oh my...MAUREEN DOWD? "Much To Do With Race-Some people just can’t believe a black man is president"

[kpete]

Op-Ed Columnist
Boy, Oh, Boy
By MAUREEN DOWD
Published: September 12, 2009

...............................

I’ve been loath to admit that the shrieking lunacy of the summer — the frantic efforts to paint our first black president as the Other, a foreigner, socialist, fascist, Marxist, racist, Commie, Nazi; a cad who would snuff old people; a snake who would indoctrinate kids — had much to do with race.

I tended to agree with some Obama advisers that Democratic presidents typically have provoked a frothing response from paranoids — from Father Coughlin against F.D.R. to Joe McCarthy against Truman to the John Birchers against J.F.K. and the vast right-wing conspiracy against Bill Clinton.

But Wilson’s shocking disrespect for the office of the president — no Democrat ever shouted "liar" at W. when he was hawking a fake case for war in Iraq — convinced me: Some people just can’t believe a black man is president and will never accept it.

more:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/13/opinion/13dowd.html?ref=opinion

[CakeGrrl]

1. Good. I'm glad someone's going there SOMEwhere in the media. n/t

[Hannah Bell]

92. unlike *these* someones, you mean?

http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&source=hp&q=obama+racism&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=uFKtSpHuKZHYsgPq3ImTBQ&sa=X&oi=news_group&ct=title&resnum=1

[Chakab]

121. Did you actually read any of those articles and editorials?

Or are you as fond of being deliberately obtuse as several of the authors? The majority of those pieces actually took issue with the people who are stating the obvious about a certain percentage of the vitriol that is directed at Obama by claiming that they are making empty charges of racism because they can't counter the "legitimate" criticism directed at the administration.

[Upfront]

123. See Ya!

Good by!

[Chakab]

124. Huh?

[anigbrowl]

134. An attention seeker...

...trying to imply that because of your low post count and his or her disagreement with you must be a troll who will get booted from DU. Ignore it.

[Clintonista2]

125. You going somewhere?

[Hannah Bell]

138. yes, i did. here's my count:

calling out racism

1. bill maher calls out anti-obama racism
2. cnn anchor don lemmon calls out racism
3. black publishers call for boycott of sc due to wilson's racist comments
4. afl-cio head charges gop is "exploiting fear & racism (x 2)
5. huff po says racism involved in taxpayer march
6. brooklyn eagle: media ignoring anti-obama racism


refuting racism charge

1. blogger decries gibbs ignoring left wing race baiting
2. raw story report gibbs says obama doesn't believe racism drives his critics
3. cnn: obama doesn't believe racism drives his critics


reporting on the racism controversy: no position or nuanced position

1. blogger reports on dowd column & sc boycott, takes no position
2. op ed news says gotcha politics shuts down the space for genuine discussion of race
3. politico reports wilson refuses to apologize twice & that wilson denies racism charged by "democratic critics", is factor (one line in article).


not directly relevant to racism controversy

1. you tube video of wilson refusing to apologize "twice"
2. blogger discusses wilson's pres bid
3. cbs: obama discusses health reform
4. msnbc: goppers think health reform violates free market principles
5. german

etc.....


if there were no one "stating the obvious about a certain percentage of the vitriol that is directed at Obama", by what rationale would the opposition be saying "oh, no we're not racist".

it's one of the dangers of using the label in ambiguous situations.

[calimary]

97. We should ALL be out there doing what our President said would be done if

these assholes kept pushing lies about health care reform: "we will call you out."

Well, why don't we just do it? I find myself already working on retorts to throw back in their faces - "gee, you sure have your panties in a bunch about that "uppity" (dreadful word that usually goes with "uppity" that you know full well they DEEPLY wish to use out loud and undoubtedly do in private all the time) actually being OUR PRESIDENT, don't you?!?!???????!!!!!!!!" Throw it BACK IN THEIR FACES. NAIL their ugliness to their foreheads so it's all the more obvious to those idiots they surround themselves with, and the vain, ignorant, surface-only schmucks who cover them in the media and fawn over their cutesy protest signs and turns-of-phrase.

As LBJ once thundered - when he was down for the count in an early election and decided the thing to do was sling mud and accuse his opponent of having sex with pigs: "Make 'em deny it." Besides, maybe if we bait them, one of them WILL use that horrendous word, have their "macaca moment" as some here have also said before, and the story will get out about it and the media will have to take note of it and then the true ugliness will be fully out in the open like an oozing pus pot for everyone to see. And they Won't Be ABLE To Deny It. It will be LAMINATED to them. Remember what happened to that pompous, arrogant ass george allen. One "macaca" out of him that got on tape, and there goes his ENTIRE political career. That will follow him around til they carry him out of church in a box and in every obit and retrospective that results.

I've always believed that "if you act like a jerk, you're going to get treated like a jerk."

Time to treat them like the jerks they are. And no mincing words, either. Call them what they are, and call this what it is: RACISM. FILTHY, REGRESSIVE, SORE-LOSERMAN, NEANDERTHAL, STARS-N-BARS RACISM. Btw - the "Confederate" flag needs to be re-named. It should be called the "RACIST" flag. PERIOD. Put THEM on the defensive and make 'em deny it.

And if, as improbable as it seems, they're actually NOT full-blown, full-out RACISTS, then they're probably just jealous. All those big fancy-ass words they use on their cutesy little protest signs - the ones with all the "isms" on the end - I suspect they couldn't offer you a congent definition of any of those words, but use them to make themselves feel (and seem) more intelligent. Perhaps they just have a complex that this man is smarter and better-educated than they are (HAH! How DARE he! Who does he think he is, anyway????), and doing more with his life than they ever could. Yet if Barack Obama used any of those 50-dollar words, they'd CERTAINLY shout themselves hoarse calling him an "uppity n-word."

We need to call 'em out. With EVERY breath we take. They're making this bed. They need to be FORCED to lie down on it.

We need to call 'em out. At EVERY opportunity available.

We need to call 'em out. If they're parading around with cream pies, we need to shove those pies directly into their faces and down their throats.

We need to call 'em out. They MORE than have it coming, and it's clear no one has applied the proper discipline or otherwise checked their shitty behavior so far.

We need to call 'em out.

And no one here need waste any time telling me that this kind of response "only makes you just like them."

FUCK THAT!!! The ONLY thing a bully understands is bullying - only you smack 'em back HARDER than they ever did to you. And if you've spent a fair amount of time cowering, caving, accommodating, or just trying to be nice and get along, it'll be all the more effective because they won't be expecting it, either. (Coming out of ... hmmm ... left field, so to speak!)

