In a move that will likely fuel Canada's stereotyped image of Albertans, Liberal MLA Dave Taylor really showed his class yesterday! After Premier Ed highlighted the ethnic diversity of his caucus, Dave Taylor is alleged to have shouted " You've got a few scope monkeys in it.".....
UNREAL! While I am sure that Dave (Face for Radio) Taylor will spin it somehow, I am disgusted that he could even say such a thing in 2009. These remarks will just justify what many other Canadians think about Alberta....that we are a Redneck, Intolerant, Racist People. And frankly, I am sick and tired of being labeled a redneck or a racist, especially since I support the PC party. Furthermore, they are entirely inappropriate and uncalled for.
As a Conservative, I have to constantly defend the image that I am not a closet racist/homophobe due to my support of the party. Anyone that knows me understands that nothing could be further from the truth, as I am about as RED TORY as they come. However, many people still believe that if you support the PC party, you must be a redneck or racist. I believe that the PC party has made inroads over the years to change this false image, although the opposition parties cling to it as a defence mechanism to win votes and scare people away from the PC/Conservative Party.
Can you imagine the uproar if a PC MLA made these comments?
I tried searching for some blog responses today, but I was shocked to find NONE yet. ( HMMM?) Maybe later today.
I will be watching for Dave Taylor's apology/spin today and comment if it is appropriate.
Just think ALP, you could have had this chap as your leader!
5/1/2009- UPDATE
Dave Taylor officially apologized yesterday in the legislature. "I Screwed Up. I Was Wrong."
You got that right Dave.
According to the last paragraph of the story, Taylor decided to apologize.
ReplyDeleteNot to excuse Taylor's comments - but if you care about our image, what do you think about the fact our government is giving a nod and a wink to parents who want to pull their kids out of science classes when evolution comes up? I've told a few friends in other provinces and to a person, they have all said "what decade are you living in?" or remarks to that effect.
Thanks TPB.... I know he has agreed to apologize, but I want to hear what he has to say. AS for the evolution thing, I am torn there. You may note that parents may also choose to take their kids out of Sex education class though. Tough call...
ReplyDeleteIt isn't like they are pulling their kids out because there are too many minorities in the class or anything else along those lines. It's because the family has a belief system different from that. They rarely teach religion classes anymore so why should a child be subject to only one side of the debate?
ReplyDeleteThere are not 'two sides' on this issue. Evolution is a theory, but there is concrete evidence that the world is only 6,000 years old. We don't need to pretend otherwise for the sake of a few people who won't accept reality.
ReplyDeleteIf 'scope monkeys' is supposed to be "Scopes Monkeys," as in a reference to the "Scopes Monkey Trial of 1925" Mr. Taylor is guilty of absurdity, not racism.
ReplyDeleteThe Scopes Monkey trial was the trial of Tennessee schoolteacher John Scopes. Mr. Scopes was convicted of teaching evolution in violation of the Butler Act, a state law banning evolution from being taught.
The conviction was overturned on a technicality that had nothing to do with whether or not Mr. Scopes should have been teaching evolution, but the law stood until 1967.
Back to Taylor - his timing was off and enough to make to make the remark boorish. But really, the remark is nonsense, not a slur. Is he trying to accuse the PCs of having a few people who believe that evolution is a sound scientific theory on board, or trying to accuse them of having a few people kicking around who are slyly trying to pass a Butler Act of their own through this parental rights clause? Either way, what on earth does that have to do with the ethnic diversity of the PC caucus?
What does the ethnic diversity of the PC caucus have to do with any of this anyway? I thought the question was about religious freedom and the difficult interface between parental rights, human rights, and whose responsibility it is to safeguard the quality of and access to public education.
As far as I can tell, everyone was hopelessly off-topic, and Mr. Taylor doesn't read wikipedia carefully enough to actually aim a snobby intellectual barb well enough for it to make sense.