Two topics -- Race Matters -- Maryland elections Update, followed by a note on the new "Borat" movie and anti-antisemitism:
First up -- It seems that Ben Cardin is headed for victory in the Maryland Democratic primary for Senate, defeating his African-American opponent Kweisi Mfume. This will set up an interesting dynamic, with the long-term Congressman, who is Jewish, taking on the African-American Republican Lt. Gov. Michael Steele, in the general election. In the Attorney-General race, Doug Gansler has a surprisingly commanding lead over his African-American opponent, Stuart Simms. Gansler's early lead is especially surprising because of all the voting problems in Gansler's home base of Montgomery County. Of course, there were similar problems in Simms' base of Baltimore City. The big question is will these results spell future trouble for the Democratic party, in Maryland...and beyond?
Many pundits and politicians have wondered what would be the effect on the African-American core of the Maryland Democratic Party if both Mfume and Simms lost. Mfume ran strong in P.G. County, and, I assume, also in Baltimore City, but Cardin seems to have been strong elsewhere, including Montgomery County. I mention this county, because it is home of the third black-white race in this trifecta of races for Maryland Democrats. In the race for County Executive, it appears that Ike Leggett, the African-American former Council leader, will handily defeat Steve Silverman, a relatively high-profile Jewish councilman in heavily Jewish Montgomery County. So, the County voters proved they could vote for the black candidate. Perhaps they just needed to know the candidate better, as they did with Leggett. Or maybe, as is so much of politics, it was just strictly local issues -- here, a clash of personalities. Leggett is well-liked, and Silverman had a reputation for alienating others.
One can only hope that this result will help soften the reaction statewide to the defeats of Mfume and Simms, averting a racial schism in the Democratic coalition. Such a schism would be the worst result of all. Hopefully, the African-American community can unite behind Cardin's Senate candidacy. It would be a devastating blow to the Party's effort to retake control of the Senate, if significant numbers of African-Americans crossed the aisle to support Michael Steele's candidacy and helped the Republicans pick up a seat there.
One DKer has already pointed out that this year will be different than 2002 in Maryland, because the candidate for Governor, Martin O'Malley, has chosen a much-admired African-American running-mate, Delegate Anthony Brown. In '02, it was the Republican party that had a black candidate in the Lieut. Governor slot, and the Democratic candidate for Governor, Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, was hurt by her failure to reach out to blacks with a reciprocal gesture. With Brown's name joining O'Malley at the top of the ticket, perhaps Cardin won't face the same kind of backlash, as he takes on Steele.
Now -- on to a funny new movie and the question of anti-semitism:
Borat is Coming to America -- On my own blog, I posted a couple of nights ago about HBO's The Wire -- the best drama now running on TV. I thought I'd stick with the entertainment theme. Sacha Baron Cohen, the brilliant British comedian behind the sometimes piss-your-pants, it's hard-to-breathe funny "Da Ali G Show" (also an HBO production), is taking another one of his characters to the big screen. "Borat" is due out in November, but it' s been leaving 'em laughing in the aisles at various film festivals. I'm posting today because there's a terrific piece in the New York Times on the movie -- and, since it ran last week, you only have a couple of days to get free access to the article.
The movie's central character is a marginal TV personality in Kazakhstan, who is exploring the United States -- at least, that's the premise in the Borat sketches on the Da Ali G Show. As a result, the Kazakh government had been very critical of the movie, as the central character is a tasteless, backwards, bigoted boor, who asks a realtor if a home can be modified to have a steel-enclosed room where he can chain up his retarded brother. The Kazakhs fear the movie portrays their citizens as backwards and prejudiced. This concern misses the point. Borat could be from anywhere -- locating him in Kazakhstan allows Cohen to use a vaguely Eastern European accent and create the patina of a character that is believably out-of-step with modernity. The humor is less at his (and Kazaks') expense, as it is with the incredulous real-life Americans he runs across in his travels.
As the article in the Times notes, Cohen has turned his double-barreled humor on anti-Semitism. There are numerous scenes where Borat expresses the most outrageous anti-Semitism, including one scene where Borat explains he is driving to California, instead of flying, "in case the Jews repeat their attack of 9/11." The movie, which is expected to be very successful, comes at an important time. Anti-Semitism is becoming far more acceptable, and certainly far more pervasive in recent years. It is an inexplicable irony of the post-9/11 world. in which anti-Muslim fears are so widespread, that anti-Jewish feeling is also on the rise. Of course, Jews have always been a scapegoat for the troubles of the time. Cohen's ability to lampoon prejudice and ignorance is unparalleled. Assuming that almost everyone gets the joke, this movie could have some positive impact.
The Times article is at www.nytimes.com/2006/09/07/movies/07bora.htm.