I found this out one evening at a family dinner with my in-laws years ago, when I finally got fed up and actually confronted my asshole brother-in-law for his constantly behaving like a cruel, unconscionable, arrogant asshole. I did it in front of EVERYONE at the dinner table after he had insulted my husband (his brother) one too many times, each time deliberately hitting farther and farther below the belt - and my husband had actually gotten up and left rather than make a scene. My parents-in-law, of course, just sat there in silence the whole time, and didn't do squat to correct their precious little obnoxious brat-child's shitty behavior. I wound up chasing his pathetic snarky over-indulged ass out of his parents house with his sniveling family scurrying after him. Yes, by then, his wife had joined in the dumping on my husband, too, and the parents-in-law STILL sat there like lumps in the mashed potatoes and said nothing. My outburst sent his wife and kids scurring abruptly out the door, their tails between their legs 'cause they just didn't know what had hit them. The track record of everyone around him, coddling him and fawning over him for years as the family golden boy, and never checking his bad behavior or his shitty, arrogant, imperious superiority-complex, left him and his family ill-equipped to deal with a big fat sloppy reality pie straight in the face. Evidently no one had ever dared to call him out before, which I finally did - after TWICE asking him nicely to stop, mind you (which he didn't). Well, I just decided I had had ENOUGH and screeched at him at the top of my lungs to "SHUT UP!!!!!!", thus shaming him in front of everyone at table, from his kids to his parents - and MY kids, too. It became instantly clear to me that the main problem with this cocky bastard was that no one in his life had ever told him to shut up before, or otherwise checked his shitty attitude. I just wasn't gonna take it anymore. He's cowered from me ever since.

Know what? I'd do it again in a heartbeat, given half a chance!!!!!! He had it coming - BIGTIME. No, GARGANTUANTIME. COLLOSALTIME. BIGGER-THAN-ALL-OUTDOORSTIME.

Know what else? It felt REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAALLLLLLLYYY good, too!!!!!!!

Most importantly he's never made that mistake again - to diss my husband like that in front of everybody. He got it back in the ass. He's avoided me like the plague he obviously thinks I am. GOOD. Hey brother-in-law, wherever you are, I'm ALL of the plagues of Egypt in the Book of Exodus to you, honey. And PROUD of it, too! Until you finally decide to join the human race again and be civil. Oh yeah, and you owe my husband, your brother, a MAJOR LEAGUE apology (also to your children for the way you taught them that acting like an asshole because the father they love and look up to does it without even blinking).

I think all the knuckle-dragging schmucks out there who would continue to try to delegitimize our duly-elected, brilliant, honest, and noble President need a good dose of that same kind of swift, intense, punitive disrespect, in public AND up the ass. They're behaving like jerks. They need to be treated as such. There MUST be consequences for their bad behavior and worse attitudes. Until and unless they change (and I'm not holding my breath for that).

Sorry for the length of the rant, and the heat of it, too, but these people just boil my onions. They do bring out the worst in me, which is all the more reason why I wish to give it all back to 'em. With a nice big fat cherry on top.

Barack Obama has talked eloquently about reaching out with an open hand - and continuing to do so, hopefully to be met by other open hands instead of fists. But these people have responded FROM THE OUTSET with nothing BUT fists. I think open-hand time is over.

[Swamp Rat]

2. k&r

[BlancheSplanchnik]

58. I'm tempted to print that out for some people

where I work.

Hate radio fans in one of our public offices....I asked for a meeting with the Diversity Committee and the Women's Center about it. Will be seeing them Monday.

as always, :yourock:

[Swamp Rat]

75. Be my guest

It is a photo I found at Rash Limpball's website, and subsequently vandalized (satirized) :D

[Ikonoklast]

84. What did you do to change the original pic, Swampy?

Must be extremely subtle, I just can't see anything that you may have changed.


:shrug: :rofl:

[BlancheSplanchnik]

107. Gaahhhh haaah ahahah, this one's even funnier!

AWESOME! I don't recognize all those nasty faces, though. anyway, Damn, it's just perfect!


btw, Haaahahahha again! re. Rash Limpballs. That's what I call that tin-plated turd too!

[Nay]

100. I did the same with the in-house tech helpline where I work. Glen Beck

on the radio in the background, turned up loudly so everyone on the other end could hear the ignorance. I got THAT shut down pretty damn quick with a snippy letter to the tech supervisor.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

106. Yay!

Good for you! The small things do add up, and the more of us who get our nerve up to do it, the better.

I may not be a leader of great throngs of people, but I can do something in my little world! :D

[tiny elvis]

73. blazing saddles

gabby johnson: the sheriff is a n...

[Swamp Rat]

76. I love Mel Brooks

:D

[BrklynLiberal]

132. EXCELLENT!!!!

[wroberts189]

3. knr

[falcon97]

4. Terrific column.

Sometimes I'm not sure where Maureen Dowd is coming from, but she's on the mark here.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

5. Good editorial

I might add that I did my Army basic training in Fort Jackson South Carolina. That state has a rather large black population. This shit could bite people like Joe Wilson on the ass.

[jeffbr]

12. Time for black South Carolinians to rise up

[NOLALady]

26. Time for the sane and rational

black and white South Carolinians to rise up.

[mwb970]

32. I am curious as to what proportion of SC residents are sane.

The wacked-out actions of people from that state make me wonder if it might be our "craziest state" politically. Are more than 50% of them unhinged? Or is Oklahoma worse, percentage-wise?

[GoCubsGo]

47. Hard to say...

I'm in South Carolina. There are a large proportion of the batshit crazy here. However, in recent years, they have been diluted with a large influx of northerners who are moving here to retire, or to take advantage of cheap land and lower taxes. Many of the latter are republicans, but they're more the Susan Collins-type rethugs. I don't think Oklahoma is seeing that sort of thing.

[calimary]

78. I hope it does.

How long do we have to stand for their shit?

[Cha]

6. Oh the irony of a Southern Bigot

like joe wilson having to apologize to a Black President of the United States of America.

[Parker CA]

7. Glad to see some issues touched upon that others have thus far skirted. I liked the "loco fringe"

line, although it struck me as uncharacteristic of her tone.

[Orrex]

8. We must be due for a total solar eclipse or something

Dowd pens a good column about that often.


Still, she got it right this time, so I'm happy to K&R this thread!

[Cha]

9. I just caught this..

"For two centuries, the South has feared a takeover by blacks or the feds. In Obama, they have both."

President Obama won the Dem South Carolina Primary:patriot:

[jeffbr]

10. “In South Carolina politics, I learned that the olive branch works very seldom”

The olive branch doesn't work in Washington either. Time to kick ass.

[calimary]

79. Hear, hear! I wish they'd pay attention in the White House.

Taking the high road is gonna take them straight over a cliff.

They should have learned that observing how our side was SO effective impeaching and removing bush/cheney. :sarcasm:

Oh, sorry! I just remembered. They're the ones who wanna go easy on prosecutions now, too.

