Ann Coulter crosses line with parents of special needs students with her “retard” tweet during presidential debate
Bad girl pundit Ann Coulter has turned offensive and cutting remarks into her signature brand and, based on how often I see her on TV, it seems to be paying off for her.
But one of her tweets this week set off a group of parents who already have it hard enough in my book: Parents of children with special needs who must navigate a dizzying array of state and federal mazes to get their children vital services. And never mind their battle to get their children respect.
In response to the presidential debate Monday between President Obama and Gov. Romney, Coulter tweeted: “I highly approve of Romney’s decision to be kind and gentle to the retard.”
The outrage was immediate. Much of the response to Coulter cannot be printed here, but one person writes: “Again, making fun of people w mental disabilities=not funny. BTW, I am both practicing Catholic AND conservative.”
I have read dozens of commentaries from parents of children with special needs about how hurtful comments like “retard” are to them and their children. Despite condemnation in the past for her use of “retard,” Coulter apparently has great affection for the word as she has used it before to describe people she doesn’t like.
The most eloquent response to her this time came from a young man with Downs Syndrome:
Special Olympics athlete John Franklin Stephen wrote: (This is an excerpt. Please read full piece.)
I’m a 30 year old man with Down syndrome who has struggled with the public’s perception that an intellectual disability means that I am dumb and shallow. I am not either of those things, but I do process information more slowly than the rest of you. In fact it has taken me all day to figure out how to respond to your use of the R-word last night.
I thought first of asking whether you meant to describe the President as someone who was bullied as a child by people like you, but rose above it to find a way to succeed in life as many of my fellow Special Olympians have.
Then I wondered if you meant to describe him as someone who has to struggle to be thoughtful about everything he says, as everyone else races from one snarky sound bite to the next.
Finally, I wondered if you meant to degrade him as someone who is likely to receive bad health care, live in low grade housing with very little income and still manages to see life as a wonderful gift.
Because, Ms. Coulter, that is who we are – and much, much more.
After I saw your tweet, I realized you just wanted to belittle the President by linking him to people like me. You assumed that people would understand and accept that being linked to someone like me is an insult and you assumed you could get away with it and still appear on TV.
I have to wonder if you considered other hateful words but recoiled from the backlash.
Well, Ms. Coulter, you, and society, need to learn that being compared to people like me should be considered a badge of honor.
No one overcomes more than we do and still loves life so much.
–From Maureen Downey, for the AJC Get Schooled blog
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234 comments Add your comment
Concerned DeKalb Mom
October 24th, 2012
11:14 am
Ann Coulter exemplifies EVERYTHING that is wrong with political pundits today. She is teaching young people to completely devalue others’ opinions. And she–and other right wing (I’m sure there are left wingers in this club, too, but none come to mind) “entertainers” like Rush and O’Reilly–do it in the name of entertainment. It’s disgraceful.
Cindy Lutenbacher
October 24th, 2012
11:31 am
I speak as the mother of a child who is intellectually disabled. I’m so proud of this young man’s response. He is so much more thoughtful and humane than I could ever be. Perhaps Ms. Coulter intended to compare President Obama to heroes, for John Franklin Stephen is now one of mine.
Centrist
October 24th, 2012
11:35 am
It’s an embarrassing/ revealing stretch for Maureen Downey to base her column on that single tweet. Her very liberal credentials are brightly displayed.
Rickster
October 24th, 2012
11:36 am
Ann Coulter is as deep as the puddle of condensation from my car’s A/C on my garage floor.
Still teaching
October 24th, 2012
11:36 am
Ann Coulter was wrong in her use of the word AND her attitude. However, as a teacher who has worked with EMH and TMH students for decades I question whether that letter was written by anyone with Down Syndrome. The letter was spot on but the author had a great deal of help. I would prefer that the actual author be credited and his/her association with Down Syndrome people be validated. They are fabulous kids to teach and should be cherished but their limitations need to be recognized and accepted.
Maureen Downey
October 24th, 2012
11:46 am
@Centrist, As I noted, Coulter has used the term before, including two months ago in reference to a fellow pundit/commentator.
This may not seem significant to you since you have no personal interest in the issue, but I suggest you look at any web site for parents of children with special needs that has a comment section. You will that this is an issue to them. (Unless your credentials — whatever they might be — stand in the way.)
Maureen
Susan Ruiz
October 24th, 2012
11:48 am
Ann Coulter proved how uneducated she really is…as a parent of a child with autism I find this highly offensive…she also proved something else, she needs tape over her mouth!
trailerparkted
October 24th, 2012
11:48 am
@Centrist, you embarrass me as a Republican, everything isn’t Con VS Lib, Ann Coulter is classless and crass, it’ doesn’t take “liberal credentials” to make that assertion! I have a special needs child and Coulter is nothing more than a pundit that caters to the ignorant segment of the Republican Party!
Karl Marx
October 24th, 2012
11:51 am
According to Websters:
Retard transitive verb
1: to slow up especially by preventing or hindering advance or accomplishment : impede
2: to delay academic progress by failure to promote.
Maybe she should have called Mr. Obama A “Retarder” But this young mans response is telling when he said of people with Down syndrome “No one overcomes more than we do and still loves life so much” as if Down syndrome people are the only group that face problems.
Thank you but try again.
BRW
October 24th, 2012
11:52 am
Centrist, Your obvious complete lack of credentials (and central thought)is also showing. No more words than the tweet provided are required to prove what a greedy attention starved wh0re this so-called writer has become.
Rick
October 24th, 2012
11:52 am
Sorry… But it’s only a word…
My wife was written up at work when she and another were talking privately about something and my wife said “thats so retarded”. A third person overheard that and reported her to the supervisor….
Thios world, and this nation of free speech, is getting all screwed up when a single word, that is actually in Websters with the exact meaning, causes this much turmoil….
Dunwoody Mom
October 24th, 2012
11:53 am
Anne Coulter accomplisher her goal – she is getting a lot of attention from this. She is a vile, wretched being who say anything to place herself in the spotlight. You know you’ve crossed the line when Michelle Malkin calls you out.
Centrist
October 24th, 2012
11:56 am
@ Ms Downey, either your are hyper sensitive to a political columnist who purposely uses harsh/shocking words to increase readership, or you are making your own left wing political statement. Either way, you hurt your credibility with those who might think you are anything other than another AJC liberal Democrat in a Republican state.
Grasshopper
October 24th, 2012
11:58 am
Maureen, perhaps you could suggest an appropriate replacement noun for Ms. Coulter that still conveys the depth of scorn that she feels for Obama. Any ideas? Surely an experienced wordsmith such as yourself can come up with something.
Tom
October 24th, 2012
11:59 am
This entire issue is LD.
Maureen Downey
October 24th, 2012
12:00 pm
@Grasshopper, I doubt Ann Coulter needs my helping coming with pejoratives for the president. In fact, I think she has a book full of them.
Maureen
Maureen Downey
October 24th, 2012
12:01 pm
@Centrist, Your position on this is beyond my comprehension. No wonder our culture has become so uncivil and crude.
Maureen
BRW
October 24th, 2012
12:03 pm
The people who listen to her verbal garbage for 5 minutes, then still spend money for her “books”, are the only folks who fit the description of her “noun”.
Tea Party Meber
October 24th, 2012
12:04 pm
retard [rɪˈtɑːd]
vb
(tr) to delay or slow down (the progress, speed, or development) of (something)
[from Old French retarder, from Latin retardāre, from re- + tardāre to make slow, from tardus sluggish; see tardy]
Ann Coulter's manly hands
October 24th, 2012
12:06 pm
retard [rɪˈtɑːd]
vb
(tr) to delay or slow down (the progress, speed, or development) of (something)
[from Old French retarder, from Latin retardāre, from re- + tardāre to make slow, from tardus sluggish; see tardy]
Chugga Chugga DOOO
Grasshopper
October 24th, 2012
12:07 pm
Fine Maureen – no help on a replacement noun for Ms. Coulter.
Can you help BRW find one for his equally offensive remark posted below?
“No more words than the tweet provided are required to prove what a greedy attention starved wh0re this so-called writer has become.”
PJW
October 24th, 2012
12:08 pm
I really feel sorry for this lady ,,what a cold empty world she must live in , maybe one day she will grow up ,,, what is this person so scared of?
Ann Coulter\'s manly hands
October 24th, 2012
12:09 pm
Chugga Chugga DOOOO
retard [rɪˈtɑːd]
vb
(tr) to delay or slow down (the progress, speed, or development) of (something)
[from Old French retarder, from Latin retardāre, from re- + tardāre to make slow, from tardus sluggish; see tardy]
Grasshopper
October 24th, 2012
12:09 pm
I guess we all choose our outrage one way or another.
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
12:10 pm
Coulter sells sadism. There’s a market for it. She’s pretty artistic with use and language and delivering a “zinger” but she’s figured out a formula. Reminds of when Palin was travelling around in a dramatic red/white/blue flag motif tour bus, collecting campaign donations and then not running for office. And yet there are people to this day who will tell you that “Palin would make a great president.” Seems these folk are mixing up or have invented a sort of corrupted entertainment. The whole thing of becoming a personality spectacle and then making a million dollars from the New York Times best seller list is kind of disturbing. Seems few can resist.
BRW
October 24th, 2012
12:11 pm
Your right Grasshopper, I’m sure people of that profession would be quite disgusted to know I included Ann in their number. I apologize.
Borat
October 24th, 2012
12:12 pm
Maybe she meant to say retired but spelled it retard.
Hillbilly D
October 24th, 2012
12:13 pm
This is show business, folks. These people like Ann Coulter, on both sides of the aisle, play to their respective audiences. Keeping their name in print and on TV is how they make money. They know that what outrages some will make them money from the true believers on their own side. Best to just ignore them and don’t play their game. A fire can’t survive without oxygen and for people like Ann, publicity is oxygen.
Centrist
October 24th, 2012
12:16 pm
@ Ms. Downey, I am in no way being uncivil or crude. Pointing out political bias (we ALL know Ms. Coulter’s) is not out of bounds – except to those who prefer not to admit having such bias. Nobody, including me, is defending Ms. Coulter – any more than they are attacking left wing demagogues like Al Sharpton who also likes to use inciting politically incorrect language. For the record, I have always found your columns and responses polite. I’m sorry that you take offense at my pointing out the politics of diversion.
Ann Coulter The Voice of the new Republicans
October 24th, 2012
12:20 pm
@Centrist
October 24th, 2012
11:35 am
It’s an embarrassing/ revealing stretch for Maureen Downey to base her column on that single tweet. Her very liberal credentials are brightly displayed.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The bible says:
Psalm 74:21
Let not the downtrodden turn back in shame; let the poor and needy praise your name.
Psalm 140:12
I know that the Lord will maintain the cause of the afflicted, and will execute justice for the needy.
