Obama and Race: Where We Are and How We Got Here
Is the president-elect more a breaker of barriers or the beneficiary of barriers already broken?
In a few days, America will swear in the first president who identifies himself as black. In the early days of the campaign, when no one thought Obama had a chance, there was discussion among the “lions” of the civil rights movement on whether Barack was “black enough.” Early in the campaign, people like Al Sharpton questioned whether he was authentically black and later on Jesse Jackson said in a very colorful way that Barack was “talking down to black people.” Both men have since gotten onto the president-elect’s team, but there was a feeling that Barack Obama was an upstart, half-white man who had not paid his dues.
I am a lifelong Southerner who is old enough to remember desegregation of schools, but not old enough to remember segregated water fountains. I am the first generation of integration and in the South we talk about these things — race issues — all the time. It’s actually quite fun to see people falling all over themselves to portray an image of being above the racial divide when we know no one in the world is above that discussion. It is because of America and its ideals written in the Declaration of Independence and in the Constitution and practiced over our history that people of all races, colors, and creeds still come to America for the opportunity of a lifetime.
When I was a teenager, we had a black woman working for us. This was during the height of integration on all levels in Georgia. I remember clearly one afternoon when her son came to tell her that he had bought his first home. He was so proud and his mother said something like, “But that’s a white neighborhood; you can’t live there.” He replied, “Momma, I can afford that house and we are going to live there.” That exchange represented the change in times.
Fast forwarding to today, embattled Governor Rod Blagojevich appoints Roland Burris to fill President-elect Barack Obama’s Senate seat. Burris is black and a former attorney general. At the appointment, Representative Bobby Rush — who incidentally beat State Senator Barack Obama in his run for Congress — takes the podium and declares that Senator Harry Reid is like George Wallace if he tries to “block the doorway of the U.S. Senate” and not seat Roland Burris. You can’t make this stuff up.
All the controversy covers up bigger issues for the soon-to-be president. First, all this bickering in Illinois and related to Illinois reminds people that Obama is a Chicago politician, not some guy who is above the fray. Secondly, how do we criticize Barack Obama and his administration? Will we be hung up in name-calling for the next four years?
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Martha Zoller is a political analyst and radio host. She is syndicated on The Georgia News Network. She makes regular appearances on cable news programs. Her first book, Indivisible: Uniting Values for a Divided America, was released in 2005. You can contact her at www.marthazoller.com.
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38 Comments
1. RE:Obama was elected not on the basis of the content of his character, but rather based upon the color of his skin. He more represents Shelby Steele’s correct identification of ‘liberal while guilt’ than MLK’s notions of basic human dignity.
It’s a true shame that MLK got hijacked by the Left.
Jan 16, 2009 - 6:22 am 2. Steve P.:The party that chose that bimbo Sarah Palin for VP candidate over Condoleeza Rice, who was far more intelligent, experienced, capable and loyal to the party, has already shown its true colors. And they’re snow white.
Jan 16, 2009 - 7:12 am 3. Steve P.:It’s a true shame that MLK got hijacked by the Left.
It’s a true shame that you don’t know much about King.
MLK Jr. held socialist beliefs. That’s why conservatives abandoned him and the cause of civil rights.
As Brazilian archbishop Dom Helder Camara said, “When I give food to the poor, they call me a saint. When I ask why the poor have no food, they call me a communist.”
Jan 16, 2009 - 7:18 am 4. John Galt:Barack Obama’s story could only happen in America.>>
Wrong!!
Ever hear of Nelson Mendela!!!
Comrade Hussein Obama is a Marxist illegal alien Indonesian citizen.
He will be America’s first Marxist dictator POTUS.
If you like that kind of stuff than by all means support him, but he ain’t my president.
Jan 16, 2009 - 7:45 am 5. RE:Sorry, Steve, but it’s the Left that is fully vested in group identity politics and exploiting them as a means to a collectivist end.
Victimhood is the Democrat Party’s bread and butter. They will continue to nuture and exacerbate it to its limits.
