If only actual radicals got more mainstream press. I'd love to see the talking heads respond to a public figure who wanted to destroy white supremacy, gender, the traditional family, capitalism, and hierarchy of all sorts. They wouldn't know what to say.

4/29/2008 4:56:11 PM

Quote :

"either way it doesn't matter sillyjoules. if obama isn't able to see what kind of a person wright is during 20 years of friendship he is unfit to lead the nation and by no means fit to unite it after."

SHHHHH.. Dont tell them that. Save it for September.

4/29/2008 4:59:53 PM

with the giddy way you guys have acted in this thread it's a wonder that you still call others arrogant.

4/29/2008 5:02:47 PM

Quote :

"there certainly aren't anywhere near 150 million voters there"

ok? where did i say anything about 150 million voters? do you have to be a voter to be offended by an idiot god damning your country?

Quote :

"oh yeah and 300 million - 150 million = 150 million, not 250 million"

ok? the point was that the majority of the population doesnt live on the coast...but that flew right over your head as well

wut is middle america? i thought everybody lived in the big city and thought like i did

4/29/2008 5:03:01 PM

So it's just a coincidence that the first serious black presidential contender is getting blasting for his association with an angry black preacher?

4/29/2008 5:03:34 PM

^x5 They'd say, "No thanks!" Except for the white supremacy part--and who's pushing that other than extremists?

[Edited on April 29, 2008 at 5:05 PM. Reason : .]

4/29/2008 5:03:56 PM

Quote :

"ok? the point was that the majority of the population doesnt live on the coast...but that flew right over your head as well"

but they actually do. and if you count the gulf coast, then it's an even more clear majority.

believe it or not, most people live in cities these days.

or if you're talking about summing cities versus rural, i'd guess that the majority would be urban these days as well.

[Edited on April 29, 2008 at 5:06 PM. Reason : .]

4/29/2008 5:05:15 PM

its about a 50/50 split actually...but again you disregard middle america, which is the reoccuring irony

4/29/2008 5:08:21 PM

how am i disregarding anything? i'm trying to quantify it.

and btw 50% of america live in the 40 most populous metro areas (and there are far more cities past the top 40 -- raleigh isn't even in that group)

and i'm still interested how you could manage to speak for them. especially since you certainly don't live in middle america and they certainly wouldn't speak with one voice to begin with.

[Edited on April 29, 2008 at 5:14 PM. Reason : .]

4/29/2008 5:11:17 PM

^ Sweet Jesus.

4/29/2008 5:17:47 PM

omg i actually check things out for myself and don't trust people who spout out random numbers!

4/29/2008 5:18:23 PM

Quote :

"50% of america live in the 40 most populous metro areas "

i'm sure none of those metro areas are in texas, illinois, missouri, indiana, etc...you know, middle america

and speaking of spouting random numbers, is that like when you twisted my 150,000,000 people into 150,000 voters?

Quote :

"don't trust people who spout out random numbers!"

but you trust politicians, gg

and if you dont think that roughly 150,000,000 people represent middle america...aka that roughly half the population represents middle america...then you're probably still puzzled as to why kerry didnt win in 04 and you'll be puzzled as to who all the people are who vote mccain into the white house

4/29/2008 5:25:32 PM

Obama: "I am outraged by the comments that were made and saddened over the spectacle that we saw yesterday."

Now is Obama just saying what he has to say cause he's a politician?

4/29/2008 6:07:29 PM

Of course. I don't see how he can go to this man's church for years and years and claim him as a close confidant if he didn't mostly agree with what he had to say.

4/29/2008 6:12:00 PM

LOL at this thread:

terpball:

Quote :

"OH SHIT!!!! This man is awesome! "

Obama:

Quote :

"I am outraged by the comments that were made and saddened by the spectacle that we saw yesterday."

terpball

Quote :

"I never thought of Wright as my God, I still think he's cool - I definitely wish Obama didn't have to further distance himself from Wright - but that in perticular is something I really don't give 2 shits about. Obama had to do it to deal with the less educated voters who would let something stupid like this sway their vote!"

LOLZ nice rationalization. You should be a lawyer!

So you're saying that Obama "had to" distance himself from Wright in order to pander to less educated voters? Kind of like how Bush "had to" make gay marriage and turrists election year issues "to deal with the less educated voters who would let something stupid like that sway their vote"?

Either Obama is a slimy politician who will do whatever it takes to get elected, or he is directly at odds with you about Rev Wright. It can't be both.

4/29/2008 6:32:17 PM

Hahaha.....terpball and moron got owned by Obama today.

