GOP Rep Compares President Obama to a "Tar Baby"

[essential1]

Originally Posted by BostonThreeParty

its just the world we live in, if it can be strung into a racist term, it can, and will have the meaning that the person might be using for the word ignored.

Has "tar baby" been used as a racist terms in history? (Rhetorical question)....

His meaning however un-racial or not... Which give him the benefit of the doubt that he wasn't trying to be racist... Still doesn't matter because most people young and old hear the term "tar baby" and think of the racist definition... Because that is what it has been more widely used and seen as..

And comparing Barack Obama (who happens to be black himself) to a "tar baby"  really hurts his case...

Most would refrain from using the term "tar baby" because it is widely seen as a racist term....  

Just shows he is 1 of 3 things....  An insensitive douche..  A terrible judgement when it comes to choosing words... Or a racist....

A "quagmire" would have been a much better term to us... Giggity.



Also by the way F his apology for this

Congressman Doug Lamborn (CO-05) today sent a personal letter to President Barack Obama apologizing for using a term some find insensitive. Lamborn was attempting to tell a radio audience last week that the President's policies have created an economic quagmire for the nation and are responsible for the dismal economic conditions our country faces. He regrets that he chose the phrase "tar baby," rather than the word "quagmire." The Congressman is confident that the President will accept his heartfelt apology.


I'm sick of the "if I offended someone"  or "a term some find insensitive"... It is a half apology.... I wish people would just say I should have never used the term.. It is insensitive, and I regret my choice of words.. No matter how unmalicious my intention I should have known better than use a word with such a vile and ugly past...

 

[rashi]

Originally Posted by Essential1

Doesn't matter if he meant it in that way.... The fact that the President is black.. And "tar baby" has been widely used as a racial term, and most people associate it with a racist term... Should have been enough for the congressman to want to not use those words...


I.e. like Pat Buchannan who said in a recent argument about the debt ceiling "****skins".. He was I hope talking about racoons (his track record leaves a little to the imagination) but a little proof read from anyone could see how that would be of bad taste, even if it is obvious he is talking about racoons http://www.amconmag.com/b.../the-day-of-the-hobbits/

Yeah, you're definitely not from the South.

****skins is NOT a racial term.

 

[luciano jones]

these old white politicians and their %%!#+%@%. its 2011 why is this kind of f-ery still going on

 

[essential1]

Originally Posted by rashi

Originally Posted by Essential1

Doesn't matter if he meant it in that way.... The fact that the President is black.. And "tar baby" has been widely used as a racial term, and most people associate it with a racist term... Should have been enough for the congressman to want to not use those words...


I.e. like Pat Buchannan who said in a recent argument about the debt ceiling "****skins".. He was I hope talking about racoons (his track record leaves a little to the imagination) but a little proof read from anyone could see how that would be of bad taste, even if it is obvious he is talking about racoons http://www.amconmag.com/b.../the-day-of-the-hobbits/

Yeah, you're definitely not from the South.

****skins is NOT a racial term.

 I'm convinced you hardly read my post you quoted "but a little proof read from anyone could see how that would be of bad taste, even if it is obvious he is talking about racoons"

 

[joe camel smooth]

Originally Posted by goldenchild9

I stand corrected, didn't even know about that history of the word.

Never heard it used in that context before. I'm more familiar with this connotation:

ok let's be real. 
the man could be a closeted KKK member for all we know, but i HIGHlY doubt he's going on a radio show and intentionally making a crude racist comment. that's political suicide........the logical explanation would be that he meant it in the context iwantakazoozle referred to.

but this is NT so let's get really upset about the matter.

BTW:

"In recent years, several politicians have used the term publicly (such as Senator John McCain, Senator John Kerry, and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney) have drawn complaints from African-American civil rights leaders, members of the popular daily media, and other politicians"

Since it's a term that also has a (completely unrelated, easy to distinguish given the context, mind you) racist definition, I agree it would be best to avoid using it. But let's not act like this guy meant to use it that way.

 

[kix4kix]

Originally Posted by iwantakazoozle

In modern usage, "tar baby" refers to any "sticky situation" that is only aggravated by additional contact. The tar baby is a trap that should be avoided.

As far as it being political suicide, are you familiar with the things Bachman has said about the president and blacks in general? In spite of that she is a serious candidate for the GOP. Republicans know their base, and they appeal to it. Lets not forget they are the kings of double meanings. Always leaving a wide open trampoline in case called out, always deny and apologize anyway. WELL WHAT YOU APOLOGIZING FOR THEN????

Thing is, it isn't political suicide, it is political genius. 

 

[MaxP_3]

These older white politicians have been publicly making blatant racist remarks towards Obama and a week later its forgotten. Kanye called Bush a racist and it was front page news until the end of his presidency.

 

[joe camel smooth]

Originally Posted by kix4kix

Originally Posted by iwantakazoozle

In modern usage, "tar baby" refers to any "sticky situation" that is only aggravated by additional contact. The tar baby is a trap that should be avoided.

As far as it being political suicide, are you familiar with the things Bachman has said about the president and blacks in general? In spite of that she is a serious candidate for the GOP. Republicans know their base, and they appeal to it. Lets not forget they are the kings of double meanings. Always leaving a wide open trampoline in case called out, always deny and apologize anyway. WELL WHAT YOU APOLOGIZING FOR THEN????

