a bee sting reaction was banned by telly watchdogs yesterday. Nearly 300 people complained to the Advertising Standards Authority about the bank ad. It showed the victim fall into a lake then get arrested by cops. But the ASA ruled it was offensive to allergy sufferers. Barclays apologised, saying the ad was meant to be "light hearted".The only defect I can see above is a defect in a lot of people's sense of humor
12:09 AM
"Honky-Tonk" and "Lesbian" Incorrect
Sometimes it's not even people who censor us these days. It's a machine. And the machine can be even dumber than people. (Excerpt):"City Councilman Jerry Heimlicher's e-mail account is overrun these days with offers for cheap Viagra and low-interest loans - and he couldn't be happier. Less than a month ago, a program used by the city of Colorado Springs was blocking those seemingly pointless e-mails. But it also stopped messages about honky-tonk music shows and the Gay and Lesbian Fund for Colorado - because "honky" and "lesbian" came up as offensive words. Heimlicher complained in June about not being able to read constituent mail that might include such words. Councilwoman Margaret Radford also complained this month, and two weeks ago the information technology division dropped the filter on Heimlicher's mail.
12:08 AM
Bizarre British Speech Code
A British school head thinks that swearing at teachers is OK -- as long as you don't do too much of it. And look at the fearsome penalty if they DO do too much of it (Excerpt):"A secondary school is to allow pupils to swear at teachers - as long as they don't do so more than five times in a lesson. A running tally of how many times the f-word has been used will be kept on the board. If a class goes over the limit, they will be 'spoken' to at the end of the lesson. The astonishing policy, which the school says will improve the behaviour of pupils, was condemned by parents' groups and MPs yesterday. They warned it would backfire.
12:05 AM
"Grandma" and "Grandpa"
I thought readers might like to know that I have had heaps of emails from people who are PROUD to be called "Grandma" and "Grandpa"!
I any case, how people address one-another within the family is surely a personal matter that busybodies should keep their noses out of.
If people want their family to address them in some particular way, I am sure they would be capable of letting that be known. But getting your family to do what you want them to do is another matter entirely of course!
01:45 AM
"Site Down" Problems
This site has been down (unavailable) for a lot of the last 24 hours so I am putting up on Political Correctness Watch the posts that you would normally read here if the site were available. Apparently the site that hosts Tongue Tied also hosts a lot of other conservative blogs so often comes under attack from Leftist hackers who manage to shut it down from time to time. So bookmark Political Correctness Watch as an alternative site for when that happens.
12:38 AM
"Mullah" and "Sheik" Now Incorrect?
It seems so. A bank went into a frenzy when one of their senior experts used those terms. Excerpt:
"Mr. Rubin is chief economist for the World Markets division of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce. Every month he issues a research report on world trends that is aimed at the bank's sophisticated investing clients. Monthly Indicators, as it's called, is distributed to a few thousand select readers, and is posted on the bank's website.... The offending passage appeared last April 5, in a report predicting that oil prices would keep rising: "The first two oil shocks were transitory, as political events encouraged oil producers to seize full sovereignty over their resources and temporarily restrict supply," Mr. Rubin wrote. "This time around there won't be any tap that some appeased mullah or sheik can suddenly turn back on."A few days later, the bank received a letter from CAIR-CAN. The organization keeps a close watch on the media, as well as on government agencies, businesses, universities and other institutions, for signs of bias against Muslims. It says it received several calls complaining about the passage in Monthly Indicators. "We are gravely concerned that Mr. Rubin is promoting stereotyp-ing of Muslims and Arabs in a CIBC publication," executive director Riad Saloojee wrote in a letter to the bank. "We request that Mr. Rubin and CIBC World Markets issue a letter of apology and undergo sensitization training regarding Muslims and Arabs."
I guess the correct phrase would have been something like: "some rightfully offended Muslim gentleman" instead of "some appeased mullah or sheik". A pity that a lot of rulers over that way do seem to be mullahs or sheiks, though. And if everybody is not bending over backwards to appease them, then I for one don't have a clue what appeasement would look like. And the bank concerned seems to be a prime example of such appeasement. Anybody with guts would have defended their employee as telling the plain truth.
