Zeb's Rebs: Ronald Zebell Goes A Bloggin'

I couldn't believe my ears—in fact I spent several minutes afterward cleaning the Diet Coke droplets off my laptop screen—when hearing this bit from Zeb Bell on "Zeb at the Ranch" this morning:

By the way, real quick Scotty, Scotty, Scotty get on the microphone over there and tell everybody my blog address will ya, if they wanna write to Zeb's Rebs.

Yep, folks, after spending the better part of two months regularly berating bloggers with such colorfully descriptive phrases as, "keyboard cowards" and "scurrying little rats hiding in corners" deserving only to be "cast off like a pair of dirty socks," Zeb Bell has become one.

Not only has he become a blogger, but he's chosen a name for his blog as descriptive as the words used to berate them:  Zeb's Rebs.  Apparently, "Bell's Bigots," the name he and a caller joked about having picked out for his merry little band last December, didn't have quite the right ring to it.

Not that Zeb's Rebs is any better.

Anyone who has been living for any part of the last two centuries knows that Reb is the common, informal term used for a Confederate soldier.  You know, the ones fighting to defend the South's right to own people and to secede from the Union.

Maybe Zeb isn't referring to "those" rebs when he enlists others to join his band of rebs.  Maybe he's just referring to a general sort of reb—a rebel of whatever sort—but what on earth would he be enlisting others to rebel against?  The government?  This administration, the leader of which he called the pre-cursor to the anti-Christ again today?

Bad enough, but it doesn't carry the racial stigma that a Reb, reb would connote.

And if that's the case—that Zeb's Rebs are just a general sort of rebel—you'd think that a man who has been under fire for the racially motivated content broadcast on his program, would attempt to avoid using any name that would even remotely suggest a racist connotation.  One has to surmise that he just doesn't care if it does.

Looking at the others listed as contributors on his blog, that becomes even more apparent.  Iron Yak, a Mormon housewife with eleven kids from Burley, describes herself as a writer/artist and is apparently a political cartoonist.  Her artistic talents far exceed her good taste and human decency, however.  On her blog, alongside a sketch of Jesus Christ, you'll find this, making the email sent by Canyon County Commissioner Steve Rule last December, mild in comparison.

Just one of Zeb's Rebs.

Another is well-known, frequent "Zeb at the Ranch" guest, Frosty Wooldridge.  Frosty, described by the Southern Poverty Law Center as a Nativist, has had many articles published on the website of infamous white supremacist David Duke, has ties to neo-Nazi Preston Wiginton and has appeared on the white nationalist radio show "The Political Cesspool."  Not exactly the resume of someone tolerant of racial diversity.

Just another of Zeb's Rebs.

Zeb himself has yet to write anything on the blog (it appears that he did post a video).  Maybe until he does, we can't really call him a blogger.  We can, by his own description, though, call him a reb.  Draw your own conclusions as to what, exactly, that means.

And for all those appearing on "Zeb at the Ranch" and thus tacitly endorsing Zeb's Rebs, how do you feel about what, exactly, that means?

Update 11:03:  As pointed out in the comments, apparently realizing that it was offensive, Iron Yak has removed from her blog the racist cartoon I linked to above.  The one she's proudly had posted on her blog for seven months.  Find a screen shot of the cartoon below the fold.  11:35 -- On second thought, I don't want that image on my blog.  You can still find a link to the cartoon here and it's still in google cache--search terms "iron yak" and "lipstick."

Comments

[Wordsmith]

Well, ya know, I'm ..... just stunned. Yep. And, I must say pretty much knocked speechless. I'm going to have mull this over. Yep. In fact - maybe I should sleep on it.

Goodness.

[Coward of the Keyboard]

Iron Yak's blog makes me want to "yak." And Zeb's? I'd say we should call it "Zeb's Meds." He needs some psychiatric drugs NOW!

[Coward of the Keyboard]

And Zeb's rebs aren't racist? Check out the RACIST Michelle Obama cartoon on Yak's blog, comparing her to a "monkey." THAT IS RACIST AND SICK!
http://theironyak.blogspot.com/2008/09/you-can-put-lipstick-on-pig_10.html

[MountainGoat]

Yeah, that cartoon is the one I linked to in the post... unbelievable.

And Wordsmith... hope this news was worth the wait and that the popcorn and soda kept you entertained in the meantime. ;-)

[Wordsmith]

That cartoon! And the woman says she believes in "God, The Family Institution, and The Constitution" and puts that up about another mother.

As for Frosty - biking every freakin' where, across this continent, over this continent - you'd think he'd be a little more generous and friendly. I would THINK, having hiked and hitched in different countries on different continents, that one would be more - cosmopolitan.

