Sen.Reid: Obama is light skinned and has no Negro dialect unless he wants to have one

[RobMoney$]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100109/ap_on_el_se/us_obama_reid;_ylt=Ak2JWMsAn69fX.B.XmOPfnIN97QF;_y lu=X3oDMTMyNnJpdnNiBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTAwMTA5L3VzX29 iYW1hX3JlaWQEY2NvZGUDbW9zdHBvcHVsYXIEY3BvcwMzBHBvc wMzBHNlYwN5bl90b3Bfc3RvcmllcwRzbGsDcmVpZGFwb2xvZ2l 6

WASHINGTON – The top Democrat in the U.S. Senate apologized on Saturday for comments he made about Barack Obama's race during the 2008 presidential bid and are quoted in a yet-to-be-released book about the campaign.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada described in private then-Sen. Barack Obama as "light skinned" and "with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one." Obama is the nation's first African-American president.

"I deeply regret using such a poor choice of words. I sincerely apologize for offending any and all Americans, especially African-Americans for my improper comments," Reid said in a statement released after the excerpts were first reported on the Web site of The Atlantic.

"I was a proud and enthusiastic supporter of Barack Obama during the campaign and have worked as hard as I can to advance President Obama's legislative agenda."

Reid remained neutral during the bitter Democratic primary that became a marathon contest between Obama and then-Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, whom Obama tapped as the United States' top diplomat after the election.

Reid's comments are included in the book, obtained Saturday by The Associated Press and set to be published on Monday. "Game Change" was written by Time Magazine's Mark Halperin and New York magazine's John Heilemann.

The book also says Reid urged Obama to run, perceiving the first-term senator's impatience.

"You're not going to go anyplace here," Reid told Obama of the Senate. "I know that you don't like it, doing what you're doing."

In another section, aides to Republican nominee John McCain described the difficulties they faced with their vice presidential pick, then-Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. Steve Schmidt, a senior member of Sen. John McCain's presidential team, is quoted telling Palin's foreign policy tutors: "You guys have a lot of work to do. She doesn't know anything."

The authors also quote Obama's initial reaction to McCain's selection of a little-known governor: "Wow. Well, I guess she's change."

Vice presidential nominee Joe Biden was direct. "Who's Sarah Palin?" the book quotes the then-senator as asking as they left the nominating convention in Denver.

Reid, facing a tough 2010 re-election bid, needs the White House's help if he wants to keep his seat. Obama's administration has dispatched officials on dozens of trips to buoy his bid and Obama has raised money for his campaign.

Recognizing the threat, Reid's apologies also played to his home state: "Moreover, throughout my career, from efforts to integrate the Las Vegas strip and the gaming industry to opposing radical judges and promoting diversity in the Senate, I have worked hard to advance issues."

Even before his ill-considered remarks were reported, a new survey released Saturday by the Las Vegas Review Journal showed him continuing to earn poor polling numbers. In the poll, by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research, Reid trailed former state Republican party chairwoman Sue Lowden by a 10 percentage points, 50 percent to 40 percent, and also lagging behind two other opponents.

More than half of Nevadans had an unfavorable opinion of Reid. Just 33 percent of respondents held a favorable opinion.

So much for the GOP having the monopoly on emabrressing, racist, stupid politicians.

So what exactly do you think "Negro dialect" is?

[Burnout18]

lmao, What the fuck?

What is reid, fucking stupid or something? But fuck him, No wonder why this healthcare bill is a joke, the dems in congress don't respect obama and they think they can make him do/sign whatever they want. Pelosi and Reid are doing thier best to destroy obama and he's letting it happen. Better wake up barack or else not even your charm, swagger and your monopoly on a race will help you win in 2012.

[kaiser soze]

So what exactly do you think "Negro dialect" is?

for shizzle?