4/29/2008 6:36:12 PM

^^ Rev Wright didn't undermine my campaign to be president, he undermined Obama's

4/29/2008 6:49:55 PM

Quote :

"LOLZ nice rationalization. You should be a lawyer!"

terpball you ought to tell him where you work

4/29/2008 6:56:35 PM

Quote :

"psyche And why are you acting like Rev. Wright is the first person to admit to cultural differences between black folks and white folks? Hasn't everybody at one time or another acknowledged a general difference or two? Fundamental differences? Based on race (and not culture)? I dunno about that. But cultural differences? Yeah, that's nothing new. Sorry if you didn't know it was okay to observe and comment on cultural diversity. With a little sensitivity and honesty, you can say and ask just about anything. "

All I want to know is who let this stupid bitch back into the Soap Box. Seriously, you are almost as bad as drunk-n-loaded.


Hey, I am Bridget and I love to smoke pot and post on the internet, I am so smart and hip because I am constantly talking down to people. If I wasn't insecure I wouldn't have to do that, but since I am an insecure self-hating cunt that really believes that I smarter than the average joe walking down the street, I feel the need to post non-sensical things that use circular logic and defy intelligent thought.

4/29/2008 7:09:17 PM

Quote :

" Hahaha.....terpball and moron got owned by Obama today. "

So you're cool with Obama as far as Wright's concerned? Do you now think that Obama doesn't hate white people?

I'm disappointed though that Obama would pander to the "working class whites" but I understand why he did it.

Quote :

"Of course. I don't see how he can go to this man's church for years and years and claim him as a close confidant if he didn't mostly agree with what he had to say. "

So then would you agree that even though Helms was obviously blatantly racist in the past, he must always be damned a racist?

[Edited on April 29, 2008 at 8:00 PM. Reason : ]

4/29/2008 7:58:57 PM

Quote :

"I'm disappointed though that Obama would pander to the "working class whites""

I agree...he should only pander to black people

4/29/2008 8:07:40 PM

Huh?

He shouldn't pander to anyone.

4/29/2008 8:10:52 PM

So you're basically saying that you're ok if Obama buys into Wright's racist ramblings? Considering the way you've tried to pigeonhole white people twice in this thread, I cannot say that I'm all that surprised.

Whatever Helms did or said over 40 years ago is completely irrevelent to Obama and his close relationship with a lunatic racebaiting preacher. It doesn't make you any less of a racist ass.

4/29/2008 8:12:46 PM

Quote :

" So you're basically saying that you're ok if Obama buys into Wright's racist ramblings?"

What racist ramblings? Find me one. Here's LOTS of material to work with to help you out http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=TRINITYCHGO

Quote :

"onsidering the way you've tried to pigeonhole white people twice in this thread, I cannot say that I'm all that surprised. Whatever Helms did or said over 40 years ago is completely irrevelent to Obama and his close relationship with a lunatic racebaiting preacher. It doesn't make you any less of a racist ass. "

What's wrong with being racist? It's good enough for Jesse Helms.

[Edited on April 29, 2008 at 8:25 PM. Reason : ]

4/29/2008 8:17:41 PM

Yes, referring to the United States as the US of KKK America, basically stating that those who run this country, and specifically this "white America," are in the KKK isn't racist. Labeling those that you do not agree with as klansmen and then saying they invented AIDS to wipe out blacks isn't racist. What world do you live in?

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Mk3LXvVlsI4&feature=related

Quote :

"What's wrong with being racist? It's good enough for Jesse Helms."

Come join the rest of us in the land of the relevent and current. If you want to justify your own personal racism because of a man who hasn't been a public figure in quite some time, then have at it. Whatever helps you sleep at night on what I'm guessing is anything but a white pillow.

4/29/2008 8:36:44 PM

the us of kkk a thing is like dead on in my opinion

4/29/2008 8:40:49 PM

Quote :

"and speaking of spouting random numbers, is that like when you twisted my 150,000,000 people into 150,000 voters?"

i literally thought you had mistyped (seeing as 150 million people didn't decide anything 2000 or 2004 because not that many people voted)

[Edited on April 29, 2008 at 8:50 PM. Reason : .]

4/29/2008 8:49:36 PM

Quote :

" Yes, referring to the United States as the US of KKK America, basically stating that those who run this country, and specifically this "white America," are in the KKK isn't racist."

I highly doubt he was specifically stating that. It's far more likely that it was a figurative statement talking about the racism against blacks in this country, which no sane person would deny. But, considering the full context is not available online, I don't think anyone can say what he was saying, and considering his other sermons, it's unlikely he was telling his congregation to stay away from white people.

