What should be Obama's reply about his middle name?

[caledesi]

Poll question: What should be Obama's reply about his middle name?

The rethugs are all over this. Obama's middle name is Hussein. OxyRush started this and now refers to Barack as Hussein Obama. (real deep).

So Obama will undoubtedly be asked about his middle name and in general about his Muslim name? I can just hear it now:

Reporter: Senator, do you think that your Muslim name, especially your middle name HUSSEIN will have a negative effect on your campaign?

Obam: (scroll down and choose one or other)

edit: usual

[IndianaGreen]

1. His reply should be that America is a nation of immigrants

and that America belongs to all the people, and is not the property of one race or class over another!

[Catchawave]

7. That would be my answer too

or we can question anyone in America who's named a child Timothy since the Oklahoma bombing?

[caledesi]

8. That is good and sounds SO Obama! NT

edit: cannot type today

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

2. Laughing about it

or pointing out it is a common name or saying that the American people are bright enough to look beyond names are good answers. And then I'm remembered the answer Sam Waterston gave Larry King when asked about the unusual spelling of his last name, "Well, it was my father's name, you see."

[IndianaGreen]

5. Can you imagine the GOP saying that the name Kaminski is too Polish?

Just as Hussein is a common name, Kaminski is also a common name.

[pnwmom]

3. Only among people

who think Bush is a better President because his middle name is Walker.

[QMPMom]

63. Maybe Bush was named after Johnnie Walker.... and since he's

got such a black heart, it had to be Johnnie Walker Black Label.

[catnhatnh]

4. How about....

"and you ASSUME I named myself???"

[caledesi]

9. Succinct and witty. nt

[baldguy]

6. It was his fathers' name.

[Baltimore]

46. Grandmother's maiden name

I believe it was his grandmother's maiden name. He visited her in Kenya. On NPR I heard, "His grandmother, Mrs. Margaret Hussein."

[gratuitous]

10. "Yeah, I used to make fun of other people's names, too"

But then I turned 7 and it just seemed so . . . I dunno, immature?

[beaconess]

52. Ha ha ha ha - I like that one!

[Lautremont]

11. Anything that successfully and succinctly turns it back on anyone

who wants to make an issue of it - making them seem like dumb, shallow near-or-outright racists without saying it in so many words. There are several good choices on the list. I might add "If it does, then, by Allah, I weep for America!"

[caledesi]

31. Impressed with your suggestion. nt

[threadkillaz]

12. As a USA Surname, "Hussein" outranks "Hannity", "O'Reilly", "Colmes", "Hastert" and "Frist",

As a USA Surname, "Hussein" outranks "Hannity", "O'Reilly", "Colmes", "Hastert" and "Frist", and almost is as popular as "Limbaugh"

See for yourself.

SURNAME RANKINGS SEARCH
http://www.pbs.org/cgi-registry/pov/sweetestsound/poirot?file=names&name=rice


limbaugh is surname number 13317 in the USA

hussein is surname number 13964 in the USA

hannity, as a surname, does not exist in this database, because it is not among the top 55,000 most common names
in the US.

o'reilly, as a surname, does not exist in this database, because it is not among the top 55,000 most common names in the US.

colmes, as a surname, does not exist in this database, because it is not among the top 55,000 most common names in the US.

hastert, as a surname, does not exist in this database, because it is not among the top 55,000 most common names in the US

frist, as a surname, does not exist in this database, because it is not among the top 55,000 most common names in the US.

[Stargleamer]

28. For Irish names you have to drop the apostrophe for this site. . .

O'Reilly is actually 2819. (O'keefe is 1957, O'Hara is 1602, etc.)

[caledesi]

32. Good searching! Didn't know what to Google. nt

[threadkillaz]

47. UPDATE: As a USA Surname, "Hussein" outranks "Hannity", "Colmes", "Hastert" and "Frist",

and is close to "Limbaugh".

So eat it wingnuts!

[Hav]

13. .

He mentioned his name in the 2004 convention at least 2 times, although not in direct reference to Hussein (which I guess is really a very common name).


"My parents shared not only an improbable love, they shared an abiding faith in the possibilities of this nation. They would give me an African name, Barack, or ”blessed,” believing that in a tolerant America your name is no barrier to success. They imagined -- They imagined me going to the best schools in the land, even though they weren’t rich, because in a generous America you don’t have to be rich to achieve your potential."


