Think Progress

Toby Keith promotes pro-lynching song and movie on Colbert.

toby.gifLast night, country singer Toby Keith appeared on the Colbert Report to promote his new movie, Beer for My Horses. The movie is based off his song by the same name, which he performed on the show — and whose lyrics promote vigilante-style hangings of anyone considered “wicked” or “evil”:

Grandpappy told my pappy, back in my day, son
A man had to answer for the wicked that he done
Take all the rope in Texas
Find a tall oak tree, round up all of them bad boys
Hang them high in the street for all the people to see that

Max Blumenthal notes that in Keith’s “Grandpappy’s” day, “3,437 African-Americans were lynched in the United States, mostly in the heart of Dixie.” Blumenthal also remarks on the racial undertones in the song’s video; the movie trailer depicts a “Mexican guy” who deals drugs and kidnaps Keith’s character’s girlfriend.



131 Responses to “Toby Keith promotes pro-lynching song and movie on Colbert.”

  1. DvlsAdvocat says:

    Oh man, c’mon TP…we’re stretching a bit to find controversy in this. I saw the appearance on Colbert, I’ve heard the song, there’s nothing to see here.


  2. The Republic of Stupidity says:

    Ah yessss… Toby Keith…

    And as my grandpappy tole me, “Stupid is as stupid does…”


  3. kpaul says:

    Wow, a banner day for my fellow Okies. This is why I live in New York now. Oklahoma is quite the dicotomy (and not part of Dixie btw, they just share the same mindset) There really are a lot of good people there, but it seems they don’t get any press these days. Just mental midgets like this cracker.


  4. tom says:

    There really is little difference between Toby Keith and the likes of Limpballs, Insanity and The Savage Weiner. They are all redneck a**holes. Some may say that Keith is a better singer . . . but even that is debatable.


  5. DvlsAdvocat says:

    Also, Toby Keith is from Oklahoma…not quite “the heart of Dixie” as you state in the piece. Pretty poor start today…


  6. dbadass says:

    Isn’t that silly guitar disgracing the flag?


  7. dbadass says:

    Ah obamaismymessiah:
    How are you this fine day? So about those items that went “much much further”?


  8. MCMetal says:

    dbadass Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    Isn’t that silly guitar disgracing the flag?

    July 29th, 2008 at 9:53 am

    Especially when hearing fat loser Keith’s inability to play it ……


  9. MCMetal says:

    obamaismymessiah Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    Interesting that Blumenthal didn’t mention the Opelousas Massacre.

    July 29th, 2008 at 9:55 am

    Yeah

    Because 300 is almost the equivalent of 3,437, right nitwit ?


  10. stewarjt says:

    Didn’t Keith almost get blown up in Afghanistan?

    Here’s an RPG up your butt courtesy of the Tal-i-ban.


  11. Zimzone says:

    Toby Keith, Mr. ‘Shock & Awe’, has successfully commercialized Bush’s ‘War of Terror’.

    He can’t sing.

    He can’t write.

    He can’t play.

    Acknowledging this, he decided that using fear may be a way to sell songs. He was right. This guy appears at Insannity’s ‘Freedom Concerts’…’nuff said.


  12. katy says:

    first time, ever, i turned colbert off early…

    keith may be a dem, but he’s a gross looking redneck loudmouth…


  13. dbadass says:

    obamaismymessiah:
    I see reneck once before you. How much more madeup shit do you have planned for the day?


  14. 5th Estate says:

    “Grandpappy told my pappy, back in my day, son
    A man had to answer for the wicked that he done
    Take all the rope in Texas
    Find a tall oak tree, round up all of them bad boys
    Hang them high in the street for all the people to see”

    Hmmm, Texas eh?

    Is this directed at Bush, Rove, Gonazalez, Delay, Gramm et cetera or is that a stretch?
    Probably a stretch ( no pun intended).

    Why this song, now? Does Keith think hanging by mobs was a good thing?


  15. DvlsAdvocat says:

    MCMetal Says:
    Because 300 is almost the equivalent of 3,437, right nitwit ?

    How do either of those numbers play into this post about Toby Keith? The man lives now, right here in 2008, and never participated in either event….

    And to illustrate a point in both of those examples, I’ll bet you my house that 99.9% of those hangings in “the heart of Dixie” were committed by Democrats. Remember the “Solid South”? It was called that because it was solidly Democratic. Times have changed people. Why don’t we?


  16. MCMetal says:

    obamaismymessiah Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    Here is what wikipedia has to say about that 3,437 number:

    In the 1870s, Democrats regained power through affiliated militia terrorism of black and white Republicans, assassination of community leaders and political activists, and intimidation and restriction of voters at the polls. Even after the Democrats regained power throughout the South, between 1880 and 1951 the Tuskegee Institute recorded lynchings of 3,437 African-American victims, as well as 1,293 white victims. Southern states created new constitutions from 1890–1908 with provisions that effectively disfranchised most blacks and many poor whites. People who did not vote could not serve on juries, so both groups were further shut out of the political process. White Democrats secured one-party rule in the South, comprising such a powerful voting block in Congress that they consistently defeated or blocked Federal bills against lynching.

    July 29th, 2008 at 10:02 am

    Those were the Dixiecrats , chump ; and EVERYONE knows they switched parties………..Guess where they currently reside , skid mark ; and it isn’t the Dem party…..


  17. dbadass says:

    DvlsAdvocat:
    You fail to note that McMetal was simply responding to our little friend obamaismymessiah


  18. MCMetal says:

    DvlsAdvocat Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    MCMetal Says:
    Because 300 is almost the equivalent of 3,437, right nitwit ?

    How do either of those numbers play into this post about Toby Keith? The man lives now, right here in 2008, and never participated in either event….

    And to illustrate a point in both of those examples, I’ll bet you my house that 99.9% of those hangings in “the heart of Dixie” were committed by Democrats. Remember the “Solid South”? It was called that because it was solidly Democratic. Times have changed people. Why don’t we?

    July 29th, 2008 at 10:04 am

    I was merely responding to that imbecile’s typically unrelated , uninformative , and idiotic post , which had nothing related to Keith or what the thread is about in it.

    BTW

    They weren’t “Democrats” , they were “Dixiecrats” , as I say in an above post ; you also want to guess which party they switched to and currently reside in ?


  19. RantingTommy says:

    Should we really care what this no talent redneck sings about?

    He is regurgitating the same 4 chord hillbilly crap that has been passed off to the uneducated for as long as can be remembered.

    He is barely a musician and his fans are usually right wing cowards that think he’s ‘tough’.

    The fact that this type of ‘music’ sells anywhere is evidence that there are a lot of people in this world that are too stupid to use up oxygen.