Quote :

"Labeling those that you do not agree with as klansmen and then saying they invented AIDS to wipe out blacks isn't racist. What world do you live in?"

You seem to know more than anyone else about the statement, unless you're judging the statements prematurely (isn't there a word for when you prejudge something?). Saying that whites invented AIDS is pretty dumb, but I don't think Wright's ever stuck by that, and it's not really racist.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Mk3LXvVlsI4&feature=related

Quote :

"join the rest of us in the land of the relevent and current. If you want to justify your own personal racism because of a man who hasn't been a public figure in quite some time, then have at it. Whatever helps you sleep at night on what I'm guessing is anything but a white pillow. "

I'm glad you've finally come to terms with Helms being a racist. If you could only realize that a racist shouldn't be your personal hero, you might become a respectable person.

4/29/2008 9:12:42 PM

Newest Gallup tracking poll shows Hillary up 1 point

Clinton winning 47-46 percent.

pwned, thanks Rev Wright.


but on a personal note: i admired obama's comments today. the man has guts to stand up to those thugs. but still 20yrs not to recognize it till today

[Edited on April 29, 2008 at 9:19 PM. Reason : .]

4/29/2008 9:15:00 PM

Quote :

" but still 20yrs not to recognize it till today"

So to you, NOTHING WRight says makes any sense? Even if you assume he's a racist, it's obvious certain things he says makes a lot of sense. Most people would agree Pat Buchanan is off his rocker, but most people would also agree that he gets things right every now and then.

It's telling though that you feel you can judge 20 years of someone's career from clips clearly taken out of context. It's like there's something about this preventing you from thinking rationally.

4/29/2008 9:41:11 PM

Quote :

"Sputter: All I want to know is who let this stupid bitch back into the Soap Box. Seriously, you are almost as bad as drunk-n-loaded. Hey, I am Bridget and I love to smoke pot and post on the internet, I am so smart and hip because I am constantly talking down to people. If I wasn't insecure I wouldn't have to do that, but since I am an insecure self-hating cunt that really believes that I smarter than the average joe walking down the street, I feel the need to post non-sensical things that use circular logic and defy intelligent thought."

1. Who are you? Am I supposed to know you or something?
2. How was I using circular logic or defying intelligent thought with my post?
3. And as far as "talking down" goes, I may have taken a tone, but it was appropriate to your tone. Here's your post that I was responding to:

Quote :

"Sputter: no, the only thing that's funny is your anger. why do i have to be ignorant...you are so blinded by your hate that you automatically thought that i didn't like the speech. what's funnier than your anger is not noticing that someone is finally willing to admit that there just may be fundamental differences in people based upon their culture and race after having the exact opposite pounded into they psychie of the American public for the better part of a half century. Wright may be onto a better way of dealing with race relations. Keep hating though sarifoool [Edited on April 28, 2008 at 11:22 PM. Reason : PS - the speech is much longer than 30 minutes]"

Also: I don't love to smoke pot. I do love to post on the internet. I am smart. I'm not hip. I am insecure. I'm not self-hating. I'm not a cunt. And I do question my intelligence regularly. You need to update my profile.

4/29/2008 10:03:03 PM

^^yeah i said NOTHING wright says makes sense.

well it kind of doesn't.

[Edited on April 29, 2008 at 10:08 PM. Reason : ^^]

4/29/2008 10:04:53 PM

^^ So it's your job to stick up for sarifool?


That's awesome.

I wasn't referring to this one post. You in general offer little or nothing of value in Soap Box and typically come of as an arrogant bitch.

Reading your posts are what I imagine it would be like to wipe my ass with sand paper.

4/29/2008 10:10:17 PM

4/29/2008 10:28:13 PM

^^No, I'm not sticking up for him. I don't know him just as much as I don't know you.

I was just pointing out that I believed you were wrong about this notion that we don't or can't acknowledge cultural differences between people. Rev. Wright is wrong on that count if he claims we haven't been permitted to discuss diversity.

