The Unbearable Whiteness of Being (Megyn Kelly): Jon Stewart Skewers Fox News’ Caucasian Persuasion December 13, 2013

The Unbearable Whiteness of Being (Megyn Kelly): Jon Stewart Skewers Fox News’ Caucasian Persuasion

By Terry Firma
December 13, 2013

In his inimitable way, Jon Stewart takes on Fox News’ obsession with keeping Santa and Jesus as white as the driven snow. The best line is by Jessica Williams, the Daily Show‘s “Senior Christmas Historical Accuracy Correspondent”:

Santa is white. That’s just a fact. It’s Miracle on 34th Street, not Miracle on 134th Street.

Can’t argue with that. Merry White Christmas, everyone!

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  • Randay

    For a while the vikings controlled much of the Mediterranean so you now find blondes or redheads in Italy, North African, and other areas.

    Funny, I am of Finnish origin myself. Have you read “The Seven Brothers” by Aleksis Kivi and “The Kalevala”?

  • Randay

    Of course Jesus was white, just like he spoke English.

  • evodevo

    And Shakespearian, King James English at that !!

  • evodevo

    Good on that cashier !!! How long was it till she was fired?

  • brianmacker

    Yeah, but if you take John Stewart seriously as a news source what does that say about you? This thing started with a racist race baiting black woman, Aisha Harris, who calls whites “melanin-deficient” as if being caucasian is a genetic disease.

    I liked Ann Althouse’s take down of this bullshit political correctness:
    http://althouse.blogspot.com/2013/12/taking-ridiculous-racial-issue-and.html

    One thing is for sure. Neither Jesus nor Santa was black.

    Next thing you know well have sensitive South Africans asking that a neutral symbol like a toucan be used instead of Nelson Mandela. Why? Because he makes some people uncomfortable just like a white Santa and jewish Jesus do. No folks, just because you have a darker complexion as a Greek or a Semite that doesn’t make you an African American as Aisha Harris might think.

    Since were using comedians as sources here’s my proof that Santa is white:
    http://infolocata.com/mirovia/irrefutable-proof-that-santa-is-odin/

  • brianmacker

    Olive skinned people still aren’t “black people” as Aisha Harris wants. The context of this discussion was Aisha Harris complaining about the “melanin-deficient”.

  • Some people only think in the binary: black and white, left and right, true or false. However none of that matters here as my original post is directed at the rantings of Megyn Kelly who made an incorrect statement about two cultural figures.

  • brianmacker

    You are still, dishonestly at this point, ignoring context. I watched the clip. There was no ranting. The context being that Kelly was responding to Aisha Harris who finds whites to be “melanin deficient”, doesn’t like the fact that Santa Claus is white, admits to that fact unlike you, and wants to turn him into a penguin. In fact Kelly made a correct statement whether it was about Santa Claus or St. Nick. Saint Nicholas is also white, because Greeks are Caucasians. If a greek neighborhood watchman Gregoras Zimbrakaki had shot Trayvon Martin there is no doubt he would be referred to as a “white shooter”. You are being about as honest as those who have claimed Megyn Kelly believes Santa Claus is real.

  • brianmacker

    That was not what happened in this case. Do you even care about the truth?

  • brianmacker

    Actually they do have a race, so he is wrong. Aladdin is not Japanese for example. Kinda spoils the whole tricking the kids thing when you have to explain a black Santa. She was wrong to make racial slurs but facts are facts, even about fictional characters. Captain Ahab wasn’t hunting a black whale even though the whale was a fictional character.

    I’m not sure why blacks even bother with the Santa thing. They can do what I did with my kids which is to say he is a Christian (or White) fictional character that Christian (or White) parents trick their kids into believing. Now please don’t inform the other kids because it will upset them.

  • brianmacker

    Greek.

  • Shoo! SHOO! Go away! Find someone else to play your argument game. Bait someone else like the rest of your 2,000+ posts.

