Politico: GOP sees Rev. Wright as pathway to victory

[BigMike619]

People only hear God Damn America. But if you listen to why he said God Damn America, and you might not be able to understand it personally, I agree with him, and why he says it. I've felt the same way. When I've been followed by the police and pulled over for nothing and multiple cops show up with dogs as if I'm some kind of criminal, hell yeah I felt like saying "God Damn America" then. When I was pulled over by a cop and he repeatedly asked me, "You have a record don't you?", even though he just ran my license. When my elementary school told my dad that black kids aren't as smart as white kids so you have to treat them differently, when my sister's high school told my dad the exact same thing ... then when he took that to the school board they said he was being sensitive. Yes, I can agree with the sentiment of God Damn America. When the block you live on is filled with drug dealers, and you see the police just hanging out with them and making sure they are protected and when you try to take that to the people who are supposed to make sure this doesn't happen, you get kicked out of your house? Yes, I do think God Damn America. There are plenty of black people who have been in similar situations and it makes them feel like racism in this country is alive and well, and no one cares. So I can understand his point, and even level with it. If you think he was just spewing hatred that fine. His words were definitely a little tough to digest. But if you look at the congregation in that church, you can call a cult all you want (but I feel like all religion is a cult), you can tell that the people who understood what he was saying agreed. Maybe you should ask what it is that makes people feel that way, as opposed to immediately writing it off as some kook who is just talking ****.

*Prepares for the ensuing ****storm*

Oh puh-lease. I have been racially profiled too when I am in an inner part of the city because I "must be there to buy drugs" and "what are you doing down here?" Ive had my truck towed 2 times because I was just "followed" by the cops and wasnt given the benefit of the doubt. Hell man, I was 2 blocks from my house one time.

But you saying **** like you agree with "God damn America" just shows that you arent handling it like everyone else who gets into **** with the law gets.

Sounds to me like youve gone thru some **** but you shouldnt blame the entire country and become racist towards white people or "the man" yourself.

[TheLongshot]

how is there any confusion when he is screaming "God damn America"? That sounds pretty clear cut to me. The man sounds just like a Farrakhan or any other hate monger out there.

When you don't hear the rest of the quote, where he's saying God damn America for killing innocent people. God damn America for treating its citizens like they are less than human.

Course, a lot of news organizations just cut that clip off at the end of "God damn America" and nothing more is heard from it.

Jason

[Fergasun]

SSM,

And those incidents are every single incident with white people in authority you ever experienced? You're not forgetting some 99.5% of the time when no one gave you any **** for the color of your skin? And when the rest of the 99.5% of us who live and make up "America" treated you with decency, respect, and compassion?

If you want to believe those incidents are "America", I'm sorry. Those incidents were wrong and injustice happened. Again, I hope in America that **** is not going to happen in 20 years (hell, even 10 or 5 years). But I don't see why you can't say, "God Damn those cops", and "God Damn those people..." instead of "God Damn America".

[BigMike619]

When you don't hear the rest of the quote, where he's saying God damn America for killing innocent people. God damn America for treating its citizens like they are less than human.

Course, a lot of news organizations just cut that clip off at the end of "God damn America" and nothing more is heard from it.

Jason

Oh I heard the whole thing and my opinion is that he meant what he said when he said "God damn America for..." he wasnt trying to be cool about it and it was taken out of context. He was on a Louis Farrakhan type rant and probably forgot that he was being recorded.

[BigMike619]

SSM,

And those incidents are every single incident with white people in authority you ever experienced? You're not forgetting some 99.5% of the time when no one gave you any **** for the color of your skin? And when the rest of the 99.5% of us who live and make up "America" treated you with decency, respect, and compassion?

If you want to believe those incidents are "America", I'm sorry. Those incidents were wrong and injustice happened. Again, I hope in America that **** is not going to happen in 20 years (hell, even 10 or 5 years). But I don't see why you can't say, "God Damn those cops", and "God Damn those people..." instead of "God Damn America".

Hell, every time a female cop pulls me over she messes with me and is meaner then any male cop. Is that an excuse to be sexist?

