Senator Strom Thurmond Dies

[d328pilot]

Chperplt, I hope you are not trying to say that I am a racist because I think a man that served his country for so many years deserves a little respect? You dont know me, you never met me. Just like you never met Sen. Thurmond.

Public figures not behaving with dignity??? Lets not even go there.

So please enlighten me to the examples you have to prove that he never changed?

- Supported the renewal of the Voting Rights Act
- Supported the establishment of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr's birthday as a national holiday
- First Senator to hire a african american staffer.
- As Governor, pushed through a bill that repealed South Carolina's poll tax
- As Governor, ordered the state's top prosecutor to try men accused of commiting the state's last lynching. No conviction, but no more lynchings either.

Did the man make mistakes??? Sure. Are you perfect? Am I perfect? Can you site his voting record, post '80's, to show where he obstructed futherance of Civil Rights for minorities?

A man who can realize that he is wrong and change, is a bigger man you. I would like to see you when you are 100. I wonder how long you could stay awake? Didn't your mother ever tell you, if you can't say anything nice, then just don't say anything at all.

I say again, Chperplt, you should be ashamed.

 

[chperplt]

You can say it all you want dude. Am I calling you a racist, no. But, there are quite a few racists that have served their country, and that alone does not garner you respect. I served my country as well.

No, I'm certainly not perfect.

A man who can realize that he is wrong and change, is a bigger man you

That may be true.. Just not true for this man. I don't believe for a second that he ever believed he was wrong. I think as he grew older, he grew wiser and thought better about his public persona.

I guess you're probably a David Duke supporter as well?

 

[daedaepilot]

wouldn't it be something if Strom goes to heaven and finds out that God is a black jew

 

[Paladin]

I really loved the cover of The State (Columbia SC's newspaper) today. It had a picture of a thirty-something year old black man placing flowers at the grave/monument site of Strom Thurmond in Edgefield. The PEOPLE of the state of South Carolina respected Strom.

It kills me how people with limited knowledge of a subject suddenly think they're an authority on things just because they have an opinion. There is such a thing as a bad opinion...its called an uneducated opinion. Strom's past is a dead issue here in SC. He was neither a great Senator nor a bad one. He did what was within his power to better the lives of South Carolinians. Sometimes it worked...other times it didn't. No politician represents the entire populations' views. Some of you people are trying to place him in the same boat as KKK members who lynched innocent blacks...you people kill me. We're talking about the 1950's and 60's. Was Malcolm X a racist?? Interesting question considering he too was for the segregation of public schools. But wait, he was black. So God forbid we label a black man as a racist...anything for the advancement of colored people is good, therefore we can't be against it...otherwise we too are racist. This discussion is bordering on pathetic.

Mr. Irrelevant (appropriate screen name), to label Strom Thurmond as the most racist politician of the 20th century not only displays your total lack of historical education, but your complete ignorance on the topic of the Civil Rights Movement, as well. Apparently you slept through both Political Science and 20th Century US History classes in college.

Chperplt, I really don't think your posts are worth the waste of bandwidth to dignify much of a response....I will say this though, to accuse someone of being a David Duke supporter is both naive and obtuse. D328pilot said it best..."you should be ashamed".

Being an American is incredible in that we have the PRIVELEDGE of expressing our views without persecution. Strom did this...and he should be respected for defending this priveledge as an employee of the the American people...elected by American people.

God is a black Jew... My God is neither black, white, red, purple or green. Taking irrelevence to new levels daedaepilot...here's to hoping that was sarcasm (for your sake).

Cheers,
Markus

American by birth, Southern by the Grace of God

 

[ATR-DRIVR]

Markus,
An excellent post. I hope it makes some of the twits on here actually think..
thanks

 

[House_X]

The question is moot.

The guy was an "on the record" racist and a leader in the segregationist movement which was one of the darkest times in American history.