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoID=1303121323

[RobMoney$]

MAMMY

[valvano]

The "serving tea" quote about Clinton and Obama is pretty funny too.

http://politics.theatlantic.com/2010/01/game_change_even_more_juicy_stuff.php


Of course, Obama stated that the GOP should drive out Trent Lott for making similar comments but when Reid makes similar comments its "okay"

http://weeklystandard.com/tws/daily/daily.asp#blog-307820

:rolleyes:

[rirv]

I'm struggling to find one man saying that segregational policies should be brought back similar to another saying that a black man is pale of skin and doesn't talk like "dem der negro fellows". They're both about race, but the severity of the remarks are light years from each other. One is a personal remark, the other a revelation of an entrenched racist view. But you know, hope change, fail lol:rolleyes:

[valvano]

I'm struggling to find one man saying that segregational policies should be brought back similar to another saying that a black man is pale of skin and doesn't talk like "dem der negro fellows". They're both about race, but the severity of the remarks are light years from each other. One is a personal remark, the other a revelation of an entrenched racist view. But you know, hope change, fail lol:rolleyes:

i had no idea that there was a scale factor in measuring racism...
is there also one for homophobia, or nazism, or kkk ism? :confused:

[rirv]

I'd say there's a scale for measuring everything.

Say for homophobia there's the guy who maybe makes gay jokes with his friends but really has no problem with how other people want to live their life and then there's the militant anti-gay who goes on protests and beats gays up in the street.

Like in this instance there's the Senator who made an anachronistic remark about one black man and then there's the other guy who encouraged the return of a massively discriminatory and degrading system of laws.

Of course I'm not condoning his remarks etc. but I think it's silly to turn a racist remark AGAINST Obama and make it into something it isn't.

:confused:

[DroppinScience]

To be fair, Reid comes from Nevada. I don't think they see a lot of black people 'round those parts.

[valvano]

I'd say there's a scale for measuring everything.

Say for homophobia there's the guy who maybe makes gay jokes with his friends but really has no problem with how other people want to live their life and then there's the militant anti-gay who goes on protests and beats gays up in the street.

Like in this instance there's the Senator who made an anachronistic remark about one black man and then there's the other guy who encouraged the return of a massively discriminatory and degrading system of laws.

Of course I'm not condoning his remarks etc. but I think it's silly to turn a racist remark AGAINST Obama and make it into something it isn't.

:confused:

it's cool how liberals are able to rationalize their ways into hypocrisy...

[RobMoney$]

I'm struggling to find one man saying that segregational policies should be brought back similar to another saying that a black man is pale of skin and doesn't talk like "dem der negro fellows". They're both about race, but the severity of the remarks are light years from each other. One is a personal remark, the other a revelation of an entrenched racist view. But you know, hope change, fail lol:rolleyes:

LOL @ the old, "the Republicans did it too" defense being rolled out by the first liberal POV on the issue.

Perhaps you're missing the big picture here.
Reid is telling us how black people talk and how dark their skin should be. That is the racist part.
The "Negro" is just a bit of icing on the cake.

Feel free to address the next black person you see and compliment them on their light complexion and their lack of Negro dialect, and please report back on how that works out.

Using the term "Negro" at all, in any conversation shows how completely out of touch Reid is. It's pretty much the equivelent of using the term "colored", and a only a stones throw away from saying "Nigger"...thinking otherwise is idiotic.


Now time to speculate.
If that quote would have come from Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, would he be in the Senate next year?
Trent Lott was run out of congress because he congratulated Strom Thurmond. Clearly, a double standard exists.

So according to Obama's logic here, a Republican should be removed form the Senate for racist remarks (Obama lobbied for such with Trent Lott).
A Democrat just has to apologize because "we know" (wink wink) a Democrat can't be racist.

[saz]

lmao, What the fuck?

What is reid, fucking stupid or something? But fuck him, No wonder why this healthcare bill is a joke, the dems in congress don't respect obama and they think they can make him do/sign whatever they want. Pelosi and Reid are doing thier best to destroy obama and he's letting it happen. Better wake up barack or else not even your charm, swagger and your monopoly on a race will help you win in 2012.

out of the three of them, obama, reid and pelosi, pelosi has been the most vocal on actual health insurance reform, ie championing the public option, but we know that's not going to happen now. regardless, pelosi and reid aren't doing their best to destroy obama, that's what the republicans are trying to do, just like with clinton. obama and reid just aren't interested in reforming health insurance and expanding medicare or providing a public option. obama has already bent over backwards for big pharma and the private health insurance industry (http://www.beastieboys.com/bbs/showpost.php?p=1714419&postcount=2).

