Letters to the Editor
Uncle Fester
Published Letters: 1346 Editor's Choice: 12
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More LBJ
[Read the article: Obama's speech on race]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]It is mischaracterizations such as yours that have led to this debacle of a primary, in which the Democratic Party has taken a big hit. There was a lot of anger, violence and fear when MLK was protesting and Lyndon Johnson was President. Hillary Clinton never diminished what MLK did. [...] you have to support fantasies in order to make people feel good about themselves.
Sorry, but I'm merely reporting the fact that people are living in fantasy worlds. That's why we have advertising. It's no more divisive than you trying to blame the Obama campaign for a mistake I believe was made by Hillary. It seems a tad more realistic than it's all somebody else's fault. Pick your poison. I'm calling them as I see them. I don't think either Obama or Hillary needs me to spin.
Try criticizing any of the founders for example, like George Washington and see what happens. Or any major sports figure. At first I agreed with you and thought what's the big deal, of course LBJ passed the civil rights act! But then I listened to the responses and I realized that something more complicated than mere history was going on. If Hillary can't deal with the existence of History intertwined with myths and fables, then she is in trouble.
Hillary was saying MLK was a dreamer while LBJ was a doer. She overlooks the politically sensitive fact that It wasn't possible for African Americans to be much of a doer in the 1960's. Then she implies that Obama is just a dreamer as well, and the country needs a doer. Some people think Obama can be a dreamer and a doer.
Personally, I like LBJ. He was an interesting dude with a lot of inner complexity, though he made a really bad call on 'Nam. Hillary does remind me of LBJ, in both good and bad ways.
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Perchance to dream
[Read the article: Obama's speech on race]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Our dreams don't have to lead to nightmare. They can also lead to hope and joy. But to be human is to dream.
So if I interpret your analysis correctly, I guess the bottom line is that we will continue to hold on to our fantasies and the misunderstandings they create. So much for Obama's words of hope. And I thought his supporters actually believed that stuff.
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A gamble, but also a challenge thrown
[Read the article: Obama's faith in the reasoning abilities of the American public]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]One could see this speech as a gamble, and I heard several talking heads tonight tsk tsking Obama for not throwing Wright under the bus like any normal, sane, politician. But I think for Obama, there was no choice. He decided to stay on message and defend his ground. Now voters will judge him in that light.
It will be harder, but not impossible for people to turn away and mutter it's just politics as usual. The hyper partisan will not have a problem dismissing Obama, but the vast majority may find themselves thinking about it, if only for a short while. That may be enough
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No more dreams of LBJ
[Read the article: Obama's speech on race]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Well, let's be more direct then. Hillary's candidacy is as caught up in myths and fables as any other politician, if not more so. That's why they hire all the consultants, image people, pollsters, etc. To Create Reality. Unfortunately Mark Penn hasn't been able to tell a good story this time around. I can see and accept this myth making in all the campaigns, and in deed in daily life, because it's part of human nature. You only want to focus on the crap coming from the Obama camp.
which significant and realistic concerns
Unfortunately, those significant and realistic concerns were packaged in a sour tasting wrapper. Why bring up LBJ and MKL and Hillary and Obama at all? Or let some snide reporter trap you into a comparision? Obama is no MLK. That's a long way off, if ever. And Hillary is no LBJ either, in terms of Senate or Executive experience. What Hubris! And who would want to be LBJ? The guy who told the senate no Vietnam war escalation was going on while he had already issued an order for an additional 250,000 troops to be sent to war?
None of this is my fault for pointing it out. If a candidate is clumsy, they are clumsy.
I'm sure there were much better ways to show how Obama was a dreamer while Hillary was a doer without dragging LBJ and MLK into it.
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LBJ still not dead yet
[Read the article: Obama's speech on race]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I never said that Hillary was racist in making the comparision between LBJ and MLK. It was just ill-advised, for reasons stated before. For the purposes of this post, being racist or not is out of scope. Has nothing to do with it, IM!HO
why should it be out-of-bounds It's not out of bounds. Compare away. But be advised that people have strong emotional bounds to figures like MLK, and they are not going to be rational about it. They are going to be sensitive to slights, real or imagined. Do you dispute this fact? It's really at the core of what I am (feebly) trying to say. I'm attempting to speak realpolitik, not political correctness, or debating rules.
I don't see why you guys need to keep dragging race into this. I think the same principles apply to any well beloved figure. It's pretty safe and legal to aspire to be like them, someday. If you claim you are as good as or better than the beloved figure, you're not going to win many votes. And it's perilous to compare and constrast them. I think this is human nature and is true independent of Hillary and Obama.
If you think race was injected by the Obama campaign in response to these comments then we have a disagreement. If you think the Obama campaign "told" people that the comment was "bad", I think you are wrong. I think they decided that on their own, rightly or wrongly.