  20. katy says:

    We have to go back to the 1800s and the “SOUTHERN Democrats”. As Wikipedia explains, “they were the definitive pro-slavery wing of the party, opposed to both the anti-slavery Republicans (GOP) and the more liberal Northern Democrats. After the loss of their territory in the American Civil War and the Republican-led Reconstruction which followed, Southern Democrats regrouped into various vigilante organizations such as the Ku Klux Klan and the White League”. Another entry explains: “The Democratic dominance originated in many white Southerners’ animosity towards the Republican Party’s stance in favor of political rights for Blacks during Reconstruction. It was maintained by the Democratic Party’s willingness to back Jim Crow laws and racial segregation.

    “As the New Deal began to liberalize Democrats as a whole, Southern Democrats largely stayed as conservative as they had always been, with some even breaking off to form farther right-wing splinters like the Dixiecrats. After the civil rights movement successfully challenged Jim Crow and other forms of institutionalized racism, and Democrats as a whole became the symbol of the mainstream left of the United States, the form, if not the content, of Southern Democratic politics began to change. Most Southern Democrats defected to the Republican Party at that point and helped accelerate the latter’s transformation into more progressive party Republican organization.”

    “After World War II, the civil rights movement took hold by Republicans. Democrats in the South, however, still voted loyally for their party. The old conservative stalwarts were trying to resist the changes that were sweeping the nation. With the signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 [pushed by the Democratic Kennedy & Johnson administrations], it was the final straw for many Southern Democrats, who began voting against Democratic incumbents for GOP candidates. The Republicans carried many Southern states for the first time since before the Great Depression.”


  21. okester says:

    Here is what wikipedia has to say about that 3,437 number:

    Wikipedia? Are you kidding? Wikipedia is very inaccurate about so much. I think it is fair to say that since the 1870s, both of our major political parties have undergone substantial changes in makeup and philosophy. That’s akin to warning people to beware the Spanish, because according to Wikipedia, at the turn of the 19th century, they were at war with America.


  22. MCMetal says:

    Dr. Hussein Matt Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    Guido the Loving OBGYN Says:

    I love country music. Stay on topic will ya? You’re sounding shrill, Matt.

    Hardly. Country “music” is redneck noise. Quit having a hissy fit.

    July 29th, 2008 at 10:08 am

    Most country “music” sounds as if it should be accompanied by someone yodeling ……….


  23. dbadass says:

    DvlsAdvocat:
    I thought you were concerned about how this related to the topic? Do I have to call bullshit, this early in the day?


  24. MCMetal says:

    DvlsAdvocat Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    MCMetal Says:
    EVERYONE knows they switched parties………..Guess where they currently reside , skid mark ; and it isn’t the Dem party…..

    Let’s ask West Virginia Sen. Robert C. Byrd (D) about that….he can probably tell us a thing or two about lynchings, since he was in the Ku Klux Klan and all.

    July 29th, 2008 at 10:09 am

    Yeah , and the guy is what , 90 ?

    BTW

    What party is David Duke in , shitstain ?


  25. RantingTommy says:

    Right wing sissies LOVE redneck BS “music” like this because they think it makes them appear ‘tough’.

    Having their weakness exposed is the biggest fear right wing rednecks have. It’s an easily exploited fear, which is based on their insecurity about their own weakness and their fear of the ‘other’.


  26. DvlsAdvocat says:

    Then tell me how many currently active Republican US Senators are admitted former members of the KKK.
    All I’m saying is don’t fool yourself into believing that there are absolutes in this saga. Both parties have shady backgrounds, just as this nation has a shady rep on race issues.


  27. misshusseinmolly says:

    I have to say that I know little about this song or the upcoming movie based upon it. But after reading the lyrics of the entire song and reading the synopsis of the movie on IMDB, I don’t see that the subject is lynching so much as I see it’s about unbridled vigilanteism. Which is also offensive.

    The movie appears to be another “good ole boy” movie that paints law enforcement as stupid, ineffective, and possibly corrupt, and taking the law into your own hands as an honorable thing to do. Sort of like “Smokey and the Bandit” but with a more serious objective.

    This isn’t a movie I plan to go see, and I’m not likely to download this song anytime soon. However, I don’t think that lynching is what Keith had in mind, even though with imagery like trees and ropes it’s reasonable to draw that parallel.

    And yes — that American flag motif on his guitar is desecration.


  28. McWars says:

    This is a great country that never stops trying to make the perfect chicken sandwich.


  29. DvlsAdvocat says:

    This site in bipolar. I’m always amazed how everyone gets in a shrill hissy fit over the most nonsensical topic. I’m a “shitstain” for pointing out that the Democratic party, which I am a member of, doesn’t have the perfect record of tolerance being presented here.


  30. Paul W says:

    DvlsAdvocat said:

    And to illustrate a point in both of those examples, I’ll bet you my house that 99.9% of those hangings in “the heart of Dixie” were committed by Democrats. Remember the “Solid South”? It was called that because it was solidly Democratic. Times have changed people. Why don’t we?

    You’ve got that completely wrong. The people didn’t change, just the party.

    http://progressiveworldreview.com


  31. DRxJ says:

    Who’s this Toby Keith person?

    Just by the by, the movie is fictional, as is the song. I don’t agree with the theme, but I’ll fight for his right to perform it.

    This is similar to Stephen King books. Just because he occasionally writes about the devil, does not make Mr. King a santanist (cue parodyll).

    TP, you’ve got better stuff to report in, in my humble opinion!


  32. McWars says:

    lefty movements

    You can make your point without likening our efforts to a bunch of kids in a McDonald’s PlayPlace.


  33. dbadass says:

    cabbinbagger:
    I think it might be opposition to vigilante justice. We have a system for punishing wrongdoers.


  34. misshusseinmolly says:

    cabbinbagger Says
    July 29th, 2008 at 10:22 am

    You folks who are lambasting Keith’s music and movies are really grasping at straws, here. You appear to be violently opposed to songs that advocate the punishment of criminals.

    That being the case, where do you stand on violent Rap music lyrics that advocate the killing of police officers, the beating and abusing of women, and the destruction of American society? Do you somehow attach more meaning to lyrics that promote the destruction of negative forces than to lyrics that promote lawlessness and abuse?
    ___________________________________________________________

    Nope. Not opposed to punishing criminals. Just opposed to vigilantes taking the law into their own hands to do it. There’s a reason we don’t allow people to interpret the law they way they wish and carry it out as such.

    And I am just as critical of song lyrics (or any other medium, for that matter) that advocate the killing of police officers, the beating and abusing of women, and the destruction of American society. Why would you think that people who would oppose one would support the other? That makes no sense.