:banghead:

[grassfed]

11. kick

[spanone]

13. k&r.....

[Frustratedlady]

14. I'm glad Dowd voiced what many have been thinking, but were afraid to put into words.

She is spot on with this column.

I believe Boehner was quoted as saying he didn't want to be lectured by Obama during his speech. I believe that beyond Obama being Black, he is also young. I'm sure it burns them no end to have Obama tell them how things are going to be. Young whippersnapper, among other tags.

I don't see an easy solution, so perhaps it's time to just march on, get the job done and let the Repugs flounder in their own slime. I'm sick of it.

I feel so sorry for the Obama family. How they have kept their dignity through all that has been thrown at them is beyond me. Not one single person in that family deserves this kind of treatment and those handing it out should be shunned.

K&R

[jwirr]

24. You can tell that they are highly effected by these actions. We do not

see the children so much. It must be especially hard for them.

[pokercat999]

40. "Time to just march on and get the job done" Yes but what job.

Extend the war in Iraq, escalate the war in Afghanistan, give up on the public option and give a huge windfall to the health insurance industry?

Ms. Dowd is absolutely correct in her assessment of wilson's attack and the same could be said for the republican radio of Limbaugh, Beck and the others.

I question what the hell is happening with the strong lurch to the right by this administration or were they always two steps to the right of center an I just couldn't see it?

[Mari333]

41. +1

[Nay]

101. What job, indeed. I feel sorry for Obama and voted happily for him,

but he will be a one-term president if he keeps on as he has been. I was appalled at all the rightward-leaning ppl he appointed, and wondered where were the far-left appointees, if we wanted to be so bipartisan?

I have come to the reluctant conclusion that one of these things is happening:

1. He was always a sellout only looking out for himself, and has no problem screwing us over
2. The PTB will not allow anything but more shoveling of money toward the rich, and Obama has been told in no uncertain terms he will be destroyed if he doesn't go with the program.
3. He was always more of a rightist than I saw, and has little problem with doing rightist things.

[BlueIdaho]

15. Its bloody well about time!

I wonder when some of the other news hawks will start speaking the truth about what's really going on with these hateriots.

I'm afraid most of them are far too busy falling in love with their own face in the mirror to act like real journalists.

[BOG PERSON]

16. This is worth highlighting:

"no Democrat ever shouted "liar" at W. when he was hawking a fake case for war in Iraq"

Why is that I wonder.

[caseymoz]

119. Possibly because they respected the office-- when it's occupied by a white repub.

They knew that they would probably be suffering a prosecutor's attention for the rest of their terms and unceasing persecution by the press. Joe Wilson will suffer only a tenth of that. I am very startled, however, that this story has even been allowed to live this long.

[DainBramaged]

17. "The Other, a foreigner, socialist, fascist, Marxist, racist, Commie, Nazi;"

The tooth holers just don't have the balls to outright call him the 'N' word and admit their racism, so they use words they don't understand.

[malaise]

34. I'm waiting to see which of them will use the N word first

One of them will soon and very soon.

[LibDemAlways]

53. They no doubt use it all the time when they're sure the microphones

are off. But sooner or later someone's going to trip up and it will be caught on video - a Macaca moment waiting to happen.

[MonkeyMama]

36. I agree. I've been saying this whole time

that if they could just go ahead and call him what they really want to call him, they could quit with the euphamisms. It's all just code.

[caseymoz]

120. I actually believe that many of them think they aren't motivated by racism.

No, it's completely rational to think that Obama doesn't turn over his "real" birth certificate because he is actually foreign born, and how do they so strongly suspect he isn't American born? And here's where they'll begin to talk around it or call him by his middle name.

[jeffbr]

18. A black man has nothing to gain by being nice to the racists who want him dead

[Nay]

102. Ain't that the truth. They're gonna try to hang him no matter what, so

if I were Obama, I'd be in their faces daily, and I wouldn't be nice about it. It's about time we put these racists back in the backwaters where they came from.

[KT2000]

19. Don Lemon on CNN

brought this up today. He said people are talking about this and it is th eelephant in the room.
Head of FL GOP and David Sirota discussed it. Sirota was great.
Lemon did not let the GOP guy off the hook.
Glad is being brought out into the open.

[goclark]

38. Don Lemon is excellent IMO ~

[gateley]

136. Ditto -- I like him a LOT! nt

[dancingme]

71. Agreed. Lemon's anchoring of the discussion

was terrific and courageous. He was respectful but would not back down.

[democracy1st]

20. K & R

[RagAss]

21. The worm is turning and the payback is gonna be a bitch.

[LiberalLovinLug]

89. Sorry, but I'm sick of hearing that

One lonely piece in a "librul" paper is easily drowned out by Beck, Rush, Hannity etc..

call me cynical, but I have no faith in the rest of the corporate media to follow suit.

[Beregond2]

22. As I've said many times:

Lincoln should have let the south secede. Just think of what this country could have become by now without those neanderthals always dragging as down. I know there are good people in the south, and assholes in the rest of the country, of course. But the fact remains that when the Republican Party was on the ropes and needed a lot of morons to con so they could rise to power again, it was the south they turned to. The result? Economic devastation, war after war, the first sucesful major terrorist attack on our soil, the corruption and near destruction of our elections system, the gaming of our judicial system, millions of people murdered, the transfer of vast amounts of wealth from the middle class to the wealthy...

These are not people who want to change, grow or improve in any way. They wallow in their ignorance and hate. And we will never be the nation we should be so long as they exist in our body politic.

[TheKentuckian]

28. Nope, he should have kicked their backwards asses

Rebs picking a little cotton, shining the shoes of black gentleman, and perhaps losing their women to former slaves would have taught them some humility. Lincoln played the inclusive and nice game and caught a bullet for his trouble while leaving the knuckle dragging primitives to think that the Civil War was on hiatus rather than over with them losing.

Redneck America has simply never had its ass kicked and that is the only way bullies are dealt with.

[saigon68]

42. Redneck America has simply never had its ass kicked

Nope they join the military, and secretly hope for revolution

[gateley]

137. Travolta was in a movie in which Blacks were the "ruling class" -- it's

called White Man's Burden. I never saw it but I remember thinking it would be a good education for all of us who are white (that's what I got from the trailer, anyway). I may look into it...

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0114928/

[katkat]

43. yes, get rid of the South

My thoughts on numerous occasions, for so many reasons.

[RoccoR5955]

61. Nah, what Linclon should have done was separate them

Take the black males,and pair them up with white females, and pair white males with black females. That way, there would be none of this racist garbage that there is now.
I believe it's possibly the easiest way to eliminate racism.

[Th1onein]

103. Riiiight! The end justifies the means when it's YOUR end you want, huh?

Just sayin'.

