Blogcritics Comments on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Comment by Staci Schoff on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Fri, 2 May 2008 20:40:52 EDT

Dan this was interesting to read through. One thing, I think there are a lot of reasons to support affirmative action aside from being a "guilty white liberal." It's simply the right thing to do to outlaw discrimination in a democratic society and ensure equal opportunity. It's extraordinarily sad that government oversight should be necessary to do that, but if it is, it should be implemented. I don't feel "guilty" that the tragedy of slavery is part of America's history (but then I'm descended from German immigrants who settled in the midwest after World War 1 -- maybe if my particular ancestors had been slave-owners I'd feel differently). All kinds of different people have been enslaved at different times since the dawn of human existence (and some still are in some places). History is not my fault, but to the extent that I'm complicit in the slavery that exists today I should and do feel guilty. As for Jeremiah Wright -- I feel really sorry that Obama has to deal with this, though it is life in national politics so he might as well get used to it. I think Obama did the right thing initially by distancing himself from the comments while maintaining a decency and respect expected among friends. And I think he did the right thing later when it was obvious that Rev. Wright was more interested in getting his 15 minutes in the spotlight than being a friend to Obama. Only time will tell if he can make a full political recovery, but if he doesn't get the nomination this time, I don't agree with you that that automatically means we'll never see him (or a black presidential candidate) again. He'll no doubt learn a lot and come back somehow. He's a smart and ambitious guy.

Comment by Staci Schoff on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Fri, 2 May 2008 20:39:54 EDT

Comment by bliffle on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Thu, 1 May 2008 01:05:17 EDT

The oil companies marked up the product they bought from the saudis, and others, enough to make an aggregate profit of $160million last year. And we still give them tax breaks and direct subsidies.

Comment by bliffle on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Thu, 1 May 2008 00:32:28 EDT

Drivel and more drivel. Driveling while Rome burns.

Comment by Zedd on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 22:39:20 EDT

good lord what happened. Sorry folks

Comment by Zedd on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 22:37:58 EDT

Dan, Enjoyable indeed. I only watched the series of "Hitchhikers". I was intrigued and challenged. I loved the humor and could find only a few people to share it with. Clavos, I was at Home Depot today shopping for a numatic nailer. The Spanish interpretation on the box had clavos on it. Does Clavos mean nail?

Comment by Clavos on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 21:09:18 EDT

And, of course, the Arabs have nothing to do with oil prices; everyone knows they give the oil to the oil companies without charge out of the goodness of their Wahhabi hearts. The individual who decries the "drivel" on these threads is the most prolific source of drivel. Meh.

Comment by bliffle on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 20:57:53 EDT

Spam? This entire thread is spam! We even have the obligatory stupid reference to that dumb book about "Hitchhikers Guide..." which is the sure mark of a drivel thread. This entire thread of some 80 comments is inconsequential nonsense which will be entirely forgotten in a few weeks as Jeremiahs rantings become more repetitive and irrational and thus lose their ability to titillate the Peanut Gallery of bubbleheads that infest this corner of the internet. So I'm going to remorselessly hijack this thread to discuss Mr. Geo Bush's speech today in which he ascribed the rise in gas prices to a shortage of oil and lack of refining capacity. Neither is true. In fact, the feds are stockpiling excess oil at this very moment. We've been expanding refining capacity for years. Why then are prices rising? Because the oil companies CAN raise prices, that's why. We have what the economists call Inflexible Demand: consumers will pay anything for their allotment of gas. And the oil companies have a near monopoly, actually an oligopoly, which is an informal combination of agreements that form a monopoly for mutual benefit. Why compete when you can cooperate to screw the consumer?

Comment by Dan Miller on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 17:49:33 EDT

Zedd, thanks. Sometimes, the devil makes me do things. As a Star Trek fan, you probably also read Douglas Adams' Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy, one of my all time favorites. In it, Arthur Dent and Ford Prefect had hitched a ride on a Volgan Constructor ship just before the Earth was to be destroyed to make way for an hyperspace bypass. They had a dialogue, something like this, just before going into hyperspace drive: Ford: Going into hyperspace drive is a bit like being drunk. Arthur: What's bad about that? Ford: Ask a glass of water. That's the substance of it; some cretin who borrowed my copy didn't return it, and I have to go on memory. Anyway, I'm very happy that we can have what I hope is a useful and enjoyable dialogue now and then. Dan

Comment by Zedd on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 17:21:32 EDT

But we can reflect upon what is best for now, and pursue it. Ahhhh... Like a drink of water. Well stated Dan.

