June 6, 2020

"And Larry was saying that with a hurricane, you have a horrible hurricane in Florida or Texas, and it’s devastating. And then the hurricane goes away..."

"... and within two hours, everyone’s rebuilding and fixing and cleaning and cutting their grass. I’ve seen it in Texas. I’ve seen it everywhere. I’ve seen it everywhere. Texas had a massive one, Louisiana, hurricanes, Florida hurricanes. But what happens is right after the hurricane, boom, and this is what this is, this isn’t a terrible recession. I don’t even mention the D word. I don’t talk about the D word, I don’t want to talk about it, because every time somebody even mentions it, I don’t like the D word. But if you had a really, really big, bad recession, it could take 10, 12. How long did it take in 1929? It took many years to recover from that. How long? 10? I heard 10, I think, longer than 10, but that’s okay. I heard 14, 15 years. Larry says 10, so let’s go with 10. But it takes a long time to recover, but a hurricane you’re back in business in one day, two days, three days, and it’s devastating and it’s hard. And this was a hurricane. And it’s going to get better fast...."

That's Trump yesterday — here's the transcript — from what was billed as a "press conference," but played much more like a Trump rally. He seemed to be giving a rally speech. He was pumped up over the great jobs report, and he went through his topics — even oldies like how he won in 2016 — the way he used to do in the days when there were rallies. The difference was a lack of crowd noise... and "You Can't Always Get What You Want" didn't play when he finished. But he can't always get what he wants.

The press had to sit there quietly and put up with the entire tirade. When he was done, he had some legislation to sign, and he wanted to sit down at his little table, get out his Sharpie, and do the signature ritual in a formal manner, but the pent-up press couldn't resist beginning the questioning. They'd waited so long. When is it their turn?

One of the press called out:  "Mr. President, what happened to the plan for systemic racism? Mr. President, why haven’t you laid out a plan to address systemic racism?"

Trump admonished the reporter — "I'd like to sign this bill" — but he also defended himself on "race relations": The economic recovery is "the greatest thing that can happen... for the African-American community, for the Asian-Americans, for the Hispanic American community, for women, for everything."

The questioner insisted on hearing about Trump's "plan," and Trump said having a strong economy was his plan. Another questioner jumped in and began to ask how a better economy would solve the problem of racism, but Trump cut him off — "Excuse me, I’d like to sign this." The questioner nevertheless persisted: "Yeah. Just to follow up, how would a better economy have protected George Floyd?" Trump expressed irritation: "Excuse me, do you mind if I sign this?" The questioner said, "Sure, I’ll ask after," and somebody else prolonged the interruption with a counterproductive "Will you take questions after, sir?" That re-activated the first questioner, who brought up that unemployment of black people just "went up by .1%," so "How is that a victory? How is that a victory?" He said it twice, provoking Trump to say, "You are something." So he said it a third time, "How is that a victory?"

It was outdoors, in the Rose Garden, and obviously hot. Trump had had his Cabinet members standing behind him, taking the risk that somebody might keel over. He ended the signing by calling Larry — Larry Kudlow — over to speak, and Larry said, "Thank you, sir. I’ll be brief as I can. I know it’s pretty darn hot." Trump said: "I haven’t noticed that. Is it hot? Nobody hot." Hilarious. Especially if you like a tinge of sadism in your humor. A tinge. Don't overreact. It's a great line. I want to remember to use it if anyone ever points out that it's hot when everyone knows it's really hot. I haven’t noticed that. Is it hot? Nobody hot.

And he never got back to the reporters for their questioning. They'd shown what they were spring loaded to do. It wouldn't be Why do you believe the economy will take off like a rocket ship? How will a burgeoning economy help everybody? It would be Where is your plan to overcome systemic racism? So he walked out of what was inaptly named a press conference.

There is one more difference from a rally. He would have taunted the press loudly and at length. Here he just gave them the cold shoulder — the cold shoulder and the most minimal taunt: You are something.

104 comments:

exhelodrvr1 said...

Totally appropriate. They consistently treat him and his administration unfairly.

MayBee said...

How *do* you end systemic racism?
Do we know Derek Chauvin killed George Floyd because of racism? They worked at the same place. Was there something else going on?

So far, I've heard to end systemic racism we have to defund the police and not run op-eds by Tom Cotton. We have to teach the false history of the 1619 project in schools, once we have them again. Also not require social distancing or lockdowns.

Apparently, locking poor kids of every race out of school for 2 months did not increase systemic racism (even though Chicago Public schools lost touch completely with 2,200 kids, mostly black and latino). So what will decrease it?

John Cunningham said...

