By now you've read the story about Chief U.S. District Judge Richard Cebull in Montana, who sent a racist joke (about Obama, natch) to friends through the court email system. Most news sources understandably are reluctant to publish the text of the joke, but Talking Points Memo does us a real service by doing so.
"The federal judge’s email called the joke 'a bit touching' and said he wanted all of his friends to feel what he felt when he read the email. 'Hope it touches your heart like it did mine,' he wrote."
According to the Great Falls (Mont.) Tribune, once he was outed:
The judge acknowledged that the content of the email was racist, but said he does not consider himself racist. He said the email was intended to be a private communication.What's with this apologizing "to anybody who is offended by it" that we're seeing all the time now? How about just apologizing, assuming every decent person on earth will be offended?
"It was not intended by me in any way to become public," Cebull said. "I apologize to anybody who is offended by it, and I can obviously understand why people would be offended."
And while we're at it, what's with "intended to be a private communication"? So what? Racist is only despicable if it's in public?
But the judge doesn't consider himself racist. If I sent a similar joke about a Jew, would I be allowed to say I don't consider myself an anti-Semite? Or would people say, "Oh yes, you are!" Hell, I would say "Oh yes, you are!"
TPM says the judge has "initiated a judicial misconduct review by filing a complaint against himself with the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals." The result of this will be something short of removal, as only Congress can remove a federal judge. Smart move on his part.
This clown is a Chief U.S. District Judge. He looks old enough to retire. He should.
I apologize "to anybody who is offended" by the ranting tone of this. It's not as well constructed as I would have liked, but life is too short to spend it on people like this.
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