  • brianmacker

    Oh, I see. You aren’t making arguments when you write “for arguments sake”? You are just ranting? Well I’ll make sure to disregard you in the future. Apparently you can’t support your claims. You are also apparently a not very intelligent because you think having 2000+ posts is evidence of anything. How about you, Shoo, shoo. fly.

  • brianmacker

    He is a fat white guy, race baiting troll.

  • I didn’t need to review your entire 2000+ posting history. A sample size for a fortnight was enough.

    The past 2 weeks of your posts shows me that you’re most likely a political conservative, are 50+ years of age, have a thing for race bating, trolling, have a tendency to use swear words when you don’t get your way, and enjoy getting into arguments online. When called out on your crap, you resort to name calling, ad-hom attacks, and cherry picking comments.

  • brianmacker

    Thought you didn’t like arguing hypocrite. You are a liar I am quite polite until someone dismisses me like I’m a fly. You can’t support your claims, and in fact your claims are an ad-hominem attack. Megyn Kelly has way more honest than you because she has already admitted where she is wrong, whereas you continue with your falsehoods when corrected. You shouldn’t be on the internet discussing topics if you think that is a problem. Now shoo anonymous troll hypocrite. I thought you commented because you actually wanted to get at the truth, but I was mistaken. Shoo, shoo fly.

  • brianmacker

    As I said you aren’t interested in being honest or having any sort of honest debate. You are a troll, hypocrite and liar, as I have established.

  • brianmacker

    Yeah, he looks like a white guy, not Samuel L. Jackson, or Aisha Harris. Looks like you provided evidence for Megyn Kelly’s position.

  • brianmacker

    Wow, Lizzy that doesn’t fit with your claimed aversion to argumentation on the internet. Apparently you are a hypocrite.

  • You’ve quickly switched from trolling to harassment.

  • brianmacker

    How do you figure that? When did I troll you. You are the one posting troll comments, like the Trollololo video. You are the one who feels that commenting on the internet is wrong. Criticizing me merely for having 2000+ comments, yet here you are commenting with well over 1000+ comments. Don’t you feel like a hypocrite, because you are one? I’ve been commenting on friendly atheist way longer than you have, and yet you’ve got 153 comments here yourself.

    Worse, you are now claiming that you value argumentation on the internet more than news sources. Which is also hypocritical.

    I see your MO is to accuse others of what you do yourself. First you switched to ad hominem when you could not respond because you were wrong on a subject. Then accused me of ad hominem when that did not occur. You then started trolling with a “shoo fly” comment and a trollollo, and now call me a troll.

    Perhaps you should actually watch the news so that you can know what is happening. Like in this case. Instead of depending on John Stewart and the internet.

  • brianmacker

    Wow, you posted well over a 1000+ comments yourself over on other sites with this id. Not that I would be interested in that other than it shows your hypocrisy.

  • brianmacker,

    Actually they do have a race, so he is wrong.

    They are imaginary.

    That means that they are not real.

    That means that each reader imagines each character as each reader likes – unless the story specifically states otherwise.

    Since the characters are imaginary, there is no real problem if the reader chooses to imagine them in a way contrary to the way the story is written.

    Your devotion to racial purity is sad.

    .

  • Lando

    Wait, santa is a fat, white, race-baiting troll?
    I was unaware; no more cookies and milk for that guy.

  • I thought he was an overgrown elf.

    What is the human race do non-human elves?

    .

  • brianmacker

    Fact is that fictional characters do have race, and not only that but hair color or baldness, sex, etc. In “Huckleberry Finn” the fictional character Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer white, while Jim black. In Uncle Tom’s Cabin Uncle Tom was black. Kunta Kinte in Roots was black.

    This has zero to do with racial purity. Nice try at race-baiting though. This is the same as if a woman dressed up as Santa. The kids are going to ask questions.

    Are you really this dense?

  • brianmacker,

    You describe two characters.

    Each is given a race because it is relevant to the story.

    You mistakenly assume that therefore all characters have race.

    Pointing out your mistakes is not race-baiting.

    Pointing out your mistakes is just pointing out your mistakes

    .