Trump is right to cut off "questions" from the Luegenpresse. They are DemonRAT stooges and columns of filth shambling in the form of humans.

JAORE said...

For the press every cloud has a crap lining.

Until a D occupies the White House that is.

rehajm said...

T rump rally and a Democrat counter rally. No 'press' in attendance.

rwnutjob said...

They want him to admit something that doesn't exist; systemic racism. There are racists, but government & laws can't fix that. But there IS NO systemic racism. They were trying to trap him into admiring a false narrative.
He ignored it properly.

stlcdr said...

Just reading the transcript you posted, it sounds like a pretty darned positive tirade (sic).

John Borell said...

The press is going to miss Trump when he’s out of office. Really miss him.

Dave Begley said...

"The press had to sit there quietly and put up with the entire tirade."

1. Sitting quietly is the protocol. One might say it is law and order.

2. Tirade? Althouse has been reading WaPo and NYT too much.

Dave Begley said...

Tirade?

How about discourse on recent events?

How about monologue on the news?

tim maguire said...

The reporters are acting in bad faith. Instead of using the opportunity to get the administration’s position on important issues, they are looking for attack Lines. Trump would be a fool to play along (as far too many Republicans are and do). Both sides are playing the same game—the press is determined to get their message out, he is determined to get his.

It’s a shame that that’s the way it’s working out and maybe a more polished communicator (I almost said “better,” but Trump is a great communicator at what he wants to communicate) could maintain a higher level of discourse than Trump is willing to bother with, but he has his method, and the left, which is fully complicit in this charade, is in no position to complain.

Roy Lofquist said...

Shades of "Give 'em Hell Harry". I remember watching Harry S on our 7" TV with my dad. He was my dad's hero because he dropped the bombs on the Japs and saved my dad from a south seas vacation.

And about that jobs report - remember when Barky asked if Trump had a magic wand? Asked and answered. How did he do it? The answer my friend is blowing in the wind. Actually it's written down:

"Animal spirits is the term John Maynard Keynes used in his 1936 book The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money to describe the instincts, proclivities and emotions that ostensibly influence and guide human behavior, and which can be measured in terms of, for example, consumer confidence."

Every once in a great while a hero comes along, a magician, a wizard with a magic wand who leads this blessed land to new heights. I think it's a good idea to sign him on for another 4 years.

stevew said...

Trump is really good at this sort of engagement, especially with an adversary that is not as smart and prepared.

Does anyone really want and expect POTUS to create a national plan to address the problem of "systemic racism"? Not this POTUS, Trump, that's for sure. Instead the purpose of the question is to try to get Trump to admit or deny there is such a problem as systemic racism in America. He senses and knows this, and won't take the bait.

Wince said...

Where is your plan to overcome systemic racism?

Answer: Give the oppressed an alternative to vote for other than the liberal Democrats governors, mayors and other elected officials who have dominated those areas and the lives of their people for generations.

WisRich said...

Agreed Ann. They were not let him enjoy the good news for one minute. They were going to lob BS questions that would essentially blame Trump for killing George Floyd. It would have been virtue signaling from the Press with no intent to help inform the public with useful information, just repeated attempts to embarrass him.

Michael said...

Trump is in charge of fixing systemic racism. Obama fixed regular racism.

And now systemic is the word. Sciencey sounding. The virus words are fading. I can barely remember them.

rhhardin said...

Systemic racism is the media's reinterpretation of low average black IQ.

It serves to divide the blacks. The reason you aren't doing well is the damned whites and their unspoken system.

Lots of media clicks on that, sold to advertisers. It's a business.

The reason you aren't doing well is that you're not taking the ticket to success, good character. IQ doesn't matter if you show up on time and act helpful. You'll fit right in where you fit in.

Trump is always holding out on offer good character. The press is always pulling it away.

Trump can't say there is no racism to do it. It would be belittled. He can only offer the ticket to success.

So Trump isn't ignoring them. He's refusing the framing of blacks' problem, so that they might take the ticket out.

Ignorance is Bliss said...

...the cold shoulder and the most minimal taunt:

Nobody hot.

Tank said...

Trump does not play their game.

Good.

Dave Begley said...

And wasn't it decided here that systematic racism is just Marxism using color as the oppressed class?

In the US, there are a few individual racists but there is no systematic racism. The Dems have created this crisis in order to garner votes in November. And the Dems run the cities where most the rioting is taking place.

Kevin said...

When did you stop beating your wife?

exhelodrvr1 said...

The current situation of many blacks is certainly related to the previous systemic racism against blacks in America. But that doesn't mean that there is currently systemic racism against blacks in America.