[RoccoR5955]

108. Yep! Especially when it widens the gene pool

I mean some families' gene pool is like a gene puddle. Wouldn't it be better if it was an ocean?

[Th1onein]

149. Widened gene pools are great, BUT...

that end does NOT justify the means.

[shanti]

104. it's happening now

and you can see the response. imo, interracial relationships reached the tipping point several years ago, to where they are now generally accepted. however, the rednecks have not come along for the ride, and they are showing their asses now for all to see.

it goes without saying though, that not all southerners and/or midwesterners are racist.

[Me.]

23. It Has Become Undeniable

Even to members of the beltway

[progressivebydesign]

25. I forgive her for drooling all over Jon Stewart. She's right, you know.. about both things. n/t

[hatrack]

27. So, how're things working our for the Golden Gal of Glib post-2000 Election?

I bet you still giggle quietly when you savor the snark of describing Al Gore as "so feminized he's practically lactating", don't you? God, you're just so clever!!!

And now, with a lot of help from years and years of effort by the six- and seven-figure clowns of "journalism" - and a little help even from lil' ol' you, Maureen - we're confronted not only with that floundering sense of desperation of trying to dig out from beneath the mountain of shit of 2001-2009, we get to do it with the rebranded Klan throwing broken bottles at the rest of the country's collective head.

You must be so proud.

[Jennicut]

29. Don't forget that she slammed our current VP for plagiarizing and then

turned around and stole from Josh Marshall. And while Biden just forgot to give the proper citation to someone's speech one time, Dowd blatantly ripped off someone else.
How about all the sick, twisted obsessions she had with Hillary?
You mentioned Al already.
Nice to see she writes some things I agree with but the women is a disgusting person.

[hatrack]

30. Defective clocks work twice daily, but I still won't buy one

Dowd is just another Kool Kidz Klub twit, who thinks (A) whose cocktail parties she attends matters and (B) that, by default and extension, her opinions and writing matter.

As far as I'm concerned, she's just one more Bush enabler, marginally more attractive and intelligent than the rest of them.

[susanr516]

98. +10 nt

[kpete]

54. oh my hatrack

that was goooooooooooooooood, kp

[calimary]

81. Point well taken.

WELL taken.

She played an active part, enthusiastic even, in tearing Al Gore down so the bushies could get close enough to steal it. It's on her head and on her conscience, too. And then she woke up and realized we were in "bushworld" as she ultimately and derisively called it. You helped bring it all on, maureen dear. This essay, of course, is an improvement - and SHOULD (probably won't though, with all the yellow stripes up people's backs out there in media land) spark many many more like it. Perhaps you'll encourage and embolden some more of your colleagues to take their calcium supplement and call it like it is, as well.

Won't be enough to redeem you, maureen, but I suppose it's a start.

SOMEBODY has to say this. SOMEBODY has to start saying this in public, out loud, and with increasing volume and repetition. The bad guys repeat their stuff all the time. Why can't we start getting repetitive with OURS?

[redqueen]

148. Glad some people remember. (nt)

[yowzayowzayowza]

31. Yes, the Administration needs to make a habit of lancing these boils.

“They’re going to have to develop ways in this White House to deal with things and not let them fester out there. Otherwise, they’ll see numbers moving in the wrong direction.”

[elleng]

33. Maybe.

'It may be President Obama’s very air of elegance and erudition that raises hackles in some. “My father used to say to me, ‘Boy, don’t get above your raising,’ ” Fowler said. “Some people are prejudiced anyway, and then they look at his education and mannerisms and get more angry at him.”

Clyburn had a warning for Obama advisers who want to forgive Wilson, ignore the ignorant outbursts and move on: “They’re going to have to develop ways in this White House to deal with things and not let them fester out there. Otherwise, they’ll see numbers moving in the wrong direction.”'

[Politicub]

35. A damning and on target editorial

If the news outlets had any sense of decency, they would call out these racists for what they are. But instead, they continue down the path of giving air time to them in the name of balance.

But there is no balance to be had when presenting bigotry against fairness.

[NikolaC]

37. K&R

[Bluenorthwest]

39. I've been reflecting on the SC Primary battle

It was there that candidate Obama hired a stage filled with bigots to reach out to bigots. This is where Donnie McClurkin served as host for Obama events, McClurkin who declared war on gay people. Who said 'they are trying to kill our children."
Now, when complaints about this bigot and his long history of hate speech came to Obama, did he apologize and clean his house of prejudiced parties? No he did not.
About the homophobic bigots he said:

" There are good, decent, moral people in this country who do not yet embrace their gay brothers and sisters as full members of our shared community. I will never compromise on my commitment to equal rights for all GLBT Americans. But neither will I close my ears to the voices of those who still need to be convinced."

So I suggest that the same methods ought to apply to this batch of bigots. In SC, he promised to always listen to these good, moral people who just happen to be bigots. He and his strongest supporters should now do what they demanded of the GLBT community, and embrace the haters.
It is just so funny to me that in SC, Obama pandered to bigots, and now, SC elected officials are expressing bigotry toward him! Karma rocks! I think Obama needs to reach out to the racists, not close his ears, call them good and decent and moral!
Do you think he will? Speak in mitigating terms about the racists in SC, like he did about the homophobes in SC? Or is that Golden Rule not for 'Christians' but just a thing to shove at Gay folk?
Live by the slur, you die by the slur. What goes around, comes around. Cast your hate speech upon the waters, in many days it comes back and calls you a Kenyan usurper.

[scarletwoman]

65. I just want to let you know that I think your post is excellent and absolutely right on.

"Cast your hate speech upon the waters, in many days it comes back and calls you a Kenyan usurper."

Beautifully said. I totally get your point.

sw

[Bluenorthwest]

68. Thank you

And honestly, it has been my point from day one on that issue. That playing with fire burns down your own house.

[geckosfeet]

44. It took nine months, but someone has finally started turning over the rocks.

On another note, Dowd looks amazingly like Ariana Huffington. Are they related? Is 'Maureen Down' a pseudonym?

[BumRushDaShow]

45. Another K&R

Maybe flushing the rotting detritus of the lunatic fringe out in the open and then down the drain, will help move closer to a real "post-racial" society.

[GCP]

46. That was probably her best column ever

I read her every week when she's available.

[TicketyBoo]

48. People in this town are not so polite.

They don't hesitate to display that prejudice. One guy said that the Bible says you should not be governed by those unlike yourself, so this includes Obama.

This whole country is a melting pot. He'd better find his ancestral home and head back there if he believes that tripe.

The n-word is used often here in connection with our President. Makes me cringe.

[Owl]

49. K&R!!!!!!

[sendero]

50. I agree with her this time...

.. 100%.

It looks like racism, talks like racism, walks like racism, it is racism.

