Wabash
03-19-2008, 11:35 AM
Posted by Bobby Eberle
March 19, 2008 at 6:37 am
It was touted as a "major" speech. Facing criticism over anti-American hate speech from his pastor of twenty years, Barack Obama was forced to the podium to address the comments of Jeremiah Wright. Obama has built his campaign around a message of "coming together" and "moving beyond race." However, his speech did nothing to show that he, the candidate of change, has done any moving at all. In fact, despite specific words in which he denounced some of Wright's comments, the overall message of his speech was that Wright's comments were OK and that we just need to "understand" why he made them. Sorry Barack... you had your chance to move "beyond race," and you blew it.
On many occasions, I have written about race in America. (See A Personal Look at Racial Preferences and Diversity Essay" is Not the Answer to Color Blind Admissions). Those on the liberal left have done more to perpetuate strife between the races than they will ever admit... from racial preferences to "hate" crimes laws, the dream of a color-blind society has been swept away in favor of "give me something just because I'm black" mentality.
Obama's pastor has taken to the pulpit on many occasions and delivered, not a Christian message of "love thy neighbor," but a militant political message of hate. By now, you have likely seen the videos or read the transcripts. Comments such as "The government lied about inventing the HIV virus as a means of genocide against people of color. The government lies." and others such as "We nuked far more than the thousands in New York and the Pentagon, and we never batted an eye." are common place in Wright's rants.
However, what did Obama say about them in Tuesday's "major" speech? First, he made the following comments regarding Rev. Wright, a person Obama now refers to as his "former pastor":
On one end of the spectrum, we've heard the implication that my candidacy is somehow an exercise in affirmative action; that it's based solely on the desire of wide-eyed liberals to purchase racial reconciliation on the cheap. On the other end, we've heard my former pastor, Reverend Jeremiah Wright, use incendiary language to express views that have the potential not only to widen the racial divide, but views that denigrate both the greatness and the goodness of our nation; that rightly offend white and black alike.
Obama then added, "I have already condemned, in unequivocal terms, the statements of Reverend Wright that have caused such controversy." Rather than strongly come out in his "major" speech and draw a clear line in the sand between himself and Rev. Wright, Obama draped his denunciation around the comments made by others in an attempt to make the Wright comments on par with other statements of race. Nice try, but you failed Senator. Someone's (Geraldine Ferraro) personal comments on whether race had anything to do with your rapid rise in politics is completely different than a pastor's anti-American, anti-white, anti-Jewish, non-Christian rants at the pulpit. Obama should have nothing to do with this person, but he is so political that he is not willing to risk his "ghetto" credentials to say what's right.
Instead of saying that he will not be associated with a church or person who promotes such anti-American views, Obama spent most of the speech trying to defend Rev. Wright. He mentioned all the good things that Wright has done. He then went on to say:
I can no more disown him than I can disown the black community. I can no more disown him than I can my white grandmother - a woman who helped raise me, a woman who sacrificed again and again for me, a woman who loves me as much as she loves anything in this world, but a woman who once confessed her fear of black men who passed by her on the street, and who on more than one occasion has uttered racial or ethnic stereotypes that made me cringe.
Those are the comments that really made ME cringe. Those statements and others in his speech were not only offensive to me, but were so purely political. Time after time he tried to equate Wright to someone else or to someone else's actions to lessen the effect or to diminish the significance. Wright's comments needed to be addressed for what they are, but instead, Obama embraced Wright as a symbol of the "black community." In addition, equating Wright's comments delivered to a modern-day audience with those of his 86-year-old grandmother is insulting. His grandmother came from a different era and was not at the pulpit or on video delivering hate speech.
Obama goes on to explain the historical injustices perpetrated against blacks. He then adds:
This is the reality in which Reverend Wright and other African-Americans of his generation grew up. ... This is the reality in which Reverend Wright and other African-Americans of his generation grew up. They came of age in the late fifties and early sixties, a time when segregation was still the law of the land and opportunity was systematically constricted. What's remarkable is not how many failed in the face of discrimination, but rather how many men and women overcame the odds; how many were able to make a way out of no way for those like me who would come after them.
Obama then said, "In fact, a similar anger exists within segments of the white community." He goes on to give examples, but this is where his failure is complete. Yes, each racial culture in America has members who are angry, who feel cheated by "the man." And in the segments of angry people arise leaders to fan the flames of anger. However, those extremist leaders are denouncing by mainstream America, not embraced. Political leaders do not flock to side of David Duke, but rather they denounce his words and actions, and they separate themselves from everything Duke stands for.
What did Obama do regarding Wright? Well, Obama "can no more disown him" than he can "disown the black community." Wright may have grown up during racially charged times in America, but he is speaking to impressionable youngsters of the present. His words do nothing more than promote racial division.
Yet, we must "come together" and work for a color-blind society. We would be a better America for it. However, those who think Obama is the new leader of that movement need only listen to Tuesday's speech. Obama failed to be anything more than a politician trying to play the race card.
