The Obama Project@WindonWater.net

You inspired me, sir, to carry this exact message to others. Thank you. Let’s make appeals to bigotry a recipe for failure henceforth and forever.

http://www.exisle.net/mb/index.php?s=&showtopic=55136&view=findpost&p=1160892
More on Sarah Palin
Read Bob Cesca’s Article at HuffingtonPost

Amen! Please stand up and take a bow, Bob Cesca!

Of course the entire discourse just made me cry, and makes me feel terribly intimidated to even live in this country – I sometimes forget just how ubiquitous this stuff is and am therefore sometimes shocked by the feral viciousness I am sometimes confronted with.

God bless the USA indeed. I am hopeful that God does bless us to emerge victorious from this long night of cynicism, economic dispair, and racism.

QT
More on Barack Obama
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Some would wonder why I care more about racism than sexism. The answer is pretty straightforward. Women, while kept back from equal rights, and frequently subject to abuse, both physical and emotional, are nevertheless less likely in our culture to be killed because of sexism. People are more likely to be misogynist and STILL hire the best woman for the job. Conversely, black people are more likely to NOT be hired, and to be jailed and killed for being black. Women, though oppressed, were not slaves in this culture – unless they were black.

So yes – I’m sensitive to sexism, but I’m far more sensitive to racism. America is on the verge of its greatest moment – but the forces of darkness are rising up. For instance, look here, and here.

More soon, but this marks a turning point for me…

QT

I am not going to be very articulate – I’ve been browsing all the favorite sites to see what people thought, after having my own celebration of this historic event in my own quiet way.  I thought the speech itself was amazing – practical, down to earth, but with a hint of that soaring inspiration that everyone showed up to get.  Yes – I’ll say it.  80,000 people didn’t show up to hear a policy speech – they showed up to hear why they should have hope – and while it is true that Obama needed to be more practical, more nose-to-the-grind and feet-on-the-ground for this speech – he would have disappointed all those who showed up if he didn’t share a little bit of the inspiration his campaign has come to be known for.  People need a chance to believe in America again – this is a part of our collective self-esteem.

Chris Matthews, on MSNBC said,

I’ve been criticized for saying he inspires me. To hell with my critics.

Amen.  I have been loving Chris Matthews for his sloppy enthusiasm for some time now (that, and I think he’s way smarter than people give him credit for), and this is part of why.  Heck yeah.  Even journalists have a right to feel proud of their country – of their moment in history.  There will be plenty of time for journalists to do the journalistic duty of careful scrutiny, but that has nothing to do with one’s personal feelings.

On a Hillary supporter’s site – I saw yet another example of the perennially unhappy – looking for slights and problems everywhere.  Fortunately – the perennially unhappy were in the minority, while most others expressed, perhaps in more subdued terms than me, their satisfaction with the event.  I especially appreciated their critique – their genuine concern that this speech demonstrate “smartness” – what they saw in Hillary they need to see some of in Barack in order to have confidence that he won’t blow it and cost the democrats the White House again.

I watched the speech on BET – this was BET’s first convention coverage, and in celebration of all that this moment means to black America, I had to share it with them.  I still also taped it on C-SPAN, which has been my channel of choice during the convention.

I watched the speech with my son, who’s attention was often diverted – he’s a tween, and the significance of the moment isn’t lost on him, but it isn’t more exciting than his video games.

One person I didn’t watch the speech with, was my dad. My dad died yesterday morning. Perhaps fittingly, at 3 am I got the call from the hospital.  My father was a community activist, as had been Obama, and while he never sought political office (didn’t care for politics), my dad had a deep abiding interest in the welfare of black people in this country. He lived in one of the most challenging neighborhoods in Brooklyn, and was loved in the community, even in the end, when he had become so isolated from everyone due to some personal life choices and hard life circumstances. This would have been a day he would have loved to see, but I’m at least glad that he saw its advent.

Amen to the poster asking about the whereabouts of the screaming protests about the genocide in Darfur.

Here’s a HuffPost article refuting the charges: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/08/04/the-next-smear-against-ob_n_116891.html

and here’s a key quote:

“One significant problem with Hudson’s logic is that it requires comparing apples to oranges. The Illinois and federal bills differed not only in language, but regulatory impact. Critically, the Illinois version of the bill that Obama opposed was also bundled with other proposals that would have put doctors at risk of prosecution, which led the Illinois State Medical Society to oppose the measure along with Obama. The state bill also carried greater influence in terms of enforcement, since states had been granted greater leeway in regulating abortion practices ever since the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1992 ruling in the case of Planned Parenthood v. Casey.”

