Filed under: PoliTricks as Usual, That Sh*t Is Racist, White Men Gone Wild
Last winter, when the Clinton/Obama battle was nearing it’s crux, the MSM was transfixed on the whole “Race vs Gender” issue. At it’s core, this artificial argument seemed to insinuate that black women were being forced to choose between their skin color and their uterus when it came to choosing which candidate they’d back. As if those were the only criteria a person would consider.
The flipside of this argument, especially after Obama started to gain traction in the black community. The media likes to note that this happened after South Carolina, but reality is Nevada, which Obama lost, was the first indication that he’d have more success than expected with black voters. When he pulled 75% of the black votes there, the chatters went into full gear, openly groveling about whether or not black folks were voting for Obama just “cause he black“.
I don’t personally vote for people just because they’re black. But then again, I’d like to consider myself a somewhat enlightened voter. I didn’t vote for Sharpton in 04′, I voted for Edwards. I’ve voted against black politicians (and Democrats) locally when I didn’t feel they were sufficiently equipped for the job. But I’m understanding enough to know that not everyone cares about the issues, and that not everyone cares enough to look past skin color when choosing their candidates.
To each his own. If you wanna vote for someone just “cause they black“, you get what you deserve in the end. And more times than not, you get a Kwame Kilpatrick, not a Deval Patrick. It is what it is.
Of course, the media keeps harping on this “cause they black” angle, and Fox News especially loves to pull poor folks (black and white) off the street and ask them what they know about Obama’s policies, usually with comedic results.
I suppose these folks have it coming, even though they’re certainly entitled to their opinions because hey, voting is a quintessentially selfish act. A socially acceptable selfish act, but still selfish. You vote for whom you want, and don’t have to justify your rationale to anyone.
That said, I’m wondering why the same bastions of voter rights that embarrassed Obama supporters for following Barry “cause he black” aren’t similarly slamming the legions of white women who are suddenly getting behind Tina Fey Sarah Palin “cause she got a vagina“.
No, seriously, think about it. For many white women, especially lifelong Democrats, Palin’s stances on issues are diametrically opposed to the views their party of choice advocates. Completely opposed.
But I’ve still yet to see this equally stupid BS called out for what it is.
And while we’re at it, how about the legions of folks who vote for white men (Dems and Republicans) year in and year out “cause they white“? How about them?
It seems like the only time it’s socially unacceptable to play identity politricks is “when they black“. Interesting to say the least.
On the other hand, there’s some black votes Obama could prolly do without.[1]
Question: Do you think identity politics are harmful? Do you vote for a person solely because you can personally relate to them on some level, be it race, gender, or age?
[1] All jokes aside, I know this was little more than a promotional event for his album, but props to Jeezy for registering voters.
Filed under: AvB Instant Classics, AvBro GuestPost, Barry 4 Prez, PoliTricks as Usual, That Sh*t Is Racist, White Men Gone Wild
[Editor's Note: I don't usually like using other folks posts without getting pre-approval, but this was too good to not use as a guest post. Tim Wise is a white guy whom the MSM hates because he tells it like it is, especially as pertains to white privilege in America. I've constantly harped on the outlandish double standards seen throughout this year's campaign, but Wise breaks it down to the very last compound. Digest and discuss, you know where.]
For those who still can’t grasp the concept of white privilege, or who are constantly looking for some easy-to-understand examples of it, perhaps this list will help.
White privilege is when you can get pregnant at seventeen like Bristol Palin and everyone is quick to insist that your life and that of your family is a personal matter, and that no one has a right to judge you or your parents, because “every family has challenges,” even as black and Latino families with similar “challenges” are regularly typified as irresponsible, pathological and arbiters of social decay.
White privilege is when you can call yourself a “fuckin’ redneck,” like Bristol Palin’s boyfriend does, and talk about how if anyone messes with you, you’ll “kick their fuckin’ ass,” and talk about how you like to “shoot shit” for fun, and still be viewed as a responsible, all-American boy (and a great son-in-law to be) rather than a thug.
