Time for a State Committee Resignation

Pandering for Colored Folks (1.00 / 2)

Just a working theory, but: The republicans didn't lose the Hispanic vote.  The republicans lost the vote of anyone making less than $35,000 per year and as it turns out the median income for Hispanics in the US is something like $20K.

So, candidate can pander for the colored vote, but the real message is for the vote of all economic groups.

Elizabeth Warren: a bankruptcy professor, bankrupt of ideas

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by: gary @ Wed Nov 14, 2012 at 18:33:42 PM UTC

You have to make a pitch for the Hispanic vote. Romney insulted (5.00 / 1)

Hispanics on the tedious issue of immigration. "Self-deport" is a clumsy concept.

The nature of the debate is such in that the media chooses the narrative. Lost in that narrative is the fact the Obama has deported records of illegal immigrants.  

"Work is the essence of Man."

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by: Karl Marx @ Wed Nov 14, 2012 at 21:08:17 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Follow the money (5.00 / 3)

I'm unconvinced.  The NY Times meme that is being media perpetuated, that Romney lost the hispanic vote, is missing the bigger picture.  

Romney lost the vote of the middle and lower middle class vote and as it turns many of the voters in those economic groups happen to be hispanic.

Historically, the democrats have received 20+% hispanic  advantage over Republicans in the presidential election (with exception of Kerry who was just a dork outlier).  Clinton's advantage over Dole was 51%.  Now suddenly, Romney lost the Hispanic vote in a big way and it's the result of some faint NY Times perpetuated insult?!  

Immigration is a red herring.  Instead, follow the money.

First, Hispanics earning over $50,000: Obama/Romney 59:39%.  Hispanics earning less than $50,000:  Obama/Romney 82:17%.

Seems like that is ballgame over: Hispanic voters, like non-hispanic, vote their pocketbooks.

Second, McCain only received 31% (to romney's 27%) of the Hispanic vote and McCain was a champion of immigration reform. Romney, you say, "insulted" them and still managed to lose only 4 percentage points of the hispanic vote?

Third, on the money issues, according to Pew polls, 12% of Hispanics support a cuts-only approach to deficit reduction and only 25 percent want to repeal Obamacare. That is, they voted for Obama policies that were ethnicity blind.

I'm not saying immigration isn't an issue. I am saying it's relatively unimportant.  I'm saying follow the money.  The Hispanic voted for Obama because of money policy, not some bull about Romney insulting some group of illegal aliens who weren't voters.

Fourth, Romney received the same % vote from Asians and Jews as he did from Hispanics. Is the talking point now that Romney insulted those demographics?  That's just nonsense.

45% of the Hispanic population live in large metropolitan areas.  Romney lost the metropolitcan areas in a big way.  Think Venn diagrams here:  The republicans need to reach out to to seek a large metropolitan strategy not some 'pander to the colored folk' nonsense.

Elizabeth Warren: a bankruptcy professor, bankrupt of ideas

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by: gary @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 15:10:57 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Thanks For This Post (0.00 / 0)

Thanks for the thumbs-up, ConsEph. I had no idea you were in Plymouth too! Regarding the Veras situation, I was distracted by someone who thought I was a Boston Globe reporter when the controversy erupted. I wasn't able to find out which state committee woman shot off her mouth against Veras nor was I able to talk to Veras himself about the incident. For those reasons, I wasn't comfortable adding that anecdote to my state committee report since I lacked hard facts to back it up. But thanks for dedicating a separate post on a subject that needs to be addressed.

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by: The Angelic One @ Wed Nov 14, 2012 at 18:35:17 PM UTC

A Sincere Public Apology Necessary (5.00 / 1)

I was one of the State Committee members in attendance last night at the John Carver Inn in Plymouth.  I have a sense of which colleague may have been the one who said the offending statement but I am not certain as this hearing impaired person sat in the back of the State Committee seating, as is my usual preference.  As such, I did not personally hear the offensive statement but I certainly heard and saw the absolutely justified reaction by Mr. Veras.  

After the incident several State Committee members expressed their utter disgust with the comment.  Some lamented that the statement & brief exchange would be reported upon by the news as WBUR had a microphone at the podium.  Obviously, it was only a matter of time before a blog, and most obviously this one, brought up the situation.  

