No More Comments

As regular readers will have noticed, I have not been posting additional comments here at NO Comment. I have other obligations and, frankly, the daily task of reading the NOLA.com comments is both depressing and redundant. Suffice to say, I think that this media criticism experiment has successfully highlighted the fact that there are numerous and largely unchecked comments that appear daily on NOLA.com, and many other media websites, that are racist, sexist, and otherwise offensive in a manner that degrades the possibility of civil discourse on the important issues that our city, state, and country faces.

I very much believe in free speech and encouraging a diversity of view points, especially those that confront majority view points, but I believe that a review of the comments on this blog as well as those that appear on stories on NOLA.com reveal that the Utopian ideal of open dialogue that the internet promised has devolved into a hellish, bullying fora that most sensible and thoughtful people avoid.

I would encourage NOLA.com to either eliminate comments altogether or to make a aggressive effort to create accountability among its users and to minimize the likelihood of exposing its readers to needlessly offensive comments. Possible steps would include eliminating anonymity for commenters (by, at the very least, requiring a Facebook profile or a user account associated with a Times Picayune subscription), eliminating comments on certain news stories (like crime reports) likely to generate offensive comments in the way that comments have been barred from society stories, enabling comments on society stories and offering the same level of scrutiny for comments on stories about the city's poor as with the city's elites, moving comments from the bottom of articles to a separately linked page so that people are not confronted with the comments if they do not choose to read them and so that the comments do not get equal footing with the article, barring users at IP addresses that routinely make offensive comments and creating other means of accountability for users who violate the posted NOLA.com policies, premoderating comments from users before they post or creating constant, 24 hour a day moderation of comments as they post, and, in general, creating policies that recognize the centrality of the Times Picayune and NOLA.com to public discourse in this city and taking seriously its role in protecting this important dialogue and its readers from thoughtless, offensive, and degrading comments.

If you have other thoughts and ideas, please post them.

Yours,

Billy Sothern

Darwinism At Work

A comment about the disappearance of Jim Dugan, an alumnus, like me, of St. John's College, who hasn't been seen since he and a companion fell into the Mississippi River last week after the dock they were on collapsed:

smeyers02 March 27, 2011 at 5:51AM

Uh, if I fall into a river, I'm not going to just climb out, hug and go home. It's the Mississippi! I'm gonna go to the hospital to make sure I don't have a disease.
My theory? Kelly pushed him in (maybe as a joke?) or he committed suicide and she freaked out. Kelly's story is awfully fishy (pun intended). Mark my words, she did something to this dude. I bet she pushed him in as a "joke" or something because they were both drunk. Either way it was Darwinism at work.
Seriously, who drinks on a pier on the river at 4am? Buh bye. Fish food.
No, but this Kelly girl is gonna be arrested for homicide when all is said and done. She did him in.

 So, in order of appearance, though not necessarily in offensiveness, speculation that Jim killed himself, his companion perjured herself, a pun about the woman's story about a likely dead man, a suggestion that she murdered him, a suggestion that the man's death was "Darwinism at work," and a joke that the man is now "fish food." All in a comment section that is being closely monitored by Jim's friends and family for news about whether he is still alive or will ever be found.

Star Chamber

A comment on an article about an ongoing death penalty trial in Jefferson Parish:

toocynical March 21, 2011 at 3:23PM

That's his defense - I'm stoned and scared....the defense attorney should be on trial too.

I think its dangerous to suggest that an attorney should be punished for representing his client. However, its also the position taken by a number of prominent conservatives so it probably doesn't rank as high on the offensiveness chart as the usual racist and sexist invective we see on NOLA.com. Unless you are, like me, a criminal defense attorney. 

Michael Anderson's Prison Monkey Family

A comment concerning Michael Anderson's guilty plea in federal court for his role in a Central City street gang:

ceasarion March 19, 2011 at 11:31AM

So the case wasn't perfect..."WHO CARES"? This scumbag is out of society FOREVER!!!! Thank You Jim Letten...If NOT for Mr. Letten's continued bulldog tenacity, this POS would have been back on the streets killing and intimidating more citizens. Thank GOD for the feds, because if we relied on our local/state prosecutors and Judges, this type of trash would still be running the streets. Like Bill Jefferson...Lol... I loved the Anderson Momma and other neanderthal (barely standing erect) relatives in the bright (OPP jumpsuit orange) T-shirts with the logos stating that "mike-Mike be In-o-cent", this was a truly defining moment of television this mornings newscast, that made me nearly blow coffee out of my nose laughing. Anderson is trash, and will be murdered in prison hopefully for ratting out his other henchmen for their crimes as well. I love it!!! Hows that old say'in go??? Oh yeah..."Live by the sword" Yes. A little justice for those children killed by this murderer. 27 shots fired at 5 teenage kids of a 40.cal weapon. My God, do they make a clip that big for a handgun? I guess so. Either that, or he had to stop and reload the pistol. Bye Bye Mike-Mike, HELL has a special place marked out for the likes of you. Dogpound indeed, Satan will use you like a lap dog I'm just sure. Only regret is that the state of Louisiana won't get a chance to inject your rotten viens with the juice, and post it on youtube as a lesson for future punks to see as a warning. HA

In case you missed it, he is saying that the African American activists present in court with their Safe Streets t-shirts looked like prison monkeys to him.  And I suppose its worth noting that those folks are not his family members, but are community activists concerned with his treatment in the criminal justice following the district attorney's suppression of exculpatory evidence at his death penalty trial, and that his mother wasn't present in court. But who cares about details when you have racist invective to take care of.

Voices of Compassion

A comment posted yesterday afternoon on an article about the partial meltdown of a nuclear reactor in Japan following the earthquake and tsunami:

digger111 March 13, 2011 at 5:55PM

From the people that brought you bayonetting babies in Nanking, enslaving women in Korea for sex, sneak attacking Pearl harbor, a walk in the park in Bataan, and killing 100,000 Phillipinos in Manilla on the eve of their rescue by brave Marines and Soldiers...payback is not that wonderful. Let bthem all fall in the water.

Slate on Anonymous Comments

Troll, Reveal Thyself

Why we need to get rid of anonymous comments.

By Farhad Manjoo 
Posted Wednesday, March 9, 2011, at 5:55 PM ET
Once or twice a week, I get a letter taking me to task for Slate's commenting policy. The reader wants to tell me that I suck, but he doesn't want to log in to Slate's comment system using his credentials for Facebook, Google, Yahoo, or Twitter. Obviously this requirement doesn't bother everyone; hundreds of people happily sign in every week to tell me I suck. Yet I imagine that there are lots more people who are itching to chime in but who are put out by the login process.
One common misperception is that Slate wants your social-networking account in order to steal your private information. In fact, when you comment by typing in your username and password for Facebook or Twitter, those sites are the ones that check your credentials—Slate never sees your login information. If you sign on with your Facebook account, we do see your name and other details you've made available for everyone, but we get nothing more private than that.
If Slate isn't looking to invade your privacy, why are we asking you to log in with your social-networking accounts? Why make it so hard for people to comment—don't we want every reader to participate, even if they're skittish about revealing their names?
I can't speak for my bosses, who might feel differently than I do. But as a writer, my answer is no—I don't want anonymous commenters. Everyone who works online knows that there's a direct correlation between the hurdles a site puts up in front of potential commenters and the number and quality of the comments it receives. The harder a site makes it for someone to post a comment, the fewer comments it gets, and those comments are generally better.

