The election is black and white

Crossposted from Left Toon Lane, Bilerico Project & My Left Wing click to enlargeI have been reading some stuff on John Adams of late - always been a fan of his, especially his work on the Treaty of Tripoli. After a spot of reading I switched on the news last night and it was then I saw just how apparent the race between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton is a black and white issue. I am not talking about skin color here, I am talking about their ability to communicate what the American spirit is. Their ideas, their goals for all of us. Hillary's remarks over the years have been very me specific whereas Barack's message is about us, you know, We The People. I am not saying "yes we can" rises to the level of "We The People" in cultural significance, but I do believe John Adams was a "we" kind of guy. I think he would have resonated with "hope" in all of its audaciousness as it took a bucket of hope to build the American experiment. I wonder if Hillary has hope?

Social Psychology 101

I had a bit of an "Aha!" moment this morning, while reading yet another commentary about whether or not Geraldine Ferraro's remarks were racist. My thought, by the way, has been that, racist or not, what she said was certainly demeaning and condescending. In other words, pretty much Standard Operating Procedure for Hillary Clinton and her surrogates. Case in point, Hillary's absurd reduction of Barack Obama's accomplishments to one speech he gave in 2002. Anyway, I don't know why this didn't occur to me sooner, given that I'm actually teaching the social psychology section of my intro psych class right now. But this is a classic example of the self-serving bias. This is our tendency to take credit for success (self-enhancing bias) and deny any responsibility for failure (self-protective bias). In other words, if I get the promotion, it's because I worked very, very hard for it. Also, I'm brilliant. And charming. But if someone else gets it instead, they obviously just got lucky. Probably "knew the right people, scratched the right backs" and so forth. I ran a red light? Oh my goodness--I never do that sort of thing! But my kid is sick, and I was in a hurry to pick up some medicine, and I guess I was just preoccupied. Someone else ran a red light? Clearly a reckless scofflaw with a callous disregard for human life. I'm actually teaching this chapter again tonight. Somehow, I'll find a way to resist the temptation to mention Hillary Clinton's campaign when I'm giving examples. :)

Racist Mississippi

Crossposted from Left Toon Lane, Bilerico Project & My Left Wing click to enlargeTo me, this is not rocket science. Over the last 48 hours, I have seen on television and on the blogosphere the notion that Blacks are racist because they are turning out in droves (one drove apparently equals 90% of the demographic) for Barack Obama. I am admittedly confounded by this. The explanation seems so simple, so obvious that the question does not even need to be addressed. Apparently it does. The issue of why Blacks vote in droves for Obama may have roots in Black pride, but there was great affection for the Clintons in the Black community - note the use of the past tense. That was before Hillary's atrocious behavior in Selma last year. The use of a mocking fake slave accent during the recital of Cleveland's poetry was horrific and it was the final insult as Hillary crashed the festivities that Obama was invited to headline. Hillary wasn't. Then after Obama and Edwards mopped the floor with Hillary in Iowa (Edwards being the token white guy), the overt race-baiting began. The tears of being beaten by a Black man helped her win New Hampshire. "Weep for me, they are so unfair." Fairy tales and Farrakhan - that became the Clintonian strategy. The last straw came with the 3am commercial and the rhetoric claiming Obama is not fit to be Commander in Chief. The Clintons have pissed all over Black America to the point that they are no longer seen as being affectionate to the cause of Black America. This was before Geraldine Ferraro opened her mouth. Now that the cat is out of the bag, there is no redeeming the Clinton campaign in the eyes of the Black community. To them, there is only one viable candidate left and it should not be rocket science to figure out why Blacks vote for Obama. It is his policies, his vision that garners him support - and his ability not to insult Blacks at every turn. Barack Obama is a candidate who does bring all races together. That is the true dream of Dr. King. Hillary Clinton is the nightmare.