[DroppinScience]

Now time to speculate.
If that quote would have come from Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, would he be in the Senate next year?
Trent Lott was run out of congress because he congratulated Strom Thurmond. Clearly, a double standard exists.

Trent Lott was not "run out" of the Senate. He lost his leadership post (as he should have), but stayed in the Senate for 5 more years until 2007 when he resigned from the Senate to be a lobbyist. :rolleyes:

Tell me when Obama lobbied to have Lott removed from the Senate. In 2002, Barack Obama was not a U.S. Senator. Maybe he had something to say about Trent Lott as an Illinois State Senator, but wouldn't have made a blip on the radar.

What Reid said was a moment of complete idiocy, for sure. It's certainly not as vile as what Lott said about Strom Thurmond (you do know what he said, right?). For the record, I think Harry Reid is a joke as a Majority Leader and I wouldn't mind seeing him go (hell, you might get your wish this November since he's in a tough re-election campaign this year).

I'm also quite shocked at how racially sensitive you seem to have become, Rob. I mean, I would have thought you didn't differentiate between "black," "Negro," or "Nigger." You've shown as much on this very board.

[saz]

LOL @ the old, "the Republicans did it too" defense being rolled out by the first liberal POV on the issue.

Perhaps you're missing the big picture here.
Reid is telling us how black people talk and how dark their skin should be. That is the racist part.
The "Negro" is just a bit of icing on the cake.

Feel free to address the next black person you see and compliment them on their light complexion and their lack of Negro dialect, and please report back on how that works out.

Using the term "Negro" at all, in any conversation shows how completely out of touch Reid is. It's pretty much the equivelent of using the term "colored", and a only a stones throw away from saying "Nigger"...thinking otherwise is idiotic.


Now time to speculate.
If that quote would have come from Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, would he be in the Senate next year?
Trent Lott was run out of congress because he congratulated Strom Thurmond. Clearly, a double standard exists.

So according to Obama's logic here, a Republican should be removed form the Senate for racist remarks (Obama lobbied for such with Trent Lott).
A Democrat just has to apologize because "we know" (wink wink) a Democrat can't be racist.

whatever


http://www.beastieboys.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=88513

http://www.beastieboys.com/bbs/showpost.php?p=1666722&postcount=51


**Stands up and starts a slow clap**

That was FUCKING AWESOME!

Coming from someone of mixed heritage and attending schools with a large percentage of blacks lends all the credibility in the world to your opinion if you ask me.


I mean if I grew up in a place that had maybe one or two blacks, It most definitily would be a word that was never uttered than if you grew up in a city and a school system that's 90% black and the term is thrown around as frequently as the word "the".

If you don't wanna be called the N-word, don't act like one.
Also, I just remembered what it was I actually posted that got me banned. It wasn't even used directly in a hateful manner, it was a joke that I saw on the Wu-Tang board and re-posted here because I knew it would twist Tone's titty.
I guess it's an accepted term on the black hip-hop artists MB, but not on the white hip-hop artists MB, go figure?

...and it's clear that most of you voted for Obama primarily because of his race, I just figured you'd appreciate knowing that he's actually not the first President to be part black.
There's actually been FIVE former US Presidents with African ancesteorory (and no, none of them were named Clinton either).

http://www.diversityinc.com/public/3085.cfm



I'm so glad we filled that quota and put an end to racism once and for all.

[saz]

it's cool how liberals are able to rationalize their ways into hypocrisy...

shut up:

Hopefully the "schoochildren" can "ax" some questions to Obama :D

fucking racist.....and you do nothing but feed the stereotype of Republicans.

[RobMoney$]

Yeah, being racist is a republican stereotype. :rolleyes:

Just like being unpatriotic is a democrat stereotype.