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

Obama had 8 years to fix "systemic racism." Why didn't the Lightworker do so? The Dems have been running American big cities forever Why haven't they fixed it?

The Dems are mortally afraid that blacks will start asking themselves that. That's the real reason for the riots.

Lloyd W. Robertson said...

Some like it hot. Some like the economy hot. Those who feel otherwise are really something.

wendybar said...

Why didn't Saint Obama fix it while he was healing the world of all of our mistakes and problems we caused before we were graced with his presence???

Mike Petrik said...

Maybee raises a fair point. We don't know -- at least yet -- whether Chauvin's conduct was animated by racism. The Atlanta cops fired last week for their rough handling of some Black students were themselves Black. The interplay between fear, racism, and lack of empathy is hard to fully understand, and it may not be possible to disentangle the variables fully with confidence.

But those of us who grew up with guys who became cops know that lack of empathy is a factor. Law enforcement does attract a cohort of guys who were bullies in childhood and who plainly found the idea of power appealing. Our society has accorded our police with special power, and in order to prevent abuse we must do a better job of screening for empathy and basic kindness.

I know this is not PC, but I suspect that a kindhearted racist cop is less of a risk than a color-blind mean one.

Oso Negro said...

The term “systemic racism” is a monstrous creation. In human history, no race has ever exalted and pandered to another as white people have done for black people these past 50 years. No matter what program is offered, no matter how much reality is denied, the failure of American blacks to achieve the same outward signs of material success must be blamed on white people. I am 63 years old. At every si glen stage of my professional career as a chemical engineer, it would have been an advantage to be black. It should surprise to no one in corporate life to learn that normed for IQ (yeah bitches, it is real, measurable and means something) blacks make more money than whites. So wha is the end game here? I suggested Madison Starbucks offer free coffee for blacks. Should the White girls of Madison offer a “free blowjobs for blacks booth”? Should white peoples be forbidden to reproduce or required to reproduce only with blacks? Should white progressives consider mass suicide to leave the country to POCs? Should we reconsider segregation - offer up Mississippi and Alabama to blacks and run the white out as in South Africa? How about repatriation? Offer $10,000 and a free ticket to Africa to any who want to go? Perhaps progressive whites should do penance by offer themselves as indentured servants to black people. What would be enough? Give me a thing that is possible to do, not more “we are all the same under the skin bullshit”. We aren’t. Reality is otherwise. 55 years of political power, untold billions worth of payoffs and social programs and relentless indoctrination on diversity did not do the job. Why would we think another 55 years will change things?

Bushman of the Kohlrabi said...

“Mr. Biden, what did you do during 8 years as Vice President and 40 years in the Senate to end systemic racism?”

Filed under “questions never to be asked of Sleepy Joe.”

buwaya said...

Trump is a good luck charm for the markets, like those Chinese "laughing Buddha" figures. I am certain there are a good many punters who would like to rub his belly for luck.

I need to get a "laughing Buddha". One of these days.

We hear the French border will open July 1, hopefully also the hotels.

Fernandinande said...

But there IS NO systemic racism.

Well, there is, but it's anti-white racism, and the supreme court declared that it's somewhere between spiffy and wonderful.

But a lot of people think systemic anti-black racism exists; the NYT and its ilk tell them about it quite regularly.

Trump needs a way to get the questioners to define exactly what they're referring to, the cause itself, rather than the effects of the imaginary cause, when the real cause is black criminality and low IQ, which people have been propagandized into believing isn't true. (here's a fairly typical rant about that: "White supremacists are selectively manipulating genetics research, under the banner of “race realism,”)

PS: new statistical analysis from Penn State, dis-conflating black "hispanics" with whites, indicates that blacks commit 65% of all murders in the US.

rhhardin said...

Tirade, America's Number One Detergent.

Bob Boyd said...

"I demand change. I also demand that you not know specifically what changes I'm talking about so you can't help.
The best kinds of solutions for problems that exist in every way except statistically are unspecified ones." - Scott Adams on Twitter

Quaestor said...

What is system racism? Somebody give me an example and be sure to explain why it's "systemic" and not personal.

clint said...

"The questioner insisted on hearing about Trump's "plan," and Trump said having a strong economy was his plan."

Shades of Reagan's "Here's my strategy on the Cold War: We win. They lose."

Howard said...

Why oh why are the MSM libruls so relentlessly hard on the Donald. If Barry Soetoro did everything exactly what Drumpf did regards Covid and George Floyd, they would be kissing his Muslim ass and nominating the One for a unprecedented second Noble Price.

gilbar said...

