Letters to the Editor
logicalresponse
Published Letters: 168 Editor's Choice: 19
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self reflection
[Read the article: Ferraro wants study on sexism, racism in campaign]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The rest of the op-ed betrays what appears to be a continuing lack of self-awareness (or, for that matter, a consideration for the perception of others) on Ferraro's part. …The only racism Ferraro seems to consider is the racism she feels she was a victim of; she never stops to wonder whether Obama might have been the subject of racism. And she touches only briefly on the controversy surrounding her own remarks, writing, "I was accused of being racist for a statement I made about the influence of blacks on Obama's historic campaign," which isn't an accurate characterization of what she originally said. Moreover, she ignores any discussion of the role her comments played in creating the split in the party she writes about. In short, the desire she expresses to see these problems dealt with might feel a whole lot more genuine if she would have examined the fault on both sides, not just on the one she opposes.
The irony in this quote is that you do exactly what Ferraro said you would do; “The reaction to the questions being raised has been not to listen to the message and try to find out how to deal with the problem, but rather to denigrate the messenger.”
I am not a woman, but I agree with much of what is in Ferraro’s editorial. While I am not a Reagan Democrat, I certainly agree with this statement, “ If you're white you can't open your mouth without being accused of being racist. They see Obama's playing the race card throughout the campaign and no one calling him for it as frightening. They're not upset with Obama because he's black; they're upset because they don't expect to be treated fairly because they're white. It's not racism that is driving them, it's racial resentment. And that is enforced because they don't believe he understands them and their problems. That when he said in South Carolina after his victory ‘Our Time Has Come’ they believe he is telling them that their time has passed.”
What Obama supporters don’t get is that there is MUCH more going on here than just being bad losers. As Ferraro says, “Sore loser, petty, silly, vengeful are words that have dominated the headlines. But scolding and name calling don't resolve disputes. The truth is that tens of thousands of women have watched how Clinton has been treated and are not happy. We feel that if society can allow sexism to impact a woman's candidacy to deny her the presidency, it sends a direct signal that sexism is OK in all of society.” (my emphasis)
The feelings that Clinton supporters have about how she (and therefore indirectly, they) have been treated (I would call the treatment contemptuous) are DEEP. It is not just disappointment in not winning, it is a gut feeling that the umpire was not fair and the winner took advantage. If you don’t understand the magnitude of the situation then it is you who lacks introspection. This is not going to be easy to overcome. I am less irrational than many, and while I say I will support Obama, I have a very difficult time getting myself to be excited about it.
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@ jebldmm
[Read the article: Ferraro wants study on sexism, racism in campaign]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]@logicalresponse Thank you
Thank you for reassuring me that these issues can be discussed rationally and without insulting either side. I know I've failed at that at times, because I tend to react to hostility instead of ignoring it, although I do try to be rational. You have lived up to your screen name on the many occasions I have read your comments.
-- jebldmm
I suspect you are giving me more credit than I deserve, but thanks for the kind words. I do want to make it clear that my screen name is aspirational, but unfortunately not often descriptive.
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Obama supporter
[Read the article: What does the Clinton campaign's denial mean?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Get over the shrieking and thrashing. You have not been chosen. Go back to your carpetbagging Senatorial seat and refine your negative energy and bide your time in a Nixonian manner.
-- Gordon Wagner
Would you like her to take her 17 odd million votes with her? If so, keep it up!
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the four factors
[Read the article: George Soros explains the oil bubble]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]On the question of how much each factor contributes, the first thing to note is that there is a lot of cross correlation between the four. Peak oil affects the other three, the other three affect each other, and ironically, two and four probably inversely affect peak oil.
[pat myself on the back mode]
I mentioned number two in a comment some time ago.
[/pat myself on the back mode]
It is also interesting to note that two is really just a nice way of saying market manipulation. Three could be called manipulation, but given high domestic demand in those countries, it is not really fair to say that manipulating the market is the prime motive for the internal subsidies. Three is a good example of how globalization knocks the equilibrium out of markets.
[cynic mode]
Four tells us who will get bailed out instead of consumers this time.
[/cynic mode]
I would not want to be a whale these days.