To read the rest, check it out at http://www.slate.com/id/2287739/. (In deference to Todd Price's superior judgment on such matters. See his constructive comments below.)

10 Year Old Charged with Stabbing His Brother with a Knife

Comments to a sad article about a ten year old boy charged with stabbing his brother:

pennyleboeuf March 06, 2011 at 5:05PM

THE TEN YEAR OLD WHO STABBED HIS BROTHER NEED TO BE PUT BEHIND BARS FOR 50 YEARS OR MORE. IF UR YOUNG ENOUGH TO PICK UP A KNIFE AND STAB SOMEONE IN THE BACK, UR OLD ENOUGH TO SERVE TIME WITHOUT THE POSSIBILITY OF PAROLE. IT'S STUFF LIKE THIS THAT MAKES ME WANT TO BE A JUDGE.
  

LadyLilith March 06, 2011 at 5:20PM

I completely agree with you. I feel the same way about a teenager having 'consensual' sex with an adult. The teenager knows what they are doing at that age. The adult should never be punished for consensual sex.

84sunny84 March 06, 2011 at 7:49PM

of course it won't save him, he may be only 10 but is already a lost cause ...he doesn't have a soul. There is something inside everyone with a soul that tells them that they are doing wrong. He obviously doesn't have it and yes needs to be put away.

Rape that Rapist

Comments to a story about a Metairie man accused of sexually abusing a seven year old girl, and allegedly claiming to police that she was the sexual aggressor:

deeray March 02, 2011 at 2:37PM

This guy actually had the nerve to say a 7 year is the aggressor...Come the "F" on you are a grown ass man, no child can tell you what to do.....Please dude really....you will get yours....Stay in Gretna just a little while longer and believe me you will be the victim....and you deserve whatever they do to you in there....SICK BASTARD!!!

midcity22 March 02, 2011 at 2:46PM

I thought I had heard and read everything but a 26 year old man saying a 7 year old girl was the aggressor, for real, couldn't you come up with something else dude. Sicko needs to go to jail and let his inmates give him a little taste of his own medicine.

 In case you don't know, "Gretna" is where the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center, where Jefferson Parish pretrial inmates are held, is located.

Jarvis is a Racist

The commenters seems to love to attack Jarvis DeBerry, an African American columnist for the Times Picayune. In particular, because his column frequently discusses race, usually in thoughtful ways, he is called a racist, usually by seeming racists.

Here are some comments to his op-ed about the increase in murders under the new police superintendant:

Saxon Caucasus February 27, 2011 at 7:15AM

Ok Mr. DeBerry, after carefully looking at the victims and the criminals there seems to predominantly be one thing they have in common.
Want to guess what it is?
So..what's YOUR solution? Get Riley back so you can ignore the real problem and blame whitey and the "shadow government"?

amaxe February 27, 2011 at 7:30AM

You're a racist jerk, Jarvis !
The problem is that black kids are getting black kids pregnant and walking away from their responsibility of raising what they made ! Then the poor black kid grows up with NO family, No education, NO father figure, NO future and NO WAY TO LIVE HONESTLY!
They get into drugs and then kill each other.....facts are there !
To blame Serpas or anyone else but the culture is like blaming the weatherman for rain !!!
GROW UP AND FACE THE TRUTH.....IT'S RIGHT IN THE MIRROR !!

Saxon Caucasus February 27, 2011 at 7:43AM

@huffmanjack
Ok fine...we'll ignore Jarvis vaguely disguised criticism/comparison of the white police chief who took over a department that had been very poorly run by african americans. After all, that IS the whole point of this article and most of his writings...find a way to blame whitey.
Like I said..the vast majority of the criminals and the victims seem to have one thing in common. Have you noticed?

 amaxe February 27, 2011 at 7:57AM

As I said before, black kids are knocking up black kids, the baby grows up with no father or family, gets involved with drugs and kills and gets killed!
What's so difficult to understand? The facts speak the truth ! They can't be denied!
There's no racism, just black kids getting killed, DUHHHH!!!

 exneworleanian February 27, 2011 at 7:55AM

Guess Landrieu should have found a black chief, then Jarvis would have had to think up something else to write about... 

pygmalian6 February 27, 2011 at 7:59AM

I have to agree with what amaxe said. To top it off, everyone is afraid of the little gangsters and will not come forward with information to put them away. Why? Because there is very little punishment for crimes committed and these gangsters know that. So do police on the streets because they deal with the same people all of their lives until they're shot dead on the streets or go to prison finally after commiting crimes for years and years and getting away with it. Answer, build more prisons, take away the weight lifting equipment, TV, good food that poor people can't afford to eat, take away the air conditioning, weld the prison cell shut and hose it out daily. Treat them like the animals they are while they're there and maybe they won't be back.

Saxon Caucasus February 27, 2011 at 8:12AM

@huffman jack
I'm not sure what you said in your last post, or your point.
I'm guessing that you're one of the people who says the bad economy is all bush's fault and obama inherited it and he can't fix it overnight and we have to give him a chance..blah...blah...etc...right?
LMAO.
..but the new white police chief is supposed to somehow stop negroes from killing each other immediately or he's a failure...

royrogers February 27, 2011 at 8:47AM

Want to look for a hopeful sign? Look for Jarvis to write a column putting the responibility squarely where it lies. That would be on the families (if you can call them that) and neighborhoods that breed the criminals.
That would be a hopeful sign.

Ugly People Acting All Poor and Disgusting

Comment to an article about a fatal shooting in Mid-City:

diggingnola February 26, 2011 at 4:04PM

And that is such a nice intersection, you know, with all the plastic furniture on the sidewalk and old ugly men and women sitting around cursing and drinking and talking loud and being all section 8 disgusting.

Alleged Rape Victim into "Dirty, Dirty Sexcapades"

I have a lot of opinions about reporting on sex crimes cases that most people probably wouldn't share (I think, for instance, that the names of suspects and defendants, like the names of alleged victims, should not be printed until they are convicted) because of my experience working on cases where men have been accused of sex crimes in cases where I know them to be innocent but where nonetheless their reputations suffered greatly, notwithstanding acquittals or dropped charges.

Part of the difficulty about these crimes is that they frequently turn out to be "he said, she said" cases, where it is ultimately a judgment call on the part of police, prosecutors, and, ultimately, juries whether they believe one side of the story or the other.

This seems to be the case in a story being reported in The Times Picayune about a 19 year old woman who alleges that she was gang raped by four men when she was visiting the city from Kentucky for VooDoo Fest. Its a terrible story and, supporting the woman's claim, one of the men involved has already pled guilty to simple rape and will testify against the others.

