Ted Cruz Mocks Joe Biden....

...during his time of grief over his son's death.

That's what the headline says. And the headline is correct. Except it leaves out the part where Cruz made a public apology to the Bidens and said what he did was wrong.

“It was a mistake to use an old joke about Joe Biden during his time of grief, and I sincerely apologize,” Cruz said just hours later. “The loss of his son is heartbreaking and tragic, and our prayers are very much with the vice president and his family.”

The headline in other publications was "Ted Cruz Apologizes For Mocking Joe Biden During Time Of Grief." But that just doesn't have the same bite to it, does it?

What Cruz did was unfortunate but I don't believe it was intended to hurt the Bidens in any way. There is nothing sacred on the campaign trail and the small joke that Cruz made about Biden being funny because of the things he says was not meant to be cruel, particularly during this tragic time in the Bidens private lives.

Cruz had the decency to apologize for what he said. And I believe he meant it. He's a father. But the media outlets that want to demonize him for it will continue to post the headline.


In other news....

Hillary Clinton spoke about voting rights at Texas Southern University yesterday. The day before the event reporters were notified by the Clinton campaign of the rules for attending the event. Here's a quote from the Memo they received:

"You must stay within the barricades once you enter the arena. There will be media only restrooms located down the hall to the left of the media area. The arena has wireless internet and the login and password will be displayed on the tables. There will be NO (emphasis theirs) opportunity to interview Hillary Clinton; her speech will be her interview."

I would say the arrogance of the Clinton campaign, and Hillary herself, are surprising but they're really not. Hillary not only believes she will be the next President but believes that it's hers and hers alone. I'd be surprised if she doesn't tell any Republican challenger to drop out of the race now since they don't have a chance of beating her. That's how arrogant she really is.


And finally -

For the last 12 years in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, city buses have had various slogans painted on them. Among them were the following: “Ziggin Zaggin Ziggin,” “All Around Up and Down,” “Here and There,” “Movin and Shakin,” “Movin and Groovin” and “Rockin and Rollin,” I have no idea what the intent of the slogans is but no one has complained about them, until recently.

A woman named Tracey Jennings happened to look in her rear view mirror one day and saw something she apparently couldn't believe. The words "Ziggin Zaggin Ziggin," when viewed in the reverse image in her mirror, suddenly turned into a racial slur - at least in her mind. It's difficult to say how many other people throughout the years have looked in their mirror and seen "niggiZ niggaZ niggiZ" but if anyone believed it was a racial slur they never said anything about it.

“I just so happened to be stopped at a red light next to one and saw it. Whose brilliant campaign was this?” Jennings told the New Pittsburgh Courier.

Her Facebook post concerning what she saw said:

"REALLY PORT AUTHORITY! On my way into work I see this on the side of the bus… It says ‘ZIGGIN ZAGGIN ZIGGIN’, from the outside. Take a minute and soak that in. If you are sitting on the bus and looking out the window, what you will read is ‘N***IZ N***AZ N***IZ!!’ I never noticed this until this morning.. So how long have N***AZ been on the bus???"

Uh... twelve years, Tracey. Twelve years.

The Port Authority has vowed to remove the slogans, within two weeks, from the nine buses on which the slogan is painted and has apologized, saying they never meant to offend anyone. And up until recently it seems they never did.

Now that the reverse image of the words has been declared a racist statement it seems in the Port Authority's best interest to remove them from the buses. But what's next? Does everyone who advertises something need to look at it backwards to see if someone might possibly construe it as offensive? Will they have to look at all of the words in the advertisement to see if they can be rearranged into something that could offend someone? Where does it end?

The words on these buses have been there for 12 years and didn't seem to bother anyone. But in today's society, where everyone is offended by practically everything, it seems like we, as a nation, are going backward - and not just looking in a mirror. Many in this country today see racism in everything, from voter ID laws (you need an ID for nearly everything in this country), to police activities, to disapproval of the President's policies - and now things you see in reverse in your rear view mirror.

President Obama was supposed to be the 'great uniter." Racial tensions are higher today than they have been since the early 70s. The President himself blames disagreement with his policies on racial animosity. And liberals in general attempt to fight disagreement with their ever popular "racist" accusations.

Some progress.