Jan 16, 2009 - 7:48 am 6. Julie:Steve P., I can’t believe you called the Governor of Alaska a bimbo. That is just pitiful. And from what I hear, Condi didn’t want the nomination.
Jan 16, 2009 - 8:03 am 7. Cybergeezer:Thank the Anglo Saxon that this nation is what it is today, and other ethnicities can attain sophisticated status instead of living in cardboard shacks and fending off machete attacks in the Sudan.
Jan 16, 2009 - 8:09 am 8. Ann141:Obama shall be synonymous with disaster in the not too distant future. I’m betting it’s going to take years of legislation, a lot of hard work and cash to recover from this disaster.
He’s only riding the crest of the wave of recovery that GW has initiated, at this point. The party’s just about over and the euphoria is going to turn to depression.
It’s laudable that the author of the piece documents her commitment to “criticize or praise Obama on the merits of his decisions.”
It won’t matter.
It’s already been demonstrated that anyone opposing him or his ideas will be accused of racism–eventually.
I’ve noticed repeatedly in comment threads around the web that it is always the libs and Bambi supporters that inject race in to ANY discussion. That is not going to change. From their perspective, there is no reason it should change for the simple reason that it works, and it keeps critics off balance.
Jan 16, 2009 - 9:46 am 9. phd:Speaking about the citizenship issue, why would a Presidential candidate fight the release of their birth certificate? Suppose some “gadfly” (as they love to characterize anyone who challenges a liberal Democrat) had alleged that John McCain wasn’t 35 years old, the other constitutional requirement for the Presidency? Do we really believe that, as patently ridiculous as that allegation is, that McCain would not have been required to produce a valid birth certificate to prove the painfully obvious? So what gives? Is this the job of the Federal Elections Commission? I live in a community with a very large AA community. About a week ago, I was in the supermarket checkout line and noticed one of the “rags” with a very pronounced front page story about Obama’s lack of US citizenship. Next day they were all gone. I don’t think they were purchased. Oh well…
Jan 16, 2009 - 10:25 am 10. ReConUSMC:Speaking of Chicago Politics
Chicago…. Who Runs it?
Senators: Barack
Obama & Dick Durbin
Representative: Jesse
Jackson, Jr.
Illinois Governor: Rod Blogo
jevich (arrested today)
Illinois House leader: Mike
Madigan
Illinois Attorney General: Lisa Madigan
(daughter of Mike)
Chicago Mayor: Richard M.
Daley (son of Mayor Richard J. Daley)
The leadership in Illinois ? ….all
Democrats.
Thank you for the combat zone in Chicago .
Body count in the last six months: 292
killed (murdered) in Chicago
221 killed in Iraq
State pension fund – $44 Billion in debt,
worst in the country.
Cook County ( Chicago ) sales tax – 10.25% highest in country. (Look it up). Their Gasoline is the Third highest in the Nation , slightly beaten out by California and Hawaii .
Chicago school system – rated one of the
worst in the country. 51.9 % is the current drop out rate . 81 % of those drop outs don’t finish the 10 Th. grade . Chicago receives the Second largest student cost per Student at $ 16, 971.00 in the Nation .
The numbers all run by totally Democrat control are similar in LA, Detroit , Houston , Washington DC , Baltimore , Minneapolis Atlanta , Milwaukee, New Orleans , Newark , Indianapolis , Miami, Cincinnati and Cleveland to name a few major Cities but there are many more obviously .
Obama has selected the lady that ran that Chicago System to be the new head of The Federal Government Education Dept. and will sit in his Cabinet .
Obama selection to run the EPA is also from Chicago .Ms Carol Browner …. Who is a devout well known racial Socialist (in the Socialist International Club of 14 ) and believes in One World order and a strict Follower of Al Gore on Global warming .
Of course, they’re all blaming each
other.
They can’t blame Republicans – -
because there aren’t any.
This is the political culture that Obama
Jan 16, 2009 - 10:30 am 11. ReConUSMC:comes from in Illinois . And he’s going to
‘”fix” Washington politics for us?
Good luck and may God help us!
