Current Event #1: Perry's Racist Ranch

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44747781/ns/politics-decision_2012/

Texas Governor and Presidential hopeful Rick Perry was recently slammed by fellow hopeful Herman Cain over the "insensitive" name of Perry's onetime hunting camp: "Niggerhead."

Though Perry insists that the name, which appeared on a rock at the front of the property, was painted over well before his entrance into politics, sources for the Washington Post claim that the name was in fact visible through the 1980's and 90's, as Perry's political career was in full swing.

Ray Sullivan, Perry's communications director, also disclosed that Perry had last visited the camp in 2006, and had stopped leasing it in 2007.

"Niggerhead" is a very offensive and insensitive name for any location. However, the name of a one time hunting camp says nothing about Perry's own ideas and politics. Perry himself had nothing to do with naming the camp, which was established well before Perry's father leased the camp in the early 1980's. Furthermore, Perry's claims that he painted over the name before the beginning of his political career are well attested by sources close to the governor, and the anonymous claims otherwise in the Post contradict each other, some stating that the offensive name was visible in 2008 while others say that the name was erased in the 1990's.

All petty details aside, the entire brouhaha over the name is a sad example of modern attack politics. You know you've got a problem when the name of a hunting camp gains more attention than the actual positions of campaigners for a national election. Instead of slinging mud (or feces) around like a bunch of monkeys, let's actually have some productive, educated discussion of the complicated problems facing the nation and the candidates' plans for addressing them.