"...too many people are brainwashed by his message of hope..."
I heard this quote on tv today.
Does anybody else think that this statement is insane? Wouldn't we want to be hopeful about an election year? Could it be that I, of all people, am landing on the side of the line that is wanting to be optimistic? (...fuze....blown...)
I also read an op-ed piece today that talked about the elephant in the room being "could a black man actually be elected president of the U.S."? Through some short/trivial conversations today and Hillary's victory of AR, I guess that's still a pretty big issue.
It's interesting to me to find out that O won the Dem vote in Kansas by a huge margin. It makes me think that 1)my background might have made me even more color-blind than I was aware 2)that inherent color-blindness has engendered my own naiveté.
Basically, I am REALLY NOT southern and I am reminded of it.
8 comments:
did hillary winning her party's primary in her home state have to do with the voters being less color-blind toward her rival's race than in other states?
I noticed the same thing, Shack and was really suprised by it.
Here's two interesting thoughts about the race thing:
1. I have heard people say, in all seriousness, that they won't be suprised, if a black man wins if he's assassinated. they say this with a 'well, he's got it coming' tone of voice.
2. somebody told me last night that he thinks that Obama is being controlled by Islamic elements(!).
What the H - E - double hockey sticks??? Or people really this insane?
Seriously, I think we could all use a little hope.
I'm responding to both of these comments because they're related.
T-rev, of course I wouldn't attribute H's win in Arkansas solely to the fact that O is black. I didn't mean to imply it. BUT...
I think that my comments were response to the fact that I heard the same yesterday that Jake heard; that if O was elected, he'd be shot the next day. Even the idea that somebody would consider this a possible, even plausible reality truly shocked the hell out of me. This is added to the fact that the main negatives I've heard in personal conversations with people is the idea that O could never get elected because he's black. I'm really being honest in that this sentiment really surprises me and I think I'm just being exposed to a reality that I am completely ignorant about.
Also, I heard somebody else today say the other thing Jake heard that said Obama is a muslim.
Again: more than anything, I'm surprised to find that I'm more optimistic about this particular issue than others.
so, my dad is pretty much a racist. i know he was trying to be funny, when he tried to teach sam to say the N word as a baby. but still. he's a racist. he wouldn't even let my sister and i wear michael jordan shirts growing up.
however, i'm pretty sure he would have voted for colin powell if he'd run a few years ago, as he made some comment about it.
it barely even registers with me that Obama is black, unless someone brings it up.
so, my own color blindness, even having grown up with my dad the racist, plus his admission to liking powell enough to vote for him, tells me that there might be some hope in the south after all. cling to that!
either way, it'll be interesting. either a black man or a woman for the democrats. the fact that anyone would vote against OR FOR anyone, solely because of race or gender is ridiculous and sad. it's all very complicated, though, and works both ways. much more complicated than if hil was running against a white guy. or obama against a white guy.
(this is lisa)
I am a little confused by the current conversation. It sounds like y'all are making negative comments about the South in regards to the South supporting a African-American candidate. It is refreshing that y'all realize that candidates need to win the South to win the election, but the fact is that African-Americans make up a larger percentage of the population in the South by far than anywhere else in the US. I do not want to exuse any form of racism, but do not beat up the South for being racists while you praise your own color blindness from your white-bread-basket upbringing. If y'all are hoping for a victory for Obama, you better hope that the nation outside of the South is as color blind as you think that it is since he will have to win more non-Afican-American votes than he would in the South.
James P.
Well, my mom's family are all basically Arkansas rednecks and many of them, including my grandmother, are Democrats. They have expressed far more concern about Obama than Hilary, though, honestly, they don't seem to like either of them at all. Southern Christian Democrats, I'm talking about here. However, the concern they've expressed seems to have less (or nothing) to do with Obama's race than with his name, because it is a Muslim name. I believe it was my grandmother who said, "That Obama scares me! Obama?!"
I don't know if that attitude is in any way indicative of a trend among white Southerners. Not necessarily, but possibly. But I think people are saying "many White Southerners won't vote for an African-American," which may or may not be true, rather than thinking "many White Southerners won't vote for a man with an Islamic name," which in my family seems to be more the case.
Anywho, that's what's going down in my gene pool.
Jeff M.
hmm. i don't think i'm trying to bash the south. i don't really understand the dynamics of what "strongholds" are where, as far as politics go, esp. when, as i said, it's a black guy vs. a female. i don't think anything's going to be cut and dried, anywhere. and also, i don't think my "color-blindness" is anything to brag about; i'm just saying that it exists, despite my upbringing. i think that says more about my generation than about me personally. across the board, i think younger people are less affected by color than people of our parents' generation.
one thing i was going to say before but didn't is that i grew up with/around a whole lot of people who are more gender-biased than racially biased. my dad is both... but i actually think he'd be more likely to vote for an African-American he agreed with than a woman.
all that said, i don't know how excited i am about anybody. i am more hoping for a victory for NOT hillary than i am hoping for a victory for anyone else.
A victory for NOT Hillary.
Yes. That is my current feeling.
--jeff m.
Post a Comment