[ProSense]

51. So this is what it took for Dowd to realize that there are racists?

But Wilson’s shocking disrespect for the office of the president — no Democrat ever shouted "liar" at W. when he was hawking a fake case for war in Iraq — convinced me: Some people just can’t believe a black man is president and will never accept it.

All the racists crap, from people hanging effigies of Obama to toting guns at town halls, and "you lie" was what it took for Dowd to realize that there are some racist asshole in this country?

I'm glad she now realize it, but the signs have been slapping people in the face for years.

Radical, Racist Signs Featured At 9/12 March

[Xenotime]

52. She is a very wise woman.

[pipi_k]

55. I admire Maureen Dowd very much, but...

I saw Robert Gibbs on TV this AM answering a question put to him as to whether Obama feels that opposition to his plans has anything to do with the color of his skin.

Gibbs said that Obama does NOT think it has anything to do with the color of his skin.

Is Gibbs lying?

Is Obama lying? Or, worse, is he so stupid he can't even SEE racism?

I'll bet he gives people the benefit of the doubt, assuming they oppose his policies because of politics - not his race.


This is one of the things I really admire about President Obama...his mature, gracious attitude.

[johnfunk]

56. And I am decidedly NO fan of MoDo -- but she hits it out of the park with today's op-ed

:kick::toast::kick::toast::kick::toast::kick:

:fistbump::headbang::woohoo::applause::woohoo::headbang::fistbump:

[blogslut]

57. Mr. Gibbs is the opposite of stupid.

They are painfully aware of the sentiments felt by the racists in this country.

[pipi_k]

59. If they are painfully aware, then

why aren't they saying anything?

Why aren't they calling it what so many here seem to think it is?

If Obama and Gibbs and many others in the administration don't call it racism, aren't they enabling "racists"? Is this OK?

[Spazito]

62. They cannot say it is racism even as they know it is because...

what they "said" becomes THE issue, gives the repubs a hook to totally divert from the real issues of the economy, healthcare, etc. It is up to others, outside the administration, to point out the rabid racism of the repubs and their base, imo.

[pipi_k]

66. Sorry, but I don't see how that makes sense

If racism is the issue behind the resistance, then talking about that gives the issue even MORE validity than it has alone, don't you think?

then people aren't resisting health care reform because it inherently sucks...they're resisting it because of Obama's race. And the people who are resisting it look like mean spirited assholes, not concerned with the issue on its face.

I would think that the issue of health care would get even MORE support then because it would leave the purely political arena and become something intensely personal.

In other words, say you are black. You expect to get a raise at work because you've deserved it and you don't get it. Your work is every bit as good as your white co-worker's is, but you don't get the raise. It's racism... Would you NOT mention this in a complaint to HR? Would you depend on someone else to bring it up so you don't divert the conversation from the (false) issue that your work wasn't good enough to deserve a raise?

See, that's what doesn't make sense to me.

If the REAL issue here with healthcare reform is race, then bringing that to the forefront should be the first thing this administration should do.

Also, and maybe I'm out of the loop here, but...I never got notification from the Obama administration that all Good Democrats are supposed to take up the battle cry of "Racism!" so they don't have to. Did I miss something?

Seriously...

[billh58]

88. It has absolutely

nothing to do with "Good Democrats" taking up a battle cry of racism -- it has everything to do with rational Americans exposing the depth of neoconservative-inspired racism and hatred in this country.

The fight against racism has not just recently become a "popular cause" because we have an African-American POTUS. Racism has been a part of the fabric of our society since before the Civil War, and remained throughout Reconstruction and the Civil Rights Movement, and is just now finding a new common-cause to once again rise to the surface. In several parts of this country the "N-word" has once again become acceptable for use in public among "good ole boys," AND their wives and kids.

In many parts of this country, racism and religious bigotry are as prevalent today, as they were a century ago. It has been nurtured by Republican neoconservatives who have fostered and promoted racial and religious hatred for pure political gain. The current attempts to divide this nation are nothing new at all, and represent just another page from the Karl Rove/Newt Gingrich/Dick Armey Republican playbook aimed at the elections of 2010, and 2012.

The ignorant Red State religious-right are once again being used as political fodder by the neoconservatives. They are herded to Town Hall meetings and Teabag Rallies like the unthinking sheep that they are. These are the very same Swift Boat tactics that got us eight long years of Dubya and his merry band of crooks. And, it appears that we are falling for it again.

For those who can't tell the difference between constructive criticism and raw racism, a hint: listen to the volume level, and look for the telltale signs of pure irrational hatred coupled with idiotic, and euphemistic name-calling.

[pipi_k]

112. I'll say it again...

Robert Gibbs, when asked if the opposition to Obama's policies had anything to do with his color, said that President Obama didn't feel it did.

Now, either Obama is either too stupid to recognize racism, or he's not being honest when he says he doesn't think his color has anything to do with the hoopla surrounding his policies.

Which is it?

[billh58]

117. I really, really

love "either, or" choices as an argument for a weak position.

Has it ever dawned on you, that President Obama does not want to fan the fire, or publicly recognize the blatant racism from his opponents in this country? I'm sure that he knows about it, and has experienced it firsthand, but he has already addressed racism and bigotry in several of his speeches. To try and counter every racist attack would be to give the racists legitimacy.

If you will notice, he also doesn't counter the false claims about his birth certificate, comparisons to Hitler, claims that he is a "Communist," or any of the other myriad lies used against him by the neoconservative hate-mongers. He has too much class to stoop to the level of the hate-mongers and the bigots. President Obama is neither "stupid," nor being dishonest about the issue of racism in America. He is attempting to lead by the example of tolerance and by rising above the negativity.

The rest of us, however, do NOT need to be diplomatic about the neoconservatives who are exploiting the bigots and racists among us, for their own political gain. It is the Swift Boaters at work again, only this time they are using innuendos and lies about President Obama's ancestry, religion, ethnicity, and social philosophy. It is a "perfect storm" for the racists, because they can couch their racism in statements such as, "I'm not a racist, I just disagree with his Communist, Muslim terrorist, anti-white policies."

The right-wing extremists herd these ignorant rednecks to the Town Hall and Teabagger events like the sheep they are, and spoon-feed them thinly-disguised racist euphemisms as "talking points." Their goal is to further divide this country, and attempt to skew the 2010 and 2012 elections by stirring up visions of the anti-white racist, Communist, foreign-born, Muslim terrorist, "ni---r" in the White House.

Legitimate differences, and opposition to President Obama's policies, are not the issue here. Stirring up pure and unabashed hatred of the person and the neoconservative/religious-right motives for that hatred is the issue. To attempt to ignore that racism exists in many parts of this country, is to ignore reality. To fail to recognize that racism and bigotry are being purposely encouraged by the Rovian neoconservatives for political gain -- again -- is dangerous.