White privilege is when you can attend four different colleges in six years like Sarah Palin did (one of which you basically failed out of, then returned to after making up some coursework at a community college), and no one questions your intelligence or commitment to achievement, whereas a person of color who did this would be viewed as unfit for college, and probably someone who only got in in the first place because of affirmative action.
White privilege is when you can claim that being mayor of a town smaller than most medium-sized colleges, and then Governor of a state with about the same number of people as the lower fifth of the island of Manhattan, makes you ready to potentially be president, and people don’t all piss on themselves with laughter, while being a black U.S. Senator, two-term state Senator, and constitutional law scholar, means you’re “untested.”
White privilege is being able to say that you support the words “under God” in the pledge of allegiance because “if it was good enough for the founding fathers, it’s good enough for me,” and not be immediately disqualified from holding office–since, after all, the pledge was written in the late 1800s and the “under God” part wasn’t added until the 1950s–while believing that reading accused criminals and terrorists their rights (because, ya know, the Constitution, which you used to teach at a prestigious law school requires it), is a dangerous and silly idea only supported by mushy liberals.
White privilege is being able to be a gun enthusiast and not make people immediately scared of you.
White privilege is being able to have a husband who was a member of an extremist political party that wants your state to secede from the Union, and whose motto was “Alaska first,” and no one questions your patriotism or that of your family, while if you’re black and your spouse merely fails to come to a 9/11 memorial so she can be home with her kids on the first day of school, people immediately think she’s being disrespectful.
White privilege is being able to make fun of community organizers and the work they do–like, among other things, fight for the right of women to vote, or for civil rights, or the 8-hour workday, or an end to child labor–and people think you’re being pithy and tough, but if you merely question the experience of a small town mayor and 18-month governor with no foreign policy expertise beyond a class she took in college–you’re somehow being mean, or even sexist.
White privilege is being able to convince white women who don’t even agree with you on any substantive issue to vote for you and your running mate anyway, because all of a sudden your presence on the ticket has inspired confidence in these same white women, and made them give your party a “second look.”
White privilege is being able to fire people who didn’t support your political campaigns and not be accused of abusing your power or being a typical politician who engages in favoritism, while being black and merely knowing some folks from the old-line political machines in Chicago means you must be corrupt.
White privilege is being able to attend churches over the years whose pastors say that people who voted for John Kerry or merely criticize George W. Bush are going to hell, and that the U.S. is an explicitly Christian nation and the job of Christians is to bring Christian theological principles into government, and who bring in speakers who say the conflict in the Middle East is God’s punishment on Jews for rejecting Jesus, and everyone can still think you’re just a good church-going Christian, but if you’re black and friends with a black pastor who has noted (as have Colin Powell and the U.S. Department of Defense) that terrorist attacks are often the result of U.S. foreign policy and who talks about the history of racism and its effect on black people, you’re an extremist who probably hates America.
White privilege is not knowing what the Bush Doctrine is when asked by a reporter, and then people get angry at the reporter for asking you such a “trick question,” while being black and merely refusing to give one-word answers to the queries of Bill O’Reilly means you’re dodging the question, or trying to seem overly intellectual and nuanced.
[Editor's Note: Black privilege is being able to say "the N-word" with reckless abandon, telling "white folks are sooo..." jokes on Comic View, and.... and.... uhmmm, that's about it.]
White privilege is being able to claim your experience as a POW has anything at all to do with your fitness for president, while being black and experiencing racism is, as Sarah Palin has referred to it a “light” burden.
And finally, white privilege is the only thing that could possibly allow someone to become president when he has voted with George W. Bush 90 percent of the time, even as unemployment is skyrocketing, people are losing their homes, inflation is rising, and the U.S. is increasingly isolated from world opinion, just because white voters aren’t sure about that whole “change” thing. Ya know, it’s just too vague and ill-defined, unlike, say, four more years of the same, which is very concrete and certain…
White privilege is, in short, the problem.