People have brought up that Strom Thurmond "rehabilitated" himself. This is utter nonsense. I didn't see his rasict a$$ marching down the streets of the segregated south hand-in-hand with Dr. Martin Luther King during the 1960's. I guess many of you have forgotten what this man symbolized and what faction HE WAS LEADING. Well, history will never forget.

There are....there were....and there will always be great leaders in this country. Strom Thurmond IS NOT one of those leaders.

Defending this man is an outrage.

House

 

[46Driver]

Strom - WAS - a man of his times. Saying he was a racist during the 50's doesn't narrow things down a whole lot - look at many of the politicians of his era. Why don't you continue to look back in the history of this country? How many of our "Founding Fathers" were racist because they actually owned slaves? However, Strom evolved over the times. If you are from South Carolina, then you would have seen firsthand his change via his re-elections campaigns. Even now, race baiting is not unusual (witness Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton) but for the last quarter century, Strom was the epitome of civility.
Finally, if you doubt how much he was beloved and respected in South Carolina, feel free to go into Columbia and Charleston and start trashing him in public. Better have on your track shoes......

 

[chperplt]

If you are from South Carolina, then you would have seen firsthand his change via his re-elections campaigns.

That says a lot for the people of South Carolina. For years you reelected a man who did nothing but fall asleep during sessions.

 

[Typhoon1244]

Wouldn't it be something if Strom goes to heaven and finds out that God is a black jew?

She is, isn't she?

 

[Chas]

Gotta be kidding

If thurmond was a racist what is Byrd? Byrd WAS a member of the KKK and Thurmond WAS an ex Liberal Democrat I guess he got mugged one day and became a republican like all the others !!

 

[Mr. Irrelevant]

Mr. Irrelevant (appropriate screen name), to label Strom Thurmond as the most racist politician of the 20th century not only displays your total lack of historical education, but your complete ignorance on the topic of the Civil Rights Movement, as well. Apparently you slept through both Political Science and 20th Century US History classes in college.

Paladin,


You'll find I don't use personal insults on this board to prove a point! I'll stand by my statement earlier. We all, politicians or not, are responsible for our actions. From my understanding of history, he was absolutely the number one pro-segregation politician of the 20th century. No other politician I can think of was more vocal in their opposition to black/african-americans being an integrated part of society. Tell me of another politician that ran on a segregationist platform.

I would be very surprised if the majority of the black population in South Carolina voted for him. First because the black population in South Carolina is so poor, very few of them vote. Second, well, let's not kid ourselves, of those black/african-americans in America who voted, 90% didn't vote for Bush in 2000, I doubt Strom carried over 50% of that voting block. I believe that picture in the newspaper simply to be a sound bite on paper. A liberal newspaper could have easily put something inflammatory about Strom on the first page.


Mr. I.


P.S. Let's see if you can respond without an insult this time.

 

[Swass]

I can't believe some of you a$$holes wish death on somebody. or that it should've happened sooner. I don't care who it is, shame on you.

 

[d328pilot]

Other people that ran on a segregation platform?...hum...Geroge Wallace, the entire dixicrat party.

I am in CAE today and they are having the viewing today. It is sure nice to see people come to pay their respects at the capitol. Thats all people, black and white.

 

[FL000]

If you (guys) haven't ever visited his DC office, do yourselves a favor and go meet the best looking staffers on Capitol Hill before his selections are replaced. He had a great eye for the ladies.

I had the pleasure of sitting next to him on a Piedmont flight back in the 80's (the 1980's) from CLT to AGS. He's a funny character...asking for extra peanuts, then stuffing his pockets full of them.

On the way on to the plane, I introduced myself and said howdy (it was during the Anita Hill hearings, so his recognizability, if not already solidified, was extra-high at the time). I fully expected him to grab a seat in the front, but he followed my date and me all the way to the back of the lightly loaded 737. When we arrived at our seats, he tried to claim mine, the one next to the cute, blonde southern belle. He politely backed off as if doing me a favor and took the seat across the aisle from me. There was about 65 years difference between them. We laughed about that one for awhile.

RIP Senator Thurmond.