Recent Comments
Re: “New Signs, Same Heartbreak”
Richmondman, I'm all for adding statues AND for pooping on Confederate attractions.
But I think I understand your argument now. Richmonders should celebrate sad reminders of our horrible past every day, because it puts money in your pocket via tourism.
For a second there, I thought your argument was more aligned with the historian's, which I can at least respect.
But guess what? You could still take the thriving Confederate vacation set to a museum to see the statues if most (or all of them) were moved there. Then you can go drink all the cold microbrews you want and talk to them about the good old days, when only one group's comfort mattered in this city.
I don't think you can really compare the former capital of the Confederacy to European cities that still have beautiful ancient statues of folks who did awful things. Like those who make the argument that they keep history alive, or give Richmond its unique character. The wounds are still too raw, too recent, and the legacy of slavery still too real. Of course, I don't realistically expect all the statues to be moved, we're still far too stuck in the past for any kind of sweeping change-- but maybe one day local people will vote on it, and some progress will be made. Seems like an inevitability.
Funny you should quote Lincoln while calling me a fool. Like him maybe one day you'll at least partly realize your views are morally indefensible and just plain wrong. He at least argued for limited black suffrage by 1865 during his last speech. Capital pigeons are holding out hope for you, Richmondman.
"Many factors contributed to the Civil War. One caused it: slavery," said Ken Burns, adding: "Also, Richmondman, you know nothing of my work, take my name out yo mouth."
Re: “New Signs, Same Heartbreak”
Richmondman, don't you find it odd that you're automatically assuming those who want Confederate imagery removed from high-profile, public places of visibility want to see them destroyed and to rewrite or "shape history"?
Nobody I know who is serious about the subject wants them destroyed. We want them in museums, that's not ERASING anything. It's just not celebrating them as if the public of the 1920s is the same public we have today. Yes, times change. And your sense of nostalgia does not trump others' sense of revulsion and the desire to foster a city that feels more welcoming to all. This slippery slope argument is always used to evade progress.
And speaking of context: What do you think the context is in 2020 to have one of the few cities left in the country with massive Confederate statues scattered and looming over its main, most visible streets? Welcome to museum-town? Where we want to shove our worst historical moments down your throat, so you won't ever forget our bloody history? (There are something like 200 plus Confederate statues/memorials in Virginia. And you think we're in danger of forgetting our history?)
Putting them in museums is the appropriate place to "learn" from history -- if that's really your argument. Thinking people will somehow forget about the Civil War entirely if we don't see massive statues every day on our daily journey around town is just silly and intellectually dishonest.
Your disconnect reminds me of the gun nuts who think simple, commonsense gun legislation means "THEY'RE GONNA TAKE MY GUNS." No, it doesn't. It's just smart and reasonable to try to cutdown on gun violence by not allowing the NRA carte blanche over our laws so they can sell more guns.
Richmondman, how about we leave statues where they are, but just change them to small, 7 inch replicas? I'd be fine with that, and then you can have your context. Just much smaller and less obtrusive.
Re: “New Signs, Same Heartbreak”
Wow, Richmond lister, you're really riled up by an article wherein the woman chiefly responsible for the Boulevard's name change simply calls out the egregious state of the building in his name just down the road. A woman who might be our next mayor. Is that not enough reason for a story for you?
Your whole pompous diatribe ignores the existence of systemic racism and asks us all to just get over it and not think critically about our surroundings. So, you believe there are no real voices of bigotry or racism in "the public sphere" today, apart from small groups of flaggers? How about our president? Or the GOP seeking to disenfranchise black voters? Or a thousand other examples? Maybe you need to get out of your mom's basement more.
Here's an exercise: Next time you're standing next to a person of color by a Confederate flag on this block, ask them if they're "so dense they can't appreciate the poetic justice of these things coexisting?" Please do. Repeat your pompousness in front of real people who live in Richmond and are forced to pass these symbols of oppression daily.
Also maybe wake up to the fact that Richmond doesn't exist entirely of willfully sheltered people who consider Confederate imagery harmless and who make lame critiques of articles that enflame their white guilt anger (Though only from the safe distance of anonymity, of course.) It would be funny if there weren't so many of you.
You calling out a journalist for posing these questions by poking fun of "woke" heroism says more about your own derangement syndrome than anything else.
Re: “Review: Netflix’s “The Dirt””
Yes, Rosanna Arquette is in Pulp Fiction. You should try Google maybe.
Whether you like the band or not, and I did when I was 13, most of the reviews I've read of this have slammed it as a crappy movie. At least there's no pedophilia.
Re: “What’s Next?”
Realist, did you even read the article? Does this not fit your snark definition:
"You can't make this stuff up, folks." Also its a straight news story, not an opinion piece.
More likely, you didn't read it. Since you seem to spend most of your waking hours trying to bash Style for being supposedly too liberal. Which GOP social media-influencer operation pays you to make all these comments? Much like Ed Gillespie, they're wasting their money.
Re: “Character Reveal?”
John08, you say the article is one-sided, yet it pretty much makes your point below: Did you not even bother to finish reading it?
"She reiterates a sentiment expressed by many interviewed for this story who say the statement does not reflect the attitude of the people involved in the organization.
'I've grown to love all the awesome people who work there, parents who I have worked with volunteering untold hours for each production,' Sullivan says."
Other Publications
Re: “Week of Aug. 21”
Is there a reason you share your anonymous opinions when nobody cares?
Personally, I imagine it's so the few sad clowns and herpes spammers who loiter in these comment sections can cry themselves to sleep ....