HULK SMASH MEXICANS

GNRRRRGGGGH! LOU FERRIGNO, ACTOR PLAY HULK IN POPULAR '70S TV SERIES, JOIN ARIZONA SHERIFF POSSE TARGETING ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS IN PHOENIX, ARIZONA. REUTERS SAY:

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said Ferrigno, 59, a body builder who donned green makeup to star in the popular 1970s television series 'The Incredible Hulk,' was among 56 people sworn in as volunteers for an armed immigration posse. Arpaio said the posse would work with sheriff's deputies in operations targeting smugglers and businesses suspected of employing illegal immigrants in the county, among other duties.

GRRHRNNNH! HULK NO LIKE MEXICANS! THIS URL SAY STEVEN SEAGAL AND DUDE FROM MISSION IMPOSSIBLE ALSO WANT HELP HULK SMASH MEXICANS WITH ARMED CITIZEN POSSE!
(via Lalo Alcaraz)

Boing Boing editor/partner and tech culture journalist Xeni Jardin hosts and produces Boing Boing's in-flight TV channel on Virgin America airlines (#10 on the dial), and writes about living with breast cancer. Diagnosed in 2011. @xeni on Twitter. email: xeni@boingboing.net.

MORE: arizona • Comics • News • politics • pop culture • racism

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The Life Of Bryan

I think BoingBoingâ€™s bias is quite obvious in that they provide absolutely no coverage of the anti-immigrant militias patrolling our northern border.
Halloween Jack

Well, there goes another one of my childhood heroes, outed as an asshole.
Anonymous

What could go wrong? Oh yeah.

http://azstarnet.com/news/local/crime/article_bfe15833-f7a0-5aa7-9432-6dad29a10db5.html
Dennis

Is the “Racism” tag meant to imply that Lou is a racist? Or is it used because the Boing Boing post automatically associates all Mexicans as illegal immigrants for the sake of a joke? If it’s the latter then I applaud you for your honesty.
gwailo_joe

‘HULK SMASH MEXICANS’ is just good copy. It’s a catchy headline. That’s it.

‘Hulk Smash Mexicans and other illegal immigrants from Central and South America, most fleeing from poverty and lack of opportunity to better themselves and the lives of their families; simultaneously helping the US economy through cheap labor and work ethic while significantly draining revenue through education, medical care and the prison system’

Not quite the same ring to it. . .
Rayonic

Large-scale illegal immigration creates an underclass of disenfranchised people. You could say that they’re second-class citizens but they’re not even citizens at all. So you’d think this would be priority issue for liberals to tackle, but it just gets treated as so much political fodder.

Not to be a downer, but articles like this aren’t helping. Yes, these border patrol people generally have selfish motivations, but simply ridiculing anyone who has any concerns about illegal immigration is counterproductive. Do you want government to address this issue at all, or do you simply want it to be a third rail in American politics?
- PalookaJoe
  
  /applause
  
  Excellent point.
warreno

Steven Seagal? Doesn’t he claim t be Buddhist?

He’s clearly misunderstood the entire “impermanence” thing.
Anonymous

I second gwailo_joe , it seems now-a-days with modern media encouraging our short attention span and fueling partisanship, we can no longer have intelligent discourse weighting pros and cons (takes too long) and you’re forced to take one side or another (you’re not with us, you’re against freedom, America , or you’re racist or a liberal etc.).

indeed saying the following would lose 60% or the people that have already made up their mind and for the remaining 40% , they will feel lost not knowing how to make up their mind.

‘Hulk Smash Mexicans and other illegal immigrants from Central and South America, most fleeing from poverty and lack of opportunity to better themselves and the lives of their families; simultaneously helping the US economy through cheap labor and work ethic while significantly draining revenue through education, medical care and the prison system’
simonbarsinister

Armed angry civilians patrolling for brown people. What could possibly go wrong?