[pipi_k]

127. so here is a man many see as being a Hero

he is, as you said:

"...attempting to lead by the example of tolerance and by rising above the negativity."

And yet so many people are completely and totally ignoring his fine example, choosing instead to find racism, nastiness, and negativity in just about everyone who opposes him for any reason.


Don't like him? OMG!!!! RACIST!!!

Don't trust him? OMG!!! RACIST!!!!

Someone yells out, "You lie!" OMG!!! RACIST!!!!

Republicans = RACISTS!!!!!

People against healthcare reform = RACISTS!!!!


And now, in a totally pathetic attempt to label a RW news commentator as a "racist", there's a thread going on how she called one of the Williams sisters "scary" after a particularly scary temper tantrum.


I would say that there are plenty of people here who would do well to follow the same gracious, tolerant example of their president and stop flinging the word "racist!!!" around like it's going out of style.

[billh58]

135. If you choose

to believe that there is no racism left in this country, and that the neoconservative strategists of the Republican Party would NOT stoop to catering to rednecked bigots and racists for political purposes, you are free to do so. They have done it before, and as recently as the Primary Elections of 2008.

Racism, bigotry, and hatred are neither un-Constitutional, nor illegal. Each citizen of the USA is entirely free to hate as they please, and to spread that hatred to their children. You are entirely correct that most of our fellow citizens are NOT racists, nor bigots, and we too are free to call attention to those very vocal radical misfits who are, as it is they who are getting the most press.

Your arguments are of the "all, or nothing," and "you are either entirely correct, or entirely wrong," variety. I don't get the sense that every criticism of President Obama is racist in nature, but neither can I deny that many are. Yelling, "you lie!" by anyone else during a presidential address to a joint session of Congress may, or may not, have had racist undertones. As Maureen Dowd pointed out, however, when you look at Wilson's ACV involvement, his Confederate Flag history, and his ties to Strom Thurmond, the implied "boy!" at the end of the statement was hard to miss.

I have seen, and fought against, overt racism up close and personal, and to paraphrase Justice Potter Stewart, I know it when I see it. I am old enough to remember "Whites Only" signs on public facilities, segregated schools, and people being forced to sit at the back of the bus. That was only a short generation ago. Those were also "policy disagreements" -- the disagreement between the rednecks of the antebellum South, and the rest of us that every US citizen is entitled to equality and respect. Those deeply-rooted sentiments did not just disappear because we have elected an African-American president.

In many respects, this current spotlight on American racism has very little to do with whether or not President Obama "believes" that racism exists in the USA. President Obama has acknowleged that MLK played a great part in his success in this country, but he is not an "activist" in the same sense as MLK, and other prominent Civil Rights advocates. President Obama is attempting to lead this country past decades of imposed neoconservatism and greed, beginning with the Raygun era.

The racists have shined a bright light on themselves, now that they have another neoconservative-inspired faux cause. You DO remember the religious-right, and the damage they continue to cause at the urging of the radical neoconservatives, right? Whether on DU, other Internet political blogs, in letters-to-the-editor, or by signing petitions, all forms of calling attention to racism and bigotry where they exist are effective, and necessary. No, this is NOT all about President Obama and whether he is a "victim" of racism -- it is about ALL American citizens no matter their race, ethnicity, religion, or sexual preferences.

[pipi_k]

139. I would never claim that racism no longer exists in this country

because I am well aware that it does.

The problem is that loads of people are seeing it around every corner, digging it up with every. single. negative. thing. that's said to, or about, Obama (or any black person whose politics they happen to agree with).

If I said I found Condi Rice "scary", would I be assailed by masses of DUers accusing me of "racism"? I think not.

If I said I didn't trust Colin Powell, would I be verbally beaten until I admitted I had racist tendencies? Noooooo

Who among you is going to give me the business because I found a black REPUBLICAN scary or untrustworthy? Oh, nobody, of course...because, after all, when it comes from OUR SIDE, it's never about race, whereas from the other side...well...we all know how that works, don't we?


Two words:

Double. standards.


I've decided that if you people can run around yelling "racism!!!" every time someone makes a less-than-glowing comment about Obama, I can go around accusing people who speak ill of Sarah Palin of being sexists. Or people who speak ill of John McCain or other elderly Republicans of being ageists.

The "ist" train runs both ways.

Anybody who REFUSES to see what I see, well, I'll just call them deniers or apologists for sexism and ageism and MY truth will be the only truth on that matter. Because that's exactly how some of you are acting.


You know, instead of wasting all this considerable energy on defending a strong adult human being who can take care of himself, why not use it to find out why the news media practice what I would call a most disgusting form of racism when they report on little missing blonde white girls all the time but we almost NEVER hear about little missing black kids.

If I can find the link I had, I'll post it...concerning a daytime TV show where a black woman is spending life in prison for being a party to the most horrible tortures you could imagine on her little son. It's heartbreaking and nauseating. Did we hear about it on national TV? Well, I never did. Why not? Because they're black? Maybe. If this were a cute little blonde girl, it would be all over the news.

THIS is racism, and THIS is the sort of thing that will continue as long as people divert their attention from what matters a lot to what is probably just a blow to their own egos (someone daring to oppose THEIR president!)

honestly, it's sickening.

[billh58]

143. I totally

understand the point you are attempting to make, and you may be right to a certain extent. I have to point out, however, that your anger and bitterness at those who sincerely believe that overt racism is a resurgent societal problem, is representative of the very behavior that you rail against.

The beauty of this country is that we can both express our views about our own observations, and the world will not end.

Aloha...

[pipi_k]

144. I really have no anger or bitterness against people who believe that racism

is a big problem in this country.

What I do feel is...I don't know...disgust...pity...for people who see racism in everything that even looks suspicious to them without any REAL concrete proof.

another thread around here which you may or may not have seen has a Fux News anchorwoman (whom the OP had originally called a "bleached blonde bitch" from what I can gather) being called a "racist" because she said that Serena Williams was "scary" during her meltdown in a tennis game.

You know what? I saw the video. I heard all the bleeps for the vulgar language. Ms Williams approaches the woman with her tennis racquet in what I would call an intimidating position. The woman judge claimed Ms Williams threatened to "kill her", although it's hard to tell that because the entire rant is bleeped out.

That's not scary?

see what I mean?

people see calling her, and her outburst, scary as "racist"

To me, that's just making a mockery of the word as it applies to other, more virulent kinds of racism.

[billh58]

147. Seems to me

that John McEnroe acted the very same way, and he was constantly in the press for his actions. Some people loved him for it, and others hated him. This is not the first controversy involving the Williams sisters, nor will it be the last.

Using an overblown incident about a major sports personality hardly makes your point about "many DU members frothing at the mouth" about racism directed at President Obama. You are tilting at windmills of your own making.

