This morning The Times fans — or rather, gathers the kindling and tries to ignite — the flames of racial discord in the New York transit strike.
But now, as representatives of a mostly nonwhite work force trade recriminations publicly with white leaders in government and at the transportation authority, the potentially volatile issue of race, with all its emotional consequences, is bubbling to the surface.
And the evidence of this is: (1) Bozos say bad things in web comments — gee, that never happens anywhere else. (2) Mayor Bloomberg says that the union “thuggishly turned their backs on New York City.” Roger Toussaint, the union leader, and Al Sharpton call that racial.
Not in my UnPC dictionary. The words “thug” and “union” have been in usage since long before minorities finally came into power in them … since, well, the words “mafia” and “union” were also in common usage. Look up “Hoffa” and “thug” in Google and the first listing among 9,300 is about Tony Soprano.
Now I almost understand, or at least not be surprised at, Sharpton and Roger Toussaint grasping at cheap shots try to spin this illegal strike, this act of unlawful thuggery against the people of New York. Toussaint is also playing the race card as he tries to summon the ghost of Rosa Parks onto MTA buses.
But I do not understand The Times giving this canard legitimacy without finding anyone in the story, other than the mayor’s spokesman, to call bullshit. It is irresponsible.