e-Claire

Nut-bucket or Fruitcake?

71 year old, 30 year veteran congressanimal, Rep. "Pete" Stark, D-Fremont is catching h-e-double-hockey-sticks for cussin' out a fellow member of that august body.

In response to McInnis' demand that Thomas be quiet while the bill was being read, Stark blurted out: "(O)h, you think you are big enough to make me, you little wimp? Come on. Come over here and make me. I dare you."

Further goading McInnis, a married Republican gentleman, Stark lashed out: "You little fruitcake. You little fruitcake. I said you are a fruitcake." According to Fox News Channel, witnesses say Stark then hurled a 10-letter homophobic insult at Thomas ... [cocksucker" would be my guess...]

Aside from the fact that Stark should be given a looooong time-out, how comfortable are the people of Fremont to be represented by someone who has severe impulse control issues? And what's up with *this:*

"I think he meant nothing by it," Human Rights Campaign official Winnie Stachelberg told Fox News.

And no word of protest from magazine writers at The Advocate, who went ballistic when "antigay" Texas Rangers baseball player John Rocker called a couple of restaurant patrons who were harassing him last summer "fruitcakes."

In his own defense, Stark claims "fruitcake means inept, crazy, a nut cake to me."

[No, "Pete," I believe the word that fits *that * definition is now "congressman."] Let's see what we can find, mmm? [Leaving the icky Xmas confection aside...] dictionary.com says: "A crazy or an eccentric person" WordNet of Princeton U says: "a whimsically eccentric person" In the thesaurus we find: "ding-a-ling, nut, demoniac, section 8, yo-yo, enthusiast, harebrain, rare bird, looney tunes, original, maverick, gonzo, nutcake, three-dollar bill, wacko, and, my personal fave, wombat. Only one reference in more than 120 came even close to the anti-gay: "queer-duck." And I think that's reaching for it... Well, other than finding many words more creative than "a milinarily-challenged cognitivley-deficited-American**" to describe Mr Stark, we find ourselves still with the question of whether or not "fruitcake" is a gay-bashing term. [I think the verdict is prima facie for "cocksucker"] Any linguistic or cultural experts willing to weigh in? If fruitcake *is* a bash, as The Advocate seemed to think in the John Rocker case, why aren't they in an uproar at this instance? Is everybody involved in anything inside the Beltway completely scooters?!? **Key**: cognitively deficited -- dumbass millinarily challenged -- asshat

1. This is where our tax dollars go.  To pay these arrogant fruitcakes their salaries.

   I wish they’d all shut up.

   D

   Posted by David Strain  on  07/24/03  at  12:21 AM

2. I’ve never heard the word “fruitcake” used to refer to someone’s sexual predator.  “Cocksucker” is closer, but even that shouldn’t be taken too literally.  After all, calling someone a “mofo” does not normally imply that the referent actually fos his mo.

   Posted by Xrlq  on  07/24/03  at  09:27 AM

3. I agree with XLRQ that fighting words aren’t to be construed to literally, but usually the conduct ascribed to an opponent in the fighting words is usually viewed as humiliating or bad to the name-caller.  Also, to be effective, insults usually have to have some ring of truth, at least, again, in the mind of the name-caller.  So, are we to understand that Stark feels that McInnis is gay? And that that accusation describes a bad thing?  Seems a pretty strange thing for a Bay Area Dem to do.  Of course, the opposition to him will never get as loud as it would have if a Rep had said the same thing.

   Posted by Peter Sean Bradley  on  07/26/03  at  02:21 AM

4. Of course, the opposition to him will never get as loud as it would have if a Rep had said the same thing.

   That’s the double standard that honks *me* off.  If it is bad to say—it is a bad thing to say, no matter who is doing the saying.  Even the cognitively deficited…

   Posted by Claire  on  07/26/03  at  03:41 AM

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