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Populist Rage Fades With Hardee's 'French Dip'

Ergo, you won't be hearing about 'death panels,' say, 10 minutes from now

By Harry Kimball,  Newser Staff

Posted Sep 5, 2009 3:54 PM CDT
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(Newser) – How soon America—“a toadying zombie mob with a terrible memory”—forgets, Abe Sauer writes on the Awl. Take the new offering from Hardee’s, “one of the nation’s largest, most popular purveys of food-like substances": the French Dip Thickburger. “What do maids, toast, kisses and burgers all have in common? They’re all better when they’re French,” goes the ad copy. Does anyone remember the anti-French sentiment of 2003?

Back then, critics vilified John Kerry for “looking French” and renamed French fries "Freedom fries" after France opposed the Iraq war. Now, Americans apparently prefer a "French dip" to other gustatory options. What's scary is how quickly people have forgotten. And how rabidly the old purveyors of anti-French rage—like Bill O'Reilly and Tom DeLay—are the same Einsteins "fanning the white-hot LCD-flames" against health care reform.

Hardee's French Dip Thickburger with au jus.
Hardee's French Dip Thickburger with au jus.   (AP Photo)
Remember 2003?
Remember 2003?   (Getty Images)
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Five years from now, the hot Christmas toy will be the new Socialism Elmo. Today’s manufactured “socialism” scare is yesterday’s anti-France zealotry. And the next outrage is anyone’s guess. But we can be sure it will have an expiration date. - Abe Sauer

Some have worried of late about how the current town-hall-attending anti-socialism “water-the-tree” lunatic fringe is boiling up to “do something.” But recent experience, in this case, most likely does indicate future performance. - Abe Sauer

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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 18 comments
wwwonderer
Sep 8, 2009 6:43 AM CDT
Yeas this was crazy to start with. In typical GOP fashion, we will ridicule ANYONE that doesn't agree with and endorse our viewpoint. And jager, instead of taking all that french wine and SELLING it -the true American way is to make CA$H- they would rather smash it thus putting themselves in a worse of situation, much like the health care debate.
Mad
Sep 7, 2009 4:22 AM CDT
The same french that were right about Bush years before republicans figured out the truth?
JonmarkP
Sep 7, 2009 2:09 AM CDT
Aw, Timmy, you've outed your ignorance again. Pommes de terre (apples of the ground) are potatoes. Pommes frites are french fries, but the Belgians make them better than anyone on the planet. Sorry the ones you've had there in Bumfuck didn't meet your approval.
Politics • Health • Money • US • World

 
France • fast food • health care reform • freedom fries • populist • Iraq war • death panel • Hardee's • French Dip • outrage

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