None of this stopped comments attacking this woman from appearing on the series of stories about the case. This one, posted a day and a half ago, is fairly representative:

om23 February 23, 2011 at 1:57PM

From testimony presented in this article, it sure sounds like the "victim" was a willing participant in some dirty, dirty sexcapades. Apparently she suddenly got some scruples about it, but instead of looking in the mirror, she is blaming the other participants. Like I stated earlier, I'm basing my opinion on the information presented in this article. I was not a fly on the wall. You typically don't giggle, smoke weed in your underwear with, and hug your rapists.

Editorial - TIE HER TUBES

There is a good editorial in yesterday's Times Picayune, that follows up on Monday's article about the conditions in Section 8 housing, including rat infestations, that provoked many negative, racist comments.

But a comment to the editorial, which suggests that poor, black women should not be able to have children, takes the cake:

picklepork February 23, 2011 at 8:37AM

First she needs to have her tubes tied. And I bet there were no rats when she moved in.

Construction Guy

In looking over the subsequent comments on the story I posted about yesterday, about families living in rat infested Section 8 properties, one was so offensive that it deserved its own post:

constructionguy February 21, 2011 at 2:17PM

Well if she would get off of her lazy swahili butt and get a job instead of letting the government pay for her to keep breeding like a rat, she wouldn't have to live in a rat infested hole! I bet she gets her hair did an her nails be gettin done doe!

The useronly has three other comments, two of which are just as bad, if not worse:

keep those illegal burritos there! We don't want to lisen to your non english speaking lazy raping murdering robbing azzs or your disgusting pathetic pregnant whores complain about how you don't get enough from the US. Stay the F$^K IN MEXICO!

Posted on Census shows huge Hispanic growth in Texas on February 21, 2011, 3:10PM

Firs my coluge be gettin paid fo now dis dum craka gunna tel me hows i culd be gettin a free house!

Posted on SUNO commencement speaker will be HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan on February 21, 2011, 2:25PM

Animals!

A comment on an article about an African American woman living with her children in a Section 8 home with a terrible rat infestation:

pygmalian8 February 21, 2011 at 10:18AM

If you live like animals, animals are attracted to you.

The article, by the Times Picayune's Katy Reckdahl, possesses the human and relate-able details about the women and her family, that characterize Reckdahl's writing and make the comments seem all the more egregious. It begins:

Samara Egana knew the infestation was out of control when her 5-year-old son Moses told her: "Mama, I just saw a bunny." It was brown, with a long tail, he said. Another rat, she thought.

So, get it, the little boy that mistook the rat for a bunny, he deserves to live in squalor because he is poor.

A number of other comments suggest, like the one pasted below, that the rats provide a needed prod to get this family off the dole:

Dynomoose February 21, 2011 at 9:37AM

I'm not saying that rats are acceptable, but subsidized housing should be uncomfortable enough to encourage those using it to improve their situation so that they can move on.

Savages in Ivory Coast and New Orleans

Comments to an article about the mass killings that followed the election in Ivory Coast last year:

thetruthhurts00 February 19, 2011 at 12:41PM

Modern day savagery , plain and simple.

thetruthhurts00 February 19, 2011 at 12:47PM

No wonder many Africans look back fondly on the days of Colonization, it was a much more stable period. It truly is a shame because Africa is such a resource rich continent, it's just that the native Africans don't have the mentality to develop and use it to better themselves.

thetruthhurts00 February 19, 2011 at 12:50PM

niklachey February 19, 2011 at 12:43PM
How sad for those poor folks who just wanted a better life.
I know it's a cliche but stories like this remind me of how lucky we are in the US.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It's not luck, it's the mentality of America's founders and present day majority.
Just like comparing St Tammany to Orleans, it's not luck, it's mentality...

Another commenter, looking for trouble:

rjjoe504 February 19, 2011 at 1:18PM

@thetruthhurts00 What a novel take on the "savagery" of African people. Can you elaborate on their physiological and social differences?
(This should be interesting.)

***
Update:

These folks, who were disgusted at the above comments and others subsequently posted, have the right idea:

TheTippingPoint February 19, 2011 at 1:42PM

Follow

I'm not even sure why they allow comments for stories like this.

It just becomes a platform for all of the ignorant racists, that like to spam every article about a black person on NOLA.com, to rant and rave about something that they don't have the slightest idea about.

So sad.

Inappropriate? Alert us.

ReplyPost new

dninc79 February 19, 2011 at 2:01PM

Follow

I agree, T-P should lock articles like this one up from comment, no need to comment, it's not local and it's indeed a platform for ignorance to smear their hate and blind hateful remarks onto, some people know how to read behind the line's, we're a lot more educated than you think.

The Rumpus

Some good stuff, about the Lara Logan comments, from The Rumpus, my favorite website:

Sometimes You Read a Comment So Dumb, It’s Worth Making Fun Of

February 17th, 2011

A special Rumpus Note from comedian Eugene Mirman regarding a commenter at NPR:

Yesterday NPR posted something re-explaining their terms and conditions for commenters on their site after inappropriate comments were posted regarding the tragic attack on Lara Logan.

Apparently, you can’t just write idiotic, sexist or racist things anonymously. Why? Surprisingly, it’s not because NPR is run by well-meaning communists obsessed with elitist manners (look no further than Stalin and Mao Zedong for proof). It’s because it doesn’t help the dialogue — and they frown upon libelous personal attacks. Still, one anonymous commenter was disappointed in NPR’s trite, age-old message of not blaming the victim. Oh liberal, public radio when will you see how much women endanger themselves by not taking more karate and being so pretty? Below, is the comment:



Look, most of us don’t know what it’s like on the ground in Egypt or war-torn regions in general. But you know who probably does? Lara Logan. I bet she has a pretty good idea of the levels of risks involved, because she’s traveled all over the Middle-East reporting on conflicts for many, many years.
But this is almost not what annoys me about the comment. It’s the idiotic example he uses as a parallel to the situation:

“If I (a middle aged white guy) hang out on a Harlem corner at 1am with a bag of dope and $2500 hanging out of my pocket and get robbed and/or killed, I suppose I should scream victim. Oh the humanity!”

First of all, does this person not know that’s a dumb thing to do anywhere in the world (except a forest or private boat), mostly because you would be arrested by police-people who are on the lookout for just that type of thing? Also, does he think it’s the 1970s? Would it have killed him to use the much more contemporary example of Baltimore (though still dumb) and not an area of New York where Bill Clinton works? I think if an older white-guy stood on any corner in NY City holding a bag of “dope” (it’s slang for drugs — in 1964) with money hanging out of his pocket, people would assume he was insane, dangerous, or a particularly terrible DEA agent. But I think if this guy really wanted to put himself in a dangerous situation, he should go to the suburbs — where there is heightened fear of the unknown — I recommend the corner of Lowell and Woburn Streets in my home town of Lexington, MA. I’m sure a very concerned parent would call the police right away (unless a mix of white, Jewish, Asian and Indian teen hockey-players on skateboards robbed him first).

Regardless of where it’s dangerous to stand around visibly holding drugs and money, I think that is such an incongruous analogy to entrenched journalism which is fairly vital to the function and flow of democracy. However, if that middle-aged white guy did stand around doing that in Egypt, was mistaken for a Jew and then brutally, sexually attacked, I guess he’d think it was to be expected.