2. Too Steve P.:
Jan 16, 2009 - 11:08 am 12. Anton:The party that chose that bimbo Sarah Palin for VP candidate over Condoleeza Rice, who was far more intelligent, experienced, capable and loyal to the party, has already shown its true colors. And they’re snow white.
_________________________
Obama wanted to pick Condoleeza Rice but She was too Blackas was Colin Powell .
She nor Colin Powell will NOT be seen as great heads of State ever . In-fact both never knew the Facts on Iraqi . POWELL committed treason on Bush over the CIA GAL Fraud . KNOWING THE FACTS TWO YEARS EARLIER
Not to mention that She like Colin Powell supported Obama in several statements she made as well .
As for Sarah Palin IQ ……. Your party is ”Lead by ” Nancy Pelosi , Harry Reid two complete Morons ! 21 MORE IN THE SENATE ARE FRUIT CAKES .
Maybe if Palin would have gone Ah Ah Ah like Obama did 112 in a Hour when he was not reading a Script or said there were 57 states , You grow the Economy from the Bottom up ? Higher Taxes and Capitol gains don’t hurt the GDP ??? STUPID !!!!!!! And of course I need To give money to those that lay or theirs A… ! b/S
FRANKY I would like to see Millions more Black Women like Sarah Palin ……. We would have far less Slavery to Liberalism/Welfare and Millions of less babies born for Tax Payers to pay fore .
10. ReConUSMC:
Well made point. I live next to Detroit (Mayor Kwame “Jailbird” Kilpatrick) it is a sump of corruption that all the surrounding communities struggle to contain. The lid has just been lifted there on the same sort of pay-to-play politics that is Illinois.
Too bad Obama will be in control of the Justice Dept. I don’t see either of those investigations being pushed agressively. Ten years of painstaking work thrown away.
Jan 16, 2009 - 11:39 am 13. spike:2. Steve P.:
The party that chose that bimbo Sarah Palin for VP candidate over Condoleeza Rice, who was far more intelligent, experienced, capable and loyal to the party, has already shown its true colors. And they’re snow white.
——————————-
does your ignorance know ANY bounds? what party was the president from who entrusted african-americans with the vital and sensitive positions of secretary of state (not once, but twice?), the chairmanship of the joint chiefs of staff, national security advisor? from what party was the african american congressman who went higher in his party’s leadership than any other? what party was the president from who outspent every one of his predecessors in combating AIDS in africa? here’s a clue: it WASN’T your ‘glorious comrades of the demokratik’ paty
Jan 16, 2009 - 12:18 pm 14. J. Rockford:stuff those immature and bone-deep ignorant ‘racism’ whinings and droolings in your left-wing memory hole, pie hole, or any other hole you like to play with
<>
After what the left has done to Bush the last six years, to Robert Bork and Newt Gingrich before him, Sarah Palin recently — I’m going to slam B. Hussein every chance I get. With so much material to work with, even a racist wouldn’t have to use race against him! This country just voted for bankrupt, banana republic status anyways so why not?
Jan 16, 2009 - 12:23 pm 15. paul_unalaska:Our elected officials have gone from voting for the most qualified candidate to an ‘Equal Opportunity’ quagmire.
Cleveland Mayor’s Frank Jackson said on radio shortly after Obama won the election, ‘Barack Obama transcends race…’ Who is he.. Jesus?
PE Obama should have the band, Living Colours, ‘The Cult of Personality’ be his theme song. Check out the lyrics and see if that’s far off..
Jan 16, 2009 - 1:33 pm 16. susan:“The party that chose that bimbo Sarah Palin for VP candidate over Condoleeza Rice, who was far more intelligent, ”
said the supporter of a retarded party who selected a donkey in andropause as VP.
BTW, it is obvious obama benefitted from affirmative action and white guilt. GREATLY.
