I hate to draw readers’ attention to Jeff Jacoby but his column about Eric Holder today is so full of bull…
Distortion #1 – Holder did not say we are a nation of cowards. He said we’re a nation of cowards when it comes to dealing with race.
Distortion #2 – Holder did not say “America does not differ significantly from the country that existed some 50 year ago.” He said “Saturdays and Sundays, America… does not… differ significantly from… almost 50 year ago” and that although people mix at the workplace or after-work social events, many Americans in their free time are still segregated inside “race-protected cocoons.”
Distortion #3 – Jacoby conflates “frank conversations about racial matters ” with “harping on old grievances, constantly revisiting past resentments and relentless picking at scabs.” Has Jacoby never heard of dialogues where open-minded people of all races talk honestly and respectfully, build mutual trust, break stereotypes and create new relationships?
Dumb Statement:
Americans have been jawboning about race for two centuries, and we are in no danger of running out of things to say. More race talk is the last thing we need.
No, Jeff. Jawboning is not serious dialogue on a serious subject. We really do need more serious talk about this.
Jacoby proves Holder’s point : he avoids talking honestly about race.
To his credit, Jacoby is no coward when it comes to making a fool of himself over any number of social issues.
At one time, I was thinking of writing regular answers to Jacoby as a means of interacting with the latest conservative talking point.
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p>However, as you document in this column, his intellectual dishonesty is pervasive and stunning. The plagiarism of a few years back was just one symptom of this ongoing affliction.
What would be nice would be to find an intelligent conservative commentator who would be worth answering on a weekly basis.