Lonewacko, It is more than just that. It is the smug condescension some upper class white liberals express towards working class Americans who are most negatively impacted by Open Borders policies and corruption. Guys like Nico Pitney also like to think they are scoring points with minorities for demonstrating their superior "anti-racist" posturing. But I doubt those that Nico Pitney thinks he is impressing are actually falling for it. I think working class folks regardless of race or education find this brand of snark offensive and see right through it. First of all having actually lived in some of the most ethnically and income diverse neighborhoods in the country, Chicago's Uptown, Rogers Park, West Ravenswood, I think most average American adults really are understanding and compassionate towards the struggles of those who are trying to learn English. However, they are also more keenly are of the necessity of English as a common language towards building a safe and unified community. What makes folks angry is how liberals and ethnic-identity pandering politicians support bi-lingual education and the creation of Spanish only barrios. I also wonder if Pitney was stopped on the street by a English learner and asked for directions, just how patient he would be. My bet is Nico Pitney is like those upper class urban liberals who can afford to take a taxi everywhere. They look down on the average folks who have to take public transportation and have genuine problems with derelict drug addicts, the "homeless" panhandlers, hookers and dope dealers and want them off the streets. They dismiss these concerns as somehow racist. These are the type of liberals who complained when a Daley or Guiliani gets elected mayor, soundly defeating their perfered minority candidate on a take back the streets agenda, then keeps getting reelected with increasing levesl of minority support.

Here is Nico Pitney's bio: Nico Pitney Nico Pitney is Deputy Research Director of ThinkProgress.org and the Progress Report at the Center for American Progress. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of California Santa Barbara, and studied economics and international relations with the Fund for American Studies at Georgetown University. Prior to joining the Center, Nico developed web content for the youth arm of Gov. Howard Dean's presidential campaign. Gee UC Santa Barbara and Georgetown. You think this guy spent much time riding the bus or EL train with the homies and the rest the huddled masses.

I was able to post the following over at HuffPO _ If Democrats want to know why they are no longer the dominant party of FDR and Truman, this post by Nico Pitney explains why. It oozes with the smug condescension many upper class liberals express towards working class unabashedly patriotic Americans. Especially those Americans who are most negatively impacted by flawed Open Borders policies and corruption. You know the ones FDR and Truman counted as Democrats. What is worse is fools like Nico Pitney like to think they are scoring points with minorities for demonstrating their superior "anti-racist" posturing. But I doubt those whom Nico Pitney thinks he is impressing are actually falling for it. Most working class folks regardless of race or education find this brand of snark offensive and see right through it. Having actually lived in some of the most ethnically and income diverse neighborhoods in the country along Chicago's Lawrence and Devon avenues, I have found the vast majority of average American adults really are understanding and compassionate towards the struggles of those who are trying to learn English. However, they are also more keenly aware of the necessity of English as a common language in building a safe and unified community. What makes these Americans angry is that many liberals and ethnic-identity pandering politicians support "bi-lingual" education and the creation of Spanish only barrios. Last, I also wonder whenever Nico Pitney is stopped on the street by an English learner and asked for assistance, just how patient he really is._

"It is more than just that. It is the smug condescension some upper class white liberals express towards working class Americans who are most negatively impacted by Open Borders policies and corruption." Yes, llamajockey, it's that; but it is also the fact that these same smug - good word - upper class liberals are able to insulate themselves, their neighborhoods, their childrens' schools, and their life styles in general from the truly awful aspects of massive third world immigration, primarily illegal. That they then attempt to tar those working class people who refuse to meekly accept the chaos and destruction of their neighborhoods, their childrens' schools and their life styles in general by calling them xenophobes, racists, bigots, etc is arrogance and, yes, bigotry, of the most extreme kind.

D Flinchum, I wanted to include the same elaboration as you suggested. But the HuffPO limits you to 250 words.

That's too bad, llamajockey, because the more we can drive this FACT home, the more people will understand what the stakes are in the immigration question. "Multiculturalism" and cheap labor would not be so attractive to these elites if they had to pay the social costs that they force on the rest of us. Somebody at Peter Hart's polling firm was quoted in the WaPo as saying that this issue had stirred up people in ways that he hadn't seen since the bussing controversy in the 70's. Again, that was an issue in which people who wanted the social experiment made damn sure that it wasn't their children who were being bussed.

Buy Guns.