Comments? Email John Ray
12:34 AM
Confederate Memories Expose Sham Tolerance
Leftists never cease to preach the wonders of tolerance and diversity. But it is all a sham. They want uniformity, not diversity. Just listen to how much tolerance was extended to the diversity shown in the household described below:
""Mizzerable", in Texas, invited two African-Americans over for a dinner party. "On a tour of my home, I thought nothing of taking them to my study/library upstairs. Along with many other things, I have displayed on my wall three flags - the U.S. flag, the Texas flag and the Confederate flag. My medic friend gasped and asked why I had a rebel flag. I replied that it was a part of my heritage and I was proud of that. The pained look on her face reminded me of someone who had been fatally wounded. To her credit, she let me explain that I had two Confederate officers (in my family) who had died fighting for what they believed in. "I don't believe that the reason for the Civil War was primarily slavery. I have researched my genealogy and can find no evidence they had slaves of any race. Never mind all that - my friend was offended and said she guessed she didn't really know me at all. I was deeply wounded, but did my best to understand. They left in a huff"
SourceI am not criticizing the particular blacks above who got offended. They were just reacting the way their liberal mentors have encouraged them to react -- seeing "racism" under every bush (or Bush!). But if their liberal mentors had REALLY been teaching tolerance, such a huge historical issue as the North/South war would have been the first issue they would have turned to as an area in which to preach that tolerance, understanding and forgiveness should be practiced and old antagonisms buried or forgiven.
And forgive an ignorant Australian if I have got it all wrong but when I read the original documents (e.g. here), it seems to me that while slavery was an undoubted element in the North/South dispute, Lincoln always stressed that the war was fought to save "the Union". And slaves are not mentioned once in the Gettysburg address. Whether we think half a million dead Americans were a worthwhile price to pay for preserving and extending the power of the U.S. Federal government is an issue for Americans, not for me. I would however think that the view that the price was too high might at least be treated with respect, rather than intolerance.
In thinking about that price it may be worth reflecting that Australia managed to free its slaves (convicts) and create a lasting Federation without a drop of blood being shed. Two of my ancestors were among the convicts concerned. So my ancestors came to my country chained up in the holds of sailing ships. Hey! Where are my reparations?
Comments? Email John Ray
12:32 AM
Tough Image for Sporting Team Now Incorrect
Once upon a time it was considered manly to be tough and not the sort of guy anybody would dare to push around. Such male virtues are now condemned, however, as we see in the excerpt below:
"A poster intended to promote a suburban high school football team has landed the "Battlin' Bulldogs" in the doghouse.Players posed with knives, sledge-hammers and axes. It was meant to intimidate opponents but angered some parents instead. Although the poster may have been laughed at decades ago, recent incidents of school violence have forced the team to punt the poster.In Batavia, there are high school traditions, such as the annual corn boil and the football team's rough and tumble calendar photo.In the past, the Bulldogs have been pictured with a tank and "a big snow plow - plowing the competition," said Quarterback Ben Braunsky.This year's poster features the Bulldogs' offensive and defensive lines wielding a sledgehammer, a crow bar and a couple of knives. Some say this poster - the team's 21st - has crossed the line".If they had been holding bunches of pansies, however, that would have been fine. Feminine good. Masculine bad.
Comments? Email John Ray
12:31 AM
Megafauna Extinctions: Clarification
In my recent post under the heading: "Another "insensitive" book about American Indians", I referred in passing to the American Indians (Yes. I know they were really East Asians, not Indians, but I am NOT going to use the current politically correct term) and the usual view that it was Indian hunting which caused America's prehistoric large animals ("megafauna") to become extinct. I was NOT of course referring to the Bison, which survived the arrival of the Indians but went close to extinction because of white hunters, not Indians.