[pot luck]

94. Obama can't point out racism,

or he will be accused of playing the "race card" or being a "reverse racist." Just look at the firestorm around the Gates controversy or how the MSM reacted to him pointing out during the general election that he doesn't look like previous presidents. Those in the media have even flat out said that he is not allowed to discuss race because it will hurt him.

[pipi_k]

113. How could he be accused of playing the race card when so many

good, decent Americans are more than willing to stand behind him and yell to the mountaintops that he IS being targeted by racists?

Do you honestly believe that President Obama is nothing but a political weakling who has been reduced to playing the DC headgames?

[blogslut]

116. I would suggest that you get real

You know very well that if members of the Obama administration were to flat-out call this racism, the mighty media/wingnut Wurlitzer would turn the volume up to eleven. The headlines would read:

"President calls Republicans Racist"

The anchors would breathlessly announce:

"Today, the President of the United States of America, accused 60 million citizens of racism."

And that's not even taking into account the histrionics that would come from FOX and righty bloggers.

Believe it or not, this president, our president, doesn't want to wreak havoc amongst a populace that is already in crisis.

[pipi_k]

128. Yeah, and so what?

You want to end racism in this country?

You don't do it by sitting around yapping about it on an online discussion board.


You people going on and on about it here...you really think you're going to change something? Who the hell is listening? You're in here preaching to the damned choir.

Why not get the black man out there to CALL IT WHAT IT IS?

If it's really racism, then there are 60 million (your figure) people out there who need their attitudes changed.


It's racism...we want to end racism, but it's too dangerous to actually bring it out in the open. Because.....what was the reason? He might piss off 60 million racists? People who already hate him anyway?

good lord...

But don't worry...it'll just get talked to death on blogs and in discussion groups and it'll never go away because nobody is making a big political issue about it.

[blogslut]

129. Well then, you get yourself out there and tell the world

Nobody's stopping you.

Of course I would like to end racism. I would also like to end sexism, classicism, and pretty much any "ism" you can come up with. The things is, if humans were to end all the existing "isms", we would simply invent new "isms". People have been pushing people around since there have been people. You fight it when you can but you'll never "end" it.

As for the president, He can make his own choices and pick his own battles.

[pipi_k]

140. Not sure what I'm supposed to be telling the world...

Since I'm not seeing the same things as lots of other people are.

I know that we'll never end all the "isms" in this world...ever.


But people can do a lot by picking their battles. And by that I mean, not wasting energy on foaming at the mouth about "racism" they see behind every negative comment about Obama. There are other, larger, and more hurtful things going on in the world right now.

All these people with all this energy...quite admirable, really. What's not so admirable is that it's being wasted on preaching to the choir on an internet discussion board, and it's not addressing the truly hurtful and even deadly forms of racism.

[billh58]

146. Your logic

escapes me. Could you give us an example of a topic on a Democratic "Internet discussion board" which would NOT include "preaching to the choir" to some extent? By that standard, a Democratic discussion board is, for all practical purposes, useless.

If you sincerely want to stifle references to a topic that has always been a Democratic cause and topic of discussion (and disgust), then you may want to re-examine the source of your anger. The fight against American racism, especially by Democrats, is not a recent development because of the election of an African-American president. This cause, including the incidents you have pointed out in other posts (missing little black girls, black violence, etc.) has been going on for well over a century, and we just won a major battle only 40 short years ago. I know -- I was there, and the current battle is not even close to being won.

I believe that it is your perception of comments being made on DU that leads you to preach to those making them, and your perception is NOT what is being said, nor implied. I don't see "foaming at the mouth" claims of racism in "every negative comment about Obama." That is a grossly exaggerated overstatement, just as "none of the negative comments against President Obama are racist" would be. I don't believe that a majority of other DU members perceive every negative comment (and there are many on DU) about President Obama as an accusation of racism either.

I believe what is really at play here, is a reinforcement of the PUMA-like "Obamabot" accusation against those of us who actually support (but reserve the right to criticize) President Obama.

[Klukie]

77. I don't think he is stupid and I think he has no choice but to lie....

Imagine the political shitstorm that would ensue if President Obama tried to call out the racists. Unfortunately he can't ever broach racial issues when they pertain to his Presidency.

[pipi_k]

114. Oh my, yes...

We can't have any political shitstorms, now can we? People rant and screech about how wimpy Democrats are, but when there's a chance to call the "racists" out, what happens....oh, uh...gee whiz...we just can't do that!!!


Ooga-booga...too scar-eeeee!!!!

It might rock the boats a little bit!!!

gasp!

:scared:

[lolly]

91. He is being a politician

He would look self-serving if he identified the protests as racists. It really is better if other people point it out.

Perhaps it would be better, however, if he would say something like "I can't know what is in their hearts--only they know the answer to that question. But they are reacting to misinformation about the health proposals yadda yadda yadda"

[shanti]

105. exactly

"we" should be pointing it out at every opportunity.

[pipi_k]

115. Yeah, it would be nice to hear him say that, but he hasn't

and I wonder why


And maybe...just maybe...it's because he's not seeing the same thing as people here who are seeing racism behind every tree and accusing others who don't see it behind every tree of being blind or apologists or deniers.

He's a gracious gentleman, and if he were really seeing racism behind the rejection of his policies, he could say something gracious just to get the message across but he hasn't.

[AngryOldDem]

99. What would be gained by Obama saying so publicly?

Especially when it's so obvious? You rise above the bullshit and don't let it detract from the tasks at hand.

Racism is driving every bit of this circus, from the health care debate down to Glen Beck.

[BlooInBloo]

109. Yes - black folks (and by extension those who work for them) aren't allowed to call out racism...

We white folks have done a damn good job at preventing that ("reverse racist", "oversensitive", etc.).

See also, Digby on The Jackie Robinson Rules:

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2008/08/jackie-robinson-rules-by-digby-it-turns.html

"
It turns out that a majority of Americans think that Obama was racist for saying what he said but McCain's ads weren't. It would seem that the most recognizable form of racism for most people is from those who "play the race card from the bottom of the deck." I suppose that's progress of a weird sort.

...

What a neat twist that is. They've already managed to hamstring Obama with the silly "confusion" flap and McCain's national security credentials are sacrosanct since he was a POW, so the field for criticism is narrowing significantly. McCain's people whine about the campaign being racist and ageist and unpatriotic and then they accuse liberals of political correctness. It's quite effective.

I know the last thing Obama wants to do is talk about race all the way to November. It's a minefield. To me that, in itself, says that the issue is still live in our culture. But I guess most people have shifted their view to suggest that even mentioning race is a sign of racism itself.