Critics of Obama state that the bill carried protections against overriding state law – but that isn’t the case – the bill that passed in Illinois, with those required protections – passed AFTER Obama had already moved on to the US Senate.

Simple to remember – a pro-choice democrat could not reasonably support this bill prior to 2005 – and Obama wasn’t there in 2005 to support the amended version.

Spread the truth…
More on Democratic Convention
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Jesse Jackson was caught on tape offering to castrate Obama for “talking down” to black folks and telling “n*gg*ers” how to behave. On The View, Whoopi Goldberg and Elisabeth Hasselbeck sparred over the racial slur, with Whoopi arguing that blacks can use the word while whites can’t. Ta-Nehisi Coates, speaks into the issue with well-appreciated nuance and good sense. And so, I tried really hard to think about where I stand with it all.

It is true that there is some nuance in which calling another black person “n*gg*r” is indeed a sign of affection. That is – I can conceptualize it. I can conceptualize it in a humorous content (the way the word “fool” can be used in a teasing, affectionate way), and I have heard and understood brothers talking to one another that way. And because I recognize the inflection, I don’t flinch or even blink when someone uses it. I don’t have any personal affectionate usages of the word – don’t hang hard enough to have acquired the street sense of the word. But I get it.

For white folks who don’t it’s easy enough to explain. There is a clear difference – CLEAR difference, between two women calling each other “b*tch* affectionately, and a man doing it. Unless that man knows that woman REALLY well, and there’s a high degree of trust between them, under no circumstances will the term be well received. (BTW, Elisabeth Hasselbeck was crying over the potential use of the words in front of children. I think that the majority of us, unless we are heavy on the street cred, won’t use coarse language in front of children, so I’d like to take that argument off the table. If we don’t use coarse language in front of children but do use coarse language – the sense of the word n*gg*er and b*tch that I’m using falls in the exact same category.)

So it seems very clear to me that this argument that no one can ever use these words EVER just because white people (or conversely, men) can’t use these words willy nilly is just silly – it’s the ‘reverse discrimination’ argument run amok. We all can conceptualize circumstances in which it simply isn’t an outrage to use the words – and no amount of whining from the dominant culture on the issue is going to change this fact.

BUT… as a Baha’i, it occurs to me that we are missing the point if we leave it to purely situational ethics. Religion purports to give guidance on right and wrong that transcends situational ethics, and it occurs to me that this is one of those times when consulting the scripture might not be a bad idea. The thing is – it troubled me. It troubles me to see certain white folks, who likely call blacks “n*gg*r” all the time, complaining that they can’t do it openly. Those type of folks – you just KNOW that they aren’t being affectionate in their usage. And, here was Jesse Jackson – also CLEARLY not being affectionate in his usage. He’s calling black folks names – and he wants to be able to do it under his breath, the same way racist white* people do, while complaining that Obama wants to encourage improvement for blacks. And – he gets a bye on the subject… because he’s black, and because we all know – we black folk ALL know, just how prevalent it is in the black community for some of us to call others of us the “n” word in a less than affectionate manner. We on’t like it when whites do it, because there’s an inherent threat of an overwhelming prejudice – but we fail to notice the inherent threat of internalized self-loathing – buying into the frame that says that black people ARE n*gg*rs, or for that matter, that women ARE b*tches.

As I thought this through – I called to mind a central teaching of the Baha’i Faith – that we are created noble, and that it is we ourselves who make ourselves less than that. The Hidden Words from the Arabic say:

22. O SON OF SPIRIT!
Noble have I created thee, yet thou hast abased thyself. Rise then unto that for which thou wast created.

(Baha’u'llah, The Arabic Hidden Words)

And that seems to be the crux whereupon this argument stops, at least for me. The term “b*tch” isn’t a noble title for a woman, nor is the term “n*gg*r” a noble one for blacks. These words, hurled at people to abase, have not yet proven to be capable of ennobling. This isn’t the Christians at Antioch – embracing the word “Christian” because they were proud followers of Christ. This is the anglo saxon for a female dog (funny that Islam is condemned for having some sects classify women and dogs as unclean, while we in the west call women dogs…), and the slurred adaptation of the word for black. Nothing wrong with being black – but the intent of the word is to keep blacks separate – apart from the human family.