Lara Logan Is What the Ali Babbas Want

On Wednesday, NOLA.com collected and posted media reports concerning the sexual assault of Lara Logan, the CBS news correspondent who was sexually assaulted while covering the recent protests in Egypt. The story has attracted a lot of attention but there is an emerging meta-story concerning the offensive online comments that the story has provoked, including on NPR.com where a story was published specifically addressing the offensive comments. The NOLA.com post acknowledged these issues obliquely, linking to a story about an NYU Fellow who resigned his position after posting the following tweet, in which he called her a "major war monger":

Lara Logan had to outdo Anderson. Where was her buddy McCrystal . . . I’m rolling my eyes at all the attention she’ll get.

This might make you think that NOLA.com would have been especially aggressive and considered in it moderation of its post about Logan. Nope:

canard February 16, 2011 at 1:59PM

What fools are at CBS news to send a blond blue-eyed American beauty into that mob scene of Muslims !!! that woman represented what everyone of those Ali Babbas want; it is pure managerial negligence to have allowed her to go on that assignment. During the 18 days of that mess, did anyone see one woman in the mobs. Hell no. Most Americans still live in that bubble world; just because one country talks democracy, does not mean that have same values as the West. 

hegelian1971 February 16, 2011 at 2:31PM

She was foolish to think she could go over there and be safe. All the world is not as safe as your garden variety suburban mall. In the absence of governmental control, crazy, lawless behavior becomes the norm and she became a target.
Sham-- you are crazy if you think you are entitled to be safe anywhere you go. "Blaming the victim" for not using common sense is completely justified. I dont roam about where it is known to be unsafe after dark. That is called common sense... O sure, I can take the moral highground later, while in the hospital recovery room (if I am that lucky)--and i would then agree with other people, with common sense that I should not have gone there...when I knew IN ADVANCE that it wasnt safe. The perps were still wrong for what they did-- but I was an IDIOT for stepping in the line of fire. Take your Pollyanna mindset to the Disney website-- we're talking reality here.

 Dynomoose February 16, 2011 at 3:04PM

what a horrible story. Unfortunately, it is also illustrative of how many Muslim men view women. 

lesliec February 17, 2011 at 6:19PM

THESE pple are fighting for freedom and have the blazzin gaul to rape a woman publically? I am really starting to believe all these mid eastern peace-loving-muslims are real animals who wouldn't know what freedom is or how to use it. so sad.....god save the US

Responding to a suggestion from another user that he was blaming the victim, hegelian1971 responded:

hegelian1971 February 16, 2011 at 3:25PM

I guess only your view of free speech should be protected huh?
Realize Sham, that the world-- the whole great big world has billions of people on it, and many are under nourished and desperate--financially. We (America) have become a lightning rod for revolutionaries to attack in order to gain popularity amongst their people who wish to throw off the latest form theft--we'll call it neo-colonialism. So, many in the crowd may have thought she was pretty, and had a chance to take advantage of a lawless situation to fulfill their disgusting urges to rape a woman. Others may have seen it as a way to send a message to the world, and namely, the USA-- so she was brutalized --which symbolized their disgust for our nation and its unflinching alliance with Israel. Either way-- whatever the motivation-- she was in an unsafe place, grossly outnumbered.
I dont go on the African Safari and get out of my car to take up close pictures of wild beasts. Men, acting with complete disregard for the law behave wildly-- and she put herslef in a bad situation and got hurt. She probably wont do that again. The men who did it are guilty of rape and should be punished... I dont know what your problem is with me saying they are wrong for doing that to her and she is wrong for putting herself in a dangerous situation. 

He followed up, with the following "joke":

hegelian1971 February 16, 2011 at 3:30PM

Doesnt matter if Muslim, Christian, athiest-- men have raped women for eons... its wrong, always. Let's not let this story affect our opinion of muslims...rather it should be a learning experience... female reporters who dont have a large group protecting them-- and/or a trusty firearm with them should NOT enter into dangerous situations.... period.
A climate controlled studio with makeup, and red lipstick works just as well.

After reading all these comments, one user expressed pure despair:

hellofriend February 17, 2011 at 8:26PM

Some of you are Pigs! You know who you are and I hope you are not on the jury for my trial. This is why alot of women don't speak up, their worried about pigs like you being on the jury!

***
Because I don't want to lump Nir Rosen, who made the stupid twitter comment, in with the nasty anonymous commenters at NOLA.com, I wanted to give a link to his apologia on Salon. I respect a man that says he's sorry.

More prison rape . . .

A comment on a story about the recent conviction of an NOPD officer for attempted rape:

hellofriend February 17, 2011 at 8:19PM

What a piece of sh*t! I hope you get yours in angola! I hope you know what it feels like to be raped and think of that for the rest of your life. The dirt bag that raped me goes to trial soon, I hope you meet him there!

In the Style of . . .

I commented on my friend Barry's Facebook post, "ran 3.6 mi in 34 mins 18 secs and burned 491 calories," as follows: "Glad to see you engaged in the west coast healthy lifestyle."

In typical clever Barry  fashion, he asked me to rephrase my comment "in the style of a Nola.com commentor". Here is what I came up with:

I hope you die on one of your "runs". But die quickly because I don't want your savior OSAMA spending all my tax dollars keeping your scummy body alive with his socialist care so that you can put more criminals on the streets to rape and kill.

Maybe I will create an ap, or website, (like the famous Wu-Tang Name Generator) that translates normal, polite thoughts and comments into NOLA.com speak, though I suspect it would be more useful to create one that can reserve translate. Maybe NOLA.com could pre-filter comments through it so that comments like, "This is typical of today's society.....white man works - black man takes," will come out as, "I am very frustrated with my life and choose to blame others for my unhappiness."

Any programmers out there?

Killing Is Good

A comment from aptly named Rebel Attitude (is there a theme developing?) to an article about an as-yet-nonfatal shooting of a murder suspect when the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office and the United States Marshals Service showed up at a home to arrest him:

REBELATTITUDE February 16, 2011 at 4:12PM

We need to get better training for our law enforcement this shooting them and not killing them is bad. This means we have to pay his medical bill and then prison

More of the same:

JoeyT1220 February 16, 2011 at 6:25PM

GREAT JOB JPSO! This kid is a murderer, and he got what he deserved..plain and simple. When they caught him, they should've been a little slower calling the ambulance to scrape that turd off the ground.

Better Black People

A comment to an AP article about reverse migration of African Americans back to the South, from the aptly named Rhett's Wife:

rhettswife February 16, 2011 at 7:44AM

Mr. Haynes and his extended family, is the type of man of African ancestry that we need to see more of in New Orleans. Perhaps, just perhaps, the delinquents roaming the streets of New Orleans would be reduced in number. Unfortunately, the quality of life here for people of all ancestries has become highly questionable.

