Fairfax Native Says Allen's Words Stung

[kskiska]

S.R. Sidarth had built an impressive record of achievements for such a young man: straight-A student at one of Fairfax County's finest high schools, a tournament chess player, a quiz team captain, a sportswriter at his college newspaper, a Capitol Hill intern and an active member of the Hindu temple his parents helped establish in Maryland.

But for all his achievements, the moment that thrust him into the national spotlight this month came when Sen. George Allen (R-Va.) called him "macaca."

The remark stung the young man of Indian descent. What hurt more, Sidarth said, was when Allen gave him a sarcastic welcome to his own country, his birthplace even. It was too ironic, he thought. "I was born and raised in Fairfax County, and he's from California," said S.R. Sidarth, wearing khaki shorts, a yellow short-sleeve shirt and flip-flops a week after the incident during an interview at the campaign headquarters of Allen's opponent, Democrat James Webb.

(snip)

Larry J. Sabato, an oft-quoted political pundit who teaches a small, popular seminar on campaigns and elections, said he asked students to write an essay as part of the admission process. Eighty people applied for the course, including Sidarth. His essay was just three words long -- but it was enough to clinch one of the 20 coveted spots in the class.

"I am Macaca," he wrote.

more…
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/24/AR2006082401639.html

[hlthe2b]

1. Terrific guy... I love the part about his 3-word political essay

that earned him a coveted spot in Sabato's seminar: "I am Macaca."

Kudos, Mr. Sidarth. You have my eternal respect and best wishes. So glad you are a progressive!

[LiberalFighter]

13. Smart guy

[donco6]

16. Pretty daring!

And funny as hell. I'd have given him an "A".

[LibDemAlways]

2. Allen's behavior was inexcusable and

indefensible. He only made a bad situation worse by coming up with a series of bogus explanations for his obvious racism. And he's never admitted that what he said was offensive - only that it was "a mistake" - as in, it was a mistake that I got caught.

Sidarth is obviously an intelligent and accomplished person with a future of limitless possibilities.

Allen is a racist moron who has effectively destroyed his own Presidential ambitions. I've posted a bunch of times about Allen's racism. I knew he couldn't keep a lid on it forever, and I'm glad he proved me right.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

12. Allen represents Boorish America

There was applause after he made his racist cracks. rethuglicans all over the country are applauding, too.

[gratuitous]

3. Why is the Post talking to Sidarth?

They should be running the latest in George Felix Allen's excuses du jour. Talking to the regular person who was gravely insulted by an anointed politician? Where's the sense in that? Is the Post developing populist sensibilities, or just trying to keep its nasty corporate head above water as the tide comes flowing in?

[Laughing Mirror]

4. Just trying to keep its nasty corporate head above water

Don't be fooled.

[gratuitous]

5. That was my guess, too

In any fair reckoning of the behavior of the popular media in the last three decades, the Post will have much to answer for. They will lamely point to little stories like this about Mr. Sidarth as evidence that they weren't totally co-opted tools of the power elite in Washington. No observer or scholar of even minimal perspicacity will be fooled.

[ShortnFiery]

11. Yes, but there's a difference between the Editorial Staff

and the rest of the Reports working for the Washington Post.

Granted, The Editorial Staff clearly jumped the shark "We support our pResident!" DURING the run up to the invasion of Iraq. However, there are still some laudable investigative reporting by the regular journalist type reporters (All things not Commentary).

[Recursion]

10. WP doesn't like Allen

Remember it's still a somewhat progressive rag except for their bizarre obsession with kissing *'s ass and invading the wrong countries. In VA and MD they tend to support moderately progressive candidates, mostly because DC's transportation system is held in a stranglehold by MD and VA, and people like Allen want to make that worse.

Their city election endorsements are illuminating, too: all their candidates are pro-"development" (ie, pro-handing-the-city-to-developers-on-a-silver-platter), but they haven't shied away from candidates who are very progressive otherwise.

[Laughing Mirror]

14. The DC area itself is pretty progressive

You can expect at least some of that progressivity is bound to slip through the occasional cracks of that monolithic corporate rag.

Don't be fooled.

[w4rma]

6. Best. Admission Essay. Ever. (nt)

[chieftain]

7. The RW denies that George II made a racist remark with macaca

but they cannot deny how unattractive a person Allen showed himself to be. The stories his sister recounted in her book ring even more truly watching this Republican bully trying to intimidate a young person who had the temerity to be involved in his opponent's campaign. He erased any doubt as to his position as the logical successor to W in terms of just plain nastiness.

[KaptBunnyPants]

8. When they come up with a reasonable explanation at to what he was saying

then I might care...

[immoderate]

9. That's frightening.

One might take solace in the fact that no one is coarse and stupid enough to fill W's smelly shoes. But then there is George Allen standing in the wings. Does America want more of this? Don't answer that.:scared:

--IMM

[krkaufman]

15. Glad to see that some emphasis is being placed other than on "macaca"

From the time I learned about Allen's remarks, I thought the "Welcome to America" comment was most telling. The "macaca" bit could be spun any number of ways, but Allen's assumption that someone of Indian descent (assuming Allen recognized that much) *must* be other than US-born, a citizen, was most damning, in my view. No mistaking his meaning there... "Welcome to America and the real world of Virginia!"