One of the press called out: "Mr. President, what happened to the plan for systemic racism? Trump admonished the reporter — "I'd like to sign this bill"

Mr (not MY) PRESIDENT! WHY HASN'T CONGRESS PASSED THIS BILL? YOUR JOB IS TO HAVE CONGRESS VOTE
</stupidity

Ann Althouse said...

" Tirade? Althouse has been reading WaPo and NYT too much."

Nope. I deliberate went to YouTube yesterday because I'd read that he'd done a press conference and I clicked through and watched the whole thing. I didn't read about it, I didn't watch TV reports on it. I just watched the entire thing myself. I resent your characterizing me as influenced by the way other people talked about him. I do first-hand research and can't tolerate how MSM reports on him. "Tirade" came out of my direct experience. As I was watching it, I said, "He's doing his rally." That's my direct report.

Ann Althouse said...

A "tirade" is "A volley of words; a long and vehement speech on some subject; a declamation; a protracted harangue" (OED).

Dave Begley said...

I don't object to "He's doing his rally." A rally is different than a tirade. And I've been to about 6 Trump rallies.

JAORE said...

Does the press really want Trump to dictate to the states and cities how they are to organize and train their police departments?

It is to laugh.

At best the Feds can give "guidance" like with the Covid re-openings. And, as we saw there it will give us a new round of Orange Man Bad and local officials doing what they want.

The real work has to be at the local level. You know the mayors and city council. The Police Departments and Police Unions.

That is the (largely) Democratic Mayors. The Democrat Council Members. The Democrat appointed Police Chiefs and the Democrat funding unions.

But, yeah, Trump, whatcha gonna do?!?!?!?!

Michael K said...

What Oso Negro said

Ann Althouse said...

It was definitely protracted. And he took advantage of the heat that he knew people were oppressed by, so the time was bad for them. And they were waiting for their chance to do questions, but he ran out the clock, and then he walked out of the room. He was definitely into dominating the crowd. But in a very positive way, he was doing a rally for the country that he can't get out to and enjoy in person. He knew they were there, even though he couldn't see and hear them, and he was encouraging them and trying to make them feel very optimistic.

Ann Althouse said...

"the room"... the garden.

Michael K said...

Do we know Derek Chauvin killed George Floyd because of racism? They worked at the same place. Was there something else going on?

George took too much Meth and Fentanyl, then resisted arrest. That's what was going on.

Dave Begley said...

I watched 7 minutes and skimmed the transcript. That was pure Trump like I saw at the early rallies. Free association with some pegs to it. And, of course, some of his favorite words and phrases: powerful, like we've never seen before, etc.

IMO, not a tirade.

And so what if the Fake News had to sit in the sun for an hour. How about roofing in the sun in Alabama? Or working on a road crew in Texas?

Yeah, he wanted to punish the Fake News. They deserve it. Enemy of the People.

Sebastian said...

"for their questioning."

You mean, their attacks. They never did hide their hatred very well, but it's alll naked partisanship now.

Which he uses.

Dust Bunny Queen said...

What the heck IS systemic racism? The press and liberals throw this term around all the time, but no definition. They don't know and are just compliant parrots.

Is it really systemic, like your circulatory system, affecting the whole body (all of society and every single institution and every single interaction). Do they propose we excise the circulatory system? How does that work in a society of 330 million diverse and very non localized people? Amputate the problem, remove the circulatory system, your heart, veins, arteries and lymph nodes..... and kill the patient (the USA)? I believe that IS the goal.

Is racism really systemic or is it localized? Confined to areas and specific body parts. Confined to certain segments of the population and certain areas.

Undefined and nebulous terms make me very very skeptical and very nervous.

Dave Begley said...

Boss Spearman: We come for justice, not vengeance. Now them is two different things.

Charley Waite: Not today they ain't.

DDB: Trump gave us a rally; not a tirade. Now them is two different things.

AA: Not today they ain't.

Wince said...

It was outdoors, in the Rose Garden, and obviously hot... So he walked out of what was inaptly named a press conference.

It's not the heat, it's the stupidity.

Dust Bunny Queen said...

You know what creates racism....telling me over and over that everything I do is racist. Berating me for things that I have never done. For things that have happened in history over which I have had no control. For things that other people do in far away places.

You want racism? This is how you make it grow.

You want to get rid of the police? Guess what will fill that vacuum. We are in for a very bumpy ride.

Mike Petrik said...

Oso --
When you state that blacks and whites are not the same under the skin, what do you mean exactly?

Kai Akker said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Fritz said...

I hope he had an air conditioner and a fan to blow cool air at him while the press sweltered. FWIW, it was warm yesterday, but not that hot in the DC area. Mid 80s.

Francisco D said...

