The media frenzy over Cliven Bundy kicked into high gear a little over a week ago, when Bundy gave a “news conference” (see video above) in which he talked about “the negro” now being “on government subsidy” and having “nothing to do”:
They abort their young children, they put their young men in jail because they never learned how to pick cotton. And I’ve often wondered, were they better off as slaves picking cotton, having a family life and doing things, or are they better off under government subsidies?
Aside from the fact that there is now officially no threshold for who can stand in front of cameras (often cell phone cameras) and hold a “news conference,” many people seem to be forgetting that the problem with Cliven Bundy isn’t his racism, it’s his hypocrisy regarding the federal government and “government subsidies.” Some folks seem to have forgotten that the crisis involving Bundy started over Bundy’s trespassing on U.S. government land while refusing to pay grazing fees required by law, ignoring federal court orders, and then calling in gun-toting supporters for an armed rebellion against Bureau of Land Management employees. At least one Bundy supporter aimed a rifle at the agents from behind a barrier, ironically, on the Interstate 15 federal government highway overpass. This image of a terrorist literally taking refuge behind the federal government in order to threaten federal government employees is the ultimate symbol of Cliven Bundy’s hypocrisy in being a “welfare queen with a cowboy hat” who criticizes others’ alleged government assistance.
Bundy’s racist remarks came as little surprise to many Americans, because nowadays, conservative identity politics, fueled by the Fox “News” Republican propaganda arm, has created a sizable group of angry racist homophobic misogynistic ill-informed government-hating, often rural, old white males who identify as Republicans, Libertarians (basically Republicans in disguise) and/or Conservatives. Thus, when we know we’re dealing with an angry old white man who fits in some or all of these other categories, racism is frequently part of the package too.
While we should always call out hate and racism, the Bundy case is more about a trespasser, thief and moocher who takes all the benefits of living in the United States without paying any price for his freedom, and thus has no business criticizing anyone else’s supposed “government subsidy.”
Great stuff Matt!
Thank you.