IT is obvious that the ones with palin derangement syndome have got psycho issues with women, sorry P, you should seek professional help
Jan 16, 2009 - 2:51 pm 17. Joe Fattal:Obama was elected on the basis of his speeches. He had the ability to make you come and listen to his speeches like it or not. You never went to a church, and the priest tried to convince you that God created woman to his own image, and from the woman ribs, he created man. He convinced you enough so that you went the second time to listen to him. Obama did the same thing, he kept on bringing them to his speeches to the point where they would have believe anything he would have said, and promises that he will keep. Did the people that voted for him expected a new promise land with lots of changes. Time will tell. And if he doesn’t deliver, he still made it thru the race card. And the changes he was talking about, was about him. The first African-American to become president.And that’s how I saw it. The first black family in the white house. President Obama, and First Lady Michelle, and their two daughters. And that’s the only thing I saw. I imaging seeing the First Family on the steps of the white house, and said to myself, not yet. I went for McCain.
Jan 16, 2009 - 2:57 pm 18. NMSC:Thank you for saying this. I actually believe the only reason Obama was elected was BECAUSE he was black. So what do we do with that? It is weird to engage with many of his liberal supporters who, in their own brand of racism, elected him based on the color of his skin, and then turn around and accuse those of us who didn’t vote for him of being racists. You just can’t have a logical conversation about Obama the man, Obama the President, like this. It makes my head hurt and it also makes me worry about the future of our country…
Jan 16, 2009 - 2:58 pm 19. Scott:America is an Anglo-Saxon nation. That is what has made us great. All the immigrants to the US knew that they had to conform to OUR norms, as that was the way to prosperity.
When the US becomes a third world nation, we will know why. Obamba and his “friends” will bring us to the same level as Haiti and Sierra Leone. Disastrous.
Jan 16, 2009 - 3:19 pm 20. Cybergeezer:Remember the song “I’m turning Japanese; I’m Turning Japanese.”?
Jan 16, 2009 - 3:33 pm 21. Cybergeezer:Looks like the U.S. is turning U.K.nese.
If you don’t remember it, look it up, fool!
15. paul_unalaska:
Jan 16, 2009 - 3:38 pm 22. ThinkingPerson:Great minds think alike; I am comparing the U.S. to the current U.K. Different genre, also.
Steve P….If Sarah Palin is a “bimbo” (your words), do tell what that makes Caroline Kennedy?
Jan 16, 2009 - 3:45 pm 23. john from cinncinatti:steve P: Governor Palin was a title 1X athlete. she lost her scholarship due to an injury and still finished school. You must be a bimbo because you sound stupid. every chance you lefties get you have to try and throw dirt at her, you are just a player hater. Don’t hate the player hate the game.
Jan 16, 2009 - 4:46 pm 24. Gozer the Carpathian:I’m sorry, but when a racial block votes THAT much along racial lines it’s obvious that race is still an issue in America. What was it 90% of blacks voted for Obama? WTH? I believe the next “racial block” are Hispanics, but isn’t their numbers only like 65%? That’s a much more mathmatically “normal” spread than a 90%!
Seriously if 90% of whites voted for the white guy over the black guy they’d be called racist. But when 90% of blacks vote for the black guy over the white guy it’s not? Uh huh. Right…
Jan 16, 2009 - 6:01 pm 25. AtheistConservative:This subject crept into my mind today when I read the AP headline “Beyonce to sing ‘At Last’ to the Obamas”.
There are a lot of people who really think the most important thing in the world was to have a black president. Which stymies me – isn’t a qualified president more important?
It’s made very ironic by the fact that a black millionaire pop star will be singing to him a song intended to show that finally, blacks have succeeded. Black millionaire (or is it billionaire) Oprah introduced Obama to the nation and got him 1 million votes. Black millionaire rap stars have penned many ’songs’ celebrating his nomination and victory.
The author pegged it: we are not celebrating a real barrier being broken, as if this society did not allow blacks to succeed. We are celebrating a superficial victory, in which a half-black man will be inaugurated as President … at all costs.
Jan 16, 2009 - 6:15 pm 26. ReConUSMC:16. susan:
“The party that chose that bimbo Sarah Palin for VP candidate over Condoleeza Rice, who was far more intelligent, ”
said the supporter of a retarded party who selected a donkey in andropause as VP.