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
12:23 pm
Centrist No need to take a chop at the AJC as being a lefty paper. You probably think Obama is a “socialist,” too, even though he’s making pharmaceutical companies, corporate hospital administrations, and insurance companies even more rich than they were before, and there’s still no health care!
Coulter is the Chuck Norris of exploitation artists.
MANGLER
October 24th, 2012
12:23 pm
An under heard voice rising up to outshine an over heard one. Awesome story and message.
bootney farnsworth
October 24th, 2012
12:28 pm
in a slightly different direction….
one of my closest friends has a profoundly retarded (noun, not verb or adjective) child. she has no issue with the noun, since it is accurate. it’s only when used as an adjective she gets pissed.
as a parent of as special needs child and a taxpayer, she sees both sides of the education issue.
her solution/gripe is the same as many of us – stop the mainstreaming.
educate the child to the best of its intellectual/functional ability, but don’t cram the child into a classroom situation in which nobody wins.
this is classic example of where a charter school would be an amazing idea. create and staff an environment in which damaged kids can excel to the best of their capabilities.
Maureen Downey
October 24th, 2012
12:30 pm
@Centrist, Didn’t think you were rude or uncivil. But I think that this Coulter remark is more than political diversion or theater. It is mean-spirited and cruel, and we ought not let it go unchallenged.
Folks, running to catch a plane for a funeral of a high school pal.
Won’t be back online until weekend, so please keep it polite and civil.
Maureen
Yve
October 24th, 2012
12:32 pm
Ms. Coulter needs to spend a week with the children and adults with disabilites. This is so she can see the hard work and the motivation that is put in on a daily basis by these special people. I have a son who’s eighteen who has a disablity. I myself have a hip replacement & been diagnosed with depression. I work 40 hours a week – so, I pay taxes and contribute to my community. I find this woman’s remarks absolutely outrageous, and offensive. My son was repeatedly bullied in school,and Ms. Coulter is nothing but a political bully. FYI special needs can also mean ‘gifted’ maybe even MENSA material… Taste the words in your mouth before they come out.
bootney farnsworth
October 24th, 2012
12:32 pm
as for Coulter….
did you expect anything less? she’s made a career on being an ass. kinda like a female Imus.
while it would be nice for her to have had a shred of dignity, that’s not what sells her books.
her comment didn’t register with me, I tuned her out long ago.
Richard
October 24th, 2012
12:32 pm
I wonder if she’s trying to make some sort of a point, albeit in a harsh way. Liberals throw racism around unprovoked at the drop of a hat and its OK. Obama makes cancer references ala “Stage 3″ Romneysia and nobody gets upset about that either.
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
12:37 pm
“Ann Coulter crosses line with parents of special needs students with her “retard” tweet during presidential debate”
President Obama did the EXACT same thing when he said he bowled like a special ed kid.
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
12:38 pm
After reading a little, figured this out. Coulter is a corporate lawyer that has been co-opted as a propaganda artist for the republican party, circa Bush era. Similarly, does anyone recall that before working for Bush administration, Condoleezza Rice as an executive at Chevron and actually has an oil tanker named after her that said CONDOLEEZZA on the hull? http://cdn2.shipspotting.com/photos/middle/9/0/3/535309.jpg
Coulter is pretty evil. She even tried to run for Congress as a Libertarian with the sole aim to throw the election to the democratic candidate as punishment to the republican candidate who had voted against impeaching Bill Clinton, but the local Libertarian party wouldn’t go along with it.
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
12:39 pm
Is Ann Coulter an elected official?
No
Does Ann Coulter have her own show?
No
Does Ann Coulter pass laws?
No
So what is the “poutrage” over?
Joe Biden made racist remarks to Indians. Where’s the outrage?
President Obama said he bowls like a special ed kid. Where’s the outrage?
catlady
October 24th, 2012
12:40 pm
Prepare yourself, parents of sped kids! Think you have it rough now? Wait, if Romney is elected you and your children will be lumped in with the 47%, the non-producers, the drain on society and on those who “create the jobs”.
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
12:41 pm
Maureen Downey
The democrat super pac ran an ad saying Mitt Romney killed a woman.
Where’s the outrage?
Sister Sarah
October 24th, 2012
12:41 pm
@trailerparkted
Unfortunately for people like Centrist EVERYTHING is! That is sad.
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
12:42 pm
“Wait, if Romney is elected you and your children will be lumped in with the 47%, the non-producers, the drain on society and on those who “create the jobs”.”
Not meant to be a factual statement.
But hey, lets deflect away from the failure that is the Obama administration and focus on someones tweet.
Obama lied about Libya but lets talk about a tweet.
damnyoufencesitter
October 24th, 2012
12:44 pm
@ “Centrist” There is a record of your comments. Your unwarranted contempt towards the author and the subject matter is evident from sentence one. You bully and attempt to discredit the author and it is clear as day. The non apology which follows includes more divisiveness topped off with a bizarre Orwellian “War is Peace” maneuver.
sandy
October 24th, 2012
12:45 pm
Why are we still listening to and wasting our time on this piece of trash? She has absolutely nothing of importance to say but her ugly mug is still in our faces… yuck! Ann you are a disgusting pig… get a life!!!
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
12:46 pm
PS “Chevron quietly renamed it the “Altair Voyager” and before President George Bush appointed Ms. Rice as National Security Advisor.”
skipper
October 24th, 2012
12:47 pm
If some is “blind to the facts” it is an insult to the “visually-challenged.”
If someone is “deaf to reason” it is an insult to the “hearing-impeared.”
There is no way to describe anyone in a negative light that SOME group will not take offense to. Even Obama said he bowled like a special-ed kid. I do not condone the abuse of people with disabilities, but it is a fact of life. And, yes, the term “retard” has been around awhile. You would not want a deaf person tuning your piano, though you want them to get a fair-shake. You would not want a blind person driving your car (unless you are a Kennedy) but you want them to get a fair shake. You would not want a so-called “retard” in charge of NASA. Good Lord….lighten up people! The stutterers are mad about Porky-Pig. Midgets are now “little-people” and fat folks are “weight-challegened” or “plus-size.” Late night T.V. massacres everyone..but let it happen in the political arena? I am no Coulter fan, but you libs can certainly keep Rachel Maddow. AND LIGHTEN UP, FRANCIS!
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
12:48 pm
Oh c’mon, fencesitter, some folk need to express themselves.
Lee
October 24th, 2012
12:49 pm
So, where was Maureen’s outrage when the leftwing pundits, including AJC hacks Bookman, Tucker, and Luckovich, were calling Bush a “dim-wit”?
Inquiring minds and all that….
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
12:51 pm
“So, where was Maureen’s outrage when the leftwing pundits, including AJC hacks Bookman, Tucker, and Luckovich, were calling Bush a “dim-wit”?”
EXACTLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
S.
October 24th, 2012
12:52 pm
Ann isn’t a ‘bad girl’. She’s a joke.
Rockerbabe
October 24th, 2012
12:54 pm
Ann Coulter is an insensitive, loud-mouth bigot with a chip on her shoulder. I have read a goodly number of her pieces over the years and have stopped as she is getting meanier by the minute. I say, ignore her; do not heed her tweets, respond to her op-ed pieces or buy her books and write the Sunday news shows and protest her inclusion in the discussion panels. Then write the sponsors of these shows and demand they not support her. . .money talks and when she no longer garners good money or new customers for these businesses, she will either go away or moderate her views and opinions. She is not a contributor to the civility of our discourse. . .put her in the trash where she belongs.
Maureen Downey
October 24th, 2012
12:59 pm
@Lee, Literally running out the door, but could not let this remark go without fact checking in the paper’s computerized archives. Plugged in Jay’s name and dimwit, in every variation of spelling, back to the day he started at the AJC; He never used the term. A reader writing to him used the term “dimwitted,” but it was about a state policy, not President Bush.
Can’t fact check Mike as he does not write. He draws cartoons, which lampoon everybody all the time.
Did same search for Cynthia. She used term once, for an Alabama state rep. And, btw, the guy was a Democrat
Maureen
trailerparkted
October 24th, 2012
1:00 pm
@Phil, this would be a non-story had Coulter used the word “Stupid or even Dim-Wit” but she decided to use “RETARD”!
EXACTLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
1:00 pm
FYI “Retard” is short form noun associated with “retardation.” The term is now obsolete, out of vogue, because there is now a more specialized approach to these disorders, using specific terms. Even today, “autism” is an umbrella terms for a whole bunch of stuff. Saying someone has “autism” does imply knowing what is going on or what is best to do. I recently got school when I was visiting a neighbor’s home that has a severely autistic child. I thought I knew what to expect, but this was way out of my league. I left with two impressions, “There are some people in this world who are saints” and that “it is tragic that we do not have the knowledge to just go into this child’s head and flip a switch and make it right.” People with muscular dystrophy and such are peaceful. Whole different deal with severe autism. Mega-agitated and must have an adult there every minute.
C
October 24th, 2012
1:00 pm
Tell Sarah Palin to call Culter, she knows what to say to her, or may be herself.
EricSF
October 24th, 2012
1:00 pm
@Centrist I am a registered independent and have voted for men and women of both parties. From Ms Coulte’s remarks to your posts I must say – I’m seldom surprised, through I’m always disappointed that those who benefit from or are unaffected by discrimination don’t see the problem.
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
1:02 pm
ted that’s Coulter’s game. deliver the zinger, collect the check.
Useful Idiots
October 24th, 2012
1:03 pm
Typical. Yawn.
Liberals are “outraged’at behavior that they do themselves. Constantly.
@Maureen where was your “outrage’ and call for dignity when Laura Ingraham was called a ‘Right-Wing Slut’ by Ed Schultz? Or, Mia Love’s many racial slurs and attackes – which have been hurled onto her via all facets of social media by self-righteous Liberals? Or, the death-threats against Marco Rubio, Mitt Romney constantly receives death threats (if he’s elected…) and Sarah Palin’s daughter was called the ‘C-Word’ by Bill Maher – who donated $1m to Obama’s campaign. The “C-U-Next Tuesday” word is a hateful and derrogatory word towards women, right? Oh…but…”that behavior is OKAY…because we HATE Republicans…”. Right, Maureen?
While you’re acting as Official Language Police…you may want to have a chat with Jay-Z about some of his questionable Lyrics –such as calling women ‘Ho’s” and referring to African-Americans with the “N* word”. This tends to nott bode well when the President you’re endorsing is claiming there’s a War on Women and the other party is full of racists.
Nor does message that only Romney is “rich” when Obama attended the lavish $40k per plate fundraiser that Jay-z and Beyonce threw for him at his 40/40 Club where the tower of champagne had to be ‘hidden’ from camera view.
Maureen – why don’t you try writing an article about the hypocracy of Liberals of crying “fire” when they are actually the ones holding the matches and the gasoline and then pretending to be shocked when there’s an explosion.
Perhaps that article may actually be worth reading.