Question: Do you agree with Tim Wise that the double standards confronting Obama are prime examples of white privilege?
More from Tim Wise [TimWise.org]
* Props to DP for sending this along.
Filed under: Barry 4 Prez, C.Y.I.N., Nigga Nonsense, PoliTricks as Usual, That Sh*t Is Racist
In short, I’m on board.
[Editor's Note: If you're on board, click on some of them AdSense links so I can cop myself a fresh pair of New Balance for the Fall.]
That’s not to say I haven’t had my share of issues with Mr. Obama, and I’ve used this forum to make equally strong critiques of his campaign. His unwillingness to consider offshore drilling, before reversing course without a thorough explanation didn’t rub me the right way. Ditto for his support of FISA, which I don’t personally object to (it’s not like I’ve got anything to hide), but apparently enough others do. But perhaps my biggest qualm with Barry is the very characteristic that many (myself included, just to further confuse you) cite as his greatest attribute: his unflappability.
I’ll give it to dude. Through six tough months of battling The Clinton Machine, he consistently showed class and never stooped to their level of mudslinging. His family, his faith, his patriotism, and his church were under constant attack, but he never “lost it”, and he certainly never went into full C.Y.I.N. mode. I didn’t care for this approach at the time, but in retrospect, I get it. Obama was new on the scene, and more importantly, he was facing an opponent whose views on the issues were essentially identical to his. When that’s the case, as it was during the Democratic primaries, the way to distinguish yourself is with your personality. In short, his coolness under fire drew a huge contrast to Hillary Clinton’s constant displays of crying and unbridled rage. It was essential, and well, it worked.
The fullblown campaign vs McCain is a different game altogether. It’s like going from winning your conference tournament to trying to make it to the Final Four. You’re no longer taking on familiar opponents in familiar environments. Sure, it’s the same game fundamentally, but the intensity level rises, and with that, your approach has to adjust. Thus far, Obama has failed to effectively do this.
After he secured his party’s nomination, the GOP started picking him apart like we knew they would (despite McCain’s promises to run an admirable campaign) and unleashed the dogs. They’ve painted him as a hollow celebrity, played the race card against him, pulled up his past associations, sicced a programmed Pitbull in a skirt on him, and through it all, purposely distorted his views and experience to comical proportions.
Obama’s response: play it cool. The polls: not so much.
Now, with his back to the wall and Americans oddly transfixed on Sarah Palin, it seems like Barry’s finally, finally, finally figured out that the way his current campaign is running is virtually guaranteeing a one-way ticket back to Capitol Hill. It took him some time, but he even admitted as much last week.
Sen. Barack Obama and his campaign launched a promised counterpunch against Sen. John McCain on Friday, portraying him as an aging, out-of-touch politician who would cater to “fat-cat” lobbyists and continue President Bush’s economic policies.
With two new television advertisements, a campaign memo to supporters and a two-day trip through New Hampshire, Obama sought to regain his footing amid faltering poll numbers, a continuing assault by his Republican presidential rival and rising worries among Democrats about his campaign.
If Democrats were expecting a dramatic change in words, tone or temperament, they did not get it. While McCain attacked him as a pampered, fading celebrity, a sexist and a desperate bully, Obama stuck to familiar themes linking the senator from Arizona to Bush and Washington lobbyists.
Even after being prodded by the audience in Dover, Obama appeared reluctant to get too aggressive. Glenn Grasso, 39, a doctoral student, pleaded: “When and how are you going to start fighting back?”
Obama responded by calling McCain’s ads “just fabricated” and “just made up,” an answer that spurred some to shout out: “Lies.”
In a memo to supporters, Obama campaign manager David Plouffe said: “In recent weeks, John McCain has shown that he is willing to go into the gutter to win this election. His campaign has become nothing but a series of smears, lies and cynical attempts to distract from the issues that matter to the American people.”
Plouffe assured supporters that “we will respond with speed and ferocity to John McCain’s attacks and we will take the fight to him, but we will do it on the big issues that matter to the American people.”