Comment by Zedd on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 17:16:14 EDT

Dan, Sorry I missed your comment on "briar patch".

Comment by Zedd on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 17:11:56 EDT

Dan BTW I somewhat of a Star Trek fan (not a Trekkie though). However when you make mention of the briar patch I have to imagine that you feel as if you are trapped and cant go into worp drive. Am I that brutal? Do you feel stiffled in some way? :o)

Comment by The Obnoxious American on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 17:07:03 EDT

"The Right,or at least OA, is hanging on a limb as the creek rushes benath him. He knows deep down inside he has no defense against the waters rushing just beneath him, but he refuses to surrender to them." Lolll this is hillarious. The dems picked two flawed candidates as their frontrunners, and I am the one on a limb above a rushing creek. I'm not saying McCain will win this year, but the fact that he even has a chance, the fact that he is polling on par or in some cases better than either of the two dems, the fact that Obama (or his associates) keep showing that Obama isn't the wunderkind, when there has been going on 8 years of a badly run GOP presidency all goes to the point that I may actually be on more of a thick branch, over a nice pillow topped mattress. But you can continue imagining whatever you like if it makes you feel better about the situation your party is in. "I admire him for that," and I am sure many other things. "Where I feel no pity is in the denial that his wrong-headed sense of direction got him into this mess in the first place. OA will never admit that the views he espouses are what got us intoour current mess." Assume you are talking about Iraq. The views I espouse, the same views Bill Clinton espoused around the time, the same view the International Community espoused, even if they weren't willing to agree to go to war against Iraq (for their own reasons, most having a lot more to do with greed than humanitarianism). But regardless, what are we even talking about? We are in Iraq now. Do you really believe Obama when he says he will "END" the war in Iraq merely by pulling the troops out? Why can't dems be honest and say the truth about Obama's original Iraq policy? That he would simply make our exit out of the conflict in Iraq, regardless of the consequences? "Or maybe he doesn't get out much." Lolll you guys must love me, I can't think of any other explanation for why you keep postulating about what I do. Maybe I should raffle off a date with me or something.... "In the rest of the world, we encounter people we call friends. But as we get to know them as friends, we realize we don't want them in our lives. The fact that Obama had Wright as a pastor does not negate his message." Well goll-eee. In the rest of the world? This man is running for president of the united states. Aside from the fact that he should have known better about what his relationship to this man would do to his presidential run, I think your premise is provably wrong. How is it wrong? Let's chat about the penn debates. Gibson asked Obama a question, why early on in the primary did Obama ask Wright to not attend a political gathering? Because Obama knew that Wright "can get kind of rough in sermons. So what we've decided is that it's best for you not to be out there in public." He wasn't trying to kick Wright out of his life after getting to know him better as you suggest. Clearly, he was trying to keep his affiliation with Wright alive and also out of sight. Why you'd delude yourself into such a rationalization of Obama's relationship with Wright is beyond me. I suppose you are so invested in this candidate that it would be hard for you to change directions. But at least be honest with yourself as to what you are voting for. Let me be clear, to me, all of these candidates are in the public service. As such, whether I agree with their policies or not, I consider them all great Americans. I heartily disagree with Obama's platforms, and fear for the future of this country should he get elected. When people like Zing make excuses and say that his relationship to the pastor or the pastors views don't matter, that's purely emotion. We all know it matters, and with someone with so little experience such as Obama, such choices matter all the more. Not to mention the double standard Obamaranians are fond of applying, where if a white candidate has any hint of a link to racism he is banished, but let's make excuses for the African. Equal standard? Equal rights? Keep denying, keep suggesting I am out on a limb. You will be in for a rude awakening, either in Nov when he loses the general, or worse, sometime next year if he wins.

Comment by Dan Miller on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 16:58:00 EDT

