Bundy and Racism

                Sixty-seven-year-old Cliven Bundy is in trouble again but not with the federal government.  This time it is the main stream media that tried to trip him up.  Mr. Bundy made some comments that were taken out of context by the New York Times and other news outlets.  Because of their bad reporting, he has been ostracized.  Major talk show hosts such as Sean Hannity and Glenn Beck are distancing themselves from Mr. Bundy for what they deem to be racist remarks.  I consider his words to be the truth even though politically incorrect.

                Mr. Bundy’s statement is on a You Tube video and translated by truthrevolt.org.  If the main stream media had put Mr. Bundy’s words in context, there would have been no news item; so they took the middle of the statement and made him sound like a racist. 

                Here is the part of the statement printed by the New York Times and other news outlets:  “Let me tell, talk to you about the Mexicans, and these are just things I know about the Negroes.  I want to tell you one more thing I know about the Negro.  When I go … to Las Vegas, North Las Vegas, and I would see these little government houses, and in front of that government house the door was usually open and the older people and the kids – and there’s always at least a half a dozen people sitting on the porch.  They didn’t have nothing to do.  They didn’t have nothing for their kids to do.  They didn’t have nothing for their young girls to do.

                “And because they were basically on government subsidy – so now what do they do?  They abort their young children, they put their young men in jail, because they never, they never learned how to pick cotton.  And I’ve often wondered are they … better off as slaves, picking cotton and having a family life and doing things?  Or are they better off under government subsidy?

                “You know they didn’t get more freedom, they got less freedom – they got less family life, and their happiness – you could see it in their faces – they wasn’t happy sitting on that concrete sidewalk.  Down there they [were] probably growing their turnips – so that’s all government, that’s not freedom.”

                It seems real plain to me that Mr. Bundy was talking about the freedom of Blacks and other minorities and was very correct in questioning if they are better off living on the government plantation of subsidies.  The above statement was taken out of context; it was preceded -- as shown by the YouTube video - with Mr. Bundy in mid-sentence saying:  “… and so what I’ve testified to you – I was in the Watts riot.  I seen the beginning fire and I seen that last fire.  What I seen is civil disturbance.  People are not happy; people are thinking they don’t have their freedoms; they didn’t have these things, and they didn’t have them.

                “We’ve progressed quite a bit from that day until now, and we sure don’t want to go back.  We sure don’t want the colored people to go back to that point.  We sure don’t want these Mexican people to go back to that point.  And we can make a difference right now by taking care of some of these bureaucracies, and do it in a peaceful way.”

                If this first part of his statement had been quoted, no one would even think he was a racist.  To me, he sounds very compassionate and concerned about the plight of his fellow human beings.  He sounds sincerely concerned with how minorities were treated in the past and definitely does not want “to go back to that point.” 

                The heavily-quoted words – taken from the middle of the statement - were followed by Mr. Bundy talking about Hispanics.  “Now, let me talk about the Spanish people.  You know, I understand that they come over here against our Constitution and cross our borders.  But they’re here and they’re people – and I’ve worked side by side [with] a lot of them.

                “Don’t tell me they don’t work, and don’t tell me they don’t pay taxes.  And don’t tell me they don’t have better family structures than most of us white people.  When you see those Mexican families, they’re together, they picnic together, they’re spending their time together, and I’ll tell you in my way of thinking they’re awful nice people.  And we need to have those people join us and be with us – not, not come to our party.”

                How can any thinking person consider Mr. Bundy to be a racist?  Bumbling?  Yes.  Inarticulate?  Yes.  Opinionated?  Yes.  Racist?  No.  He showed great concern for the African-American people and even complimented the Hispanics.  He sounds to me like a man who is too aware that our government is taking over our lives and making them worse. 

                A black Marine that goes by the name of Charlie Delta wrote a letter defending Mr. Bundy:  “The media distorts information  to the point of social division.  This is a photo of myself and the resilient, often charismatic, and maybe not so tactful Cliven Bundy.  He’s a cowboy and a helluva family man, not an orator.

                “One thing he definitely isn’t – a racist.  I found his comments to not only be NOT racist, but his own view of his experiences.  Who the heck are we to determine another man’s perspective on the world around him?!  ….

                “Furthermore, if you take the time to do your own research, you’ll find that his statements about some black Americans actually hold weight.  He posed a hypothetical question.  He said, `I wonder IF’ … ____, I’m black and I often wonder about the same about the decline of the black family.

                “Bottom line is that we are all slaves in this waning republic, no matter our skin color.  Mr. Bundy could have used any racial demographic as an example:  Native Americans on reservations, whites in trailer parks, etc.  He noticed the crippling effects of receiving government `assistance’ and the long term result of accepting handouts….”

                Marcus Lloyd, another American who happens to be black, came to Mr. Bundy’s defense:  “Any decent, fair-minded human being would understand that Bundy was condemning the slavery of government dependency in his comments regarding Negros.  The elderly gentleman is a rancher who is not media-savvy, nor is he schooled in the nuances of political correctness….

                “Mr. Bundy spoke the truth about cradle-to-grave government dependency wreaking havoc in the black community.  We all know this.  But when any white person who dares to acknowledge the huge elephant in the black community’s living room is vilified and branded a racist….  Meanwhile, black families continue to suffer and vote monolithically for Democrats who vow to fix their problems but never do.

                “Black relatives of mine (several died young) lived wasted lives because they were addicted to government dependency.  They were Democratic Party slaves, enslaved with chains far more powerful than steel.  They suffered mental and emotional slavery.  My relatives were robbed of the self-esteem, pride, and joy of individual achievement and earning one’s way….”

                I believe that Mr. Bundy is absolutely correct in saying that government subsidies do not help anyone – black, white, or brown – especially when given long term.  Government subsidies are merely making more and more people “slaves” to the U.S. Government.  The government is providing the daily needs for too many able-bodied people who should be working to provide their own necessities and luxuries.  I believe that most of these people would be much happier if they were working for their daily bread and paying their own way.  In my point of view, the federal government is not doing the people any favors but are simply buying votes for the Democrat Party.