I think people are parsing Sheriff Joe’s statement wrong. Let me clear it up with some parenthesis:

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio promised the creation of a new illegal (immigration operations posse).
Anonymous

#drunkhulk
Nawel

PUNY MEXICANS!
Noodlehead

This will end well for all people involved, I’m sure.
- Chrs
  
  Oh, definitely! A group of people wanting to recreate the good old days of posses in the old west, the ones that were always justified? It’s the best idea I’ve heard all week!
Manooshi

I wonder what Feminist Hulk thinks of this? twitter.com/feministhulk

Ugh. Frickin’ racist Hulk, dude. This is timely for the “Racial Profiling” unit I’m about to teach my 12th-grade writing seminar. USA!
Modusoperandi

Illegal immigration only comes to the boil when the economy is in the tank. Right at the same time Real Americans should be marching with pitchforks and torches on Wall Street, they’ve been redirected to attack those below them on the economic ladder, instead.
Few things are as good at distracting angry white men than stoking their resentment and pointing them at a group that gets screwed worse than them.

The Life Of Bryan (#39) “I think BoingBoingâ€™s bias is quite obvious in that they provide absolutely no coverage of the anti-immigrant militias patrolling our northern border.”
To be fair, that’s mostly because the Canadians are tired of you sneakin’ across their border and stealin’ all their healthcare.
Manooshi

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention: I teach in East LA, so it will be interesting to see what the students think of this.

Here’s a second try for Feminist Hulk’s Tweets: http://twitter.com/feministhulk
SvennDiagram

It horrible how a law enforcement official is enforcing the law. He should just let the coyotes extort the illegals, and allow those businesses to keep them in indentured servitude so we can keep getting our cheap vegetables and lawn care.
- spellgage
  
  Of course Ferrigno’s role as the Hulk delegitimizes the entire enterprise. Also, notice how it’s “HULK SMASH MEXICANS” rather than “HULK SMASH ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS.” This is straight up race pimping. I expect better from Xeni.
  - biggswede
    
    @spellgage
    
    Actually, this is exactly what I expected from Xeni.
  - PalookaJoe
    
    Here in the Hulk’s new stomping grounds, anti-illegal immigrant messages are nearly always aimed at Hispanics. Those blurry figures sneaking across the desert in a campaign ad? Black hair and brown skin. The violence threatening to overwhelm our borders? Ripped straight from the headlines of Sonoran news reports. The remote shots that accompany local news reports about illegal immigration? Taken on the US/Mexico border. The undocumented residents interviewed for human-interest pieces on the effects of illegal immigration and deportation? Always Hispanic. The debates about “official language” for state business? Most of the criticism is aimed at Spanish translations.
    
    We may be choose our words carefully, but the way we illustrate and frame the issues screams “illegal immigrants = Hispanics”.
    
    Xeni’s headline may be shocking and over-simplified. But it’s an apt parody of the discussion happening right now in Arizona. Ignoring that to make a cheap shot about racism doesn’t do anything to fix the problem.
    - Slightly Askew
      
      The debates about “official language” for state business? Most of the criticism is aimed at Spanish translations
      
      In contrast to debates about all the Korean translations in Walmart, Lowe’s, K-Mart, etc.? Of course the criticism is aimed at Spanish translations.
      
      I live in a migrant neighborhood and every single person speaks *some* English. Even the 89-year-old granny from Russia can carry on a coherent, although choppy, conversation with me after only a couple years here. I think it’s racist to assume that every other immigrant to our country can adapt, but we have to coddle the Spanish speaking population. Can someone explain this?
      
      Actually, I retract my previous statement. That guy down the street from Ireland doesn’t speak a word of English, at least as far as I can tell from our previous “conversations”. :)
      - Brainspore
        
        I think it’s racist to assume that every other immigrant to our country can adapt, but we have to coddle the Spanish speaking population. Can someone explain this?
        
        1. The United States doesn’t have a national language. If nearly a third of the population in a particular state are more comfortable using a language other than the one spoken by the majority then it would seem to make sense to provide some basic accommodation for them. Many countries around the world do this.
        
