Please bear with me a moment......

[jaxx]

From the moment of the Iowa caucus win in January 2008, the rightwing has been after
destroying President Obama. Why? Because he isn't 'one of them'. Not his politics, which
are no more liberal than others have been, but because he is African-American.

There, it is out there. The race card. There is no other way to play it, but to show the
truth. From Rush Limbaugh wanting him to fail, to Jim DeMint calling for his Waterloo, to
Sarah Palin firing up the wingnuts, the unspoken word is that the man is black and
therefore not acceptable.

The undeniable racism that has seeped out of the woodwork since his election has brought
the old words and the old hatred to the surface. Oh, they don't call it that,
they scream they aren't racist and they scream we are playing the race card when called on
their comments.
Yes, they are.

The birth certificate nonsense would have never happened if the father hadn't been a black
man from Kenya. The stupidity of secession would have never been brought up if the
president had been white. The teabaggers wouldn't have been dreamed up by the rightwing,
Glenn Beck would have never dared to infer that a white man hated white men. Limbaugh
wouldn't have sang McCain the magic white man, and Lou Dobbs would have never said
calling the president a Kenyan couldn't be discounted. Or Coulter saying the middle name
Hussein sounds like 'terrorist' and means he's going to be soft on terror.

I cannot but think that if Barack Obama had been named James Johnson and been white,
his liberal agenda would have been looked at as being more moderate and that the right
wouldn't have become a gang of NO. This would be the same man, the same ideals, the same
hopes, but he would have been safe and 'one of them'.

That a good and decent man has been subjected to the Jim Crow of the 2000's is something
this country needs to take a long look at, and to stop it in it's tracks. This isn't
about politics, this is about an old, festering hatred. Call it what it is, racism.
It cannot be endured a moment longer.

Thanks for listening, I had to finally get it out.

[Cha]

1. Oh, there're racist bigoted assholes

gunning for President Obama..that's for real.

But, I think if you throw his politics in there and the hateradio-fauxsn00ze brainwashing then you've got the whole spectrum of extra ugly hate for our President.

I also think they'd be doing much the same to Hillary as far as trying to make sure she failed.

He knew and we knew it wouldn't be easy..and this is what he's talkin' about!

[greenbird]

2. +1

[jaxx]

3. You're right, all that enters into it too.

He has my support.

[TicketyBoo]

4. The heck of it is,

a lot of people, even OUR people, Democrats, had to get past race to vote for him, had to stare their own prejudice in the face, and say to themselves, "Dammit, no more!"

I hope that was a complete farewell to prejudice in their minds and hearts, but I fear that what we are seeing here is a sad indication that it was not.

I find GD and GDP disturbing places to visit, and it's a crying shame. Would all this outrage here be happening if he were white? It's a troubling question.

[jaxx]

5. I've never seen such disdain for a president, bush included.

Yeah we despised what he did and cheney was dirt, but not this out and out hatred for nothing but the man. I wasn't thinking of DU when I wrote that, but of the outside world...the extremists and the gunslingers with their silent threats, along with the idiots I mentioned with the nuts who read and listen to them.

GD and GDP are disturbing, and the people so against everything Obama. It's like he had 3 strikes against him when he won the election. The outrage here has become outrageous, and maybe people do need to stop and think about why the rage.

[Number23]

8. "not this out and out hatred for nothing but the man."

And that's really the crux of the issue. There is something hideously, BLATANTLY wrong with someone who screams that they are a Democrat, a liberal or a progressive and yet cannot find ONE THING about this President to celebrate, to applaud. EVERY STEP HE MAKES, every thing he does is WRONG and these people scream to high Heaven about how he "hasn't done anything" when even goddamned CONSERVATIVES are saying that Obama avoided another Great Depression with his stimulus package and some of his other policies.

And what's laughable is that the people who consistently criticize every step he makes are the ones who smugly like to say that "dissent is patriotic," and that they are "holding his feet to the fire." Since when is denigrating and constantly criticizing someone supposed to be considered something that BENEFITS either them or you?? And are the rest of us supposed to pretend that your criticism is valid and is not personal when you use the most blatantly hateful, nasty language to describe a man that many people in this country and around the world admire? If you can't be bothered to at least temper your criticism with logic, with reason and with some semblance of fairness, why the hell do you think that anyone would listen to you or take anything you say seriously?? How stupid are these people??

I honestly don't know what these people's problems are. There is no doubt that racism is a big part of it but I think alot of these people are also just plain old, good old fashioned idiots.