Then of course, there’s the race thing, which brings me to the point of this post. Many have said that if Obama suddenly C.Y.I.N.’s and morphs into DMX, he runs the risk of being labeled an “Angry Black Man” and blowing the whole wad. I’ve heard this uttered so often it makes my head hurt, but 99% of the time, it’s usually another black person who’s saying it. Never mind the fact that 99% of those in the media challenging Obama to grow a pair happen to be white.
So, I guess I have to ask you guys, why in the world do we think that Obama showing some guts and fighting back would suddenly regulate him to “Angry Black Guy” status and deep-six the whole campaign? Are there well-documented public examples of such a thing that serve as evidence for why he shouldn’t? I’ll admit, I’ve occasionally thought the same, but I wonder if this isn’t one of those things black folks fabricate say amongst ourselves without any real evidence to back it up. Sorta like how we say “Black folks don’t swim” or “if that was a black woman, you know…” and whatnot. Seriously, how do we know how the world would respond?
I don’t ask this being facetious, I’m really posing the question because I’d like to hear some legit examples. If you’ve got em’, do tell.
Question: Does Obama run the risk of being labelled an “Angry Black Guy” if he starts whoopin‘ a$$ and takin‘ names? If you think so, why? Can you think of any real life examples of this audacious double standard?
Filed under: Go Sit Down, People I Strongly Dislike, PoliTricks as Usual, That Sh*t Is Racist, What A DoucheBag, White Men Gone Wild
Well, tonight was supposed to be Palin’s night, but wouldn’t you know it, a familiar face just had to show up and ruin the party.
Like last week, I’m not tuning in until AverageToddler’s bathed and put to bed, so I missed some of the preliminaries.
Michael Steele is the GOP’s version of “urban cool” which is beyond comical on too many levels to count here. Let’s face it, this dude is L.A.M.E. He’s suddenly morphed from the milquetoast Negro who once allegedly got Oreo cookies tossed at him in a Maryland debate, to Super Negro Republican™: The Poor Man’s Obama. Negro please.
When he was introduced, the crowd broke into some clearly orchestrated, yet poorly executed “Go Steele!” chant. Steele responded by asking the crowd “Are you ready to party in this house tonight?” which clearly shows he’s been revisiting his DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince cassette tapes lately. It was a display of uncoordinated arm-flailing only matched by the between-speech Earth Wind and Fire dance-a-thon seen moments later. Yes, it was as lame and pathetic as it sounds reading it.
Magic Mike then went on some tirade about guilt by association, which was clearly a dig at Rebb’n Wright. I’m not about to defend the good Rebb’n here, but c’mon Mike, that’s a stretch ain’t it? I know the PG County church you attend, so you prolly should just let that one ride. And besides, if it’s all about guilt by association, wouldn’t that make you an ear-chomping rapist? I’m just sayin’.
This guy should be nearing his 16th minute by now, but thanks to the lack of… uhmmm, color, in the GOP, he’ll keep getting party jobs merely in exchange for being a grateful token. I guess this is necessary to uphold the illusion of conclusion. I only counted 5 blacks in tonight’s audience, down from 7 last night. 6 if you count Steele, which I don’t.
Mike Huckabee is one of the few GOP personalities I can actually stomach for more than a few minutes. He did the obligatory “Obama Sucks, McCain Roolz” speech, but in a manner that was respectful and stuck to party talking points. I don’t agree with his stances, but I don’t mind how he goes about stating them. The rest of the GOP could learn a thing or two.
Mitt Romney was longwinded, overpolished, and booooring. Not that this should surprise any of you who’ve listened to him prattle on and on in the past. It’s so obvious this guy is still hella pissed about not getting change of address forms for 1600 Penn Ave. He did the good party thing and bashed Obama while bloviating over McCain’s experience, but behind that spray-on tan and meticulous dye job, it’s clear that there lies a cat who thinks he should still be Prez.
