UPDATED: I’ve tried to make clear there was no hurtful intent, but less clearly stated is that I am sorry for hurting anyone’s feelings. Regardless of my honest intent, it’s clear that feelings were hurt nonetheless, independently of anyone’s politics, and for that I am sorry. I have lost family members. I know how it hurts, and I know the loss of a child in the most inconsolable of all, and I sincerely wish I’d had more awareness when writing the post. I have four children, and cannot imagine losing any of them. I’m sure it’s the same for any parent, no matter the circumstances of the death or the path of decisions made and not made that led to it. But I had absolutely no intent or thought of diminishing anyone’s grief or loss.
This post was intended as satire of the tendency of leftists to claim tragedies of violence as evidence of this or that underlying systemic social injustice, and then to exploit them to push political/policy agendas. I did not have any particular person or incident in mind when I wrote it, and anyone suggesting otherwise is totally mistaken. Accusations of malicious or sinister intent that have been made by some (with their own agendas) are completely untrue, as anyone who actually knows me, my life and my views can attest.
Unfortunately, the discussion isn’t about the real point of the post but instead is centering on uninformed or politically motivated speculation about intentions I never had and thoughts I don’t harbor. Given that, there’s no point in leaving the post up.
You’re still a bigot.
Like I said above – this is from someone who doesn’t know me. My wife is a bilingual Mexican immigrant. I sang to her in Spanish at our wedding. My four daughters all have Mexican nationality. I have thoroughly embraced Mexican culture and my large extended family by marriage. I have always advocated for more liberal immigration laws and opposed restrictionism. I support normalizing those illegal immigrants who are here and devising a path for them that ultimately leads to citizenship. I have always argued that immigration from Mexico and Central America is good for this country. But somehow you think I am a bigot.
Disagree with me all day long, GSR. Just don’t be ignorant.
Sounds like the ol’ ‘But my best friend is Black’ routine.
You’re still a bigot.
Gabriel: I actually don’t think Matt is a bigot. A p——o, on the other hand…
He’s married to a Mexi. So is Lou Dobbs. I like calling “microaggressions” bigotry cuz that’s what they are.
Enough. You’re wrong, but you can’t grow up and admit it. If you continue coming here and ignorantly calling me a “bigot,” then you’ll be banned.
So you’d ban me–the first person to call you out on this blog post, but James Robert Reade who compared Mexicans to Bonobos feels more than at home here? Ha! Keep adding to the resume.
When I see a comment by James that goes over the line (and I admit I don’t always catch everything he posts), then I delete it.
Don’t use JRR as an excuse for your behavior. You’re insulting me with very derogatory name, and one that isn’t true in my case – which at this point, makes you dishonest. Keep it up, and you’re gone. So learn to control yourself.
Why even try, Cunningham? Nothing you say penetrates their ears.
Gustavo, with all the twisted stories you publish at OC Weekly, what are you complaining about? Be happy!
Don’t let the bastards get you down, Matt. Like I said before, these folks weren’t nearly as upset when William Fitzgerald went after Jordan Brandman with that disgusting anti-Jew, anti-gay vitriol.
If they didn’t think you were having an impact, they would be howling about this.
You are not only a bigot, but a coward. Tuck your tail in and crawl away, little man.
You can moderate this shit all you want but you know what a cowardly bigot you are. No one has any respect for you. You are their tool and will keep bending over for them and or kneeling for them . Keep whoring yourself out. Karma will eventually catch up to your tore up ass.
Donna, you are too kind!
nice language-what about the karma you will suffer? it’s not ours to judge…
Alright folks. It was a mistake. I think a little more reflection is in order and a little less vitriol.
For starters, this is an opportunity to recognize there are differences in Anaheim. Big ones. Dialogue, even bad dialogue, bridges rifts.
We can either use this as an opportunity to widen the gap or to close it.
The next time I see a memorial, which is a tradition that I have never practiced or understood, I’ll spend more than a casual second noticing it’s there. I’ll remember that someone’s heart was broken, that life is short, and that perhaps my priorities that day weren’t what they should have been.
Kindness is a two way street. I believe that Matt didn’t mean to seriously offend anyone. The next time I screw up, which I’m sure will be soon, I hope that the person I offend offers me the same courtesy.
