Amends thread for Jeremiah Wright's more passionate advocates

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

There have been literally thousands of posts and replies here this week supporting even the most objectionable of Wright's statements as deep and incontrovertible truths.

And everyone who didn't agree with Pastor Wright's specific view of America was dismissed as a Freeper troll and presumptive racist.

Well, anyone who was posting that only bust-out bigots and morons could find any fault with Wright's world-view and analysis may owe a few sincere DUers an apology. (The sincere folks, not over-the-top anti-Wright disruption posters of dubious origin.)

As a certain Senator from Illinois said earlier today:

...Pastor Wright's comments are not merely controversial, they represent a profoundly distorted view of America

Barack speaks for me on this.

[Redbear]

1. When Dick Durbin say that?

and when did he become a freeper troll?

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

10. Durbin's a man of many parts

[LostinVA]

2. I predict this thread to drop quickly

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

12. Hmmm... not exactly going out on a limb with that prediction!

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

17. ...

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

15. .

[Texas Hill Country]

3. kick. I agree. Obama would disagree with many of the supporters I have seen on here...

as a matter of fact, i think he would be ashamed of some of the things some of you have said

[backscatter712]

4. I'll say again what I said a few days ago.

I disagreed with how Wright chose to say the things he said, but underneath the hurtful, divisive rhetoric exists the truth Wright was trying to tell us. Racism does still exist in this country. America does have a harmful foreign policy that destroys lives and has a tendency to blowback on us. There's a great deal of injustice in this world.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

5. That's all quite true

But that's only part of what Wright was saying.

I have heard and read hundreds, or thousands of commentators on race, foreign policy and a culture of violence who made deep, valid points about injustice and madness in the American way of doing things who managed to get their point across without self-serving paranoia and a nihilistic contempt for the facts.

When someone says the government invented AIDS or that Pearl Harbor was MIHOP or that Natalie Holloway was asking for it, or that any black person supporting Hillary is a tiresome "negro who doesn't get it"... these are not deep truths, they are just inflammatory rhetorical flourishes tossed out there for the sake of creating more heat than light.

I never saw the sincere posters (actual Duers, not hit-and-run trolls) who were smeared as racists or right-wingers for objecting to specific objectionable statements claim that America is a color-blind society, or that American foreign policy is always wise and moral.

Not many actual Democrats deny the reality of racism and injustice. There is plenty of room for disagreement, however, as to whether racism and injustice are best countered by racial division-ism and conspiracy thinking.

Wright is a flawed vessel for a message with many valid components. It does the big-picture truth no service to conflate it with one man's distorted version of that truth.

[Bake]

8. Obama didn't reject the way Wright chose to say what he said.

He said it reflects a distorted view of America. What part of that don't you get?

Bake

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

14. well said

[kwassa]

6. and should we start another apology thread for the near-racist and

incredibly ignorant attacks on Wright by people who thought they knew all about him from two video clips?

Much blame can be laid on that side, too.

Frankly, Obama is much more critical of Wright than I would be.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

9. I agree with you, but those folks will never apologize for anything

There were a lot of stupid, objectionable anti-Wright posts from people of dubious racial attitudes. (And even dubious political affiliation)

And that ilk isn't likely to apologize for anything, ever.

But most of them aren't what I'd really call DUers. I have minimal expectations for actual racists.

[kwassa]

11. there is a lot more heat than light in this forum

and to me, anyone who participates here is a DUer. Sometimes old-timers reveal interesting beliefs in the heat of these arguments. I've been shocked on several occasions.

[leftynyc]

7. Barack speaks for me on this also

I think Rev Wright is a clown - right or left side of the aisle, I make no distinction between religious freaks.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

13. Religion... nuff said

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

16. And the mea culpas just keep roling in...

[SaveOurDemocracy]

18. Seems like many love to throw stones ... but no one

wants to clean up the mess left behind.

[saracat]

19. I agree with that statement but Obamites might not support their candidate on this!

[woolldog]

20. I like Wright.

His sermons were taken out of context:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=5149824&mesg_id=5150740

[boppers]

21. I apologize to the Racists and hatemongers, who cannot understand why distorted views...

...are valid, important, and extremely essential views to understanding America.

People who aren't racists, or hatemongers, of course, need no apology.

[EFerrari]

22. Why do you need other people to speak for you?

And, the capper is, you pick a politician?

[ecstatic]

23. Just as Barack can disagree with Wright, I can disagree with Barack

[Two Americas]

24. say what?

I found that those who were defending Wright's remarks were extremely civil and considerate, and made extremely valuable contributions. Maybe I missed some of the posts. Obviously, I cannot speak for everyone who defended Wright. I read many posts—there were only a few defending Wright—and I found those posters to be a model of restraint and reason.

I did find, however, those criticizing Wright to say very inflammatory and hateful things and to attack the defenders of Wright.

Obviously, which side of that argument we each took influences our view of how we saw the discussion go, but your blanket assertions that your side has been vindicated and the other side was completely wrong is just fanning the flames and making things worse.

As a person who does not and has not supported Obama, and as one who defended Wright, I have absolutely no problem with Obama's speech and agree with most of what he said and stand in great admiration of him for making it. I do not feel that he contradicted or invalidated my opinion. But you are claiming to know whether or not his speech invalidated my opinion better than I do. My are you starting up confusion and ill will over this where none existed and none need exist? Why are you re-introducing inflammatory and divisive ideas into the discussion, after Obama himself did such a brilliant job of reconciling the two sides, and presenting such a powerful and instructive perspective on this controversy?

Are you trying to attack Clinton supporters? I know that at least two of the most persuasive defenders of Wright, as well as myself, are not Clinton supporters. So I guess you lost me. With whom are you trying to pick a fight, and over what?

[jonnyra]

25. Funny how in all this BS

I have to yet to hear one person say our constitution guarantees freedom of speech...that Wright is really free to say what he wants in this land of freedom and democracy. Not Obama...not the media...not the bloggers...I have yet to read one sentence that defends him on the basis that here in AMerica we are supposed to be able to say what we want without fear of reprisal.

[mhatrw]

26. The Rev was right.

As for Obama, the cock is crowing.