"I’m talking about something more substantial. It’s the hope of slaves sitting around a fire singing freedom songs; the hope of immigrants setting out for distant shores; the hope of a young naval lieutenant bravely patrolling the Mekong Delta; the hope of a millworker’s son who dares to defy the odds; the hope of a skinny kid with a funny name who believes that America has a place for him, too."

(I used the whole quote because for me, it was one of the best moments of his speech.)

[IndianaGreen]

15. Thank you for posting this.

Just as Obama represents what is best about America, Bush represents the worst side of America.

[caledesi]

33. Oh yeah. Couldn't believe this BFD about his middle name.

Like people are that stupid or ignorant. The rethugs are so desperate...they are scared stiff of Obama.

[Bullet1987]

17. Barack has already explained his name before...

The only reason the Rethugs are bringing it up now is because they don't have anything else bad to say about him. That lame ass, psuedo-scandal about the real estate thing isn't going anywhere because it's too weak.

When he was on Jay Leno he was talking about how people are always asking him about his name. I think he should say something about it though, expose the Rethugs for the hateful, authoritarian followers they are.

[classof56]

14. Oh, for Pete's sake! I used to work with a man whose first name was Hussein

Won't give his last name of course, but he was from Beirut, Lebanon and he was the manager of a division at the agency I worked for. Leave it to Idiot Limbaugh to make a deal out of someone's middle name. Clearly he no longer has anything substantive to talk about on his farce of a talk show. Maybe he should just RUSH on out, get his Oxycontin RUSH and RUSH off into the ether.

We can only hope!

Tired Old Cynic

[Mz Pip]

16. Yeah, we really need

to be suspicious of all the Timothys (McVeigh) and Johns (Gacy)too. :sarcasm:

Mz Pip
:dem:

[progdonkey]

18. well, we DO need to be wary of whose with the middle name "Wayne"... ;-)

http://www.freakonomics.com/blog/2006/09/28/the-next-time-your-daughter-brings-home-a-new-boyfriend-be-sure-to-ask-his-middle-name/

:rofl:

[caledesi]

36. Yes, I read that once before. Beware of any middle name of

Wayne.

[caledesi]

35. Glad his father wasn't named SAM (son of Sam...LOL!)

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

19. US Grant's middle name was "Simpson"

...And he wasn't very funny at all.

[IndianaGreen]

20. And the S in Harry S Truman stood for nothing

Truman did not have a middle name!

[Starbucks Anarchist]

21. "That's Future President Hussein, asshole."

[AtomicKitten]

22. good question!

And you know the Republicans will beat it like a rented mule.

I have ever confidence Obama will have a witty, funny response that will defuse the childishness.

[caledesi]

37. I have trolled freeperville and they are going nuts over this.

We know they can't think for themselves...have to wait for OxyRush to come up with this one. It's disgusting, the vitriol. Do they actually think everyone is just like them? Stupid that is.

[AtomicKitten]

43. no worries

Anyone who is shallow enough to think Obama's middle name is worthy of comment much less derision isn't going to vote Democratic anyway. I rather enjoy watching them marinate in this petty, shallow BS.

[pink-o]

23. People are such idiots....

...my Syrian friend Maram has a husband whose first name is Jihad...

You should see people freak out about it. Like he named himself with a psychic knowledge of how it would be interpreted in the 21st century.

My father's generation used people's last names to keep them in cultural and class cages. Like if your last name was Abruzzi, you were somehow less than Mr Ponsonby-Smythe. You see, this is how White People established a hierarchy (and kept people like me outta their country clubs) before those of colour encroached on their middle-class territory.

Somehow, I thought civil rights and the understanding of the American Constitution had gone past judging us by our names. Stupid old me!

[caledesi]

38. Dems and Indys understand civil rights and the Constituion...

rethugs don't. They must rely on these immature, dirty tricks. Reminds me of that Harold Ford ad....'call me Harold.'

This is why the Dems and Indys must come out in force again. Let the adults take over.

[leftofthedial]

24. he should say his uncle Khomeini gave him the name

[Union Thug]

25. "So what?" n/t

[caledesi]

39. UT, yes that is what an intelligent person says. nt

[AspenRose]

26. Combination of one, two and four

with the 'nation of immigrants' point for good measure.