Geraldine Ferraro Is Trying to Divide Democrats Along Color Lines

AAPP: Well the former closet bigot, now out of the closet bigot, racist Surrogate and Fox News contributor, former 1984 vice presidential candidate who helped Walter Mondale lose 49 states, Geraldine Ferraro stood by her controversial and racist comments about Sen. Barack Obama's presidential candidacy today. to this AAPPundit It appears that Ferraro and Hillary are working to divide the Democratic party along racial lines. "I am sorry that people think this was a racist comment," Ferraro said in an interview with ABC's Diane Sawyer on "Good Morning America." The white female Affirmative Action candidate of the 1980's declined to apologize for the firestorm she created when she told a newspaper last week that "if Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position." Get this, She told Sawyer she was "absolutely not" sorry for what she said. (Getty Images/AP Photo) Hillary Clinton and her token negro has ignored Geraldine Ferraro's bigoted and racist statements saying to a reporter in an interview with ABC News affiliate WHTM, "Well, I don't agree with that and I think it's important that we try to stay focused on issues that matter to the American people." I guess racial hatred and bigotry within her campaign organization is not important to Hillary Clinton. I'm in agreement with Pam Spaulding, when she wrote, has the Clinton team gone stark raving mad? I also wonder Since When Has It Been Lucky To Be Black In America? get this now Ferraro says: “They’re attacking me because I’m white!” Hey, I'm also beginning to wonder why do (some) feminists hate Barack Obama? But, guess what, one of my favorite bloggers just might be right when he wrote, Oh, She Just Hates Black Men. Ferraro's has a long history of this crap. Speaking of long history, Look at the long campaign history of Hillary and Company playing the race card through racial hatred towards Obama specifically and black folks in general: Shuck and Jive Clinton Supporter Andrew Cuomo, Referring To Obama, Said "You Can't Shuck And Jive At A Press Conference. All Those Moves You Can Make With The Press Don't Work When You're In Someone's Living Room." Clinton-supporting New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said the thing that's great about New Hampshire is that you have to go out and meet people rather than "shuck and jive" through press conferences there. Cuomo said of New Hampshire on an Albany radio station: "It's not a TV-crazed race. Frankly, you can't buy your way into it. You can't shuck and jive at a press conference. All those moves you can make with the press don't work when you're in someone's living room." [Newsday, 1/11/08] Martin Luther King/Lydon Johnson Comparsion Clinton, Criticizing Obama For Promising "False Hope" Said That While MLK Jr. Spoke On Behalf Of Civil Rights, President Lyndon Johnson Was The One Who Got Legislation Passed: "It Took A President To Get It Done." Clinton rejoined the running argument over hope and "false hope" in an interview in Dover this afternoon, reminding Fox's Major Garrett that while Martin Luther King Jr. spoke on behalf of civil rights, President Lyndon Johnson was the one who got the legislation passed. Hillary was asked about Obama's rejoinder that there's something vaguely un-American about dismissing hopes as false, and that it doesn't jibe with the careers of figures like John F. Kennedy and King. "Dr. King's dream began to be realized when President Johnson passed the Civil Rights Act," Clinton said. "It took a president to get it done." [Politico, 1/7/08; Video] Clinton Introducer Said JFK Gave Hope, But Was Assassinated. Clinton introducer: "If you look back, some people have been comparing one of the other candidates to JFK and he was a wonderful leader, he gave us a lot of hope but he was assassinated and Lyndon Baines Johnson actually did all his work and got the republicans to pass all those measures." [HRC, Dover, NH, 1/7/08] AUDIO ATTACHED Nelson Mandela Bill Clinton Implied Hillary Clinton Is Stronger Than Nelson Mandela. "I have been blessed in my life to know some of the greatest figures of the last hundred years. [...] I go to Nelson Mandela's birthday party every year and we're still very close. [...] But if you said to me, 'You've got one last job for your country but it's hazardous and you may not get out with life and limb intact and you have to do it alone except I'll let you take one other person, and I had to pick one person whom I knew who would never blink, who would never turn back, who would make great decisions [...] I wouldpick Hillary.'" [ABC News, 1/7/08; Audio] Drug Use Clinton's NH Campaign Chair Raised The Youthful Drug Use Of Obama And Said It Would "Open The Door To Further Queries On The Matter." Clinton's Campaign Issued A Statement Distancing Themselves From Shaheen's Comments And Shaheen Issued A Statement Saying That He "Deeply Regret[s] The Comments." The Democratic presidential race took on a decidedly nasty and personal turn, with the New Hampshire co-chair for Clinton, raising the youthful drug use of Obama. Shaheen said Obama's having been so open -- as opposed to then-Gov. George W. Bush, who refused to detail his past drug use during his 2000 presidential campaign -- will "open the door to further queries on the matter. It'll be, 'When was the last time? Did you ever give drugs to anyone? Did you sell them to anyone?'" Shaheen said. "There are so many openings for Republican dirty tricks. It's hard to overcome." By the end of the day, Clinton campaign spokesman Phil Singer had issued a statement asserting that "these comments were not authorized or condoned by the campaign in any way." And Shaheen himself issued a statement: "I deeply regret the comments I made today and they were not authorized by the campaign in any way." [ABC News, 12/12/07] Mark Penn, In Trying To Defend His Campaign Over Bill Shaheen's Obama Drug Use Comments, Used The Word "Cocaine," Drawing A Rebuke From Edwards Adviser Joe Trippi. Mark Penn, defending the Clinton campaign in light of Bill Shaheen's comments about Obama's drug use, repeatedly referenced Obama's cocaine use. Edwards adviser Joe Trippi accused Penn of dropping the word "cocaine" deliberately. Mark Penn said "Well, I think we have made clear that the -- the issue related to cocaine use is not something that the campaign was in any way raising. And I think that has been made clear. I think this kindergarten thing was a joke after Senator." Joe Trippie responded and said "I think he just did it again. He just did it again. ... This guy's been filibustering on this. He just said cocaine again." [Politico, 12/13/07; Video] Fairy Tale Donna Brazile Lashed Into Bill Clinton For Comparing Obama To A "Fairy Tale" And Said "It's An Insult... As An African-American" And That His Tone And Words Are "Very Depressing." Donna Brazile lit into Bill Clinton over his insulting comments of Obama, where he called him a "fairy tale" and said "I could understand his frustration at this moment. But, look, he shouldn't take out all his pain on Barack Obama. It's time that they regroup. Figure out what Hillary needs to do to get her campaign back on track. It sounds like sour grapes coming from the former commander in chief. Someone that many Democrats hold in high esteem. For him to go after Obama, using a fairy tale, calling him as he did last week. It's an insult. And I will tell you, as an African-American, I find his tone and his words to be very depressing. ... I think his tone, I think calling Barack Obama a kid, he is a United States senator." [Politico, 1/8/08] Cross posted on African American Political Pundit More HERE