BTW, it is obvious obama benefitted from affirmative action and white guilt. GREATLY.
IT is obvious that the ones with palin derangement syndome have got psycho issues with women, sorry P, you should seek professional help
Jan 16, 2009 - 8:22 pm 27. Kathy L.:_____________________________
THAT Same Susan ………. thinks Nancy Pelosi …………. is Smart and a great Leader ? And Caroline Kennedy ah ah ah ah ah Should be the Hillary replacement after all She has ,,,,,,…. S…T for Brains,?
Family ? Money ? Ties ?
Susan needs help !
One easily suspects susan has 000. 1 % of Sarah Palin’s accomplishments in life and half the IQ and I am being kind here .
Obama cheated his way to the Presidency, with voter registration fraud/voter fraud, perpetrated by his henchmen in ACORN. Unfortunately, unbeknownst to me prior to this election, our hard earned tax money has gone to fund this group also.(More would have gone to ACORN if Republican congressmen hadn’t put their foot down during the bail-out discussions). Some, probably a lot, of Obama’s massive campaign funds came from illegal, foreign sources. He probably learned this from the Clintons. They did the same thing and got away with it. These huge funds gave Obama an unfair advantage. He wasn’t called to task on any of these matters. He should have been. So far, his cabinet nominees have been a bunch of real winners: Hillary lied when she claimed she dodged bullets in Bosnia (this should really inspire confidence in her as Secty of State. Ha !!), his Chief of Staff Rhambo is known for sending dead fish to people he doesn’t like, Commerce Secty nominee Richardson withdrew because of dirty dealings he was involved in, now the Secty of Treasury nominee is so inept, stupid or crooked, he can’t even figure out how to pay his own income taxes. (Didn’t pay $34,000. Ooops ! An innocent mistake. My bad !!) And he is going to decide how MY tax dollars will be spent !! Yeah, Obama sure can pick ‘em. If these people were Republicans, Sen. Harry Reid would be busting a gut. Obama’s idea of “Change” is to change us back to getting our rear ends kicked by terrorists. He has more concern for them, than keeping us safe. I hope he takes the Gitmo terrorists to Chicago. They should feel at home there with the thugs Obama surrounds himself with. The only ray of sunshine I can see is that Obama’s mother in law is moving into the White House with Obama and family. She’ll probably be running the show. Enjoy it Obama.
Jan 17, 2009 - 6:17 am 28. susan:to the idiot at 26
it’s not my fault that you have nancy pelosi, kennedy and hillary by your side
however your lines makes no sense, I suppose your accomplishments are zero and your iq below it.
And I am being overly generous here.
Jan 17, 2009 - 7:28 am 29. Gilligan:Although I did not vote for him, I really do hope that Obama is a successful President despite his near total lack of experience and extremely troubling associations.
While we will have to see how things actually work out, the early indications seem to be that Barak Obama is an extremely ambitious man who made use of the people around him and spent almost all of his political career voting “present” and running for the next position up the greasy pole. Now that he is at the top, he will have to throw his most devoted left wing supporters over the side in order to have a successful term as President.
Whenever I hear one of our President-Elect’s content-free speeches I am powerfully reminded of this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHzM8XhNZ64
Jan 17, 2009 - 12:30 pm 30. Roberta:Instead of Obama providing a legitimate copy of his birth certificate he retained an attny: Joseph Sandler of the Washington law firm Sandler, Reif, & Young. Who is Sandler? He is a lawyer who has represented CAIR – the Council on American Islamic Relations and MoveOn.org. CAIR is a terrorist supporting front organization that is partially funded by terrorists, founded by terrorists, and wishes nothing more than the implementation of Sharia Law.
Ingrid Mattson is the first woman pres of the Islamic Society of North America which has ties to CAIR … she was chosen to offer a prayer at the Nat’l Cathedral on Inauguration Day – Jan 20th … how sweet it is, they won’t have to look far for terrorists. Keep your eyes up front, center stage … Who the hell is Barak Hussein Obama?
