In a recently announced book titled "Game Change", a statement made by Sen Harry Reid which had previously gone unnoticed has been drawing a large amount of controversy. The book reports Sen. Reid commenting on the electability of then candidate Barack Obama by saying Obama was a light skinned black man with "no Negro dialect" unless he wanted to have one. Sen Reid has since apologized to President Obama for his "poor choice of words" and President Obama has accepted the apology. But of course the subject matter has not been dropped.
Senator Reids comments have been compared to those of Trent Lott. View Trent Lott's comments below:
Personally, I think Trent Lott's comments speak for themselves. Mr. Lott was recounting the Strom Thurmond run for president at Mr Thurmond's birthday party. Strom Thurmond was a well-known segregationist and in 1948 ran for President under the States Rights Democratic Party or Dixicrats. The Dixicrats opposed integration of the races and believed in maintaining Jim Crow's laws, their slogan was "Segregation Forever!" For Mr. Lott to say our country would be better off if we had followed Strom Thurmond's example is not just an unfortunate use of words but a clear move backward to a time of few if any civil rights for minorities in the United States.
So let's compare the statements made by these two men. Senator Reid's comments were about the electability of a legitimate candidate for President in the year 2008. Barack Obama is not the first American of African descent to run for the office of the President of the United States and during the campaign of 2008 it was obviously not yet known that he would go on to be successfully elected. When deciding which candidate to support for his party in the run for Presidency, Mr Reid was not alone in assessing the electability of each available candidate. Mr Reid's assessment of Obama as having light-skin and no "Negro dialect" is not racist, it's an assessment of whether or not Mr Obama will be accepted by the majority of American voters in race for President. Mr Lott's trip down memory lane with Strom Thurmond is clearly a wish to go backwards in time and undo the progress that has been made in civil rights. Hmmm... if the two comments can be compared in any way it would have to be in how opposite they are; Mr Reid's comments move us forward and Mr Lott's comments move us backward.
Showing posts with label Barack Obama. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Barack Obama. Show all posts
Monday, January 11, 2010
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Obama Effigy Hung in Plains, GA
Apparently it was too much to expect. Apparently a New Year doesn't bring a new slate, new attitudes and a renewal for our country. Why the cynicism? Saturday, the second day of the New Year, the second day of January 2010, what was found in the southern city of Plains Georgia? An Effigy of President Barack Obama hanging by the neck from a noose on the side of a building displaying a Red, White and Blue tribute to former President Jimmy Carter. What the Hell!?
See news video coverage here and the Reuters coverage of this story here
My first instinct was to blame the mentality of the South, after all it is well known that African Americans have been hung, burned and generally treated atrociously in that area of the country. And it wasn't that long ago there were still separate entrances to buildings as well as separate bathroom facilities and violence towards African Americans was practically sanctioned by law enforcement! But even with all that, I don't blame the mentality of the South.
Who DO I blame? Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Fox News, Republicans and "Tea Baggers". They've all been spouting half-truths and outright lies since before President Obama was elected. Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh are total nut cases and No I'm not just calling them names, it's the God's honest truth. Beck has called for revolutions against the Government, a dangerous, treasonous and very illegal thing to do. Yes we are the home of free speech but that crosses the line. Both Limbaugh and Beck have compared the Democrats to Natzi's and President Obama to Adolf Hitler. Nothing could be further from fact and closer to the pot calling the kettle black. Both Beck and Limbaugh have advocated for the exclusion of those less fortunate or physically handi-capped. Limbaugh went as far as to make fun of and even ridicule Michael J Foxx for his Parkinsons induced shaking. Fox News sponsored and even organized "Tea Bag" parties, protests and rallies. One of the biggest supporters at "Tea Bag" rallies is Minnesota Republican Congresswoman, Michelle Bachmann. What is the purpose of these "Tea Bag" protests? To actively protest and call for more protests against the government of the United States.
