Weaselstrike

Cowardice, by Alfred Stevens

I define weaselstrike as a supposedly conservative argument that concedes the primacy of non-conservative values. The implication is that the opposition isn't wrong, just not living up to politically correct ideals.

For instance, cowardly "conservatives" criticize the Muslim politico-religious world view because it is unfair to women and gays.

But it's in race relations, where even most people who would identify themselves as conservatives or libertarians cower in fear of being called racist, that they especially resort to the weaselstrike.

Townhall.com offers an extreme example from a columnist named Mike Adams:

Most liberals are racists in the classical sense. You told one of my bosses that I am a racist because I wrote a parable featuring a black character who was a rapist. Alleging that blacks occasionally commit crimes like rape is not racism. Racism is actually a belief in the intellectual inferiority of other races. In this country, it is often a belief held by a white individual and directed at blacks as a group. What you fail to understand is that most of my liberal supervisors and liberal colleagues are racists in the classical sense.

Instead of forthrightly denouncing the slimy tactic of using "racism" as a curse to silence opposition, Adams just insists that he's not a racist. After all, even though Department of Justice statistics show that a hundred black-on-white rapes occur every day, he only said that blacks "occasionally commit crimes like rape." See, he's not tainted. Just to nail the point down, he says racism "is often a belief held by a white individual and directed at blacks as a group." Only whites -- other whites, not our Mr. Adams -- are racists.

The overwhelming majority of my colleagues support using race-based affirmative action here at this university. The form of affirmative action they support ads points directly to the SAT scores and GPAs of black students. The reason they support such an ad-on-point system for blacks (but not Asians) is pretty simple: they consider blacks (but not Asians) to be intellectually inferior and thus incapable of competing on an even playing field. They may say that SATs are “culturally biased.” But they make no similar claim that GPAs are “culturally biased.” It is just a liberal code phrase that means “too hard for black people.”

I disagree with my colleagues and supervisors. I believe that black/white performance differences would go away within a few years of eliminating affirmative action. I guess, I’m one of the few non-racists working here at the university.

Pure weaselstrike. "Racism" is the issue, no argument there with the campus Marxists, but it's his colleagues who are racist. Black-white test scores would "go away within a few years" if only those racist liberals would stop with the affirmative action -- no explanation given of why this would be so. Never mind -- did he mention that he's no racist? You won't catch him breathing a word about human biodiversity.

Liberals believe there are other forms of racism besides individual racism. Like individuals, they think institutions can be racist, too. For example, they think the criminal justice system advances “institutional racism.” Their reasoning is that the justice system incarcerates blacks disproportionately. According to them, that is racist even in the absence of individual intent. 

While I don't believe American institutions are racist, it makes no sense to me that only individuals can have qualities, which is what he seems to be saying. But he doesn't argue the point, instead quickly pulling a new rabbit out of his top hat.

Unfortunately, they lose the moral high-ground by supporting abortion, which kills 51% of blacks while they are still in the womb. It really doesn’t make much sense to me when you tell my liberal colleagues I’m a racist. I oppose the one procedure that is responsible for killing over half the black population. They vigorously support it. I think that’s why they are so eager to entertain accusations of racism.

Another weaselstrike. However you feel about abortion, claiming that liberals are racists for supporting abortion rights is beyond nonsensical. Liberals may support the right of women to choose abortion, but they are far more adamant about the "right" of women (especially women "of color") to have babies they can't support and raise them at taxpayer expense.

Mike Adams no doubt thinks he is a fearless scourge of "Marxism":

Today’s lesson on racism, Marxism and morality comes in three parts. I’ll keep it as direct and relevant as possible.

But he is neither direct nor relevant concerning a real blight of our times, the hateful ethnic racketeers who try to get their way by recklessly tossing accusations of racism at anyone who stands in their way. All he can do is protest how un-racist he is and claim it's his opponents who are racist. Racist, racist, racist. Weasel, weasel, weasel.