Jan 17, 2009 - 5:13 pm 31. baldilocks:“Is the president-elect more a breaker of barriers or the beneficiary of barriers already broken?”
He is more the latter, but, ultimately, he will be the rebuilder of said barriers. Or new ones.
Jan 17, 2009 - 7:44 pm 32. Liberty:It’s forgotten that Eisenhower opened doors for minorities:
Before 1953, the rare blacks who worked in government service generally held either foreign policy assignments in African countries or a few specified posts in domestic affairs that dealt with “Negro matters.” Eisenhower continued such appointments by naming African Americans as ambassador to Liberia and as an alternate delegate to the United Nations. At home, he named an African American as an assistant in the Housing and Home Finance Administration.
However, Eisenhower also appointed blacks to positions that in no way concerned racial matters and that previously had been held only by whites. J. Ernest Wilkins, a lawyer from Chicago, for example, was appointed assistant secretary of labor. In that capacity, he made history when, on August 18, 1954, he became the first African American to represent his department at a Cabinet meeting. Another high post in the Labor Department, the assistant to the secretary, went to Samuel R. Pierce Jr. Eisenhower also appointed Samuel Richardson to be chief of the Parole Board, a position Richardson held until the president elevated him to the federal bench. Archibald Carey became chairman of the President’s Employment Policy Committee and also served as an alternate delegate to the United Nations. Louis B. Toomer took over as registrar of the Treasury, and Cora M. Brown joined the Post Office Department as associate general counsel. Eisenhower even brought his considerable powers of presidential persuasion to bear to convince his irascible and racially unenlightened secretary of agriculture, Ezra Taft Benson, that at least one African American should be given a position of responsibility in the Department of Agriculture.
One measure of an expanded black presence–and of the intense restrictions of the past–is that, in january 1953, Lois Lippman of Boston became the first African-American secretary to join the White House staff.
…
But it was the selection of E. Frederic Morrow as the first African American to hold an executive position in the White House that best underscores both the administration’s genuine efforts to open federal employment to blacks and the ambiguous attitude of the president and the administration toward African Americans.
Ike in office
American Visions, Feb-March, 1995
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1546/is_n1_v10/ai_16769674
Jan 18, 2009 - 11:15 pm 33. David H:He is the beneficiary of barriers already broken, fact is I find it racist that such a fuss is made that a Black man has made it to the position of the POTUS, does race matter at all, after all Condi Rice and Powell were both black, big deal.
In my simple view it does not matter what colour you are, it’s what you think and can do that is important, and the problem is that what Obama may think is deeply worrying, the word ‘may’ is or course deeply worrying in that his background was deliberately obscured, we do not know what he stands for?
I personally cannot believe that a man who has so many unknowns and quite frankly many worrying contacts has made POTUS, a man whose church was some sort of Black supremacy church with links to the Nation of Islam, a man who is linked to the Weatherman terrorists leader Bill Ayers, a man who may not be even entitled to be POTUS, but that is another story…
However I am supposed to feel secure that Bush is being so supportive and trusting in Obama, a man who looked deep into the eyes of Putin and said that he could trust him and look at where that has got us, thanks President Bush, you make me feel so much better.
In France on Sunday 18th January we turn on the news and two days before Obama’s inauguration its already wall to wall cover, about this ‘historic moment’…, my wife and I look at each other in disgust and off goes the news.
The morning of the 19th January, cold of course, radio comes on, some Muslim talking about being produced by France, then another load of pap about how wonderful diversity is, followed by a load of simpering Obama love, off goes the radio. My wife heads to work, when she arrives she rings me, all they talked about on teh radio was diversity, we both make a pact not to watch the TV or listen to the radio for the next couple of days.
So here we are in Europe, ‘United in diversity’, more like ‘Disunited in diversity!’
