I read that article. The most stunningly racist thing I've seen in any supposedly mainstream paper in this state in my life. I couldn't believe it. If you haven't read it, you should go read it now. She basically makes the argument that slavery wasn't all that bad, and compares it to the average hardships of European immigrants. She then wonders why blacks support Democrats. So I wrote a scathing letter to the editor. Here is their canned reply:

"Thank you for taking the time to contact us with your concerns about the opinion piece by Adele Ferguson.

"We have received more than 1,500 emails (and still counting) since it hit many major blogs earlier this week. We originally attempted to respond to all who contacted us, and engage in dialog with those that answered those responses. However, at this point, the sheer volume of email has made continuing to do so impossible.

"Our position on this matter is simple: Ms. Ferguson's column is editorial material we buy, and are contractually obligated to run, unedited. We don't condone or support the point of view expressed by Ms. Ferguson, but we do believe in the First Amendment which which celebrates free speech and diversity of thought. While Ms. Ferguson has the right to express her opinion, it's just that, HER opinion. While we can't "unprint" it, the offensive column has been deleted from our Web site.

"Unequivocally, that column does NOT reflect the opinion of the management or ownership of the Business Journal. We offer a sincere and humble apology to those who were offended by it."

I still find this hard to believe. They were legally obliged to print it unedited? What kind of shit is that? Maybe I'm just oblivious to the practices of the newspaper world.

Dan, is it common for newspaper editors to publish stories unedited like that? What is the point of having an editor if they exert no editorial control over the content of the paper?

Sure, I agree that the racist nutjob has the right to think what she wants and write what she wants. But the editor's claim that they had to run it unedited, that they had no choice, seems like a total cop out.

Un-fucking-real. The piece is un-fucking-real.

No paper has to print anything—perhaps they have an agreement not to edit the idiot's comments, but they could have declined to run the column. I suspect that they didn't even read it before it ran.

But they have an asbsolute right to print anything they like, however offensive. And people have a right to be pissed, and raise a stink. But no death threats, please.

I'd like the crazies to spout off as much crazy shit as possible, please. All cards on the table.

That article left me incontinent. I am sitting in a puddle of my own waste trying to fathom how this woman became so hopelessly deluded. I fear this is a glimpse into middle of the road, mainstream American conservative thought, just not all dressed up in PC semantics for a general audience. I have no criticism for the paper for publishing it, especially since i spent the better half of last month arguing for free speach until i was blue in the face. But everyone should read this, and take note... this is what we're up against. A scary number of americans would read this article, enthusiastically nodding their approval.

Adele Ferguson can be reached at P.O. Box 69, Hansville, Wa., 98340.

Holy hell! I *just* realized this was from Washington State! Mercy.

I can't find the article anywhere. Google produces nil. Is this the KPBJ currently being sold?

Wow, it's been quite a Kitsap week here on the Slog, between Mike Phillips and Adele Ferguson. While Adele is now a crazy old bird, I must point out that she was once one of the state's pioneering female journalists. She opened a lot of doors in Olympia for the Lois Lane girl reporter set, and for decades provided some absolutely crackerjack statehouse coverage. (Once she got old and crazy, I hear the Bremerton Sun ran her out of their still-respectable doors, forcing her to the weekly oblivion of the Kitsap Newspaper Group). FYI, there is currently a bridge in Poulsbo named after Adele.

Hey Skeet, try this -
http://disturbingthecomfortable.blogspot.com/2006/03/racism-remains-in-washington-state.html

Before reading be sure to de-activate your gag reflex.

The whole article is printed on:

http://disturbingthecomfortable.blogspot.com/2006/03/racism-remains-in-washington-state.html

Or you can get there from wonkette

Thanks for the links-- The link via Wonkette is broken.

I found her reasoning to be flawed, and her thinking shallow. Her blaming/thanking her "God" (I'm taking by inference it's that weird Yahweh/Jesus amalgamation) for creating slavery as a way for blacks to come to America is particularly telling: 1) Her God is a fucked up crazy-ass sadist. 2) She has no problem w/ worshipping a fucked-up crazy-ass sadist.

I'm glad she wrote what she did, and brought up the issue of Slavery in America, although, like all conservatives, reframes it in a very twisted way. As a White American, I have to admit to be thankful that Africans were brought to this country. It's fucked that they had to come the way they did, but we can't deny the blessing that it was, as horribly mixed a blessing as only a fucked-up crazy-ass sadistic God can come up with.

Where would American Culture be without the input of Black Americans? Nowhere, and that's a fact. The Blues, Jazz, Rock, Rap & Hip-Hop: all created by Black Americans. Not to mention all the American dancing forms of swing, and the rock dances of the 50's, The Twist, The Mashed Potato, etc. and Modern Dance in general. If it weren't for the Black Americans, we'd all be Square Dancing to Blue-Grass. ::shudder::
(and don't try to escape w/ Country-Western music. That had it's roots in Blues & Black Folk Music as well.)

If anything, the slavers didn't bring _enough_ Africans over here. Only a few million made it to North America. Over 20 million went to the Caribbean & Brazil. In Brazil, the Catholic religion has been totally transformed by the religion of the Africans, w/ their Gods being personified yearly in the big Catholic festival of Carnivale (known up here as Mardi Gras.) Can you imagine what America would be like if there had been twenty times as many Africans brought over? I'm thinking we'd be much, much better off. And if they had come over of their own free will, instead of raped into coming here, well, it'd be a few steps from paradise.

One thing of note about this article: this sort of callousness towards slavery will only increase the further we get away from it. How many people mourn the Britons slaughtered by the Romans in their brutal conquest? Or the Saxon conquest of the Britons six centuries later? Or the Norman conquest of the Saxons? These were our white ancestors, here, and nobody cares because it was so fucking long ago. Give it a few more hundred years and no one is going to care about how the Africans got here, they'll just be accepted as a normal part of our life, like the earth & the sky.