Dust Bunny Queen said... What the heck IS systemic racism? The press and liberals throw this term around all the time, but no definition. They don't know and are just compliant parrots.

It is a magical fairy incantation to explain why Blacks have not done as well in the modern, non-sports world than other oppressed minorities. After decades of Affirmative Action, there has to be some explanation for the lingering Black lower class. Personal responsibility cannot conceivably be the answer.

PhilD said...

I have an idea to do something about 'systematic racism'. Outlaw the democrat party (/s).

Hammond X. Gritzkofe said...

Systemic racism exists in this country. It is codified into federal law, from whence it is spread to government, public, and private institutions at the lowest lowest level. Most perniciously it manifests in laws, regulations, and policies which mandate unequal treatment of citizens based on "race."

Every citizen is REQUIRED BY FEDERAL LAW to identify fellow citizens by "race" and to temper their interaction with those fellow citizens by determination of "race" - under penalty of fines, imprisonment, or both.

Kai Akker said...

The problem with the President's analogy to a hurricane is that this year has been more than a passing storm. The combination of first the virus, then the shutdown, and now the looting and rioting has wrecked tax collections while also damaging long-term economic activity. The joke that some cities are too broke to re-open tells a lot of truth. Many cities and towns of all sizes have already warned of budget cuts and tax increases next year.

The damage to the economy looks to be longer-lasting than a hurricane rebuild. If that is so, then the consequences that flow from that (including a bear market on Wall Street) are going to hurt budgets for more than one year. For blue cities and states that have been hoping to paper over their large unfunded liabilities on pensions and healthcare, this damage looks to me like a financial extinction event.

Bruce Hayden said...

“ George took too much Meth and Fentanyl, then resisted arrest. That's what was going on.”

We have been hearing all spring about COVID-19 comorbidities. Since he was, apparently, infected with the virus at the time of his death, should the illegal use of fentanyl, in particular, be considered in the tally of COVID-29 deaths?

I ask that because both fentanyl and COVID-19 both appear to affect the ability to breath, as, of course, also did the hold the police put on the decedent. He apparently didn’t die though through asphyxiation, but rather had a heart attack. But that may have been caused, maybe indirectly, by asphyxia. Maybe his death can win the trifecta - be counted from: COVID-19; illegal use of drugs; and police brutality. Realistically, his death should maybe be attributed 1/3, 1/3, and 1/3 each. But of course, that won’t happen.

Kai Akker said...

DBQ: You know what creates racism....telling me over and over that everything I do is racist. Berating me for things that I have never done... You want racism? This is how you make it grow.


Reading sites and talking to people, I suspect that Black Lives Matter -- with an assist from Antifa -- has now made more people fear, distrust and dislike black people than the KKK did in its entire existence.

Drago said...

Howard: "Why oh why are the MSM libruls so relentlessly hard on the Donald."

Remember that one time, just one, in 2012 when one reporter, just one, dared to ask obambi a question during a Rose Garden event on immigration because obama would typically not take questions at all after such statements?

Remember the outraged legacy media, without exception, attacking the reporter, Munro?

LOL

The other reporters themselves were telling the reporter to shut up. Obambis staff didnt even need to say anything because the "press" was happily doing it for them.

To be honest, after his laughable Nobel, I am surprised the democrats didnt demand a Congressional Medal of Honor be awarded to obama for having to listen to 1 unscripted question.

Lewis Wetzel said...

Who does the press represent, anyhow?
How many Americans are really interested in Trump's plan to fight systemic racism? Maybe 2%? And all race obsessed democrats.

Yancey Ward said...

I watched it, too, Althouse- tirade is the wrong word- harangue is a much closer fit.

Aggressive and angry are not synonyms.

Oso Negro said...

@Mike Petrik - I mean that there are demonstrable biological differences. Were you imagining a more exotic construct? Maybe white people are filled with vanilla, black people are filled with chocolate?

Jupiter said...

" Mr. President, why haven’t you laid out a plan to address systemic racism?".

The time is not ripe .... for the repaeal of affirmative action.

I Callahan said...

When you state that blacks and whites are not the same under the skin, what do you mean exactly?

He never said that, and if you’d read the entire sentence instead of the snippet that made your knee jerk, you’d know that.

Martha said...

It was Trump perpetual nemesis Yamiche Alcindor, PBS NewsHour , who sharply questioned Trump as he signed the bill.

“Black unemployment went up by 0.1%, Asian American unemployment went up by 0.5% how is that a victory?"

President Trump: "You are something else."

rwnutjob said...

It wasn't a magic wand Trump used. In fact, he didn't have to do much. The fact that he was not an America hating Leftist, gave business the confidence to invest and hire. His regulation pledge gave them the hint that things were going to change.