[Sweet Sassy Molassy]

Sounds to me like youve gone thru some **** but you shouldnt blame the entire country and become racist towards white people or "the man" yourself.

That's where you're wrong. Anyone who knows me knows that I'm probably the most tolerant person you'll ever meet. But there are times where I'm frustrated and I'm more than happy to have an open dialogue about it.

You also have to understand that when the country has such a bad track record, it's hard not to feel that even though there has been some progress, a lot of things are the same when you get treated unfairly obviously for the color of your skin, even when you're doing the right thing. The things I've said here are to shed light on the feelings that I know a lot of blacks in this country have had, even when they've tried to keep their head up through it all.

[JMS]

First off I don't see how this works to the advantage of Republicans. Not with Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson both saying to my mind worse and more outragous things about why Americans were responsible for 911.

Falwell and Robertson blamed liberals, abortionists, feminists, pagans, lesbians and the ACLU for 911. God was punishing us for allowing these people to "secularize America"..

http://www.snopes.com/rumors/falwell.asp

There are so many religous whack jobs burried deep inside the Republican infrastructure, they are the last people who will be capitalizing on this Obama story. McCain has put his arms around ministers who have claimed all Catholics are going to burn in hell cause they disagree with fundimentalists on issues of faith. Religous devisive issues isn't a good issue for Republicans.

I would also like to say that the pastor wasn't wrong in his reasoning for why AlQuada attacked the US. Osama bin Laudin has stated as much many many times. The US pursecution of Moslems both by proxi ( supporting Israel, and secular Arab dictators ) and directly ( US troops in Saudi) is why Osama attacked us. It's mind boggling to me that that statement is even controvercial today.....

Remember the video taped message from Osama where he was frusterated with the US for not understanding why he attacked... He said... "I didn't attack you because you were free, Finland's free, Sweden is free; I didn't attack them..!!!"

I haven't heard Obama's entire speech yet. I also haven't heard his pasters words in their entirety... But I have to say from what I have heard.. Obama is about several times the polititian and leader that I thought he was, and I thought he was the best poititian in this race before the speech...

One more point. The entire reason the Presidential campagn has now disintegrated into a debate on race to my mind was engineered. Clinton was loosing this campagn when it was based on change. She was loosing it when it was based on experience. She was loosing when she tried to make it about who is better prepared on day one to lead or who had better judgement. I think she's finally found an angle with legs which trys to focus the country away from topics which frankly worked to Obama's favor. Hillary isn't keeping this story in the news, but she definitely knocked over the first domino on this huge distraction away from the issues. Clinton's are smart as hell.

Fact is Obama has never been running to be the first black President. Obama has always been runnning to be an the first American President who happenned to be black. That's why it was whites who first got behind him and supported him in victories in Iowa, Idoho, Alaska, Conn, Deleware, Kansas, Minnisota, North Dokata, Utah, and Nebraska... Focusing the country on racial devisive issues is an attempt to draw the country away from Obama. Don't let them do it. When this campagne started a whole lot of blacks were still supporting Hillary. Obama resinated first in the White community. This campagne has never been about race, it's always been about issues. Let's not allow that to change now.

[Thanos]

Is that a question?

You are ignorant if you think that racism doesnt work both ways.

Not going down that road with you because you know better.Look up the word racism and then enter the dialoge like you have some sense and not the Ditto-head pyscho babble the right-wing gives out like mothers milk.

Every race/ethnicity can be prejudiced.That's a given but few whites are redlined into whites-only neighborhoods.Fewer whites kids are tracked into "special education classes because there are white and less is expected from them.There is classism and income based preducied and that is a problem and must be dealt with. But the whites face racism cry rings hollow.

[@DCGoldPants]

First off I don't see how this works to the advantage of Republicans. Not with Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson both saying to my mind worse and more outragous things about why Americans were responsible for 911.

Falwell and Robertson blamed liberals, abortionists, feminists, pagans, lesbians and the ACLU for 911. Got was punishing us for allowing these people to "secularize America"..

http://www.snopes.com/rumors/falwell.asp

There are so many religous whack jobs burried deep inside the Republican infrastructure, they are the last people who will be capitalizing on this Obama story.