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
1:06 pm
” I have a special needs child and Coulter is nothing more than a pundit that caters to the ignorant segment of the Republican Party!”
So you have “outrage” over what Obama said?
The Ghost of Edward R. Murrow
October 24th, 2012
1:09 pm
Hmmm…well, since this is obviously a topic you care about….. how about using your column to explore the tendency of Special Ed officials in School Districts to be very aggressive, VERY aggressive, about labeling students….because the more students labeled….the more money for their own school districts….the fight that parents fight is not always for resources for their children, but trying to keep their children from being quickly labeled by well-meaning but over zealous bureaucrats.
Joetta Colville
October 24th, 2012
1:10 pm
I am the mother of a special needs, mentally challenged child, and I believe Ann has a right to say what she feels. She was in no way criticizing my son or yours. She was talking about the President so don’t take it so personally people.
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
1:10 pm
Hey Maureen, where’s your “outrage” over the tweets calling for Romney’s death?
Progressive Humanist
October 24th, 2012
1:10 pm
That’s Centrist’s whole schtick- label himself “Centrist” even though he’s nowhere close to being centrist, position himself with the far right, and then complain nonstop that everyone else is biased to the left. He’s just doing for himself what Fox did for “news”. He’s purely objective, don’t you see?
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
1:12 pm
Progressive Humanist
Your comment makes absolutely NO sense.
Beth
October 24th, 2012
1:13 pm
@skipper, you are completely missing the point. The fact is, she used this word as an INSULT. She did it to be petty and cruel. We’re not talking abotu something obscure here, we’re talking about a word that was deliberately used as a means of degrading another person. It really doesn’t matter that the word has been around a long time. That does NOT make it okay to insult people with that same word.
We should NOT be expected to ‘lighten up’ when people make comments like that.
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
1:14 pm
GW Bush is not a dim-wit, he’s a zombie. His dad was the head of the CIA. The reason GW Bush is so charming is that he was suffering all of the time. His daughters are definitely not suffering, they’re running wild and free like good girls in Texas. The chain has been broken.
PS Texas has a pretty strong history of zombie pop-culture, if you care to look into it. I’d start with the movie “Slacker” – last of the last before the town was corporatised. Oh look, someone put the whole movie online. What fun. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jB4xlYKAVCQ
AlreadySheared
October 24th, 2012
1:14 pm
Aaawwwwp! Losing strength…. going down.. sinking – NO! Maybe if I grab that piece of straw floating over there and hold onto it, I won’t drown…
Beth
October 24th, 2012
1:15 pm
@Joetta Colville, she has a right to her opinion, but that doesn’t make her free from being called out on bad behavior. The word, in the context she was using was insulting.
chillywilly
October 24th, 2012
1:15 pm
Ann Coulter crosses the line by referring to the President of The United States a retard. This silly woman is out of control and needs to be silenced.
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
1:16 pm
Phil Watch the movie.
BehindEnemyLines
October 24th, 2012
1:18 pm
Yawn. Unfortunate that she chose to provide fodder for the politically correct to whine about though.
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
1:22 pm
“Ann Coulter crosses the line by referring to the President of The United States a retard. This silly woman is out of control and needs to be silenced.”
Obama called himself a special needs kid. Why is it that left wingers always want people silenced?
Beth
October 24th, 2012
1:24 pm
@Useful Idiots, name-calling of this caliber from ANYONE is rude and uncalled for. There is NOTHING acceptable about it EVER. Calling a woman a ’slut’ does NOT make it okay to call another person a retard. Making excuses for it only shows your lack of willingness to accept responsibility and an unwillingness to take the time to actually THINK about the matter and consider that maybe there were other words Ann could have used that she feels describe the president WITHOUT insulting a significant number of the population.
This isn’t so much a political issue as it’s a civility and basic awareness issue. The awareness that the word ‘retard’ is used as an insult regularly and applies to countless people in this nation.
Fighting fire with fire and everyone gets burned. Is that REALLY the kind of language that we want to encourage?
Hippies STILL Smell
October 24th, 2012
1:25 pm
All the petty, shrill, spittle-flecked Leftist insults in the blogosphere doesn’t change the FACTS: Coulter is being satirical. Coulter illustrates absurdity by being absurd. Conversely, Obama mocked “Special Olympics” kids on Jay Leno. Obama’s Chief of Staff spat “F’n retarded!” at White House employees. But you keep pretending Ann Coulter sets today’s divisive tone. “Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat and swallow a camel!”
AlreadySheared
October 24th, 2012
1:27 pm
@chillywilly,
“Chimpy McHitler” is one of the many epithets hurled at President Bush by those opposed to republicans, err I meant ‘rethuglicons’. Acceptable?
Note to all – Centrist et.al. are spot on. This has NOTHING to do with schools or education. Ms. Downey, upon further reflection, might apologize for offering this topic up for discussion on this particular blog.
Cindy Lutenbacher
October 24th, 2012
1:32 pm
Phil, I think you may have missed some things along the way. A lot of us did call President Obama on the carpet for his bowling comment. He apologized.
Most of the rest of the things you and others wish Maureen would post have very little to do with education. Special needs kids have been the scapegoat for so many respondents on this blog that I think Maureen was right to bring this issue to our attention.
And for those who didn’t read John Franklin Stephens’ writings, he does speak to the fact that he and his father talk out issues, his father writes down what he hears, John reads it over, and they go forward from there.
Grasshopper
October 24th, 2012
1:34 pm
“This silly woman is out of control and needs to be silenced.”
There’s your left-wing these days; either agree or be silenced.
Overtaxed
October 24th, 2012
1:36 pm
I have a beautiful niece who has D.S. but I choose who and what offends me. Social media caters to the passive aggressive types who would never say something to your face. Come on people – the best press is negative press. Coulter’s no different than Snookie and Fox News is no different than TMZ. Grain of salt in the self-inflicted wounds of propaganda.
Deborah
October 24th, 2012
1:36 pm
First let me state that I hate Ann Coulter. But this furor over the word “retard” is just getting to me now. I am somewhat in agreement with the special needs community, but they need to stop freaking out about people using the word. By that I mean that most people literally don’t recognize the meaning of what they are saying when they blirt it out. The word “retard” has become synonymous with words like “idiot”. And quite frankly, idiot used to mean the same thing but now it really doesn’t.
The connotative meaning of words in the English lexicon is constantly changing. When the average American is calling someone with average mental abilities a “retard”, they may not be intending in any way to reference special needs people, or they may not even realize that they are referencing special needs people. Many people are just saying the word for extra impact and others may not even realize their hidden prejudices.
So I think instead of attacking people that use this word, it would be better to educate people about the word itself. Attacking people just makes them want to fight back and dig their heels in.
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
1:37 pm
AlreadySheared I think it’s a good break from the formal topics / realpolitik. Plus. that’s what Coulter does now, entertainment with a twist.
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
1:37 pm
“Most of the rest of the things you and others wish Maureen would post have very little to do with education.”
This ENTIRE piece has nothing to do with education.
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
1:37 pm
pardon. I’ve got the html all messed up.
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
1:39 pm
Phil watch the movie
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
1:39 pm
“Phil watch the movie”
Why?
Progressive Humanist
October 24th, 2012
1:45 pm
Private Citizen- Please don’t feed the apes (Sheared, Phil, et al). Oh, I’m sorry, that was probably offensive to the lower primates.
Former Reagan Republican
October 24th, 2012
1:48 pm
I’m the father of a special needs child,but I’m also tired of living in this ultra-sensative world. I respect Ann’s right to be an idiot.
blaquemano
October 24th, 2012
1:53 pm
poor choice of words, she shoud have said “arrogant, peevish man-child” instead
Decatur Greg
October 24th, 2012
1:55 pm
Not going to get dragged down into the political fights on here. I just want to say kudos to Mr. Stephen. He was far more eloquent in his response than Ms. Coulter has been in her entire life. Keep up the good work and your continued effort for greater understanding from others James!!
susan pegsmen
October 24th, 2012
1:56 pm
she had a poor choice of words, “arrogant’ peevish man-child” is more accurate for the Obummer
DawgNole
October 24th, 2012
2:01 pm
bootney farnsworth
October 24th, 2012
12:28 pm
in a slightly different direction….
one of my closest friends has a profoundly retarded (noun, not verb or adjective) child. she has no issue with the noun, since it is accurate. it’s only when used as an adjective she gets pissed.
___________________
You used the word as an adjective here–not as a noun or verb–so is your close friend now pissed at you?
Tyler Durden
October 24th, 2012
2:05 pm
Ann Coulter is about as relevant as Sarah Palin, Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh and soon to be Mitt Romney. Although I agree what she said is offensive, it only proves what everyone (as I see not one single person disagrees) knows….she is pond scum with no true belief system, just a hate based schtick to keep raking in money.
woodrow
October 24th, 2012
2:07 pm
Coulter has never said an intelligent thing in her life. I don’t understand why people keep handing her a microphone.
Simply More....
October 24th, 2012
2:11 pm
Evidence that the GOP = Hate, Fear & Intolerance.
Matt
October 24th, 2012
2:14 pm
While not approving of the use of “retard” by Coulter, I think it’s rich to watch columnists like Maureen Downey get outraged about the comment while their silence was deafening in 2009, when Obama remarked on “The Tonight Show” that a low bowling score of his”was like the Special Olympics or something.” . The White House (rightfully) apologized later on for the comment, but nary a fraction of the outrage was heard from the media for what was effectively the same kind of insult.
Once again, left-wing media bias is in full force.
markie mark
October 24th, 2012
2:18 pm
“No wonder our culture has become so uncivil and crude.”
With all due respect, Ms Downey, it was the liberal left in the 60’s that started that ball rolling….this is a case of you reap what you sow. And the left sowed all the seeds of the lack of character, respect, anything you want to call it, that we deal with today.
Entitlement Society
October 24th, 2012
2:18 pm
What does this have to do with education? I thought this was an education blog.
Devil's Advocate
October 24th, 2012
2:21 pm
Just remember that name calling is immature when someone does it against your agenda. However, when someone pushing your agenda resorts to name calling then those who are offended are simply liberal commies trying to take away more of your rights.
Raisin Toast Fanatic
October 24th, 2012
2:21 pm
Not really a big deal. Methinks the people here doth protest too much.
Just A Teacher
October 24th, 2012
2:34 pm
This is what happens when you let a very small handful of media moguls have so much say in national politics. Television and radio used to report the news; now they try to be the news. So she said something stupid and offensive. If everyone would follow my lead and not watch or listen to any of those right wing hate mongers (Limbaugh, Coulter, etc.), it wouldn’t matter at all. Then, the FOX network would have to focus on entertainment. After all, who cares what a former celebrity thinks? She’s just lucky she lives in the USA where she has a constitutional right to say stupid and hurtful things. Oh, and the military forces which protect that right for her . . . their Commander in Chief is President Barrack Obama.
