Honestly, AnotherKim, quite a few. You think that it's something that's in the past and it's not. Wake up, honey. There were at least three men in my neighborhood! And I lived in a affluent/upper middle class neighborhood. It's out there. Open your eyes. People in the south get reputations for a reason. Sad to say, stereotypes are somewhat founded in truth.

>People in the south get reputations for a reason.

What is offensive is that in this case there is no reason to suspect it. Your suspicions about James are baseless. He's from Alabama, and he almost said something that started with "c" "k".

>People in the south get reputations for a reason.

And people in the north, east, west, northeast, northwest and south-southwest don't?

>There were at least three men in my neighborhood!

I doubt this. You've already shown us the breadth and validity of research that you do before you slap this label on someone.

The world is my litterbox.

Ew to you, Winnie-the-Pooh! There are no need to make judgement calls. There were at least three men in my neighborhood that were in fact affiliated with the Ku Klux Klan and the whole neighborhood knew. I have no reason to make this up or lie about it. It comes from me knowing people like James and people in Alabama. It's prevalent. How you even lived or been to Alabama? Probably not. I must say that I was a kid in the early 80's and that was when all this happened. This could be different now. I would appreciate it, though, if you never doubt what I say when I know for a fact that these men were members of a vicious hate organization.

First of all, must we drag Pooh into this?

>There are no need to make judgement calls.

Thank you for getting my point. What you are claiming about James is based on your "judgement" and nothing else. You are judging someone based on his geographic source. It's your uneducated opinion, nothing else.

>It comes from me knowing people like James and people in Alabama.

What do you mean by "people like James?" What do you mean by "people in Alabama?" Does this mean that my beloved Bo Bice is part of the Klan, too? He's from Alabama. What about Bobby Jon? Did he almost say a C-word, too? I'll have to rewind my tape and look for signs!

While we're pigeonholing, what about you? You're saying that people like James who live in Alabama are a member of a secret club. What secret club did you belong to when you lived there?

The world is my litterbox.

ummm maybe some of the comments made by james on the show have also given a negative impression? the one that comes to mind was the one about his god vs. ibrehem's god. not that this necessarily indicates he is a racist--but people come to certain ideas based on a series of events and not just the fact that he's from the south.

Being a member of the KKK is a pretty strong accusation to make and it was clearly based only on his homestate. The only evidence offered is that the poster knows people like James and people from Alabama, and we shouldn't doubt his views.

Well, that's enough for me. Lunch is over and I'm all chock full of bait.

The world is my litterbox.
*licks chops*

LAST EDITED ON 05-17-05 AT 01:29 PM (EST)

yeah - why drag pooh into this! I may be southern and I may be white trash but my sheets have a lovely floral pattern and a high thread-count that transcends my heritage - thankyouverymuch.

And as far as the "point" of this goes - I have deep southern roots - I know and I'm related to some of the trashiest trailer park folk you will ever meet. We are a bunch of toothless NASCAR-lovin yokels. We gleefully and proudly embody most hillbillly stereotypes - but we are most certainly not racists

I have never heard one whif of klan talk in my life. I have never met anyone who would claim membership in the klan either in confidence or out in the open. Anyone doing that in my neck of the woods (and it's a mighty redneck of wood BTW) would be completely ostracized. The klan is a horrible relic - the klan is not thriving - it is not a source of pride for the vast majority of southerners. it is a shameful fossil.

Of course, there are pockets of prejudice in the south and simmering racial tensions as well. Surely you realize that no town or urban metropolis is immune from that. It's not such a stretch to think there is just as much overt racism in huge northeastern cities as there is in small southern towns.

I must say I'm more than a little skeptical of the poster's claim to know three out and proud klansmen in their neighborhood. It is ludicrous to use this (if true which I doubt) anomoly to characterize southerners. I find it very offensive and a completley inaccurate representation of my life experience.

You may have heard James start to say something that started with a "k" sound so he's probably in the klan just like an inordinate number of other white southerners? Someone needs to check the settings on their way back machine cause it's at least 50-100 years out of whack

I've wasted more than enough time on this.

And I? Have heard a great deal of Klan talk right here in the great state of Maryland. Used to live across the street from a Klan member. Hell, he was proud of it.

Doesn't take an Alabama heritage to be a flaming racist. But an Alabama heritage doesn't make one a racist either. Judging folks on so little information, though, might make one a bigot. Just sayin'

The fact that you would continue this debate with the phrase "people like James" shows me that there is no need to for any further input on my part.

Miscellaneous Ramblings
--thank you, Frisky.