Euthanize People, Not Dogs

A comment sent to me by a friend, to an article about an Algiers woman who was bit by a pit bull while trying to defend her chihuahua, suggesting that pit bulls are dangerous because they are raised by poor black people, who should themselves be euthanized (I know that this takes some liberties but I am pretty sure that is what they are saying):

Bimmerman February 10, 2011 at 8:58PM

Pit Bulls, Rotts, and other large breeds are not vicious by nature.
It's the way they are raised, and the people that own them that bring out the attack issues.
Certain individuals (I'm trying to be socially sensitive), raise them in aggressive conditions and the resulting dogs are aggressive. Any dog that is kept boxed-in, underfed, and chained will become aggressive (even a small breed). Most dogs that are properly treated usually are not aggressive by nature, regardless of the breed.
In short, don't blame the dog, blame the owner. A heck of a lot of the Pitt/Rott population is owned by the social underclass who are slaves to the drug trade, and don't know how to raise them.
They can't even properly raise their kids.
Perhaps we should euthanize some of this scum.

NOLA.com Will Call Your Boss

The following comment appeared on a post regarding NO Comment on the Louisiana Justice Institute's Blog:

The NOLA.com folks are amazing. I had one rep call me because they tracked a racially offensive comment to my place of employment, which is predominantly Black. They wanted ME, as a director, to do something about it. I wished them luck on their hunt. Hilarious.

If this is true, I would regard it as very positive that NOLA.com has gotten proactive about tracking down users responsible for hate speech and creating some accountability for their user's offensive comments.

U shoulda lernt dem boys . . .

On a follow up story about the alleged home invasion shooting the other night, that identified the boy killed as 15 year old Musheer Thomas, a comment, directed at his family, mocking them (and glorying in the violence of his death):

TotallyPropaganda February 14, 2011 at 3:09PM

I disagree with the homeowner's decisions. A pistol is great for home defense, but nothing would have beaten a short barreled 12 guage shotgun. Your first home defense weapon capable of deadly force should be a shotgun. It would have cut these delinquents in half! Closed casket, Closed case! If more people had this mindset, more people wouldnt have the mindset to break in! To the family of the dead criminals.....U shoulda lernt dem boys sumthin bout da 2nd amendment!

15-Year-Old Girl is a "School Whore"

Another commenter who, as with the previous post, likes calling women "whores":

your daughter is a school whore get over it!!!

Posted on Destrehan High School incident leads to sexual-battery arrest on February 11, 2011, 7:44PM

The comment was posted yesterday to this year old article:

Destrehan High School incident leads to sexual-battery arrest

Published: Wednesday, November 18, 2009, 8:30 PM
By Matt Scallan, The Times-Picayune 

An 18-year-old St. Rose man, who allegedly exposed himself and inappropriately touched a 15-year-old girl in a Destrehan High School classroom while a video was being shown, has been booked with sexual battery and molestation of a juvenile, according to the St. Charles Parish Sheriff's Office.

Ramon A. Vinnett, 467 Fourth St., St. Rose, was booked on Friday, Sheriff's Office spokesman Capt. Pat Yoes said.

He was released Monday on a $15,000 bond.

The comments got pretty heated and a parent of the girl involved took great offense at one of the first comments. Maybe NOLA.com should have given this girl the courtesy that they pay the daughters of New Orleans' elites and turned off the comments. I have pasted some of the exchange below:

ITIZMEAGAIN November 18, 2009 at 8:40PM

Why is an 18 year old even in high school with a 15 year old anyway? Did he just make 18 years old. He should not have classes with a 15 year old. Sometimes these little girls cry and it is not the truth this day an age when they get caught, then these boys are messed up for life. I hope everything turns out alright. My heart goes out to both parties because you just do not know. PLEASE BE FAIR!!!!!!

hardmoney November 19, 2009 at 10:16PM

I TAKE OFFENCE BY THE COMMENT THEY MUST BE IN SPECIAL ED IF THEY ARE 18 STILL IN SCHOOL WITH A 15 YR OLD... THE TRUTH IS I HAVE NOT ONE CHILD BUT 2 CHILDREN THAT WILL BE 19 WHEN THEY GRADUATE HIGH SCHOOL AND THERE IS NOTHING SPECIAL ED ABOUT THEM INFACT THEY ARE VERY BRIGHT AND SMART YOUNG PPL WITH HONOR ROLL AND PRINCIPAL LIST TO PROVE IT...
NOW I WILL SAY I DONT AGREE WITH WHAT HE DID HOWEVER WHEN KIDS ARE IN SCHOOL THERE ARE MORE THINGS THAT YOU AND I WILL NEVER KNOW THAT HAPPENS... AND WE ARE NOT SURE OF THE WHOLE STORY AS TO WHAT EXACTLY HAPPENED....

hardmoney November 19, 2009 at 10:17PM

THAT WAS FOR TRAVELING MAN

INTEARSANDFEAR November 20, 2009 at 4:29PM

itizmeagain
How dare you,You have no idea as to what has happened and how much this family has gone through in the last few days,And for you to make this horrible complement,makes me SICK.This is my daughter and if you think she did wrong,than i challange you to let your daughter hang with this man.She did nothing wrong but sit in class!!!!!
and her nor no other person should have to go through what she has gone through no matter what age.
You make ne SICK!!!!!

INTEARSANDFEAR November 20, 2009 at 4:19PM

Hay Stupid You have no clue as to what happened and no PERSON no matter what age should have to go through what my daughter has went through.

ITIZMEAGAIN November 18, 2009 at 10:52PM

niklachey: Thank you, I could not have explained it better.

adynomoose November 19, 2009 at 1:31AM

sleazy, an 18 year old HS student playing grab a$$ with a 15 year old HS student is not a child molester.

INTEARSANDFEAR November 20, 2009 at 4:11PM

You do not know the story so SHUT YOUR MOUTH!!!!!!!!!!

INTEARSANDFEAR November 20, 2009 at 5:18PM

This is my daughter you people are talking about.
You people donot think my family has enough to deal with,You people do not know but a tiny bit of the story and yet you are judging.HOW DARE YOU!!!!
Shame on you people that think nothing of a child and a family going through this problem,and we have to see the hatefull smart a** remarks you people are saying.NO ONE AT ANY AGE should have to go through what my daughter and the rest of the family are going through.
How can you people play Judge and Jury and you do not even know what has happened?
This is one reason I hate ST.Charles parish so much,because of the stupid people that live here(Not all but quite a few)
They would rather throw trash out on the highway,rape and kill people,Steal from each other,shoot each other and most of all protect criminals (its always the victums fault no matter what) What is wrong with you people??????? Why don't you clean up this place and make it a place people want to live!
Protect our children teach them right from wrong!!!
Get a LIFE people.

Here is the comment that StRoseLa was responding to:

INTEARSANDFEAR November 20, 2009 at 4:09PM

How dare you This is my daughter,
And i promise you one more word from your STUPID mouth and I will file charges.

StRoseLA February 11, 2011 at 7:44PM

your daughter is a school whore get over it!!!

Here is a comment from a user with a similar name to StRoseLa, proposing that the 15 year old girl was "asking for it":

strose504 March 19, 2010 at 7:27PM

Ok, so this guy does live across the street from me and I dont know him very well, but I think that yall have the picture painted wrong. Ramon is a very nice and well liked person around here. He has plenty of friends both male and female and I have never seen him act out like that. Have yall ever thought that maybe they were flirting with one another and he just exposed himself and they got caught? The little girl is only 15yrs old, so yeah, make him look like the one who is in the wrong because she don't want her parents to know that she is sexually active. Don't you think that she would be scared to tell her parents that she was sexually active, so she made it look like it was all his doing? You have to put yourself in both persons shoes. Girls these days are starting early and too scared to let their parents know what is going on. Don't think just for one minute that he just exposed himself in such a manner and she wasn't asking for it. I'm almost 100% sure that this little girl was flirting with him and they just so happened to get caught!!! This is why parents should have understandings with their children. Dont scare them! Talk to them! Now his entire future may be ruined while she's out there still doing the same thing!

