I was going to go with “Guten morgen Herr President” for the 2nd generation orange German, since he obviously speaks fluent German, but Zinke would probably be fired by Trump if he did so.
A lot of commenters here still think Zinke was OK with speaking Japanese to a 4th generation US Congressperson, yet we do not greet 2nd generation Trump similarly. Gosh, I wonder why? Could it be race?
It is indeed troubling how little the Republican Party has changed in the last 80 years.
After the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, the Republican Attorney General of CA rounded up all Californians of Japanese decent and sent them to internment camps. You would think that would have finished his career but instead it got him promoted to Governor and then was tapped to be the VP candidate in 1948. When that failed, the next Republican president then gave him not just a seat on the Supreme Court but made him the Chief Justice. That Earl Warren on the Supreme Court turned out to be, according to the GOP president who appointed him, “my biggest mistake”, is beside the point of what Warren did as a Republican politician to get appointed to the Supreme Court.
The “Deltas” were funny in Animal House, not so much in the White House.
Don’t forget Charlie Chan. His character was never played by an Asian.
Zinke is an asshole. He was answering other questions, and didn’t attempt to speak Japanese until she specifically asked that question. Whether he was trying to be funny or not, he committed a microaggression- you know, that thing that some people say doesn’t exist.
It’s like when I’m standing in line at the check out. Sometimes I’m paying attention to how cashiers treat other people. Do they greet the customer, how do they greet the customer, do they put change in their hands (yes, that is a thing) and their general demeanor. When you hear everyone else in line greeted as sir or ma’am, and you get “hey” or “what’s up”, it’s jarring. Especially when you get nothing and your change is put on the counter. That was my reaction to Zinke’s racist little frat boy comment.
Coupled with his comments from the other day when asked about his extravagant travel and door spending, this guy hates having to be heard accountable for his habits.
Well, at least he didn’t say, “Me so horney! Me love you long time!”
Wait until he answers Maxine Waters with; “Well, hello dere, Sapphire!”
For what it’s worth, still see droopy pants a bit in and around Oakland, CA.
You obviously have not been treated as a foreigner in your own homeland. What a lucky and fortunate life you lead.
Rep. John Lewis, “Sec. Zinke…”
Zinke, (crossing forearms over chest), “Wakamba!”.
It’s also why we win elections: minority voters choose to vote Democratic an astonishingly high percent of the time.
In part, this is a reaction to our calling things like we see them.
That degree of obtuseness is racist.
Why did Zinke assume she spoke Japanese, and then use a term that actually wasnt appropriate (grammatically/situational) in context.?? Thats the definition of a prejudicial racist.
Does he speak japanese? Why didnt he greet each of the members in the language of their first generational ancestors??
Fyi, putting dirty change in a person’s hand is considered very rude in some cultures.
I disagree. I think the point made by the JACS rep in the article is spot on: his comment underscores the sentiment that led to the internment camps in the first place, “that Japanese-Americans were and are perpetually foreign”
Rep. Hanabusa is 4th generation Japanese. I’m 4th generation German, but have never had someone randomly greet me in German when just because I’m discussing a German topic. This happens to Japanese-Americans precisely because of race. My mother, who was a teen during WWII and had an obviously German surname, said that she was never picked on for being German, in the middle of the war, whereas a Chinese-American classmate was constantly picked on for being Japanese.
It’s race that perpetuates this perception that Asian-Americans aren’t quite as American, no matter how many generations they’ve been here, where the same assumption is not applied to people of European descent. That’s what makes Zinke’s remark so stunningly inappropriate.
I’m occasionally in a mini mall that gets flooded with kids from the local high school. I see black males with droopy drawers among them. Maybe they didn’t get the msg.
Every time one of these Gonifs around President Frankenputz opens their mouths, they weaken the Nation.
I find the remarks made to be inappropriate and offensive.
First, I read, write and speak Japanese. I have lived and worked in Japan.
One of the first things we learn is that properly spoken Japanese is always respectful.
The “Greeting” used by Zenke-putz lacked appropriate respect for someone who would be considered equal to him in station, and perhaps even superior to him given their venue. His remark was not accompanied by the appropriate tone, nor honorifics for respect and actions which represent proper manners. You should watch what goes on in the Diet as Government ministers speak to their colleagues.
This malformed attempt at humor rather than respect shows us once again the essential nature of the quality of the thieves, thugs, and political hacks in the Cabinet. It is, in fact, snide and back-handed race-baiting of the most dishonorable and scurrilous sort.
Zenke has insulted the Senator, and as much as I tend to be disdainful of much of the phony “pomp and circumstance” of the Senate, I am not at all surprised that no one rebuked him sternly and at once for his reprehensible conduct. Zenke is clearly too ignorant to care, and his ignorance shows.
Fyi. Her language is american english. This is why zincke’s comment, and yours, is racist. Whether or not you agree doesnt change the fact that it is.
When did American culture change to that, because the person in front of me got it their hands- FYI.
No, it’s context.