Tennessee CEO Compares Michelle Obama to Chimpanzee

They say the south will rise again. I certainly hope not. Not if this is an example of what passes for humor in states below the Mason-Dixon line.

Tennessee Hospitality Association CEO Walt Baker sent an email that compares First Lady Michelle Obama to Tarzan’s sidekick Cheeta, the chimpanzee. At the bottom of the email is a photo of Obama, caught in an awkward moment with her lips pursed, and one of a chimpanzee wearing a similar expression.

Baker’s racist and sophomoric effort at humor wasn’t embraced by all. In response, the Nashville Convention & Visitors Bureau decided to drop its contract with Walt Baker’s marketing firm over the email. They issued the following statement:

“On behalf of the Nashville Convention & Visitors Bureau, I want to publically apologize for the offensive email sent yesterday by Tennessee Hospitality Association CEO Walt Baker. As a recipient of the email, I am embarrassed for both my organization and myself. The content is deeply hurtful to all in our city and beyond. The attitudes expressed in the email are both appalling and unacceptable, and are not shared or condoned in anyway by the NCVB or by me personally. Nashville’s hospitality industry has worked tirelessly to create a welcoming environment for our visitors and this behavior discredits the work done by so many. After serious consideration, the NCVB has made the decision to terminate its contract with Mr. Baker’s marketing agency, Mercatus Communications. I have communicated this action and my deep regrets about the email to the Mayor’s Office and other hospitality industry leaders.”

So….O.J. Simpson, Dennis Rodman and RuPaul Aren’t Black History?

Three teachers have been suspended from their jobs at Wadsworth Avenue Elementary School in Los Angeles after giving their kids photos of the controversial African American celebrities to hold during the school’s Black History Month parade, while other teachers used more traditional photos. According to ABC News:

District Superintendent Ramon Cortines placed the teachers — all white men who teach first, second and fourth grades — on administrative leave on Tuesday while an investigation is conducted, Pollard-Terry said. “The superintendent will not let anyone make a mockery out of Black History Month,” she said.

“These are not the people we want our young people to emulate or believe these people represent the best of the African-American community. It’s hard for the NAACP to believe this was a mistake,” said President Leon Jenkins.

What do you think??? Did the teachers go tooo far or is everyone just acting like big kids..

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: 9/11 Truther

The President of Iran is crazier than we thought:

by Doug Mataconis
TEHRAN (Reuters) – Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Saturday called the September 11 attacks on the United States a “big fabrication” that was used to justify the U.S. war on terrorism, the official IRNA news agency reported.

Ahmadinejad, who often rails against the West and Israel, made the comment in a meeting with Intelligence Ministry personnel.

It came amid escalating tension in the long-running dispute between Iran and the West over Tehran’s nuclear program, with the United States pushing for new U.N. sanctions against the major oil producer.

Ahmadinejad described the destruction of the twin towers in New York on September 11, 2001 as a “complicated intelligence scenario and act,” IRNA reported.

He added: “The September 11 incident was a big fabrication as a pretext for the campaign against terrorism and a prelude for staging an invasion against Afghanistan.” He did not elaborate.

This is the man we’re supposed to negotiate with, folks.

Polls close in Iraq election

Polling stations have closed in Iraq's parliamentary election, in a vote marred by violence as a series of explosions left at least 38 people dead and 89 others wounded in the capital, Baghdad.

Millions of people turned out to cast their ballots across the country on Sunday, for the second full parliamentary election since the 2003 US-led invasion.

About 19 million voters were eligible to choose from more than 6,000 candidates from 86 political groups looking to gain seats in the 325-member assembly.

But the vote came against a backdrop of deadly attacks.

The bloodiest toll was from an explosion that destroyed a residential building in the Shaab district of northern Baghdad, killing 25 people and wounding at least eight more.

Initial reports indicated that dynamite was used to blow up the building, the interior ministry official said.

Polling stations targeted