So I’ve decided, finally, that while I agree with those who say that the words mean something different when people in the affected group use them, I also agree with those who argue that the words ought not be used.

I found a couple of other quotes dealing with language, and how we speak – and I wanted to reference them – just as a record of the ideal – that our speech ought to be harmonizing and uplifting, not tearing one another down.

44. O COMPANION OF MY THRONE!
Hear no evil, and see no evil, abase not thyself, neither sigh and weep. Speak no evil, that thou mayest not hear it spoken unto thee, and magnify not the faults of others that thine own faults may not appear great; and wish not the abasement of anyone, that thine own abasement be not exposed. Live then the days of thy life, that are less than a fleeting moment, with thy mind stainless, thy heart unsullied, thy thoughts pure, and thy nature sanctified, so that, free and content, thou mayest put away this mortal frame, and repair unto the mystic paradise and abide in the eternal kingdom for evermore.

(Baha’u'llah, The Persian Hidden Words)

Consort with all men, O people of Baha, in a spirit of friendliness and fellowship. If ye be aware of a certain truth, if ye possess a jewel, of which others are deprived, share it with them in a language of utmost kindliness and goodwill. If it be accepted, if it fulfill its purpose, your object is attained. If anyone should refuse it, leave him unto himself, and beseech God to guide him. Beware lest ye deal unkindly with him. A kindly tongue is the lodestone of the hearts of men. It is the bread of the spirit, it clotheth the words with meaning, it is the fountain of the light of wisdom and understanding.

(Baha’u'llah, Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 15)

__________________________
*Racist white people =/= all white people. I shouldn’t have to say that, but in this current climate, it’s important to be clear – white people are not all racist, and certainly aren’t all itching to use racially charged language.

Last night I was hearing everyone talk about how Obama made a mistake – that McCain “himself” never played the race card, even if some fringe periphery groups might have.  I thought that argument was sound, and then I saw this, from 2 months ago:

Now we know just who played the race card, and what was being talked about when Obama said “he doesn’t look like the other people on the currency.”

In looking at McCain’s web site I’m just stunned at how much of a disrespectful campaign McCain is running. Whereas Obama’s video section is LOADED with Obama making speeches, talking about issues, connecting with people, OR, about people connecting with people, creating a movement for change. McCain’s site? Childishly making fun of Barack. I had believed, until today, that McCain was running a parallel campaign as Obama’s and that it was McCain’s surrogates and the outside groups (with or without permission from McCain) who were being disrespectful. I now know differently. Nothing could have sold me harder against McCain that this.

Obama has to hit, and hit hard. The McCain campaign has determined that even flat out lies gotten out to the media will permeate the public consciousness. Constant rebuttal, unless it has more force than the original, will only become background noise. Now we know how McCain plans to win. Will Obama let him steal an election this way? Because I count this as more of a steal than a supreme court judgment. Running a campaign entirely on the creation of false impressions is a cheat to the American people, and I think we deserve better.

QT

Uhuru – African Socialist organization heckles Obama in Florida. For those who think Obama is socialist – nope! For those who think Obama is only out for blacks: NOPE! But he does address the crowd in typical Obama fashion, with cool, street cred, and a call for unity. Obama 08

read more | digg story

A pretty good article: http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-rodriguez21-2008jul21,0,1787991.column

I’ll quote this part here:

In the meantime, voters seem to be reading a whole lot of racial significance into an Obama triumph.

According to a recent USA Today/Gallup poll, about two-thirds of blacks and Latinos and just over one-half of whites agreed that an Obama victory would improve race relations. Blacks were the most optimistic, with 23% saying it would make race relations “a lot better,” compared with 13% of whites. Similarly, 85% of blacks said an Obama win would be a sign of progress toward racial equality in the U.S.

But does this mean that blacks would see a President Obama as a black leader who “speaks” for them, a leader in the mold of civil rights advocates? Asked who they would choose if they had to pick one individual to speak for them on issues of race, 29% of black respondents selected Obama. Although he got the most support as spokesman, 49% named someone else, and nearly a quarter named no one.

That’s amazingly good news to me. I’m thrilled to see stats confirming that black folks don’t think that Barack Obama is our spokesperson or savior. We like him, but we get it that he’s running for president of the United States…