[FrenchieCat]

6. Yup.

The level of disrespect for nothing really except for what he hasn't yet done (12 months, with 75% of time remaining JEEBUS!) doesn't make as much sense except for when his skin color is included.

The Left didn't go after Clinton and even after Bush for what they hadn't done yet....but rather for what they did (and in fact Clinton got a pass on much of that).

Clinton is Bubba, and Obama is called a wimp as far as too many Democrats are concerned.
And so even if one would prefer not to, one shouldn't have to look further.

[jaxx]

7. I've been thinking this for a long time, and it's getting worse not better.

People are finding it easier to hate him, falling for the ignorance. They don't realize what they are throwing away.

[goclark]

9. I'm African American and these are my thoughts

I may be way off base but in my view, it is finally sinking in with some in America that a Black man is President.

For the Republicans, they couldn't believe it happened and now that it's in their face everyday, they are insecure.

When he was a candidate and fired up the crowds, he won so many over to his side.

As President, IMO, he is so smooth, so smart, so good looking, when he walks that walk and talks that talk ~ he is "The MAN" as the kids say.

Now it hits those that were in shock that he won the election---- " He is in CHARGE, he has POWER, he is loved by the WORLD and most thinking people all over the globe LOVE HIM! And, they LOVE HIS FAMILY -- like the "Democrats" that are Evil Doers, loved the Clinton/Carter Family etc!

Hello! He is a REAL PERSON and he has more POWER than any other BLACK MAN (or White Man) on the face of the earth right now.

It's as if the EVIL DOERS finally realized what happened to them -- HE WON! He is PRESIDENT of the WORLD(technically.) That's why the Nobel Prize really got under their skin ~ to see a predominately White country like Sweden recognize him made their evil blood boil.
That was a real hard pill for the ED"S (Evil Doers) to swallow. A mighty big pill.

So, they are now like Crabs in a Barrel, all trying to beat each other to trash him because they can't really believe that he is in CHARGE of America. They are so jealous until they are letting their "real self" show and it is ugly,

Is it racism ~ yes but it is also a whole lot of jealousy and insecurity.

I'm sure Obama is more than aware of the feelings out there but he has too much class to get down to their level.

Most Black friends that I talk to are not as surprised by this as my White friends.

When you realize that my Black friends have met with this response all of our lives, this response by the Evil Doers is not new to us.

So, I now realize that it is a Wake Up call to many of my White Friends, we have been AWAKE for as long as we care to remember.

WE SHALL OVERCOME SOMEDAY!

Thank you my DU - BOG family, you are wide awake and always have been. You are secure and happy in your own skin -- it shows and when you look in the mirror you should feel PROUD.

:loveya:

[TicketyBoo]

10. The best part of it is

that President Obama seems to take racism like water off a duck's back.

I like him more and more all the time. I don't agree with everything he does, and I fear this "spending freeze" will hurt the economy instead of help it, but, various issues aside, I admire him greatly. I wouldn't have his job for all the tea in China.

[goclark]

13. How right you are ~ he is an amazing man

from all that I have observed.

Ms. goclark would have not been able to stay calm under these circumstances at all! :mad:

I wish I could be a fly on the WH wall to see how he handles it when he is alone.

It is a blessing that he has a loving family and great friends around him. That gives him strength.

[jaxx]

16. WoW that was great!

:hug:

[Fire1]

19. Would they be just as jealous if a white man held those same

credentials? Of course, not. Was Clinton not smart? Was Clinton not good looking? Was Clinton not an attorney? I rest my case.

[Fire1]

11. You referenced your post to Republicans but I've got news for

you. The democrats don't "like" him, either. Some never even voted for him, as "democratic" as they claim to be. THIS is what has turned me totally OFF! The democratic party has by and large been the party of my people. I think I can speak for the black community when I say that we "expect" racism from the right wing. We didn't expect it from the left and not in such great numbers. Many of us predicted this would happen but that makes it no less hurtful.

We have largely supported every democratic president since obtaining the right to vote. That means, all white democratic candidates.
Good, bad or indifferent. We gave our support. Trust me when I say, we will remember this.

[TicketyBoo]

14. Well, I love him.

I don't believe I've ever felt such a personal investment and conviction in a president before (and I supported Hillary in the primaries).

