Lonzie Cox, Jr. – 10/7/05

This page was last updated on October 29, 2005.

When ‘new’ becomes ‘old’; Lonzie Cox, Jr.; Beaver County Times; October 7, 2005. I am not related to Mr. Cox.

While preparing this critique, I found this following passage in a note Mr. Cox sent to www.blackcommentator.com in October 2003: “It is necessary for black people to maintain a sense of anger. If we are not angry about injustice against us based on race who will be … and when.” Perhaps I’m being oversensitive, but what a bigoted position to take. I can only assume he’s projecting his traits on the rest of us.

The Beaver County Times published my letter to the editor on this subject.

Below is a detailed critique of the subject letter.

“The summer was long. The hot winds blew. Back and forth accusations flew. Legislative pay raise was a fact. Should they keep it all or give some back?

“That seems to have been the big question this summer. And one man’s answer was a pink pig on a Harrisburg street.

“I haven’t expressed an opinion on the pay raise that the legislators voted themselves because I don’t feel it will make a difference to me either way. Neither the legislators nor the treasurer will offer to buy me a tank of gas, or even a pork chop dinner for that matter.”

[RWC] Could Mr. Cox’s alleged lack of concern be because all local representatives and senators are Democrats? With an attitude like this, he has nerve referring to other blacks as “Uncle Toms.” See more on this below.

“Into this argument has stepped a group called the Young Conservatives with their radio ads. How young are these conservatives? More important, who are these ‘young conservatives?’

“Do they think we can be fooled by their name? They feel they can get a foothold in Beaver County while everyone is enraged over the pay-raise issue.”

[RWC] “Fooled by their name?” Huh? I guess we should give Mr. Cox some slack. After all, on Mr. Cox’s end of the political spectrum, hiding your identity is standard operating procedure. For example, communists/liberals/socialists now like to be called “progressives,” as if there were anything progressive about their agenda. True conservatives tend to be open about who they are and where they stand.

Mr. Cox ignores the fact that the Young Conservatives of Pennsylvania are going after all pay-jackers – Democrats and Republicans – all over the commonwealth. Of course, that could be because Mr. Cox believes all actions must be partisan.

“But remember that young conservatives soon become ‘old’ conservatives. And when they get old, we end up with people in charge like George W. Bush, Strom Thurmond, Richard Nixon, Dick Cheney, Melissa Hart, William Rehnquist, Clarence (the uncle) Thomas, Donald Rumsfeld, Ronald Reagan, George Wallace and Rick Santorum. And don’t forget William Bennett, who recently advocated racial genocide right here in America.”

[RWC] Mr. Cox refers to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas as an “Uncle Tom,” though I don’t understand why people use Uncle Tom as a pejorative. When you read “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” you find Uncle Tom was an honorable man whose refusal to bend to the will of his owner, Simon Legree, leads to his beating death. The inspiration for the character, Rev. Josiah Henson – a hero of the Underground Railroad, said he was proud to be called Uncle Tom.

Can someone explain to me how anyone can refer to men and women like U.S. Appellate Judge Janice Rogers Brown, Gen. Colin Powell, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and Justice Thomas as Oreos, Stepin Fetchits, et cetera? Why do successful black Americans like these scare people like Mr. Cox? Could it be these role models disprove the culture of bigotry and victimization promoted by Louis “the levees were bombed” Farrakhan, Jesse “Hymietown” Jackson, and Al “Tawana Brawley” Sharpton?

I could argue about the conservative credentials of several of these names, but I’ll stick to George Wallace. Is Mr. Cox nuts, or is his inclusion of George Wallace a clumsy attempt at smearing conservatives? I’m sure you remember George Wallace was a Democrat – Mr. Cox’s end of the political spectrum, and a segregationist. Wallace won several Democrat primaries during the 1972 presidential campaign.

I’ll be gracious and say Mr. Cox was only mistaken when he alleged Bill Bennett “advocated racial genocide right here in America.” When Mr. Bennett said, “[aborting black babies] would be an impossible, ridiculous and morally reprehensible thing to do,” which part “advocated racial genocide?” Of course, Mr. Cox could be using the dictionary in which “choice” means abortion, “diversity” means think as I do or be demonized, and “advocate” means “impossible, ridiculous and morally reprehensible.”

I have to admit Mr. Cox’s portrayal of Bill Bennett’s comments during his radio show is worse than most. Most folks with an axe to grind merely quoted Mr. Bennett out of context and then said, “Bill Bennett – and by extension all conservatives and Republicans – is a racist.” Mr. Cox went further and claimed Mr. Bennett advocated genocide. For a more detailed discussion of Bennett’s comments, read The Borking of Bill Bennett by Larry Elder (October 6, 2005).

“As a former member of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard, I also blame the old conservatives for getting many of our young Guardsmen blown up and killed in the mindless war in Iraq, and for incompetence at home.”

[RWC] I guess Mr. Cox believes the terrorists are really freedom fighters who were peaceful before the U.S. forced them into indiscriminate murder sprees against civilians around the world.

Here’s an example of the respect Mr. Cox has for our military men and women. It’s a letter Mr. Cox wrote to a liberal website.

“I too went to a rally last Sat. We knew the war wouldn’t be influenced by our actions. But it was better than doing nothing. I agree Iraq veterans will influence the coming of peace when they voice their opinions. It disturbs me when soldiers say they believe in this war. I think they’re afraid to dissent.

“I served in the military. It’s easier to go along with the crowd. But if they (troops fighting in Iraq) truly are stupid (brainwashed) enough to not understand the futility and folly of dying in this mindless war, there’s nothing I can do for them.

“They’ll have to learn this for themselves.”

You have to admit Mr. Cox displays consistency. Regardless of the issue, if you don’t agree with him, you’re “afraid to dissent,” “truly … stupid,” and/or “brainwashed.”

“Gen. Douglas MacArthur once made a famous speech about old soldiers. I’ll paraphrase him by saying, ‘Old conservatives never die, they just smell that way.’”

[RWC] I guess name-calling is the perfect conclusion for a letter full of insults and lies.

Below is the letter to the editor I referenced above as I submitted it. The Times published the letter on October 12^th.

Stepin Fetchits?

In his angry letter entitled “When ‘new’ becomes ‘old’” (October 7), Lonzie Cox referred to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas as an “Uncle Tom.”

On a side point, I believe it’s wrong to use Uncle Tom as a pejorative. In the book “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” you find Uncle Tom was an honorable man whose refusal to bend to the will of his master, Simon Legree, leads to his beating death. The inspiration for the character, Rev. Josiah Henson – a hero of the Underground Railroad, said he was proud to be called Uncle Tom.

Mr. Cox tried to sneak George Wallace into his list of people he considers conservatives. The trouble is, George Wallace was a Democrat – on Mr. Cox’s end of the political spectrum, and a segregationist. Wallace won several Democrat primaries during the 1972 presidential campaign.