The individual who made the comment must indeed engage in some deep soul searching and examination of conscience.  The statement was inappropriate, offensive, and was in poor character.  Furthermore, it cast what was a productive meeting in a gravely poor and extremely negative light.  I assume that the offender is generally a nice and cordial individual who had the best of intentions, probably even out of a sense of patriotic pride, but the words and the action of uttering them were wrong.  They were undeniably and unequivocally wrong, hurtful to Mr. Veras, and damaging to the Massachusetts Republican Party.

We, as Republicans, conservatives & Americans can and must have an open, honest, and vigorous debate upon issues such as illegal immigration, cultural assimilation, and related matters.  However, blatantly insulting a gentleman who was making a perfectly valid - and necessary - point, and who was permitted to speak by a special vote of the majority of State Committee and invited to speak at the podium, is simply and absolutely wrong.

I have been trying to help a close friend and former co-worker, born & raised in El Salvador, obtain his United States citizenship for years as a legal immigrant.  He cannot vote, but his wife - herself a Spanish speaking woman from the US territory of Puerto Rico - certainly can and does.  This gentleman I reference is furthermore a pastor of a local Pentecostal church and guess what, he supports & would vote for - and his wife certainly does vote for - Republicans including recently filling out her ballot in support of Scott Brown & Mitt Romney.  

Me?  My last name is Portuguese, the overwhelming ethnic group here in the SouthCoast, and I'm often confused for being Hispanic by that basis alone.  Granted, my grandparents never taught their children to speak either their native tongues of either Portuguese or Norwegian, but I would be appalled, nay I would be furious, if someone rebuked me for speaking either language.  Clearly, Mr. Veras was speaking in the occasional Spanish during his one minute presentation to make a point.  Although by no means fluent, I was able to pick-up on the essence of what he was saying thanks to my several years of studying the language in high school, college, and graduate school (where I had to pass an one-and-a-half hour long translation exam).  I appreciate the point Mr. Veras made and unfortunately, it was reinforced by the rude comment made by a colleague.

Politically, there is a reason why here locally State Representative Antonio F.D. Cabral (D-New Bedford) has a virtual lock on his seat and it's because he is Portuguese, he speaks the language, he relates to the voters and their culture.  It's why Scott Brown marched in the 2012 Feast of the Blessed Sacrament at what is commonly called "The Portuguese Feast" in at the Madeira Field in New Bedford.  It's why Charlie Baker visited the same Feast in 2010.  It's called outreach.  It's called reaching out beyond the same White, Anglo-Saxon, Protestant, Bostonian-accented voter!

I've typed a lot about the Portuguese in this region but the fastest growing demographic, quickly catching up to we Luso-Americans, are Hispanics!  We need more Spanish-speaking voters like my future-US citizen friend, his wife, & their family.  What we do not need is more incidents like last night.

At the very least, Mr. Veras and the State Committee deserve a deep, profound, and sincere public apology in addition to the aforementioned meditation upon what was said and the motivation behind the statement.  The statement was made in a public forum, probably captured by the media, and at an official Republican meeting and therefore a public apology should be sincerely made.  We must never pander but we certainly must always outreach.  We must grow the base and not insult, demean, and belittle potential voters - and the gentleman last night certainly seemed to be a Republican supporter & activist to me!

I did not have the podium last night beyond my comments early in the evening about Bill Nickerson however as the Chairman of MassGOP Region 5, where Plymouth is located, I apologize on behalf of the Massachusetts Republican Party to Alex Veras and the Spanish speaking community.

Mr. Veras was right and he should have been accorded all the respect and dignity regardless of the language he chose to use last night to make his valid points.

Sincerely,

Brock N. Cordeiro
Chairman, Region 5 of the Massachusetts Republican Party
Member, Massachusetts Republican State Committee
Second Bristol & Plymouth State Senate District
New Bedford, Dartmouth, Fairhaven, Acushnet & Mattapoisett

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by: BNCordeiro @ Wed Nov 14, 2012 at 22:41:18 PM UTC

:-) (0.00 / 0)

You're a good man, Brock. :-)

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by: edfactor @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 00:19:14 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Stop dancing around it. (1.00 / 1)

What did Mr. Vares say in Spanish?

After he was interrupted, what did he say in rebuke?

Without answering those questions I'm not sure what it is that needs condemning except speaking out of turn.