  35. DRxJ says:

    Now I’ve been gone for over 1 week, so I could be wrong, but is DvlsAdvocat a newbie, pretending to be a tree-huggin’ liberal?
    My bullshevik meter goes off when I read the phrase “I’m a Democrat”.
    Really no need to announce that on a Progressive blog.


  36. dbadass says:

    “Toby Keith was a popular Country/Western star long before 9/11.”

    Still and I wouldn’t know as it is a genre which I detest like a sickness, that guitar is utterly ridiculous.


  37. RantingTommy says:

    Lyrics and right wing redneck fear aside – as a musician, I can tell you – AS A FACT, country “music” is the most basic form of popular “music” around.

    It is overly simplistic, achingly easy to play and write, and bores the pants off of musicians that have advanced past the very very limited musical knowledge necessary to make music for morons.

    If we DID have music appreciation classes in school still, maybe rap and country (2 sides of the same coin) would not have an audience.

    But hey, fear and stupidity sells, and the rednecks and thugs are buying.


  38. DvlsAdvocat says:

    Now I’ve been gone for over 1 week, so I could be wrong, but is DvlsAdvocat a newbie, pretending to be a tree-huggin’ liberal?
    My bullshevik meter goes off when I read the phrase “I’m a Democrat”.
    Really no need to announce that on a Progressive blog.

    No, I disagree on that. I felt like I had to tell you that I am a dem, since there is a prevailing attitude here that you can’t go against the groupthink and still be a Progressive. I’m being called ’shitstain” and having my true motives questioned (by you, for example) for pointing out historical facts. These are the tactics of the republican party, and we shouldn’t be stooping to those levels.


  39. MCMetal says:

    DvlsAdvocat Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    This site in bipolar. I’m always amazed how everyone gets in a shrill hissy fit over the most nonsensical topic. I’m a “shitstain” for pointing out that the Democratic party, which I am a member of, doesn’t have the perfect record of tolerance being presented here.

    July 29th, 2008 at 10:21 am

    No

    You’re a shitstain because you try and chastise me while giving the GOP/Chimpy suckhole a pass and for bringing up Robert Byrd .

    And because you moronically and erroneously claimed it was “for pointing out that the Democratic party, which you are a member of, doesn’t have the perfect record of tolerance being presented here” ; who claimed that here ?


  40. MCMetal says:

    DvlsAdvocat Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    Now I’ve been gone for over 1 week, so I could be wrong, but is DvlsAdvocat a newbie, pretending to be a tree-huggin’ liberal?
    My bullshevik meter goes off when I read the phrase “I’m a Democrat”.
    Really no need to announce that on a Progressive blog.

    No, I disagree on that. I felt like I had to tell you that I am a dem, since there is a prevailing attitude here that you can’t go against the groupthink and still be a Progressive. I’m being called ’shitstain” and having my true motives questioned (by you, for example) for pointing out historical facts. These are the tactics of the republican party, and we shouldn’t be stooping to those levels.

    July 29th, 2008 at 10:35 am

    Shut up , moron

    You don’t speak for anyone here except yourself ; and in regards to that , pretty poorly , too……..

    You were called a “shitstain” for the items I pointed out in my previous post ; stop whining , you little maggot.


  41. RockRichard says:

    First of all, if you say a everyone that listens to certain type of music is a fat redneck dumbass, that is called prejudice. And it means you are ignorant.

    Second, this is a big stretch. I bet no one has done research into how often the event the song actually describes occurred, that being towns people taking the law in to their own hands and hanging a common criminal. We just jump to the conclusion that Keith is glorifying racism and lynchings.

    And did most of you know that Toby Keith is an Anti-Iraq War Democrat?

    I’m a proud democrat and a proud liberal, but this is ridiculous.


  42. belac says:

    Dvls et al.~
    I agree that we should refrain from over-reacting to imagined controversies…
    That being said…
    Having now heard this song and having heard others by Mr. Keith I can say that his songwriting is intellectually lazy and cliched, in other words- it’s bad art.
    Now that may not be unforgivable but it is certainly indefensible…


  43. belac says:

    … and I know I’m being ‘elitist’
    I just refuse to accept crap.
    There is plenty of good country music- this ain’t it.


  44. DvlsAdvocat says:

    What? Is Robert Byrd the crazy uncle you want to keep in the basement? I brought him up because someone (you?) claimed all those “Dixiecrats” moved to the Republican Party. I guess you think Robert Byrd is the ONLY politician who didn’t switch? Or voting citizen?
    The isnisuation was made that lynchings done “in the Heart of Dixie” were done by Republicans, since the Republican party dominates the South TODAY. But it was Democrats who ran the show back then. I’m just pointing out that. In fact, which party held their national convention in conjunction with a Klan rally? In a “Northern” state (New York)?


  45. raynman says:

    As the Dixie Chicks displayed at their concerts:

    FUTK


  46. DRxJ says:

    DvlsAdvocat
    Here’s where I disagree. You can post your argument of the tread topic without announcing your political party (like me, for example).
    You’re attacking a segment of a party that no longer exists.
    You’re attacking a man who has since apologized for his horrible decisions.
    This is where I question your postings.
    All too often we get “trolls” here masquerading as “liberals” for whatever agenda, only to be revealed later on as the opposite.
    Since you’re new here, it’s possible I’ve jumped the gun, and if true, I do apologize.
    But be aware, if you come out swinging, don’t dummy up and play the “whoa is me” card when we counter.


  47. RantingTommy says:

    None of that changes the FACT that country “music” requires very little musical knowledge or skill to perform. Just like rap.

    Rap and country are the same type of Lowest Common Denominator type genres. The audience for both is dominated by under-educated low information voters that are not able to discern talented musicians from hacks.


  48. DallasNE says:

    Some timing Keith has here, coming one day after a wacked out wing nut shoots up a church in Tennessee. Let’s fire up the hate crowd some more so we can play out some more shooting incidents like in Tennessee. Way to go Keith. What a wonderful American you are.


  49. DvlsAdvocat says:

    McMetal is flailing now. I’m sorry that bringing up indisputable FACTS make you react with nothing better than “shitstain” and “maggot”…thats quite a repertoire you have there. Big O’Reily fan?


  50. dbadass says:

    DvlsAdvocat:
    I am not getting this. You arrive to first complain that McMetal isn’t on topic when all McMetal is doing is responding to some stupid shit. You then proceed to pursue what you feel is off topic while announcing what a good Democrat you are then you follow up with some whining about being preceived poorly. It might be time to call bullshit on this whole thing too. I am not buying what your selling.


  51. Cats r Flyfishn says:

    Hope he was referring to all those traitors in Washington, beginning with Karl Rove, Dick Cheney and George Bush.