This was the most intellegent reply thus far. Thank you for the acknowledgement, that we all could be more kind… that whole “walk a mile in some one else’s shoes” thing could do us all some good. If nothing else.; to at least take a second to be considerate. In all situations , if we try to remain respectful, maybe we wouldn’t need to retract statements or comments, or take down potentially humorous posts. Usually when we are angry about something (especially little things ) its that we are hurt by something much greater, and these other things are constant reminders of that pain. So whether the response is sympathetic or apathetic, we can try to be empathetic. We are all human (most of us any way) so we make mistakes. I think maybe some good came out of this post by way of the diverse responses.
Well said, Ryan.
I know we’ve battled on issues but thank you for this thoughtful response.
I’m Hispanic, and Mr. Cunningham’s post didn’t offend me. I can see how someone might take it the wrong way. But I think the blogs are overreacting, and I’m kind of tired of people like Donna Acevedo claiming they speak for me because I’m Hispanic.
A. Fernandez, I don’t speak for you, I never claimed to and don’t care what color you are. I speak for myself.
Thank you. The Voice of OC story I saw makes it seem like you and the other woman represent what Anaheim Hispanics think, because you don’t, no disrespect.
And I’m an Hispanic American man living in Orange County, CA with the mission of making folks like you aware of the fact that your law enforcement community deliberately harms Hispanic people in same County. You know – as if the self-inflicted damage wasn’t enough.
Well, you should be able to get your fifteen minutes of fame now. Fox News and talk radio will be reaching out to hear your story on how you were abused by the “mainstream media” and the “liberal agenda.”
The bigger lesson here is that conservatives don’t “do” humor.
Conservatives do rage and indignation.
Liberals do humor and self-deprecation.
That’s the way it works. Always and forever.
That’s why the right has Michael Savage, Ann Coutler, Bill O Rielly, Rush Limbaugh, Michelle Malkin, Mark Levin, Glenn Beck and the million lesser knock offs.
And the left has Stephen Colbert, Jon Stewart, Bill Maher, Seth Mcfarlane, etc.
Hi Matt, the comment I made previous to the one above is missing – leaving the comment completely out of context. Please remove the comment above since the required first one is not present.The missing comment is in regards to how some law enforcement agency in OC likes to use gang member types to commit crimes against Americans in this county.
I deleted per your request. Would you like me to delete this one too, or leave it up?
Wow Matt. I don’t recall making that request. If true, someone else falsely made the request which makes returning the comment that much more important to me.
My preference is to return the deleted comment and remove yesterday’s request. Welcome to my world of relentless obstruction courtesy someone in US law enforcement.
Matt, I think that I might have misunderstood your last comment. Just go ahead and delete all the comments. Not sure why my original comment is missing.
Some people have realized that the only way to make a buck with their Mexican-American studies degree is to become professional offense takers. Turning a proud, hard-working race of people in to victicrats may not be their goal, but it is the effect.
Matt, I just can’t see how you could publish your story and not realize that it would be hurtful and offensive to people. And really, being married to a Mexican woman doesn’t give you a Hey-Folks-I’m-Not-a-Bigot pass. All that tells me is that you thought that woman was hot, you took the time to get to know her, and you fell in love. If you look at my name and picture, you’ll see I have a Hispanic last name. But it’s not about who I married; it’s my words and deeds that matter. If you felt okay enough to publish what you did, then there’s something inside of you that believed there was absolutely nothing wrong with that picture or those words. That’s the problem. It’s not how you reacted after you were called out, but it’s the fact that you didn’t have a problem with publishing those things in the first place. What this tells me is that you just don’t get it. Yeah, you can give examples of how you wooed your wife with your Spanish, etc. etc., but I have the feeling, deep down in my gut, that deep down in your gut, you just don’t think people of color (except maybe your wife and kids) measure up. They’re just not quite up there with us white folks. If you could actually publish that article with no qualms about it, no second thoughts, then there is a deep-seated issue within you having to do with race. This is just my opinion, and no, I don’t personally know you, but I know all kinds of people like you, who think people of color just aren’t quite as good as white people. They don’t want to admit it, but it’s really hard to hide something that’s part of your core value system. Again, this is just my opinion. But I hope you give some thought to it.
