Colin Powell: "reducing everything to black versus white is not helpful to restoring civility"

[Indigent]

From the New York Times:

In an interview Wednesday shortly after meeting privately with Mr. Obama in the Oval Office, Colin L. Powell, secretary of state under Mr. Bush, said: “You can find pictures where Bush was called all kinds of names, with all sorts of banners being held up and burned in effigy. I’ve seen it in every presidency.”

Mr. Powell said he believed that Mr. Obama might be facing even more apparent hostility but that the blame lay not necessarily with racial bias, but instead with the partisan culture of the Internet and cable news and the way they amplify the more extreme voices.

“The issue there is not race, it’s civility,” Mr. Powell said. “This is not to say that we are suddenly racially pure, but constantly talking about it and reducing everything to black versus white is not helpful to the cause of restoring civility to our public dialogue.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/17/us/politics/17obama.html?hp

[madeline_con]

1. Our public dialogue has become a raucous clamor of racist comments.

I'm not sure if Mr. Powell realizes the people who are the voices in this diatribe cannot be part of restoring civil diascourse. Civility is beyond them. They must be ignored, and a more rational voice heard above the din coming from the right.

[CakeGrrl]

2. Well General, I'm not so sure the black servicewoman who got beat up

in front of her daughter to the refrain of "you black nigger bitch" would totally co-sign your position, but you're entitled to it.

I understand the White House steering clear of this, but the public at large NOT acknowledging racist acts when they occur is not going to make them disappear.

General Powell, if you really want to restore "civility" to the national dialogue, try having a sit-down with Rupert Murdoch, Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, and Michael Savage and let us know how much progress you make.

[DavidDvorkin]

3. Shut up, Colin

I don't want to hear a word from you about anything.

[roguevalley]

10. agreed. he enabled a criminal and now he mutters about how

uncivil we all are? I want him in prison along with the others.

[DavidDvorkin]

18. More than one criminal

He was called in for the My Lai coverup and he was part of Iran Contra.

It's the nature of his military career.

[Aramchek]

4. it's not black versus white, Colin. it's racists versus nonracists

[EmilyAnne]

5. Why dismiss concerns about racism? Stop with the absolutes.

"The issue there is not 'ONLY' race, its 'also' civility" would have been a better way of saying that.
This isn't about calling names.
We aren't concerned about racism because people called Obama a "shithead" or an "idiot."
Its the monkeys.
The Africa shit.
Jokes about Obama's Kenyan relatives living in huts.
The African witch doctor picture.
Comments like "he's half white, but he's acting black for the blacks!"
"Colin Powell only endorsed him cuz he's black."
A sign at the 9-12 march that said "He had a dream. We got a nightmare" with a picture of MLK and Obama on it.
Get real.

Just because a person doesn't like Obama doesn't mean they are racist.
Obviously its not the only factor.
It is a factor with some people.
Once again...SOME people.
Not all.
Sheesh.

[ampad]

6. Agree

Colin has to walk a thin line on this one. He cannot openly admit that the party he once dedicated himself to is dominated by racist. Now how would that make Powell look? It make him looks like a complete fool. IMO, that is what he is and will always be, a complete fool. That goes for him, Steele and any other prominent black person that has ever aligned themselves with the likes of the Republican party. Funny because Powell knows good and damn well what this is all about. I read that Powell's wife asked him not to run for the presidency because she feared for his life. What is so crazy about this is the very people his wife feared are the ones that are showing their asses today. The very people Powell aligned himself with a few years ago. I respect the fact that Powell has had somewhat of a change of heart. However, IMO his quotes above prove that he is trying to save face. Too late for that because the secret is out.

[Alcibiades]

7. He heard some good intel that white Republicans

are all not racist, especially the teabaggers, who have only the best of intentions.

[NanceGreggs]

8. And reducing Bush-aministration lies ...

... to a speech before the UN as to why we had to go to war in Iraq was not helpful to restoring the truth.

Note to Colin Powell: Shut.The.Fuck.Up.

[firedupdem]

9. +1 n/t

[Indigent]

11. Don't forget, Obama grees with Powell

According to Gibbs, Obama disagrees with Carter's opinion that most of the animosity comes from racism.

[jonnyblitz]

12. and of course DUers claim he doesn't *really* agree with

Powell he just has to LIE and claim that he does for public consumption but secretly he agrees that everybody that criticizes him is racist *wink*. :crazy: they can read his mind apparently.

[Engineer4Obama]

13. Obama has to agree with Colin Powel

Personally I think Obama knows damn well whats motivating these guys.

[Forkboy]

14. He still hasn't committed honorable seppuku yet?

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

16. I have to admit I had look that one up. nt

[otohara]

15. #2 Liar of Iraq War

Shut up!

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

17. How helpful was going in front of the UN to give a speech you called bullshit the night before? As t

said try having a little talk with your boy Ruppert and his stable of hos before trying to tell us what's what.

[PA Democrat]

19. And how did the number of death threats against Bush compare to the number

against Obama? And how do the policies being protested compare? Torture, an illegal war based upon lies,destruction of civil liberties verses extending affordable health care to all Americans.

Colin's argument on this topic is as credible as his WMD speech before the UN.

[ensho]

20. who cares what bloody hands Colin the liar/traitor says

not me

and why in hell is he meeting privately with Obama?

[Raineyb]

21. You'd think he'd have figured out exactly where race plays a role in the discourse

after his "friends" turned on him for endorsing Obama.

I guess he's slow.

[GodlyDemocrat]

22. Putting aside the veracity of the attacks against Bush, Colin is right

The one difference is that many of the attacks against Bush were 85-90% right (only the far fetched conspiracy theories I felt were off base), whereas attacks against Obama seem to be only 20-25% right (some concerns about the stimulus - building airports in Nowhere, Alaska, and health care - concerns about mandates, potential lack of a public option, and potential cuts to Medicare, are valid).

[ProSense]

23. Powell's statement is ill-timed. There is a point, but not given the present reality.

President Anti-Christ




And that's in New Jersey.