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Igel

(37,033 posts)

15. If you ignore the definition.

Sat Jul 5, 2025, 11:53 AM

Jul 5

When Musk calls himself "African-American" he's trolling and knows it.

I'm pretty sure Musk also knows the definition of the phrase as used on college applications, because they're from the census, which is from the OMB's definition, and what's required to be used on various federal and state forms.

Black or African-American:

Individuals with origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa, including, for example, African American, Jamaican, Haitian, Nigerian, Ethiopian, and Somali.

That ain't Musk and he knows it. (It also ain't Mamdani. Given his privileged educational background before college, if he didn't know it I'd be surprised.)

But if words mean only what you want them to mean, well, then, 50k years ago at least one of my ancestors was in Africa, so I'm as African-American as they come. Then again so is Putin, Xi, Farange, and Trump. (Oh, wait, was "Black" a racial group back then? I'd note that during my lifetime the definition of "Black" has changed rather a lot--stuff from the '50s and early '60s, physical anthropology, clearly disaggregated the San and closely allied ethnicities from "Black"--and with that later aggregation came a lot of the genetic diversity claimed for that "race" because the San are so distinct from surrounding groups.)

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Mosby

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Highlight:

New York Times Responds After Zohran Mamdani Story Stirs Liberal Backlash [View all] BumRushDaShow Jul 5 OP

From the article: sop Jul 5 #1

So the NYTimes is no longer a trusted news source mdbl Jul 5 #34

You lick the feet of those you serve. nowforever Jul 5 #2

Every time I read something DENVERPOPS Jul 5 #22

You echo my thoughts. Every time I see the crap NYT's publish, I jrthin Jul 5 #36

But, none of it is true, right? Can he sue the NYT for libel? Oopsie Daisy Jul 5 #3

If donald trump can, I don't see why not. MLWR Jul 5 #5

Lawsuits cost money & take time, & allow your enemy to keep smearing you in the meantime Hekate Jul 5 #23

You're adorable! dpibel Jul 5 #52

He is born in Africa and he's an American citizen Renew Deal Jul 5 #4

How does this inform voting? IbogaProject Jul 5 #6

However there is an apparent attempt to "spin it" BumRushDaShow Jul 5 #10

in terms of race/ethnicity he is 100 percent Indian(south Asian) JI7 Jul 5 #13

Correct BumRushDaShow Jul 5 #18

As Reagan and others before him knew, 'race' and 'immigration' have always been constructs that racists can 'rewrite' ancianita Jul 5 #17

TY for the additional info Hekate Jul 5 #24

If you ignore the definition. Igel Jul 5 #15

He is not an African American, please stop this refrain. rogue emissary Jul 5 #16

You need to understand the "history" of "race" and who is designated what in this country BumRushDaShow Jul 5 #20

I by no means know the complete history of not only American but world history of race. rogue emissary Jul 5 #27

Oh I remember the Rachel Dolezal issue BumRushDaShow Jul 5 #39

Thank you for so much information. Do you think a high School senior knew this information? rogue emissary Jul 5 #30

There is so much junk BumRushDaShow Jul 5 #40

This message was self-deleted by its author Mosby Jul 5 #51

Much like Musk Farmer-Rick Jul 5 #28

The NYT's "scandal": Mamdani checked the "Black or African American" box on his Columbia application. sop Jul 5 #7

The big question is, how does the Times justify using hacked materials... 70sEraVet Jul 5 #8

The Pentagon Papers were "hacked" SCantiGOP Jul 5 #12

It certainly is when they use hacked materials that damage Democrats dsc Jul 5 #38

Right? What's up with that? ck4829 Jul 5 #49

Tell that to The Times who just recently refused to use hacked info against trump and Vance Hassin Bin Sober Jul 5 #43

Well... ck4829 Jul 5 #50

It's the selective reporting, not the source, that matters. snot Jul 6 #54

No, Indians( south asians) are like 10 peecent at Columbia while making up 1 percent of JI7 Jul 5 #14

Agree about the hacked sources. See my comment elsewhere. ificandream Jul 5 #26

Why would we expect anything better from the present-day NY Times? Paladin Jul 5 #9

"Our reporting helps readers better understand how candidates think and what they believe." Bourgeois Liberal Jul 5 #11

What utter bullshit UpInArms Jul 5 #19

The Times article read like a classic, political hit piece dlk Jul 5 #21

Clearly, the rich people think they can push everybody around. yardwork Jul 5 #35

The can and they do dlk Jul 5 #44

The problem is that the information came from hackers, which should have been dismissed or backed up with other sources ificandream Jul 5 #25

Uganda is definitely African. viva la Jul 5 #29

John McCain was born in Panama madville Jul 5 #47

Foreign military and dignitary children don't usually get citizenship if they are born where their parents are posted. viva la Jul 6 #53

I don't see a problem with any of this somsai Jul 5 #31

I'm so disappointed by the NYT tonekat Jul 5 #32

It would help if people just admitted he was wrong for doing this JI7 Jul 5 #42

The NYT is still trying to make up for missing the George Santos story Raven123 Jul 5 #33

He came from Africa to America debsy Jul 5 #37

The smearing has begun. Clouds Passing Jul 5 #41

Educated readers can see through the smoke that's being blown dlk Jul 5 #45

Some of the largest Hindu and Sikh temples I've ever seen are in Nairobi. cab67 Jul 5 #46

Doublestandardgate - Did they though? Did they really respond? I mean, -really- respond? ck4829 Jul 5 #48