You Can’t Fix Stupid

By ERIC BLUMBERG

Amidst all this summer’s turmoil, one is pressed to find a nugget of news, which is not hard to swallow. There have been the shootings of police officers in Dallas and Baton Rouge, the mass murder of 84 Bastille Day celebrants in Nice, France, civilians’ death at the hands of police, the Republican and Democrat Conventions and Melania Trump ripping off Michelle Obama.

But we, in Northwest Iowa, have been cursed with a gift that keeps on giving, and, once again, events dictate that I apologize, now for the fourth time, for the remarks of Congressman Steve King, Republican from Kiron, Iowa.

It’s hard to imagine someone taking the time to beg forgiveness for the actions and/or words of an elected official, let alone be prompted to do it four times. But Steve King is one of those guys with a big mouth and even bigger feet; who, whenever a microphone is placed within reach, cannot help but make inane and offensive comments.

In the past, most of his offensive remarks concerned undocumented workers, some of whom he said had calves the size of cantaloupes from smuggling drugs into the US. This time, however, he has provided us with the full monty. Furthermore, his racist comments aired on MSNBC, were merely a second chapter to his comments one week before the GOP Convention began.

This all started innocently enough when a Sioux City TV station interviewed King in his office. During the interview, he talked about his abolitionist ancestors and how proud he was of their fight. Meanwhile, on his desk at the time was the Confederate Battle Flag. This led to the reporter asking about the flag’s significance. King said he was celebrating American history. Congressman, here’s a brief history lesson: Iowa was a vital part of the Union during the Civil War, the state supplied 76,000 troops to the cause, 13,000 of which perished on the battlefield, oftentimes under that same flag you seem to cherish so much. What an embarrassment.

The second chapter is the one which created a national firestorm. After a fellow MSNBC guest stated this was going to be the last time elderly, white folks are going to pull the party’s political strings, King made sure that no one was going to disrespect white people in any way, shape or form. King, always the astute historian, pointed out that white people , who embraced Christianity, were in whole part responsible for the crowning achievements of Western civilization. In other words, white people are the best thing to come along since white bread.

Unfortunately, the overwhelming majority of Republicans in his district believe he’s also the best thing to come along since white bread, and I do mean white. In recent congressional elections, 65-70% of the voters chose King, who along with the Family Leader’s Bob Vander Plaats campaigned for Ted Cruz during the nominating process.

You see, America, this thinking is still alive and continues to gain adherents as shown by Trump’s amazing popularity during the primary season. No matter what you may hear about the so-called demise of whites in America, their grip will never loosen until they recognize that using identity politics is a self-defeating strategy. So, America, here I present myself to you on bended knees for the fourth time, begging for your grace; and if history teaches us anything, number five in this series is inevitable.

Eric Blumberg is a former radio news reporter and talk show host who now teaches communications and writing at Western Iowa Tech Community College in Sioux City. See ericblumberg.net.

From The Progressive Populist, August 15, 2016

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