June 29, 2009 04:31 AM UTC

Harmons' insult

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• by: Duke Cox

 I sent an abbreviated version of this as an LTE to the DS in GJ.

I have, for years, been critical of Gary Harmons’ endless  “editorializing as news” habits at the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel, but it was in his actual, recent editorial slamming President Jimmy Carter where his delicate fingertips led him seriously astray. Every person of southern US heritage should be outraged at his mangling of the phonetic (sort of) spelling of the former presidents’ first name. If you are going to stoop to insulting a former president and an entire regional culture, you should at least know what the hell you are doing.

I grew up in the south and I have never heard ANYONE say “Jimmuh”. Neither do they say “Bobbuh”, or “Tommuh”. It’s Jimmee… Jimmee “Cahtuh”. Here’s a clue, Gary; many southerners actually do pronounce “R”s. In the places where they don’t, the “ah”s and the “uh”s cannot be indiscriminately (and ignorantly) applied.

Mr. Harmon, if, in the future, you wish to insult other groups by making fun of their dialect, please do a little research…or at the very least, a little thinking. Thank you.