The GOP has no sense of humor and hates to be laughed at, so if Obama can laugh at them (and laugh off their pathetic little attempt at xenophobia) while succinctly making his point, that's the best way to piss them off.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

27. "And Joe Lieberman has the same first name as Stalin"

:-)

[caledesi]

41. Good one. nt

[LeftishBrit]

48. And George W. Bush has the same first name as a Mad King (and fairly appropriate too!)

[The Gunslinger]

56. Same last name as a mad "king" also.

[noiretextatique]

29. i think he should ignore these idiots

not worthy of a reply

[caledesi]

42. Disagree. I say reply, even though it is so petty and ignorant.

If he doesn't reply, these thugs will beat it to death. He will have a great reply and shut these idiots up. Don't let them get away with it as Kerry did.

[kentuck]

30. I can assure you ...

I am not related to George W Bush.

[TerdlowSmedley]

34. Barack Hussein Obama sounds a whole lot better than George Shit-for-Brains Bush

[Lars39]

40. "Why? It's the name my parents gave me."

[Vektor]

44. "No. Next question?'

Plain and simple. He needn't even dignify such absurdity with an answer.

[Stinky The Clown]

45. Other: "Fuck you, Leslie. By the way, is that a girl's name?"

This is such a NON issue.

[pnwmom]

57. Especially since McCain's name is

John SIDNEY McCain, the Third

[LWolf]

49. The name doesn't make the man. n/t

[philosophie_en_rose]

50. His reply should be an incredulous look of disdain.

Only a moran would make an issue of it.

[sutz12]

51. I guess anybody named "Joe" is a Stalinist, right? nt

[AZBlue]

53. He should go on the offensive, not be on the defensive, like most Dems.

Instead of apologizing or explaining or responding, he should point out what a ridiculous conversation it is to have and (politely and civilly) attack those who have brought it up. MAKE THEM run on the defense, not us.

[Slyder]

54. A Republican already hit me with this one

He thought it was another attempt to subvert the nation and way to discredit Democrats. Feeling my oats after the election and tired of all the shit I have gotten from this acquaintance, I called him a "bloviating horse's ass" for even bringing up something so stupid on its face. He sputtered as I walked away. Obama got his name the same way most of us did, from our parents. I had no say on my name.

I'm not going to take it any more. Apparently Republicans have no common sense or sense of perspective. This guy believes a blow job is equal to at least 100,000 dead in Iraq. And I am the one who doesn't get it?

While we are at it, didn't Republican Warren Harding have sex in an Oval Office closet with his mistress? Proof that all Republicans are perverts!

[Guaranteed]

58. NICE job, my friend. I'm totally with you.

Did you hear about the Muslim Minnesota Congressman and the hubbub they're making over him swearing in on the Koran?

I swear to God, dude. I've had WAY more than enough. These people are the biggest idiots, the biggest losers. Just not taking it anymore.

[catnhatnh]

60. Yeah-and his middle name....

...was "Gamaliel"-what the HELL kind of name is that???

[The Gunslinger]

55. His reply should be...

"It's my name and im damn proud of it. Grow up assholes"

[Bucky]

59. He should decry whatever reporter asks him this as an infidel, then behead him.

[ruggerson]

61. "I was hoping for a more traditional middle name...

like Gamaliel or Milhous, but my parents had other ideas."

Then smile a big, wide grin.

[Horse with no Name]

62. What do they say to defend their middle names?

Just saying...some people are saddled with hideous family names buried in the middle.
Hussein.
So what?
How many bad "Husseins" can you think of?
To allow one person to pollute a name and supposedly "contaminate" everyone with the same name is very juvenile. But then again, look at what we are dealing with.

Of course...this is just red meat for their vile "base"
The thing to remember is...the people that wouldn't vote for Obama strictly because of his name are the same ones who wouldn't vote for a black man anyway. It's a wash.

[clarquistador]

64. It's really sad IMHO....

that stuff like this matters in this country. It's personal, it's his father's name. No, he is NOT related to Saddam. But I'm sure the GOP will have a field day with this. Unfortunately, we aren't always the brightest voters though, are we?

[Skittles]

66. it is a very, very common name

there are US soldiers serving in Iraq named Hussein

[Arkana]

65. It should be:

"Seriously. Is this ALL you have?"

[BoneDaddy]

67. GW's

middle name is "shithead"?

[BenDavid]

68. America will not elect

someone with as little experience as Obama. Hell, all you have to do is look at the numbnuts we have in the White House today and that should tell you that America will not go out on another limb with someone that is not at least the smartest person in the room....