  52. MCMetal says:

    DvlsAdvocat Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    What? Is Robert Byrd the crazy uncle you want to keep in the basement? I brought him up because someone (you?) claimed all those “Dixiecrats” moved to the Republican Party. I guess you think Robert Byrd is the ONLY politician who didn’t switch? Or voting citizen?
    The isnisuation was made that lynchings done “in the Heart of Dixie” were done by Republicans, since the Republican party dominates the South TODAY. But it was Democrats who ran the show back then. I’m just pointing out that. In fact, which party held their national convention in conjunction with a Klan rally? In a “Northern” state (New York)?

    July 29th, 2008 at 10:44 am

    Robert Byrd has apologized repeatedly and lived an admirable existence since ; that isn’t okay with you , is it ?
    Does someone need to be related to you for you to speak up for them ?

    And did you read what katy posted , or did you conveniently ignore that ?

    And where does I claim “all” ?

    Stop making shit up …………


  53. MCMetal says:

    DvlsAdvocat Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    McMetal is flailing now. I’m sorry that bringing up indisputable FACTS make you react with nothing better than “shitstain” and “maggot”…thats quite a repertoire you have there. Big O’Reily fan?

    July 29th, 2008 at 10:48 am

    You mean the “fact” you claimed I started going off-topic , when it was merely a response to one of our resident trolls who brought up something irrelevant ?

    Funny too , how you didn’t seem interested in mentioning or trying to correct him ; and I’m “flailing” ?

    You are a shitstain maggot…….


  54. curious says:

    Get real. I have been a Toby Keith fan for some time now. That song refers to the legal system that allows criminals to walk after very bad crimes. It refers to a system that is geared toward something other than punishment or real rehabilitation. It refers to career criminals.

    To stretch it to mean blacks is a load of crap. There is nothing in that song that even hints a such a thing. It seems there is enough going on that we can look at and comment on. Where is the need to look for something not there.

    If Toby Keith had been born in New York, you would not be hinting at such a thing. He happens to be politically a conservative Democrat. And what he gives the troops in Iraq and elsewhere cannot be faulted.


  55. DvlsAdvocat says:

    DRxJ,
    I’m actually not new here. I don’t comment regularly, but have been involved for a couple of years.

    All too often we get “trolls” here masquerading as “liberals” for whatever agenda, only to be revealed later on as the opposite.

    Because I’ve been here for a while i totally KNOW this, and thats why I announced that I’m a Dem, to head off the “flaming troll” knee-jerk responses.

    But be aware, if you come out swinging, don’t dummy up and play the “whoa is me” card when we counter.

    Look at my screen name, the role of Devil’s Advocate is to argue a counter point to the prevailing opinion, to see if there are logical fallacies, or to test the strength of your position. How strong is the position when the immediate response is “go away shitstain”, “maggot’, etc? I’m not playing any “whoa is me card”, but I have to wonder why its okay to immediately attack someone of a different opinion than the group? I never used any deragatory names or acting untoward to anyone other than questioning their statements or the pointing out the logical fallacies.


  56. apwusteward says:

    Come on, there is nothing to that song.
    Could mean rustlers, drug dealers and the sort.
    But so what, nothing to see here.

    Give us all a break..

    A – Steward


  57. Shayne says:

    DvlsAdvocat, do you always walk into a room where nobody know you, claim to bo one of them and start lecturing? Then you obviously have some kind of personality disorder and should get help.


  58. LibertyLover says:

    Men like Toby Keith are the reason that I moved away from Texas.

    And to paraphrase one of Toby Keith’s own songs… Toby needs a boot up his a**…


  59. MCMetal says:

    curious Says:

    And what he gives the troops in Iraq and elsewhere cannot be faulted.

    July 29th, 2008 at 10:55 am

    I guess the business he brings for Bayer and Anacin is worth something ……….


  60. RantingTommy says:

    I agree, guido, a quality musician CAN play country or anything.

    But, you don’t HAVE to be a quality musician to play country or rap. Which is why most are not.

    Learn some about the subject before you pontificate about it.


  61. Shayne says:

    Guido the Loving OBGYN Says:

    Keith is an anti-war Democrat.

    I think you are wrong. Keith was one of the most vocal detractors of the Dixie Chicks who spoke out against Bush and the war. He led the charge to get them banned from radio and performing.

    A couple of years ago he started his own record label, possibly because he’d lost his contract, and then started pretending to be more open minded. Last night he said he was surprised by how many “Californians” came up to him and said they supported the troops.


  62. dbadass says:

    curious:
    Are you suggesting that being strung up is real rehabilitation? Maybe a little “midnight basketball”, some investment in education, job training and community building might be a better way to deter criminal activity


  63. DvlsAdvocat says:

    Shayne says:
    DvlsAdvocat, do you always walk into a room where nobody know you, claim to bo one of them and start lecturing? Then you obviously have some kind of personality disorder and should get help

    I guess I should be a good little progressive and march in lockstep with the prevailing opinion huh? Sorry to rock the boat guys, I thought we were all about getting to the truth, not toeing the line.

    And for McMetal, I’m talking about the thread as a whole, with some references to your posts specifically, but not every word I type is TO your post. I was in the thread before your first post, so my comments haven’t been to you right out of the gate, but rather to the content of the original post as well.


  64. MCMetal says:

    DvlsAdvocat Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    DRxJ,
    I’m actually not new here. I don’t comment regularly, but have been involved for a couple of years.

    All too often we get “trolls” here masquerading as “liberals” for whatever agenda, only to be revealed later on as the opposite.

    Because I’ve been here for a while i totally KNOW this, and thats why I announced that I’m a Dem, to head off the “flaming troll” knee-jerk responses.

    But be aware, if you come out swinging, don’t dummy up and play the “whoa is me” card when we counter.

    Look at my screen name, the role of Devil’s Advocate is to argue a counter point to the prevailing opinion, to see if there are logical fallacies, or to test the strength of your position. How strong is the position when the immediate response is “go away shitstain”, “maggot’, etc? I’m not playing any “whoa is me card”, but I have to wonder why its okay to immediately attack someone of a different opinion than the group? I never used any deragatory names or acting untoward to anyone other than questioning their statements or the pointing out the logical fallacies.

    July 29th, 2008 at 10:56 am

    You stupid lying sack of shit ; YOU ARE BEING CRITICIZED AND REFERRED TO WITH EXPLETIVES BEING USED FOR ATTEMPTING TO CLAIM I WAS GOING OFF-TOPIC , AFTER YOU ALREADY STATED THAT THE THREAD TOPIC WAS RIDICULOUS ; ARE YOU FU(KING RETARDED ?

    You aren’t being attacked for your “opinion” , you pathetic pile of crap……Stop bullshitting


  65. DRxJ says:

    DvlsAdvocat Says:

    I guess I should be a good little progressive and march in lockstep with the prevailing opinion huh?

