> Date: Wed, 19 Feb 2003 05:50:25 +0200
> From: "Kevin Robert Dean" <qualiall at union.org.za>
> Subject: Re: "Average Joe"
>
> On Tue, 18 Feb 2003 21:39:10 -0600
> Carrol Cox <cbcox at ilstu.edu> wrote:
> > Is anyone else offended by this elimination of half the
> > population in
> > trying to characterize the working class?
> >
> > Carrol
> >
>
> Of course if you want to get really technical, it
> eliminates much more than 50% of the working class? What
> about "Average Tong" or "Average Muhammud"? The list could
> go on and on....
Who's eliminating what? In Fisk's article and later in Taibbi's, the anti-anti-war protagonist (in the one case actual, in the other imaginary) is a male, and I'm pretty sure Anglo and Christian. You know - "Joe". That's the population among the working class that's not being reached, correct? But hey, if you _like_ being offended, go ahead.
For my part, I'll be sure to weigh down each of my once-every-two-months posts to lbo-talk with scare quotes. I would think that in mentioning any "average" population of any sort, that would be understood.
-d