Razor

NOLA.com appears to have removed the account of a user named Razor61, who charmingly referred to an African American woman who is a defendant in a theft case as a "crack whore," but no worries, he simply registered Razor60 (one can only presume) and is able to make this meaningful observation about a triple shooting in the Desire neighborhood:

razor60 February 13, 2011 at 7:00PM

weather is warming up and the next batch of cockroaches and leeches are hatching !!

NO Comment on WTUL

I will be on WTUL's News and Views show tomorrow (Monday, February 14) at around 8:30 AM discussing NO Comment.

You can stream  the show here or tune in at 91.5 FM in New Orleans.

Lynch Them!

A couple of comments to an article about two African American men arrested for second degree murder in Marrero:

StRoseLA February 11, 2011 at 7:39PM

they are a waste of tax dollars to even try in court. take them behind the levee and get rid of them!!! they dont deserve to live!!

WestSideHomicide February 12, 2011 at 4:52AM

Agreed. And if it was a judge or a politically connected official's family member they'd be dealt with a long time ago. Give them both the needle and save us our tax dollars. End this revolving door nonsense.

Crack Whore

Comment to an article about an African American nursing home worker accused of stealing from elderly residents of a nursing home in Slidell:

razor61 February 12, 2011 at 12:52PM

just 'nother crack whore.

If you had been at work you'd still be alive . . .

A generous and thoughtful comment to a news brief on NOLA.com about a murder this morning, at 11:30 a.m., in New Orleans East:

LilWeeziana February 11, 2011 at 12:58PM

Why are you even available to get shot at 11:30am? Perhaps if you sought gainful employment you would be working at this time of day instead of getting shot at. #justsayin

Here was the story:


One confirmed dead in eastern New Orleans double shooting

Published: Friday, February 11, 2011, 11:55 AM Updated: Friday, February 11, 2011, 12:12 PM
Someone was shot and killed and another person was shot and injured this morning in eastern New Orleans, police said.
The shooting happened about 11:30 a.m. in the 7400 block of Woodbine Street, police said.
No other details were immediately available.
Stay with NOLA.com for information as it becomes available.

Turns out that the shootings happened at 11:30 p.m., as was reported in a more complete story a couple of hours later, and that two men were shot, one fatally, while allegedly burglarizing the home of the person that shot them. There are no less than ten comments to that story celebrating the death of the one man and bemoaning the fact that the other lived. Here are a few examples:

LilWeeziana February 11, 2011 at 1:01PM

GOOD RIDANCE!

broadmoorlawyer February 11, 2011 at 1:03PM

way to go resident, good riddance!

nawlinsdude February 11, 2011 at 1:07PM

Nice job, homeowner.

Mr. Brown February 11, 2011 at 1:08PM

Let us all Sing and Dance!
This is most certainly Good News!!
Criminals are so non-Classy!

rayfromuptn February 11, 2011 at 1:09PM

This is really a shame.... that the other burglar wasn't killed too.

kamar February 11, 2011 at 1:22PM

The resident needs additional training. A more skilled shooter would not have let a witness survive to possibly sue the victim.

Offshoretechman February 11, 2011 at 1:40PM

Yep, It's a shame the homeowner did not kill them both sorry to say, this could possibly come back on him.
I was working in Lake Charles quite a few years ago and a man was woken in the middle of the night to find his work truck (electrician ) was being robbed, he shot both outside his home and went scott free no questions asked due to this was his lively hood and he was protecting it....GOOD DEAL !!!
Come into my home and you will not make it out to come back on me...................................

This one combines the celebration of death with a healthy dose of racist innuendo:

seafoodgumbo February 11, 2011 at 1:37PM

Nice shooting there homeowner, lettum come back for more of the same. About time the tables get turned,....next time Leroy asks for a bro to go with him to burglarize another homeowner, his crack pards might have second thoughts......hhhmmmm $5 crack for a 9mm bullet, do the math.

When Will the Black Community Learn . . .

There are tons of offensive comments to a story in the Times Picayune about a white Dominoes Pizza delivery guy getting bleach thrown in his eyes during a alleged robbery by an overweight black man, who allegedly made comments about the victim's race during the incident.

This one is fairly typical, in its content and tone, which mocks (and thoroughly misunderstands) the notion of "hate crimes":

thelostcause February 10, 2011 at 8:26PM

1. all this for a dominoes pizza? When will the black community learn to value and respect others. Hopefully, the delivery man recovers, but what if this man had to go through life blind for a 10 dollar pizza.
2. why is this not considered a hate crime? 2 black males conspired to attack a delivery driver then referenced his race as he fled. If the shoe were on the other foot, there would be marches in the streets.
3. why was this guy out on the streets to begin with?

That comment provoked this edifying and thoughtful dialogue (with some of the comments in the string omitted):

uptwngrl February 10, 2011 at 8:34PM

"When will the black community learn to value and respect others. "
@thelostcause the "black community" didn't make the big fat blimp and his side kick commit this henious crime and i am sure the "black community" is just as appalled as you are...and if you want to have a march go right ahead

dumasrl_2000 February 10, 2011 at 9:04PM

When the white community learns to respect others and stopping thinking they are superior!
Guess that'll be never!
And this is so far from a hate it aint even funny! For it to be a hate crime, the guy would have had to have known a white guy was going to deliver the pizza and he would had to have thrown the bleach for the simple fact the guy was white. This fat azz wanted a pizza....
Its a horrible crime, but not a hate crime.

nolakitch February 10, 2011 at 9:35PM

You're part of the problem.
The white community believes it's superior - that's why a white guy was SERVING A BLACK MAN PIZZA only to get bleach thrown in his eyes because he was white. Because the white community thinks it's superior.

uptwngrl February 10, 2011 at 9:41PM

"It was there, according to the police report, that he confessed that he planned to fling bleach in the delivery man's face as a way to steal the pizza."
now nola read this carefully where does it say that he threw the bleach in his eyes because he was white...maybe savages are illiterate too... 

youandme504 February 11, 2011 at 8:07AM

haahahahahahhahahaa...@thelost.....when the white community stop taking this country into useless wars....stop racially profiling young Black males because of the way they look...when the white community finally admit that they were/are the pervayors of one of the greatest evils in human history (slavery) and put up a Slave monument right next to the Holicaust monument along the river...
Remember whites...."these are the slums your forefathers formed"....

There is some good old, flat out racism:

engturndon February 11, 2011 at 9:14AM

This is typical of today's society.....white man works - black man takes

There is also the NOLA.com classic comments about "where are the reverends," mocking the African American religious communities activism on racial justice issues and denigrating African American civic leaders as "poverty pimps". ("Naah...the poverty pimps reverends Jesse Jackoff & Al Sharptongue, the dynamic duo of potstirring troublemakers.")

