This is a discussion on Anti Racism, the media, and the African American experience.


Thursday, February 28, 2008

Barack HUSSEIN Obama - what's in a name?

At what point has an apology lost its meaning? At what point should we start looking at the aggressor as an intentional foe as opposed to a friend with a lapse in judgment? Should we assume that those in control of the airwaves or large organizations are not as intelligent as they’d like us to perceive them to be? They claim to be worthy of our trust in their abilities to lead, yet they continuously act in a manner that demands an apology.

So, I find myself in a quandary. There is a disconnect. Three of Clinton’s staff members acted in a manner that demanded not only an apology but in at least one case a dismissal. McCain’s staff thought it was wise to solicit the services of Mr. Cunningham as a surrogate for Senator McCain. And the staff of the Tennessee GOP thought it was prudent to distort the truth with hyperbolic allegations of anti-Semitic intent on the part of Barack Hussein Obama. In all three of these cases, staff was reprimanded, denounced, rejected and dismissed.

Were the leaders of the organizations sincere in their pronouncements? I have no idea because God did not grant me the gift of psychic abilities. However, the actions and non actions do have further implications that do not take a psychic to dissect.

  1. Either the leaders of these organization SANCTIONED the racist remarks or
  2. The “leaders” of these organizations ARE NOT LEADERS and are therefore not worthy of our trust.

It’s either one or the other and there is no middle ground. If these organizations were for-profit companies, these travesties would never have happened. Could you imagine Bill Gates alleging that Steve Jobs is a socialist? Or that he has anti – Semitic sentiments?!? It would never happen! Yet somehow in politics its allowed – even expected. And maybe that’s the part that makes me madder than ever. That America has sunk to the level where slander is a part of the daily lives of our leaders – that this is accepted behavior. And we follow along like the lemmings willfully stepping off of the cliff – without a safety net.

This is indeed the Washington that Barack wants to change. And so I ask, is this the America that I should be so proud of? Never mind the Rovian disgraces leveled against not just Dems but Repubs too; is this somehow okay?

It is time that we stop being so conservative and accepting of the status quo, afraid that change might be uncomfortable. Of course it will be uncomfortable. As a friend of mine used to say, “all growth is preceded by pain”. We can only hope that the same is true for America and that there is indeed growth after the pain.

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