    Now where have I heard that before?


  66. apwusteward says:

    Whatever his politics, I always thought him a Bush Loving GOP hack and that is why I quit listening and buying his music years ago.

    His support of the troops has been genuine.

    He has been to Iraq and Afghanistan many more times that most members of Congress, but not as many as Al Franken I think.


  67. DvlsAdvocat says:

    Anger management problems much?

    Great job being the poster boy for those who besmirch Think Progress.


  68. MCMetal says:

    DvlsAdvocat Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    Shayne says:
    DvlsAdvocat, do you always walk into a room where nobody know you, claim to bo one of them and start lecturing? Then you obviously have some kind of personality disorder and should get help

    I guess I should be a good little progressive and march in lockstep with the prevailing opinion huh? Sorry to rock the boat guys, I thought we were all about getting to the truth, not toeing the line.

    And for McMetal, I’m talking about the thread as a whole, with some references to your posts specifically, but not every word I type is TO your post. I was in the thread before your first post, so my comments haven’t been to you right out of the gate, but rather to the content of the original post as well.

    July 29th, 2008 at 11:03 am

    DvlsAdvocat Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    Oh man, c’mon TP…we’re stretching a bit to find controversy in this. I saw the appearance on Colbert, I’ve heard the song, there’s nothing to see here.

    July 29th, 2008 at 9:48 am

    ================================================

    obamaismymessiah Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    Interesting that Blumenthal didn’t mention the Opelousas Massacre.

    July 29th, 2008 at 9:55 am

    ============================================

    MCMetal Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    obamaismymessiah Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    Interesting that Blumenthal didn’t mention the Opelousas Massacre.

    July 29th, 2008 at 9:55 am

    Yeah

    Because 300 is almost the equivalent of 3,437, right nitwit ?

    July 29th, 2008 at 9:57 am

    ================================================

    DvlsAdvocat Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    MCMetal Says:
    Because 300 is almost the equivalent of 3,437, right nitwit ?

    How do either of those numbers play into this post about Toby Keith? The man lives now, right here in 2008, and never participated in either event….

    And to illustrate a point in both of those examples, I’ll bet you my house that 99.9% of those hangings in “the heart of Dixie” were committed by Democrats. Remember the “Solid South”? It was called that because it was solidly Democratic. Times have changed people. Why don’t we?

    July 29th, 2008 at 10:04 am
    =================================================

    Just stop already , d0uchebag …….


  69. DRxJ says:

    Sorry DvlsAdvocat, I’m calling bullshevik, again.
    I reread the posts.
    You came out swinging after mistaking MCMetals comments as off topic, and then proceeded to demonize not only the Democratic party, but a member of said party as well, without acknowledging what katy (and others) had posted arguing your position.
    And you appear to be “baiting” with regards to Byrd and the Dixiecrats.


  70. Shayne says:

    DvlsAdvocat Says:

    I’m actually not new here. I don’t comment regularly, but have been involved for a couple of years.

    And after a couple of years you decide to speak up on this oh so important thread about Toby Keith? Puhlease. And you make up a name and we’re supposed to be impressed and know you’re on a mission. So tell us troll, what name do you usually post under so we can see why you had to change your name.


  71. RantingTommy says:

    lol, dvlsadvocat the concern troll

    we’ve seen this act before, which is why you didn’t get away with it

    I guess right wing sissies think EVERYONE is as stupid as they are, sort of like a 3rd grader trying to pull a fast one on their parents.


  72. MCMetal says:

    DvlsAdvocat Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    Anger management problems much?

    Great job being the poster boy for those who besmirch Think Progress.

    July 29th, 2008 at 11:06 am

    Truth-telling problems ?

    I’m surprised you don’t work for this administration , jackass……………


  73. RantingTommy says:

    MCMetal Says:

    DvlsAdvocat Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    Anger management problems much?

    Great job being the poster boy for those who besmirch Think Progress.

    July 29th, 2008 at 11:06 am

    Truth-telling problems ?

    I’m surprised you don’t work for this administration , jackass……………

    mebbe he does, and this is his official capacity


  74. ctcadguy says:

    You have to admit though, he sure gets the racists, rednecks, war-mongers and chicken-hawks all worked-up in a frenzy.

    The man has an inate ability to rally the GOP warpigs.

    Silly fascists and their silly patriotic songs.


  75. jpopphan says:

    Toby Keith seems to have a great gift for giving voice to the complaints of the “good old boys” who are miserable living in the modern world and yearn for the “old days” when things were much “simpler”. By “simpler” they are referring to the days when white Christian men didn’t have to share power with women and non-whites and non-Christians.

    TK is free to write the song, sing the song and even make a movie… but he should remember that he’s advocating that individuals take the law into their own hands and deal out “justice” as they see fit. We all know how well that works!


  76. MCMetal says:

    RantingTommy Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    MCMetal Says:

    DvlsAdvocat Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    Anger management problems much?

    Great job being the poster boy for those who besmirch Think Progress.

    July 29th, 2008 at 11:06 am

    Truth-telling problems ?

    I’m surprised you don’t work for this administration , jackass……………

    mebbe he does, and this is his official capacity

    July 29th, 2008 at 11:11 am

    It is painfully obvious that this place is well beyond his capacity…………..


  77. DvlsAdvocat says:

    Yep, the ant hill has been kicked now…

    You can wish it wasn’t true, but this is my only screen name, and YES, I am a progressive Dem, financially supporting Obama, donated to Webb and Ford in the last Senate cycle, and actually willing to mix it up with people in my own group who (in my opinion) are a little off base. Is there no room at the Think Progress inn for people like me?


  78. MCMetal says:

    DvlsAdvocat Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    Yep, the ant hill has been kicked now…

    You can wish it wasn’t true, but this is my only screen name, and YES, I am a progressive Dem, financially supporting Obama, donated to Webb and Ford in the last Senate cycle, and actually willing to mix it up with people in my own group who (in my opinion) are a little off base. Is there no room at the Think Progress inn for people like me?

    July 29th, 2008 at 11:16 am

    You ARE NO progressive Dem…….Still having trouble with that truth-telling thingy ,I see…….


  79. DvlsAdvocat says:

    It is painfully obvious that this place is well beyond his capacity…………..

    It actually is almost beyond my capacity to comprehend the Groupthink mindset, and the ready support to attack a member who questions it.


  80. MCMetal says:

    DvlsAdvocat Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    It is painfully obvious that this place is well beyond his capacity…………..

    It actually is almost beyond my capacity to comprehend the Groupthink mindset, and the ready support to attack a member who questions it.