^Aww...LOL

[Edited on April 29, 2008 at 10:31 PM. Reason : ]

4/29/2008 10:30:10 PM

i like this take on the whole wright matter:

Quote :

"[quote]Obama Kicks Wright In the Junk By: John Cole April 29, 2008 at 2:08 pm Because I refuse to say he threw him under the bus, which is now my least favorite expression in the English language. At any rate, Obama “distanced” himself from Wright: “I am outraged by the comments that were made and saddened by the spectacle that we saw yesterday,” he said. Obama also distanced himself from the man in a way he has been reluctant to in the past. “The person that I saw yesterday was not the person that I met 20 years ago,” he said. “His comments were not only divisive and destructive, but I believe that they end up giving comfort to those who prey on hate, and I believe that they do not portray accurately the perspective of the black church.” “They certainly don’t portray accurately my values and beliefs,” he said. “If Reverend Wright thinks that’s political posturing, as he put it, then he doesn’t know me very well and based on his remarks yesterday, I may not know him as well as I thought either.” All the talking heads assured me he had to do this, and now he has. I am not sure why it was necessary, as it was pretty clear to me when listening to Wright the past few days that he was not speaking for Obama, but such is the guilt-by-association bullshit of the media. As to Wright himself, well, I have my own thoughts. First and foremost, I guess I am no longer the delicate fainting flower that most other bloggers and media commenters are these days. I spent several years in the early days of this blog being all sorts of outraged about petty bullshit. I spent days calling Ted Rall an asshole (he still is, I think), days opining about what an asshole Michael Moore is, and so on. I got my panties all in a bunch about Ward Churchhill (also a dick), and stupid things Bill Maher may or may not have said, and so on. And you know what? They may be assholes, or jerks, or whatever term you want to use, but they sure as hell didn’t run this economy into the ground. They aren’t responsible for turning a huge surplus into a several hundred billion dollar deficit. I have yet to read any memos from Barbra Streisand detailing how we should spy on American citizens. And so it is with Jeremiah Wright. Is he a jerk? I don’t think there is any argument to be made that lately he hasn’t in fact been one big, giant, puckered asshole. His ego tour the past few days was all about him, but so what? I blame the media as much as I blame him. Is it an offensive notion that the government created aids? Absolutely, but I refuse to get all bent out of shape about it, because the government that tortures people and ran the Tuskegee experiment and wiretapped MLK for years opens itself up to crazy accusations like that. So Jeremiah Wright has acted like a jackass the past few days, and he may have acted supremely selfishly by hurting Obama’s electoral chances. Regardless, he may be a flawed man, but that does not undo all the good he has done over the years. I don’t know of any bloggers with thirty years of service to the poor and the indigent. Get back to me when Chris Matthews feeds hungry people for three decades. And even with all his flaws, Jeremiah Wright did give us this quality bit of entertainment, and I have to admit to enjoying someone treat the media with the respect they deserve (which is to be mocked, have eyes rolled at them, and taunted as Wright did yesterday at the Press Club). Maybe it is because I am totally and unrepentantly in the tank for Obama, but I just can’t get worked up over what his pastor said. Maybe it is because I am not religious, and I am used to religious people saying things that sound crazy. Or maybe I just refuse to spend any more time and energy getting worked up over and denouncing, distancing, and rejecting the wrong people- people who really don’t matter in the big scheme of things. If you have a memo from Jeremiah Wright to John Yoo showing how we should become a rogue nation, let me know. If you have pictures of Jeremiah Wright voting against the GI Bill, send it to me. If you have evidence of Jeremiah Wright training junior soldiers on the finer aspects of stacking and torturing naked Iraqi captives, pass them on. Until then, I just can’t seem to get all worked up about the crazy scary black preacher that Obama has to “throw under the bus.”"

[Edited on April 29, 2008 at 10:35 PM. Reason : .]

[Edited on April 29, 2008 at 10:35 PM. Reason : .]

4/29/2008 10:34:39 PM

thats a really good article.

i agree with damn near all of it.

that said, Jeremiah Wright needs to SHUT THE MOTHERFUCKING HELL UP

gg Obama for the swift reaction.

4/30/2008 3:19:44 AM

^^ Post the link.

4/30/2008 6:08:53 AM

Quote :

"So to you, NOTHING WRight says makes any sense? Even if you assume he's a racist, it's obvious certain things he says makes a lot of sense. "

WTF...you keep saying this. Just because someone might say something that makes sense sometimes, that doesn't excuse EVERYTHING he says. He could say 100 things that make perfect sense to me...then say ONE thing such as “The government lied about inventing the HIV virus as a means of genocide against people of color. The government lied.” and all of his credibility and respectability goes down the shitter.

4/30/2008 10:16:31 AM

n/m.
after further review, why does race have to matter to this guy wright
so anti-progressive.

[Edited on April 30, 2008 at 10:56 AM. Reason : .]

4/30/2008 10:35:40 AM

^ Why don't you research how historical whites constructed the issue?