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"That it ceased to exist, I'll grant you, but whether or not it failed cannot be definitively said." - Metropolitan (1990)

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by: Patrick @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 00:23:50 AM UTC

Not necessarily about the words said (5.00 / 2)

Patrick -

If the tone was derogatory toward a Spanish speaker, that is more than enough to be concerned. For a party that struggles to gain the respect and support of the fastest-growing ethnic group in America, we must have no tolerance for that kind of thing.

This is why I am so against the anti-immigration arguments from the social conservative crowd. It can start off with a righteous defense of earned citizenship, but it very easily becomes nativist and anti-Hispanic when it ferments in right-wing media and online discussions. There are many Republicans who don't realize how their attitude and tone have become very anti-Hispanic. They no longer hear how awful they sound as they are surrounded by those that agree. But Hispanics know. They know the discussion about illegal immigration would sound nothing like this if the 12 million illegals were from Ireland or Sweden.

Because there are so many awful conservative nativists out there, we must be vigilant in policing our side. If this incident happened as described, it is unacceptable.

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by: edfactor @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 00:31:49 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Don't Recall (0.00 / 0)

I don't recall what Mr. Veras said nor am I sure that I entirely understood it, but as I said I got much of the essence.  He was basically just making a call to sincerely outreach to the Hispanic community.  He reinforced his point by uttering a sentence or two in Spanish.

A State Committee member sitting not far away made the purported statement about him not speaking English.

At that point Veras launched into a very upset rebuke of the statement pointing toward the individual and responding directly.

The entire event lasted a couple of minutes as each speaker was only given one minute to address the State Committee.

Afterwards, several State Committee members lamented the rude statement and how it would possibly be picked up by the media and send a negative message.

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by: BNCordeiro @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 00:36:12 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

So, what was his rebuke? (0.00 / 0)

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"That it ceased to exist, I'll grant you, but whether or not it failed cannot be definitively said." - Metropolitan (1990)

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by: Patrick @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 00:37:36 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Loud & Angry (5.00 / 1)

It was loud & angry denunciation of the rude statement directed at him.  He then emphasized that by once again speaking a sentence in Spanish.

Quite frankly, it doesn't matter what he said after the statement, and it really doesn't matter what he said before the statement.  The interjection by the State Committee member was not on the merits of his argument but on the language that he briefly used to make his point.  That interjection was unnecessary and inappropriate.

The objection wasn't that the gentleman was wrong on the content of his words but that he dared to use non-English words during his one minute presentation.

Somehow, I doubt this would've been much of a problem had Mr. Veras had opted instead to make his points using classical Latin or some French phrase.

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by: BNCordeiro @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 00:48:15 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Let me get this straight. (0.00 / 0)

He rebuked this person by speaking Spanish again, this time using the Spanish language as an invective.  But the first time, his use of Spanish could not possibly be construed as insulting in any way to those in attendance?

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"That it ceased to exist, I'll grant you, but whether or not it failed cannot be definitively said." - Metropolitan (1990)

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by: Patrick @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 00:54:43 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

No hay excusas son necesarias (0.00 / 0)

No, there is absolutely & positively NO way that any objective individual in that room would or could have taken his comments as insulting in any way, shape, manner or form.  

The vast majority of his comments were in English, uttered a brief sentence, in Spanish, basically about us needing to reach out to the Hispanic community and that prompted an absolutely uncalled for and inappropriate interjection that both rudely interrupted the gentleman and was based in nothing that he said, in either language.

This prompted the gentleman to directly address the State Committee member, again mostly in English but with a sentence or two of Spanish thrown in (probably for reasons of ethnic/linguistic pride after having been so shabbily treated).  

There is no reason to be an apologist for bad behavior.  It was wrong & would've been wrong no matter what language was used or for whatever length.  Be it Spanish, French, Norwegian, Latin, Greek, Swahili, Chinese, Navajo or any other.

If someone doesn't like his point, then respectfully discuss the matter in an appropriate time and manner.  Rude treatment with a bigoted edge, even if unintended, is below & beneath the dignity of any political party.

The treatment of Alex Veras was - prima facie - wrong on any & every level.  Las acciones del Estado miembro de la comisión eran inadecuadas. No buena, no del todo!  No hay excusas son necesarias!

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by: BNCordeiro @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 01:04:08 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

How often is the SC addressed in other languages? (0.00 / 0)

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"That it ceased to exist, I'll grant you, but whether or not it failed cannot be definitively said." - Metropolitan (1990)

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by: Patrick @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 01:08:07 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Anytime (0.00 / 0)

Anytime a speaker wants to do so from the moment they are given the floor to speak and until their allotted time has expired.