    July 29th, 2008 at 11:20 am

    For the last time , you are not being attacked for your opinion , merely your honesty (or a total lack thereof ,actually)……..


  81. Shayne says:

    DvlsAdvocat Says:

    It is painfully obvious that this place is well beyond his capacity…………..

    It actually is almost beyond my capacity to comprehend the Groupthink mindset, and the ready support to attack a member who questions it

    And just like every other troll you want to make a thread all about YOU and how you’re being treated. Maybe if you didn’t lead with your chin …


  82. DvlsAdvocat says:

    For the last time , you are not being attacked for your opinion , merely your honesty (or a total lack thereof ,actually)……..

    For goodness sake, please explain to me how you can ASSUME that I’m not being honest? Because my opinion is different from yours? Seriously, look at what you are saying. I’m being attcked for not being HONEST…? Really?? And pray tell, how did you come to this “fact”….? Is it a gut feeling? Are you pulling a Bush and “peering into my heart” to come to this conclusion?


  83. dbadass says:

    It appears the ant wishes to kick the hill. Ah the satisfaction of feeling an imagined sense of the underdog


  84. dbadass says:

    That guitar is so lame


  85. Bobwurst says:

    Well, this has been entertaining…my two cents. Toby profited handsomely with his macho pose that got a lot of impressionable young men to sign up and go and die in Iraq. Has he ever apologised for that? Has he ever apologised for attacking the Dixie Chicks? Has he ever apologised for dismissing Peter Jennings as “a Canadian” because Jennings pointed out how jingoistic Toby’s “boot” song was? No. He rode the kill all and let god sortem out fever until people started to grasp the consequences of the illegal war in Iraq and now he’s claiming to be against the Iraq war. He’s a con artist.


  86. Bobwurst says:

    Hey, that guitar is buck Owens’ “HEEEHAAAW!”


  87. Bobwurst says:

    Hey, that guitar is buck Owens’ “HEEEHAAAW!”


  88. MCMetal says:

    DvlsAdvocat Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    For the last time , you are not being attacked for your opinion , merely your honesty (or a total lack thereof ,actually)……..

    For goodness sake, please explain to me how you can ASSUME that I’m not being honest? Because my opinion is different from yours? Seriously, look at what you are saying. I’m being attcked for not being HONEST…? Really?? And pray tell, how did you come to this “fact”….? Is it a gut feeling? Are you pulling a Bush and “peering into my heart” to come to this conclusion?

    July 29th, 2008 at 11:27 am

    Because you have repeatedly (lied)/cried/stated that you are being called names based upon your ‘opinion’ ; that is simply untrue.

    And I can prove it……….You asked me (as I am the one using epithets to describe you) , and I told you that.

    I don’t believe that is a “gut feeling” , moron…….


  89. deebaser says:

    The difference between Vigilante Country (I just coined that… its mine. If you use it you can paypal me a nickel)and Thug Rap is that the country guys pretend they’re the good guys.


  90. deebaser says:

    ——————————————————————————–

    cabbinbagger Says:

    Has anyone mentioned the fact that pot-smoking, bio-fuel advocating, social liberal Wille Nelson sings that song as a duet with Toby Kieth?
    ———

    LOL, RLY?
    TP, please have your morning coffee and post something substantial. This is weak.


  91. MCMetal says:

    Jim Wilke Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    Wow, this is really big news.

    I’m still waiting to hear what Glenn Beck had for breakfast.

    July 29th, 2008 at 11:49 am

    You should know ; you tossed his salad , immediately after he ate ……


  92. dbadass says:

    Elite refers to the highest quality as in above the rest


  93. Shayne says:

    Jim Wilke Says:

    Wow, this is really big news.

    I’m still waiting to hear what Glenn Beck had for breakfast.

    Why don’t you eat sh*t like you normally do.


  94. Shayne says:

    Winkie is just upset because there’s no thread for him to go one spewing his crap about how great the oil companies are and we should give them leases on every last acre of property in this country so they can choose not to drill on those but get bigger profits and hence bonuses for the CEOs. Big oil shill piece of cr@p that he is.


  95. DvlsAdvocat says:

    McMetal,

    So you freely admit that your initial “attacks” are not based on my opinions, but rather because you “feel” that I am a liar. I asked you how you can make that determination, and you say its because I’m a liar? Interesting, logical processes there.
    And to touch on your claims that I jumped on YOU as being “off topic”…in the first post where I quoted from you, I was actually wondering why the ORIGINAL POST ABOUT TOBY KEITH mentioned the lynchings in the South, or why the guy mentioned the Opelousas Massacre of blacks by dems in Texas.
    However, I also replied because YOU made this comment:
    “Because 300 is almost the equivalent of 3,437, right nitwit ?”
    which SEEMED to imply that lynchings in the South were committed by Republicans, and were far worse compared to the number of killings in Texas which were done by Democrats. That was when I mentioned that the lynchings in the South were most likely done by Democrats too.
    I’m not “slamming the Democratic party” nor “baiting” anyone about anything. Merely pointing out inconsistencies in opinion as well as mentioning that both PARTIES have spotty records on race relations.
    As to my truthfulness, I have not uttered a single word about myself that is not 100% true. If you want to point of flaws in the historical instances I brought up, go to it. but instaed its just a bunch of speculation that I’m a troll who must work for the Bush administration since I am pointing out the stains on the historical record for us (Dems).


  96. dbadass says:

    DvlsAdvocat: Might I refer you to comment # 18?


  97. TeleMan says:

    I wonder how many fans really know what the song is about. I don’t think most of them get beyond the “whiskey and beer” lyrics.

    As far as vigilantism, some people say we should gather our pitchforks and torches and take on DC.

    Regarding the simplicity of Country, it is the music of the common folk, much as blues (just as simple as country!) was common for the black folk. So instead of playing in C or G blues is usually E or A, but it’s the same basic 3 chord building blocks that many great songs, even rock, are built with. True musicians can build awesome songs on these foundations (look at SRV).

    Granted there are plenty of lame country songs, there are also tons of lame blues and rock and rap and etc… but there are some serious country guitar shredders out there. Some of the those bluegrass folks can really tear it up!

    (I can’t believe that as an old school metal head that I just defended country :/ )


  98. TeleMan says:

    And yes, that guitar is a jingoistic eyesore.


  99. Buckie Boy says:

    Toby Keith = a typical “good ole’ boy” american, bigoted, ignorant, fascist, hate monger.


  100. nffcnnr says:

    …and not to mention the animal abuse implied in the title to his song/movie. Where’s the outrage, PETA??!?!?
    But for real, the guy is a total tool.


  101. DvlsAdvocat says:

    dbadass Says:

    DvlsAdvocat: Might I refer you to comment # 18?

    Thats the exact post I am referencing in my last comment right above yours.