There Will Be Cross Burnings

Crossposted from Left Toon Lane, Bilerico Project & My Left Wing click to enlarge On Politico, there is a short quote from Ferraro that originally appeared in the Washington Post on April 15, 1988. Placid of demeanor but pointed in his rhetoric, Jackson struck out repeatedly today against those who suggest his race has been an asset in the campaign. President Reagan suggested Tuesday that people don't ask Jackson tough questions because of his race. And former representative Geraldine A. Ferraro (D-N.Y.) said Wednesday that because of his "radical" views, "if Jesse Jackson were not black, he wouldn't be in the race." Asked about this at a campaign stop in Buffalo, Jackson at first seemed ready to pounce fiercely on his critics. But then he stopped, took a breath, and said quietly, "Millions of Americans have a point of view different from" Ferraro's. Discussing the same point in Washington, Jackson said, "We campaigned across the South . . . without a single catcall or boo. It was not until we got North to New York that we began to hear this from Koch, President Reagan and then Mrs. Ferraro . . . . Some people are making hysteria while I'm making history." No further commentary required.

Does Viagra Work On The Spine?

Crossposted from Left Toon Lane, Bilerico Project & My Left Wing click to enlargeAs the most remote village in all of the Himalayas has already learned by now, Eliot Spitzer hired a female prostitute, maybe several. And that is it. I honestly never liked Spitzer and I thought he made a horrible Democrat. Now he even does sex scandals bad. No, when Democrats are involved in sex scandals, they should not be protected by the Party. The same goes for the GOP. What is good for Mark Foley is good for Eliot Spitzer. But where Foley's antics were outrageous, even for a Republican, Spitzer's behavior, while tragic for his family and shows the smallness of his character, is just plain lousy as a scandal. His family is who I really feel sorry for, especially his wife who stood by him at the podium. I hope the reason she was standing so close is because she only had a 1 foot cattle prod. Where are the teenage enema nurses in bondage we have all grown to expect in a sex scandal? If floozies in bed is all we can get out of him, then Spitzer is spineless. Next time I see Bob Dole, I will need to ask him if Viagra works on the spine, clearly Spitzer could use some stiffening there.

Jeffrey Dahmer was experienced too!

Crossposted from Left Toon Lane, Bilerico Project & My Left Wing click to enlargeI know, another "anti-Hillary" strip. And yes, I am prepared for the onslaught of emails proclaiming I "have gone too far." How is Barack lacking in experience? Surely the sum total of the man's work is more than one speech? Obama has more than eleven years of legislative experience under his belt with most of it in arguably one of the roughest political state arenas - Illinois. Hillary has about eight years. And no, being First Lady of the United States doesn't count as "experience" to be president. Exactly who would claim Laura Bush has legislative experience? How about Barbara Bush? Nancy Reagan perhaps? Also, being the First Lady of Arkansas is even less of reason to claim the mantle of experience. I can just see the McCain ad now - "Whitewater - A Resume of Experience." Hillary does have eight years of experience in government and while there she has been incredibly damaging to the issues I care about. Let's just start with Iraq - bad. Her support of Bush's Iran sanctions, in light of how bad Iraq was, was even worse. No, I require someone with a tad more discernment skills than Hillary has exhibited. Trade policies? Hillary sure does love to vote for trade policies, to the detriment of the country. That is bad. Health care in this nation is an out-of-control mess. Hillary's 1992 health plan, while not magic, would have been better than the HMO mess we have now. However, now she has a hard time depositing all the money her health care lobbyists give her. They insist all is well in our emergency rooms, doctor offices and pharmacies nationwide. It is a health care utopia according to her lobbyist friends, pals and donors. For "we the people," not so much. Actually, it is a nightmare. Just because one is experienced, doesn't mean it is quality experience. John McCain is an experienced pilot, just not a very good pilot. I believe Obama is more than a man with a speech, he has managed to accomplish what NO OTHER POLITICIAN in American history has been able to do, bridge the racial divide in America - unite us together and inspire individuals who have become disenchanted with the American political landscape to participate in the process. Obama's Iowa victory speech concluded with "we are ready to believe again" and his whole speech reminded me of Bobby Kennedy. His Brother John gave one of the most memorable speeches a President has ever given - "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country." However, "I never had sex with that woman" just doesn't do it for me.