I would also like to say that the pastor wasn't wrong in his reasoning for why AlQuada attacked the US. Osama bin Laudin has stated as much many many times. The US pursecution of Moslems both by proxi ( supporting Israel, and secular Arab dictators ) and directly ( US troops in Saudi) is why Osama attacked us.

I haven't heard Obama's entire speech yet. I also haven't heard his pasters words in their entirety... But I have to say from what I have heard.. Obama is about several times the polititian and leader that I thought he was, and I thought he was the best poititian in this race before the speech...

If the GOP wants to focus on that instead of Iraq and the Ecomony. Its their risk to take.

I think it will only reach the folks who weren't going for Obama already.

The folks who might be on the fence just need this picture.

[Tulane Skins Fan]

Seriously, the first thing that came to my mind when I read the OPP was Hagee... but I doubt that Obama would bring that connection up again b/c he just came out and said its time to move on.

[BigMike619]

Not going down that road with you because you know better.Look up the word racism and then enter the dialoge like you have some sense and not the Ditto-head pyscho babble the right-wing gives out like mothers milk.

Every race/ethnicity can be prejudiced.That's a given but few whites are redlined into whites-only neighborhoods.Fewer whites kids are tracked into "special education classes because there are white and less is expected from them.There is classism and income based preducied and that is a problem and must be dealt with. But the whites face racism cry rings hollow.

You are 42 years old and you speak like that? Whos acting ignorant now?

baaaaaaahahahahah. You are a joke for that right there my friend. You wouldnt intimidate me even if we were face to face so let's cut out the idle threats and just converse like grown men.

You're stuck on something that you dont know about. If you wanna talk racial profiling, it works both ways. If you wanna talk flat out "colored only" you dont know anything about that.

[Sweet Sassy Molassy]

SSM,

And those incidents are every single incident with white people in authority you ever experienced? You're not forgetting some 99.5% of the time when no one gave you any **** for the color of your skin? And when the rest of the 99.5% of us who live and make up "America" treated you with decency, respect, and compassion?

If you want to believe those incidents are "America", I'm sorry. Those incidents were wrong and injustice happened. Again, I hope in America that **** is not going to happen in 20 years (hell, even 10 or 5 years). But I don't see why you can't say, "God Damn those cops", and "God Damn those people..." instead of "God Damn America".

I'm definitely not forgetting the % of people who treat me with respect and never consider the color of my skin. But again, when you read the history of what was going on in AMERICA over 50 years ago, and you still encounter similar situations, it puts a bad taste in your mouth. I too hope things like that don't happen 20 years from now. But those things aren't supposed to happen today, and we're told that everything is "cool" today, but it still happens from time to time. I also think you have to realize that America is supposed to be represented by the government, so when government entities are so blatantly disrespectful, mainly because of your color, you feel like things aren't as good as you hope, and sometimes believe, them to be.

"You're not forgetting some 99.5% of the time when no one gave you any **** for the color of your skin?", I'm definitely not. But it makes me a little more cautious to believe things are as good as I hope and want to believe they are.

[JMS]

If the GOP wants to focus on that instead of Iraq and the Ecomony. Its their risk to take.

I think it will only reach the folks who weren't going for Obama already.

The folks who might be on the fence just need this picture.

You know, I don't think the Republicans are behind this. I think this is a Clinton maneuver. This entire thing started when Geroldine Feraro said Obama is lucky to be black... focusing the country on race. Sure Clinton disowned her, but Geroldine then went on like 12 national tv shows over th next three days defending her words...... Then two day pause, and we get hit with this seven year old video tape of Obama's minister speeking 5 days after Sept 11, 2001.

This entire exersize is an attempt by the Clinton administration to focus the country on race, and define Obama as the black candidate.... Obama can't win if he is narrowly defined as just a black candidate. That's why his campagne has never been about race. The last week or so and the next week or so, that's all his campagne has been about. He has handled it very well, giving a speech from what I've heard will go down in history as one of the great ones; but he must move on in order to be sucessful. Look for Clinton to try to keep him on this topic for as long as possible.

