John Cook Senior National Reporter Yahoo! News

June 5, 2010

John Cook
Senior National Reporter
Yahoo! News
701 First Avenue
Sunnyvale, CA 94089

RE: Ragheads and Gamecocks – Why the Palmetto State has a special place in the heart of America. Some comments on your article on South Carolina politics and how it may challenge 1800 and 1876 for pushing the envelope on political speech.

Mr. Cook,

I write for 2 reasons.

#1 – In 1967 I lived at 436 Lincoln Avenue in Orange, New Jersey. One of the other tenants was Lt. John Cook. He was a recruiting officer for the U.S. Army. Although Bess was his wife’s name she was known as “Bess Darling” because that was how he referred to her. They were from South Carolina. I think he was graduated from Furman. If so, Go Paladins! Is there any possibility that you are part of the Cook clan? If so, please send my regards to your parents, your uncles, your aunts, or your cousins.

#2 – ‘Raghead’ is a term that I have not heard in a long time. Its cousin, ‘Nappy Head’, was used by Miami Commissioner Something Spence-Jones as she was taking the perp walk required of all indicted pols. She declared herself a “Nappy haired daughter of the Lord who is innocent”. She was found guilty.

As I read your article about the genteel style of politics in South Carolina I am more and more convinced that the only tactical mistake made by that great American, William Tecumseh Sherman, was that he did no flatten, like the Romans flattened Carthage, the entire state of South Carolina.

The whole place should have been carpet bombed a la Dresden in so far as 19th century technology would permit.

I mention Rome and Carthage because it’s been 23 centuries since Scipio took off the gloves. The battle cry “Cartago delenda est” must have worked. When was the last time you heard of Carthage attacking Italy?

The same can be said for the solution to the witch problem in Salem, MA. All it took was stretching a few necks and New England has been free of witches for more than 300 years.

Who says an activist government can’t do some good? Even a blind pig can find a truffle.

Your problem is, that having started the war, the Civil War, you weren’t prepared for the dogs of war and the havoc they sometimes cause. As long as it was in Tennessee or Pennsylvania or Mississippi it was OK. Who knows? If you hadn’t fired on Ft. Sumter perhaps you could have gone through the unpleasantness like Ireland went through World War 2. “Uncle Billy”, the sobriquet his devoted troops gave him, served as a role model for Curtis LeMay.

There is one other thing. It is something that is “owed to the ledger”.

You mention Lee Atwater, George H.W. Bush, and Willie Horton.

Willie Horton is sometimes known as the poster boy for prison rehab gone bad. He was in prison in Massachusetts for rape and murder. Governor Dukakis, “Wee Mikey” to his friends, is a firm believer in “there is no such thing as a bad boy”. He furloughed him for a long weekend. He went to Maryland where, Surprise! he raped and murdered again. The parents of the Maryland victims went to Massachusetts where Governor Dukakis was too busy to meet with them.

I point this out because it’s true and because you left out one teeny weeny little fact. Even though it’s not much bigger than a turd in a punch bowl it is a material fact. The omission of same constitutes fraud.

Willie Horton was introduced to America by Senator Albert Arnold Gore. Jr. in the New York Democratic Primary in March, 1988. I call him Alpha Gump because he was, is, and shall be a horse’s ass of Homeric proportions. He is dumber than a box of starch.

He was smart enough to hammer Mikey with a simple slogan.

“The Willie Hortons of the world never let you down.”

Chances are if you hadn’t fired on Ft. Sumter the above may not have happened. Since Arnold Schwarzenegger will be between assignments shortly. Maybe you can get him to go back in time and put South Carolina on the winning side.




Kevin Smith