At least one user wants to get past the racial implications of the story and get back to NOLA.com's daily business of abusing people charged with crimes:

dubshakk February 10, 2011 at 9:31PM

This will cause a lot of racial comments. Lets try not to attack each other, and just focus on the task at hand, bashing this f'ing idiot low life scum, he probably would have shot somebody for some Papa Johns. However, I do think you need to classify this as a hate crime, what if it were the other way around?

While this guy understands that slavery was bad, he is basically sick of poor black people:

nolanumb February 11, 2011 at 9:44AM

This waste of cells has been living off of all of those of us who work his entire life i am sure. If welfare recipients are twice as heavy as me we must be giving them more than they need. I have had it with these types of leeches. Look- slavery was an ABSOLUTE travesty. Previous generations of black people fought wars, marched in the streets and risked their lives to be free and to work toward true equality. While I realize that there are many great black citizens in nola who contribute greatly to our society and culture there are a whole lot of heartless sick slaves running around free in this city. Get off your azz and go get a good job like your grandfather could not. We have all these people "just chillin" all day and night waiting for our taxes to pay rent and put food on the table. Many rob, kill and sell dope for whatever we do not give to them for free. There are white people who are government slaves too, but i am talking nola. This fat pos doesn't like white people? Don't forget that white people created this free society that you enjoy fat boy. You like white people's tax money don't you porgie? Slavery was awful no doubt. But boy would I hate to live in Africa, where anarchy and oppression are the norm. The black community has good reason to be in shambles. But excuses aside- it is time for real leaders to step up and lead. Black children need real role models. Instead they have lil wayne the genocidal maniac telling them to hustle and kill and obama the welfare enabler trying to keep them unemployed and broke. God help black America.

Throw in an ad hominen attack on the Honorable Laurie White, a fine judge who was previously a respected criminal defense attorney:

Frogmansuit February 11, 2011 at 6:29AM

Ladies and Gentlemen,
This is what happens when you elect a scumbag defense attorney to the office of Criminal Court Judge. Laurie White is nothing but a scumbag judge. In her warped brain (being generous), people like this fat tub of crap are the victims.
Garbage in.... Garbage out.

Maybe its time for NOLA.com to shut down the lively civic discourse on this particular story?

Some of these [insert racial or ethnic group here] . . .

You can be pretty sure that you are about to say something offensive when it you write "these" followed by an ethnic or racial group. Has anyone ever said, "these blacks," or "these Chinese" without then making an offensive generalization?

There is some support for this proposition in the second comment to a story about the closure of a motel in Jefferson Parish:

jaymo1963 February 09, 2011 at 2:01PM

Some of these Indian, Pakistani and Sri Lankan hotel operators operate illegally right in the face of the law and for many years have gone with out prosecution. It is about time. Thanks Sheriff Normand.

***

Looked at a few other posts from jaymo1963 and decided to post this one, though it is hard to tell if it is satire:

It time to take down the MAN!. The MAN must go NOW!. Mr. Charlie, Whitey, whatever you want to call him must go. The REVOLUTION will not be televised.

Posted on Hurricane Katrina changes becoming permanent: James Gill on February 09, 2011, 2:07PM

The Ridiculous, Ignorant African American Community

A comment on an article about the Renee Gil Pratt trial:

EqualVoice February 09, 2011 at 12:15PM

This is a perfect example that it PAST time to stop voting for people because they are black or those who were aligned, mentored, support by or have connections with the Jeffersons. The AA community fail t realize how ridiculous and ignorant they appear by continually voting for and relecting those like Cynthia Hedge Morrel and other incumbants who once touted the glories of the Jeffersons. They all are self-serving and really do not care about those they serve. There has been no measurable profit from them in office.
The Jefferson regime raped them year after year. Still to date, they continue to vote their allies into office to the detriment of those constituents who understand the evil of those associated with them. Their ignorance continues the cycle of poverty and lack of improvement for those in their community. They trade an improved standard of life for having one's own ethnic group in office. They are equally accountable for the crime in the city and the lack of improvement in their community. It is reprehensible that their was a program to mentor young AA men( who seem to be the problem in the city) and the money was stolen.
Look around at the state of your community after the Jefferson regime. What did you get? Nothing. The Jefferson's don't want to live in your community. I am sure, they all live uptown with white neighbors. Have you even seen them in your neighborhood?

Man Shot in Face

Some comments to a story about a man shot in his jaw in Central City:

CreoleSailor February 07, 2011 at 11:02PM

Going to be eating soft foods and liquid for awhile...

nolastears February 07, 2011 at 11:46PM

Eating? lol. drinking

ManyCantReadWriteandDoCalc

NOLA.com has a listing of it top commenters over the past week, trying to use user comments to drum up traffic.

Here is the current list:

Most Active Users

Users with the most NOLA.com comments in the last 7 days

96		BigGovtMule
84		muspench
59		Bovine Substance
57		dninc79
47		ManyCantRead...

The last username, ManyCantReadWriteandDoCalc, drew my attention so I clicked his username to go to his profile, which shows no activity at all. (Actually, I kept looking and found his comments here.) But due to the wonders of google (and NOLA.com's search function), I was able to find a few of the posts from a user that NOLA.com is promoting:

ManyCantReadWriteandDoCalc January 15, 2011 at 6:02PM

With respect to the servers at a decent restaurant I used to manage, I can tell you they will flat out refuse to work a table with black diners unless we allocate one per server. It is looked at like a penalty to them. Otherwise, they told us, they would never make anything. And with respect to racism, the problem is that 1/3 of the servers were black and felt the same way as the white servers. Both black and white servers said the black diners treated them rudely, ran them back and forth for stuff all the time, taking away from the time they could spend at other tables (and earn good tips), and if the food had any little issue the black diners either wanted it for free or wanted to get a substantial discount. Of course, the servers stated they also like to complain a lot as well, which again, takes up time they could spend on tables that will give them a fair or better tip. This is not coming from me, this is coming from our servers, both BLACK and white, so there must be some truth to this.
Then there are the customers. At a high end restaurant that I used to manage, we had patrons that would complain or cancel their reservations upon arrival if the place looked too ghetto. This is not from me, this is coming from them. They have an expectation that a high end restaurant should not have many black diners, otherwise it is going down. They want to eat in a comfortable dining environment at a high end restaurant. One frequent customer pulled me aside and told us that he was coming to a restaurant with his wife and that he was going to throw down at least $200-300 between the steak and lobster dinners and the drinks they usually order, they wanted a better atmosphere and that they would expect better than an I-HOP or an AppleBees. He said he did not want to worry about keeping his hand on his wallet or having to watch his wife’s purse. What could we do? We can’t tell the customer he is a racist - we still have to make money. We accommodated him by putting him in a more secluded area away . . .
Another time we had seated a large party of black diners at our establishment and they were very loud, rude, laughing out loud and hollering; it sounded like a project party in there. Several of our other frequent and very well spending diners made complaints and we offered to pay for their meals but they instead left because they said they could not hear themselves speak. Not only did we lose revenue from the departing diners, but the black diners complained about the prices and kept asking what was free and what was not free and they basically took over our entire restaurant like locusts. They just killed our Saturday night. Of course, the tips were mere pennies. And when we tried to speak with them about the minimal gratuity, they just scurried out of there, leaving all the servers with no tips whatsoever.
These are just experiences, and maybe black diners do not act this way in other states and other cities, but it just seems in our metro area this is the norm. . . . I don’t know, anyone else have a clue why this is?