[valvano]

Tell me when Obama lobbied to have Lott removed from the Senate. In 2002, Barack Obama was not a U.S. Senator. Maybe he had something to say about Trent Lott as an Illinois State Senator, but wouldn't have made a blip on the radar.


http://weeklystandard.com/tws/daily/daily.asp#blog-307820

Illinois Senator Barack Obama (D-13th), who hosted WVON's Cliff Kelley Show, challenged the Republican Party to repudiate Lott's remarks and to call for his resignation as senate leader.

"It seems to be that we can forgive a 100-year-old senator for some of the indiscretion of his youth, but, what is more difficult to forgive is the current president of the U.S. Senate (Lott) suggesting we had been better off if we had followed a segregationist path in this country after all of the battles and fights for civil rights and all the work that we still have to do," said Obama.

He said: "The Republican Party itself has to drive out Trent Lott. If they have to stand for something, they have to stand up and say this is not the person we want representing our party."

--From the December 12, 2002 issue of the Chicago Defender

[valvano]

shut up:

are you saying only minorities use bad language such as "ax" for ask and I am racist for pointing that out?

then you , my friend, are the racist for identifying people by race based on how they speak

[saz]

you were being a smug little racist ass hat in that thread of yours, so much so that not only did the board admin edit your original post, but another conservative pointed out your bigotry.

[DroppinScience]

http://weeklystandard.com/tws/daily/daily.asp#blog-307820

Illinois Senator Barack Obama (D-13th), who hosted WVON's Cliff Kelley Show, challenged the Republican Party to repudiate Lott's remarks and to call for his resignation as senate leader.

"It seems to be that we can forgive a 100-year-old senator for some of the indiscretion of his youth, but, what is more difficult to forgive is the current president of the U.S. Senate (Lott) suggesting we had been better off if we had followed a segregationist path in this country after all of the battles and fights for civil rights and all the work that we still have to do," said Obama.

He said: "The Republican Party itself has to drive out Trent Lott. If they have to stand for something, they have to stand up and say this is not the person we want representing our party."

--From the December 12, 2002 issue of the Chicago Defender

If that's what he said, I agree with it. Trent Lott and Harry Reid's remarks are NOT on an equivalent level (one flat out endorses segregation and said the civil rights movement should not have happened; Reid makes himself sound like he doesn't know anything about black people, not that he's a racist) and deserve two different consequences for those actions. For you to believe that these two situations are on an equal playing field is pure idiocy. Something you're good at.

Oh yeah, and you're conspicuously silent about Michael Steele and his racist remarks towards Native Americans. I guess that's okay as long as he's a Republican?

[RobMoney$]

http://weeklystandard.com/tws/daily/daily.asp#blog-307820

Illinois Senator Barack Obama (D-13th), who hosted WVON's Cliff Kelley Show, challenged the Republican Party to repudiate Lott's remarks and to call for his resignation as senate leader.

"It seems to be that we can forgive a 100-year-old senator for some of the indiscretion of his youth, but, what is more difficult to forgive is the current president of the U.S. Senate (Lott) suggesting we had been better off if we had followed a segregationist path in this country after all of the battles and fights for civil rights and all the work that we still have to do," said Obama.

He said: "The Republican Party itself has to drive out Trent Lott. If they have to stand for something, they have to stand up and say this is not the person we want representing our party."

--From the December 12, 2002 issue of the Chicago Defender

Words, just words. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgMcht-EW6I&feature=related)

[RobMoney$]

Mr President, how are you?

Aiight...

[RobMoney$]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A37288-2002Dec10?language=printer


Twenty-two years ago, Trent Lott, then a House member from Mississippi, told a home state political gathering that if the country had elected segregationist candidate Strom Thurmond to the presidency "30 years ago, we wouldn't be in the mess we are today." The phrasing is very similar to incoming Senate Majority Leader Lott's controversial remarks at a 100th birthday party for Thurmond last week.
The Jackson Clarion-Ledger reported Lott's earlier comments in a Nov. 3, 1980, report about a rally for the presidential campaign of Ronald Reagan in downtown Jackson at which Thurmond was the keynote speaker.

Thurmond, according to the story, told the gathering of 1,000 people that the country "cannot stand four more years of [President] Jimmy Carter. . . . We've got to balance the budget. Jimmy Carter won't do it, but Ronald Reagan will do it."

