![]() ![]() Tanner Flake's problems are not confined to his choice of words. It sounds like a stand against prejudice, but it’s actually more like a calculated sidestep. The truth is, it’s still okay to be a bigot and have a say in our national policy debates. It’s part of a broader lack of civility toward minority groups that still, in the 21st century, gets too much currency in America’s political culture. It’s at the heart of the conservative movement’s identity crisis. It’s at the heart of the struggle over gay rights. Especially online.īut Tanner Flake’s behavior isn’t a diversion: It’s at the heart of that immigration fight. The media dutifully printed it, chalked the affair up as a diversion from “real news,” and then ran on to the next story. Capitol - issued a terse, three-sentence apology to the media. ![]() As soon as Tanner’s ugliness came to light, his father - a conservative leader on the immigration reforms currently winding through the halls of the U.S. The sheer number and tenor of Tanner's offensive posts - more of which were still being flagged by readers after Buzzfeed broke the story this week - are shocking. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), has done for the past year, possibly longer. This is what Tanner Flake, the oldest son of Sen. And then bragging that your father is a member of Congress. Here’s what it shouldn’t cover: Creating a thuggish online persona across multiple platforms - YouTube, Facebook, Twitter - who denigrates Jews, expresses a desire to beat up "faggots," calls Mexicans the "scum of the earth," and adopts the screen name "n1ggerkiller" in an online video game. It conveniently insures them against destruction of property with slingshot-borne BB’s, possession of racy pics on hard drives, and skipping of school to see R-rated shoot-em-ups. Since before our grandparents were teens, it’s been a catch-all explanation for the stupid junk adolescent males get caught doing. ![]()
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