Common decency and respect dictate that if you have nothing polite to say then keep it to yourself or take the conversation to the person in a private setting.

Interrupting, interjecting, and doing so with possible racial overtones is never, ever, appropriate.  Forget basic human decency it's a violation of basic parliamentary procedure.

Sorry Patrick, but you cannot excuse rude behavior by trying to blame the innocent gentleman who was shabbily treated for no other reason then he had the audacity to punctuate punctuated his point with his a phrase or two in his native tongue.  

The interjection does not warrant or deserve a defense but rather an apology.

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by: BNCordeiro @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 01:17:12 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

I didn't ask if people can. (0.00 / 0)

I asked how often it has happened in the past.  Is it possible that it hasn't happened in the past because people are aware that doing so can be construed as a sign of disrespect?

How often are people interrupted at SC meetings?  You act as if this is rare.  I have my doubts.

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"That it ceased to exist, I'll grant you, but whether or not it failed cannot be definitively said." - Metropolitan (1990)

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by: Patrick @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 01:22:07 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

You Act (5.00 / 1)

You as if Alex Veras was the offender and in turn have had a rather negative tone towards him for daring to include a flourish of Spanish, his native tongue, into his remarks.

There are a great many interruptions at our State Committee meetings.  I heard several inappropriate remarks from the crowd sitting behind me.  That's unfortunate.  What is tragic is a State Committee member rudely treating a guest and doing so on grounds that were not on the merit of his argument but the brief use of a language spoken by millions of his - our - fellow Americans and thousands of our fellow Massachusetts Republicans.

Don't like that the gentleman spoke very briefly in Spanish?  Too bad, he has every right to do so and we have every obligation to be cordial and respectful hosts.  

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by: BNCordeiro @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 01:30:40 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

A Guest (5.00 / 2)

Furthermore, Alex Veras was a guest of the State Committee and one who had been invited, welcomed, to speak.  

Mr. Veras could have been speaking in Klingon and he should have been accorded all the dignity and respect as a gentleman who was our guest, regardless of how he made his remarks - which were mostly in English.  

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by: BNCordeiro @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 01:07:33 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Recap (0.00 / 0)

Another State Committee member just emailed me their notes of last night's meeting.  It helped to fill in my memory gap so I'll relate it to you.  However, awhile the member sent it to several people, I have not asked for their consent to quote them verbatim but here is the relevant recap:

Alex Veras opened his remarks at the podium with a welcome in Spanish.  A veteran himself, he then moved on to describe his family's service to our country in our Armed Forces.  He noted that many of his cousins and uncles serve in the New York Police Department, none lower then the rank of sergeant & some currently applying to serve as chiefs of police.  he then spoke in Spanish to make a point about the Party's need to reach out to the Hispanic community.  A voice from the crowd said, "in a quiet but exasperated tone to speak English."  Then Mr. Veras, pointing to the woman, said that this was an example of our problem, and that is our unwillingness to engage to Latino community.    

That was the sin of Mr. Veras for which he was admonished by a State Committee colleague.  

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by: BNCordeiro @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 01:27:43 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Why DID Alex Veras speak in spanish at all? (0.00 / 0)

Who in the audience speaks no english?  Do we have state committee members that do not speak english?  

If the answer is 'No, we have no state committee members that speak no english' then it was an insult to speak a language unknown to some of them, in front of them.  

I remember a story recently in which a sandwich shop owner placed a sign in the front window asking customers to 'speak english' as the workers at the counter did not know any other languages.  Conservatives supported this action overwhelmingly, while liberals feigned offense.  Yet, when someone stands before the state Republican Committee and speaks a language that many on the state committee do not know - then that is insulting.  

If there was a state committee person named Alexov Dmitri Vosporov, would it have been alright for him to stand up and speak in Russian about how we need to welcome more Russian people to the party?  No of course not.  It would be stupid and insulting to use valuable SC time for a silly demonstration.

I would likely have yelled the same thing, 'speak english!'.  

Ed Markey is now the official 'cheapest' man on earth.  1.5 percent to charity while the average American gave 3 times as much...

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by: Vote3rdpartynow @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 15:53:20 PM UTC

He was probably saying he supports traditional marriage (0.00 / 0)

but he was afraid he'd get ejected if anyone at the meeting knew that's what he was saying.

