Seen at the L.A. Times:

Once the ad goes away, here’s what you see:

D’oh.

Think Progress says that the following ad by some idiot Birthers is racist:

Charles Johnson agrees:

This isn’t even “dog whistle” racism. It’s right in your face, poking you in the eye.

Really?

Is it racist? It’s not impossible that it is. I’d have to know more about the context. For example, to take one of many aspects of the analysis, one might ask: is this particular group prone to making racist attacks on Obama?

An ad like that will look different coming from the KKK than it might coming from Alan Keyes. It’s stupid either way — but racist? Depends.

But any discussion of the topic must necessarily take account of the well-known fact that “See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil” is a concept that is inextricably intertwined with the famous images of the three monkeys. And conservatives can’t allow themselves to be cowed into not using that image, when it’s appropriate, just because some leftist might call it racism.

And so, as stupid as Birtherism is, we can’t bow to an outfit like Think Progress, whose level of “analysis” begins and ends with: “President black” + “monkey image used” = RACISM! This much is clear.

It’s a bit like the “analysis” provided in this SEK post accusing Dan Riehl of racism because he railed about ACORN in the following manner:

Breitbart’s video busts told us what they do best. The pathetic part in all this is that they were not just allowed, but encouraged to run wild on taxpayer funding by corrupt liberals, including Obama. They should all hang together if you ask me.

To which SEK responded:

[T]he fact that the first metaphor that occurs to him when criticizing blacks is a hanging party tells us that when he disagrees with blacks, he couches his disagreement in terms of stretched necks and strangled bodies. People for whom that is an instinctive response are people who are racists.

Or maybe they are simply invoking the well-known phrase about hanging together. I’m not saying it’s used appropriately; it’s more like it’s a cliche. But when you are going to assert, as a blanket matter, that any reference to “hanging” is racist when the people you’re talking about happen to be black, then you’re just being silly.

Getting back to those monkeys, allow me to present a couple more “racist” images:

Here’s the bottom line, lefties: if you guys get to use the monkeys when they make your point, then so do we — even if the target is black. We’re not bowing to your little accusations of racism any more.

We’re just tired of it. And you don’t get to decide this stuff on your own any more.

[Guest post by DRJ]

Larimer County, Colorado, Sheriff Jim Alderden (also known as the “Balloon Boy” Sheriff) will once again celebrate Christmas with a politically incorrect Christmas tree-trimming party:

“A Yuletide-loving sheriff with a penchant for controversy today announced his “Apparently Annual Politically Incorrect Christmas Tree Trimming Party.”

Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden began the event in 2007 to thumb his nose at a Fort Collins task force that recommended no publicly funded holiday displays that favor a single religion. In response, Alderden put up his Christmas tree — funded with private donations — outside the county office and beyond the city’s jurisdiction.”

The celebration starts with “a prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, followed by Christmas carols, horse and buggy rides and a visit from Santa Claus.”

– DRJ

[Guest post by DRJ]

No sooner did the international media let loose with withering criticism of President Obama, now the American media is tentatively piling on with this Politico article on the 7 stories Barack Obama doesn’t want told. However, unlike the international stories, the tone of the Politico article is more of a cautionary note warning President Obama and his Administration not to let these themes take hold with the American public. The 7 themes are in bold and my commentary is in italics:

He thinks he’s playing with Monopoly money — In other words, Obama needs to rein in spending. As James Carville famously said: “It’s the economy, stupid.”

Too much Leonard Nimoy — Obama is too cerebral, like Spock in Star Trek. All talk and no action; all hat and no cattle. I could go on but I won’t.

That’s the Chicago Way — The Obama Administration prides itself on its image as a group of “shrewd, brass-knuckled political types” rather than the new style of political leader the voters wanted. I can’t tell if the Politico expects the Administration to stop acting like Chicago pols or to try harder to hide it from the American public.

He’s a pushover — The worst of both worlds: He’s a fighter on the domestic scene and a pushover abroad.

He sees America as another pleasant country on the U.N. roll call, somewhere between Albania and Zimbabwe — This point is related to the last but with an added subtext: America isn’t that exceptional, a theme that goes against the way most Americans see their country.

President Pelosi — “The great hazard for Obama is if Republicans or journalists conclude — as some already have — that Pelosi’s achievements are more impressive than Obama’s or come at his expense.” This may be the Politico’s harshest criticism, not only because Obama has abdicated some executive responsibilities to Pelosi, but also because Pelosi and Congress have abysmally low rankings with the American public.

He’s in love with the man in the mirror — Or the man on the cover of GQ. Take your pick.

This is good advice but it seems to me the 7 things Politico warns Obama about are things he and his followers see as features, not bugs. If that’s true, they won’t avoid them anytime soon.

– DRJ

UPDATE – It seems the White House didn’t enjoy the Politico article:

“It’s not just Fox News that’s become subject of White House derision. The following is an excerpt from a joke e-mail that is circulating among White House staffers. It’s a response, of sorts, to the analytical essay that POLITICO editor-in-chief John Harris wrote about the “seven stories that Barack Obama doesn’t want told.”

The White House email is shown at the link.

[Guest post by DRJ]

ABC News says President Obama’s speech tomorrow night at West Point is the first step in selling his Af-Pak strategy:

“Senior Administration officials tell ABC News tomorrow’s speech will include a new way of doing business that President Karzai is unlikely to welcome. Instead of U.S. funds going to Karzai’s central government as they do now, much of it will go to the provincial and district level and to specific ministries such as those devoted to Afghan security.

Investments will be based on performance, a senior Administration official told ABC News. And if Karzai continues to run a government that’s full of corruption and fails to provide basic services, he may find himself out of the loop entirely. *** The era of the blank check for Karzai is over.”

I hope Obama’s performance-based strategy works. Why not do the same with the American government?

– DRJ

The memo from editor Russ Stanton says they’re accepting applications!

He sets forth the qualifications needed, which include:

Highly organized and able to set priorities in a fast-paced environment, keeping in mind the overall goal of the office: to act as a voice for our readers and to help hold us accountable to our professional standards.

If you’re laughing, you must be a regular reader.

I don’t have anything personal against Ms. Gold — and I never really saw it as her fault that she often didn’t act as a voice for readers, but rather for the newspaper. This sort of thing is a decision made at levels much higher than her — and it isn’t going to change any time soon.

Thanks to several readers.

P.S. I still have a few letters to write about James Rainey’s latest column. Where do I send them now??