In Iowa, Romney acknowledges risks of taking control of Big Dig
In Iowa, Romney acknowledges risks of taking control of Big DigTimes: Times Republican:
"The best thing politically would be to stay as far away from that tar baby as I can, he told a crowd of about 100 supporters who gathered for indoor picnic at the Gateway Hotel on a sweltering day in Ames. "
"The best thing politically would be to stay as far away from that tar baby as I can, he told a crowd of about 100 supporters who gathered for indoor picnic at the Gateway Hotel on a sweltering day in Ames. "
posted by Adam W. at Sunday, July 30, 2006
4 Comments:
I cannot believe Romney uses the term "tar baby" in this news story. That is a racial slur to many black Americans.
I am shocked and disappointed. He should apologize.
the term "Tar Baby" is used for describing a sticky situation. (Berr Rabbit), I beleive Mitt Romney is far from a racist and it is a shame for anyone to think that he is one.
The tar baby is a form of a character widespread in African folklore. In various folktales, gum, wax, or other sticky material is used to trap a person.
The folktale achieved currency in the United States in written form in one of Joel Chandler Harris's Uncle Remus stories, a collection of stories based on African-American folklore, narrated by the fictional Uncle Remus, a former slave. In the story "Tar-Baby," the character Brer Fox makes a doll out of tar, which he places by the road to entrap his enemy Brer Rabbit. Brer Rabbit talks to the doll, and when it doesn't answer, he hits it, and gets stuck in the tar. The more he struggles with it, the more he is entangled in it.
This story has led to the figurative use of tar baby in the sense 'an inextricable problem or situation', sometimes with the nuance 'something used to entrap a person'. Both the examples cited in the question show the use of this sense, which appears to be first used in the early twentieth century.
When the term "tar baby" is used in this context, it is actually derived from African traditions. I acknowledge that it has also had a derogatory use, but the majority of Americans probably don't know this. I have an advanced degree and had never heard this used in a derogatory manner, so cut Gov. Romney some slack. He did apologize.
http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/dictionary/DictionaryResults.aspx?refid=1861718420
tar ba·by (plural tar ba·bies)
noun
Definition:
tricky situation: a very troublesome situation, especially one that is difficult or impossible to get out of ( dated )
[Early 20th century. < the Uncle Remus story Brer Rabbit and the Tar Baby by J. C. Harris]
http://home.nycap.rr.com/cyclone/disney/sots/tarbaby.htm
In any case Romney has apologized,
http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,640199055,00.html
Hope you haven't lost respect for a man that can admit his mistakes and make up for them when he didn't intend to be racist in the first place.
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