posted March 25, 2008
I get the distinct feeling that people attacking Obama now and claiming they'd intended to vote for him, but now won't, never intended to vote for him in the first place. They were just looking for an excuse, not a reason, mind you. Any "excuse" will do.
The same ones who attack Rev. Wright over a 15-second sound bite without listening to the entire sermon are the ones of the same mindset who despised Dr. King in his day, and went after anyone who even remotely supported him.
If anyone dare to take time to listen to Rev. Wrights sermon, a Marine and war veteran himself, I think I read somewhere, you'd note him addressing a list of America's sins that date back to the massacre of the Native American Indians.
Perhaps it's past time for America to take a look in the mirror and see why it has fallen from grace in view of the world. America, a nation that once propped itself up as a first rate nation for other nation to emulate when it came to valuing human life, and who took time to dissect and analyze before jumping into wars, is now seen as a bully around the world. A nation that's become arrogant, reckless and careless about war. A nation that not only devalues the lives of people of other countries, but doesn't even value the lives of its own citizens or those of its own it so recklessly and carelessly send off to fight and die in those wars. And that, good people, is the jest of Rev. Wright's speech. A man who so believes in America's promise that he was willing to preach a sermon on that big elephant in this nation's living-room, pooping all over the American flag (carpet).
Obama will survive losing a vote here and there, and will even survive losing the presidency if that should be. But the question is can America survive what it has become over the years in the eyes of the world? In the eyes of that "God" is proclaims to love and only want to "walk in His loving light?" A reckless, careless, bullying and arrogant nation. That's the way America has come to be viewed around the world. A nation that uses good deeds and charitable acts as a means to cover up crimes that would shock and disgrace a nation of savages?
Brenda Manghane~Washington
* * *
Ms. Mangane-Washington, America has faced these so-called problems time after time. We have used our tax dollars and paid for helping the so-called victims of these "crimes" time after time. Slavery was practiced by your African-American ancestors and still is to this day but that doesn't seem to bother you. I think slavery was abolished here around 1863. Africa has no more than a couple of corrupt democracies and is the poster child for mass murder and genocide. I guess you think they can teach us a thing or two, huh? By the way, I never owned a slave or discriminated against anyone so I don't owe you one thing.
A little study of world history would tell you that more advanced societies and civilizations replaced those not so lucky all over the world throughout human history. The Indians were killing each other and taking land from each other before the white man got here. They were just as greedy and evil to one another as we were to them. If you remember, they even took slaves also. People like Ms. Manghane-Washington and Rev. Wright would have you think we are worse than anyone on earth. That is just not so.
Who is first with aid and money for a natural disaster anywhere around the world? The U.S.A. Who treated its defeated enemies with respect in WWII, and spent billions of dollars to rebuild their countries? Which country welcomed the millions of legal immigrants throughout its history? Who sends its troops and spends its treasure on stopping genocide and murder around the world? The U.S.A. Who looked into its racial past and paid billions in welfare to help African-Americans overcome? The U.S.A.
The problem here is that Rev. Wright was caught making racist remarks which were designed to continue the constant racial brain washing that some black "leaders" engage in every day. That this hate filled whining was in a "church" is beyond belief. It is not ok for anyone to accuse a whole group of people for the acts of a few. That is the definition of racism.
Barack Obama showed that race was the most important thing to him when he made the absurd comparison of Rev. Wright's statement versus some relatively mild comments from his grandmother who raised him, loved him, and put him through school. Race was even more important than blood to Obama. This is beyond contempt. So he is not the one to preach to me or anyone else about race.
It seems that people like Ms. Manghane-Washington want us all to sit around the campfire, hold hands and sing together. The problem is that she wants to pick the tune. That tune is that whitie is responsible for all her ills and we have to continually apologize and pay for her mistakes. Well, that is just not going to happen.
Tim Price
Jat-55@msn.com
* * *
Much of the outrage, though under-reported by most media, has been over Rev. Wright recklessly claiming the U.S. created the AIDS virus in an attempt to exterminate the African-American race. Those lies are much worse than his political feelings and leanings.
Nathan Hickey
* * *
I am a white Republican and I say this without shame, although my party has as many faults as the Democrats. When I first heard the comments about Rev. Wright, I was shocked and appalled as much as anyone else would be. I was concerned as to why a man of God would make the statements that he did. I decided to do some research on the man that Sen. Obama confided in for so many years.
Just as Ms. Washington had indicated in her letter, Rev. Wright was indeed a United States Marine and served honorably in the Vietnam War. I was admittedly surprised to read this and it seemed to go against the anti-American image that the media and others have tried to portray him as. I find that to be interesting given the fact that many members of the current administration shirked their duty overseas when their country needed them most.
Ms. Washington makes another point when she writes about how many people who initially supported Obama are now revoking their support because of his ex-pastor's comments. So I decided to do a little more research. Since we are in the business of associating the candidate's views with those of their pastors', let's take a look at the other contenders in this race. During the campaign, I have never heard any sort of reference to Hillary Clinton's pastor. In fact, the only time I have seen her affiliated with any church was when she was campaigning for votes. Who is her spiritual advisor? During the Monica Lewinsky scandal, the only spiritual advisor I saw affiliated with the Clintons was the Rev. Jesse Jackson. Certainly Rev. Jackson has made controversial comments in the past, but no one in the media is saying that his views are a reflection of Hillary's.
Now let's look at the Republican nominee John McCain. It seems that he has a strong relationship with Rev. John Hagee seeing as he sought his endorsement this year. It is no secret that Rev. Hagee has made many statements over the year that could be construed as racially bigoted, anti-Catholic, and anti-Semitic. In fact, he has managed to offend every group on the planet with the exception of white Protestant males. On Hurricane Katrina, Hagee made the following statement, "All hurricanes are acts of God because God controls the heavens. I believe that New Orleans had a level of sin that was offensive to God and they were recipients of the judgment of God for that." Here's how he views women, "Do you know the difference between a woman with PMS and a snarling Doberman pinscher? The answer is lipstick. Do you know the difference between a terrorist and a woman with PMS? You can negotiate with a terrorist." Hagee even proposed a "slave sale" to raise money for high school seniors in his church bulletin. There is an entire laundry list of atrocious comments that can be attributed to this alleged man of God. It's interesting because no one is out there saying that John McCain espouses the same views as Rev. Hagee even though they have a very close relationship similar to Obama and Rev. Wright. I'm sure all of my fellow citizens gave him a pass because at least Hagee didn't make a comment suggesting that we damn America.
The hypocrisy that has emerged from this political season is enough to make anyone fatigued by the entire process. The thing that worries me more than the candidates are the voters whose opinions seem to be swayed by anything they see on TV. More and more, I find that many voters have become too lazy to do any meaningful research on the candidates for public office. Too many times, people simply vote by whether they see a 'D' or an 'R' next to a person's name. Rather than take the opportunity to learn about new people and new ideas, we hide in our shell of ignorance and point to snippets of news footage to support our close-minded views (this goes for both sides). Whether we choose to admit it or not, all people hold certain prejudices towards others. The key to moving beyond those prejudices is a willingness to learn and judge others on their own merits. Unfortunately as we come upon the 40th anniversary of Dr. King's assassination, we still have not learned how to judge a man by the content of his character rather than the color of his skin.
Mike Farrior Sr.
Ft. Oglethorpe
mike_farrior@yahoo.com
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