Then Thurmond declared: "[We] want that federal government to keep their filthy hands off the rights of the states." For many supporters and opponents of civil rights, the phrase "state's rights" stood for the right of states to reject federal civil rights legislation.

After Thurmond spoke, Lott told the group: "You know, if we had elected this man 30 years ago, we wouldn't be in the mess we are today."
Thurmond ran as the Dixiecrat candidate for president in 1948 on a platform calling for the continuation of segregation in the South.

A spokesman for Lott defended the 1980 remarks: "Clearly, Senator Lott was expressing his support for Ronald Reagan's policies of smaller government and fiscal responsibility."


The argument can be made that Lott was addressing the poor economic situation the country was in at the time when he remarked about Thurman,
"You know, if we had elected this man 30 years ago, we wouldn't be in the mess we are today."
He made a statement that he tought Thurman would have made a good President.
Whether he's right or wrong is beside the point, there's nothing racist about making that statement on it's face.
But the press and the Democrats went into conniption fit over this, drawing a line from Lott's supporting Thurman to Thurman's segragationist views during the 60's.
Lott couldn't apologize enough and he eventually stepped down as majority leader over the comment.

It doesn't really matter if Harry Reid's statement is just as offensive, or if Lott's statement is just as benign.
No line needs to be drawn from Reid's remarks, no supposition.
Reid's statement was clearly offensive on it's own merit and shows Reid's ignorance.

It's not a contest of who is more ignorant anyway.
And as Lambert already pointed out, Reid is likely done come the next election.

[saz]

no rob, that argument cannot be made, as lott has strong segregationist tendencies and sympathies, especially those with strom thurmond.

both lott and reid are fucking morons and completely out of touch.

[DroppinScience]

Strom Thurmond was not exactly running on innovative economic policies back in 1948. Pretty much his raison d'etre was to preserve segregation in the South. Maybe Thurmond advocated for "balancing the budget" or whatever, but his messages of preventing blacks from using the same swimming pools as whites resonated a lot stronger with the Dixiecrats. This is whitewashing and Trent Lott knows it.

[RobMoney$]

I'm not trying to defend Thurman, Lott, or anything either have done or said, but if you look at these two statements, you tell me which one is worse

1. "You know, if we had elected this man 30 years ago, we wouldn't be in the mess we are today."

2. "He is light skinned and with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one."




I'm going with statement #2.

[DroppinScience]

You really can't read between the lines of what Lott was saying?

Lott essentially has said things would be much better if the civil rights movement never happened and that Thurmond should have had his way.

[RobMoney$]

That's the point.
You don't have to read through any lines or make any suppositions with Reid's remarks.

Therefore Reid wins the "more racist" debate.

[DroppinScience]

If you have no understanding of history or who Strom Thurmond was, then yeah, I guess it's tough to read into the multifaceted mind of Trent Lott. Afterall, Thurmond was a very noted economic theorist. :rolleyes:

[Burnout18]

What a hypocrite strom thurmond was. He had a kid with a 16 year old black "house servant" then spent the rest of his life fighting for a seperation of the races in schools, church's ect ect....

Segregation for the population you have the power to force laws upon.... but when you are lonely and that house servant looks tempting ;).... well you know

[Bob]

I'm not trying to defend Thurman, Lott, or anything either have done or said, but if you look at these two statements, you tell me which one is worse

1. "You know, if we had elected this man 30 years ago, we wouldn't be in the mess we are today [because he would have let states keep the negroes out of our schools and restaurants]"

2. "He is light skinned and with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one."




I'm going with statement #2.

i'm going with #1

[RobMoney$]

Of course you are.

[Bob]

you're right, i did

[Echewta]

I like reading what all you honkeys are putting up.

[RobMoney$]

Ann Coulter to Sharpton on Harry Reid: Did He Ask You to Stop Using Negro Dialect Too? (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gie-WEj9GDA&feature=player_embedded)

[RobMoney$]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ll_goH-aivU

"In Delaware, the largest growth of population is Indian Americans, moving from India. You cannot go to a 7/11 or a Dunkin' Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent. I'm not joking." ...Sen. Joe Biden

Where was the outrage?
You see, there really isn't outrage over racism.
Racism is a tool used to bash Republicans and whites. Other than that, nobody seems to genuinely care.
If it was real issue, not manufactured, you would be outraged no matter who said it.