        2. Spanish speakers settled much of what is now the United States long before the English got here, so you could argue that they are the ones coddling us.
      - Slightly Askew
        
        1. So 1/3 is the magic number for it to make sense to you? Of course there is no national language, but at the same time people here are excused, Americans who after two years in Paris cannot speak French because they stayed within their English speaking circle are openly mocked. I just wonder why the double standard. Why the same people that say “Stupid arrogant American, insisting the French understand him when he speaks English” do not say the same thing about immigrants. I wonder why when I go to Walt Disney World the announcements are only in English and Spanish, despite the large number of people from other countries. Should we not be accommodating the tens of thousands of Japanese that visit every year?
        
        2. Yada, yada, Osio Slightly dawado.
        
        Look, I have no problem with a second set of instructions in Spanish on government forms. I have a problem with immigrants (legal or otherwise) never learning English (the dominant language, despite what others may want) because they have always had everything in two languages, and then they blame the government for them running down a biker because the sign said “Bikes Only” and not “Bicycles Only / Solo Bicicletas”
      - Brainspore
        
        So 1/3 is the magic number for it to make sense to you?
        
        No, I don’t have a magic number. I just happen to think the level of accommodation we make for those who speak other languages should be in proportion to the number of said people.
        
        Of course there is no national language, but at the same time people here are excused, Americans who after two years in Paris cannot speak French because they stayed within their English speaking circle are openly mocked. I just wonder why the double standard.
        
        France does have a national language. I don’t know (nor particularly care) what accommodations they have for non-French speaking residents because I don’t live in that country.
        
        Look, I have no problem with a second set of instructions in Spanish on government forms.
        
        Well then let’s drop it, shall we?
        
        I’ve never heard of a single case where someone blamed the government for running down a bicyclist because they didn’t have bilingual signage explaining the rules of the road. If that has ever happened in real life I’m sure it’s a very rare occurrence rather than an epidemic.
- chouette
  
  It is indeed terrible how this particular law enforcement official “enforces” the law. He has been involved in innumerable controversies over the years.
  
  For example, there’s this:
  http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/2010/11/18/20101118joe-arpaio-andrew-thomas-investigation-review.html
  
  This:
  http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2010/11/sheriff-arpaio-database-probe/
  
  This:
  http://www.azcentral.com/news/election/azelections/articles/2010/09/02/20100902joe-arpaio-sued-by-justice-department-brk-02-ON.html
  
  This:
  http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2010/04/08/20100408maricopa-county-jail-conditions.html
  
  … and probably a bunch of others that don’t spring to mind. There are several reasons why I’m glad I don’t live in Arizona, but Sheriff Arpaio is the main reason.
- grimc
  
  And it’s terrible that you think Arpaio is a law enforcement official when he’s really just a criminal with a badge.
Anonymous

And so another childhood hero falls.
Truly disappointing.
Actually worse than King of Queens.
Incredible Hulk?
More like > The Abomination.
LeFunk

He’ll have to fight the six million peso man.
Anonymous

With a name like Ferrigno, shouldn’t we make sure he’s an American citizen?
Norman

Assuming that those crossing the border are Mexican. Could be Swedes, or Laotians. Just sayin’…
Marshall

Yet another reason why She Hulk was and will always be cooler.
regeya

I’M NOT SURE IT’S VERY NICE TO USE ALLCAPS TO BE SNARKY ABOUT A DEAF ACTOR BUT I LOL’ED ANYWAY!
Hools Verne

If that cop was anybody other than Arpio that argument might have some traction, but anybody who knows even a little bit about Arpio knows that he’s a jackbooted thug. The man was harassing legal Mexican immigrants who lived outside his jurisdiction long before Arizona passed their profiling law.
chimonkey

I agree with gwailo_Joe and Rayonic. The current immigration policy is clearly untenable and yet most people are content to sit back and fling names at the other side rather than actually work towards a viable solution. Call him an asshole, as you will, but at least he’s out there *trying* to fix the problem the best way he knows how.
Phikus

I don’t like him when he’s angry.
dhalgren

Hey who’s fault is it if the illegal aliens want to try to enter the United States illegally and break Federal law via Arizona and get smashed by the HULK or get flipped onto their back by the HARD TO KILL dude (a definite patented move).