Never cease to amaze JRR! So now kindness gets you killed… so does road rage, arrogance, and messing with mommas (or their babies)…you will have yourday. I guess you have already lost any thing that had any meaning to you, or your mother must have not have hugged you enough but the comment says “most of us are human” YOU sir, ARE NOT!!!
This is crazy. Matt didn’t mean to offend anyone. He apologized and that should be the end of it. That the unions and some self-appointed Latino leaders are still going after Matt tells me this is just politics from them.
Exactly. They claim he made a bad judgement call and thus is not fit for public service. As if none of them have ever made a mistake. By that definition, no one would be fit for service.
A liberals job #1 is to point out “systemic social injustice” and fight for change.
If you think the police shooting a bunch of Mexicans is not social injustice I do not know what is? Look at the number of blacks shot in New York by police also. This is a straight up fight against bigotry, a long fought battle.
Our system is flawed and there are many among us that seek to make this a better world, some actually care enough to work towards this worthy goal.
However your right to speak is what America is all about – and destroying people that say what they think is against what America is all about.
Targeting a blogger is un-American and belongs in Saudi Arabia not here.
Mike,
I agree with you when you say that having the right to speak is what America is all about, but then, for me, your argument falls apart when you continue by saying that targeting a blogger is un-American. Huh? I’m not following your logic here. How does a blogger have the right to voice an opinion and I belong in Saudi Arabia if I try to rebut what that blogger is saying? I think we just regressed about 237 years here. Although I admit that the framers of the Constitution were only referencing white male land owners when they wrote the document, I had thought we established quite a few years ago that the Constitution also covers women and people of color. So, really, in trying to defend Matt’s right to free speech, what you did with the words you chose was to make a statement that took away the First Amendment right of free speech of anyone who disagrees with Matt. Tell me how that makes sense? No matter how ugly, harsh, or stupid anyone’s words are, I will defend his or her right to say them while I disagree with the content of the statement. And of course, I would hope s/he would do the same for me. So, Mike, while I believe the end of your argument doesn’t make sense and actually refutes the beginning of your argument, I will defend your right to make your argument even if I think it’s dumb and nonsensical. As a high school English and U.S. History teacher, if you were my student I would tell you to go back and rewrite the last paragraph of your argument so that it makes sense and you’re not contradicting yourself. Zero credit until then.
Maybe you aren’t aware, Patty, but some political activists and union bosses who disagree with Matt’s views are now using this as an excuse to go after his livelihood, and are trying to get his clients to drop him. That’s what Mike means by “targeting.”
I’m sure you wouldn’t want someone to go after your history teaching job because you believe the Founders only meant the Constitution for white landowners.
Disagreement is a part of politics. But the way these people are going after Matt’s ability to support his family is malicious. They’re thugs.
Ironically, threatening people’s financial and emotional well being is a specialty of the Anaheim and Garden Grove police departments with much support from the Orange County Sheriffs department and California Highway patrol. Just the other week I was verbally threatened with hospitalization by a disgusting Asian American OC sheriffs deputy.
Your law enforcement community can’t be serious about the gang problem when they use gang members to commit crimes for them. And after 32 years of living in Orange County, CA the only time this Hispanic American has had a problem with gang member types is as a result of your law enforcement community sending them my way.
Keep pretending everything is OK. And if you think you are safe because you are a white person in OC the viggest joke will be on you. You obviously haven’t paid much attention to my story.
Amen to that.
That “vigil” in front of City Hall was a joke. A couple of dozen paid union hacks like Julio Perez and Carina Franck-Patone and liberal activists like Jeff LeTourneau.
Real representative of Anaheim Latinos…NOT! Of course, OCEA errand boy Adam Elmahrek was there to pretend that any ordinary people are paying attention.
This witch-hunt against Matt is sickening. Anyone who knows him knows the accusations from Nick Berardino, Julio Perez and the rest are completely twisted and turned-around. Matt is the OPPOSITE of anti-Latino. I’ve known Matt for many, many years. I remember him telling me why I should vote against Prop. 187 ( I wish I and other republicans had listened).
It’s awful to see a good and decent man hurt by lies from people who know better.