Hi again, Zedd "We've all come a long way, baby." I'm rather surprised that you didn't catch (or perhaps you had the courtesy not to comment upon) my reference to the "briar patch." I had rather hoped that you might, because it leads into a point I want to make. The term comes from an old motion picture, Song of the South, in which Unka Remus tells a bunch of adoring but "rich white kids" on the plantation a story about how br'er Rabbit out foxed br'er Fox by asking him, "Please, br'er Fox, don't throw me in that briar patch." That is precisely what br'er Rabbit wanted br'er Fox to do, rather than eat him. Back then, and indeed as recently as the late 1950's, one's White Aunt was pronounced with a broad A, and a beloved Black family servant (or slave, going back a bit) was also called Aunt, but with a short A. Uncle referred to one's actual (White) uncle, while Unca referred to a similarly beloved Black family servant (or, going back a bit, slave). My origins are in the South, and when a child I was often taken by my parents to visit my maternal grandparents in a rural town in the mountains of southwestern Virginia (not West Virginia -- that's where the poor white trash hang out). I remember those visits fondly, and with no apologies. I can no more throw my grandparents, whom I loved, under the bus than could Senator Obama; contrary to the pundits, he did nothing of the kind and I think that was the farthest thing from his mind. When I accompanied my mother to town, and we encountered a Black man, he automatically got off the sidewalk, removed his hat, and said "Good mornin', Miss Margaret" (he remembered her from before she had married my father). My grand parents attended funerals at Black churches, and sat at the back; Blacks attended our family funerals, and sat at the back. I also remember stories from my youth about the wicked Yankees and the War of Northern Aggression -- one involved Unka Willie, who wouldn't tell the Yanks where the Confederate soldiers were, for which the Yanks murdered him. These are my recollections, flawed though they may well be. The point is that none of us can, or should, forget our history. Zeus help us if we do. History helps us to understand the present, and to create what may, just may, be a better future. I no more ask you, or anyone else, to forget the past or recollections of it, than I wish to do so. Today, I would most likely be horrified if some of the things, then viewed as kindnesses and courtesy, were to happen today. Nevertheless, they are part of my past but of neither my present nor of our future. We can't and shouldn't forget the past, either the good of the bad. That's what made us what we are. But we can reflect upon what is best for now, and pursue it. Dan

Comment by The Obnoxious American on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 16:24:02 EDT

Ruvy, Some pundits were suggesting yesterday that Obama paid him to do this, so Obama could make a big stink about finally disavowing him. All of these conspiracy theories are hillarious to me. What's more funny however are these laughable responses to my posts. Since there is some new anti spam thingy on this site that is not letting me address multiple people in one comment, I will have to post a second.

Comment by Ruvy on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 16:05:21 EDT

Bottom line, if Obama truly found what wright had said outrageous, why did he wait till April 28th, 2008 to say that? [The scene opens on a room in Samaria. In the distance, in the afternoon clear sky, one can see the sun shining off the Mediterranean some 35 miles away. Ruvy pulls up his chair, sits down and raises his hand....] ham'ataf� b'vakash�? (The envelope please?) [A gloved individual hands Ruvy an envelope. Ruvy rips open envelope, pulls out piece of paper, adjusts his glasses and begins to read] That, my brilliant friend, is when Barack Obama finally figured out that Reverend Wright, his preacher for twenty years, took a bundle of cash from a different candidate to pee on Obama's shoes in public. [Ruvy turns to the woman with the gloves] tod� rab�, s�ra (thank you very much, Sarah) [Ruvy takes off his glasses, wipes them off on the black cloth in his glasses case, replaces the glasses in the case, puts the case in his pocket, picks up the chair (vintage 1940 college classroom), and walks away towards his computer, so he can read the ~~comics~~ news from The Jerusalem Post. The scene fades to black]

Comment by bliffle on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 16:03:38 EDT

Have we ever seen the comparable amount of press and TV coverage wasted on John McCain and his relationship with various religious maniacs? no. It cannot be ascribed to McCain not knowing any and not paying homage to religious maniacs because we know that he has. But we have a hard time even remembering the names of those nuts because the scandals, if any, were quickly excised from the press and TV. Meanwhile, Jeremiah Wright rumbles on and on so that the ignorant and easily manipulated will never forget his name and the tarnish he lays on Obama (supposedly). All you guys who keep the ball rolling on this aberration do is to distract from the real issues of the coming campaign, you know, things like the Iraq war, the economy, etc.

Comment by Zedd on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 15:43:48 EDT

side note: I found it interesting that some of the comments that Wright made at the NAACP (I believe) conference this weekend were totally misunderstood because of a cultural disconnect. At one point he referenced a song ("I've been running for Jesus and I'm not tired yet") that is well known to AAs but the media mistook it to be grand standing or sympathy getting. If a major cultural reference would be missed by others it would be considered ignorance. Welcome to the twilight zone.