What exactly happened during prehistory will of course always be a matter of some dispute. If Fox News was not there to record it, how can we be sure what went on! But the latest scientific paper I know of on the subject is in The Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization. I reproduce below the summary from it:
" After centuries of debate, paleontologists are converging towards the conclusion that human overkill caused the massive extinction of large mammals in the late Pleistocene. This paper revisits the question of megafauna extinction by incorporating economic behavior into the debate. We allow for endogenous human population growth, and labor allocation decisions involving activities such as wildlife harvesting and (proto) agriculture. We find that the role of agriculture in deciding the fate of megafauna was small. In contrast, the presence of ordinary small animals that have been overlooked in previous non-economic extinction models is likely to have been much more important.There are however other theories such as this one
No more comments on this particular issue please (I have had heaps already) as it would take us too far off the track of what this blog is about
Update:
There is a fuller extract from the scientific paper summarized above on my Greenie Watch site.
12:29 AM
Don't Use the "G"-Word"!
The "G"-Word"? What in the world might that be? This excerpt sets you straight:"Don't call me Grandma! That is the advice from new-age grandparents keen to break with tradition. The latest generation of first-time grandparents have declared titles like Granny, Gramps and Poppy too old-fashioned. Leading the naming revolution are baby-boomers demanding the children of their sons and daughters call them something more "youthful". Mima, LaLa, Ducky, Honey, Bubba and Guapo are names gaining popularity. Hollywood actor Goldie Hawn prefers grandson Ryder to call her Lola. Older People Speak Out president Val French, of Brisbane, said families were keen to avoid the stigma accompanying grandparenthood, and the grandparent-grandchild relationship was far less formal than it used to be. Grandma and grandpa really belong to a generation that's gone," she said."
Source
I kid you not.Comments? Email John Ray
01:12 AM
Another "insensitive" book about American Indians
Hoosier author, James Alexander Thom, is nationally known for his Indian-related historical novels. But his novel "Follow the River" is now coming under fire from a few American Indians. Excerpt:"The novel is also well-credentialed -- a heavily researched, fictional account of the true story of Mary Ingles' capture by Shawnee Indians in 1755 in Virginia and her survival and eventual escape, told from the white woman's perspective..... Thom's account misrepresents and even maligns Indians, said Debra Haza. She is a Columbus resident who serves on the city's cultural diversity committee and is a member of the Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians. "We are portrayed as savages and squaws. An Indian man is described as having a snakelike appearance. He (Thom) has all these misconceptions going through her (Mary Ingles') head," she said.... Denning's objections include Thom's liberal use of the word squaw -- as offensive as any racial slur, she said"Gasp! Fancy referring to an Indian woman in pioneer days as a "squaw". No doubt everybody in those days referred to her as "Madam". And we no longer say "savages" for savage pre-civilization people, of course. They are "people in harmony with nature". The fact that they killed off most species of the original large animals of North America and the fact that they kept murdering one-another in inter-tribal wars is just a patriarchal hegemonist myth (or something), of course.
I have got absolutely nothing against American Indians, as such, but the nonsense perpetrated in their name by (mainly) whites is another matter.
01:10 AM
America's Most Unmentionable Four-letter Word: Race
Vincent Sarich, a molecular anthropologist who has been at the centre of many of the most newsworthy DNA discoveries of recent decades including the molecular clock hypothesis, the "mitochrondrial eve" hypothesis and the discovery of the genetic closeness of humans and chimps has now published a book rubbishing the claim that "Race Does not Exist". Speaking about humans and chimps, recently it has been found that the gap is wider than first reported a decade or so ago
An Interesting Email "fro" a Reader:
A reader noted something interesting in the middle of my excerpt about the NAACP dislike of the word "city". He comments:"When the typo "fro" was used instead of "for" right in the middle of the NAACP's name, I busted up! I feel as though I have to give the NAACP some credit for helping minorities but usually when I read about their current campaign or cause it only furthers what they fight against. Namely they want whites to see them as equals (which I do) but everything they do or champion makes me see them as a different group of people. "African-Americans," affirmative action, BET, etc; It all gives me the idea that this group of people are different than me. We're all equal folks! I'm not better than you and you're not better than me, so let's move on!"