 http://www.nola.com/business/index.ssf/2011/01/mississippi_restaurant_manager/2309/comments-9.html

ManyCantReadWriteandDoCalc January 29, 2011 at 8:55PM

The problem is that they do not look at a person's education, qualifications, and competence to determine who they interview. First thing HR at the federal level does is throw out all applications belonging to white males. You can guess what their next move is with respect to calling applicants for interviews.
I had an interview at the Department of Agriculture and it was an absolute joke. I nailed every question the interviewer asked and I knew he was going through the motions. I should have asked him why he was wasting my time. I have worked as a contractor and many many times had to do the jobs of federal workers who were getting paid really well but had no idea of what the job they were supposed to do.
I also had an interview with the IRS on Poydras. That was a joke as well. The people interviewing me were a joke.
Then I had a interview with HUD. The lady was wearing a scarf on her head and I almost asked her to make me pancakes. What a joke this country has become. We pay these morons hundreds of thousands of dollars and they are not even qualified to interview for the positions much less get the jobs.

 http://www.nola.com/business/index.ssf/2011/01/reader_comment_irresponsible_l/2309/comments-2.html

ManyCantReadWriteandDoCalc January 31, 2011 at 8:40PM

I refuse to recognize him as my president, or a president of this country. He is a Muslim. He is a fraud. He is a joke. I don't visit my relatives in Europe because they constantly ask me where did we get this guy. They state that the US used to be a great country and we have elected this fool to lead us into oblivion. I agree with them. I am so ashamed that many of us were fooled.
He is supported by those that want to leach off of those of us that are working each and every day while many of the welfare recipients are saying,"oh, we love Obama." I guess you do, and so do the illegals.
Just remember that if you overfill the life raft all of us drown, even you.

http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2011/01/hawaii_bill_would_give_anyone/5520/comments-newest.html

ManyCantReadWriteandDoCalc January 17, 2011 at 9:52PM

I'll bet when you were a kid, you were so ugly your mother had to tie a pork chop around your neck just to get the dog to play with you.
Whereas, you would likely ask, can we please let this anger go and talk about our history, talk about our problems?
That's what we doing, Jack. Every time we talk, we can't, cause somebody gotta, just GOTTA, throw the race card. If I had me a dollar every time that card was played, I'd be having some millions, Jack.
Why not ride down I-55 for some fun?

http://www.nola.com/business/index.ssf/2011/01/mississippi_restaurant_manager/2309/comments-newest.html

ManyCantReadWriteandDoCalc February 03, 2011 at 8:48PM

Why should I vote to renew this tax when I have to pay for my kids to go to private school because these schools all produce stupid kids!!!!!
I have to pay twice, once to the School Board and then again to the private school.
People are going to vote no on the renewal and instead of worrying about a union this crew may be handed pink slips. Again, a total lack of understanding of the climate in today's economy.

http://www.nola.com/education/index.ssf/2011/02/jefferson_school_board_nullifi.html

ManyCantReadWriteandDoCalc January 15, 2011 at 8:22PM

This is why we sold our house (before Dale Atkins screwed up the property records) and then relocated our business out of the parish as well. We never go through Orleans Parish due to the extreme violence and the fact that the judges let all of the murderers off with a slap on the wrist. We spend a lot of our time convincing friends to move out of Orleans Parish and relocate their businesses from there as well. We never buy gas, groceries, or anything in Orleans Parish so that they cannot jam us with a camera or parking ticket. If there is an event we want to go to in Orleans Parish we just do not go. We have done so because we feel the conditions in Orleans Parish are unacceptable. The other thing as people like us move our residences and our businesses, so too does our tax base, our sales taxes, and our property taxes. Until we see a true leader in the City, and judges that will do their job instead of being paid off by violent drug dealing criminal murderers, we refuse to have anything to do with Orleans Parish. A place where you have to have a gun in one hand and another on your wallet is just not worth living in.

http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2011/01/reader_comment_city_nickles_an/5520/comments-newest.html

ManyCantReadWriteandDoCalc January 23, 2011 at 11:59AM

If we are going to have specific schools like SUNO and Southern University Law Center for blacks, then we need to set also set up separate schools for Italians, Hispanics, Packistani's, Indians, and Vietmanese.
ITALUNO, HISPUNO, PACKUNO, INDUNO, and VIETUNO???!!!!
If we are going to be partially stupid, we need to be consistent about it and set up additional schools for all the other ethnicities out there.
Since we do not have the money for it, shut down both SUNO campuses and the Southern University Law Center down and let the students apply to UNO and LSU Law School.
Let their staff apply to jobs and be assessed for their skills and the best ones get to keep their jobs based on technical ability and competence, not based on diversity and political pressure.
Let's face the obvious, a degree from SUNO and or Southern University Law Center is not respected and is not accepted as a REAL degree by people in the professional world. Both systems had scandals where administrators routinely changed the grades in the system for both compensation as well as for purposes of insuring that people of a particular ethnic background passed the courses. Both of those schools had rampant fraud as well.
The other thing is that if you are not AA, you better not even think about going to Southern University Law Center because they will fail you out just based on the fact that those graduation slots are reserved for students of a particular ethnic background.

http://www.nola.com/education/index.ssf/2011/01/talk_of_merging_suno_and_uno_h/5782/comments-newest.html

***
I found a couple more that seemed worth posting on his NOLA.com profile:

Look, with all the problems New Orleans has, the coroner's office is the least of the problems.
Who cares if he gets the autopsies right? Most of those killed are drug dealer thugs anyway, so who is really hurt here?

Posted on Orleans Parish coroner's office autopsies of some who died in police custody are questioned on February 03, 2011, 9:42PM 

We cannot continue to support all of these illegals.
If your family was starving, would you take food from them to give to the family down the block? No you fool, you would feed your family first. Can we try that? Can we just try it?
To all of you that support immigration, can we just have a break for about 20 years and let us get our country back to order? Huh, is that asking so much?
If I mowed your law for free for the last 50 years and then asked you if I could take a break for 20 years, would you let me? Especially if I had been doing it for free for the past 50 years?
People, we cannot support all of Mexico and Central America. We don't have the money anymore. We have enough deadbeats that are actual citizens; we don't need to look for more outside our borders . . . .

Posted on David Vitter, Rand Paul introduce resolution to amend 14th Amendment on citizenship on January 30, 2011, 8:47PM

I am so embarrassed to have this guy as a president. How on earth did he even get voted in? How come he was even allowed on the ballot if there was so much confusion about whether he was legally allowed to be president? Our country is the joke of the world. He is totally clueless and will lead us to ruin. So much hard work to be undone by a Muslim spy.

Posted on Hawaii bill would give anyone President Barack Obama's birth info for fee on January 29, 2011, 9:37PM