I don't think focusing on religous intolerance is an issue which works for the Republcians.

[Midnight Judges]

So, can someone answer me this because I don't understand as a white person. I wasn't involve in slavery. I wasn't involved in systematic segregation. I wasn't involved in lynchings. I doubt even my parents were involved in those policies. Yet in 20 years will the "black community" still harbor some deep seated resentment towards those policies? I really hope not, but I really want to ask members of that community why they would feel justified at holding this resentment and passing it down to the next generation.

I've heard the argument from African-American co-workers, "My parents didn't have the opportunities did due to racism." I can buy that, but if in 20 years when my son is 22 and one of his peers repeats the same thing, that's unacceptable. In that context, I'm not so mad and upset about what Rev. Wright said. I can understand someone living during that time and experiencing systematic racism being angry. But, in 20 years, if the same thing is being preached and agreed to a there is a large even minority (30%) of the "black community" who believe that they have suffered because of the systematic injustices of their grandparents and great grandparents, and they are able to carry some chip on their shoulder... that's your problem, and you need to deal with it instead of projecting it onto people who had nothing to contribute to it.

I don't know why you think 350 years of oppression and slavery can be wiped clean in 40-60 years. This is a monolithic healing that will take several generations. I think that is part of Obama's message. That one side needs to recognize and appreciate the real progress we have made, and the other side needs to recognize the real problems we still have.

I don't think it's safe to assume these problems will be insignificant when your child hits our professional workforce. To me, a good indicator are the organizational psychology studies that are done to truely see how race effects our hiring practices.

[BigMike619]

I don't know why you think 350 years of oppression and slavery can be wiped clean in 40-60 years. This is a monolithic healing that will take several generations. I think that is part of Obama's message. That one side needs to recognize and appreciate the real progress we have made, and the other side needs to recognize the real problems we still have.

I don't think it's safe to assume these problems will be insignificant when your child hits our professional workforce. To me, a good indicator are the organizational psychology studies that are done to truely see how race effects our hiring practices.

Keep living in the past and trying to get people to make ammends for something they had nothing to do with, thats the answer to it all huh.

You just need to understand that the apology is there for what my ANCESTORS did and either accept it or dont. But sitting here trying to condemn and throw it back in the face's of people who had NOTHING to do with it is just going to get you frustrated and strain any relations that may be able to heal.

If you are African you have held slaves in your history too my friend. You dont want that race coming back and persecuting you for something you had nothing to do with do you?

[JMS]

I don't know why you think 350 years of oppression and slavery can be wiped clean in 40-60 years. This is a monolithic healing that will take several generations. I think that is part of Obama's message. That one side needs to recognize and appreciate the real progress we have made, and the other side needs to recognize the real problems we still have.

I don't think it's safe to assume these problems will be insignificant when your child hits our professional workforce. To me, a good indicator are the organizational psychology studies that are done to truely see how race effects our hiring practices.

I think Obama's message is there are people on both sides of the race issue who are pissed, people who have reason to be pissed. That Barrack has close friends and relatives on both sides of this racial divide who he loves and respects but who he disagrees on how they address their grievances. Finally Oboma's message is, we are all moving forward together, and we are moving forward.

[GibbsFactor]

I also think you have to realize that America is supposed to be represented by the government, so when government entities are so blatantly disrespectful, mainly because of your color, you feel like things aren't as good as you hope, and sometimes believe, them to be.

Whoa whoa whoa.

Ever heard of "We the people".

The statement you just made is EXACTLY what is wrong with this country. No personal responsiblity. The government isn't supposed to represent America. The people are. The government is to serve the people. We citizens have taken a back seat to the all powerful government over the last 40 years and it sickens me.

[Midnight Judges]

Keep living in the past and trying to get people to make ammends for something they had nothing to do with, thats the answer to it all huh.

You just need to understand that the apology is there for what my ANCESTORS did and either accept it or dont. But sitting here trying to condemn and throw it back in the face's of people who had NOTHING to do with it is just going to get you frustrated and strain any relations that may be able to heal.