Rudy Guiliani came up next and I guess this marked the point where the convention actually became interesting. Man, did Rudy rip Barack a brand new anus or what?
Seriously, you wanna talk about taking off the gloves and “goin’ in”. He did that and thennnnn some. This cat must have been visiting ThisIs50.com for inspiration lately, cause he was extra greasy. Never mind the fact that Rudy didn’t state any of McCain’s solutions, his job was to bash Barry, and bash Barry he did.
This whole spectacle would have been enlightening had the guy delivering it not been so disgusting and despicable. A dude who marries his own cousin has no right telling anyone about judgement. A guy who announced his divorce to the newspapers has no right questioning the integrity of others. A guy whose own kids don’t talk to him, and are voting for Obama themselves shouldn’t be saying jack about family values.
Other than that, I’ll admit, this was pretty fun to watch. Largely untruthful and completely lacking in substance, but not boring by any stretch. He even kept his obligatory “9/11″ references count under 25. Bravo Rudy. The Gray’s Papaya’s on me.
Alaska Governor Tina Fey Sarah Palin came out to put a wrap on the evening. I won’t lie, I was so distracted by her sqeaky NPR voice and the continual passing around of her son like a photo-op football that I quickly lost interest and started writing this recap.
I suppose her general countenance and willingness to go after Obama is going to endear her to her “base”, but her speech did little to dispel the litany of holes in her “maverick” reputation. She too spouted more “smaller government” GOP talking points, although her pro-life stance on abortions was a blatant omission. Long on aggression, short on substance, absent of solutions. In other words, this lady’s right at home.
[Editor's Note: BTW Tina, bashing the media is never a good idea, especially given the fact that you'll need these very same people to overlook the inherent contradictions in your personal record. I can't wait for your first appearance on Meet The Press. We'll see who's the "pitbull in lipstick" when you've gotta answer questions about something other than a "bridge to nowhere".]
It’s blatantly obvious that these folks have no solutions and don’t even intend to run on their “platform”. They wanna sell you on false patriotism (as if only those who serve in the military love the country), and scare you into keeping them in office. McCain campaign manager Rick Davis even admitted as much yesterday.
Rick Davis, campaign manager for John McCain’s presidential bid, insisted that the presidential race will be decided more over personalities than issues during an interview with Post editors this morning.“This election is not about issues,” said Davis. “This election is about a composite view of what people take away from these candidates.”
Davis added that issues will no doubt play a major role in the decisions undecided voters will make but that they won’t ultimately be conclusive. He added that the campaign has “ultimate faith” in the idea that the more voters get to know McCain and Barack Obama, the better the Republican nominee will do.
Well thanks for clearing that one up for us, Rick. At least you’re being honest.
A few things really bug me about these GOP Talking Points, and I’m hoping you guys can help me out with them.
(1) The GOP keeps saying Palin, by virtue of being a small town mayor, and 18 months of Governor has more “executive experience” than Obama and Biden combined. If you define “executive experience” as having “run something”, wouldn’t that also make Palin more qualified than even John McCain, whose entire career has been spent in the Congress and Senate?
(2) The GOP is all about “less government”. How then do they explain being “pro-life”? Isn’t telling a woman what to do with her own body the epitome of “too much government”?
(3) The GOP is all about “fixing Washington”. Are we supposed to forget that they’ve virtually controlled Washington since 2000? Uhhh, shouldn’t something be “fixed” by now? Could they perhaps try “fixing” their own party before “fixing” the world?
(4) The GOP is all about “reining in government spending”. Their main way of remedying the record deficit is by cutting earmarks and pork barrel projects? But isn’t the $10B/month war that the GOP got us into the main reason for the deficit?
(5) How disingenuous is it to keep playing the “POW Card”? I admire John McCain’s service to this country, but let’s keep it 100. McCain’s time in Hanoi is only notable because his father’s name and position made him living, breathing propaganda. He was on TV and in the news practically every night during his 5 1/2 years is captivity, which is why there’s so much footage of it. He used this exposure to catapult his political career. Yet he calls Obama a “celebrity”? Obama seems like the sort of person who became famous because he was already a politician. McCain became a politician because he was already famous. Not exactly the same. The Dems will never point of this idiocy of course. They don’t roll like that.