Nice edit, but you're not escaping so easily. I don't see how the reality of black slave owners undermines traditional notions about the period. It doesn't shock me that many from the oppressed group wanted to become oppressors themselves. What better way to prove you're as good as the white elite? They bought into the system and tried to get what they could from it. This sort of thing still happens today.

[Edited on April 30, 2008 at 10:54 AM. Reason : ninja]

4/30/2008 10:50:35 AM

Quote :

"WTF...you keep saying this. Just because someone might say something that makes sense sometimes, that doesn't excuse EVERYTHING he says. He could say 100 things that make perfect sense to me...then say ONE thing such as “The government lied about inventing the HIV virus as a means of genocide against people of color. The government lied.” and all of his credibility and respectability goes down the shitter. "

That's not exactly what he said, but do you not see why a black person wouldn't dis-believe that, after the tuskegee experiements and the iran-contra problems? And when asked about it Wright didn't reiterate the statement, so he clearly doesn't feel like he has any evidence of that particular claim. And on top of that, if you feel one statement that's wrong invalidates a person completely, then just who IS credible?

The problem is that you don't know Wright personally, but you choose to take 1 or 2 clips of him, and make a judgement of 20 or so years of his life. He may very well be crazy, but as of yet, there's not enough information to determine this, and especially not enough information to say that all 20 years of his sermons has been blaming whitey for AIDS (and actually there's good evidence that he usually DOESN'T blame whitey for AIDS). And it's also pretty clear that, at the least, Wright is not a black supremacist.

4/30/2008 11:29:23 AM

link for hooksaw (meant to provide it when i posted, but i was tired i guess):


http://www.balloon-juice.com/?p=10235

4/30/2008 11:35:11 AM

Quote :

"Maybe it is because I am totally and unrepentantly in the tank for Obama, but I just can’t get worked up over what his pastor said"

ding ding ding ding ding...i'm pretty sure thats why ANYBODY has been defending Wright...cause they're so in love with Obama

Quote :

"actually there's good evidence that he usually DOESN'T blame whitey for AIDS"

dude...in Wright's comments a couple days ago, that Obama recently denounced as appalling, Wright re-iterated that he does in fact believe the US Government created AIDS to kill black people...and you're saying theres good evidence that he DOESN'T blame them? Are you freaking kidding me? Somebody basically asked him about his previous comments about AIDS, giving him the chance to say they were out of context or whatever, and he didnt waver in his opinion whatsoever...and you're STILL trying to defend him?

4/30/2008 11:54:07 AM

What one really has to ask about Obama now, is what changed? Why now? What has he said now that wasnt said prior that Obama defended the man. The answer is the polls are droppping. Either way, it doesnt look good for Obama. His bad decisions in the past are haunting him now.

4/30/2008 1:08:45 PM

http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/04/obama_campaign_confirms_hes_ge.php

Quote :

"Obama Getting Endorsement of Super-Del And Indiana Rep. Baron Hill By Greg Sargent - April 30, 2008, 10:36AM The Obama campaign just confirmed to me that he's going to pick up the endorsement tonight of super-del and Indiana Rep. Baron Hill. The endorsement was first reported moments ago in Bloomington's Herald-Times, and Obama spokesperson Josh Earnest confirmed the report. That's a key get in a crucial state that's voting in less than a week. Obama's super-del total for today: Two. "

4/30/2008 1:19:07 PM

^Good

4/30/2008 1:33:10 PM

Quote :

"What one really has to ask about Obama now, is what changed? Why now? What has he said now that wasnt said prior that Obama defended the man. The answer is the polls are droppping. Either way, it doesnt look good for Obama. His bad decisions in the past are haunting him now."

well what changed is that wright came out and talked to the media.

before it was the media basically on a one-sided attack against wright (and by extension obama). so, eventually (in philly) barack responded by repudiating some of wright's remarks while still standing by the man himself.

then wright came back on the scene basically gave a big "fuck you" to obama in the form of the press club q&a. this gave obama a perfect political opportunity for obama to distance himself from wright. that is what has changed.

[Edited on April 30, 2008 at 2:10 PM. Reason : wrds]

4/30/2008 2:09:40 PM

Quote :

" Wright re-iterated that he does in fact believe the US Government created AIDS to kill black people"

What comments? I listened to the videos that are the topic of this thread, and I don't recall him saying this.

4/30/2008 2:22:28 PM

^right but the words are the same. People were attacked for calling the Rev racist bc of the comments. Well the comments have been racist the whole time, its just NOW that obama is admitting it.

Sarijoul, do you really believe that obama really didnt know what rev wright was all about?

4/30/2008 2:24:04 PM