Mesmeric power of 'white racism'

A black American reflects on the Imus affair By Joseph C. Phillips (joseph@josephcphillips.com)

When I was a boy, my father charged me with cleaning up a mess in the bathroom. Thoroughly disgusted, I tried every way I knew how to avoid touching anything. The delay angered my father until finally in exasperation, he hollered, “You are going to touch much worse than that in your life!” He was correct. I have in my life touched much worse. The lesson learned was in all things we must keep our perspective.

Following an off-color joke about the Rutgers women’s basketball team that fell terribly flat, radio host Don Imus was fired from his program at MSNBC and a short time later was also released from his contract with CBS radio. One need not like Don Imus or approve of what he said in order to wonder if perhaps the punishment and the accompanying hysteria didn’t exceed the crime. On the other hand, we are living in a nation whose moral equilibrium has been turned topsy-turvy. And the culprit is not hip hop music or the hypocrisy of the post civil rights establishment. The moral offense that supersedes all other considerations is white racism and the guilt and victimhood that accompany it.

A woman in Seattle is caught on video tape in a drunken, profanity laced tirade in which she calls an Arab convenience store clerk “un-American” and “Gandhi.” She then grabs him by the throat committing a battery. Once sober and facing charges, she releases a statement assuring the witnessing public that she is not a racist. No matter that she is a sloppy drunk, with a mouth like a sailor and a batterer, she must make it clear that she is not a racist.

A sitting United States senator must defend himself against charges that 20 years ago he used the N word. Imus hasn’t changed his act in 15 years. For Leslie Moonves, CBS CEO, to feign surprise at the content of the Imus in the Morning program strains credulity. What did change is the now very public possibility of being tagged with the label of racist.

The exploitation of that fear is what is known as the race hustle and few are as adept at it as the reverends Sharpton and Jackson. But hey, don’t hate the player, hate the game! Both men are free to pass judgment on issues of race in spite of their own transgressions because their blackness makes them immune to charges of white racism. This immunity along with the amazing ability to be in front of every microphone in sight is the only source of their power.

A nation blind to race and focused on character and virtue is frightening to men like Sharpton and Jackson. The only virtue they possess is their rather deft wielding of the sword of white racism. Disaster for Sharpton and Jackson would have been if the Rutgers team had issued a statement along the lines of, “We don’t know who this clown is, but we are not going to allow his ugliness to distract from the beautiful women we are and the positive things we are doing.” But the power of white racism was too strong and they were lulled into victim hood replete with emotional hand wringing, claims of lives scarred and seasons ruined and appearances on Oprah.

They will in their lives experience much worse.

This sword, of course, cuts both ways. The Teflon that shields the race hustler offers similar protection to the rap artist. The real irony is the very thing that accuses whites is the same thing that makes the identical language in much of the popular culture intractable. As deplorable as we may find the language, our protestations gain little traction because they do not carry with them the weight of white racism. The black community cannot bring to bear the same deadly weapon on members of its own community. That is the real sad and unfortunate realization of this entire affair.

For our own sake, the conversation that will happen following the fall of Don Imus must at some point include the end of white racism. At some point, we must find a way to assuage our guilt over America’s original sin without destroying the foundations of our culture and falling further into the multi-cultural abyss. That is not an argument in favor of incivility or ugliness. It is, however, a plea for some perspective. ----------------------------- Denver native Joseph C. Phillips is a Hollywood actor, a syndicated columnist, a regular on Backbone radio, and the author of He Talk Like a White Boy, available wherever books are sold.

Colorado Call to Action

Followup directory & links for John Andrews'legislative countdown special on 710 KNUS

Thanks for your willingness to get involved as the Colorado General Assembly decides critical issues in these final days of its 2007 session. Matters awaiting decision are a moving target, but the property tax hike may still arise as a late bill, the Iraq war resolutions aren't yet finalized, and social issues such as the sex ed mandate (HB-1292) and gay adoption (HB-1330) await Ritter's signature or veto. Your voice can make a difference -- see below for relevant links, along with our convenient directory of legislators with email addresses and phone numbers.

For information on bills awaiting action, click here. For a listing of committee members who will hear a specific bill you're interested in, click here. To search bills by subject matter, click here.

