Thursday, July 29, 2010

Lois Scott would have told you what to do with your Tea Party.

Politicians do not need to be pop culture savvy. It helps, of course, if they can occasionally quip to let people know that kick back and watch some TV and a movie now and then, but it's not a requirement.

When pop culture merges with important moments in history, however, and that history pertains to your home state, then the expectations rise significantly. So when Rand Paul, who is the Republican Senate candidate for Kentucky, is asked what Harlan County is famous for, this is far from the best possible response:
"I don't know," he says in an elusive accent that's not quite southern and not quite not-southern. The town of Hazard is nearby, he notes: "It's famous for, like, The Dukes of Hazzard."
The Dukes of Hazzard?!?!

Rand (I can call you Rand, right?), I'm not from Kentucky and even I know what Harlan County is famous for. I would expect that any self-respecting politician from that area who aspires to represent that state in the Senate would know about the history of Harlan County, and it has zip to do with Bo or Luke Duke.

Of course, Rand has previously indicated he doesn't give two shits about Unions, so maybe it's a case of willful ignorance.

1 comment:

Granma said...

Oh My God, I'm in love! An actual thinking human being who knows what the Harlan County Wars were about!!!

I knew I was gonna like this Blog!!