RMc said...

"Yeah. Just to follow up, how would a better economy have protected George Floyd?"

"Well, if Mr Floyd had had a better job, maybe he wouldn't be in the street only to get choked to death by thugs with a badge."

The press isn't interesting in asking real questions, just accumulating Woke Points.

RMc said...

COVID-29 deaths

Prepare now!

Michael K said...

Reading sites and talking to people, I suspect that Black Lives Matter -- with an assist from Antifa -- has now made more people fear, distrust and dislike black people than the KKK did in its entire existence.

Nothing like burning down a city to celebrate a drug overdose victim to make people wonder if they want to live there.

Narayanan said...

Asking a "Racist" : what is your plan for ending *Systemic Racism* any different than when do you stop beating your wife

Char Char Binks, Esq. said...

That was clever, trying to get Trump to confess to murdering Floyd.

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

My plan for ending systemic racism consists of never again voting for a Dem.

BrianE said...

Here's the solution, summed up in Galatians 5"14. "For the whole law can be summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.""

That's going to take a heart change. No law, no human plan is going to do that-- only a relationship with God through the sacrifice of Jesus.

Hammond X. Gritzkofe said...

One of the press called out: "Mr. President, why haven’t you laid out a plan to address systemic racism?"

The correct answer is: pass to the voters.

Racism is systemitized in this country by national laws which require citizens be identified by "race" and be treated unequally by administrators based on "race." Those Laws are produced by Legislators, who are in turn elected by the voters.

To suggest that the President, the national chief executive officer, plan to eliminate systemic racism in this country is to suggest that he violate the oath sworn at assuming his office.

It falls to the VOTERS to eliminate systemic racism.

Lurker21 said...

What is system racism? Somebody give me an example and be sure to explain why it's "systemic" and not personal.

"Systemic racism" is this season's version of "economic inequality." Different economic outcomes for different ethnic groups is what people are calling "systemic racism." Add to that different outcomes from the legal system. That's what gives the phrase potency: African-Americans in jail and killed by the police.

"Systemic racism" avoids questions of merit or what people have earned or deserve. It blames different results on the racism inherent in the system. It's a great political phrase because just about nothing that government can do is likely to "fix" the condition, and the phrase can justify just about anything that government wants to do.

If you are arguing about personal racism and saying "I'm not racist" or even "The only racists are Black people," you haven't entered the debate about "systemic racism." I think the whole thing is a con, but you have to actually engage with the idea if you want to refute it.

Hammond X. Gritzkofe said...

Racism in this country is systemized by Federal Laws requiring unequal treatment of citizens based on "race." Those Laws are created by Legislators elected by the Voters.

Voters who want to eliminate systemic racism should consider public statements and past actions of legislative candidates. Democrats, by a wide margin over Republicans, advocate for disparate treatment of citizens by "race."

The Libertarian Party, and libertarian candidates, advocate equal treatment of all citizens under all laws.

Mike Petrik said...

Oso, If by demonstrably biological differences you are suggesting that either the intellectual or moral capacity of Blacks is inferior to that of Whites, you are the poster child for why the protests are necessary and important.
Some of my fellow conservatives fool themselves into thinking racism is dead. I wish they are right

MayBee said...

Mike Petrick said..
But those of us who grew up with guys who became cops know that lack of empathy is a factor. Law enforcement does attract a cohort of guys who were bullies in childhood and who plainly found the idea of power appealing. Our society has accorded our police with special power, and in order to prevent abuse we must do a better job of screening for empathy and basic kindness.

My husband and I were talking about this yesterday.
I believe cops are good, have a tough job, and are necessary. But they have a lot of power. If you are someone who wants to lord your power over someone, you might find your way to being a cop.
Just as, if you are someone who wants to take money in a nice white collar way, you might find your way into being a bookkeeper so you can embezzle.
If you are a woman who wants to have sex with 14 year old boys, you might find your way to being a middle school teacher.

And so on.

Perhaps there is a better way to screen for personality deficits in police officers. Humans are pretty great at finding ways to get themselves in the position they need to be in to find their joy or find their victims.

JaimeRoberto said...

One way to fight systemic racism is to stop putting people in racial buckets like the Democrats do. It's divisive and runs the risk of turning is into Yugoslavia.

Sebastian said...

"has now made more people fear, distrust and dislike black people"

Not sure it has happened yet. But I think it is part of the prog point in supporting riots, magnifying the Floyd problem, generating about systemic racism, etc. -- to foster what wasn't there, so as to deepen division and unrest, then to exploit it to break down the system for real.

Douglas B. Levene said...