Duh
October 24th, 2012
2:36 pm
I have read the comments and concluded that Ann Coulter has accomplished her goal. You know what they say about opinions, right?
Burroughston Broch
October 24th, 2012
2:36 pm
For all you educated grammarians who looked up the definition of “retard” and ignored the noun, here it is:
1. Used as a disparaging term for a mentally retarded person.
2. A person considered to be foolish or socially inept.
These definitions are listed as offensive slang (and they are), but both were absolutely correct and spot on her target. The howls of the socially conscious underscore that she was correct.
Jen
October 24th, 2012
2:40 pm
@Matt, while Obama’s “It was like the Special Olympics or something” comment was highly inappropriate and very offensive, it’s nothing like Coulter’s use of the word “retard”, which is a form of hate speech. Obama’s comment got plenty of media coverage, and he apologized. No such apology was issued by Coulter; she has used the r-word not once, not twice, but several times. She’s very fond of the term.
What I find interesting is that Sarah Palin commented on how “heartbreaking” Rahm Emmanuel’s use of the word “retard” was, but she remains silent whenever Ann Coulter uses it in a Tweet.
itsme
October 24th, 2012
2:43 pm
Wow. Ann Coulter should wish she had the class and eloquence of John Franklin Stephen.
The Deal
October 24th, 2012
2:44 pm
The blog responses would be a mirror image of these if a liberal pundit called Mitt Romney a retard. Case closed.
Ann
October 24th, 2012
2:48 pm
@ Phil from Athens – I believe Obama apologized for that statement. We’ll see if Coulter sincerely apologizes or not.
@ Tea Party Meber – The term was certainly not used as a verb or the “slow down” definition you list.
Using terms such as that will offend as many Republican families as Democrats. Children with disabilities are members of families across all political spectrums. And, adults with disabilities vote, too.
Katrina
October 24th, 2012
2:51 pm
John Franklin Stephen’s response should go down in history as the greatest response ever. He says he thought all day about how to respond. Given all the time in the world, the rest of us would probably never have written something so beautiful.
indigo
October 24th, 2012
2:54 pm
Ann Coulter is a foul loud mouth who, unfortunately, mirrors a large part of the Republican electorate.
Sal Hammonds
October 24th, 2012
2:54 pm
Thanks for sharing the young man’s response. It was very clear as to the hurts this population endures but still strives to be productive members of society.
lahopital
October 24th, 2012
2:56 pm
I’m sure it was hurtful to some people, but they should know that most of us don’t take what ann says seriously. She’s just trying to hustle a buck from her target audience and they respond to the bully persona.
Richard Pellegrino
October 24th, 2012
2:57 pm
John’s letter made me cry tears of joy for him and tears of sadness for self-haters, like Coulter, who spew such filth and for all those who support such “hatertainment” and the self-hater personalities like her, Rush, Boortz, etc. I am grateful to you John for showing us the real difference.
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
2:57 pm
Phil – just a thought. you might relate / college town, etc. After all, you are Phil from “Athens,” the college town in Georgia, B52s, all of that.
Interesting to see some special needs parents on here expressing they’ve got other concerns, not allegiance to politically-correct-speak, and also standing for free speech. This is refreshing, thank you for confronting the whole lefty language control agenda, etc., seeing greater values.
Mitch
October 24th, 2012
3:03 pm
A good way to deal with “village idiots” is to ignore them. Gosh, don’t honor them with even acknowledging that they exist.
LydiasDad
October 24th, 2012
3:07 pm
Let’s not go overboard. O’Reilly is nothing like Coulter. He’s very fair to everyone, but he calls you out if you’re harmful or idiotic. Simple as that.
Snoopy
October 24th, 2012
3:08 pm
Ann Coulter Rocks!
SBinF
October 24th, 2012
3:09 pm
re: Ann Coulter
I don’t trust any woman with an Adam’s apple bigger than mine.
10:10 am
October 24th, 2012
3:13 pm
This is much ado about nothing.
Admit it liberals—you hate Ann Coulter because she’s beautiful. And because you’ll readily hate anyone who reminds you of your humiliation in not being invited to prom.
Billy
October 24th, 2012
3:18 pm
People are too hyper sensitive these days. Not a fan of “Pee Wee Herman” Coulter, but if she didn’t say it to a specific person, then don’t worry about it. People are always looking for an excuse to criticize someone. If you don’t like it, don’t look at it or listen to it. Better advice is to grow up and for society to dump all this PC nonsense…
Duh
October 24th, 2012
3:26 pm
Judge Smails + Droopy Dog = Ann Coulter
Catch22
October 24th, 2012
3:27 pm
You want to see victimization and fake outrage? Look no further than the whining, so-called conservatives posting in this comments section. Wow…show some personal responsibility and shut off the water works!
SBinF
October 24th, 2012
3:29 pm
“Admit it liberals—you hate Ann Coulter because she’s beautiful. And because you’ll readily hate anyone who reminds you of your humiliation in not being invited to prom.”
She makes a really beautiful drag queen. I’ll give you that much.
D.D.D.
October 24th, 2012
3:36 pm
Apparently the word “retard” or “retarded” needs to be removed from the English language. As a sibling of a “mentally handicapped” or “developmentally disabled” or “mentally challenged” Individual – I’ve been told that it is rude and impolite to refer to him as retarded because that is a derogatory word.
Is it derogatory or is it a description of a physical condition?
Additionally, I have to agree with Still Teaching, while not all “developementally disabled” people are mentally handicapped those with the diagnosis of mental retardation are rarely able to write a letter of that quality.
Teacher of Special needs
October 24th, 2012
3:45 pm
Everyone needs to look at this website!
http://www.r-word.org/
That word is never acceptable, I even ask my mother not to use it. It is offensive and rude!
Ronin
October 24th, 2012
3:49 pm
Rick @ 11:52, you’re correct, “It’s just a word”. 30 years ago, retarded was a common term for retarded cognitive development. It wasn’t used as a slam against the person. Then, as speech became more politically correct it became mentally challenged, special needs and other terms that were deemed less detrimental to that person’s self esteem. Hypersensitivity to insensitivity is now the norm.
Coulter was speaking/tweeting for effect and she certainly got it.
phil
October 24th, 2012
3:49 pm
Obama. Special Olympics. Jay Leno.
Shaw Staff
October 24th, 2012
3:53 pm
I’m so tired of free speech. Hopefully, President Obama can end that awful right and most of the others before his time is up. Then and only then will no one get their feelings hurt, and will we finally be able to live under the protective umbrella of government, and live happily ever after.
home&home
October 24th, 2012
4:06 pm
This is sofa king we todd it.
Lexi
October 24th, 2012
4:08 pm
We sure are sensitive, aren’t we?
Ann Coulter may be called lots of things, but “uneducated” is not apt. She is an honors graduate of Cornell and Michigan Law, where she was elected to the Order of the Coif (top 10%) and was an editor of the law review, when those elections were based on merit.
Like Lee, above, I suspect that the Bush haters, who were wont to call Bush dull-witted, had lower scores on objective standardized tests than did George.
Brandt Hardin
October 24th, 2012
4:11 pm
Ann is just one of the talking heads guarding the inhabitants of Bullsh*t Mountain from rejoining the world of the sane. Fox News is a propaganda machine which dumbs down America by the day through disinformation and their slanted agendas. See their anchors spewing forth feces from their mouths in my visual homage to the network on my artist’s blog at http://dregstudiosart.blogspot.com/2012/10/the-fox-news-scylla-guardian-of-bullsht.html
the prof
October 24th, 2012
4:22 pm
That Adam’s apple is scary for sure!
RGB
October 24th, 2012
4:30 pm
I am as right-wing as they come but wouldn’t use Coulter’s verbiage to describe President Obama’s sheer willful ineptitude. And I’m not sure why this piece appears in a blog pertaining to schools unless it satisfies some personal need to trounce conservatives.
What troubles me more is that President Obama didn’t adequately protect our ambassador in Libya–allowing him to be raped, yes raped, and then killed along with three colleagues. The president turned down pleas for additional security and then refused to deploy military assets to attempt to save our people in the compound. Then he lied about it.
That–added to the fact that President Obama and his party have single-handedly nearly destroyed our economy–upsets me more than a writer using the word “retard”. In fact, the slow economic growth shepherded by Obama does more to hurt the mentally retarded (because of fewer government resources) than any word Ann Coulter could utter.
But a journalist has to have her priorities I suppose.
I guess rape and murder are not “mean-spirited and cruel” enough to warrant your writing about it.
NCAA Critic
October 24th, 2012
4:35 pm
Why don’t we invent a new word? Whenever someone needs to be reminded that they have crossed a line, just call them a Coulter. “Hey, way to go, Coulter.” or, “don’t go all Coulter on me.” Also, “you are the biggest Coulter I’ve ever met.” It would be a fitting legacy for her.
William Casey
October 24th, 2012
4:36 pm
I’m slightly left of center but do watch Bill O’Reilley a good bit. Whenever Coulter shows up, I simply switch the channel. Problem solved. She’s simply a “shock jock,” similar to Howard Stern. She appeals to the segment of society that yearns for 1959. She knows that she would be fired for using the “N” word, so she settles for the “R” word. Apologists who say that language doesn’t matter? Well, I just feel sorry for your profound lack of understanding. Ann Coulter is the price we pay for the protection of the First Amendment.
William Casey
October 24th, 2012
4:39 pm
I’m OK with “willfull ineptitude.” That is simply a person’s opinion. I simply don’t agree. This is America!
William Casey
October 24th, 2012
4:43 pm
This is OK, too: “That–added to the fact that President Obama and his party have single-handedly nearly destroyed our economy–upsets me more than a writer using the word…” It’s simply wrong as any sentient being alive on January 19, 2009 knows only too well.
Special Ed. Teacher
October 24th, 2012
4:55 pm
I don’t know why so many people are quoting the dictionary to try to apologize for Ms. Coulter’s remark. The word has clearly become offensive for people who have disabilities and their families when used in that context.. Sure, the word can still be used and used appropriately. But the issue here is Ann Coulter used the word inappropriately. We all know what conotation she means. If she had called the president a certain slur for gay people, I’m sure that also would raised a few eyebrows even though that is not its definition. Can’t we find other ways to disagree and not be so shallow?
William Casey
October 24th, 2012
4:57 pm
Coulter may be intelligent; her record seems to indicate as much. So was Dr. Joseph Goebbels.
SueEllenEwing
October 24th, 2012
4:58 pm
To 10:10am: I hardly think ANYONE, except maybe you, is jealous of Ann Coulter. She has absolutely nothing to be jealous of. NOTHING!
Atlanta Mom
October 24th, 2012
5:01 pm
“Ann Coulter crosses line with parents of special needs students ”
It’s not just parents of special needs children who were offended.
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
5:03 pm
“So was Dr. Joseph Goebbels.”
