"Interesting Side Note On This Parade Float: The Papier Mache Used In It's Construction Is Made Entirely Out Of Broken Treaties."

Richard Ericksberg, of Springfield, Massachusetts, is a dick...there, I said it. He's not alone; there are tons of them out there, but what makes him special is that he took the time to let everyone know that he's a dick. It feels like a crime against Nature just to put his name in the same sentence as the hallowed moniker "Springfield".

Wait, SSB, I hear you interjecting, what's the deal with opening your post with vague libelous slandering? Is he a dick because his first name is Richard? What, in a word, gives?

Well, what Richard did pisses me off to a degree not too many things do. He sat himself down and wrote a letter to the sports page editor of USA Today, which appeared in it's Tuesday edition (look it up yourself, I don't feel like making a link...too grumpy today). As you may or may not know, and I'm sure many of you do, and only a few do not, the National Collegiate Athletics Association has banned the use of Native American school nicknames and mascots in post-season games. And to Richard, this represented a perfect opportunity to belittle the feelings and concerns of an historically oppressed and marginalized group of people. Richard claimed that he, being of Scandanavian descent, was profoundly offended by schools that were "hostile and abusive in their portayal of my heritage through the use of Vikings as mascots and/or nicknames". So sorry, Richard, about the Man keeping you down and all, but if you'd like to switch houses, jobs, educations, etc., head on down to the res...I'm sure you might find some takers.

Speaking as a white male American, I am totally sick of others of my ilk bitching about how their rights are being trampled by "PC crap". They complain that now that they have to be "politically correct", they can't say anything because someone will get offended. Now, I have been around since pre-PC days, and I haven't had to change the way I speak or the words I use at all. Know why? Because I have empathy...because I respect other people's feelings...because I'm not a dick...that's why.

I find it amazing...well, more sad than amazing, but there is some amazement in there, how up-in-arms some people will get when the issue of changing school nicknames to something maybe a little less offensive is raised. And they try to act like they're defending Native American interests, saying, "'Cheifs' or 'Fighting Sioux' reflect the proud and strong heritage of Native Americans. Why, it would be an insult to not call the team in Washington 'the Redskins'."

Here's the deal: if they were really interested in honoring the Native Americans, then once they found out that the Native Americans were actually insulted rather than honored, wouldn't they stop using the nicknames? Isn't that obvious? But to insist on continuing to use the offensive name; isn't that kind of sociopathic? Or is it sociopathetic? Well, it's pathetic, at any rate.

As for you, Richard,,,or may I call you Dick? As for you, Dick, maybe if you and your fellow Scandanavianites get together and have some large protests and get some petitions signed and contact your senators and such, maybe then we'll take a look at the whole Viking thing. But I'm pretty sure you won't, because I have a feeling you weren't concerned in the least about your Scandanavian heritage being belittled when you wrote your little letter. I have a feeling you were just being a Dick.


BTW-the more you watch The Simpsons, the more you get out of the post titles...you get out of it what you put in, I'm just sayin'....