Let’s be real here, I’m a registered Democrat, but given my pending change of party affiliation, I have no reason to support them other than my wish for Obama to be President. Still, it’s amazing the stark differences between the two parties. One lacks any teeth, the other is so obsessed with the superficial that it can’t help knocking you over the head with it constantly.
After tonight’s hatchet job, I totally get why so many people are apolitical.
Question: Did you watch the GOP Convention tonight? Are you as nauseated at this display of dishonesty as I am? Do you have answers for any of the questions I posed above?
McCain Manager: ‘This Election is Not About Issues’ – The Fix [WashPost]
Filed under: Barry 4 Prez, Drive-By Activism, Go Sit Down, Judge Joe Brown Says : "DO BETTER.", Knee-Grow Please, MLK is Crying Inside, Nigga Nonsense, That Sh*t Is Racist, Web Junk, What A DoucheBag
I wanted to post this last week after the speech, but PBS’s low-tech website didn’t allow embedding. Now that it’s on Youtube, enjoy as your newly nominated King Of All Blacks bashes last week’s Obama speech, while giving Conservative chatters more meaningless talking points in the process.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: folks like Malveaux and West have done enough grunt work to be entitled to stating their opinions. They’ve earned the right, so we shouldn’t see this as “hatin’”.
But seriously, if there are folks who should know what it means to Play The Game you would think it would be people like these two who have successfully navigated the waters of such all white institutions as USA Today and Princeton University.[1] Sometimes I wonder if folks like this just love talking to get off on hear the sound of their own voices, rather than to make a coherent point.
You know it’s a sad day when Tavis Smiley is the voice of reason. Dang.
MLK is crying inside.
Question: Are Malveaux and West drankin’ Scrawburry HaterAde™ or do they have some valid points? Do you now regret nominating West as the King Of All Blacks?
[1] Is it just me, or do West and Malveaux seem to be wearing the exact same thing everytime they’re on TV? No, seriously, peep the photo above (taken months ago), and the video (last week). Straaaange.
Filed under: PoliTricks as Usual, Raise Your Own Damn Kids, That Sh*t Is Racist, White Men Gone Wild
.jpg)
I don’t really know what (if anything) to say about this, so consider this post an open mic. Sound off you know where.
John McCain’s running mate Sarah Palin said Monday that her 17-year-old unmarried daughter is five months pregnant, an announcement campaign aides said was aimed at rebutting Internet rumors that Palin’s youngest son, born in April, was actually her daughter’s.A statement released by the campaign said that Bristol Palin will keep her baby and marry the child’s father. Bristol Palin’s baby is due in late December.
“Our beautiful daughter Bristol came to us with news that as parents we knew would make her grow up faster than we had ever planned. We’re proud of Bristol’s decision to have her baby and even prouder to become grandparents,” Sarah and Todd Palin said in the brief statement.
The disclosure of the pregnancy came on the opening day of the Republican National Convention, scaled back because of Hurricane Gustav, and three days after McCain named Palin as his running mate. The other news was likely to overshadow the disclosure.
The first-term Alaska governor was in Minnesota preparing for her acceptance speech when the campaign issued the statement; her family was home in Alaska.
“Bristol and the young man she will marry are going to realize very quickly the difficulties of raising a child, which is why they will have the love and support of our entire family,” they added.
The father was identified in the statement as Levi, but the campaign said it was not disclosing his full name or age or how he and Bristol know each other, citing privacy.
Sarah Palin’s fifth child, a son named Trig, was born in April with Down syndrome. Internet bloggers have been suggesting that the child was actually born to Bristol Palin but that her mother, the 44-year-old Alaska governor, claimed to be the mother.