Before Inglorious Basterds came out, no one even knew who Goebbels was. Left wingers probably think that movie is true.
SBinF
October 24th, 2012
5:09 pm
Don’t assume everyone was as ignorant of Nazi history as you, Phil, before Inglorious Basterds came out, whatever that is.
Rafe Hollister
October 24th, 2012
5:09 pm
Freshman!!!! Throw me down and wash my mouth out! This word Coulter used is offensive, but it has been made that way by those who get offended every time it is used. Once it was an official term to designate those who had mental or emotional problems. We need to get our language back, where words mean what Funk and Wagnalls say they mean, rather than what “pop culture” says they mean. I have a male friend named Gay, and someone destroyed his happy go lucky name. He still proudly uses it, not ashamed, and takes on any one who tries to make fun of it. Grow up people. Sticks and stones…………………. as my mother taught me.
3schoolkids
October 24th, 2012
5:27 pm
I do not give a hoot about what Ann Coulter thinks or says. However, I do not agree with @skipper, “abuse is a fact of life” and I will not get over that. I wish all that have commented on her statement would use their time to petition our local, state and federal governments for improved care, research and education for special needs.
@Private Citizen said “it is tragic that we do not have the knowledge to just go into this child’s head and flip a switch and make it right.” There are studies being conducted now of brain scans of people with autism to try and figure that out. Check out the Foundation for Mitochondrial Medicine, based here in Atlanta. http://www.mitochondrialdiseases.org/
They are researching Mitochondrial Disease, a subset of people with autism have mitochondrial disease or dysfunction. There are many other conditions associated with Mitochondrial Disease. It very well could be a situation where if we could restore energy to the organ/s affected in an individual, their quality of life could be much improved, even restored. There are NO cures for Mitochondrial Disease, yet. Quit griping about Ann Coulter, use your energy in a positive way.
lahopital
October 24th, 2012
5:30 pm
I love it that some poster points out that Coulter was an editor of the University of Michigan Law Review “when those elections were based on merit.” She got her JD in 1988, the same year Obama was elected President of the Harvard Law Review. So, clearly she was the benficiary of affirmative action and made law review the same year as the president – just at at second tier school. I suspect she’s still hacked off about that.
Get Over It
October 24th, 2012
5:39 pm
It is time for people to get back their sense of humor. I am sure Ann was not referring to mentally disabled people. This is a word that has been in the vocabulary for a very long time. The quote needs to be taken in the context given.
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
5:45 pm
“Don’t assume everyone was as ignorant of Nazi history as you, Phil, before Inglorious Basterds came out, whatever that is.”
Oh look, it’s the troll who got in a fight with a bunch of folks on the LSU/cross topic yesterday.
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
5:46 pm
lahopital
I’d love to see Obama’s grades. Oh wait, he won’t release them.
bigdoggie
October 24th, 2012
5:51 pm
I substituted in a special needs class today. the students were inspiring, fun, attentive and tried hard to master the lessons presented.
ANYONE posting on here who tries to defend Man Coulter and her hate speech is just as bigoted, shallow and hateful as she.
And, I’ll bet you call yourselves X-tians! What you are is insensitive, disgraceful and all that is wrong with America today!
I love teaching. I hate what it is becoming...
October 24th, 2012
6:20 pm
It is pathetic that ANYONE would support this kind of language, let alone aimed at the president of the United States. BTW, I am a liberal, and disliked Bush, but I never referred to him by a derogatory term, and would take to task anyone who did. The office of the President should be shown a certain amount of respect.
I weep for this country. I spend all day trying to teach my students that one should be polite and civil to others, that calling people nasty names is unacceptable and does nothing to solve problems. Then I get to watch as all of my lessons are undermined by people like Ann Coulter – who shows up on TV and talk shows like celebrities, treat people like trash, and makes millions doing so.
Furthermore, I get to read as posters, rather than admitting that she was out of line, act just like my students, “Well, HE did it too! So nanny nanny boo boo!” Or even worse, defend her foul mouth.
I am absolutely sick of the incivility infecting this country. Not a day goes by that some politician, celebrity, religious figure etc. doesn’t say something nasty or derogatory about others in the national media. These days it does not seem to be enough to disagree with someone, you have to insult them like a small-minded, schoolyard bully!
And for those of you blathering on about how “liberals” this and “right wingers” need to stop lumping millions of people into simplistic categories that make it easy to point the finger. No wonder this nation is teetering on the brink – and if we fall, I am sure some folks will place all the blame on the “other” and never consider how their own efforts to marginalize anyone who was not “like them” lead to the growing cult of coarseness and the inability to cooperate on anything
.
Jeff
October 24th, 2012
6:27 pm
The fact all of you care about what comes out of Ann Coulter’s mouth says a lot about you.
catlady
October 24th, 2012
6:32 pm
Phil, her comment is a reflection of the meme of the current Republican presidential and vice presidential candidates: To h3ll with the little people–the sick, the elderly, the poor, the handicapped. They will never “deserve” the largess that the “in” crowd demands. After all, they don’t “produce” anything! Let handicapped buy their own insurance (with a voucher that won’t cover the pre-existing conditios once Romney rolls back Obamacare!)
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
6:41 pm
“To h3ll with the little people–the sick, the elderly, the poor, the handicapped.”
You can thank Obama for high unemployment that keeps them poor.
Oh, and I can not WAIT until Romney repeals Obamcare.
I bet you didn’t even read the 2000 page bill did you?
The Non- PC Guy
October 24th, 2012
6:44 pm
The political correctness that is so prevalent in today’s society to pacify ALL of the special interest groups AND politicians is disgusting. No wonder this country is in such disarray. Grow up,work on getting some thicker skin and quit bowing down to any and everyone that doesn’t agree with your idea of FREEDOM OF SPEECH. It’s a RIGHT guaranteed in the First Amendment of the US Constitution.
RGB
October 24th, 2012
6:46 pm
Obama wants to give women “free” oral contraceptives that they could buy at Wal-Mart for $9 and the liberal women just love that idea.
Conservative women would rather have a job and buy their own OCs.
ObamaCare will raise the cost of private health insurance since anytime the government distorts a market, the costs go up. This will cause millions to lose their employer-provided insurance which means that after ObamaCare goes into effect, there will be fewer people with health insurance. Already premiums have substantially increased and big companies have taken many billions in charges against their bottom lines in anticipation of the full effect of ObamaCare.
Hey, didn’t we see this movie before? Obama’s plans for increasing employment results in less employment. He spends trillions we do not have (taking it from the private sector which could have used it to create jobs via business expansion) and distorts the economy which results in fewer jobs.
Obama’s energy plan is to not look for it (and prevent others from doing so), and the costs rise.
How many more times will you folks have to see this happen before you apply a smidgen of critical thinking to what this man is doing to our country?
bu2
October 24th, 2012
6:48 pm
TV political commentary started dying with Nightline which put on extremists and got good ratings. Now you have the President being disrespectful in the debate (we have these things called submarines…) and all the Democrats praising the crassness. How many of you would actually talk to someone that way in person (without the anonymity of the internet)? President Obama leads the way with his attacks on the integrity of anyone who disagrees with him.
So yes, Ann is crass and classless. So is President Obama and even worse are VP Biden and Senate Majority Leader Reed.
lori
October 24th, 2012
6:49 pm
She is a talking head, a journalist……27 years as a special educator has been an education of other’s ignorance on the subject.
WHO CARES WHAT SHE SAYS???? CHANGE THE CHANNEL, PEOPLE!
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
7:16 pm
“Obamacare” has likely done some good in regard to people with pre-exisiting conditions, but there’s still half the country without health insurance. ! And there’s video of him at the podium saying “everyone will have health care now.” It’s like PlaySkool politics and about as real.
sm
October 24th, 2012
7:16 pm
The popular use for words change through time. Think of the word gay. It once meant “happy” then it meant “homosexual” and is now often used for “dumb”. The word retarded was once used to describe people with mental or learning disabilities (like Downs Syndrome). Not many people still use it like that anymore. It is used the same way gay is used. This may not be right, but it is the way it is. Move on.
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
7:20 pm
RGB!!!!!!
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
7:20 pm
Private Citizen
You do realize that there are actually some people who don’t want health insurance, right?
Darwin
October 24th, 2012
7:21 pm
A poster child for the right wing.
Phil from Athens
October 24th, 2012
7:21 pm
Can anyone explain why Obama says “kids can stay on their parents plan until they are 26?” I had no idea 26 year olds were kids. The adult age in this country is 18.
HUH?????
October 24th, 2012
7:23 pm
“A poster child for the right wing.”
Poster child for the left: Karl Marx, Mao, Hitler, Gore, Chavez…
I’ll take Coulter over anyone on your side any day of the week.
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
7:25 pm
Agree with you bu regarding the debate and the lefties who think this is clever. It’s a real tragedy that Romney seems to have some character issues underneath his ability to make great accomplishment. He’s also way out of touch with a lot of domestic people issues. That man is going to pay a heavy price for living so many years apart from regular working people. Maybe he deserves to lose after cashing in companies, walking away with the money, and leaving workers out in the cold.
If you think Obama during the debate is gross, you should see the emails I get from his campaign. They’re just as “clever.” One of them was very demanding. “According to our database, YOU HAVEN’T GIVEN US ANY MONEY! WHAT’S THE DEAL?” Sounds like I’m making a joke. I’m not.
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
7:26 pm
Whoop. ‘didn’t close the html again. -Have some bold! A little extra!
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
7:30 pm
Phil, Call it what you want, everybody needs to be able to go to the doctor and leave with their wallet intact, with their bank account intact, without taking on debt, without getting their credit ruined, and without being made bankrupt!
At the risk of sounding like a NJ steel worker, do you have a problem with that?
And kids need eyeglasses, too. And in Georgia, kids do not have them. If you have issue about this, I would much like to hear it.
Rafe Hollister
October 24th, 2012
7:36 pm
Respect the office, sure, respect the man who goes around acting juvenile and poking fun at a rival by saying he has Romnesia. He is a real role model for our children!
Walter Little, Jr.
October 24th, 2012
7:38 pm
Thanks for letting those of us who might not heard of her remark know Maureen. As a volunteer of a group working to remove the “R” word from our vocabulary, I find such comments as those made by Ms. Coulter rude, crude, and obnoxious.
P.S. – Have a safe trip.
Pride and Joy
October 24th, 2012
7:51 pm
Ann Coulter is a media wh$ore. She’ll say anything to get her name in the paper on her mug on TV. She might as well be Ann Kardashian. No one should take her seriously or be offended by her. She is what she is –a narcissist.
Elizabeth
October 24th, 2012
7:54 pm
People who say things like what Ann Coulter said are really saying a lot more about themselves than they are about the person they are purportedly talking about.
Personally, I would MUCH prefer to spend time with disabled people or other people that she considers “retards” than with Ann Coulter, and I suspect that most people feel the same way.