Thing is, it isn't political suicide, it is political genius. 

agreed, but i'd say this applies to conservatives, not all republicans. conservatives have ruled the GOP for years so it's easy to lump them together, but not all republicans are conservative.
and quite honestly i don't see it here. many conservatives appeal to racist sentiment on the issues of illegal immigration, etc. where it serves a purpose. i don't really see how making a racist statement in this case would be anything but a stupid career move. at the end of the day only he knows if he meant anything racist by saying that.....and there is no evidence he meant anything harmful IMO. 

and of course he's gonna deny and apologize.....if he flat out apologized, that could seem as though he's admitting guilt, that he intentionally made a racially-charged remark. he's basically saying...."sorry if it offended, but that wasn't what i was saying." if that is in fact true, then there's nothing wrong with that. 

and agreed that michele bachman is a bigoted !%!!, but she's not the person in question. 

 

[Mark Antony]

no one uses tar baby to refer to a sticky situation. Well maybe if there's a negro involved.

 

[joe camel smooth]

Originally Posted by Mark Antony

no one uses tar baby to refer to a sticky situation. Well maybe if there's a negro involved.

i never heard of it til this article to be honest. i think it's one of those phrases only older generations use. but you're wrong. 

 

[sundoobie]

Originally Posted by Essential1

Even if he was not even a bit racist... What non-racist person still uses the term "tar-baby"....

I agree. Even though the man was describing Obama's policy, that word shouldn't be used by any public official due to it's racist history.  

 

[Senoj]

Originally Posted by JOE CAMEL SMOOTH

Originally Posted by Mark Antony

no one uses tar baby to refer to a sticky situation. Well maybe if there's a negro involved.

i never heard of it til this article to be honest. i think it's one of those phrases only older generations use. but you're wrong. 

Lol ok brah

 

[Mark Antony]

Originally Posted by JOE CAMEL SMOOTH

Originally Posted by Mark Antony

no one uses tar baby to refer to a sticky situation. Well maybe if there's a negro involved.

i never heard of it til this article to be honest. i think it's one of those phrases only older generations use. but you're wrong. 

Well I have, and like anyone else who knows the history and connotation of it or anyone that's used it, you know damn well what you're doing. Dude using this term isn't really open to debate for accidental use ie *****rdly or ****skins.

 

[toy collector123]

Colorado is racists.

 

[joe camel smooth]

Originally Posted by Mark Antony

Originally Posted by JOE CAMEL SMOOTH

Originally Posted by Mark Antony

no one uses tar baby to refer to a sticky situation. Well maybe if there's a negro involved.

i never heard of it til this article to be honest. i think it's one of those phrases only older generations use. but you're wrong. 

Well I have, and like anyone else who knows the history and connotation of it or anyone that's used it, you know damn well what you're doing. Dude using this term isn't really open to debate for accidental use ie *****rdly or ****skins.

you claimed "no one uses tar baby to refer to a sticky situation."
yet clearly some people do. so no, you were incorrect. of course if a term like "tar baby" has other meanings......so does "!$$." should they be used at all? depends on your view. but it should be easy to distinguish the speaker's intent given the context. 

and "*****rdly" has zero racial connotations, it just happens to sound similar to a racial slur. 

 

[debso]

Lol at ppl trying to justify this typical slick *!## republicans do every so often. They know exactly what they're doing.

 

[Mark Antony]

Well yeah clearly people still use it, they're called racists. And that is exactly my point with *****rdly, words with separate meanings and misunderstandings can lead to a sticky situation. Tar baby however is kinda clear. You've admitted to never hearing this term before, so you're kinda defending that you may not fully understand. If you truly believe otherwise though, go right ahead and drop it in everyday conversation as you believe it was intended. Doesn't even have to be with Black people. Let us know how that works.

 

[joe camel smooth]

Originally Posted by Mark Antony

Well yeah clearly people still use it, they're called racists. And that is exactly my point with *****rdly, words with separate meanings and misunderstandings can lead to a sticky situation. Tar baby however is kinda clear. You've admitted to never hearing this term before, so you're kinda defending that you may not fully understand. If you truly believe otherwise though, go right ahead and drop it in everyday conversation as you believe it was intended. Doesn't even have to be with Black people. Let us know how that works.

that's just childish, cmon now.
i had never heard it before. doesn't mean i can't read up about it for 10 minutes and know just as much about it as anyone else. it's a two word phrase with 2 very different definitions.

i don't and won't say it, just like i don't say the 3-letter f-word that is used as a slur for homosexual men. this slur can also mean "cigarette" in certain parts of the world. are all people who use the word this way homophobes? don't think so.

like you said, these words can lead to misunderstandings. bingo! kind of like this whole story. probably nothing more than an unfortunate choice of words that led to a misunderstanding.

 

[dmbrhs]

I'd say he's an a-hole who made a racially insensitive comment, but he's not a racist. Just because someone makes a derogatory comment in regards to race doesn't make the you a racist. Being a racist requires a lot more egregious action beyond a random comment. It's not like he said it at a Neo-Nazi rally, or something.

 

[Mark Antony]

Naw I really didn't intend it that way, my bad. But bottom line for me is that the guy is full of +$#*, and there really is no misunderstandings of this word. It's okay if you or anyone else feels otherwise.