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Obama Circling the Drain as the Pundits Get it Wrong
by John C. Dvorak
If you listen to the media, left and right-wing versions all the chatter is about Jeremiah Wright and his emergence into the public domain to “defend” mostly himself over accusations that he is a firebrand nutcase as the conservative Rush Limbaughs and Michael’s Savages would have us believe. If you are liberal you have to go with Obama’s evaluation: Wright is beloved but a little like his crackpot old white woman Grandma.
“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.”
So Wright suddenly re-emerges this week and again brings up the ‘we had 9/11 because we Americans are the terrorists and we get what we deserve’ screed. But this time he does it at the National Press Club (to applause it seems). Of course he blames the Bible for the idea. Yeah, this is helping Obama to the max.
So you have to ask the bigger question: why is he saying anything? He is single handedly sinking the Obama campaign and nobody can do anything about it. The pundits say he is grabbing for attention to maybe do a book deal. Perhaps, but has anyone thought of the obvious reason for all this?
Obama insulted him (disrespected, if you will) in that major Philadelphia speech about race by associating him with an old white woman who he implied was a little off her rocker. I personally do not like Wright from what I’ve seen, but I can understand his deciding to now screw over Obama to teach him a lesson about respect. And you can be sure that Wright didn’t appreciate essentially being called a woman. You become Jeremiah Wright for that moment watching that speech. What would you think as your blood pressure hit the roof? Most people didn’t catch the insult. Wright sure did.
This was a terrible slight coming from someone who was a regular at your church, one of the flock. This is a simple vendetta now, and nothing more. And it will end the Obama chances since there seems to be no exit strategy out of this quicksand.
See how fast it can happen? And, of course, Hillary is seen as the one who opened the can of worms so forget the massive black Democrat vote in November. — J.C.D.
mah… mass media is always wrong
JIM AND FRIENDS: Find a different post to discuss Palestinians…this is an off-topic thread that has nothing to do with the topic.
I know John, I tried to it keep on topic. Look at #30 and #42
“I just used that as an example of how the main stream US media always fails the US public. Looking at it from the outside, all you see is stupid tabloid news while the real news goes unreported or is twist to their agenda. The coverage of Jermaih Wright is just stupid tabloid news as far as I’m concerned.”
Bobbo and Mustard,
Wow!!! I think each of you might need to sit down and have a civil conversation. I know you are each capable of it (I have seen it). But something about this board and your different world views seem to prevent that.
Mustard: Atheism is not a religion in the classical definition and sense of the word. However, I can understand as I have met some atheists who follow a system of actions and ‘beliefs’ (so to speak) that it may emulate something that looks like religion. Especially when it seeks to make the faithful believer an atheist as well. The statement may be more relevantly stated as: I DO NOT BELIEVE in the existence of God (or anything resembling a deity). In truth an atheist can’t really address the situation in whole or at all (as this would negate the statement). An atheist should simply question what it is you are trying to talk to them about – to an atheist there is no such thing as deity or higher power.
Bobbo: I think this may be the extent to which Mustard is in thinking. I have seen many atheists so adamantly forcing the viewpoint of no deity onto others that they end up sounding like a fundamentalist religious ‘nutjob’. In this I can understand seeing religion in atheism. Now, many people also confuse atheism with gnosticism/agnosticism (I don’t know why but they do). These truly have not ‘picked a side’. The whole issue in the states is not easy to navigate. Prayer initiated by a student is not to be impeded. In the same right it is also not to be forced upon another (who may not want to participate).
Along both these lines – your world view and your logic and disposition are going to be placed along side of your faith or non-faith position. Hence you two differ so much. I find it intriguing and interesting at best and entertaining at least. How you got off on this line of digression in a political commentary post I still am working on figuring out. Nevertheless, I appreciate the viewpoints regardless.
PAX
Well, another threat hijacked to some other subject.
#23 – I think you called OFTLO “naïve” in his urging you to stop calling atheism a belief system?
Atheism is not a religion or an ideology. That is what I did say.
So, is it a belief system? Not unless “I don’t believe in sea monsters” is a belief system.
That said… Why are we talking about this? It’s like complaining about Jimmy Buffet in a thread about East Indian folk songs.
Is it really necessary that the ratio of Bobbo posts to everyone else’s collective posts be 1 to 1? It isn’t like you ever actually say anything. You just say things about saying things like a drunk philosophy prof from a second rate community college.
I love Obama.
……Every Republican loves Obama.
…………President McCain loves Obama.
Before you all judge Wright you should watch his interview on Bill Moyers Journal, completely changed my opinion of him.
Dvorak said: “He [Wright] is single handedly sinking the Obama campaign.”