[DroppinScience]

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's take on Harry Reid:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kareem-abduljabbar/coppertone-politics_b_420165.html

It's really interesting how the conservative movement has jumped on Harry Reid's racial observations regarding Barack Obama's candidacy. They feel that Reid made some type of faux pas. Senator Reid was making a candid observation about racial attitudes in America. For many Americans, dark skin and the Negro dialect are a definite negative when considering a political candidate. Those attributes are associated with all of the negative stereo types of blacks that have become part of America's history.

The conservatives are trying to say that those statements by Reid are the equivalent to Trent Lott's praise for the racist segregationist presidential campaign of Strom Thurmond. There is no rational way that speaking about racial attitudes that have been in play since the beginning of our nation is the equivalent of endorsing a racist presidential candidate. But the conservatives insist it's a match. Go figure. I hope Mr. Reid continues to lead the Dems successfully. The conservatives will continue to live in their fantasy world.

[Bob]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ll_goH-aivU



Where was the outrage?
You see, there really isn't outrage over racism.
Racism is a tool used to bash Republicans and whites. Other than that, nobody seems to genuinely care.
If it was real issue, not manufactured, you would be outraged no matter who said it.

yes. republicans and white people are the real victims of racism

[RobMoney$]

Yes Bob, people feign outrage at remarks made by people they don't like.
Nobody was really outraged at Lott, and nobody's honestly outraged at this.
Just like nobody was outraged at Joe Biden's remarks about Indians.
It's the entire reason why black people allow other blacks to use the "N" word.
If they were truly outraged by the word, they'd be offended by ANYONE who used it, wouldn't they?
It's all a fucking show to advance politics.

It happens on this forum all the time too, doesn't it?
We're all guilty of feigning outrage and finding a problem with someone's POV that we don't like, and turn a blind eye to flaws in others' posts who we've grown to like.
In politics, it all depends on what letter is in parenthesis after your name.
If you have the right one, you are forgiven of all wrongs.
If you have the wrong one, you are an evil person and must be stopped at all costs.

The simple fact is, if it had been a Republican Senator to say it, the Dems would be calling for his resignation.
Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton would be leading protests, and so on.
They aren't doing that for Reid(D) because Reid(D) is the Senate Majority Leader (and he has a (D) next to his name) and that if he were to resign, he'd most likely be replaced by a Republican, which would take away that filibuster-proof hold the dems have in the senate.
And considering the trillion dollar healthcare bill they're jamming through, they can't afford to lose the supermajority they currently enjoy because that would make it infinitely tougher to get it done.

That Healthcare bill is vital to Obama, as it will define his presidency. If it fails, in time, he too will be considered a failure.
He'll be considered to have squandered arguably the most political capital any President has ever had.
Full control of all three branches of the Federal Government, including supermajority in the senate.
Has any other President ever enjoyed a similar advantage?

[RobMoney$]

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's take on Harry Reid:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kareem-abduljabbar/coppertone-politics_b_420165.html


Just wondering, does Kareem speak with a Negro dialect?

And if not, can he if he wanted?

[DroppinScience]

Minister Faust (community radio broadcaster for CJSR here in Edmonton) has some excellent thoughts on Harry Reid, too:

http://ministerfaust.blogspot.com/2010/01/i-dont-give-damn-about-harry-reid-and.html

I don't give a damn about Harry Reid, and saying "Negro dialect" is just plain weird, but....
reid-obama3.jpg
I'd say that the American "Republicans" attempting to make hay out of this issue are too funny, and not in a good way.

Br. Davey D. has some excellent thoughts on the subject:

"The party of Ronald Reagan who supported South African Apartheid, the party of John McCain who said ‘No to a Martin Luther King holiday are suddenly getting all Jesse Jackson-like and riding hard for all those who have been on the receiving end of racial insults and oppression....