To get the name of your own state senator and representative, use this link, then click on the map to reach your county clerk and there find your polling place, where elected officials are listed. To call legislators through their switchboard, ask for any House member at 303-866-2904, for Senate Democrats at 303-866-4865, and for Senate Republicans at 303-866-4866. Reach Gov. Bill Ritter at 303-866-2471. Or to email him, click Governor.Ritter@state.co.us.

Directory Key: Leaders are listed first, then alphabetical by last names. H for House members, S for Senators, followed by their district number. Then counties represented, then R or D for party affiliation, then office phone number. Finally, email address, which you can click to send an email to that member.

Senate President Joan Fitz-Gerald S16 D 303-866-3342 Boulder, Clear Creek, Gilpin, Grand, Jefferson, Summit joan.fitzgerald.senate@state.co.us

House Speaker Andrew Romanoff H6 D 303-866-2346 Arapahoe, Denver romanoff@coloradohouse.org

Senate Minority Leader Andy McElhany S12 El Paso R 303-866-2318 andymcelhany@pcisys.net

House Minority Leader Mike May H44 Douglas R 303-866-5523 mike.may.house@state.co.us

Sen. McElhany (R) & Rep. May warned of Gov. Ritter's plan to increase property taxes on the Call to Action special. Directory continues below photo.

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Balmer, David G H39 Arapahoe R 303-866-2950 david.balmer.house@state.co.us

Benefield, Debbie H29 Jefferson D 303-866-2950 debbie.benefield.house@state.co.us

Borodkin, Alice H9 D 303-866-2910 Denver, Arapahoe aliceb321@aol.com

Buescher, Bernie H55 Mesa D 303-866-2583 bernie@buescher.org

Butcher, Dorothy H46 Pueblo D 303-866-2968 no email

Bacon, Bob S14 Larimer D 303-866-4841 bob.bacon.senate@state.co.us

Boyd, Betty S21 Jefferson D 303-866-4857 betty.boyd.senate@state.co.us

Brophy, Greg S1 R 303-866-6360 Cheyenne, Elbert, Kiowa, Kit Carson, Lincoln, Logan Morgan, Phillips, Prowers, Sedgwick, Washington, Yuma greg@gregbrophy.net

Cadman, Bill H15 El Paso R 303-866-5525 bill.cadman.house@state.co.us

Carroll, Morgan H36 Arapahoe D 303-866-2942 morgancarroll@webaccess.net

Carroll, Terrance H7 Denver D 303-866-2909 terrance.carroll.house@state.co.us

Casso, Edward H32 Adams D 303-866-2964 no email

Cerbo, Mike H2 Denver D 303-866-2911 mpcerbo@yahoo.com

Curry, Kathleen H61 D 303-866-2945 Eagle, Garfield, Gunnison,Hinsdale, Pitkin kathleencurry@montrose.net

Fischer, Randy H53 Larimer D Cap: 303-866-2917 randy.fischer.house@state.co.us

Frangas, K.Jerry H4 Denver D Cap: 303-866-2954 kjerry.frangas.house@state.co.us

Gagliardi, Sara H27 Jefferson D 303-866-2962 sara.gagliardi.house@state.co.us

Gallegos, Rafael L H62 D 303-866-2916 Alamosa, Conejos, Costilla, Huerfano, Mineral, Pueblo, Rio Grande, Saguache rafael.gallegos.house@state.co.us

Garcia, Michael H42 Arapahoe D 303-866-3911 michael@michaelgarcia.info

Gardner, Bob H21 R 303-866-2191 Fremont, El Paso bob.gardner.house@state.co.us

Gardner, Cory H63 R 303-866-2906 Adams, Cheyenne, Crowley, Kiowa, Kit Carson, Lincoln, Morgan, Washington, Yuma cory.gardner.house@state.co.us

In leading off the Call to Action special, Rep. Cory Gardner (L) warned of "leap to the left" by this year's legislature. Directory continues below photo.

