Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

Re: Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

caught the back end of it

Re: Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

Yup, I can hear it from my desk.

Re: Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

I really didn't pay that much attention, but it sounded good. now I'm listening to the commentary.

Re: Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

It is interesting that after denying any knowledge of Reverend Wright's hateful rhetoric, Obama now admits that, yes he had heard it and was aware of it.

Why he only now sort of condemns it (while making excuses for it, too), after years of nothing but glowing praise for his pastor speaks volumes about who Barack Obama really is. He will simply say whatever he needs to say, adjusted for who he is speaking to, so he can get elected.

I think superdelegates should be jumping on Hillary's bandwagon b/c this is going to seriously hurt Obama in the general election. Whether the nominee is Hillary or BO, however, I think McCain will win

Re: Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

Re: Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

Re: Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

hate to say this Jenn - I'd be surprised if he gets in. There's just too much you can hang your hat on not to vote for him

Re: Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

Re: Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

Obama speech transcript

Here is a section of the speech where he talks about Wright:

"As imperfect as [Reverend Wright] may be, he has been like family to me. He strengthened my faith, officiated my wedding, and baptized my children. Not once in my conversations with him have I heard him talk about any ethnic group in derogatory terms, or treat whites with whom he interacted with anything but courtesy and respect. He contains within him the contradictions - the good and the bad - of the community that he has served diligently for so many years.

I can no more disown him than I can disown the black community. I can no more disown him than I can my white grandmother - a woman who helped raise me, a woman who sacrificed again and again for me, a woman who loves me as much as she loves anything in this world, but a woman who once confessed her fear of black men who passed by her on the street, and who on more than one occasion has uttered racial or ethnic stereotypes that made me cringe.

These people are a part of me. And they are a part of America, this country that I love.

Some will see this as an attempt to justify or excuse comments that are simply inexcusable. I can assure you it is not. I suppose the politically safe thing would be to move on from this episode and just hope that it fades into the woodwork. We can dismiss Reverend Wright as a crank or a demagogue, just as some have dismissed Geraldine Ferraro, in the aftermath of her recent statements, as harboring some deep-seated racial bias.

But race is an issue that I believe this nation cannot afford to ignore right now. We would be making the same mistake that Reverend Wright made in his offending sermons about America - to simplify and stereotype and amplify the negative to the point that it distorts reality.

The fact is that the comments that have been made and the issues that have surfaced over the last few weeks reflect the complexities of race in this country that weve never really worked through - a part of our union that we have yet to perfect. And if we walk away now, if we simply retreat into our respective corners, we will never be able to come together and solve challenges like health care, or education, or the need to find good jobs for every American."

Re: Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

I found it hard to believe, from the beginning, that Obama knew nothing of what that Reverend had said. I knew he would probably come out later and back-peddle... especially considering Obama has QUOTED from THAT speech in his book lol so obviously he had heard that speech and speeches like it before. Denial is not a river in Egypt.

Re: Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

We can dismiss Reverend Wright as a crank or a demagogue, just as some have dismissed Geraldine Ferraro, in the aftermath of her recent statements, as harboring some deep-seated racial bias.

this statement is silly.

Re: Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

Re: Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

Re: Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

Re: Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

Re: Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

obviously no one can deny Obama has a historical point.

but, there are men that grew up in a terrible enviroment, like Rev. Wright, and then there are men that grew up in a terrible environment, like Dr. Martin Luther King. so clearly, the way they chose to combat racism is clearly just that...a matter of choice. Rev. Wright chose hate. there is a distinct difference there to me. rather than being a fan of MLK, he is a fan of Farrakahn....the ideologies are just so different...how can Obama expect people to believe he is for change and for unity if his pastor, whom he loves so much...is a follower of a completely different ideology?

to say that he was nice to the white people he met, and therefore has contridictions in him is ridiculous. many racists are cordial to those they "hate"...it doesn't mean they don't beat them or plot their demise at home.

and the comparison to his grandmother is also very weak. do I think his grandma could be racist...YES. do I think he had a choice in picking his grandma...NO.

do I think as soon as he heard something so off the charts from his views at a sunday sermon of Rev Wrights, he could have distanced himself from him...HELLLS YEAH.

even IF he got wackier and wackier over the years, I would have distanced my CHILDREN in the very least from such a man, spewing hate.

None of his actions indicate that he was deeply affected or concerned by the pastor's sermons....except his eloquently constructed and delivered words.

I like you Obama...i really do. but I don't like this. not one bit.

Re: Is anyone listening to Obama's speech on race and politics?

Looks like the wheels on Obamas bandwagon are falling off after this.