‘Bulletin’ Hates Blacks, Quakers, Realtors

In case you haven’t been paying attention — and, really, I hope you haven’t — about 15 Catholics in the city are in an uproar over the Tony Auth cartoon at right. The ‘toon ran as a commentary on the Supreme Court’s upholding of the partial-birth abortion ban.

Apparently, this cartoon is very offensive, because it says the five Catholic judges on the bench rule based on their Catholic morals. I thought this is what pro-life Catholics wanted judges to do, but apparently they don’t. Apparently Catholics are happier that the judges voted to uphold sound constitutional law than to uphold anti-abortion beliefs. Who knew?

Leading the charge against the Inquirer and its infidel cartoon is none other than The Evening Bulletin, which has run approximately 48 articles and letters about it in the past weeks. But none really did its job better than today’s column by James G. Wiles, which not only takes on Auth’s cartoon but black people, Quakers and liberals as well!

This one deserves — nay, implores — a full mocking. Join me after the jump.

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Quaker shaker

Last year, the NCAA banned teams with nicknames “hostile or offensive” to American Indians — this, of course, does nothing to the Cleveland Indians logo — by Feb. 1 of 2006. The Daily Pennsylvanian did a story asking if Penn’s Quaker was offensive, and the resounding chorus from actual Quakers was, uhm, no.

But apparently they missed talking to this woman, who has a letter to the editor in the paper today:

I was googling on the Internet this afternoon, and was surprised to learn that the name of the University of Pennsylvania’s basketball team is the Quakers.

I’m an older lady with little interest in basketball. But as a devout Quaker, I was dismayed to see the name of a serious religion used so inappropriately.

It is a discourtesy to a serious religious denomination. While our name is often misused — think cereal — that doesn’t make it any more pleasant.

If you substitute some other denomination — e.g., Baptists or Presbyterians — you’ll see how odd it sounds.

While it is legal to use our name, I see it as uncivil and disrespectful.

May I gently suggest that you find another peppier, non-religious name for your basketball team? Why not make a link to Benjamin Franklin and call your team the Lightning Rods? Have fun with it — just leave us Quakers out of it, please!

Heck, I have a better idea: the University of Pennsylvania Ben Stations. It’s win-win!

Quaker name offensive to some [DP, second letter]
Oct. 12, 2005: And what about those offensive La Salle Explorers?

Blogicized: Of publicity and politics

• The most important question of the year: who are the best local newscasters? The women one is just too hard. But for men, the answer is simple: Harry Hairston. What, you thought I was going to say happiest-man-in-Philadelphia John Clark? [Metroblogging Philadelphia]

• What do you do when you’re a politician who doesn’t want voters to know how you voted? Why, you hold a special committee where the votes go down unrecorded! Hooray for Pennsylvania!

• Sluts and double standards: Yes, it’s true a lot of cultures and people look down on women who have sex. Let me just make it a point to say that I am not one of them. In fact, I look down on women who aren’t having sex! Wait, I don’t think that’s good either. Hmm. [Pesky'Apostrophe]

• The Pentagon is spying — on Quakers! Yeah, those damned Penn kids deserve all the extra scrutiny they get. [All Spin Zone]