Okay…where’d you get that impression?
What do you mean “both”? Both refers to two subjects only. This story was about a black and white couple. If you’re talking about about a different configuration that’s not an example of it going “both” ways.
“Idaho” holds a “racism jamboree.” Really? When I lived there, and this event happened, I seem to have missed the fact that it was sponsored by Idaho and went on with the blessing and support of the people of the state. Maybe all those protestors who gathered at the same time, denouncing the racists and outnumbering them may have obscured my view of the sign that said “This racist jamboree sponsored by the state of Idaho.”
So because there are a lot of interracial couples in Georgia, then racists from that state aren’t infuriated by a high-profile interracial proposal on national TV?
So racists in Georgia aren’t rankled up by interracial marriage since it’s so common, but racists in Idaho hate it because it’s supposedly uncommon? That’s an interesting view of the racist mind.
That’s a pretty weak assumption. Please find me any evidence to back up the notion that Idahoans are the ones making the threats. Yes, you assume it based on your stereotypical view of Idahoans, but I’d prefer to deal with facts, not your unfounded opinions.
Well, along with the discussion of GuynBluejeans, we have quite a few posters pointing out how racist whites in Idaho are:
and references to stormfront.
I venture to guess that most people were assuming that was the direction of the racism. I was merely pointing out that there was no indication in that linked article that this was the situation.
No; I didn’t mean to imply that the state sponsored it. But Idaho is the location, so there is obviously a network of racists in the state. How extensive the network may be, I don’t know.
And yet that’s about the size of it. Georgia racists may hate the idea of interracial marriage, but I think at this point they’re pretty well resigned to it as a fact of life. I don’t think it’s reached that level of saturation in Idaho. (At least not from what I saw when I was there. It seemed like a pretty lily-white place.) So a racist Idahoan may not be as inured to the phenomenon as a racist Georgian.
“Stereotyping” doesn’t have anything to do with it. It’s an established fact that there is a network of supremacists in Idaho. Clearly, that is an uncomfortable fact for you, and one you’d rather not face.
Idahoans are no better or worse than the citizens of any other state. They have racists, too, same as everybody else. I know it would be easier for you to believe that the racism came from elsewhere, but I see no reason to think it’s not home-grown.
Perhaps, then, you should do a little research before trying to paint Idaho as some sort of racist haven. Does the Aryan Nations even exist there anymore? Do the leaders of it live in the state? How many hate groups are active in Idaho as opposed to, say, Georgia (Georgia has 44, Idaho has 7)?
No, I know it well. I also know that the actions of a handful of people lead others, like yourself, to think that Idaho is somehow different from other states in this regard.
Why, then, did you single out Idaho for condemnation in this incident? You assume because the person receiving threats is based in Idaho that the threats must then come from Idaho? Again, please tell me why this is a logical assumption to make.
I’m sure some threats probably came from within the state. However, I think to assume that because in the past Idaho has had a small group of racists active in it this means that the threats came primarily from within the state is ridiculous. There is no evidence to suggest that the threats are primarily from Idahoans. Maybe if you had some facts to present, instead of dealing in stereotypes (which is clearly what you are doing), then you’d be on more solid ground.
Whee! I must be racist! Whoopee! 
And everyone in New York is rude, and everyone in California is gay, and everyone in Texas has an inflated ego, and everyone in Florida is old…
Oh, go screw yourself begbert2.
First of all, your defensiveness is showing. Why is the number of hate groups in Georgia relevant? The question on the table is not which state has the most racists, but whether Idaho has home-grown racists, of the sort that might be expected to send death threats to a local interracial couple. The answer to that question is clearly “Yes.”
So there’s no reason to believe the threats must have come from out of state.
But since (in your defensiveness) you want to get into a Georgia vs. Idaho argument, I’ll raise a couple of points:
First, Georgia has more than three times the population of Idaho. Moreover, black Georgians comprise 30% of its population. (And a similar percentage of its hate groups, judging from the cite you linked. 10 of the groups were black separatists.)
Black Idahoans comprise 0.6% of that state’s population. (0.6% !) Ask yourself why a state with a black population of only 0.6% would have even 7 white supremacist groups.
I note that the cite you linked doesn’t give the membership numbers of these groups. So for all we know, it could just tell us that Georgia’s racists are more splintered. For all we know, half of the population of Idaho could belong to one of its seven hate groups. (For the record, I don’t believe that’s the case.)
I haven’t said Idaho is different. To the contrary, you and its other defenders are the ones implicitly arguing for Idahoan exceptionalism, to the extent you and they are reluctant to accept that the hate mail could have come from within the state.