Peggy
October 24th, 2012
8:02 pm
How can a black man in America with no ties to Ivy League schools attend, graduate, become a sitting U.S president and still be called a retard by white trash……SHAKING MY DAMN HEAD!
George Hale
October 24th, 2012
8:03 pm
As Ralphie May points out, retards are not offended,because they do not know they should be. They are happy people by and large if they have anything. People who are offended by the term, an abbreviated version of retarded, should . . . well get a life.
Earnestly
October 24th, 2012
8:04 pm
The current political climate combined with the detached nature of social media is allowing weak people with stunted morals to vent their spleen and find an audience of like minded sociopaths. Our founding fathers, who incidentally weren’t as high minded as we’ve been taught, would be disgusted.
Eustace Tilly
October 24th, 2012
8:08 pm
If Obama, who graduated from Columbia and Harvard Law, is a “retard,” what does that make Coulter, who graduated from Cornell (haha!) and Michigan Law (double haha!)?
Greg Camp
October 24th, 2012
8:12 pm
Ann Coulter is another parasite in the model of Rush Limbaugh. They espouse garbage to feed their weak minded audience and make millions doing so. A sad statement as to the current mentallity that has enveloped this country.
Mitch
October 24th, 2012
8:15 pm
Hey Y’all. Let’s not agonize over the remarks of the Village Idiot. Ann Coulter is a Republican and that is the way they think these days.
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
8:42 pm
hey Phil, “Don’t get sick.” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnoD3NUux3M#t=0m45s
Bisnono
October 24th, 2012
8:47 pm
My little brother was just 20 when 911 happened. He was SO inspired by the firemen in New York that he himself became a fireman with my hometown’s volunteer fire department.
My precious brother, who would give you the shirt off his back if you needed it, stutters. For his entire childhood, he heard the R-word from bullies constantly because of his stuttering.
I am so incredibly proud of what he was accomplished and who he has become. And the people he rescues from burning homes and car wrecks? They couldn’t care less if he stutters. All that matters is that they live through it, and it is his determination and failure to give in to BULLIES like Ann Coulter who thought he was stupid that he takes to work with him every time he pulls on his suit and climbs on that fire truck.
I love teaching. I hate what it is becoming...
October 24th, 2012
8:49 pm
So much misinformation here. *sigh*
Dr. Monica Henson
October 24th, 2012
8:51 pm
Ann Coulter is one of the most loathsome life forms on the planet.
William Casey
October 24th, 2012
9:05 pm
@Phil: Not everyone is ignorant. Enjoy your bliss. LOL
Teacher Reader
October 24th, 2012
9:40 pm
There is nothing wrong with the use of the word. If people are offended, grow thicker skin. This world has gotten too pc and frankly we’re not getting the truth for fear of offending someone. Don’t care if someone is offended anymore, I want the truth and want to know what is on someone’s mind without sensorship. Just say what you mean and mean what you say. I don’t have to agree, but you have a right say what you really feel. Too many are offended for so little. Grow up everyone and put your big person pants on.
DawgNole
October 24th, 2012
9:44 pm
Teacher Reader
October 24th, 2012
9:40 pm
There is nothing wrong with the use of the word. If people are offended, grow thicker skin. This world has gotten too pc and frankly we’re not getting the truth for fear of offending someone. Don’t care if someone is offended anymore, I want the truth and want to know what is on someone’s mind without sensorship. Just say what you mean and mean what you say. I don’t have to agree, but you have a right say what you really feel. Too many are offended for so little. Grow up everyone and put your big person pants on.
___________________
Good thing you didn’t say “big-boy pants.” Someone would’ve been offended.
Teacher Reader
October 24th, 2012
9:51 pm
@ Private Citizen: Romney worked very hard for the money that he had, as do most people who make it in life. There is nothing wrong with Romney, the way he earned his money, and his character. Look into him and look at how he has paid for milk for veterans when there wasn’t enough to pay for milk for them. Look at how he has helped those in need, expecting nothing in return. Look at how he gives millions away. When I look at Romney, I see a decent man.
Having lived in Chicago, I remember Obama’s elections to get to where he is today. I remember him bringing out personal divorce records on an opponent, hurting his family and being totally ruthless and callous for the feelings of others. Obama is also rich and has been for some time. He lives in a million plus home in Chicago which he got in a shady deal. The current situation in Libya and the lies the Americans were told and are being told after emails have come out are appalling. Sorry, but Obama is scum and has little dignity or care for anyone other than himself.
I hear all about the Romney’s money, but Michelle Obama wears equally expensive, often times more expensive clothing than Ann Romney. If you’re going to make comments about one candidate, look closely and honestly at the candidate you support before spewing BS about the person you don’t like.
I don’t care who you vote for. I just am tired of people spewing lies and using class war fair to divide America. Growing up poor, I worked hard to have every single thing that I have and my husband and I are not ashamed or do we feel badly that others aren’t so fortunate. I don’t have Romeny or Obama money, but I do live comfortably and no one has given us anything. We’ve taken risks and worked hard and always done our best.
Class war fair does not belong in America, because anyone can make it, if they have the desire, and take the initiative. My grandfather came here penniless from Germany, to die with a 100 acre farm worth much more because of the land. America is not about handouts and redistributing what others have worked for to give to those unwilling to work as hard.
RAMZAD
October 24th, 2012
10:16 pm
Americans created the market for Ann Coulter and other miscellaneous slime of her caliber. The twenty four cycle of propaganda for news and hate speech for commentary has created a vast cesspool of people like Ann Coulter.
As long as facts are less important than propaganda Ann Coulter will have a job oozing pus
over mass and social media.
bubba
October 24th, 2012
10:27 pm
Maureen, you should be embarrassed by lazily introducing this trivial “tweet” into an Education blog to meet your quota for the day.
Bisnono
October 24th, 2012
10:34 pm
@teacher reader –
Tell a little 7 year old boy who spent the entire day at school being told he was stupid and made fun of by his classmates to just grow thicker skin? THAT is your suggestion??
You want me to tell it like it is to you? I would be more than happy to, but I would be censored and my post would never be printed in this forum. So let me make it as clear as possible for you in small words so YOU will understand how it feels to watch a loved one suffer because other people get their jollies for making fun of someone who is different from them: it makes me want to put you on display naked in the middle of Times Square, with a BIG sign around your neck that says “kick me, I make fun of others to feel better about myself and my pointless existence.” You are a PATHETIC excuse for a human being. How about you try putting yourself in the shoes of a child with Down Syndrome, or the parent of a child with developmental disabilities for one frigging DAY and see if you grow a heart??!
dc
October 24th, 2012
10:56 pm
Yeah…because this is clearly the important topic of the day. Seriously? What a stupid topic. Students are dropping out of school, the charter amendment is upon us, schools are failing right and left…and this is the topic of the day.
What a bunch of liberal B.S.
Private Citizen
October 24th, 2012
11:13 pm
Teacher Reader, Since we’re standing out here on the edge of the diving board, thank you for backgrounding Obama, I’ve got no romance with him for a number of reasons. Back to what I was saying, … yeah there is a problem with somebody who takes things apart and doesn’t build things and then calls it “business.” The real teeth grinder is a lot of these folk came from the good life back when there was a 40% tax bracket in the USA and that’s why we had public universities and stuff. Even if Romney was born with silver, gold, and platinum spoons in his mouth and didn’t need public university, there was a real sweet spot after WW2 when the tax rate was high, the doors were open, and a lot was getting done for individuals. If you can’t see this, so be it. I’ve got no problem with rich people, been around plenty of them. They usually know how to do the jobs on the bottom, can step in anywhere in their enterprise and do a better job than the worker under them, and have their wealth because they have created or built something, an art, service, or product, not a predatory service, not a predator. Romney is a predator. He cleaned out companies and then stashed the cash in off shore tax havens. If you think that is okay and “Cayman Islands” is your idea of US citizenship, hey, please get a boat and go over there. At least everyone won’t have $25-50k college debt so that they graduate school with a house payment and no house, unlike when Romney was a youth and people had mobility without the stone donut around their neck. Romney could have taken any of those companies and made them produce instead of disassembling them, but that wouldn’t have been expedient for his pocket book. Thanks for the Chicago reality check on Obama. Seems like these guys are groomed and placed. He’s definitely a pro. He main strength is slow-motion damage control. Maybe it’ll work and we better get used to the smooth voice for a while longer. By the way, it’s spelled “censorship” and a lot of great writers couldn’t spell for a sack of beans..
PS The #1 real problem is that Reagan changed the laws protecting the public from centralized ownership of major media. That’s why it’s dullsville now and no one has to report, they can just blast you with “the message.” Just look at what happened to music on the radio after Reagan made a big smile and signed it. Under Bush is was like the administration didn’t even feel compelled to inform the public what they were doing and the news didn’t go to the trouble either. Even today, you get better U. S. news from Russia Today and Al Jazeera than from the U. S. major medias that are owned by a few companies. You should look up the statistics on it. There used to be, like, 200 companies that owned U. S. major media. Now it’s like 3 or 4. Makes it real easy to support corporate culture and things like the Comcast monopoly over internet. You even notice that? Oh there’s competition, is there? Where I live, the DSL alternative is about the same speed at internet in North Korea. I’m not making a pun. I speedtest and document my internet connection. The best part is that the connection statistics are complete misrepresented by the FCC and Obama’s appointee Genokowsi who’s FCC policy is that they “encourage” competition. Huh? And I telephoned them about the mispresentation on the available connection speeds. After two days of calls and dead numbers, I finally talked to an engineer in Colorado who put me in touch with somebody real. This person bounced it down to the state level and said, in effect, “it’s your problem.” Obama is a corporate schmoe through and through. And FoxNews tells the workers that he’s a “socialist.” And the workers believe it.
Pink
October 25th, 2012
12:25 am
Private Citizen, you make some good points but don’t waste your breath. The majority of people are either stupid or self-centered and some are, unfortunately, both. On another note, I remember when the great evil was “communist”. Now it appears it’s “socialist”. Whatever happened to hating on the communist? Does this mean we can be friends with Cuba now? If not, then why can we play with China? Oh no, now my head hurts. I’ll have to go lie down.
