Letters to the Editor
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So you refrained from mentioning the controversy as it happened...
...not even a short paragraph, not even a sentence, but after it's over you write the longest post you've written yet to explain why you refrained from mentioning the issue.
At the same time, you somehow managed to post teaser after teaser on Sptizer. He is resigning. No he's not. This time I really mean it. No I don't. Blah blah.
You crack me up.
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Disagree completely
We have Russert probe Obama for comments made by Farrakhan and Hillary replying
"There is a difference between denouncing and rejecting"
at the debate and Salon found it fit to make mention of it.
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Denouncing, rejecting at the Democratic debate 2/26
http://tinyurl.com/2qjy8v WAR ROOM
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No Hail Mary for Hillary 2/27 paragraph 5 "I have to say I don't see a difference between denouncing and rejecting,"
http://tinyurl.com/2tzgwm
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"We have Obama advisor calls Clinton a "monster," apologizes" 3/7
http://tinyurl.com/358ob4 WAR ROOM
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Obama advisor Power resigns 3/7
http://tinyurl.com/24ytul WAR ROOM
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Clinton camp uses "monster" comment for fundraising appeal 3/7
http://tinyurl.com/2y98t6
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Ferraro part of Hillary's finance committee repeatedly and a known public figure in the Democratic Party says something patently racist and you don’t think it’s worth going over because
“… I held off on coverage is that I think this whole thing has been overblown”
My stepfather who previously bought into the crap about Obama being a secret Muslim voted for him, he came around. He’s old and sometimes shows it and even he was appalled by Ferraro’s comments and said it was blatantly racist.
If fact the given passions seen over this show it to be far more important and not lightly passed over, some of these passionate people are Hillary supporters. Even some of them are disgusted by Hillary’s wan reply.
From abc news 3/11 http://tinyurl.com/2brzxt
In a relatively mild response, Clinton continued, "And both of us have had supporters and staff members who've gone over the line and we have to reign them in and try to keep this on the issues. There are big differences between us on the issues — let's stay focused on that."
Am I to assume that it is ok and fine for white people such as myself to demand that people of color “denounce and reject” racists in their fold, while us white folks can still make blatantly and patently racist remarks.
Do you know any black people? Have you spoken to them about this? Do you think they think this is NOTHING? And in your mind this is just “Politics is politics” and yet you seem to think it was fine to talk about Obama denouncing and rejecting.
Alex, you are way off base, you gave more wordage to your poorly written defensive rambling reply (clocks in at just under 2000 words)than actually doing your job and addressing such topics as
"...we just don't have time to cover everything. We also missed out, regrettably, on covering a good Wall Street Journal article about the NSA and domestic spying, and were a day later than I would have liked to have been on McClatchy's story about a Pentagon-sponsored report showing no direct operational links between Saddam Hussein's Iraq and al-Qaida."
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You don't get to tell me when I should or should not be offended...
Newsflash, Mr. Koppelman, African-Americans are perfectly capable of determining for themselves when they are, or are not going to gauge a statement by anyone as racist. On top of that they are more than capable of determining an appropriate level of outrage for ourselves. Your guidance in the matter is unwarranted and unwelcome.
As an African-American, I certainly don't need you telling me whether or not I have your "permission" (certainly the impression you left in this article) to be offended, how much I should be offended, or whether or not I've overreacted. You can quote all the Chris Rock you want, but you are not in my shoes, and you certainly have yet to walk an inch in them.
Ferraro comments were racist, and have offended a great number of my fellow African-Americans (no, not all). The Clinton's campaign CONTINUED use of race as a dividing line is problematic to say the least, and is forcing me and my fellows to reevaluate whether we can support her in the General Election should, by some miracle, win or steal the nomination. Thus, I don't think this story is getting ENOUGH attention, and if you have a problem with that tough.
I just re-upped with Salon for the coming year, and I'm starting to regret it.
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I Have To Disagree
While the data certainly indicates that race has impacted Obama's voter base (both positively and negatively, depending on the state), it's also abundantly clear that gender has impacted Clinton's numbers. There's a huge difference between saying "Race is a factor in this campaign" and "Obama's success is because of his race". Ferraro said the latter, and it's inherently racist.
Beyond that, though, much of the backlash was justifiably a reaction to Clinton's own reactions to similar incidents. Others have mentioned Powers, but going back a bit further, consider the Farrakhan incident. All Farrakhan did was make a statement in support of Obama, a statement that in itself insulted no one, and the Clinton campaign immediately threw a fit, insisting that Obama denounce Farrakhan. If that situation was guilt by association, the Ferraro incident was doubly so, and Obama's camp had every right to make an issue of it.
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MICKI, this is not about "playing the race card"
This is about how something like what Ferraro says affects real people's lives, especially well-educated, professional black folks.
I dread, DREAD, ever having to start a new job, look for a new apartment, etc., etc. You know why? Because no matter what my accomplishments are, what kind of education I have or what kind of person I AM, the color of my skin informs what people immediately think of me--that I'm slow, can't think, that I somehow coasted to where I am because of handouts.
To have a national figure like Ferraro give voice to this racist line of thinking is abhorrent. As many have pointed out, America's had plenty of Presidents with Obama's level of experience. Were they ever accused of only being in the position they were in because they were white dudes? Don't think so.
My definition of racism, from Webster's:
Main Entry:
rac·ism
Pronunciation:
ˈrā-ˌsi-zəm also -ˌshi-
Function:
noun
Date:
1933
1 : a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race 2 : racial prejudice or discrimination