  • brianmacker

    I didn’t make the claim that all characters have race. The plural “characters” can refer to more than one yet not all. I made the claim that a particular fictional character, Santa Claus, has race. I also made claims about other particular examples, at which point I used the pural.

    Not only does Santa have a race he has all sorts of other characteristics, such as a white beard, obesity, and male. Which is why the black woman who wanted to turn him into a penguin called him a “fat white guy”.
    Often not only does the text state such characteristics in books, but they also have pictures of the characters.

    “Pointing out your mistakes is not race-baiting.”

    You have yet to point out a mistake. Certainly a mistake isn’t “devotion to racial purity”. Your race baiting consists of imputing racist motives to me I do not have.

    I don’t in fact care about racial purity, at all. Not one jot. If I did, I would have stated so. I’m quite open with my opinions even when unpopular.

    You don’t like the facts I’m stating so you are making up positions for me which I don’t hold. You use straw men, and red herrings. You are dishonest in your argumentation. Next time ask me if I’m for racial purity. The topic never came up.

    One can certainly make a “black Santa” character but he wouldn’t be the same fictional character as the original white santa character with a white beard fair skin, etc. Just like you could make a female Santa character who is not the same character as the male Santa.

    You are free to do so if you want. It’s a free country. Just don’t expect people to be happy if you advertise your store is providing a Santa for picture taking and you use a woman. People expect Santa to be a white guy because that is what he is. You should advertise with information indicating you are using a woman.

    Otherwise they’ll think it was a bait and switch and it would be. Some people will be pissed and maybe not shop there again because you caused the fraud of Santa to be exposed.

    Santa isn’t a shapeshifting sex and race changing being in the tradition of Xmas, and people like tradition. That’s the reality. Deal with it.

  • brianmacker,

    I made the claim that a particular fictional character, Santa Claus, has race.

    Please show where the race of Santa Claus is described in an author’s words.

    .

  • brianmacker

    The Night Before Xmas:

    “His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry;
    His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
    And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;”

  • brianmacker,

    That would seem to limit the character to light skinned people, unless there is something about race that limits the ability to have flushed cheeks nose.

    And that is assuming that there are not stories that describe Santa as darker skinned.

    I wouldn’t know, but I did not claim that Santa Claus can only be a white fictional character.

    I have read that Idris Elba is being considered for the role of James Bond. 😉

    http://screenrant.com/idris-elba-thor-2-avengers-james-bond-sandy-147304/

    Ian Fleming described James Bond as resembling Hoagy Carmichael, a skinny chain smoker, not resembling Sean Connery.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Bond#Looks

    On the other hand, the real Frederic Chopin had tuberculosis during the interesting parts of his life, but was played by Cornel Wilde (a guy known for his muscles).

    http://www.nytimes.com/1989/10/17/obituaries/cornel-wilde-74-a-performer-and-film-producer.html

    Who controls the race, or any other appearance, of a fictional character?

    Who even controls the race, or any other appearance, of a real person, once the person is portrayed in a film, or book, or graphic novel, or song, or video game, or . . . . ?

    Who obsesses over fidelity to presumed appearances?

    I do apologize for the racial purity comment. You are correct that I did assume too much, since the connotation of racial purity is stronger than what you stated.

    .

  • Gehennah

    I don’t see this as ensuring Santa is white. And I’m pretty sure that the origin of Santa isn’t tied to this story.

    If anything, the origin is tied to Saint Nicholas, who was Greek. And of course, some say that Santa is Odin (which is debatable), which would make him white.

    But stories written about a fictional character often do have conflicting descriptions about it. Even in the case of the Star Wars EU, with Lucas (or his team) actually reading the books prior to publication, trying to keep contradictions to a minimum, there are some errors still. Now you do this to a character who’s complete origin seems to be a hodge podge of different characters from different myths, with no one really in control of the character and no true ownership, then you can’t say for sure “Santa was White, Black” or whatever.

  • brianmacker

    Thanks for the apology.