All these Lies, half-truths and organized protests have caught the attention of many mentally unbalanced American Citizens and even sparked "Tea Bag" groups to pray ill-will to befall our Democratic Senators and Government officials. C-SPAN even received a call from a person claiming to be a "Tea Bagger" who, in response to a request from Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK), said this live and on air: "Yeah doctor. Our small tea bag group here in Waycross, we got our vigil together and took Dr. Coburn’s instructions and prayed real hard that Sen. Byrd would either die or couldn’t show up at the vote the other night.
How hard did you pray because I see one of our members was missing this morning. Did it backfire on us? One of our members died? How hard did you pray senator? Did you pray hard enough?" What exactly did Republican Senator Tom Coburn say to invoke this response? "COBURN: What the American people ought to pray is that somebody can’t make the vote tonight. That’s what they ought to pray." Now Coburn didn't exactly come straight out and direct people to pray for ill-will or bad things to befall Republicans but obviously in the mentally unbalanced minds of Republican followers that's how it was interpreted. And now they are hanging effigies of our American President Barack Obama in the public streets. It's disgraceful, sickening and even treasonous but most of all it's sadly not surprising.
Sources: The Political Carnival, Reuters and C-SPAN via Planet POV
UPDATE: Tea Party Activist pens protest sign with "N" word. Follow link to view evidence. http://washingtonindependent.com/73036/n-word-sign-dogs-would-be-tea-party-leader
See news video coverage here and the Reuters coverage of this story here
My first instinct was to blame the mentality of the South, after all it is well known that African Americans have been hung, burned and generally treated atrociously in that area of the country. And it wasn't that long ago there were still separate entrances to buildings as well as separate bathroom facilities and violence towards African Americans was practically sanctioned by law enforcement! But even with all that, I don't blame the mentality of the South.
Who DO I blame? Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Fox News, Republicans and "Tea Baggers". They've all been spouting half-truths and outright lies since before President Obama was elected. Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh are total nut cases and No I'm not just calling them names, it's the God's honest truth. Beck has called for revolutions against the Government, a dangerous, treasonous and very illegal thing to do. Yes we are the home of free speech but that crosses the line. Both Limbaugh and Beck have compared the Democrats to Natzi's and President Obama to Adolf Hitler. Nothing could be further from fact and closer to the pot calling the kettle black. Both Beck and Limbaugh have advocated for the exclusion of those less fortunate or physically handi-capped. Limbaugh went as far as to make fun of and even ridicule Michael J Foxx for his Parkinsons induced shaking. Fox News sponsored and even organized "Tea Bag" parties, protests and rallies. One of the biggest supporters at "Tea Bag" rallies is Minnesota Republican Congresswoman, Michelle Bachmann. What is the purpose of these "Tea Bag" protests? To actively protest and call for more protests against the government of the United States.
All these Lies, half-truths and organized protests have caught the attention of many mentally unbalanced American Citizens and even sparked "Tea Bag" groups to pray ill-will to befall our Democratic Senators and Government officials. C-SPAN even received a call from a person claiming to be a "Tea Bagger" who, in response to a request from Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK), said this live and on air: "Yeah doctor. Our small tea bag group here in Waycross, we got our vigil together and took Dr. Coburn’s instructions and prayed real hard that Sen. Byrd would either die or couldn’t show up at the vote the other night.
How hard did you pray because I see one of our members was missing this morning. Did it backfire on us? One of our members died? How hard did you pray senator? Did you pray hard enough?" What exactly did Republican Senator Tom Coburn say to invoke this response? "COBURN: What the American people ought to pray is that somebody can’t make the vote tonight. That’s what they ought to pray." Now Coburn didn't exactly come straight out and direct people to pray for ill-will or bad things to befall Republicans but obviously in the mentally unbalanced minds of Republican followers that's how it was interpreted. And now they are hanging effigies of our American President Barack Obama in the public streets. It's disgraceful, sickening and even treasonous but most of all it's sadly not surprising.
Sources: The Political Carnival, Reuters and C-SPAN via Planet POV
UPDATE: Tea Party Activist pens protest sign with "N" word. Follow link to view evidence. http://washingtonindependent.com/73036/n-word-sign-dogs-would-be-tea-party-leader
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)