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by: John Howard @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 16:19:08 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Did he give a speech (0.00 / 0)

or did he say a phrase/sentence in Spanish. Conversing only in Spanish would be insulting. I really don't know how the latter would be offensive at all.  

(R)- Outside 495

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by: MerrimackMan @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 17:27:24 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Ich weiß nicht (0.00 / 0)

kanske var det ett recept för köttbullar

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by: John Howard @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 17:55:45 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Bra spelat Mister Howard (0.00 / 0)

Jag undrar om de kommer att förolämpade av detta språk?

Men på tal om köttbullar, är det lunch.

Ed Markey is now the official 'cheapest' man on earth.  1.5 percent to charity while the average American gave 3 times as much...

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by: Vote3rdpartynow @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 18:28:54 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Yum (5.00 / 1)

NT

(R)- Outside 495

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by: MerrimackMan @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 19:20:07 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

1 Minute Statement (5.00 / 1)

Mr. Veras was one of five individuals who were given one minute each to address the State Committee.  He said all of about one sentence, maybe two, in Spanish to reinforce the point that Hispanic voters exist here in the Commonwealth, exist, should not be ignored, and should be engaged by us in the Massachusetts Republican Party.

His message of outreach was basically thrown back in his face for speaking very briefly in Spanish and his point was proven by the negative.  His original comment was certainly not an attack on the English language or intended - nor should it have been received - as an insult to English speaking residents of Massachusetts or members of the Republican Party.  

The gentleman then spoke at least one more sentence in Spanish when he pointed at the offending State Committee member, refusing to either be silenced or coerced into speaking English-only.  His

Your conclusion that the latter would not "be offensive at all" is entirely correct in my opinion.

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by: BNCordeiro @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 21:57:36 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

To make the very point that got thrown back in his face (0.00 / 0)

He spoke in Spanish as a rhetorical flourish to highlight that there are plenty of non-English speaking, specifically Hispanic, voters and registered Republicans (and activists) that should be engaged by the Party.  

An attempt to try to vilify Mr. Veras for daring to drive a point home by speaking in his native tongue does nothing but reflect poorly upon those either insinuating or insisting that he did anything wrong, which he absolutely did not.  

The shop owner you mention can & has made a business decision that may cost him clientele which in turn may cost him profits.  I worked in retail for 14 years and not only worked with but gave customer service to those who spoke a multitude of languages, Spanish being a large percentage of them.  The last time I checked the money spent in my store was the same United States dollar - the same greenback - spent by those who spoke English and English-only.  I suppose my store could have said "no Spanish speaking allowed at the cash register" but rather we called over someone who did speak Spanish (or Portuguese).  When my skills were not so dull, I was often able to get the point across to the customer and complete the transaction successfully.

My store didn't leave money on the table and customers storming out of the exit door because we refused to deal with language difference.  Quite the contrary, we made sure that the store sold as much merchandise as possible to whoever was willing to plunk down some green pieces of paper with dead men printed upon them.  

Is the Massachusetts Republican Party going to leave votes on the table because we refuse to reach out to those who do not speak English?  The Democrats certainly have no problem working with and for non-English speaking immigrants.  Sure, let us cede the newly minted American citizens to the other party because we're too stubborn or too ignorant to meet these voters where they live and how they speak?!

If there was a State Committee member named Alexov Dmitri Vosporov it would have been ABSOLUTELY APPROPRIATE for him to stand up and speak in Russian or whatever language in which he desired to address the assembly.  It may have been a futile waste time for him to address the committee at great length in any language other than English but this hypothetical individual would have every right to do so as he saw fit.  He would have been legitimately elected by his constituents and have every right to the floor.  Speaking entirely or mostly in a foreign language may not be productive but who the bloody Hell are we to tell any person who has either a right - or in this case an invitation as a guest - to demand that they speak English & only English?  

I said it before but somehow I doubt that if Mr. Veras had used some fancy French or Latin phrase that either the original comment would have been made or the ugly insinuations made about his briefly employing a Spanish sentence for affect would be ridiculously put forward on this blog.

There is absolutely NO requirement in the By-laws of the Massachusetts Republican Party that prohibited Alex Veras from briefly speaking a Spanish sentence before the State Committee as a welcomed guest who was invited to make a one minute statement to the assembled.  There is no state nor federal law either.  