  102. gummitch says:

    RantingTommy Says:

    None of that changes the FACT that country “music” requires very little musical knowledge or skill to perform. Just like rap.

    Rap and country are the same type of Lowest Common Denominator type genres. The audience for both is dominated by under-educated low information voters that are not able to discern talented musicians from hacks.

    There is a lot crappy “country” music, very popular on commercial radio. To claim that playing country music requires little musical knowledge is an astonishingly ignorant statement. Try that statement up in Nashville. Tell it to the Hot Band, or Jerry Douglas, or the Flatlanders, or Lyle Lovett.

    Traditional country music is played by some of the most talented musicians in the country.


  103. gummitch says:

    gummitch Says:

    Traditional country music is played by some of the most talented musicians in the country.

    I should have mentioned the soundtrack for O Brother, Where Art Thou? as a starting point for judging the quality of country music.


  104. barfly says:

    Keith’s a two-dimensional cliche.’

    His music and movie are what you’d expect from a kid raised on Hollywood shoot-em-ups.

    Does he wear spurs on stage?

    A big, developmentally-arrested kid.


  105. cage free brown says:

    I don’t think people are being thin skinned about this. a few years ago Toby Keith was VERY outspoken that people who opposed the war were bad and wrong. Clear Channel may have been the one who paid to bus hooligans to “counter protest” anti-war rallies but it was Toby Keith t-shirts that you saw on people who wanted to kick your ass.

    He’s recently gone on record as saying that he’s long opposed the war in Iraq. if you judge him by his public statements, this isn’t even close to true. I know Johnny Cash didn’t shoot a man in Reno but Toby Keith has embraced his role as poster boy for knuckle draggers before, I don’t think it’s out of line to mention when it looks like he’s doing it again.


  106. kasinca says:

    When country sided with this Oklahoma moron over the Dixie Chicks, I tuned in classic rock and have forgotten about country. They wonder why they don’t have a country station in LA and NYC.


  107. Bobwurst says:

    cabinbanger, I like Buck Owens. Not his hillbilly minstrel show era so much, but his Bakersville sound era. He didn’t care much for HeeHaw either, but it was a paycheck. Apparently, the only tongue in cheek you get is from larry craig…


  108. Bobwurst says:

    gummich, don’t forget Dwight Yokum, Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, etc. You might want to make a distinction between bluegrass and country.


  109. Luis M says:

    I also think it’s a bit of a stretch the part of the racist undertones just because the drug dealer is mexican. He’s not a “bad guy” for being mexican, he’s a “bad guy” for dealing with drugs.

    Not all villains in movies are Islamic Terrorists or WASPs with goatees.


  110. gummitch says:

    Bobwurst Says:

    gummich, don’t forget Dwight Yokum, Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, etc. You might want to make a distinction between bluegrass and country.

    I don’t know that there is a real distinction, Bobwurst. The best country music has bluegrass running through it, IMO, much like the blues running through a lot of rock music. And, of course, bluegrass music has much of English folk music running through it.


  111. gitrdone says:

    I have to agree, I think this article does stretch a little too far. Rope hangings from trees were not only applied to African American, but regular criminals as well.

    The drug dealing Mexican who kidnaps a guys girlfriend can be found in many Hollywood movies. Stereotypes are everywhere, concerning all races, but we all take it lightly because we know it’s just entertainment.

    If you listen to Toby Keith talk, he’s actually a fairly articulate person and has a disfavorable view of the current Bush administration. He realizes that we missed the mark when we went into Iraq and completely forgot about Bin laden.

    Please TP, you guys could be spending your resources on much more important issues out there, don’t pick on Toby.


  112. bigeugene says:

    What’s funny about guys like Toby Keith is they are all hat, no cattle. If he actually acted as tough as he talks, the guy would be rotting in prison for the multitude of physical assaults he would have committed on his fellow man.


  113. toshiaki says:

    This is kind of embarassing. Less so for Max, since he goes off bent at times over nothing. More for TP dragging it over here.

    Max is pretty much all over the place, pointing to the video when it suits his theme, then failing to look any deeper at it.

    The song was specifically written by Keith and his songwriting partner Scotty Emerick as a duet for Willie Nelson to sing with Keith. The lyric in question is Willie Nelson’s verse. Read the lyrics in the context of a Willie born in 30’s. His “Grandpappy” is already dead by the time he could have passed his tales of Texas Justice onto Willie – Willie’s father recounts his own father’s ideas of justice.

    Watch the video during these lyrics. It’s very clear that Willie’s “Grandpappy” in the lyrics is an old Texas Rangers, which is born out by the chorus of the song that Willie’s verse leads right into:

    “That Justice is the one thing you should always find
    You got to saddle up your boys
    You got to draw a hard line
    When the gun smoke settles we’ll sing a victory tune
    And we’ll all meet back at the local saloon
    And we’ll raise up our glasses against evil forces singing
    whiskey for my men, beer for my horses”

    Law enforcement saddling up their horses, the image of a gun fight with the smoke, and an old west “saloon” rather than cop’s (or lynch mob’s) bar.

    The video has a shot of Grandpappy, clear as day being Old West. They flash a badge that’s an old west “Arizona Rangers”. Someone else can figure out why AZ rather than TX as in the lyrics, perhaps IP issues.

    As “wicked that he done” is sung, we have a shot of two old west law men standing next to a dead *white* man, in the clasic old west style of how they would pose bank robbers, bandits or gunslingers once they’re tracked down and dispatched.

    As the “rope” part is sung, we have a old picture of a hanging, with a white man about to have the hangman’s rope put around his neck.

    Then we move into the chorus.

    Just how embarassing Max is comes at this part of the piece:

    “Cue ahead to 3:00 and watch as Keith intones, “We got too many gangsters doin’ dirty deeds.” The singer’s words are not-so-subtly accompanied by the image of a swaggering black man sporting short dreads and baggy clothes. Thus the profile of Keith’s ideal lynching candidate is revealed.”

    It’s as if Max hasn’t really watched the video. The “black man” in the video is one of a string of people that the “cops” in the video are flashing pictures to in hopes of getting a lead on the real criminal of the video – a serial killer. The black man happens to be a *homeless man*, who turns around and takes a leak on the wall while the Stooge Cop of the video is left holding the picture. Before that they flash pictures at two pairs of white people, the second pair clearly hookers. Ironically, the “too many gangsters” line comes while they’re talking to the hookers, while the “dirty deeds” line hits when they’re talking to the homeless man, ending as he turns to take the leak.

    Max simply sees what he wants to see, rather than knowing much of what the song or video are about.