You can't give up on Democratic candidates because of some of the fools that are posting on DU. You must know that Democrats are the only way out of the wilderness? Congress and the White House being controlled by Republicans ends up like having the country mired in quicksand.

[jaxx]

20. Most all of us will remember it.

It's the ugliest treatment of a president I've ever seen, except 1963.

[nevergiveup]

12. There is much racism everywhere and this includes DU.

I think it took me a while to come to this realization but now that I think back to the primaries there were folks here who just totally hated the man .....and it didn't make any sense because Barack Obama is an extremely likable human being, a good and descent person, great family man and such hatred toward him as a person is difficult to grasp without attaching some sort of racism. I understand the disagreement with his politics but the personal vendetta some had was just so damn disturbing and some of these folks are still here at DU and many of us know who they are. I do think however, that we must keep our perspective. There are many progressives/liberals who are disappointed that he wasn't some sort of savior and their disillusionment can lead to pretty drastic statements which don't necessarily indicate racism. So we all have to keep our balance, stick together and carry on. The best is yet to come.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

15. I'm sure it's part of it, but they swift-boated Kerry, and didn't treat Gore well either.

So I'm not sure race is the ultimate factor involved here.

[Hamlette]

17. there is another explanation

I saw the same thing happen to Clinton. For those of you who might not remember, his first year was considered (by the right and the whole of the media) to be a complete failure in part because it was so "scandal" ridden. Hell, he fired the ppl who worked in the travel office to hire his own peeps and "Travelgate" consumed "us" all 24/7 for years!

They hounded him just like they are hounding Obama.

I don't remember the left turning on Clinton as early as they turned on Obama. My impression is that the left felt burned by Clinton (NAFTA and welfare reform being the biggest complaints) and they are ending their honeymoon with Obama early so they don't suffer the same sense of betrayal they felt with Clinton.

I also think that things were not so bad when Clinton took office. I'm not a huge fan of Poppy but given the last 4 elected GOP presidents (Nixon, Reagan, both Bushes) he was by far the best. He was not such an ideologue that he kept his promise (no new taxes) which probably cost him the election. Had he been as irresponsible as his son, the country would have been in much worse shape when he left office.

Anyway, my point being there is a bigger mess for Obama to clean up and our nerves are on edge from 8 long years of that monster Cheney and his stupid side kick. We want our country back and we want it now.

Much work to do.

I'm not saying racism isn't playing a part but I don't think all of it is racism. In fact, in some ways, I think Obama's race has prevented some moderates from slashing harder. Like they did with Clinton. (Remember with Clinton, Ted Olsen and his "elves" met in November 1992, within weeks of Clinton's first election as prez, to impeach him. Yep. 2 months before he was even sworn into office they were planning a way to impeach him. I hope there is no such group now.)

[Fire1]

18. I respectfully disagree. I know Clinton's first year was

considered less than stellar. Some even described it as a disaster. Despite Clinton's scandal ridden first year and W.'s catastrophic two terms, I have NEVER EVER seen such irrational and racist behavior from the LEFT. As far as "moderates," centrists don't appear to be the problem and understandably so because President Obama IS a centrist. From where I sit, the only "part" that IS NOT racism, comes from moderates. These are pragmatic people. They are not the ones clamoring for him to lead the country further left or further right. These are not the people saying he is an "empty suit," "not keeping ANY of his promises," yelling out at a presidential address that he is a liar and the list goes on.

As bad as W. was he was not dogged as much and especially not by his own party! And please spare me the meme about the dem party having a big tent. That is certainly no excuse for what has happened this past year.

[Fire1]

22. Add to that the latest insult, "I forgot he was black for an hour."

Quoted by Chris Matthews. As another poster so aptly put it on another thread, he might as well of said, I forgot he was a superior human being for an hour. Fuckin disgusting. Did anybody ANYWHERE, EVER say anything like that about CLINTON? NO.:puke:

[gratefultobelib]

23. That really is beyond the pale. Unbelievabl;y crass.

[Hamlette]

24. I disagree about Matthews' statement. I didn't find it offensive at all.

You might not judge people by their race but you notice it. I think Matthews was being honest. We all have biases, we just don't like to admit to them. Matthews was disgusting during the Bush years but he's been pretty refreshing the last couple of years. Would be interesting to know why.

[treestar]

21. IA about the birth certificate

They had no concern for McCain to prove he was a citizen - why not ask him to provide his? And one of his parents', since for McCain to be a citizen as one born in the Canal Zone, one of his parents had to have been born in the U.S.