I’m sorta divided on this one. Part of me says this flies in the face of all the “moral authority” mumbojumbo that the GOP so consistently advocates. It’s not enough that McCain himself is a serial philanderer who may, or may not have been creepin’ on CindyMac as recently as last year. Now, you’ve got a Veep who staunchly advocates her pro-life stance (which is certainly her prerogative), but seems to be using the fact that she just had a baby with Down’s Syndrome to her political advantage. I’m watching Fox News (don’t ask) right now, and none other than Bill Kristol is here saying this teen pregnancy “humanizes” the GOP.
On the flipside, part of me says this is none of our damn business. Unmarried people have babies all the time, whether their Moms are in the running for Leader Of The Free World or not. It’s their business, and their baby to raise, not ours. This shouldn’t be a story, and it probably won’t be, not with Gustav floating around, as well as the scaled back GOP Convention.
Obama himself has already said as much, stating that Palin’s daughter is “off limits”, just like his wife and kids are. Never mind the fact that Cotton Hill McCain uttered the same thing, only to sit on his hands once his surrogates and GOP officials started unloading on Michelle-O.
Barack Obama, questioned about the pregnancy of Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin’s unwed teenage daughter, said outsiders should steer clear of that subject.“People’s families are off limits,” he said firmly. “People’s children are especially off limits. They have no relevancy. I strongly urge people to back off these kinds of stories. You know my mother had me when she was 18.”
Sarah Palin said today confirmed her daughter is expecting a child, and said Bristol Palin and the baby’s father would wed. Obama was asked by a reporter about Palin’s daughter during a campaign stop in Monroe, following the Detroit Labor Day parade.
Asked if anyone in his campaign had a role in disclosing the pregnancy of 17-year-old Bristol, Obama said: “I’m offended by that statement. There’s no indication that any of this involved us.”
Obama indicated he’d dismiss anyone from his staff that was involved in disseminating that kind of information.
That Barry is one classy dude, and a far bigger man than me. But I digress. Chat amongst yourselves.
Question: Is Palin’s teenage daughter campaign fodder, or should candidate’s kids be off limits, no matter what?
Palin says 17-year-old daughter is pregnant [FoxNews]
Obama: Steer clear of Palin’s daughter [Detroit News]
Filed under: PoliTricks as Usual, Raise Your Own Damn Kids, That Sh*t Is Racist, White Men Gone Wild
I don’t really know what (if anything) to say about this, so consider this post an open mic. Sound off you know where.
John McCain’s running mate Sarah Palin said Monday that her 17-year-old unmarried daughter is five months pregnant, an announcement campaign aides said was aimed at rebutting Internet rumors that Palin’s youngest son, born in April, was actually her daughter’s.A statement released by the campaign said that Bristol Palin will keep her baby and marry the child’s father. Bristol Palin’s baby is due in late December.
“Our beautiful daughter Bristol came to us with news that as parents we knew would make her grow up faster than we had ever planned. We’re proud of Bristol’s decision to have her baby and even prouder to become grandparents,” Sarah and Todd Palin said in the brief statement.
The disclosure of the pregnancy came on the opening day of the Republican National Convention, scaled back because of Hurricane Gustav, and three days after McCain named Palin as his running mate. The other news was likely to overshadow the disclosure.
The first-term Alaska governor was in Minnesota preparing for her acceptance speech when the campaign issued the statement; her family was home in Alaska.
“Bristol and the young man she will marry are going to realize very quickly the difficulties of raising a child, which is why they will have the love and support of our entire family,” they added.
The father was identified in the statement as Levi, but the campaign said it was not disclosing his full name or age or how he and Bristol know each other, citing privacy.
Sarah Palin’s fifth child, a son named Trig, was born in April with Down syndrome. Internet bloggers have been suggesting that the child was actually born to Bristol Palin but that her mother, the 44-year-old Alaska governor, claimed to be the mother.
