Trump Presidency Opens Up New Role for Cities 92.9

Tom Davis
 (Photo courtesy All Access)

If you've found yourself wondering - as I have - what role Cities 92.9 would play during a Trump presidency, wonder no more. Now that the election is behind us, that role - at least in part - has begun to reveal itself, and increasingly appears to be a role of re-writing history. Some might even call it peddling fake news.

A classic example of this phenomenon took place on December 29th, when morning talk show host Tom Davis took a call from Larry, a regular caller to the daytime talk show at Cities called The Morning Buzz.

During the call, Larry pointed out that students and alumni from Southern Illinois University were putting pressure on school administrators to make SIU a place of sanctuary for immigrants, and that this action was motivated by a perception that Donald Trump had made disparaging statements about Mexicans during his presidential campaign. Larry went on to say that the belief that Trump had made these disparaging statements was simply a product of fake news.

Tom Davis agreed, saying:

"They said that they were upset about Donald Trump, the way he described Mexicans as rapists and murderers, when Trump said some of these people who are coming across the border - who are illegal - are rapists and murderers"

So, if we're to believe both Larry and Tom, Trump wasn't saying anything disparaging about Mexicans, he was simply stating the obvious, which is that some people who come here from Mexico illegally are rapists and murderers. But is that what Trump actually said? Did he only say that some Mexicans, who are here illegally, are rapists and murderers? Well, here's Trump in his own words:

"When Mexico sends their people, they're not sending their best. They're sending people that have lots of problems. They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists. And some, I assume, are good people."

Never mind that Trump's statement doesn't mention murderers, it also doesn't distinguish between legal and illegal, making that distinction a fiction that Tom Davis manufactured out of thin air.

More importantly, the statement doesn't say that some Mexicans are bad people, it says that some Mexicans are good people. And even more disturbing, is the inclusion of "I assume" in Trump's statement. When Trump says he assumes some Mexicans are good people, it means he isn't exactly sure.

Clearly, what Trump said, and what Tom Davis would like us to believe he said are  opposites. A bit ironic when the overarching topic Tom and Larry were talking about was fake news.

I expect we'll see a lot more whitewashing of the truth by the folks at Cities 92.9 over the next four years. Not surprising by any stretch of the imagination, it's what they do.

I Don't Get the Joke

The mind of the bigot is like the pupil of the eye; the more light you pour upon it, the more it will contract. - Oliver Wendell Holmes -

Aaron Halliday insists that he is not a bigot. He is the owner of Checker Cab in Bloomington, Illinois, and recently came under fire for putting up a sign containing the following quote in front of his business:

"Things I trust more than Obama a Palestinian on a motorcycle"

When asked about the sign, Halliday had this to say:

Aaron Halliday: "Now when I read this, the only thing I could think of was action movies where the hero is trying to get away and is chased on a motorcycle by a man (typically) who is wielding a knife or a gun. Picture Indiana Jones being chased through the desert. This is what I thought of when I read this. It was not meant to offend anyone. It was in my opinion, humor. It's a joke"

A protester from the group Not In Our Town (NIOT) explained the sign this way:

Protester: "Checker Cab's sign is a passive-aggressive use of a racial and ethnic stereotype to promote a political agenda. We do not care about political views. We do care about stopping the promotion of hate."

Naturally, a representative from our local Conservative News and Misinformation radio station (Cities 92.9) showed up to defend the sign:

Benjamin Yount defends bigoted quote on sign in front of local business

Yes, it's a joke, we all get that. However, when finding a joke humorous requires adherence to a negative stereotype about a specific group of people, like Palestinians for instance, then that joke is based on prejudice, and is by definition bigoted. Too bad only some of us get that.

Personally, I think the sign just to the left of Benjamin Yount's head does a pretty thorough job of describing both the Checkered Cab sign, and Cities 92.9.

Could Have Made the Same Point by Tattooing Bigot on His Forehead

The latest entry in the long line of racist Obama displays. This one gets credited to Danny Hafley, a resident of Kentucky.

When asked about it, Danny said "the way I look at it, it's freedom of speech". And he's absolutely right of course, and now I'd like to exercise a little freedom of speech:

Danny, you're a bigot, and an asshole. 

Man I love that First Amendment.


For those who aren't aware of the footsteps that Danny's following in, here's a taste of the few I could stomach posting: