Former Sen. Jesse Helms (R-NC) Has Died
(posted by Mona)
The reliably authoritarian and retrograde Mark Levin over at NRO’s The Corner whines that he has:
…noticed some of the smears lobbed at William Buckley in other places since his death; Jesse Helms is in for even more of it. Other prominent conservatives will face the same. Unfortunately, such is the nature of these things now.
Er, Mark, as Pam Spaulding (do read her whole post) observes, one needs no “smears” when a man’s words speak for themselves:
“The New York Times and Washington Post are both infested with homosexuals themselves. Just about every person down there is a homosexual or lesbian.”
– 1995.
“The University of Negroes and Communists”
– Reference to the University of North Carolina devised by Mr. Helms when he worked for Willis Smith’s 1950 U.S. Senate campaign.
“Homosexuals are weak, morally sick wretches.”
– 1995 radio broadcast“She’s a damn lesbian. I am not going to put a lesbian in a position like that. If you want to call me a bigot, fine.”
– Explaining why he was opposing the appointment of a woman for a cabinet post.
The “nature of things” now, Mark, is that indisputably racist and gay-bashing public commentary are reviled for the ugliness that they are. But one does understand why you might lament that reality, since appealing to such species of bigotry has been your party’s bread and butter.
July 4th, 2008 at 8:50 pm
I like to think I have the largest gathering of WFB obituaries here. If you try to tell me otherwise, I’ll pretend I can’t hear you.
John Rosenberg defends Helms’ most notorious ad here.
I hear that Helms became pals with Bono late in his career, which just makes me dislike him more.
July 4th, 2008 at 9:01 pm
TGGP: I have no strong opposition to the “white hands” ad (tho it makes a sound byte out of affirmative action where in all 60 whites who lose a job to one black guy, all feel aggrieved). But there is much more than that to Helm’s career. See my post and links.
July 5th, 2008 at 8:08 am
Helms was responsible for things far more despicable than name-calling. He was the leading proponent in the US Senate of unqualified American support for some of the most tyrannical US client states like those of Indonesia during Suharto’s campaign of genocide in Timor, Roberto d’Aubuisson’s El Salvador, Rios Montt’s Guatemala, Pinochet’s Chile and any other Third World torture state that happened to be on the US payroll.
July 7th, 2008 at 2:50 pm
The white-hands ad is reprehensible not on its own, but in context; it’s like the phrase like “watch out for THOSE people,” which can be racist or not, depending.
I’m an equal opportunity misanthrope: I oppose affirmative action AND guys who whine “white males can’t get a fair shake anymore.” And my main regret concerning Helms’ death is that it came 60 years too late.