My grandparents never taught their children their native tongues.  My maternal grandfather spoke Norwegian to the shipmates that he captained but he never permitted a foreign language to be spoken in his own home before his wife and his children.  However, what Mr. Veras did was not engage in an exclusionary speech that rudely disrespected the English-only understanding crowd.  Rather, Alex Veras emphasized his very well made and respectful comments - about voter inclusion - with a touch of a foreign language and was heckled for it, both then & now.

You would've said "speak English"?  Alright, how about "nobody but WASPs permitted to be or vote Republican"?!  Yeah, that's certainly not a recipe for political disaster!

Alex Veras, and all of our speakers that night & at any State Committee meeting, deserve to be treated as our guests and in accordance with the utmost of dignity and respect.  Shame on us if we do anything less.  

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by: BNCordeiro @ Thu Nov 15, 2012 at 22:18:04 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

You feign offense..... (5.00 / 1)

The man stood in front of a group of patriotic, American citizens whose very nation is under attack from the liberal approach of open boarders, everyone-gets-a-trophy, one-size-fits-all mentality and speaks a language unknown to many in the audience - and you find no fault in this?  

It is the slow drip, drip, drip of cultural erosion that allows our nation to slide from the powerful, industrial homogenous American capitalist society into the Euroliberal entitlement culture that asks for retirement at 52 years old and a lifetime of freebies at the taxpayers expense...

Why did he decide to throw multiculturalism in our face like a bucket of horse dung?  Couldn't he have made his point in English?  Couldn't he have shown the audience respect and spoken the beautiful native language of the American people - or - is this another one of those moments where a RINO gets a chance to yell 'we are all immigrants' and 'let's open the boarders to everybody that can find some reason to set their feet upon American soil and ask for welfare'?  

So you want to reach out to those who can't speak English?  It seems we don't yet have a clue as to how to speak to the ones who DO speak English.  Maybe you haven't noticed, but we got our asses kicked in a recent election.  If we are going to secure our base it won't be by allowing Spanish/Portuguese/French/Gaelic/or any other language to become the primary language of the SC meetings!

I too have immigrant relatives.  My father-in-law from Italy would never have spoken Italian outside of the home.  As much as he loved his native language it was something he knew that represented the past.  It was something he had enjoyed back before he became an American citizen.  You don't come to America to make it more like your native land.  You come here to be American!  You come here to be like other Americans!  You come here to speak our language, work our jobs, create new companies, take part in the American dream and American economy.  If we are going to act like we never left home then By God go home!  

No language other than English should ever be spoken at a State Committee meeting.  Ever!

Ed Markey is now the official 'cheapest' man on earth.  1.5 percent to charity while the average American gave 3 times as much...

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by: Vote3rdpartynow @ Fri Nov 16, 2012 at 00:45:56 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Well... (2.50 / 2)

...perhaps someone so committed to the beautiful English language might take the time to learn how to spell the word "borders."

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by: mecowett @ Fri Nov 16, 2012 at 00:59:40 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

A spelling mistake is your retort. Really? (0.00 / 0)

Ed Markey is now the official 'cheapest' man on earth.  1.5 percent to charity while the average American gave 3 times as much...

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by: Vote3rdpartynow @ Fri Nov 16, 2012 at 16:08:35 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Nativist posts like yours (3.33 / 3)

Nativist posts like yours are what give conservatives and Republicans our horrible stereotype.  You actually used the ignorant phrase of "Our language" I hate to break it to you but there is no "our language" there is no official language.  The most common language is English followed quickly by Spanish.  Those who speak Spanish and the great multitude are also taxpaying citizens with the right to vote!

It's attitudes like the one you've put forward that smack of the nativist "Know Nothing" mentality of the long defunct so-called American Party.  If we are to follow your advice then let us also consign the Republican Party to the ash heap of American history because we're too scared of anyone who isn't a white, old, man with a big bank account and paranoia complex.

I fully support cultural assimilation and an embrace of the melting pot rather than hyper-hyphenation.  I'll even strongly consider support an English First movement in government administration.  The difference is immigration doesn't scare me and while I demand strong border security, I have zero interest in Fortress America were those who are not WASPs are treated as second class citizens.

If it wasn't so insulting it may be an example of dark humor to see so much contortion to defend a rude comment to an American citizen, Massachusetts resident, and Republican activist who dared to utter, for a few seconds, a language other than English.  