Private Citizen
October 25th, 2012
12:41 am
Romney worked very hard for the money that he had,
So, you’re under a spell and just making stuff up? According to Ann Romney’s book, “At Harvard, Ann was able to stay home with their children despite neither parent having a job, because “we had no income except the stock we were chipping away at.” (which was a gift from his dad)
Read about it for yourself. http://www.salon.com/2012/09/18/mitt_romney_self_made_man/
During Romney’s mission work, “He was promoted to zone leader in Bordeaux in early 1968, and soon thereafter became assistant to the mission president in Paris”
Have you ever been to Bordeaux? Bordeaux is the wealthiest area in the entire country. It makes Buckhead look like Hapeville. This is not really an overstatement or hyperbole. Buckhead has $10M houses. Bordeaux has castles and producing vineyards that have been there for a thousand years, and downtown has extensive public underground parking out of sight and a spotless ground level for the humans to walk. They’re not exactly looking for tourists, there, either. It is exclusive and uncrowded and has a premium public transport train system as well. Let me dial up a picture for you. See any parked cars? No, because parking is underground. http://www.orangesmile.com/common/img_final_large/bordeaux_sightseeing.jpg This is a good overview to give you a feel for the place. Note the absence of cars and people walking instead. Oh, yes they have cars. They keep them out of sight. http://americanmominbordeaux.blogspot.com/2012/04/bordeaux-my-new-city.html
Public transport in one of the crummier parts of town http://farm1.static.flickr.com/51/182682590_beb20b82e7.jpg
And yes, they have universal health care and all of the kids have eyeglasses. They don’t do it “Romney style,” or “Obama (the corporate herd-master) style” for that matter.
GaNative
October 25th, 2012
12:46 am
Ann Coulter should just shut her mouth. For someone that looks like a transsexual, she should not be throwing stones at anyone.
Private Citizen
October 25th, 2012
12:46 am
ps Cars are not just out of sight, but out of rain, snow, dirt etc. Extensive heated underground parking. Practical and smart. They’ve got the money to pay for it, so why not?
Lou
October 25th, 2012
1:03 am
I am no fan of Ann Coulter and have great empathy for those who parent the mentally challenged. That said–there is no way that young man with Down Syndrome could have written that letter. I’ve been a college professor and taught freshman English, so I know of what I speak. Perhaps if the person who helped him write the letter had been identified, then the letter would have more credibility.
Private Citizen
October 25th, 2012
1:13 am
Pink, The terms “communism” and “socialism” have real meaning and are not to be equated. Communist countries are dirty and dirt poor and the joke is “you make believe you work and I’ll make believe I pay you.” Socialist countries take a portion of the economy, called “inefficient markets” and make them efficient through organizing public services. We do the same thing here in the U. S. with roads, but that is about where it stops. Socialist countries tend to be highly industrialized and wealthy. They make things, they sell things, and they take care of their populace. Socialist countries tend to have great private wealth due to the sophistication of their production. The wealth is more evenly distributed than in the U. S. due to much private ownership of industry and there is not so much concern or reliance of the stock market system. I owned about $5k in a European stock and for about a year the valuation sat there like a rock and did not go up and down like in the U. S. system. They have a whole different way of looking at business. For example, the Michelin tire company is privately owned by the people who started it. A lot of their kids are priests or nuns. I guess they’re not too concerned about having their needs met. I knew a schoolteacher in the U. S. who was from the same town as the Michelin family and grew up with their kids and told me about them. In these socialist countries, they take “values” seriously. In the U. S., services are withheld and “values” are sold as a training program to enrich someone and people in government schools are forced to go along with it and are threatened with their jobs.
Private Citizen
October 25th, 2012
1:35 am
Teacher Reader, You’re misinformed about the U. S. being the land of opportunity today. Yes, we have treated water to drink without getting sick, but opportunity and economic mobility is documented and not just an opinion. U. S. is ranked low internationally on “work hard, get ahead.” The term is “mobility” or “social mobility.” I’ll go ahead and document it for you. Yeah, baby. Here you go. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-american-dream-is-now-a-myth-2012-6
See the part of the chart when social / economic mobility is 6x what it is today? That’s from when guys like Romney were paying their share.
Private Citizen
October 25th, 2012
1:41 am
According to that chart, currently the trend of being downwardly mobile is greater than the trend of being upwardly mobile. Hmm Sounds like student loans to me. In the long run, for many people, student loans make your economic mobility go down. No one seems to realize that this is pretty recent and that the USA is the only country in the universe that weighs people down with this kind of debt in order to get professional training. It is really astounding that Americans don’t have perspective on it.
Private Citizen
October 25th, 2012
1:41 am
America is a big fat tomato and someone is getting the tomato juice.
Private Citizen
October 25th, 2012
1:54 am
Literally, it is like the country is getting harvested. Let us not forget that Arne Duncan is from Harvard. Private Citizen has pretty good instincts. This leave me a little speechless. At the height of the financial bubble, 47% of Harvard graduates headed to jobs in finance http://www.thenation.com/blog/165724/harvard-wall-street-recruiting-ivies#
Can you spell Harvard S O C I O P A T H ?
Dr. Craig Spinks/ Georgians for Educational Excellence
October 25th, 2012
2:39 am
Should anyone be surprised by this example of Ms. Coulter’s use of demeaning language? I thought her so doing was her stock-and-trade substitute for substance.
Teacher Reader
October 25th, 2012
10:27 am
America is the land of opportunity. Why else would people from other countries be beating down the door to get in? You have the opportunity of choice. You can go to school for poetry or you can go for engineering-each will give you different outcomes. You have a choice in where you live, the type of home you live in and the car that you drive. We have choice. We have education for our children.
Are you guaranteed to have success-NO, but you can pursue happiness and what you feel success is-which is different for everyone.
Kids who make choices to go into debt for $50,000 plus for jobs that will land them a salary that amounts to $30-40,000 are not making wise choices.
I don’t want wealth to be distributed evenly. I want my hard work to pay off and get me more than the person who does just enough to get by. I don’t envy anyone who works hard and make something of themselves or even someone born into wealth. The class envy has to stop. Our “poor” have cable, computers, other electronics, a roof over their heads, food, healthcare clothing, often times a car, and so much more than the poor of many other countries. We in America don’t know what it means to be poor.
Look at Europe now. It’s a crumbling system, because people expect to work 30 hours a week, earn a full time salary and retire when they are 50 and be taken care of until they die. The European system doesn’t work!!! Socialism does not promote innovation, creative thinking, and doing more.
I believe it is you who is misinformed and bitter because of the choices that you have made in your life.
By the way Obama went to some of the top schools in the areas where he lived, so he was not poor either, you really need to better investigate and stop relying on what he says. If you haven’t learned anything from Benghazi, he is not one to tell the truth even when the truth is staring him in the face. Michele didn’t come from poverty either. Both came from middle class or better families.
Private Citizen
October 25th, 2012
10:40 am
Oh Great. Bordeaux also has public wi-fi. “Another modern thing about Bordeaux is that they are making the center part WiFi accessible for free”
Private Citizen
October 25th, 2012
10:53 am
Teacher Reader, What are you sources? I do not mean list the articles, but maybe you should! I gave you real documented economic information and it went right over your head. zzzeeee! like an arrow.
I don’t want to do the “personal attack” or whatever, but you’re repeating generalized propaganda from your media where you live. I think you missed the part about US centralised ownership of media and how easy it is to project “the message” and support the current corporate system with maximum control and minimum access to services. I guess I need to thank you because you provide evidence that the #1 issue really is when Reagan changed the laws to allow centrlised ownership of media resulting in a consistent coordinated corporate message. And then you believe it.
Teacher Reader, I’m going to say it. You think like a peasant. I’ll even go and fetch the definition. I’d don’t mean it as a chop. I mean it as a determinative concept. Nah, you can look it up, it’s too cruel. Maybe I am wrong because you say you’re doing well and grandpa owned 100 acres, which gives you some foundation. What may be more accurate is that things are going okay for you and you simply do not care about your fellow citizens. I take strong exception about the fact that Georgia school children do not have eyeglasses. ‘Reader, you are what is called the bourgeousie, the comfortable middle class. You afraid that any improvement in society will result in that you have less. So you stifle innovation, you do not recognise effienciency, and it is just fine with you if people die on their front porch and children do not have eyeglasses. I’d call you a coward, except that a coward would have to care enough to be a coward. How’s that for some poetry?
You need to go and teach in, like, a rural area outside of Athens. Then get back to me. If you think it’s okay for teachers to have health care and students to not have eyeglasses, well, I don’t think that’s okay. Have a swell day.
Entitlement Society
October 25th, 2012
12:21 pm
@Private Citizen – those of us that work and provide for our families, understand the value of a dollar, when to spend on food/education/shelter versus cable/hair do’s/fancy basketball shoes and finger nails (yes, I watch them at Kroger using their food stamp card, all decked out in their garb, gold jewelry, iPhone, manicured nails and fancy hair while I clip coupons and pay my own way) have a problem with the way the current administration wants to redistribute the “wealth” of this country. I am by no means wealthy, so I resent my hard earned tax dollars being reallocated to those who obviously have discretionary income to pay for things that my budget doesn’t allow for, while they receive government subsidies that obviously aren’t needed. What happened to work ethic in this country? Maybe then your woeful students would have some eyeglasses!
Private Citizen
October 25th, 2012
1:16 pm
Well, Entitlement Society, despite the baubles and glitz, we need efficient delivery of services. I do the same thing, buy myself a new $100. smart phone and have it shipped from China, or some other object, or spend time looking online at an $8,000 racing car brake system that will bolt up to my automobile. Everybody needs amusements you may have noticed if you ever go to pay for you gas and have to stand in-line behind someone buying a lottery ticket.
Point is, these $100,-$200 things you mention maybe have little to do with priorities and more to do with the glass ceiling – tap tap tap – as the immigrant stand-up comic so wonderfully illustrated.
What happened to work ethic in this country?
Americans are working their behinds off, in case you haven’t noticed. US teachers spend 35% more hours teaching in the classroom than the colleagues outside the USA. Look up the OECD reports. They spend $500M a year documenting this stuff (more or less). http://www.oecd.org/about/budget/ This information is not just “made up” or opinion or what makes me “feel” good / bad. Everybody I know is working like a fiend. Parents of students are working like fiends. If they’re not, they’re disabled. I had a disabled lady who lived next door to me. She could hardly walk. I cut down a wooden stool for her so she had a comfortable place to sit. She’s dead now. Call her what you like, she paid with her life.
Maybe then your woeful students would have some eyeglasses!
These are not simple matters, the culture of going without.
Work ethic?
You mean like the old guy who forms concrete and had a “pin stroke” (whatever that is) and spent 2 days in the hospital and left with a $20,000. bill?
jarvis
October 25th, 2012
1:26 pm
What does this have to do with school?
jarvis
October 25th, 2012
1:30 pm
@Private Citizen, I love you constant reference to things being “free” when you mean “government provided”.
Those aren’t synonyms.
Private Citizen
October 25th, 2012
1:35 pm
jarvis Kids without eyeglasses has a lot to do with school. There are plenty of education theorists world wide who will tell you that you have to attend to social conditions and care for people as the context of education reform. Let me just make my reply quick. How would you do in school if you were not an adult, did not have the power of adult decision making, and you had headaches at school and could clearly see either the clock on the wall or your work in front of you? My point is there is a lot of this in Georgia. I do not think it is being documented or that “the data” is being collected and put together. If it is, this data about untreated vision impairment- aka “eyeglasses” – is kept off to the side somewhere.