[SeanK]

The exceedingly racist "Lipstick on a Pig" page has mysteriously disappeared, but this one http://theironyak.blogspot.com/search/label/Michelle%20Obama%20meets%20Uncle%20Sam is still up. Are you serious?
I guess a racist with a computer is still just a racist.

[MountainGoat]

Yes, it seems Iron Yak has apparently realized that the cartoon was offensive and inappropriate and she's removed it (as you point out, Sean, there are others). She's also updated and expanded her profile.

Knowing that this would be a possibility, last night I took a screen shot of the offensive cartoon that she's had published on her blog since September 10, 2008. Perhaps when I get a minute I'll post it.

[Wordsmith]

Please do. I dang near did this morning when I saw it as well, but had to get to work.

Oh wait - I'm a blogger; I don't work, that's right. I'll tell my boss - then I'll tell the cats we're moving into the Jetta.

[MountainGoat]

I apologize for the poor quality of the screenshot but you can also find the cartoon here:

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_WBuJAClEXN4/SMiohvuKZLI/AAAAAAAAAFo/qSEnh8r_YTA/s1600-h/Lipstick+on+a+pig.bmp

[Wordsmith]

That really is disgusting. I'm so sick of this. Was Laura Bush parodied like that?

[MountainGoat]

But Wordsmith, you and I both know (and Tara more than any of us), it's not just that this particular cartoon happens to be targeting the Obamas in an especially offensive manner... this sort of intolerance against any number of groups is happening every day in that community--the bigotry is mainstream.

Iron Yak (and she makes no secret of her real name; she writes it proudly on this post: http://zebsrebs.blogspot.com/2009/03/back-to-basics_27.html )

is supposedly an upstanding member of the community, a business person, a supposedly religious person. Makes you wonder what it is these people who exhort us to "check our spiritual compass and turn our hearts back to our God" and profess to speak for "moral values" are talking about.

As Tara pointed out so eloquently on her blog the other day (link here: http://politicalgame.blogspot.com/2009/04/value-systems.html )

"I do not believe in the hatred, sexism, xenophobia, bigotry, intolerance, racism and general closed mindedness of any of these groups. I can't believe in any of their values that actually have merit because I can't get past and wouldn't want to look past the hatred they represent. Yet here I am in southeastern Idaho where these three groups and their value systems make up the majority of the population. We may not have the Aryan Nations here, but don't tell me hate does not exist here."

[Sisyphus]

Well ain't imitation the sincerest form of flattery? So the bigots are watching and reacting thereby denoting signs of intelligence, of course, only in the most rudimentary form. Its still questionable whether a bigot can be reasoned with.

[Coward of the Keyboard]

Let me rephrase Iron Yak, and my intention is not to be sexiest, just rearranging some of her words: "You can put lipstick on a racist...but he/she will continue to be racist!"

[thepoliticalgame]

Sexiest? Me thinks you mean sexist, Coward... ;)

[Wordsmith]

Whoo - boy (or girl)! Doncha jus' love those Freudian slips!

[Wordsmith]

Apparently, it must've been a quiet day down on the ranch. No cattle rustling or hustling? No baying at the moon, which was full on Passover! Last night, btw.

[Coward of the Keyboard]

Thank you Ms. Politicalgame! You are right! I need to check my keyboard strokes before I hit the "post." It bites me in the you know what!

[Coward of the Keyboard]

There is a new post today, Friday 4/10, which states:

"Zeb and his "REBS" rebel against those who wish to insert values that will weaken our communities, state, and country. Values that we will not allow our children to be taught. Yes we rebel against those things and will continue to do so until those people either give up the fight, or we die!"

Values that we won't allow our children to be taught? WTF is that about? I don't want my kid to be taught to disparage someone because of his or her skin color, orientation or political viewpoint.

Actually YOUR BIGOTED VIEWPOINT WILL WEAKEN OUR COMMUNITY. Intolerance and lack of respect continue to be what you preach. And if you claim I'm going to hell, so be it! At least I won't be in YOUR company.

[MountainGoat]

i saw that post last night and thought about writing something up on it then, but decided against it... maybe this weekend.

'course you've said it quite well already, coward. ;-)

[Coward of the Keyboard]

The only real coward of the keyboard is Zeb Bell himself. He lacks sufficient manhood and perhaps mental power to blog by himself. He admitted to as much on today's program (4/14). Instead he has to send his rabid attack dogs after REAL bloggers. Now that's what I call C-O-W-A-R-D-I-C-E.