can't... resist... politics

[gfish]

I'm beginning to think that the term "birther" is far too silly and easily dismissed. This is turning into some deep ugliness, and letting them hide behind a quirky conspiracy theory name isn't helping. Maybe we should all just start calling them crypto-racists instead.

Comments

[eleventoes.livejournal.com]

Disagree, as "Birther" is appropriately silly for what they are and what they're up to. Even by evil crypto-racist standards. I love these guys. The fact that we're not taking them seriously lets them feel free to identify themselves, which let's me give them wide berth without having to listen for the normal special code that's used.

Look. "He waddent born heres." is far more useful and less damaging than "He ain't really people." which is where we were 50 years ago.

We shouldn't take them seriously. We should mock and cajole and eventually ignore them, and they'll go away.

[maida-mac.livejournal.com]

Crypto-racists certainly implies more than the birther. The thing that gets me is that they're not only racists, they're xenophobes as well and have very little grasp of the concept of "facts". It's like taking the worst of what I grew up with and making it mainstream. My head hurts from the whole thing.

I agree with Juli that just joking about it actually makes it more acceptable. It's also became acceptable for people who would *NEVER* SAY anything RACIST think that it's okay to let all their racial issues out to fly under the cover of being skeptics. *sigh*

Why, yes, this IS a hot button topic for me.

[kathrynt.livejournal.com]

They're criminally ignorant and blatantly racist. There is a mountain of facts that they're ignoring in favor of shadowy truths. I agree, they're a pernicious force that should be called out and exposed.

[randomdreams.livejournal.com]

On the one hand, whaddayamean "crypto"?

On the other, contemptuous names suitably belittle them.

[feylike.livejournal.com]

and what would qualify as "unbirthers"? seriously, i suspect that the right approach is to refute them without engaging them, if such a thing is possible, as outright ridicule can be trivially dismissed. i hope that it is feasible to discredit them without stooping to their level.