How would you do in school – headaches and unfocused vision? -Kids don’t have a checkbook, either, ability or maturity to fend for themselves.
Private Citizen
October 25th, 2012
1:37 pm
“I can’t see! I can’t see!”
“Well, sit on the floor directly in front of the screen. Here’s a chair.”
“My head hurts.”
Private Citizen
October 25th, 2012
1:45 pm
jarvis Everything has a cost structure, nothing is for free.
efficiency: Achieving maximum productivity with minimum wasted effort or expense.
Private Citizen
October 25th, 2012
1:46 pm
jarvis services are not government provided. citizens pay for them.
Private Citizen
October 25th, 2012
2:04 pm
hey jarvis there’s plenty of anthropology papers written about do-gooders who go to far away places and the locals run them off and do now want their clean water or medical treatments. thing is, Atlanta is not a far away place. It is has a symphony orchestra and the busiest airport in the world. but regional people are allergic to the idea that people should have services. Currently, the country of Brazil has better health care coverage than that state of Georgia. can you explain this to me?
jarvis
October 25th, 2012
2:36 pm
Citizens don’t pay for our services. We borrow the money from China for that. Our citizens poorly attempt to pay interest.
As to your comment on school, thanks for the diatribe, but I was referring to the blog topic of Coulter calling the President “a retard”.
TOK
October 25th, 2012
8:38 pm
My background: my daughter, who is 4 years old, has Down Syndrome, and long ago I worked in a training programs for adults with mental retardation.
Look, Coulter is just a political shock jock whose shtick is to draw attention to herself by being outrageous. So I don’t really much care what offensive thing she says. But I’m unhappy to see how many people here are sticking up for her.
People who are mentally retarded get a lot of static (”Suck it, you ug!y-ass retard!”). Luckily, my daughter hasn’t yet received any yet, but I presume that she’ll get a large dose of abuse by the time she hits middle school, if not beforehand. So many people with mental retardation (and their friends and family) find the widespread use of “retard” as a particularly insulting way of calling somebody an incredible dumbass both demeaning and hurtful. Is that so hard to understand?
If saying this makes me a member of pc thought-police brigade or whatever, so be it. You’re free to say what you want. But if you feel the need to insult somebody’s intelligence, there are plenty of other ways of doing so without running down people with mental retardation. And if you persist in calling people retards even after it’s been explained you that it’s demeaning to people like my daughter, I’m free to call you a jerk.
heavenly
October 25th, 2012
8:40 pm
Her use of the r-word just goes to show how uneducated she actually is. It really is no different than the N-word, regardless of what she thinks. Does she really think that using such nasty words will make her opponents any less likely to win? Maybe she is just a really weak person who is insecure about herself and thus feels the need to lash out at people who “pose a threat to her”. It is appalling that humans such as her exist in the world.
Cornell University and University of Michigan Law should be embarrassed to have her as a graduate of their schools. She sets such a fine example for others (obviously said with much sarcasm). No wonder she is unmarried; no man can stand her enough to love her.
My2Cents
October 25th, 2012
9:35 pm
Too bad – I thought Ann Coulter had a better command of the english language. So many words available and such bad choices.
TJones
October 25th, 2012
11:53 pm
Ann Coulter and Donald Trump have a lot in common: an insatiable need for attention and an utter lack of class, which can’t be bought by either wealth or education.
Pardon My Blog
October 26th, 2012
7:33 am
I am not sure why this ended up on the “Get Schooled” blog because the tweet was referencing the Presidential debate and had nothing to do with education. I find it a veiled attempt to insert some political opinion wherever the AJC can. With that said, I agree that I don’t think the letter was written by Mr. Stephen especially after seeing an interview with him but I do think that Ms. Coulter should take up his challenge to go see the Special Olympics. But what I really would like to see is equal outrage when people such as Jeremiah Wright, Al Sharpton, Van Jones and others make racist remarks to try to stir up the masses. Where is the outrage when certain individuals promise violence and assassinations if their candidate of choice is not reelected?
The comments on this blog really show some of the personalities of the bloggers and alot seem to have alot of intolerence for anyone who disagrees with them. @Dunwoody Mom, I thought you had more class than that.
BTW – I have volunteered countless hours over the years in assisting with Special Olympics as well as other events to help youth of all needs and races.
Pardon My Blog
October 26th, 2012
7:46 am
Also, talk about using inappropriate terms or language, how about POTUS referring to Romney as a Bull*****er! and that was directed at a six year old!
my two cents
October 26th, 2012
1:24 pm
I hear the students say “retarded” and “gay” loosely as though it is part of everyday language. I think that those words can be very hurtful to some and mean nothing to others. This is a tough world were we have the most people ever, many different ideas pulling in different directions, it is difficult to come to a consensus to what should and shouldn’t be said. the s*** word is rarely bleeped on basic cable anymore. Times have really changed.
Archie
October 26th, 2012
1:54 pm
Unfortunately, the kind of “verbal violence” that Ann Coulter dispenses is profitable! When it ceases to be that, we will see (and hear) much less of it. There are some to whom she is a guru. On the president’s comment about his bowling ability, that could have been the proverbial “slip of the tongue.” (Disclaimer: “I ain’t so wild about him, neither!”)
lamour
October 26th, 2012
11:08 pm
I am a retired educator. As an integral part of developing good character within our students we taught them to be kind to each other, to help, to share, and to refrain from mean, hurtful, disrespectful remarks about others. Indeed those of us who are Christians have been taught the same. The very negative remark that Ann Coulter made about the President and its negative connotation for mentally challenged persons is inexcusable! It shows the unkind heart she has and indeed what kind of person she is. A good name is rather chosen than riches. Ann Coulter, your name is muddied by the behavior and ugly speech you have shown against others. God is watching and recording.
appalled
October 27th, 2012
1:02 am
Good Lord! You conservatives are like the bully followers in high school. You do realize that you have your own minds and can think for yourselves? right?? You would follow behind your bully leader and do as you were told and all you got for it was the hopes of being considered popular. The funny thing is, is that you weren’t popular, you were pitied. Your minds live in a hell beyond conceivability of the rest of us.
This horrible creature, not a woman, but a hateful being that thinks she is funny or charming, is nothing more than a sideshow freak. She is the “Heathers” but an adult. Your precious Romney is the same way. Your hate is vile and these monsters you choose to follow sicken most everyone.
Words mean nothing but the feeling that is behind them mean everything. She intended that word to describe an ugly, backwards connotation and not by definition. Only bully followers could defend their leaders stupidity.
Grow up and open your brains enough to lead and not follow! sheesh!!!!
appalled
October 27th, 2012
1:18 am
@Lou, boy are you wrong!
“That said–there is no way that young man with Down Syndrome could have written that letter. I’ve been a college professor and taught freshman English, so I know of what I speak.”
you shouldn’t speak on things you have NO clue about.
Pardon My Blog
October 27th, 2012
4:38 am
@appalled – Really?
I love teaching. I hate what it is becoming...
October 27th, 2012
10:00 am
@Pardon my Blog “Also, talk about using inappropriate terms or language, how about POTUS referring to Romney as a Bull*****er! and that was directed at a six year old!”
Actually it was during an interview with Rolling Stone, and it was repeating the words a child had spoken TO Obama.
But don’t let the facts stand in the way of your faux outrage, now.
bootney farnsworth
October 27th, 2012
3:50 pm
there are more trolls in this blog than in Norway.
Gamom
October 28th, 2012
11:11 am
Ann coulter is an embarrassment. Why does she get so much air time?
Anna Hilde
October 28th, 2012
11:36 pm
Really? Is one word worse than another? I get it about Coulter, I do. She’s not someone I listen to, or care to listen to; however, most everyone here have called her a name. So, I take it one is worse than the other, and it makes me wonder, who exactly is the judge of which word I will personally find offensive? For instance Dunwoody Mom called Ann a wretched – and I’d say we all are wretched people – me most of all. My point is this – no one, I repeat no one on this board is any less guilty of calling someone a name or of thinking an ugly thought about another individual – yes, hopefully we wouldn’t use THAT word and it’s all about that WORD apparently. That’s too bad. We would do well to spend less time retaliating using name calling ourselves (from our approved list, of course) more time highlighting those we believe to be better examples and ignoring Coulter.
shaking my head
October 29th, 2012
2:25 pm
this is one of the reasons that I find it very hard to support anyone in the GOP field…if you have people like this pushing for you, then it falls way short of the love that we should exhibit as Christians…
Nextset
October 29th, 2012
2:49 pm
Liberals have real problems with Free Speech. They lust for power and control over the speech, money and freedom of other people. Good for Ann Coulter, she’s good with the English Language. Listen to some of her books on audio – good for a long drive.
If she wants to describe a retarded person as a retard, it is her speech and you’re not supposed to always like it. No One in this society is required to speak using approved words to communicate ideas and political thought.
Cry me a river, Libs. I don’t like your terms so much myself, but I so far haven’t tried to silence you.
Ole Guy
October 30th, 2012
2:34 pm
Two Cents, you are absolutely right; the world in which we find ourselves is definitely not the world of yesteryear; civility and just plain ole common gd sense has taken leave. Like the go go real estate markets of not too many years ago, it is quite doubtful these things will return any time soon…more-than-likely, not in my lifetime, and most-probably not in the foreseeable future. Whether this type of language is good, bad, or indifferent is no longer the issue. The real issue boils down to one of (let’s call it) survivability. One key ingredient, in life, is the development of a tough social hide. People, kids and adults alike, say (and do) the damdest things…
(Art Linkletter…modified)
A major survival/coping and, eventually, winning ingredient is realizing that life does not; will not always be “kinder and gentler” than we would like. Maybe…just maybe…this may lie behind the rash of teen suicides, abhorent behavior within the younger population, and anti-social behavior withinn the public at large.
This is not to be considered, in any way whatsoever, an obervation with racial overtones…perhaps the common complaint of being “dised” (disrespected) lies in the common feelings of a diminished self worth for any number of reasons…lousy job, lousy human relations with others, lousy socioeconomic situations, etc. It all comes back to the basic premise of perceived self worth.
Viewed in a positive light, perhaps it may be a good thing when those who are less fortunate become exposed to the insensitivity of the Ms Coulters in life. Like bad weather in the aviation world, the Coulters will always be among us, and like that bad weather, one can choose to either “stay grounded” in life, or learn to deal with it and, in the process, become a stronger person.
If it don’t kill ya, it’ll make ya stronger…
Mary Grabar
November 11th, 2012
9:38 am
Ms. Maureen, did you say anything about comedians and others making fun of Sarah Palin’s Downs Syndrome baby?
http://madamenoire.com/205702/did-he-cross-the-line-wayne-brady-cracks-joke-using-sarah-palins-son-with-down-syndrome/
If so, I would appreciate a link. Thank you.