The Cult Of Poisonality

Sadly, No has a post up re lawyer, blogger and online pundit Debbie Schlussel, and boy, I wish I’d never read it, or even seen or heard of her. Speaking as a former member of the legal profession (I was crap at it in practice, I freely admit) I’m under no illusions that lawyers are any more moral, clever or humane than other average mortals. Probably much less so if anything.

Nevertheless at times I’m just completely gobsmacked at the sheer ineptititude, spite and moral stupidity that comes out of US law schools. Ann Althouse, for example, and Ann Coulter and the Powerline trio – all those petty-minded little people with their petty little hatreds, who’ve been given a public bully pulpit to spout off from, just because they were able to pass a bunch of multiple choice exams and can spell ‘libertarianism’. (At least all my finals questions required actual essays, even if I did throw up in Trusts and Equity from sheer exam nerves, and had to resit it in the autumn.). Detroit lawyer Schlussel can spell libertarian too, but only in ALLCAPS.

The ability to memorise a pile of case cites and headnotes does not automatically confer the ability to reason – if only – and so it proves yet again. This US law school product turned, airbrushed-blonde-wingnut-pundit, seems to think an obsession with the race and/or immigration status of the mass-murderer of 33 people is somehow relevant to the crime, and also that the insult ‘Paki’ is a perfectly acceptable epithet for someone from Pakistan.

That’s bad enough, but Schlussel takes her lack of rational thought further into batshit insane wingnut territory as she reasons that because some students are Asians and some Asians are Pakistani and some Pakistanis are Moslem and some Moslems are terrorists – why, then it must’ve been a terrorist…

Who is the “Asian” Mass Murderer at Virginia Tech? UPDATE: Shooter is Chinese National w/Student Visa

[…]

Here’s what we know about the murderer of at least 32 students and maimer of at least 28 more at Virginia Tech, today:

* The murderer has been identified by law enforcement and media reports as “a young Asian male.”

* The Virginia Tech campus has a very large Muslim community, many of which are from Pakistan (per terrorism investigator Bill Warner).

* Pakis are considered “Asian.”

Now I’m no Majikthise, but that reasoning strikes me as just ever-so-slightly disingenuous. And “Pakis”? How very ignorant. Yet a simple google would have produced this as the top result:

Web definitions for Paki

AVOID. An offensive term referring to Pakistanis. Sometimes used in Britain as an epithet against all South Asians

If she didn’t find out whether it was insulting she’s ignorant and racist: and if she knew and just didn’t care she’s maliciously racist. Either way it’s racist. I somehow doubt Ms Schlussel will be guest of honour at the Bradford mela this year, though she might get a pash note from our very own fellow lawyer and racist Nick Griffin.

Seeing this a number of commenters kindly pointed out her error, to be met with this polite response:

MY NAME IS DEBBIE SCHLUSSEL, NOT DON IMUS. IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR SOMEONE TO FALL ALL OVER THEMSELVES IN SHAME AND GROVELLING FOR YOUR FORGIVENESS FOR SAYING SOMETHING YOU FIND OFFENSIVE, GO TO THE IMUS HOME. ALSO, THIS IS NOT MSNBC OR CBS RADIO. IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR SOMEONE TO CAVE INTO YOUR THOUGHT-POLICE ORTHODOXY LIKE A WET NOODLE, THE OWNER AND OPERATOR OF THIS SITE–ALSO ME–IS NOT WHAT YOU ARE SEEKING.
DEBBIE SCHLUSSEL

Well, there’s a measured and well-thought-out reply. How does a noodle cave, exactly?

Counselor Schluessel has the online manners of a rampaging hippo on angel dust and the literary skills of our 3-legged cat Hector. No wonder she chose punditry over litigation if that’s her courtroom persona. Schlussel, from my admittedly brief perusal of her works, doesn’t strike me as the unambitious type; but if she really wants to reach the giddy heights of Instahackdom (and don’t they all?) it’d help if she had a handle on the correct euphemisms to use when making brioad, sweeping, racist generalisations.

So here, courtesy of Loren Javier is a handy aide-memoire for Schlussel when those racist ants in her undoubtedly pristine pants start to get a little itchy:

Asian
A term either describe somebody of Asian descent or something that comes from Asia. When speaking of Asians who are American citizens, however, use Asian American, Asian Pacific American (APA), Asian Pacific Islander (API) or Asian American/Pacific Islander (AAPI).

Asian AmericanThis phrase was first used in the 1980 Census to describe American citizens from all Asian ethnic backgrounds. It is a commonly used term and is preferred by those of Asian descent who were born and raised in the United States.

Asian Pacific American
This is a relatively new term that is inclusive of both Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. It is abbreviated as APA. Some other acceptable terms are Asian Pacific Islander (API) and Asian American/Pacific Islander (AAPI)

Cantonese
Chinese dialect spoken in the environs of Canton, now known as Guangzhou, near the South China Sea. The dialect of many of the early Chinese immigrants to the United States in the 1840s to 1870s. Also the principal dialect of Hong Kong. Still widely spoken in U.S. Chinatowns.

China Doll
AVOID. A figurine, usually porcelain, but when used metaphorically or as a comparison the implied image of female submission demeans women of Chinese heritage.

[…].

Desi This is a colloquial name for people of South Asian descent, particularly those of Indian and Pakistani descent, to self describe each other or their community. The term is derogatory outside of the South Asian community.

Dragon Lady
A cartoon character from the popular 1930s comic strip, “Terry and the Pirates.” Variations of the Dragon Lady were later popularized in many Hollywood adventure movies of the 1940s and later. She was portrayed as sexy and evil in Chinese silk gowns with long sleeves, cigarette holder between two fingers

Gook
AVOID. This is an offensive term that American soldiers coined to describe Koreans during the Korean War. “Gook” is actually Korean for “country.” “Han Gook” describes a person from the People’s Republic of Korea while “Mee Gook” describes a person from the United States. The irony is that American soldiers believed Koreans were describing themselves as gooks when, in reality, they were describing Americans. The term eventually was used during the Vietnam war and became widely used as a derogatory term for all Asian Americans.

Gosei (GO-say)
Fifth-generation Japanese Americans, generally born in the new millennium. Term is mainly of historical interest only.

[…]

Paki
AVOID. An offensive term referring to Pakistanis. Sometimes used in Britain as an epithet against all South Asians.

Pinoy/Pinay (pee-NOY/pee-NAHY)
This term describes a Filipino American man (Pinoy) or woman (Pinay). While it is widely used within Filipino American communities, some consider it derogatory. It is advised that media use “Filipino American” unless quoting someone who self-identifies that way.

Potato Queen
This is a slang term used to describe lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Asian Pacific Americans, particularly men, who only date Caucasian people. While it is used tongue-in-cheek, it is considered derogatory by some people and, therefore, advised that media avoid it, unless quoting someone who self-identifies that way or is used by an Asian Pacific American in a more opinion or editorial tone.

More…

You’d think a lawyer’d have the necessary research skills to have found that out herself, wouldn’t you? Unless of course that lawyer were determined to give full rein to her basest lizard-brain feelings in the hope of making herself an online career. Otherwise, she’d probably be sitting in some law mill with a thousand other associates churning out boilerplate real-estate contracts. If not for blogging and an unfortunate turn for hateful bile, most of these wingnut lawyer/blogger/pundits’d be doing the same. Aren’t the interwebs wonderful?

[*Note to male progressive bloggers, re Michelle Malkin and oingoing references to pingpong/patpong: much as we loathe her, this post applies to you too. But feel free to use ‘potato queen’ though. It seems rather apt in light of Jesse Malkin’s undoubted caucasianity.]