I mean come on, send all of those darn illegal aliens in through California. Especially those college age illegals. We’ll give ‘em instate tuition. Yea yea smarty pants I know they had to have been here for a certain amount of years, if anything that makes it worse in my book.

“Sorry buddy, you’re from Colorado, and it says here you are *GASP* a United States Citizen! GET THE HELL OUT OF MY OFFICE OR I’LL HAVE YOU REMOVED!”

You know what the solution is: The federal government needs to actually enforce it’s own immigration laws, and take seriously defending out borders. We don’t need any new laws, new reforms, etc. They just need to do their damn job.

I still haven’t found the memo that so many of you seem to have received that tells us we need to all get upset and outraged when the Federal Government decides to not do it’s job and regular Joe’s decided to get together and try to do one of the basic jobs the Federal Government refuses to do. Why do we even have a Federal Government if it doesn’t do one it it’s fundamental jobs: defend are borders and to make sure the people we don’t want to come into our country don’t come in. That would be non-U.S. citizens entering our country illegally. I don’t care where you are from.

I have no desire to want to live in Central America, Mexico, China (on a side note: when was the last time you heard of a one of those big tanker ships come into the L.A. harbor area and they find a couple hundred Chinese aboard trying to get into the U.S. illegally – you used to hear about ‘em all the time – there’s a lesson here somewhere), an EU nation, Japan. I love(d) America because we have, er, had a common culture, language, history. If you want to come to the United States and become a citizen, awesome! If you want to learn our language, history, integrate into our society, become a responsible citizen (or irresponsible but a citizen nonetheless) and you go through the proper steps, I’ll be there when you are sworn in and we’ll party (two of my best friends from Bulgaria just became citizens as my did one of my friend’s wife).

If you want to come in illegally, I hope the Hulk catches you and throws you back to wherever you came from.

All this is silly talk anyway. If the United States government did it’s job we wouldn’t be having this discussion.
Frank W

No one here who can compete with Machete for badassness.
Anonymous

I think use a character who people like is not a good idea, especially if is for political interests.

PD: Â¡Los mexicanos se van a chingar a Hulk! Jujuii…
Nawel

“Real Americans should be marching with pitchforks and torches on Wall Street, they’ve been redirected to attack those below them on the economic ladder, instead.”

Amen.
Anonymous

phpppt…it’s fairly clear that this is a job for The Punisher, not Hulk.

also, none of this would be necessary if the current administration did…well, ANYTHING.
TheGibson

The interesting part is: “operations targeting smugglers and businesses suspected of employing illegal immigrants in the county…”

It’s been a long while since I’ve seem anyone not target the immigrants directly.
- SvennDiagram
  
  It’s called “attrition through enforcement,” and it’s not a new idea.
  - TheGibson
    
    Thanks. Have to study up on it. In some of the small towns here in the Great Lakes area they have been moving against immigrant families, while nothing is done to the large employers [who are happy to entice other families] as their current workers are pushed out. Dirty business all around.
harrismgrant

The Hulk might need to face off with Captain America. This from wikipedia: “In the 2006-2007 “Civil War” crossover, Captain America opposes mandatory federal registration of all super-powered beings, which he sees as an erosion of civil liberties for the superhero community, and leads the Anti-Registration faction and resistance movement. He becomes a fugitive and opposes the heroes of the Pro-Registration group, including his former friend Iron Man.”
Anonymous

Is this his attempt at reprising his role in Desert Warrior?
Jackasimov

The Hulk’s an asshole. I’ll remember to flip Louie the bird next time I see him hawking his crap at a comicon.

I’d like to remind Ferrigno that Eyetalians were once the hated minority, but then I guess I’m profiling.

Xeni, you do an amazing Hulk impression. I mean really!
- Brainspore
  
  The Hulk’s an asshole.
  
  Well, that’s pretty much the entire basis of his character- an angry, dim-witted monster that deals with all problems using brute force in lieu of reason. He’s a walking metaphor of the modern neoconservative movement.