One final note... The really frustrating part of the speech, other than the words themselves, was some of the analysis that followed. All of the analysts on FOX News seemed to be like deer caught in the headlights of a "racial police" Hummer. They seemed afraid to say anything that could be perceived as offensive. HELLO!!!! The speech was so blatantly political and so easy to dissect and yet they let it pass. Obama made excuses for Wright and continued to play the race card. Yet he got a pass. That is pathetic.
http://www.gopusa.com/theloft/?p=676
March 19, 2008 at 6:37 am
It was touted as a "major" speech. Facing criticism over anti-American hate speech from his pastor of twenty years, Barack Obama was forced to the podium to address the comments of Jeremiah Wright. Obama has built his campaign around a message of "coming together" and "moving beyond race." However, his speech did nothing to show that he, the candidate of change, has done any moving at all. In fact, despite specific words in which he denounced some of Wright's comments, the overall message of his speech was that Wright's comments were OK and that we just need to "understand" why he made them. Sorry Barack... you had your chance to move "beyond race," and you blew it.
On many occasions, I have written about race in America. (See A Personal Look at Racial Preferences and Diversity Essay" is Not the Answer to Color Blind Admissions). Those on the liberal left have done more to perpetuate strife between the races than they will ever admit... from racial preferences to "hate" crimes laws, the dream of a color-blind society has been swept away in favor of "give me something just because I'm black" mentality.
Obama's pastor has taken to the pulpit on many occasions and delivered, not a Christian message of "love thy neighbor," but a militant political message of hate. By now, you have likely seen the videos or read the transcripts. Comments such as "The government lied about inventing the HIV virus as a means of genocide against people of color. The government lies." and others such as "We nuked far more than the thousands in New York and the Pentagon, and we never batted an eye." are common place in Wright's rants.
However, what did Obama say about them in Tuesday's "major" speech? First, he made the following comments regarding Rev. Wright, a person Obama now refers to as his "former pastor":
On one end of the spectrum, we've heard the implication that my candidacy is somehow an exercise in affirmative action; that it's based solely on the desire of wide-eyed liberals to purchase racial reconciliation on the cheap. On the other end, we've heard my former pastor, Reverend Jeremiah Wright, use incendiary language to express views that have the potential not only to widen the racial divide, but views that denigrate both the greatness and the goodness of our nation; that rightly offend white and black alike.
Obama then added, "I have already condemned, in unequivocal terms, the statements of Reverend Wright that have caused such controversy." Rather than strongly come out in his "major" speech and draw a clear line in the sand between himself and Rev. Wright, Obama draped his denunciation around the comments made by others in an attempt to make the Wright comments on par with other statements of race. Nice try, but you failed Senator. Someone's (Geraldine Ferraro) personal comments on whether race had anything to do with your rapid rise in politics is completely different than a pastor's anti-American, anti-white, anti-Jewish, non-Christian rants at the pulpit. Obama should have nothing to do with this person, but he is so political that he is not willing to risk his "ghetto" credentials to say what's right.
Instead of saying that he will not be associated with a church or person who promotes such anti-American views, Obama spent most of the speech trying to defend Rev. Wright. He mentioned all the good things that Wright has done. He then went on to say:
I can no more disown him than I can disown the black community. I can no more disown him than I can my white grandmother - a woman who helped raise me, a woman who sacrificed again and again for me, a woman who loves me as much as she loves anything in this world, but a woman who once confessed her fear of black men who passed by her on the street, and who on more than one occasion has uttered racial or ethnic stereotypes that made me cringe.
Those are the comments that really made ME cringe. Those statements and others in his speech were not only offensive to me, but were so purely political. Time after time he tried to equate Wright to someone else or to someone else's actions to lessen the effect or to diminish the significance. Wright's comments needed to be addressed for what they are, but instead, Obama embraced Wright as a symbol of the "black community." In addition, equating Wright's comments delivered to a modern-day audience with those of his 86-year-old grandmother is insulting. His grandmother came from a different era and was not at the pulpit or on video delivering hate speech.
Obama goes on to explain the historical injustices perpetrated against blacks. He then adds:
This is the reality in which Reverend Wright and other African-Americans of his generation grew up. ... This is the reality in which Reverend Wright and other African-Americans of his generation grew up. They came of age in the late fifties and early sixties, a time when segregation was still the law of the land and opportunity was systematically constricted. What's remarkable is not how many failed in the face of discrimination, but rather how many men and women overcame the odds; how many were able to make a way out of no way for those like me who would come after them.
Obama then said, "In fact, a similar anger exists within segments of the white community." He goes on to give examples, but this is where his failure is complete. Yes, each racial culture in America has members who are angry, who feel cheated by "the man." And in the segments of angry people arise leaders to fan the flames of anger. However, those extremist leaders are denouncing by mainstream America, not embraced. Political leaders do not flock to side of David Duke, but rather they denounce his words and actions, and they separate themselves from everything Duke stands for.
What did Obama do regarding Wright? Well, Obama "can no more disown him" than he can "disown the black community." Wright may have grown up during racially charged times in America, but he is speaking to impressionable youngsters of the present. His words do nothing more than promote racial division.
Yet, we must "come together" and work for a color-blind society. We would be a better America for it. However, those who think Obama is the new leader of that movement need only listen to Tuesday's speech. Obama failed to be anything more than a politician trying to play the race card.
One final note... The really frustrating part of the speech, other than the words themselves, was some of the analysis that followed. All of the analysts on FOX News seemed to be like deer caught in the headlights of a "racial police" Hummer. They seemed afraid to say anything that could be perceived as offensive. HELLO!!!! The speech was so blatantly political and so easy to dissect and yet they let it pass. Obama made excuses for Wright and continued to play the race card. Yet he got a pass. That is pathetic.
http://www.gopusa.com/theloft/?p=676