If you are African you have held slaves in your history too my friend. You dont want that race coming back and persecuting you for something you had nothing to do with do you?

Nobody is persecuting you or asking you to make amends, they are asking you to acknowledge our not-too-distant history. And you are acting as if this is too much.

I'm a white guy and my ancestors probably did own slaves. Of course I had nothing to do with that having been born in 1979. But that's not the point here. This is not about me. Or you. It's about our country and what makes up our national identity. We saved the freaking world in WWII and we get credit for that. We have some low points-that is part of who we are as well.

[JMS]

Keep living in the past and trying to get people to make ammends for something they had nothing to do with, thats the answer to it all huh.

If you read Obama's speech, that sentiment is exactly the sentiment which Obama acknowledges in white America. Frusterated white folks who see minorites getting ahead and being given opprotunities not open to themselves because of wrongs that they never committed. Almost word for word.

It was really one hell of a speech.

Obama acknowleded the issues on both sides of the racial devide.

[McMetal]

Frankly, if my ancestors were systematically enslaved by a country for hundreds of years, I would probably feel the way Wright does. Any black candidate could be linked to this sort of thinking-which is good for the GOP because we all know they won't be nominating one in our lifetimes.

Really, you would become an Anti-Semite because of slavery? What is the connection, I'm curious?

Wright is a black Nazi, pure and simple. He should be excoriated for the outrageous slander he perpetrates.

I'll NEVER vote for any scumbag politician who associates with filth like that.

[BigMike619]

Nobody is persecuting you or asking you to make amends, they are asking you to acknowledge our not-too-distant history. And you are acting as if this is too much.

I'm a white guy and my ancestors probably did own slaves. Of course I had nothing to do with that having been born in 1979. But that's not the point here. This is not about me. Or you. It's about our country and what makes up our national identity. We saved the freaking world in WWII and we get credit for that. We have some low points-that is part of who we are as well.

Then there needs to be admittance on both sides of racism. You go to those backwood towns in Alabama and black people hate white people just as much as white people hate black.

If I was standing on the same stage giving the same speech but substituting black people where white people are and making that speech how I feel about race I would be run out of office faster then you could blink.

[Midnight Judges]

Then there needs to be admittance on both sides of racism. You go to those backwood towns in Alabama and black people hate white people just as much as white people hate black.

.

IMO, those people are being reactionaries. And being reactionary to the worst elements of our society will not move us forward.

If I was standing on the same stage giving the same speech but substituting black people where white people are and making that speech how I feel about race I would be run out of office faster then you could blink

Also a reactionary stance. see above.

[JMS]

Really, you would become an Anti-Semite because of slavery? What is the connection, I'm curious?

Wright is a black Nazi, pure and simple. He should be excoriated for the outrageous slander he perpetrates.

I'll NEVER vote for any scumbag politician who associates with filth like that.

Yep, the critism of how Israel treat's the Palistinians and the guilt of Americans for sponsoring these acts, is the other shoe yet to drop here.

That effectively put's a stake in the heart of one of the two pillars of the Democratic party.

Black evangelical Christian or Pro Israeli Jews.

This really was well played by Hillary.

[Sweet Sassy Molassy]

I have a question. Who here listened to Obama's speech yesterday?

The follow-up to that is, if you did, do you think that what he said was wrong? If so why?

[Thanos]

You are 42 years old and you speak like that? Whos acting ignorant now?

baaaaaaahahahahah. You are a joke for that right there my friend. You wouldnt intimidate me even if we were face to face so let's cut out the idle threats and just converse like grown men.

You're stuck on something that you dont know about. If you wanna talk racial profiling, it works both ways. If you wanna talk flat out "colored only" you dont know anything about that.

Who's talking about intimitation? That's your hang-uip not mine.I could careless.

As for racial profiling ,give me some systemic examples of the reverse?

As for colored-oonly signs I've seen them with my own eyes as a boy in Sumter and Chowctow County Alabama as a boy.Long as so-called desegregation.

Try again