There is a great difficulty with applying one of Hitchens' post mortem smackdowns to elected officials.

Jesse Helms may indeed have been a racist and a redneck warmonger, but he was also duly elected by the citizens of North Carolina for five terms as their senator.

So, on some level, Hitchens is saying that Tarheels (is that the right expression?) are a bunch of bloodthirsty, racist rednecks, as proven by their consistent support for Helms.

Hitchens is thus rather cowardly for directing his invective at a dead senator rather than his living former constituents. But then again, rather like the Taleban, the North Carolinans are lying in wait, clinging to guns and religion. Perhaps best not to annoy them...

By extension, he is attacking those Carolingians who voted for him. Mainly the man himself, though, who is after all responsible for his own words and actions.

So, on some level, Hitchens is saying that Tarheels (is that the right expression?) are a bunch of bloodthirsty, racist rednecks, as proven by their consistent support for Helms.

That's correct.

You miss the point: Hitchens capably both tarred Helms for being a backwater jerk, and impugned the mouth-breathing North Carolinians who insisted on inflicting him upon the Senate time and time again. Two birds, one stone.

Speaking as an African American that lived in NC for 13 years. I can wholeheartedly say that yes, Tarheels are indeed a bunch of bloodthirsty racist rednecks. I remember all the clan marches and some dude named Glenn Miller that had circulated racist papers in support of the march. Even today when I call family members in the great Tarheel state I hear of all the unjustice that goes on to the african american community. And before you go there, let me tell just say that we're talking about well educated master's degree (2 with with doctorates), holding family members.

I was so happy to be out of that place and know that even though jesse has passed on, some beliefs and traditions that brought him to power within the state continue, just in a much more subtle way.

Well, that is one we don't have to deal with for a long, long time. Requiescat In Pacem!

Helms was great at constituent service. My father died abroad and after three weeks of calls to the state department and our congressman, we could not get him out of Italy. One call to Helms office and he was back that afternoon. Although we thanked him, his office never asked for anything.

There is no such thing as an African American. You are either African or American. You can't be both. I, too, lived in the Tarheel state for five years. I listened to the infamous editorials of Jesse Helms every night on Channel 5 out of Raleigh. I would get very mad after each one, but this was before he was elected to the Senate. In retrospect, Jesse Helms stopped the passage of more bad legislation than any other Senator. It is true that the best law is often the one that is not passed.

North Carolina reelected Helms and Washington DC reelected Marion Barry. Sometimes one can only wonder.

There's no such thing as retrospect. You either saw something as it happened or you didn't see it. You can't see both.

At least Marion Barry's reign of inanity was restricted to the District of Columbia. Helms' unique brand of aggressive ignorance was inflicted on the whole world.

"Tarheels are indeed a bunch of bloodthirsty racist rednecks."

Could anything be stupider, and more bigoted, than impugning nine million diverse Americans with the "redneck" label? How about your NC residing relatives, or Sen. Edwards, or the medical faculty at Duke? Rednecks, are they? If you just meant white Tarheels, you should have said so. Then you'd seem more racist, but at least a little smarter.

and Michael Jordan was a tarheel too, right?

I would also love cswerve to look up gov/sen Terry Sanford, who was a democrat, wholy supported civil rights, was immensly popular, and campaigned for/with JFK, probably being the main reason why NC went to John F. Kennedy in '60. And then look up Jim Hunt. And then look at the fact that NC is dominated by the state democratic party. If anything, the state republican party is usually a disorganized mess. Not that they don't win anything, but their track record is certainly behind that of the democrats'. There's a reson why there's never been a serious chance of there being a consitutional amendment to block gay marriage in NC. Then look at the fact that the public college system is one of the best in the nation, period.

Of course there are some racists in NC, but there are racists everywhere. I do know a little tiny bit about history (history degree undegrad and some grad level history is all I got to) and I know about the north and their history with civil rights. Boston, Chicago, and are we already forgetting about California? I'm sorry if you did indeed meet up with some of them, but it dosen't represent everybody.

But of course, if you've already gone as far down the road as cswereve and believe that all North Carolinians are bloodthirsty racist bigots, then I doubt there's much I can say to change his mind. Never mind that I am a North Carolinian. And all I have to say is, so cswerve, apparently either you knew me, so where did we meet? How is it you know I am a bloodthirsty racist bigot? Or maybe it's that you've picked up the ability of mind-reading? Ah, yes, I always forget about that. It seems like a lot of people have picked that up now days. I don't know what I believe, I have to have everybody else tell me. And they can, because apparently everybody knows me, or "my kind", without me even uttering a sentence of what I actually believe. And you talk about racist bigots....ok cswerve, quick one for you....what do you call someone who generalizes a whole race of people? I think that would be a racist. Pot, meet kettle.

And I really do hope to hear back from Cswerve on this one. Just to answer that one question. So if you've never met me, how is it you know I'm a bloodthirsty racist bigot?

To everybody else reading, sorry if I'm coming off a bit strong, but this is something that just really set me off here. Nothing like being called a bloodthirsty racist bigot to make the afternoon so much brighter....

AJ-

I believe I'll have a plate of eastern-style pulled pig and a Cheerwine, and let the bigots think whatever they want.

GreenwichJ said "Jesse Helms may indeed have been a racist and a redneck warmonger, but he was also duly elected by the citizens of North Carolina for five terms as their senator.

So, on some level, Hitchens is saying that Tarheels (is that the right expression?) are a bunch of bloodthirsty, racist rednecks, as proven by their consistent support for Helms."

And your point is?