Unfiltered Opinion

If This Is True - Maybe Blacks Should Be Wary Of Obama

Marc Ambinder, an associate editor for The Atlantic has a blog that I enjoy reading on a daily basis.  I don't agree with everything that he writes, but I respect his opinion.  Yesterday, he posted a short entry on his blog entitled "The Edifice Crumbles?" and he the proceeded to post the following thoughts of an Obama supporter,

"It may be cynical, but I've started to think that Wright sees Obama as, in a way, a threat to his ministry. It would be difficult for him to preach that the government systematically destroys the lives of black people if a black man is sitting in the White House."

Ambinder then writes, "I know that many people inside Obama's campaign share this belief."

If what Ambinder says is true then many blacks will be offended and disappointed that members of Obama's campaign have subscribed to this tired theory on race in this country.  First of all, it does not surprise me that there are people in Obama's campaign that believe Wright views Obama's success as a threat to his ministry.  I would like to know the identification of those people.  I would be disappointed, but not surprised if the Obama campaign members who believe this were black. 

This unproven belief of some people in Obama's campaign is based on nothing.  These are the same people who will argue that racism is not that prevalent in today's society because a biracial male is on the brink of becoming the Democratic nominee for president.

There are many whites and some blacks who harbor similar thoughts about the media appointed black "leaders" like Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton and Louis Farrakhan.  They believe that Jackson, Sharpton, Farrakhan and others do not want racism to go away because its demise would make them irrelevant.  I am not a fan of some of their methods and commentaries, but a person would have to be a fool to believe these men want people of color to continue to be discriminated against so they can continue to be relevant in the publics eye.  Now if there is a way to make them irrelevant, please let me know.

I do not believe Wright or any other black "leader" is threatened by Obama's success.  I am sure there are some people who are jealous of the attention Obama gets and the "easy road" he has traveled to get to this point. I do not believe that Obama has traveled an easier road to his success.  I believe Obama has traveled on a road that many members of the "black leadership" are not familiar with.  Nevertheless, there does seem to be a disconnect between the civil rights leaders who cut their teeth on the politics of 30-40 years ago and the new vanguard of black "leaders". 

The bottom line is this - Wright was revered on the South Side of Chicago before Obama came along and he will be revered when Obama is long gone.  Are there people who wish Wright had kept his mouth shut until Obama was elected president?  Yes.  However, the South Side community in which Trinity United Church of Christ resides is not going to turn their back on Wright.  I know they want Obama to sit in the Oval Office, but I guarantee you that they will never trust Obama over Wright.  Trust me when I say that Wright's ministry and his legacy is secure with the people that he represents and that is all that matters to Wright.

Who Cares What Day Obama Went To Church?

William Kristol, wrote an Op-Ed piece in the New York Times today discussing Obama, his church, and Obama's new generation of supporters.  Kristol is under fire for the following paragraph:

"But Ronald Kessler, a journalist who has written about Wright’s ministry, claims that Obama was in fact in the pews at Trinity last July 22. That’s when Wright blamed the “arrogance” of the “United States of White America” for much of the world’s suffering, especially the oppression of blacks. In any case, given the apparent frequency of such statements in Wright’s preaching and their centrality to his worldview, the pretense that over all these years Obama had no idea that Wright was saying such things is hard to sustain".

Kristol is being blasted by the media for his mistake.  I think Marc Ambinder of The Atlantic.com said it best when he wrote, "The error is in trusting the source without checking". 

Newsmax has printed a vague and weak retraction of their 2007 story that Obama attended a Trinity service on July 22, 2007.  Newsmax says that the Obama campaign has informed the media that he was in Florida on that day.  However, Newsmax says their writer, Jim Davis, went to "several services" during July and witnessed Obama being at the sermon in dispute.  They are standing by their story.  Therefore, somebody is lying, but I could really care less.

Why?  Because I don't need an undercover reporter to tell me that Obama has witnessed Wright making inflammatory remarks.  Anybody with common sense knows that he has either heard Wright making insensitive remarks or he has heard about them.  The question should be - does it bother you that Obama knew what Wright's views were and why?

This answer will vary among people based on their life experience. Personally, I would not have stayed at a church service where a minister curses and uses racial slurs - I don't care what race the minister or congregation is. I have walked out of churches before because I was not comfortable with what was said and I will continue to do so.  I walked out of those churches based on my life experience.

My grandfather is an African-American minister with the Apostolic faith.  He began and still has two churches in the poor country side of west Tennessee.  My grandfather preached with same fire and energy that Wright and a lot of black ministers preach with.  My grandfather has also been the victim of nasty racist acts just like I am sure Wright has.  My grandfather has also done a lot of good community work just like Wright has done in Chicago. 

However, in all of the sermons I have seen my grandfather preach, I have never seen him use profanity, racial slurs and anti-American rhetoric like Wright did on those video clips.  This is why I have a problem with Wright because my life experience says a minister is not supposed to use that type of language at any time.

Unlike some people, I believe Wright has a right to say and do whatever he wants as long as he is not breaking the law.  My problem is with people who sit and listen to Wright.  It is my right to question the character. judgment, or intelligence of the people sitting in those pews every Sunday.  It is my right to say "how can you listen to that garbage?"  I'm the type of person who cannot be around, anyone, family included, who is negative, whether it be racist, sexist, homophobic, etc..  I don't care what your negative vibe is, but I don't need it in my life.  So I remove these people from my life and steer clear of them.   Life is hard enough already.

Therefore, I don't have a problem with Obama, the private citizen, attending Trinity and listening to Wright.  I am not affected by Obama's judgment as a private person.  He has the right to worship and believe whatever he wants as long as his judgment does not affect me or my family.  However, I do have a problem with Obama, the presidential candidate, attending Trinity.   As the presidential nominee, who could eventually be elected president, now your judgment will have an impact on my life and those I care about. 

I believe anyone, black or white who sits and listens to negative, racist, sexist, anti-American rhetoric whether it is at a Klan rally, Louis Farrakhan speech, or a church service is using bad judgment and has a character flaw that needs to be fixed.  This is my problem with Obama - bad judgment.  It is what I cannot and will not accept from Obama or any other candidate running for an elected office that will represent me.

Her Parents Must Be Proud

Check out this deranged email that was sent from a Barack Obama supporter to conservative columnist Michelle Malkin.  WARNING:  Do not read the email if profanity bothers you.  With support like this, now I understand why Obama is beating Hillary Clinton.  Her supporters are probably too scared to vote for her. 

In Fairness To Obama

In light of my comments regarding Senator Barack Obama, his church, Trinity United Church of Christ and its issuance of an award to Louis Farrakhan, I was told of a "fact check" page on Obama's campaign web site.  The site addresses inaccurate statements and emails that have been increasingly appearing over time.  I may not agree with all of the explanations, but I think people should at least read them and form their own opinions.