I've never been Politically Correct, and I'm not going to start now. Here's the question: Is Lynndie England white trash? The media sure as hell thinks so. As someone who had a humble childhood, I know white trash, and I would have to say "yes." However, it's one thing for me to make fun of trailer park dwellers. When the "mainstream" media does it, it's quite another.

 

I love it when so-called "journalists" hold themselves up as morally superior to people who own weblogs (or my own site). They think that they are above making fun of people who are poor, stupid, or whatever. They do this through the careful use of code words.

 

Every story I've read today about Lynndie England has the obligatory "trailer park" reference. Even the British press refers to the "mobile home," her family lives in. Other news sources use the term "backwoods," or "backwater" to describe the small town she grew up in. What they're trying to say is "white trash," but they don't want to be seen as racist or unprofessional (which is what they are). OK, Lynndie England grew up in a trailer park in some hick town, and now she's apparently four months pregnant (and unmarried). Does this make her "white trash?" I would have to say yes, but with a qualifier.

 

I came from a humble background. I grew up around white trashers. Of course, with hard work and a dream, I was able to pull myself out of it (into the racially-diverse middle class life I'm now happy with). I'm not rich, but I'm certainly comfortable. So the good news for white trashers is that it's not a permanent position. We don't live in a caste system where people are stuck in one group or another (although unfortunately, most people choose to stay put because it's comfortable or they don't know they can do better).

 

So when you read reports about Ms. England's "backwater" upbringing, stop for a second and bask in the knowledge that these journalists looking down their noses at people who use the word "tard" every five seconds on their site (ahem) are themselves no better than those they mock. Some of them will go the extra mile by saying that the people of Ms. England's hometown will themselves call their community a "backwater" town. I'm sure you've seen this sort of trick, "Ms. England comes from a small town in West Virginia, a self-described backwater community." This is supposed to throw the blame off of the journalists, but I have yet to see Ed Bradley or Dan Blather refer to Snoop Dogg as a "self-described nigga." So don't buy the bullshit.

 

What a bunch of 'tards.