On behalf of The Zelman Partisans, Nicki talks with Ted Nugent. Is he really anti-Semitic? Seems most in the MSM and even in other gun-rights groups (JPFO, we’re talking to you) were quick to condemn, slow to … you know, ask the man.
Then there’s a poll, too. But read what Nicki and The Nuge have to say first.
ADDED: Nicki also posts on her own blog about her conversations with Nugent. A little more color and detail there.
I am reminded of a passage from The Reasonable Woman (shameless plug):
“Suppose your neighbor is a meticulously neat man, whose public appearance over several years has always been polished and perfect. Even at casual events, his T-shirts are ironed, his blue jeans are perfectly cuffed, and his sneakers are spotlessly white. One particular morning, however, as you pass by him at his mailbox, you notice that his shirt is wrinkled and stained. He has not bothered to shave yet and you see, for the very first time, how dark his chin stubble is. From the top of his unbrushed hair to the tips of his scruffy shoes, the man is unwashed and unkempt. Does this one incident make him a slob? No, your neighbor is a neat man who happens to be wearing a wrinkled, stained shirt on this particular occasion. His unkempt appearance is out of character. It is an aberration within what is clearly habitual behavior.”
Being a white boy from Detroit, I’ve sort-of followed Nugent’s career since the late sixties. He has always been an impulsive jackass, sometimes funny, sometimes sleazy. Sometimes his attempts at rep-building aren’t very plausible. But I never heard anybody accuse him of being a Jew-hater.
I get kind of tired of the Nuge. But face it: This is exactly the sort of dumbass, unthinking thing he does. It doesn’t make him a bigot, just kind of a jackass.
I hear about this celebrity(Susan Sarandon) and that one(Alec Baldwin) and yet another one(Michael Moore, or whoever) spouting off about this or that, and I wonder, “who is listening to these people, and why?”
And now Ted Nugent runs his mouth, and I wonder, “who is listening to this guy, and why?”
He’s a musician/celebrity who runs his mouth a lot, and I’m wondering, “who cares?” I don’t keep up with Kanye West either, so I’m an equal opportunity ignorer.
And now Ted Nugent runs his mouth, and I wonder, “who is listening to this guy, and why?”
Well, the media — including gun media — are listening to this guy, if only long enough to pass judgment on him for one dumbass move. And that’s the problem. It’s not whether we should give a damn what celebrities say or not. It’s about sloppy journalism and social justice pecksniffery.
The WaPost condemned Nugent without talking with him. So did the National Review, the HuffPost, Media Matters, JPFO, etc. Out of all these, only one regional writer and Nicki from TZP actually bothered to contact Nugent to ask why he did what he did and learn it wasn’t as bad as it looked.
The others just judged.