In France we even have a President that suggests that the white race should deliberately breed with other races, what next forced marriages to enable this, personally I could not give a damn if people chose to marry a person of another race if that is their choice or if they find each other attractive, but the way this is highlighted smacks of fascism, same as so called positive discrimination, sorry what is positive about choosing someone above a better qualified person based on the colour of their skin or backward belief system, that is negative discrimination…
Excuse me LeFascists, Green Fascists and the like, I am not going to sit there celebrating your racist rubbish, “isn’t it great that a black man made POTUS…,” I don’t care, but I do care that a man who is possibly extreme left, a man who went to an openly racist church, a man who says what people want to hear, and lastly a man who mixes up something as important as his religion on TV is POTUS.
Hope and change, I prefer openly discussed and debated plans for developing the situation rather than putting my hope in someone like Obama, of course I may be proved wrong, but in 1997 the Labour party were elected on the basis of hope and change, that is hope and change that we can believe in…
Jan 19, 2009 - 12:40 am 34. 2178743:America’s demographics have changed little. Democrats lost the South, but were able to win the swing states. African American voters always support the democratic candidate in droves, which is quite sad if you think about it (seems like there is little independent thinking going on and has produced little for their cause). Why can’t white people be given credit for voting in a black president? White people fight a civil war, threatening to tear the union in two, and then over 150 years later vote in a black president. Still, white people are told they have more work to do. I’m sorry, but I think most of the work at this point needs to be done by African Americans. African Americans need to take a positive role in eliminating the cycle of poverty present in many urban areas, where broken families and crime govern the culture. Without doubt, the systematic racism against the black race began this cycle, but understand, white people are not going to be the ones who are going to break it. African Americans will have to do that on their own. Stop looking to Jessie Jackson and other people to “lead” black rights and start looking out for you [African Americans]. That’s how the whites did it. Barack Obama has no magic wand to end the cycle. The people have to take responsibility for their actions. That is how this country became great and the way it has been designed. If you look to the government to solve your problems, then your problems will persist. Government can only remove obstacles, and I believe that has been done in respect to African Americans.
Jan 19, 2009 - 5:52 am 35. H. Coburn:Sarah Palin a bimbo? Indeed she was weak on foreign policy, but let’s put this in persperctive.
Jan 20, 2009 - 3:51 pm 36. The Historian:We have a new chief executive who is on record as saying there are 57 states in the union and a VP who claims to have watched FDR, on television. What are their excuses? Bad acid or too many hits on the crack pipe? I wonder. One thing for sure we won’t get any answers from the new powers that be or the main stream media.
Think about the campaign finance. 740 mil, vs. 64, mil. If my dog and I had had the same numbers, we could have probably won the election. I descended from New England Puritans who came here in 1636. My dog, the VP, traces her ancestry to German Immigrants. We’re multicultural. Too bad the dog has no birth certificate and is only 21 dog years old. Too young to be 35, the minimum according to the constitution.
I look at today’s happenings, and cannot but think, why is Dr. MLK not here? And why did my great-great Grandfater rush Little Round Top in ‘63? Becase they belived in something in which I grew up believing in and do so no more. The American dream. Today’s American dream, grab what you can, and screw everyone else. 54 years of believing in my country. What a fool was I.
INAUGURATION RENDERS THE RACE CARD MOOT
This one was unique in many ways.
http://greensrealworld.blogspot.com/2009/01/january-20-2009.html
Jan 20, 2009 - 4:38 pm 37. caleb2510:Obama allows everyone to call him the first “black” and “african-American” president even though he’s half white.
If being half-white makes a person black, then being half black makes a person white. Underlying the antidiscrimination laws is the presumption that people can’t choose their race. But if you are half white and half black, you can choose to be black and take advantage of all the racial preferences and favortism. If Obama had chosen to be white, he would not be president.
Jan 21, 2009 - 4:21 pm 38. Cindy VB:the election had nothing to do with race.. it had everything to do with who was the candidate with a better plan.. and who inspires the greater confidence.
Unfortunately, this president is coming in at a time of real economic downturn.. not that is a real Bush issue.. economies are so cyclic.. the new president always inherits something they are in the end held accountable for..
I think Obama brings a lot of new thinking to the table.. and that’s what we’ve been missing
Jan 25, 2009 - 6:12 am