Comment by Zedd on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 15:36:29 EDT

Dan, Thank you for your candor and reason. One rarely encounters it when discussing matters of race. The term White trash has more to do with Whites not expecting Whites to do poorly. Ponder upon it a bit. The fact that their race is highlighted says it all doesn't it. Its as if they are an anomaly. We know otherwise don't we. Dumb is prevalent. I listen to talk radio and bristle.... Dan, do you have role models? I presume that the people who were chanting were adults. I don't think they have role models or need them. Also you really would be surprised just how tiresome Sharpton and Jackson are to many if not most AAs. If you were a fly on the wall in the midst of a group of average AAs you would witness an exasperation towards the "contributions" of these two individuals in particular. A lot of people would count Marshall in particular as a "role model". However, I would venture to guess that most Whites wouldn't have anyone of relevance to count among their "leaders" either. Probably some numb-scull like Rush or one of the vacuous loud mouths. Same thing. I will also bet you your entire life's earnings that you don't LISTEN to Al Sharpton very much. If you did, being the thinking man that you are, would be surprised and impressed. Yes he pops off on occasion but he is quite cogent most of the time AND fair. I thought he was some dumb hot head for a while (the greasy hair and preacher cadence didn't help) until I LISTENED to him. I've changed my mind in the past three years. The point that you make about the perception of there being a correlation between Sharpton and Obama is the real issue. It is the lumping in that I was speaking of. Its silly, irrational, naive and un-evolved. What the heck do we do about that? Again, do we make all Blacks "behave" in order to advance personally? Are Whites that stupid that they would draw such conclusions? I suppose if "we" lumped Osama in with Saddam anything is possible.

Comment by Dan Miller on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 15:05:41 EDT

Zedd Once more into the briar patch. If you will re-read my comment #68, and your comment #70, I think you may reconsider what I was actually saying. I used the subjunctive -- if Senator Obama fails to get the Democrat nomination, due to the wramblings (sorry, I couldn't help myself) of the Reverend Mr. Wright et al,, whether due to what the Reverend Mr. Wright actually meant or what he is perceived to have meant (it makes little difference in the end), it will be a bad thing; possibly even worse than if Senator Obama fails to get the nomination because Senator Clinton "done come tooo fur to be tared" and denied what is her wright (opps, again) or words to that effect. My article tried to point up something of the Reverend Mr. Wright's with which I agree. There is much also with which I disagree, but that alone would not keep me from voting for Senator Obama. Dan

Comment by Dan Miller on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 14:35:17 EDT

Zedd, You must understand that it is vital for you to see Blacks as you do all human beings. I try, I really do. And when I do so, I find that I put the Reverend Mr. Sharpton, et al in the same manure pile as David Duke, et al. Although you doubtless wish that Al Sharpton's remarks [had] nothing to do with Obama, and I do as well, they do because they are so perceived. More often than not, perception trumps reality and reason, by a large measure. Highlighting the accomplishments of one American who happens to be Black, who overcame enormous odds is shameful. We disagree, although I do like the expression one American who happens to be Black, and hope that history will so record Senator Obama, win or lose. We all need role models, regardless of whether we are capable of living up to their standards, and I submit that General B.O. Davis, Jr. is a fine one, for Whites and Blacks. There are many others, but I mentioned him only because I met him once, very briefly, and was quite impressed with his dignity and his attributes as a warrior. I consider him a far better role model than many, many others who have been accorded that status in any community, White, Black or whatever. Go out into the Black community -- I haven't done so, but then here in the Mountains of Panama that would be difficult. My guess is that if you were to ask a hundred randomly selected residents whom among Blacks they most admire, you wouldn't find many who would cite General Davis, General Powell, Mr. Justice Thurgood Marshall, Mr. Justice Clarence Thomas, or any of their ilk. I may be totally off-base, but if I am not, it is a shame. I have no doubt that in any other non-Black community you would find much the same thing. In any event, you contend that the folks who responded to the Reverend Mr. Sharpton's recent grandstanding in New York City with yells, of "kill . . ." are also individuals who are not included enough to have enough to loose to understand the ramifications of such statements; perhaps it would be otherwise if they had better role models, including but not by way of limitation General Davis. You say that there are lots of stupid White folks but that their abysmal stupidity is never attributed to some movement or consensus or genetic allegiance or attributed to their Whiteness. Ever heard the terms, not of endearment, trailer trash, poor white trash, redneck, or honky? Sure you have. Whites trample all over the globe holding themselves as the marker by which all of creation should be evaluated against. Some do, most don't even leave their countries of birth; more probably should. You have doubtless read in history the story of the Japanese trampling all over China and Korea, and what happened in those places in consequence. Muslims are, in many cases, trying to force their views on others in Europe and even in the United States. Slavery is still rather common in parts of Africa, and it got there long before White English and American slave traders arrived in Africa to buy Black slaves from other Blacks. And it was largely the Whites [who] . . . [held] themselves as the marker by which all of creation should be evaluated against who ended slavery, to the extent that it has been ended. I must agree that President Bush would probably never have become President of the United States had he been Black, Brown of of any other minority group. In a race-neutral society, I don't know whether he would have or not. At any rate, we all need bad examples as well as good. Under normal circumstances a lot of what we see is ridiculous. . . . Here, we must agree. It has always been, and always (at least as long as there are people) will be, thus. Read Bertrand Russell's an Outline of Intellectual Rubbish: A Hilarious Catalogue of Organized and Individual Stupidity. Clearly, some things which we now see as wrong and ridiculous were accepted contemporaneously as quite right and reasonable. Our current culture(s) have no monopoly on the right and reasonable, and the prism though which we view the past presents a distorted view. In the future, our culture(s) will doubtless be viewed through a similar prism. Dan