I’m sorta divided on this one. Part of me says this flies in the face of all the “moral authority” mumbojumbo that the GOP so consistently advocates. It’s not enough that McCain himself is a serial philanderer who may, or may not have been creepin’ on CindyMac as recently as last year. Now, you’ve got a Veep who staunchly advocates her pro-life stance (which is certainly her prerogative), but seems to be using the fact that she just had a baby with Down’s Syndrome to her political advantage. I’m watching Fox News (don’t ask) right now, and none other than Bill Kristol is here saying this teen pregnancy “humanizes” the GOP.
On the flipside, part of me says this is none of our damn business. Unmarried people have babies all the time, whether their Moms are in the running for Leader Of The Free World or not. It’s their business, and their baby to raise, not ours. This shouldn’t be a story, and it probably won’t be, not with Gustav floating around, as well as the scaled back GOP Convention.
Obama himself has already said as much, stating that Palin’s daughter is “off limits”, just like his wife and kids are. Never mind the fact that Cotton Hill McCain uttered the same thing, only to sit on his hands once his surrogates and GOP officials started unloading on Michelle-O.
Barack Obama, questioned about the pregnancy of Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin’s unwed teenage daughter, said outsiders should steer clear of that subject.“People’s families are off limits,” he said firmly. “People’s children are especially off limits. They have no relevancy. I strongly urge people to back off these kinds of stories. You know my mother had me when she was 18.”
Sarah Palin said today confirmed her daughter is expecting a child, and said Bristol Palin and the baby’s father would wed. Obama was asked by a reporter about Palin’s daughter during a campaign stop in Monroe, following the Detroit Labor Day parade.
Asked if anyone in his campaign had a role in disclosing the pregnancy of 17-year-old Bristol, Obama said: “I’m offended by that statement. There’s no indication that any of this involved us.”
Obama indicated he’d dismiss anyone from his staff that was involved in disseminating that kind of information.
That Barry is one classy dude, and a far bigger man than me. But I digress. Chat amongst yourselves.
Question: Is Palin’s teenage daughter campaign fodder, or should candidate’s kids be off limits, no matter what?
Palin says 17-year-old daughter is pregnant [FoxNews]
Obama: Steer clear of Palin’s daughter [Detroit News]
Filed under: PoliTricks as Usual, That Sh*t Is Racist, The Evil That Men Do
Sorry, but the GOP suddenly being concerned enough about the soggy citizens of N’awlins to cancel their Convention seems a bit shady to me.
The Republican National Convention has suspended all but the most necessary activities to constitute a convention Monday and then will adjourn until further notice, John McCain, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, announced Sunday.No evening session will be called and no speakers will offer speeches on Monday night. President Bush and Vice President Cheney had both canceled their Monday night appearances at the convention earlier in the day.
The convention “will suspend all activities except those that are absolutely necessary,” McCain said late Sunday afternoon. “We hope to resume some normal activities but frankly that is the hands of God.”
McCain Campaign Manager Rick Davis said that additional activities will be determined on a day-by-day basis. He added that all activities at the convention will be procedural and not political.
Go ahead and call me a hater. I’ve been called worse. But I call em’ like I see em’, and I smell a rat here.
Are we seriously supposed to believe that the very same cats who told Negroes in the 9th Ward to Swim Or Die! just 3 short years ago are so humbled that they’re calling off 4 days of Prime Time Obama Bashing? I think not.
Let’s keep it 100. The GOP wants no part of President Bush, especially with the spectre of one of his most momentous failures looming simultaneously on the Gulf Coast. It’s just bad politricks to have a party to bash your opponents when people’s lives are theoretically hanging in the balance.
But this by not means indicates that these folks give a sh*t about New Orleanians. This is little more than a political ploy to allow the GOP to put it’s best foot (compassion for others, faith) forward, while keeping it’s club foot (lack of compassion for minorities, a very unpopular incumbent President) hidden in the attic.
I know better, I sure as hell hope ya’ll do.
Kanye was right.
Question: Do you think the GOP is genuinely concerned about the plight of Gulf Coast residents, or is this little more than politricks as usual?
McCain Suspends Most GOP Convention Programming [Fox News]