When I arrive at San Juan, Puerto Rico on Wednesday morning I'll make sure I keep in mind that none of them are welcome to ever vote Republican, much less dare vote to have joined the Union as our 51st state, because they have the grave sin of speaking Spanish as their native tongue.  The revised MassGOP Bylaws haven't yet been formally adopted, perhaps you would suggest an amendment to ban any other language, other than English, to ever be uttered in the least syllable or letter, at any Republican meeting, at any time, for any reason, by anyone, ever?

Quite honestly, I've got better things to do tonight - such as finish packing & getting to bed early for my vacation tomorrow and the next 10 days or so.  Is not even worth commenting upon as it is below and beneath the dignity of either the Republican Party or the United States of America.

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by: BNCordeiro @ Fri Nov 16, 2012 at 01:41:34 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

The nation was founded by English speaking people... (0.00 / 0)

Ed Markey is now the official 'cheapest' man on earth.  1.5 percent to charity while the average American gave 3 times as much...

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by: Vote3rdpartynow @ Fri Nov 16, 2012 at 16:11:02 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I've got better things to do tonight - such as finish packing & getting to bed early for my vacation (0.00 / 0)

Brock, how many bottles of sunscreen do you think you'll go through in the next 10 days?  


Molon Labe

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by: Republican Ram Rod Radio @ Fri Nov 16, 2012 at 16:31:54 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Thank you RRRR!! (0.00 / 0)

Very good question as always RRRR.  I'm not sure if you have ever met Brock ..but he is quite fair skin.  So it is my hope that your question reminded him to pack a double supply of sun protection. We should probably also remind him to throw in a bottle of aloe just incase he finds him self on one of them "clothing optional" beaches and gets to much sun.

"Together we are the GOP team"

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by: GopSue @ Fri Nov 16, 2012 at 17:01:09 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Actually, I think Brock would make an excellent... (0.00 / 2)

...human sun block for his fellow travelers.  

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by: Simple J. Malarkey @ Sat Nov 17, 2012 at 14:29:44 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Disagree (5.00 / 4)

On many points:

1) I'll start with laughing at the very thought of calling Alex Veras a RINO.

2) Alex and members of his immediate and extended family have served our nation in peace and war.  His patriotism is not something that I would choose to question.

3) He made is point in a very respectful manner.  It was the State Committeewoman who did not and why I chose to write this post.  That she nor any member of leadership (other than Brock, thank you) have chosen to weigh in here only serves to strengthen Mr. Veras' point.

4) There is many reasons that people may speak in their native language rather than English.  They may not know English, they may be learning but not comfortable speaking in front of someone they do not know and who knows what else.  Frankly, it doesn't matter, we need to be able to communicate with people in various manners and multiple languages should be one of those manners.

Yes, there is substantial economic data that supports that those immigrants who learn to speak English have a greater chance of success.  A success that I believe we, as Republicans, want them to work towards achieving.  However, we cannot deliver our message of limited government and the power of success if we cannot communicate the language in which the recipient speaks or is most comfortable speaking.

Finally, I do not care what language someone speaks, from where they come, what job they have, etc. if we are all working towards the same end goal with the same values.  Mr. Veras shared his thoughts on how to get there, made a strong point further strengthened by the actions of a State Committeewoman.  For this we should thank him, not question his motives or bona fides as a Republican.

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by: ConsEph @ Fri Nov 16, 2012 at 01:53:38 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE GET THE FRIGGIN MEETING MINUTES BEFORE WE START UP ANOTHER SHIT STORM !!! (0.00 / 0)

 

Molon Labe

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by: Republican Ram Rod Radio @ Fri Nov 16, 2012 at 17:30:44 PM UTC

This event would never be in the minutes of any meeting. (0.00 / 0)

   

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by: Simple J. Malarkey @ Sat Nov 17, 2012 at 14:28:51 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

So we can find out what he said (0.00 / 0)

I think the guy's one minute speech would be in the minutes, right? Then so should his Spanish sentence. And so should his rebuke of the woman that became part of his speech, so the woman's comment should be in there too for context.

It'd be helpful to know what he said. If it isn't in the minutes, that's one reason not to use languages that the stenographer doesn't know.

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by: John Howard @ Sat Nov 17, 2012 at 15:37:52 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Simple - For once will you just friggin support one of my posts? (0.00 / 0)

JUST ONE!  That's all I ask!                    

Molon Labe

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by: Republican Ram Rod Radio @ Mon Nov 19, 2012 at 15:41:12 PM UTC

[ Parent ]