    I find Keith to be a bit jingoistic for my liking. But this song isn’t about Lynching Justice. Willie’s verse is about Old West, tying into a chorus about the Old West. They act as contrasts to the 1st (Keith’s) and 3rd (shared) verses about modern crime, and give the song an undertone of longing for Old West Justice to solve today’s crime problems.

    If one wants to argue or criticism Keith & Emerick’s message it would be that they seem to be saying that we should take Charlie Manson and Ted Bundy and hang them on the streets rather than Life Without Parole (Manson) or “human” execution by gas/electric/needle. No doubt a good deal of it is brought on from too much reading/watching Gus & Call hang horse thieves and murderers in Lonesome Dove.

    I love the site. It’s my second visit when I log on after atrios. I hate racism, especially the wink & nudge, read-between-the-lines crap. But this is pretty embarassing.

    John


  114. Benarchy81 says:

    In the recording of the song, the lyrics that TP is calling out were actually by Willie Nelson — a liberal hippie!


  115. DvlsAdvocat says:

    toshiaki

    Thank you sir! This topic has much ado about nothing since it hit the site, but the comments thread has been quite a fireworks show.


  116. dbadass says:

    Sound Progress is full of shit I think


  117. kasinca says:

    TripleKick 3 Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    I didn’t realize anyone was being forced to listen to Keith’s song. Oh wait that’s right, no one is. I think what’s happening here is that in typical TP fashion, anyone who openly claims to be proud of their country and who’s patriotic is vilified.

    Rave on Catsh!t, somebody will cover you up.


  118. RandomChaos says:

    toshiaki Says: Thank you
    TK is trying his best to polish his tarnished image. I think he is just now realizing how badly we were all taken in by this administration. Sadly though, he will never apologize or admit that he was a fool.


  119. tokin librul says:

    There really are a lot of good people there, but it seems they don’t get any press these days. Just mental midgets like this cracker.

    I spent 40 years in Oklahoma, between 1994 and 2000 and, in general, I have never met, anywhere, a more narrow-minded, mean-spirited, xenophobic bunch of fundie Xian/rightard crackers in my LIFE…and I lived in Louisiana, 10 years, too…


  120. tokin librul says:

    Toby Keith’s a chickenshit chickenhawk.
    He earns cred from me when he enlists and puts his flabby ass on the line…


  121. tokin librul says:

    Nothing ‘racist’ about “cracker” and “redneck.”
    They’re perfectly legitimate terms for the one-set-of-grandparents crowd…


  122. Keith says:

    I think many will take this song as advocating vigilante justice. Reminds me of the movies “Ox-Bow Incident” and “Hang Em High”. We already have people who want to stand and the border and shoot every Mexican that walks across.

    I have seen postcards of lynchings (1880-1930?) and they were family events with picnic baskets. Unfortuneately people haven’t changed enough–they have just changed parties and become more sophisticated.


  123. upright left says:

    The song advocates people paying for their crimes and points out the frustration of normal people when criminals are allowed to go free and to continue to victimize others. While we don’t want to bring back hanging, it’s understandable that people want swift justice for those who refuse to obey the law and, yet, are repeatedly released. There is no comparison between the imagery of the song and the lynching of African Americans.


  124. Keith says:

    upright left, I say those doing the “swift justice” are refusing to obey the law. Do you favor or oppose vigilante justice? Because I say the Bush administration has killed one million people and stolen a trillion dollars. Do I have the right for some swift justice?


  125. barfly says:

    upright left Says:

    The song advocates people paying for their crimes and points out the frustration of normal people when criminals are allowed to go free and to continue to victimize others.

    Remember “Hang ‘em High?”

    Clint Eastwood gets hung for a crime he didn’t commit? That happened more than you think, especially with property crimes, and few lawmen.


  126. barfly says:

    Sorry Keith, didn’t see your other post upthread.


  127. Keith says:

    S’allright barfly. Did you see “The Ox-bow Incident” with Henry Fonda?


  128. upright left says:

    ______
    Keith Says:
    upright left, I say those doing the “swift justice” are refusing to obey the law. Do you favor or oppose vigilante justice? Because I say the Bush administration has killed one million people and stolen a trillion dollars. Do I have the right for some swift justice?

    July 29th, 2008 at 9:53 pm
    ______

    I oppose vigilante justice, grudgingly. As I said, the desire to see people pay for their crimes is understandable. Vigilante justice can seem more palatable when yet another crime is committed by someone who is out on parole. That is the feeling behind the song, not racism.
    I oppose the Iraq war and a lot of what Bush has done, but his administration hasn’t killed one million people nor stolen a trillion dollars. He has misspent a lot of money, but that isn’t stealing.


  129. Keith says:

    But he has killed one million innocent people. And you just look the other way. But let one fictional Mexican kidnap one fictional woman and you want to lynch him. Hypocrite!!!

    In California you can get 25 to life for stealing one slice of pizza if it’s you’re third strike (60 Minutes). But take one trillion from those that need it and give it to those who don’t and he’s your hero. Hypocrite!


  130. Happy says:

    People we are talking about a song and a movie. How you all make such a big deal over this is crazy. I feel sorry for your families if this is all you can do is make something out of nothing. Use your little brains to try figure out how to lower gas prices or help the economy. Toby is a awesome entertainer. He gives alot back to our country. I know you will contiune with what you want to say, but I had my say also. GOD BLESS AMERICA


  131. upright left says:

    ______
    Keith Says:

    But he has killed one million innocent people. And you just look the other way. But let one fictional Mexican kidnap one fictional woman and you want to lynch him. Hypocrite!!!

    In California you can get 25 to life for stealing one slice of pizza if it’s you’re third strike (60 Minutes). But take one trillion from those that need it and give it to those who don’t and he’s your hero. Hypocrite!
    ______

    The one million figure is suspect. Don’t attribute those killed by insurgents to our country/president. I never said look the other way. I never said anyone should be lynched, in fact I said the opposite. I did say the feelings expressed in a song are understandable. It’s just a song wishing that criminals would pay for their crimes. I want any real person who kidnaps another to pay the price. I’m not sure why you think it’s ok for some races to kidnap people. I think all races should be held to the same standard.
    Three strikes laws are there for a reason. If judges could be depended upon not to continually turn criminals loose, we wouldn’t have such foolish situations as the one you cited.



Jump to Top

About Think Progress | Contact Us | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy (off-site) | RSS | Donate
© 2005-2009 Center for American Progress Action Fund
View Most Popular

Advertisement

What We're About

Featured

image
Subscribe to the Progress Report



imageTopic Cloud


Visit Our Affiliated Sites

image image
Reports


Got a hot tip?
Have a hot news tip? We'd love to hear from you. Use the form below to send us the latest.

Name:
Email:
Tip:
(required)


imageArchives


imageBlog Roll