Comment by Zedd on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 13:29:44 EDT

Dan, "The Reverend Mr. Wright, et al, will have destroyed the first chance any person of color has ever had I'm afraid it wouldn't be the Rev Wright's fault, it will be an illumination of where we are regarding race matters. How this preacher's views speak to Obama's ability to serve as President (as we sit under GW Bush's leadership), is confusing. You do realise that McCain has recieved endorcements from ministers who believe that New Orleans occured because of God's retribution; who's views are frightening, who want the teaching of creation in our schools. Talk about distroying the country.... The "issue" that we are faced with is more so about our own illness regarding wanting to pinch AAs into submissive characatures, Hollywood inventions of what good "others" should be. If only they could be "Asianesque", perpetually apologetic (I suppose for not being White), then and only then will we deem them good enough. Let's be honest Dan, we are ALL surprised that Obama has gotten this far. We all know that America is not mature regarding race. It's just that this guy is just that smart. He cant be ignored. We don't need a Black president under circumstances where we are diminished. We don't want to teach our children that THAT is the way to live out ones life and gain acceptance. Actually we don't deserve the right to claim equality if we are not. Those White male faces that represent American Presidents, tell the truth about who we are and what we value. You still haven't said what rattled you about Wright.

Comment by Zedd on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 12:28:57 EDT

Dan, Thanks for the reply. However I think that you miss it, even though it is quite clear that you intend to be open and are extending yourself beyond even your own comfort level. That is a beautiful thing and something that is difficult for all humanity. You must understand that it is vital for you to see Blacks as you do all human beings. Al Sharpton's remarks have nothing to do with Obama. Also, Al Sharpton has nothing to do with a rag tag of goofballs shouting "kill the police". Blacks are not nimble minded drones who react to whatever is being stated by any person with a deep enough tan. Those who shouted "kill..." are clearly dumb Americans with a confusingly low capacity to grasp the big picture. But they are also individuals who are not included enough to have enough to loose to understand the ramifications of such statements. In other words they don't have the social pressures to prevent them from saying such things in public (lets PONDER why that is). These individuals spoke for themselves, dumb as they are, expressing their own feelings, irresponsible as they are. Al Sharpton is not about killing the police. You haven't heard him enough to know that. Highlighting the accomplishments of one American who happens to be Black, who overcame enormous odds is shameful. Let me explain why. What you are saying is that Blacks have to be bulls, heroic, stronger that everyone, mutant humans in order to be accepted into the fold of normal average, sometimes drooling Americans. We are happy for that General however, he had to ignore a lot of natural human tendencies (frustration, humiliation, anger, disappointment, mortification, in large doses) in order to be accepted by White society. Is that a good thing? Should the goal of one's life to be accepted by Whites at the expense of your basic dignity? Off course the answer is a resounding "no". You would not be that General were you born with my completion. Many Whites like to think that they would scale past the twilight zone experience that AAs experience to become a Powell or Rice when they were barely able to cut it as a White person. Whites are spoiled. Whites trample all over the globe holding themselves as the marker by which all of creation should be evaluated against. Why? Who knows. I don't think they know really. While there are multitudes of ignorant, frighteningly dumb Whites roaming around, some who are quite vocal, their abysmal stupidity is never attributed to some movement or consensus or genetic allegiance or attributed to their Whiteness. Their stupidity is regarded as a quirkiness or "misguidedness" of sorts. Should we tag Hitler with doing what he did because of his Whiteness? Better yet, is Bush what he is because he is White? Should all White male candidates be evaluated based on Bushes performance (tall tales, inappropriate jovial notes and wobly reasoning included) If the broad sweeping comments that are made by Whites about everyone else were to be turned around, we would have the planet in flames as retribution. A mere suggestion that rural whites are bitter (oooooh forbid) launched all sorts of emotional rants across the world, when Arabs, Chinese, Koreans, heck all Asians and lord knows poor Africans are lumped into every crazy inconceivable pot consistently without notice or recognition that it is THAT lumping in that perpetuates the problems that they face. The reason that I am suggesting that one should ponder the situation of AAs is that under normal circumstances a lot of what we see is ridiculous, without a doubt but under the given situation it is not. They are heroic, an astonishment to behold. Holding opinions without understanding the larger issues is like my teenager giving her philosophy about life. It would be laughable if it wasn't so annoying.