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Gibbs, Dan H56 D 303-866-2952 Eagle, Lake, Summit dan.gibbs.house@state.co.us

Green, Gwyn H23 Jefferson D 303-866-2951 gwyngreen@yahoo.com

Gordon, Ken S35 D 303-866-3341 Arapahoe, Denver ken@kengordon.com

Groff, Peter C. S33 D 303-866-4864 Adams, Denver peter.groff.senate@state.co.us

Hicks, Stella Garza H17 El Paso R 303-866-3069 stella.hicks.house@state.co.us

Hodge, Mary H30 Adams D 303-866-2912 maryhodge@aol.com

Hagedorn, Bob S29 Arapahoe D 303-866-4879 SenBob@msn.com

Harvey, Ted S30 Douglas R 303-866-4881 ted.harvey.senate@state.co.us

Isgar, Jim S6 D 303-866-4884 Archuleta,Dolores, La Plata, Montezuma, Montrose, Ouray, San Juan, San Miguel isgarsenate@frontier.net

Jahn, Cheri H24 Jefferson D 303-866-5522 ceri.jahn.house@state.co.us

Judd, Joel H5 Denver D 303-866-2925 joeljudd@aol.com

Johnson, Steve S15 Larimer R 303-866-4853 steve.johnson.senate@state.co.us

Kefalas, John H52 Larimer D 303-866-4569 john.kefalas.house@state.co.us

Kerr, Andrew H26 Jefferson D 303-866-2923 akerrhd26@earthlink.net

Kerr, James E H28 Jefferson R 303-866-2939 james.kerr.house@state.co.us

King, Steve H54 R 303-866-3068 Delta, Mesa steve.king.house@state.co.us

Keller, Maryanne "Moe" S20 Jefferson D 303-866-4856 moe.keller.senate@state.co.us

Kester, Ken S2 R 303-866-4877 Baca, Bent, Crowley, Custer, Fremont, Huerfano, Las Animas, Otero, Pueblo ken.kester.senate@state.co.us

Kopp, Mike S22 Jefferson R 303-866-4859 mike.kopp.senate@state.co.us

Gulf War veteran Mike Kopp (L) debated Senate Majority Leader Ken Gordon (C) about the latter's anti-Iraq War resolution in one segment of the Call to Action special. Directory continues below photo.

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Labuda, Jeanne H1 D 303-866-2966 Arapahoe, Denver, Jefferson No email

Lambert, Kent H14 El Paso R 303-866-2937 kent.lambert.house@state.co.us

Levy, Claire H13 D 303-866-2578 Boulder, Clear Creek, Gilpin claire.levy.house@state.co.us

Liston, Larry G H16 El Paso R 303-866-2965 larry.liston.house@state.co.us

Looper, Marsha H19 El Paso R 303-866-2946 marsha.looper.house@state.co.us

Lundberg, Kevin H49 R 303-866-2907 Larimer, Weld kevin@kevinlundberg.com

Madden, Alice H10 Boulder D 303-866-2348 alice.madden.house@state.co.us

Marostica, Don H51 Larimer R 303-866-2947 No email

Marshall, Rosemary H8 Denver D 303-866-2959 rosemary.marshall.house@state.co.us

Massey, Tom H60 R 303-866-2747 Chaffee, Custer, Fremont, Park, Pueblo, Saguache tom.massey.house@state.co.us

McFadyen, Liane "Buffie" H47 D 303-866-2905 Fremont, Pueblo buffie2006@hotmail.com

McGihon, Anne L. H3 D 303-866-2921 Arapahoe, Denver anne.mcgihon.house@state.co.us

McKinley, Wes H64 D 303-866-2398 Baca, Bent, Huerfano, Las Animas, Otero, Prowers wes.mckinley.house@state.co.us

McNulty, Frank H43 Douglas R 303-866-2936 No email

Merrifield, Michael H18 El Paso D 303-866-2932 michael.merrifield.house@state.co.us

Mitchell, Victor H45 R 303-866-2948 Douglas, Teller victor.mitchell.house@state.co.us

May, Ron S10 El Paso R 303-866-2737 senatormay@ronmay.org

Mitchell, Shawn S23 R 303-866-4876 Adams, Broomfield, Weld shawn.mitchell.senate@state.co.us

Morse, John P. S11 El Paso D 303-866-6364 john.morse.senate@state.co.us

Peniston, Cherylin H35 Adams D 303-866-2843 cherylin.peniston.house@state.co.us

Pommer, Jack H11 Boulder D 303-866-2780 jack.pommer.house@state.co.us

Primavera, Dianne H33 D 303-866-4667 Adams, Boulder, Broomfield, Weld dianne.primavera.house@state.co.us

Penry, Joshua "Josh" S7 R 303-866-3077 Garfield, Mesa joshpenry@gmail.com

Rice, Joe H38 D 303-866-2953 Arapahoe, Jefferson joe.rice.house@state.co.us

Riesberg, Jim H50 Weld D 303-866-2929 jim.riesberg.house@state.co.us

Roberts, Ellen H59 R 303-866-2914 Archuleta, La Plata, Montezuma, San Juan ellen.roberts.house@state.co.us

