Letters to the Editor
sesanders
Published Letters: 308 Editor's Choice: 18
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Pointing the finger
[Read the article: Rev. Jeremiah Wright isn't the problem]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Rev. Wright's speech is important to many Americans and some of his demagoguery is extremely vitriolic. I do not see how pointing the finger and placing blame is going to help blacks in America. While it would be completely wrong to deny that blacks face many challenges in this country, it does them no good to go around with a chip on the shoulder. If Wright would use his considerable influence to preach that individuals should take responsibility for themselves rather than paint themselves as victims, he would be doing his parishioners a real service. After all, this is the lesson of life and it applies to all of us.
It was a political blunder to have Rev. Wright around if nothing else and for Obama to deny that he was unaware of his harsh attitudes when he had been a member of his church for twenty years bends truthfulness to the breaking point.
It is true that patriotism can be used as a bludgeon... certainly George Bush has been attacking politicians for questioning his Iraq blunder and our continued presence in that country for a long time. And America should do some soul searching about our affairs in other countries, but to point the finger blasting all of us for it in the way Rev. Wright did simply puts him in the position of being a chider and not a healer.
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To Weeping for Brunn...
[Read the article: Rev. Jeremiah Wright isn't the problem]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Weeping, my reaction to the Rev. Wright may not be an in-depth look at the man, but I do have a history with religious bigots and I don't like them. This comes from living in a very churchy and hypocritical town as a child. Out of that past comes my dislike of fire and brimstone being spewed from the pulpit...I associate that with bigotry whether this is true of the Rev. Wright or not. I am not a religious person and I resent preachers preaching at me. Some of Rev. Wright's comments may have been taken out of context by the media but Obama did himself no favors by trying to minimize his relationship with the pastor. It seemed false to me. After all he had been attending his church for twenty years.
As for America needing to look at itself and its foreign policy, I have to agree with Wright but I still do not like the language he used. It was pompous, offensive, and thunderous! Perhaps this is the way black preachers talk, but I doubt it. I don't recall that kind of language from Martin Luther King or Obama for that matter. It was a political blunder to have Wright in the campaign and it was a political necessity to run him off.
Patriotism is used by many hypocrites to hammer away at opposing views. That is an unkind fact and I suspect it is true in most countries. I do believe in having a world view that is inclusive and one which seeks understanding with other nations. Moreover, I like Obama's call for more dialog with other countries. This has been the one of the major failures of the Bush Administration and one of the principal reasons I want the Republicans out of office.
I am a political creature and don't feel the need at all to explore Rev. Wright except for his role in the political arena. I may even agree with Rev. Wright about many things, but his language needs tempering if he is going to be part of a political campaign where enemies can capitalize on it to whip up the right-wing base.
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In answer to Weeping
[Read the article: Rev. Jeremiah Wright isn't the problem]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I attended a very fundamentalist Methodist church in a small town many years ago. I don't know much about the church now, and the Methodist Church may not be like that now, but it was then...in fact, the whole town was that way and the leading church was the Baptist holding many revivals which I sometimes attended with my friends.
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This contest is not over!
[Read the article: Rum, Romanism and James Carville]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The Clinton campaign is not out by any means and Slate shouldn't be holding its deathwatch. I don't think Obama fans in the media really understand that Democrats are not ready for this contest to be over. According to Rasmussen today, sixty-two percent of Democrats say this is not the time for one of the Democratic contenders to drop out of the race. Certainly, that is the way I feel. In conversations with my friends, I get the distinct feeling that they are absolutely adamant that Hillary should get the nomination and a few of them talk about supporting McCain if she doesn't, citing the Rev. Wright affair as just one of their reasons, along with Michelle Obama's perceived ingratitude toward America. While I would never support McCain, I would be extremely disappointed and fearful if Obama were nominated for the simple reason that I believe McCain will beat him. The Rev. Wright flap is not over for Hillary supporters, more conservative Democrats, and certainly not for the Republicans who will use it as a huge propaganda tool if Obama is the nominee. Democrats are not satisfied yet and this contest is very much alive and undecided!