Warning: This is NOT an invitation to violate the prime directive of this site, which prohibits the discussion of modern politics.
I received this from a reader as a comment:
Hay Harry great way to advance you Obama agenda by using the Civil War Times so show you hate for the Tea Party.
Nice. Beyond the assault on my senses presented by this guy’s spelling, I have no idea how he so completely misread my quote in Civil War Times (you can read the full version of what I submitted here).
I was inclined to let this reader’s comment die an obscure death, but I was informed today that he also sent a note to the magazine, calling my quote a “cheap short”. I assume he meant “cheap shot”.
My thoughts on the whole controversy surrounding Governor McDonnell’s Virginia Confederate History Month proclamation boiled down to disappointment that, rather than being used as an opportunity to discuss historical issues such as the diversity of the population of the Confederacy and of Virginia before and during the war, it was being used to forward agendas on both ends of what is viewed as the political spectrum in our country these days. That’s why my references to the Tea Party movement included characterizations of it by extremists, both opponents and supporters.
At the extremes, we see reactions ranging from claims that Confederates were nothing more than terrorists, that slavery had little or nothing to do with the Confederate cause, that the Tea Party movement is primarily a gathering of neo-Confederate racists, and that the same movement reflects frustrations similar to those felt by the slaveholding south. All are gross distortions of the truth, and politically motivated.
It could be that the reader confused me with one of the other folks quoted. There was at least one opinion expressed that could be considered polemic.
Harry Smeltzer
Ya better watch those “cheap shorts”, Harry… :-)
Priceless…
Cheap shorts can all too easily get in a knot.
I can only imagine how readers will respond to my little editorial. Hey Harry, welcome to my world. :D
Hopefully they will have at least read what you wrote before commenting!
Look at the bright side – at least the Pirates aren’t 23-40.
Oh, wait…
Uncalled for. Yellow card.
Sorry. Misery loves company.
I know cheap shorts. I’ve worn cheap shorts. Cheap shorts are friends of mine. You, Harry, do not wear cheap shorts.
Dangerously close to modern politics, but funny enough to keep in.
I dunno…Lloyd Bentsen was almost old enough to remember the Civil War.
Your comments in the Civil War Times are expressed clearly and they are not cheap shorts. Perhaps your critic thinks the way he spells.
Thanks Brad.
The spelling may be bad, the lack of punctuation may be a concern, but at least he wrote the Tea Party as a proper noun. Let’s give him credit for that, rather than just taking “cheap shorts” at his expense.
Every cloud has a silver lining Mark.
I’m just wondering why you hate America.
Is it that obvious, David?
Harry, consider for a moment that he meant what he said. You are a bit shorter in stature than, say, Abraham Lincoln. And having dined with you on occasion, I know you are cheap.
Maybe I’m just a short, cheap date?
Harry,
Are the cheap shorts the reason why you hate America? :-)
Eric
No. Cheap shorts would be a reason to hate China.
Gee, all this talk about “cheap shorts” and not one word about advancing an agenda using hay. As the grandson of a hay farmer who spent many hours in the hay field, I object.
The Hay agenda being better known in conjunction with its counterpart, the Nicolay conspiracy.
Your article was a welcome breath of fresh air. Thank you.
Thanks Richard.
I thought what you wrote was very good and fair. I have no idea why anyone would vent so strongly toward such a good response. As John Adams might say, “What a Country!”
Chris