Letters to the Editor
rphillips111
Published Letters: 222 Editor's Choice: 3
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was obama's speech enough
[Read the article: Was Obama's speech enough?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Public discourse has been filled with "race" for decades now. Obama, in the view of apparently great numbers of people, was raising himself above "race" to run a "race free" campaign. Now, he thinks it's time to talk about race. Just like Al and Jesse. But then, I have always thought his campaign was about race. As Geraldine Ferraro truthfully said, Obama is where he today because he is black--and because the media loves him, of course.
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Bomb. Bomb Iran
[Read the article: Bomb, bomb Iran?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]We have every reason to believe McCain is ready to bomb Iran, and so are Bush and Cheney. If there is not attack on Iran before the election, and McCain get's elected, you can be sure the bomb, bomb Iran option will be on the table.
The first real question is this: will the administration attack Iran between now and November in the hopes of making McCain the next President on a new wave of war driven patriotism?
The second real question is this: if Obama is the Democratic nominee and as the election approaches it appears John McCain is pretty sure to win, will Obama's forces play the "Threat and Intimidation" card. Will there be talk about taking to the streets, "burn baby burn", looting, etc. if the voters don't elect Obama President?
Will both the first and second questions be answered affirmatively this year? If so, it will be the disastrous result of the Bush war POlicy and the cultural revolution, political correctness, and "race" running together into a wreck of monumental proportions.
Right now, the odds for a wreck look pretty good to me.
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Shiral, yes McCain's a neocon
[Read the article: Bomb, bomb Iran?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Shiral expressed surprise at McCain's war policy, but he's been a warhawk forever. He thinks we should have stayed in Vietnam. McCain wants the draft back, as do a lot of liberals--for socialist purposes--not military.
Shiral, your reasons for supporting Obama are a little misinformed, too. Obama showed no "guts" in his early opposition to the Iraq war. He was a member of the Ill. legislature and came from an anti-war district of Chicago. When he had his big chance to oppose it, speaking at the Democratic convention in 2004, Obama did not speak against the war. Once he got to Congress, he has voted along with Clinton, McCain, and most other congress critters for the war appropriations. Had he been Senator from NY in 2002-03--Obama would surely have voted to give the President war powers, no matter what he claims now.
As for Obama's race speech, it was a masterful political speech, which excused Wright, and in which Obama voiced jusifications used by the reparations campaign. Like "change", it appeared to have something for everyone. As for eloquence and delivery, Lenin and Hitler were the most effective political speakers of the twentieth century--and the century's greatest monsters.
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You can't get beyond Race with Obama
[Read the article: Moving beyond Obama and race]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Geraldine Ferrarro was right: Obama is where he is today because of his race. And plainly in the Wright Speech he embraces his "blackness", while pointing out his mixed ancestry.
Obama regretted Wright's views. Indeed, claimed he didn't know Wright harbored such views. Then exused and justified Wright. Obama gave the fact and fiction litany of black grievances as well as Al and Jesse could have listed them. Does this mean Obama favors more affirmative action, quotas, preferences, and the reparations agenda? Will he pursue a more politically correct america? Obama ain't saying.
He also invoked class, referring to "working and middle class" whites who resent racial quotas, prefrences, and affirmative action and resent being called "racists" for in effect pointing out the truth about urban crime. Will Obama oppose continued racial quotas, preferences, and affirmative action? Will Obama use the Presidency to end the hysteria of poltical correctness. Obama ain't saying, is he?
The central dishonesty of the Obama Campaign is his use of symbols which appeal to everyone, but mean something vastly different to different constituencies. His hallmark buzzword--"Change"--appeals to a dissatisfied and disillusioned electorate, just as it did to Russia when Lenin ushered in communism in 1917, and Germany in the 1930s when Hitler ushered "national socialism" into Germany. By simply promoting "change" but not defining it, Obama fools everyone into thinking the change they want is what Obama will deliver.
But Obama ain't saying what his real program of "change" will be. He knows if he does, he will lose votes by the millions, and lose the election.
One thing we do know, the race is now all about RACE, as it has been for months now. Everyone who criticizes Obama is being called a "racist", and if McCain appears headed for victory in the final weeks of the campaign, threats and intimidations will come hot and heavy. "We'll riot" if "racism" keeps Obama from getting elected. You're a racist if you oppose Obama!!
Except perhaps for Lincoln's re-election campaign in 1864, we have never elected a President by threatening and intimidating the voters. I think this year might very well be the "Threat and intimidate" election.
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The Dalai Lama
[Read the article: Seduced by the Dalai Lama]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The Dalai Lama is the right man for this job, if there is one. We forget that Pope John Paul, the Polish Pope--and Mikhail Gorbachev brought the cold war to an end. The pope proved you can be spiritual and tough at the same time, and I think the Dalai Lama should follow that pattern.
China can't be whipped by the force of arms. But courage and ideas and tough spiritual will and the force of world opinion might move the regime--against it's will.
I have to say, though, I don't think it is smart to talk about stepping down. And I would be very careful to avoid assassination, which was tried on John Paul. And was successful in Gandhi's case--in India.
I greatly admire the Dalai Lama, without knowing anything about his religion and little about his country.