There's no such thing as "systemic racism." Either someone is a racist - i.e., believes that people of certain races are inherently inferior - or not. Either someone intentionally discriminates against people of certain races, or not. Either someone believes that white people are superior to people of other races or not. The claim of "systemic racism" is just a Marxist complaint about inequality gussied up in the language of racial discrimination in order to guilt-trip white liberals.

Jim at said...

How long has this 'systematic racism' been going on? Since November, 2016?

Quite remarkable to have an entire system become racist in just three and a half years. Especially when you consider it's most prevalent in blue cities and states.

hstad said...


Blogger Ann Althouse said...
A "tirade" is "A volley of words; a long and vehement speech on some subject; a declamation; a protracted harangue" (OED).6/6/20, 8:28 AM

AA - interesting pick of word definition and selection?

Mine is slightly different:

Tirade definition: a"...prolonged outburst of bitter, outspoken denunciation!..."
Notice the use of words "bitter and denunciation" which provides better clarity versus "vehement and declamation" which might be construed as use of the 'water downed' principle.

Oso Negro said...

@ Mike Petrik - I guess you are accustomed to discussions with simpletons or are deeply accustomed to discussions with all the nuance of Marvel comics. How you can possibly derive “moral” differences from what I have posted beggars belief. Recalibrate yourself, please. Morality is a social preference and derives from culture as I can tell. No genetic component whatever. And yes, I believe THE SCIENCE on general measures of IQ which are unchanged in the last 90 years. I suspect there is a genetic component to impulse control as well. And since you evince poor perception of nuance, I am obliged to add that such qualities are probabilistic not deterministic.

Crazy World said...

Bravo Mr. President

Mike Petrik said...

Oso, No need for the arrogance. Trust me, it is unwarranted. First, as to morality, it is more than a social construct. It is a reality grounded in natural law. Second, as to intelligence, science does not say what you claim, as has been explained repeatedly by both Charles Murray and Thomas Sowell.

Fernandinande said...

Oso, If by demonstrably biological differences you are suggesting that either the intellectual or moral capacity of Blacks is inferior to that of Whites, you are the poster child for why the protests are necessary and important.

Protests are necessary because some people don't like evolution, genetics, neurology and psychology?

Some of my fellow conservatives fool themselves into thinking racism is dead. I wish they are right

I, too, wish affirmative action were dead, and believe that people should have equal treatment under the law.

stan said...

Leftism gets more and more stupid every day.

I think the Democrats have targeted the stupid vote in the belief that most voters are brain dead. I don't think they'll find a majority that way.

Mike Petrik said...

And Oso, while there might well be a genetic component to impulse control, there is no evidence whatsoever that this component's distribution varies by race.

Mike Petrik said...

Fernandinande --

Your self-serving reference to evolution, genetics, etc. is a non sequitur. If you believe that your presumed whiteness somehow makes you superior, your are stupidly mistaken.

I too oppose affirmative action. It is a tool created and used by those who benefit from promoting the myth that Black people cannot succeed without it.

Birkel said...

Mike Petrik,
Thank you for taking over the duties of Blog Concern Troll.
I appreciate your service to this community.

Meade said...

"Tirade, America's Number One Detergent."

And NOW it's a detergent AND a roach bait!

Greg the class traitor said...

And he never got back to the reporters for their questioning. They'd shown what they were spring loaded to do. It would be Where is your plan to overcome systemic racism?

Trump is working to eliminated systematic racism in America by trying to beat the Democrats at every level.

The Democrats are the Party of White Supremacy, which is why the social concerns of upper class white women are more important to the Democrats (see Title IX "Dear colleagues" letter, & everything the Democrats do on "trans" issues") trump the economic concerns of blacks who want jobs

The Democrats are the Party of racism, which they call "identity politics".

The Democrats are the Party of destroying black neighborhoods and black owned businesses, ordering the police not to protect them from (often white) rioting and looting thugs.

So President Trump will do the most effective attack on systematic racism he can, trying to defeat it, and its Democrat purveyors, at the ballot box in November.

Greg the class traitor said...

Ann Althouse said...
It was definitely protracted. And he took advantage of the heat that he knew people were oppressed by, so the time was bad for them. And they were waiting for their chance to do questions, but he ran out the clock, and then he walked out of the room. He was definitely into dominating the crowd.

Well, they're explicitly his enemies. Why should he NOT try to dominate them?

cubanbob said...

Mike Petrik said...
Oso, No need for the arrogance. Trust me, it is unwarranted. First, as to morality, it is more than a social construct. It is a reality grounded in natural law. Second, as to intelligence, science does not say what you claim, as has been explained repeatedly by both Charles Murray and Thomas Sowell."