"I was more offended seeing a Professor Tricia Rose, Professor Marc Lamont Hill, BET’s Jeff Johnson and the dozen of other Black faces invited to discuss an old white man using the word ‘Negro’ versus seeing them invited on a regular basis to discuss a variety of other topics that have arguably more impact.

"I would’ve like to have seen some of those Black voices on the Sunday morning talk shows earlier this year dragging Harry Reid’s ass through the coals around the Healthcare debate when single payer and later public option got snatched off the table.

"To me the insult was seeing Black intelligence limited to just this topic, whereas I might see a dimwit like Ann Coulter invited to weigh in on everything from the War in Afghanistan to what Chris Brown did to Rihanna."

Terrordome guest and sociologist supreme Br. Algernon Austin also threw down:


"Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-NV) simply told the truth, in my view. I don't see what he has to apologize for.

"According to the Washington Post, the book Game Change states that when assessing the strengths of then candidate Barack Obama in 2008, Reid said that he 'believed that the country was ready to embrace a black presidential candidate, especially one such as Obama--a 'light-skinned" African American "with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one".'

"There is nothing offensive or even controversial here.

"It seems that some people are upset because they have deluded themselves into thinking that America is a post-racial society. Reid's remarks show an awareness that blackness poses challenges for success with the broad American electorate."

Righteous.

Course, the bwoi is still weird. "Negro"? What is this, 1970? Has dude been watching Good Times or something?

[RobMoney$]

So what he's saying is essentially that electing Barack Obama has done absolutely nothing to solve the race problem, correct?

[DroppinScience]

So what he's saying is essentially that electing Barack Obama has done absolutely nothing to solve the race problem, correct?

I know you like to oversimplify things, but pretty much. The election of Obama does not mean that racism in all its forms (whether it be individuals and especially institutionalized racism) have vanished. In other words, still a lot must be done. All it shows is that a significant portion of the population has fewer racial hang-ups, but those racial hang-ups are still there.

I know you know all this. All you need to do is look in the mirror.

[saz]

big time

[RobMoney$]

I know you know all this. All you need to do is look in the mirror.

Lambert, Lambert, Lambert,...the same old routine.
Can't win a debate like a man, so you take it to personal insults, then you're going to whine when I come back at you personally.

Perhaps you should run and get the man of the house now to fight your battles and save us all the time.
She's a more worthy opponent for me anyway.

I think feel a brisk wind blowing out of the north now, she can't be too far away.

[saz]

personal insults (http://www.beastieboys.com/bbs/showpost.php?p=1700471&postcount=135) eh

[rirv]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ll_goH-aivU



Where was the outrage?
You see, there really isn't outrage over racism.
Racism is a tool used to bash Republicans and whites. Other than that, nobody seems to genuinely care.
If it was real issue, not manufactured, you would be outraged no matter who said it.

I don't think this is racist.

[Monsieur Decuts]

I'm not even sure what the offensive part was? Did Reid use the wrong term? Is Negro bad? Really? Its THAT bad? Who gets to judge if its bad or not? A bunch of white people? I don't hear many blacks saying anything about this except that he was probably an idiot for stepping in the stemming pile of crap that is speaking about the Black race behind closed doors in a manner that can end up in a book 2 years down the road.

Most of this country is at a point where they are just words. We've gone past the word and draw racism from the context. (thanks Dave Chapelle)

His comments were in a positive vein, meaning that Obama could even appeal to those people who judge a person by the twang with which they deliver their message. If there is racism in his comment, its in the acknowledgment that racism could impact Obama's electability.

I don't think a Republican would ever be asked to step down if they were to endorse the overall electability of Obama, like Reid was doing in his comments here. I hope one tries it to see the reaction!!

[DroppinScience]

Frank Rich on the Harry Reid fracas. (y)

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/17/opinion/17rich.html?

It would be easy to dismiss the entire event as a credulous news media’s collaboration with a publisher’s hype for a new tell-all-gossip 2008 campaign book, “Game Change,” which breathlessly broke the Reid “bombshell.” But this is a more interesting tale than that. The true prime mover in this story was not a book publicist but Michael Steele, the chairman of the Republican Party and by far the loudest and most prominent Beltway figure demanding that Reid resign as Senate majority leader as punishment for his “racism.”