02:52 AM
A New No-no Word: "Inner City"
I sort of understand the problem here. "Inner city" can be a bad place from the point of view of crime etc. But does it help to deny that a place is "inner city" when it is? Some people seem to be in denial over it anyway. Excerpt:"People living on Green Bay's east side are sticking up for themselves after parents from Bellevue criticized the neighborhoods around East High School, labelling them "inner city." The controversy started Wednesday night at a meeting over school boundaries. Parents from Bellevue had this to say about a proposal that would send their kids to Washington Middle School and East High School: "If I wanted my child to go to an inner city school, I would have moved to the inner city. I don't need to be worried about that. If we wanted to live near East High, we would have paid a lot less for our house. I, like the other people here, spent the money to get out of the inner city and send my child to a better school." Some east-side residents were offended. Others were mad".Comments? Email John Ray
12:20 AM
And Just the Word "City" is Pretty Bad these Days too
I always thought that a city outlook or mentality would be more sophisticated and smart than what you find among those rubes living in the country but I grew up in a rural area so that shows what a rube I am -- or does it? Excerpt from the latest sophisticated commentary on urban/rural differences:"The Gary branch of the NAACP wants an apology from Bureau of Motor Vehicles Commissioner Joel Silverman for "offensive and disrespectful" comments he made during a recent public hearing. Silverman referred to members of a mostly black audience Aug. 17 as having a "city mentality," which many took as a racial remark. "When you mention the term 'city mentality' to an audience consisting mainly of African-Americans, they're not thinking city mentality means 'regional.' They're thinking you mean the N-word mentality. That was a perception problem," said Tammi Davis, president of the National Association fro the Advancement of Colored People. Davis has sent a letter to Gov. Mitch Daniels requesting a formal apology and suggesting that Silverman attend sensitivity training.To equate "city" with "dumb black" sure shows up how inadequate those dictionary-makers are I guess.
12:19 AM
The Latest Feminist Gospel
My blood boils when I read the sort of arrogance and ignorance below. Excerpt:
"Salzman, an executive vice-president at the advertising agency J. Walter Thompson, has serious points to make about where men go from here. Society has changed for ever, she says, so males must adapt if they are to reassert themselves in a world increasingly defined and dominated by femininity. It is not just men who are fed up with male-bashing. Research shows that women, too, want men to assert themselves as confident, vital, masculine partners. They want "real" men back. But because we will never return to 1950s patriarchy - the genie cannot be put back in the bottle, thank God - men must redefine masculinity to accommodate who they are today. They must find, says Salzman, their own personal version of manliness.... M-ness (also known as my-ness) is defined thus: a masculinity that defines the best of traditional manliness (strength, honour, character) with positive traits traditionally associated with females (nurturance, communicativeness, co-operation)."The female writer above has at last realized that most women prefer real men to pansies and has graciously decided that men can be men again. They don't have to ape women any more. But men still need to have SOME feminine characteristics. And what are they? "Nurturance, communicativeness, co-operation", we are told. So men can't communicate, can't co-operate and can't nurture. What gross and stupid insults! If any man had said anything comparable about women there would be uproar. The whole article shows how shut-off from the real world female writers can become. If men cannot communicate and co-operate, how the hell does the stupid b**** think they succeed in business? I suppose it is possible that the moron does not realize how important co-operation and communication is in business but, if so, she should retire from writing for good -- or take up fiction instead -- because she knows zilch about the real world.
And as for men not being nurturant, have you ever known an instance of "Daddy's girl"? It is one of the most beautiful human relationships you will see -- where a little girl and her father absolutely adore one-another. But Leftists and feminists never do care about reality. I myself had a particularly close relationship with one of my stepdaughters when she was little. She is now a beautiful young woman about to be married so we say very little to one-another these days. We don't need to. A quick smile between us tells both of us that all the old affection is still there. But I guess a lot of feminists have never experienced that sort of relationship so they really know nothing about men at all.