Your comment on the basis of morality is flawed. Not every culture is completely uniform when it comes to natural law. As for race and IQ, there maybe a relation or there may not be a relation. However being smart doesn't equate with being moral as our common culture has it. I for one would prefer a 90 IQ Mayor who is still smart enough to know right from wrong and isn't corrupt than a Mayor with an IQ of 150 whois thorughly corrupt and apt to make my life miserable.

Mike Petrik said...

Birkel --
Very sorry that reading is tough for you. There are remedial courses. Even for anonymous cowards.

Mike Petrik said...

@cuban --
The fact that cultures have variably imperfect understandings of natural law proves nothing. And I never suggested that morality and intellect are correlative.

ken in tx said...

Systemic racism is based on the false premise that any negative outcome for a certain race is proof of racism. You don't have to prove that anybody did anything actually racist. When I was a teacher, our school district was accused of systemic racism because (among other negative benchmarks) black kids got onto trouble more often than others. As a remedy, the district monitored all disciplinary actions by race and published ratings on that measurement. As a result, black kids were allowed to get away with stuff white kids couldn't. I remember a case where two kids got in a fight. The white kid was suspended and sent home. The black kid was lectured by a black assistant principal and sent back to class(not recorded as a disciplinary action). It enraged some of the white kids, but it made the numbers look better, systemically. While it is no longer socially acceptable to teach racism to kids, they learn it in school by experience.

wbfjrr2 said...

Government driven systemic racism at all levels has existed in this country for decades, imposed by city councils, legislatures, Congress, and approved by our judicial system up to and including SCOTUS. Literally trillions of dollars have been invested into this thing called Affirmative Action and all its offshoots. Pretty low return on investment so far and at this point, counterproductive. I don’t think it’s what MLK had in mind.

I think Trump would score major points if he gave a coherent Oval Office speech on the failures by both parties to address the disaster of the inner cities, and point out that nothing will change until blacks themselves see how the many decades old policies of the democrats have been the real boots on their necks, aided and abetted by their own corrupt “leaders” who keep convincing them they are victims. Then declare his plan to address the inner city disaster:
1. Take the gangs off the streets by whatever means necessary
2. Abolish teachers unions and merit/competency test all teachers, retaining only the competent ones and pay them a premium to teach in the inner cities. Post guards in these schools to protect the teachers until normal, peaceful standards of conduct prevail, which may take awhile.
3. Make school attendance mandatory, with legal penalties for parents who do not comply in getting their kids educated
4. Pay a bonus to the student and the parents as the child completes grammar school and a bigger one at high school graduation for parents and student.
5. Pay a bonus for completing college or trade school (equally)

Graduation at all levels must be real, not by inflated test scores or dumbed down courses. The achievement bonuses will be cheap compared to the direct and indirect costs of the current inner city disasters in lives wasted/destroyed and treasure spent to no avail.

DeepRunner said...

This is all fine and good until the next ADD-riddled crisis. Most folks don't like racism or bigotry and most folks don't admit to being racist or bigoted. People of a certain generation saw Archie Bunker as the stereotypical bigot, complete with ethnic slurs. But son-in-law Mike Stivic (aka Meathead) was the more subtle, liberal white, morally-superior bigot, looking down on the unwashed masses for what he deemed to be unacceptable, being the smartest man in the room and all.

Greg the class traitor said...

wbfjrr2 said...
Government driven systemic racism at all levels has existed in this country for decades, imposed by

The Democrats and the "Civil Rights" movement.

Fixed it for you

Destroyed black families? Thank the Democrats' "Great Society", which took the black illegitimacy rate from 20% to 80%.

Gangs running wild? That's because Democrats and the CRM block the police from doing something about them.

Crappy schools for black kids, and teachers unions that won't let them get better? That's the Democrats

Tooth and nail fight against school vouchers that would let black kids escape those crappy schools? Again, that's the Democrats

In short, the people most talking about "systematic racism" are the ones who are implementing it.

So no, i'm not going to listen to them about how to "fix" it (which will, guaranteed, simply make it worse).

And I'm not going to listen to anyone who blathers about it, without acknowledging that the Democrats, the Left, and the "Civil Rights Movement" are the main sources of the problem

Mike Petrik said...

Greg the class traitor --

I think if you read wbfjrr2 more carefully you will realize that you are in violent agreement.

Kirk Parker said...

All of us keep hoping for more good-faith intelligent lefty commenters here, but what do we get? Yet Another (perhaps for-real) Conservative Karen. Good-bye Mike Petrik, killfile for Chrome says "hush" to you.