Comment by Dan Miller on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 11:43:54 EDT

Zedd, Having read a number of news articles, MSM commentaries and blog comments this morning, I have only one further observation. If Senator Obama fails to secure the Democrat nomination due to the ill directed rhetoric of the Reverend Mr. Wright, et al, I shall be very sad, and not only because Senator Clinton, whom I despise, will get it. I will be sad because it will set race relations in the United States back many years and exacerbate the anger already felt by both races. The Reverend Mr. Wright, et al, will have destroyed the first chance any person of color has ever had, and the last I shall probably see in my lifetime, to become our president. And that will be a damn shame. There may be another "Black President" like former President Clinton, intent primarily upon self-advancement, but that will be it. Dan

Comment by Dan Miller on Is The Reverend Mr. Wrong Right About Something?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 10:03:52 EDT

No, Zedd, the only thing I found disturbing was the comment So I would suggest that you not waste your time simply listening but spend more time THINKING. I did think, and have done a fair amount of that in the past, but until there is more listening -- even to the Reverend Messrs Wright and Sharpton-- introspection won't be enough. The point of the article was to stimulate both listening and thought. Anger is sometimes a viable means of encouraging both. You may have noticed that in the first part of the article, I said a few things which may have caused just a tad of anger. It was intentional. I have listened to the Reverend Messrs Wright, Sharpton, et al and have heard quite a lot of racism. I have also heard much which I would not characterize as racism so characterized by others. I don't want all Blacks [to] "behave" before they can attain positions of responsibility although reasonable measures of decorum and responsibility would be helpful among the leaders who, of course, have followers who try to emulate them. To incite Blacks to shut down the City of New York (not necessarily a bad thing in itself), to encourage them to shout "kill the police," as the Reverend Mr. Sharpton recently did, and to posture in the spotlight during the travesty of justice which almost ruined the lives of three Duke University Lacrosse players, fail to generate a high degree of respect among Whites. Then, slinking off without a word of regret when the charges against them were found to be the product of a White racist-opportunist's effort to curry favor among Blacks and thereby secure reelection, did not much help matters. Respect is needed, on all sides. I served as a Captain in the JAG Corps in Korea just after law school, between early 1967 and 1970. It was said, probably without total accuracy although I accepted it, that we had no Blacks or Whites in the Army; everybody was the same color, green. The then Chief of Staff of the U.S. Forces in Korea, Lt. General (three stars) Benjamin O. Davis, Jr., himself the son of the first Black general officer in the U.S. Army, was a very impressive man. He was born in 1913, back in Jim Crow days. Upon graduation from the U.S. Military Academy in 1937, his first posting was to Ft. Benning, Georgia where, as a Black officer, he was not allowed into the offiers' club, an indignity which he well remembered for the rest of his thirty-seven year military career. He rose through the officer ranks, and was very, very highly respected by every officer I encountered in Korea. As a mere captain, I did not know him, but got a strong sense that he respected competent White officers as well, although he would not willingly tolerate incompetents of any race. When I compare people like Lt. General Davis with people like the Reverend Mr. Sharpton, one about as color blind as any person can be, and the other a race baiter full of vitriol, I can't help respecting one but not the other. Nor can I help but believe that one did more during his career to advance the cause of Blacks than the other and dozens like him could ever do in a dozen lifetimes. I still have hopes that Senator Obama will win the Democrat nomination and I may even vote for him if he does. If so, it will be the first time I have ever voted for a Democrat or against a Republican. Obviously, these are critical days for Senator Obama and for the prospects of having a Black president; one who I hope, if he succeeds, will be the President of the entire country, not merely of those of his race. Dan