WRONG. The O-man is creating much more damage than the Pastor.
Consider:
* Senator Obama is a man of very few accomplishments, other than getting elected to the United States Senate, and before that, to the Illinois State Senate. He’s done nothing, he has a wafer-thin legislative record, he wrote an autobiography about nothing.
* Obama’s own anthropological and elitst observation that Midwestern working-class xenophobic whites cling to guns and religion because they are bitter.
* Wright is just one of the three amigos: Tony Rezko, the indicted fixer; Jeremiah Wright, the racist reverend; and William Ayers, the unrepentant terrorist
* In the now-famous Pennsylvania debate, Obama had extreme difficulty answering questions about his associations and his judgment skills. The difficulty is understandable. Some of the contradictions are inexplicable. How does one explain campaigning throughout 2007 on a platform of transcending racial divisions, while in that same year contributing $26,000 to a church whose pastor incites race hatred?
* Difficulty with tough questions. The effect on increasing taxes was flubbed terribly during the last debate.
* He is endorsed by Hamas (Ahmed Yousef)
* Obama’s record on abortion is extreme. He opposed the ban on partial-birth abortion — a practice a fellow Democrat, the late Daniel Patrick Moynihan, once called “too close to infanticide.” Obama strongly criticized the Supreme Court decision upholding the partial-birth ban.
* When are distractions not distractions but, in fact, issues of character and judgment? Are they really just “Distractions” or failures of judgment?”
http://tinyurl.com/3evpng
Obama understands that the real threat to his candidacy is not Jeremiah Wright, Hillary Clinton or John McCain, but his own character and cultural attitudes.
[Duplicate comment deleted. – ed.]
Dvorak, I liked the “quote” on your tweet better; “Wright is a loopy old grandmother”, which IMO is more accurate.
Firstly, I am a white male in my 30s. I have always voted for a Republican president. I consider my political spectrum “moderate and a little to the right.” I have voted for one Democrat in my time. I have to admit, I think the conservative pundits have made too out of this Wright issue. I was not really that much offended by his remarks. Do I agree with him, of course not! But again, what makes our country great is that we can disagree without killing each other.
Reading Obama’s remark about comparing Wright to his granda makes a lot of sense. My parents (grew up in the 50s) still make comments once in awhile that make me cringe. I had heard many folks from that generation (about the same age as Wright it appears) make comments about race, that are stereotypical and just plain off-color. It does make them seem old and batty. The irony is that they think they are handling the issue objectively and unbiased without even realizing it. An example was when my mom told me and my wife one day about this “Mexican” woman who was rude in a store. “Boy, those Mexicans can sure be feisty!” I was embarrased.
If anything, Obama’s remarks fortify my belief that Obama thinks more like the younger generation in this country about race. I’ll probably vote for him.
#75–jbenson==wow! Quite a list. Do you have a direct link to those talking points?
In order:
1.–I agree. Obama’s experience is thin. Makes you wonder, if true, why he would have been against invading Iraq? I think the autobiography was about his life? Mixed race kid growing up?
2.–His statement was a bit more insightful than you express. Like any general off the cuff response to a question asked, not well considered. He may have just talked with someone who was exactly that. Surely some people do find comfort against the slings and arrows of life by turning to religion. Isn’t that what religion says it is expressly for?
3.–Guilt by association is always suspect. Not proven by mere recitation.
4.–Still on the Wright association track? Take too long to respond as would be necessary to lock down every loose thread, but in short, Obama has been exemplary in advocating the healing of what remains as racial divisions. Trying to prop Wright up is a tact against this effort.
5.–Don’t know about the tax flub. I assume he wants those who benefit from a program to pay for it rather than transfer the expense to later generations? Democrat tax and spend is far superior to Repugs spend and deficit.
6.–Hamas?==More guilt by association. What if they did that to sway the election to McCain?
7.–Abortion?==the great majority of Americans are against abortion but think the woman should have the right to choose. Even more Americans are against partial birth abortions==has Obama stated why he voted against it? as in, what else was in the bill? I think that bill did fail meaning the majority was against it as well?
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Even so, all choices are made in the context of the other choices available. Hillary? McCain?
As always, I’ll vote for the least objectionable candidate. If Obama can only be attacked in the way you have listed, this year, that is Obama.
“It isn’t like you ever actually say anything. You just say things about saying things like a drunk philosophy prof from a second rate community college.”
Quote of the week right here. =D
Dvorak is buying into the MSM hype on the Wright controversy. This is a non-issue in my book, forced down the throats of the public by a media that wants as much controversy as possible.
