Va. Gov. Northam�s medical school yearbook page shows men in blackface, KKK robe

[Mountain Man]

Kamala Harris says that leaders need to be held to a higher standard. So when is she going to resign over the fact that she jumpstarted her political career 20-years by receiving favors from Willie Brown, the California assembly speaker that she was having an affair with at the time? I mean, as long as she thinks leaders need to be held to a higher standard.

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/for...-kamala-harris

[Mountain Man]

This is getting ridiculous: After admitting that it was him in the yearbook photo and apologizing for his poor judgemement, Northam is now saying, "Wait a minute, I don't remember wearing that costume, and I'm not even sure that's me in the picture!"

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2...ll-not-resign/

[carpedm9587]

But his pastor is black so it's okay. At least that appears to be the Washington Post's take on it.

I don't get that out of that article at all... the article makes reference to his pastor once, simply noting that he's black, in a paragraph about his positions related to minorities over the years. It establishes what Star said: there is no pattern of behavior evident, at least as far as we know now. Just one poorly considered picture.

[carpedm9587]

But he is a Dem, so it is OK...

And yet the long list of Dems calling for him to step down would seem to suggest otherwise.

[carpedm9587]

But he wants a pass cause that's not who he is now.

Isn't that exactly the argument used to many of those accused of racism on the right?

Another "good for the goose" moment...?


(I just saw your later post... nice!)

[carpedm9587]

If he were a Republican, he'd be run out of office...

And yet many Republicans accused of racist positions have NOT been run out of office, and have been defended... right?

[carpedm9587]

No, and I'm surprised so many conservatives and libertarians are piling on. We didn't like it when they scraped up ancient crap and rehydrated it to throw it at Kavanaugh, so we shouldn't do it to their guy.

OTOH, IMO the defense of infanticide in and of itself was sufficient to demand his departure from office.

OK - there is a BIT of a difference between someone accused of sexual assault - and someone posing in a distasteful picture. As I recall, one of the British princes went to a Halloween party in a Nazi uniform. Kids do stupid things - without a real understanding/appreciation of the larger context. But sexual assault (assuming it happened) is a different order of magnitude, IMO.

[carpedm9587]

I dunno who the guy is but in general I agree with you here.

Just skimming the thread, this would seem to have a whole host of mitigating factors:

• happened a long time ago
• apparently hurt nobody at the time as far as we know
• isn't part of any established pattern of behavior for the individual
• can be written-off as a joke that went too far or was in bad taste
• has been apologized for, apparently sincerely

This seems to tick all the boxes that would normally cause me to shrug and move on and say 'it's fine'. Unless further information is forthcoming regarding this being part of a much wider pattern of behavior, or part of some really nasty behavior on his part towards African Americans, I don't see anything interesting here.

That would be my assessment. But his going from "I'm sorry" to "I don't think it was me" is a bit concerning.

[rogue06]

Let me get this straight... pictures from 35 years ago are the unforgivable sin, but bragging of sexual assault 11 years prior is okay?

This precedent is frightening. Everybody has done stupid things in their youth or after even. of course he should go because he was defending infanticide but that's not what the media is interested in.

If I were Charles I guess this is where I scream whataboutism, but no. Personally I think it is no big deal -- people do stupid things when they're young, but it was the bar that the left has tried to establish recently. Said something stupid in a tweet years ago? Lose your job. Tell a joke a couple decades ago that the thought police now considers inappropriate? Ruin their career. Partied too much when you were in school? That disqualifies you from anything paying more than minimum wage.

When the folks that promote such nonsense start realize that they have to, figuratively speaking, eat their own, maybe there is a chance that common sense will start to prevail.

[Mountain Man]

And yet the long list of Dems calling for him to step down would seem to suggest otherwise.

Yes, but it hasn't reached the fever-pitch that it would have if it was a Republican.

[One Bad Pig]

And yet many Republicans accused of racist positions have NOT been run out of office, and have been defended... right?

Lemme know if this is anything more than a veiled sideswipe at our Dear Leader, k? thxbai

[rogue06]

I don't get that out of that article at all... the article makes reference to his pastor once, simply noting that he's black, in a paragraph about his positions related to minorities over the years. It establishes what Star said: there is no pattern of behavior evident, at least as far as we know now. Just one poorly considered picture.

That was the defense offered about Al Franken. He was this great champion of women's rights. Then we started learning more.

In 24 hours two separate photos have already surfaced.

[Mountain Man]

And yet many Republicans accused of racist positions have NOT been run out of office, and have been defended... right?

"Accused of" is quite a bit different than a photo from one's own yearbook page featuring a racist Halloween costume (whether or not he's actually the one in the costume seems irrelevant, because he's still the one who chose that image to appear on his own page).

[Mountain Man]

In 24 hours two separate photos have already surfaced.

I hadn't heard there was a second picture. I only know of the one in the yearbook.

[rogue06]

The difference between this case and Kavanaugh is that this guy is going down for something he actually did.

But I'm also suspicious that this is just an attempt to distract the public from that horrific abortion legislation.

Maybe not to distract attention from it as much as it is to remove him for his role. Even some local Democrats were shocked by his initial comments and subsequent defense of them. Other could very well have been upset that he gave away the intentions of the legislation and essentially put a screeching halt to attempts to pass similar legislation in other states. Someone well could have wanted him out of the spotlight and dropped a dime on him.