So, Obama is going to have to be a modern day Jackie Robinson and stoically endure the more subtle forms of racial ugliness that the right throws at him without ever fighting back or even mentioning that it is happening. If he's as good a politician as Robinson was a baseball player, he'll do it by sheer talent and force of will (and by boldly stealing home in the world series ...)
"


EDIT: The real fun of it kicks in when a black guy like Obama is bugged by racists, and then we white folks blame *him* for not doing anything about it. Kind of reminds you of when you were a kid, and the bully smacks you with your own hand, and asks why you keep hitting yourself. Good times, good times. :rofl:

[Historic NY]

60. Its about time the media took a stand.

[Faygo Kid]

63. Maureen is often quite strange, but this is the best column anywhere this Sunday.

It IS racism, and Addison Wilson was motivated by it, as were the teabaggers in DC. Great job, Maureen.

[Jade Fox]

64. Don Fowler's comments from the article.....

are worth re-posting:

“A good many people in South Carolina really reject the notion that we’re part of the union,” said Don Fowler, the former Democratic Party chief who teaches politics at the University of South Carolina. He observed that when slavery was destroyed by outside forces and segregation was undone by civil rights leaders and Congress, it bred xenophobia.

“We have a lot of people who really think that the world’s against us,” Fowler said, “so when things don’t happen the way we like them to, we blame outsiders.” He said a state legislator not long ago tried to pass a bill to nullify any federal legislation with which South Carolinians didn’t agree. Shades of John C. Calhoun!

It may be President Obama’s very air of elegance and erudition that raises hackles in some. “My father used to say to me, ‘Boy, don’t get above your raising,’ ” Fowler said. “Some people are prejudiced anyway, and then they look at his education and mannerisms and get more angry at him.”


I wish these people would secede and form their own country. I know that is just a fantasy, but I'd love to see South Carolina try to get along with their Red State Welfare money from the federal government.

[DrZeeLit]

67. I read Mo this morning and muttered, "well ... duh... finally..."

[sandyj999]

69. It's the Elephant in the room

I have been saying right along that some just can't accept a back man no matter what. They may come up with other reasons for not liking him but they are covering the real reason. Are "they" afraid the slaves are going to come back and reverse roles or what? I am very disgusted about all this and thought we had progressed further than that. Sadly I guess not. :(

[Odin2005]

70. Bra-fucking-vo, Mareen!

LET'S GO AND KICK THEIR ASSES!!!

[Orsino]

72. As usual, Dowd is months or years late...

...but this is a decent column. I am shocked. Mark this on your calendar, folks--she's not always a trivial waste of inches.

But that's still the way to bet.

[Fire1]

74. No shit, Sherlock! You figured that out all by your lonesome. n/t

[BlooInBloo]

86. Acknowledging what we all know is happening is *very* worthwhile...

It's about the acknowledgment, not the realization.

[Fire1]

87. True that. n/t

[McCamy Taylor]

80. Dowd nailed this one. I have lived in the south all my life and the disrespect shown to minorities

here is just appalling. Worse yet, it is open, institutionalized. The red necks are proud of their lack of compassion. And yet a whole bunch of them claim to be Christians.

Hypocrisy, thy name is Dixie.

[jeffbr]

82. There is a church in every block and a racist in every house

just like the good ol' days

[sellitman]

83. Funny, I was saying this to a Libertarian friend of mine last weekend.

He thought I was nuts. I just emailed this to him.

Stupid bastard!

[BlooInBloo]

85. Nice to she that she isn't lying about it.

[nightrain]

90. knr. Thanks for posting this. Some folks are unreachable. Fear and hatred are

far too prevalent, particularly in certain segments of our population. I think Maureen Dowd has hit the target--so very painful for some to see a Black man as President... So sad...

[swilton]

93. Saddly, I have to agree with her

Wilson, the teabaggers, et. al. would not have pulled these shenanigans had Obama been a white dude.

[Solly Mack]

95. K&R

[kelliebrat]

96. K & R

Great article

[varelse]

110. Anyone remember how the Democrats dealt with "over the top" remarks about W?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsGaNR9dVPM

This is the event that inspired me to join DU. It's also one of many reasons I will never re-join the Democratic party - a party that punishes its own truthtellers even while mocking ranking Republicans for apologizing to Rush Limbaugh.

[AsahinaKimi]

111. Head the nail on the head..

K&R

[JustAnotherGen]

118. At the end of the day

Joe Wilson and his ilk represent the Modern Day Klan.

At the end of the day - the Klan/white South's core issue "back in the day" was that we black people might 'take something from them'. Be it a woman, a home, a - dare I say it: Job.

He (President Obam) took the Ultimate job from a White Man - and that old racist from the state that flys the Traitor Flag on its' capitol is in a deep rage.

[liberal N proud]

122. Hope this gets legs

This needs to be discussed openly in this country and those who hold hate because someone is different then they are, need to be put on notice this is no longer acceptable in America.

[SunDrop23]

126. SPOT. ON.

that's what it's about.

the president could single handedly capture bin laden.
find a cure for aids.
shit solid gold bricks.
etc
etc

and cracker nation would never ever give him any respect.
why? imagine what kind of shot their credibility is going to take if an african-american not only gets elected to president but does a good job.

i'm not listening to any more of the bullshit.

when they come around me with that crazy talk, i usually say 'that's nice' or something completely irrelevant like 'i need to trim the hedges in my front yard' or 'what's the weather going to be like this weekend'
or i simply don't say anything.

as i said in a previous post, my brother is part of this bigoted craze.
he never says anything related to the president without bringing race into it and saying something to the effect of 'he's gonna give the blacks all they want and be a good brotha' or something to that effect.
he trolls yahoo and other newboards for stories that have some sort of african-american involvement (he'll have a field day with serena williams tomorrow...tomorrow because he can't afford internet at home, so he will use his company's network)..anyway he seeks out stories like that and spends most of his day spewing his racist nincompoopery.

but that's ok

i'm tired of the bullshit.
the president is doing a good job and i really don't give a shit what any of the 'polls' or 'experts' or the white sheeted brigade has to say.

[femrap]

130. I'm glad she has said it.

And it has to stop. Let S.Carolina secede. Let 'em rot.

[BrklynLiberal]

131. OK OK. Where is Maureen Dowd, and who is writing this column?

:evilgrin:

[georgian style]

133. Maureen didn't mention assassination attempts and accusations of murders against her nemesis, Bubba

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francisco_Martin_Duran

Plus false accusations of rape.

Plus Whitewater and other attacks against her other nemesis Hillary.

But it's not convenient for her to mention, because she said nothing back then.

[BoneDaddy]

141. I think race has something to do with it

but simply harken back to Clinton. The right wing machine is set up to attack ANYONE who comes from the other party. They will not hold back for anyone. Wouldnt matter what democrat was in office.

[L0oniX]

142. K & R

[Joe Fields]

145. no shit, sherlock.....

k&r