All three remaining candidates have religious people around them that are embarrasing their campaign. Hagee’s endorsement of McCain (at McCain’s request btw), Hillary’s membership in an elitist Washington DC religious group called “The Family”. Meaningless stuff, unless you want to make an issue of it to bring down the leading candidate.
#80–Sea Lawyer==I take that description as a badge of honor.
I’ll spare you the long version, but my lowest grade in college was in Philosophy.
Now you provide the punch line.
#82, It’s the Internet. Nothing really matters, except to those who take themselves too seriously, anyway.
Thank you ArianeB for your refreshing logic in a sea of israel/palestine sewage. If half as much attention was paid to McCain’s spiritual adviser repeatedly blaming 911 on gay people and tolerance thereof (!), a far less factually or biblically defensible viewpoint than the one that 9.11 was our violence bouncing back upon us, this would be a non-issue. And the Family. . .those people are almost as creepy as the Bohemian Grove; their beliefs seem to be a sort of elitist self-worship and self-aggrandizement, which is quite unlike the humility of the just.
I don’t think it will matter for Obama. His supporters will vote for him no matter what, they just don’t believe the news about him. Obama could be behind all this, setting up to bash Wright to get white votes.
Jim, if you think the subject is bogus and tabloidal, go to a different post. It’s not hard to ignore anything on the blog unless you click on it and go crazy.
As for those who blame the media for the attention to this non-event, ask yourself why there is so much pro and con interest? If there was no demand there would be no supply. If this was unimportant, then it would go away on its own.
That said, I wonder what Britney is up to?
And yes, the blog misses Alix and Keith Burel for that matter.
I just linked this to digg.com. I thought it was very insightful and provided me an angle I have not thought of. I just thought Wright was angry and wanted attention for his causes.
John, if the media operated on a demand basis, there would be nothing but UFO reports on the news every night; great for ratings. But they don’t do that, odd if ratings were the sole criteria. Despite this, and despite the good evidence that bimbo misadventures kill ratings, and despite the fact that Keith Olbermann keeps slaying the competition by being a contrarian to these trends, still they feed us this tripe. Why?
It couldn’t be that their real objective is the manipulation of the American perception of reality to meet the interests of their corporate masters, could it? Naw.
Even if you don’t like the author of this letter, please read it. It explains one of the reasons why Obama is actually much better than Clinton, despite them being nearly equal on legislation.
http://tinyurl.com/7oe8
Great post, John (BTW, I can check in on Britney for you…she’s a neighbor of mine here and home girl – we’re both from Weezy-anna. I’ll let her know you’re concerned.)
But I digress…my comment on this post was better said by someone else:
“The equal rights of man and the happiness of every individual are now acknowledged to be the only legitimate objects of government.”
Can ya guess who said that, kids?? But it don’t matter…John knows as well as any journalist that historically, the tallest candidate wins every time.
So, if Obama wins Demo, he’s taller than McCain…and thus…
However, if Hillary wins, the real story/question here is:
Is Hillary the same height as McCain??
::off to Google search::
Most of life and causation, including the media, is a mix of many things, ebbing and flowing, filled with contradictions.
Most discussions never define their terms. What is “media?” With 136 channels on TV to choose from, I never see Brittany while my kiddies see nothing but. Democracy Now has covered Rev Wright with a different take than did Glenn Beck. Same with talk radio which in fact beyond NPR, I don’t listen to.
Everybody can pick their sources, exclude the contradictions, and be absolutely right.
The organizer of that National Press Club event is a Hillary supporter. Shes also ordained so its a twofer she gets blessings in the now and the hereafter. For her Hillary effort though, its a mixed blessing, its enough as John points out to poison the black dem vote in Nov. The scorched earth policy will guarantee McCain makes it (barring any health issues for him, even a scandal however large wont stop him now).
The candidates weigh (height?) in!
Clinton – 5’6″
McCain – 5’7″
Obama – 6’1-1/2″
McCain better pray that Hillary gets the nom…
#91–Scott==great review by MM. His movies were also much better than most reviews.
Funny how you can take Obama’s gentle treatment of Wright as a character flaw or great strength of character==all according to what additional facts/values you wish to assume.
Add in MM’s letter, and I think it becomes more clear, its strength of character. Good thing he’s tall?
why is no one reporting on john hagee? a far more divisive character outright endorsing a candidate.
John,
We get both Fox News and CNN on this side of the pond. Both networks blasted the Wright story all day long ignoring or underreporting other more important news. If the corporate media are constantly showing you only one thing then of coarse there will be interest in it pro and con. That’s like playing a Britiney song over and over on the radio to make it a hit. This is the same media that sold the Iraq war. I just find it sad that America still eats it up.