Rose, Ray H58 R 303-866-2955 Delta, Dolores, Montezuma, Montrose, Ouray, San Miguel ray.rose.house@state.co.us

Renfroe, Scott W. S13 Weld R 303-866-4451 scott.renfroe.senate@state.co.us

Romer, Chris S32 D 303-866-4852 Denver, Jefferson chris.romer.senate@state.co.us

Solano, Judy H31 Adams D 303-866-2918 judy.solano.house@state.co.us

Sonnenberg, Jerry H65 R 303-866-3706 Logan, Phillips, Sedgwick, Weld jerry.sonnenberg.house@state.co.us

Soper, John F H34 Adams D 303-866-2931 john.soper.house@state.co.us

Stafford, Debbie H40 R 303-866-2944 Arapahoe, Elbert debbie.stafford.house@state.co.us

Stephens, Amy H20 El Paso R 303-866-2924 amy.stephens.house@state.co.us

Summers, Ken H22 Jefferson R 303-866-2927 ken.summers.house@state.co.us

Swalm, Spencer H37 Arapahoe R 303-866-5510 spencer.swalm.house@state.co.us

Sandoval, Paula E. S34 Denver D 303-866-4862 paula.sandoval.senate@state.co.us

Schultheis, David C. "Dave" S9 El Paso R 303-866-4835 dave@daveschultheis.com

Schwartz, Gail S5 D 303-866-4871 Alamosa, Chaffee, Conejos, Costilla, Delta, Gunnison, Hinsdale, Mineral, Pitkin, Rio Grande, Saguache gail.schwartz.senate@state.co.us

Shaffer, Brandon C. S17 Boulder D 303-866-5291 brandon@brandonshaffer.com

Spence, Nancy S27 Arapahoe R 303-866-4883 nancyspence@qwest.net

Todd, Nancy H41 D 303-866-2919 Arapahoe, Denver nancy.todd.house@state.co.us

Takis, Stephanie S25 Adams D 303-866-4855 stephanie.takis.senate@state.co.us

Tapia, Abel J. S3 Pueblo D 303-866-2581 abel.tapia.senate@state.co.us

Taylor, Jack S8 R 303-866-5292 Eagle, Garfield, Jackson, Moffat, Rio Blanco, Routt No email

Tochtrop, Lois S24 Adams D 303-866-4863 lotochtrop@aol.com

Tupa, Ron S18 Boulder D 303-866-4872 ron.tupa.senate@state.co.us

Vaad, Glenn H48 Weld R 303-866-2943 glenn.vaad.house@state.co.us

Veiga, Jennifer S31 D 303-866-4861 Adams, Denver jennifer.veiga.senate@state.co.us

Weissmann, Paul H12 Boulder D 303-866-2920 reppaul@aol.com

White, Al H57 R 303-866-2949 Garfield, Grand, Jackson, Moffat, Rio Blanco, Routt al.white.house@state.co.us

Witwer, Robert E H25 Jefferson R 303-866-2582 rob.witwer.house@state.co.us

Ward, Steve S26 R 303-866-4846 Arapahoe, Jefferson steve.ward.senate@state.co.us

Wiens, Tom J S4 R 303-866-4869 Douglas, El Paso, Lake, Park, Teller tom@tomwiens.com

Williams, Suzanne S28 D 303-866-3432 Arapahoe, Denver suzanne.williams.senate@state.co.us

Windels, Sue S19 Jefferson D 303-866-4840 senatorwindels@comcast.net

Introducing Ben Hummel

Young conservative cartoonist with a sharp new pen Editor's Note: Ben Hummel of Denver is a newcomer to editorial cartooning, but his strong art skills and right-leaning outlook show much promise. BackboneAmerica.net is honored to show off Hummel's work while he hunts his first newspaper gig. See more from this sharp penman at BenjaminHummel.com.

Please click on cartoon image to view full size & detail.

Rudy undeserving of conservative support

By Krista Kafer (krista555@msn.com) Since putting his hat in the ring for president, Mayor Rudy Giuliani has attempted to appease pro-lifers by saying 1) he does not support taxpayer funding of abortion, 2) he is committed to appointing conservative judges, and 3) he personally opposes abortion. In a CNN interview this week, Giuliani’s true convictions came to light and they are rather the opposite of earlier placations.