You must have me confused with the OP.
I already did:
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This wedding has been nothing but a local news story since bowl season. Makes sense to assume people reading about it in local newspapers or hearing about it on local TV news were the ones who sent the letters.
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We have established that Idaho is not racist-free, to put it mildly.
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Hard to imagine a non-local racist getting worked up enough to send death threats to an Idaho couple.
That’s hardly a bold assumption.
I have done nothing but present facts. And far from stereotyping Idahoans, I have simply said they are subject to the same foibles as the residents of every other state, including racism.
Apparently everyone in Idaho has a long and extremely pliable penis, too.
Sure it is. When people like yourself think that Idaho is some haven for racists, I get a little defensive since I know that’s not true.
Because you supported your contention that the bulk of this hate mail was from Idaho by mentioning the fact that you knew about one hate group that was located there. Since you are saying that Idaho has a network of racists based on your knowledge of the Aryan Nations (which, incidently, moved out of state six years ago), I thought it might be relevant to look at the number of hate groups in your state, too. It seems that you have a far higher number. So if you were to stereotype a state based on the presence of hate groups (which is what you did with Idaho), it seems that Georgia is in a much worse position.
Sure it does. But it doesn’t follow that the bulk of the threats were from Idaho as you seem to contend. They could be, sure, but to say that without some sort of facts (aside from the knowledge that the Aryan Nations used to operate there) is assuming too much.
No, just as there is no reason to believe the threats came mainly from within the state.
And over six times as many racist groups operating within it.
White supremacists hate more than blacks, you know. Mexicans, Indians, even southern Europeans come in for hatred from them. They are quite creative with the type of folks they blame for the ills of the world. Jews were a big issue for the Aryan Nations folks (not that Idaho had a lot of Jewish folks, either).
That’s somewhat irrelevant, though, since racists don’t need to live among minorities to hate them.
No, I am sure there were some folks within Idaho making threats. However, trying to say that they are solely or mainly from Idaho isn’t supported by any facts you have produced. It could very well turn out that these threats came almost solely from within Idaho, but it’s pretty insulting to assume that.
Sure, because racists aren’t known to use the Internet to trade information. :rolleyes:
Yes, seven whole hate groups. So what? There are racists there, just as any other state. Again, you label Idaho as having a network of racists from old news reports about one highly visible group. Since you like to tar the reputation of a state based on racist groups, I’d say Georgia is much less “racist free” than Idaho.
And, as this news story points out, Idaho seems to be doing pretty well in terms of interracial marriage: “Idaho was one of five states with the largest proportion of white and multiple-race couples in the country.”
Why? I didn’t realize that racists kept their hatred of others confined to their neighbors. As you pointed out, Idaho isn’t known for having a large minority population. Obviously the racists there get worked up about minorities living elsewhere. It stands to reason that racists from, say, Georgia would get worked up about a high-profile interracial marriage. I seem to recall they used to lynch folks for that kind of stuff in Georgia in the not-so-distant past. Idaho, on the other hand, doesn’t have a history of stringing up black men for saying “inappropriate” things to white women.
You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
Where did I stereotype Idaho?
There is a stereotype of Idaho as being a haven for racists. You, based on one now-defunct racist group operating there, contend that Idahoans sent the threats and disagree with those who say that perhaps they were from other parts of the country. You are making assumptions based on a stereotype of the state which isn’t true.
No, I was pointing out that Idaho is not racist-free, after some posters had expressed doubt that the hate mail originated in Idaho.
Your defensiveness is really tiresome. Are all Idahoans like that?
No, people were saying that blaming all this on Idaho wasn’t justified. You, however, sought to justify it. I then attempted to illustrate that your attitude about Idaho being a haven for racists (or more of a haven than any other state) was wrong.
Why, because I called you on the fact that you don’t know what you’re talking about?
No, most would let this type of lazy thinking go unchallenged. However, that’s not why I’m a member here. Fighting ignorance and all that.
Well, there’s an interesting discussion (among Idahoans) of racism in Idaho over here. One of the posters to that blog pointed out some interesting stats:
Is it stereotyping to point that out? Because I’m still not sure how you’re using the word.
Ah, finally, some facts.
No, as long as you don’t try to smear the reputation of the state based on the actions of a few.
You’re whooshing us, right?
Not me I’m a girl.
The 40% percent of my town that is Hispanic and very intermingled with the white, Native American, Asian and black population would disagree. As would the lovely black woman my white nephew is married to.