    “Who obsesses over fidelity to presumed appearances?”
    People trying to trick their kids. Racists try to trick their kids too, ya know, and they have additional reasons to obsess.
    The standard appearance for Santa in the US is what it is. Maybe you can write a famous poem and change him into a sex and race changing elf morphling. Get the word out and then deceptive parents will not be faced with a dilemma in public.
    Not that it is your problem in the first place. You can just not give a shit about white Santa and do as you please. Problem is, that if you want to preserve the “tricking the children” aspect you have to have some ready made explanation which would trick a kid when he says “That’s not really Santa”.

  • Gehennah

    Isn’t telling children that Santa is real in the first place tricking children?

  • brianmacker,

    I do not see the big deal.

    Enjoying fiction is often described as the willing suspension of disbelief.

    I do not see the race of Santa as important for that.

    I do see the reaction of the anchor as deserving of satire.

    The origin of St. Nicholas does suggest that real person might not have been able to produce noticeable blushing/flushed features.

    What are we tricking the children about?

    That Santa looks like them?

    That Santa looks like the people they associate with Christmas?

    Which fantasy is being preserved, that of the anchor being ridiculed for caring about the race of Santa or the enjoyment of the children?

    If there are children worried about black children having a black Santa, then we seem to have wandered away from the story of Santa and into something entirely different.

    .

  • Gehennah

    This conversation reminds me of the Family Guy episode where Stewie gets taken away from the family and is put into a foster home with kids of different races, and then they start talking about Santa being whatever race the kid is.

  • Is the purpose of Santa to make the kids happy or to make the parents happy?

    .

  • Gehennah

    I’d argue both.

    But kids are going to be happy getting presents with or without Santa.

  • How could it be so? It came without ribbons!… it came without tags!… it came without packages, boxes, or bags!

    The parents seem to be the ones who feel the need to accessorize.

    Ribbons, mangers, packages, miracles, bags, . . . .

    .

  • Gehennah

    I admit, I get giddy getting my cats to open their presents (they always want to open mine days before Christmas, but not theirs when we give it to them). And the trick we found is accessories (lots of ribbon, and catnip inside the bag).

    But when I was a kid, I didn’t care who it was from, or how it was wrapped. They could have just left it in my room on the dresser and I would have been happy.

  • brianmacker

    “What are we tricking the children about?”
    Oh, come on, that he exists. Are you even from the US?

  • brianmacker

    “Isn’t telling children that Santa is real in the first place tricking children?”

    Yes, that is the whole point. You would be messing with what they call “the magic” aka what I call the “the lie” by providing further evidence that Santa doesn’t exist. Try just going up to kids waiting on line to take a picture with Santa and telling them “Santa doesn’t exist” and see how that goes for ya. I’d be interested in seeing you do it to some black kids too. I’m wondering how many parents punch you in the nose, scream at you, and how many kids you get to cry.

    I’ve known lots of kids who got upset (or in denial) when told Santa doesn’t exist. Crying and everything.

  • brianmacker

    My own son was shocked when the subject of Santa came up and I told him there was no Santa. I had never told him there was one,, and he picked it up from other people. He looked like I just ripped his heart out. He would have had the same reaction when he found out some other way, and I didn’t want to lie to him about it, because then you have the double whammy of a) Santa doesn’t exist and b) My dad is a liar.

  • brianmacker,

    “What are we tricking the children about?”Oh, come on, that he exists.

    I do not tend to go for the easy answer. I am not defying Occam’s razor, but trying to understand all aspects that are relevant.

    I think that the physical appearance of Santa is as malleable as the children want it to be.

    If white kids want a white Santa, because that is what they are familiar with, they have no shortage to choose from.

    If white kids want to wander above 125th St and expect to see a white Santa, they are being just as unreasonable as expecting to stay up late enough to see Santa come down the chimney.

    Do we need to make sure that all Santas are white?

    Do we need to make sure that all Elvis impersonators are white?

    That is not unreasonable, because my favorite Elvis impersonator recently died and he is Egyptian, so not your classic white guy.

    –

    Are you even from the US?

    I am from the US and I am odd (not even).

    🙂