Giuliani plainly admitted he supports taxpayer funding of abortion. Moreover he sees abortion as an entitlement. Giuliani told the reporter “If it would deprive someone of a constitutional right. If that's the status of the law, yes,” he supports taxpayer funding. In other words, the Constitution entitles women to abortion and if they cannot afford it, we, the taxpayers must pay for it.

This reading of the Constitution is diametrically opposed to that of conservative judges, the kind that Giuliani promises to appoint. Conservative judges believe in inaliable or natural rights not entitlements. They believe as did the writers of the Constitution, that individual rights – namely life, liberty, and property come from God. The purpose of government is to protect natural rights - not to confer additional rights or entitlements. Entitlements are opposed to natural rights. In order to entitle one individual to a good or service, the government must deprive another of their property rights to pay for it.

Given his support for entitlements, Giuliani is likely to appoint activist judges who share his view of the Constitution and will work to secure additional entitlements rather than uphold natural rights.

The CNN interview exposed another attitude at odds with conservative jurisprudence – legal positivism. Giuliani said he supports taxpayer funding of abortion “If that's the status of the law...” In other words, as long as abortion is deemed constitutional, he’ll support taxpayer funding for it. In the positivist view, law is divorced from its moral underpinnings. A positivist never questions whether the law is just, he merely enforces it, however unjust or arbitrary.

Senator Stephen Douglas, for example, though he personally disliked slavery, supported the Dred Scott Decision, because the court had ruled it so. In the positivist view, human rights are not inalienable, they are given by the state which can take them away just as easily. The positivist judges Giuliani will likely appoint will not only uphold Roe v Wade denying the God-given right to life, but may deny other constitutionally-protected rights as well.

It does not matter that Giuliani says he “hates abortion” – a hollow sentiment indeed. If abortion is not the taking of a human life, what’s to hate? If not a child, than the procedure is no more hate-worthy than bunion surgery. If, however, it is a human life, then there is a moral and legal obligation to protect it. Like Douglas, Giuliani lacks a commitment to alienable human rights, a deficiency no amount of personal discomfort can allay.

The millions Giuliani will spend of our money to fund abortion while he is in office will be the least of his legacy. His judges, who like him deny natural rights in favor of entitlements and positivism, will do damage to the nation long after Giuliani has left office.

Must a conservative believe in God?

“To educate a man in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society.” - Theodore Roosevelt

What is at the core of a conservative philosophy? There is some debate as to whether you must believe in God (or in revealed Truth) to be a conservative. A few months ago Heather Mac Donald began a discussion in the online pages of National Review where she contends that religious beliefs and religious arguments actually harm the conservative cause.

I’ve stepped away from this blog for a while, but while I have been absent I have been able to do a lot of thinking about what it means to be conservative, and whether I am conservative, and what, if anything, being a conservative has in common with being a Republican.

I have discovered something- the first thing really; I am a Christian. And my belief provides, among other things, a foundation on which my political perspective is built. I think Mac Donald is right to say that you don’t have to believe in a God to be a conservative. Perhaps one could say that belief in God and conservative principles are not inextricably linked; certainly the many evangelical and mainline Christians that have adopted liberal positions on issues such as poverty, education and, more recently, global warming (www.sojo.net) provide ample evidence of that.

Mac Donald contends that knowledge of history and an assessment of human nature provide an ample framework for conservative philosophy. However, I would assert that, at the minimum, one has to believe in, or give difference to, a transcendent moral code in order to be conservative. And I find that Christian faith goes far beyond the minimum framework necessary for my political philosophy.

It is my belief in that framework, in addition to my observation of history and human nature, that has prompted my conclusion that we must conserve the heritage of the Judeo-Christian nation we live in. The moral framework provided by Christian beliefs provides a foundation for Western society and for conservative political thought, but it is not exclusively conservative, it is the foundation for society, the rule of law and for our nation’s founding documents.

I am Christian, but because I am Christian does not necessarily mean that I am politically conservative. In fact, to tie the two too closely together is to do disservice to both.

As I ponder this topic I find myself looking much further back at what I believed, and how that affected who I was and what I did, and I came to the conclusion that in order to know which way to go, I needed to know where I had been.

So I am embarking on a series of blogs that I hope will explore the central core of what I believe, what a conservative is, whether that philosophy is necessarily tied to the Republican party, and what course is best plotted as we consider the future of the conservative philosophy. To be continued...