Tuesday, March 18, 2008

HI, I AM FIELD NEGRO, AND I AM AN OB.......


"I have never felt more convinced that this man's candidacy - not this man, his candidacy - and what he can bring us to achieve - is an historic opportunity. This was a testing; and he did not merely pass it by uttering safe bromides. He addressed the intimate, painful love he has for an imperfect and sometimes embittered man. And how that love enables him to see that man's faults and pain as well as his promise. This is what my faith is about. It is what the Gospels are about. This is a candidate who does not merely speak as a Christian. He acts like a Christian."


~~Andrew Sullivan~~


Whoa there Andrew, lets not have the "O" man walking across the swimming pool just yet.


But still, that speech the "O" man gave here in Philly today almost had me completing the title of this post. Today, finally, the "O" man became a "black" candidate. I even think he pulled the good Reverend from under the bus a little bit (Although I think his shoelaces might still be stuck). The "O" man embraced his race, and confronted some of A-merry-ca's racial demons. And this all happened just a few blocks away from where the concept of liberty was supposedly crafted in these divided states of A-merry-ca. He gave it a stones throw away from a bell that is as cracked as some of the bigots attacking him. Fittingly, it was right in front of the U.S. Mint, because his speech was on the money.

The "O" man had to know it was coming, and it seemed that he was ready (The shit about his racist maternal grandmother was classic). He said all the right things, and he tried to appeal to the best part of our nature. He even came at his own peeps a little. But it's cool "O" man, we get it, this isn't about us, you have our vote. This is about letting the rest of A-merry-ca know that you don't bite. "Ahh come on field, he had to say what he did, it was a calculated political move and nothing else" Yes, but he could have kept up the whole I am the Tigerlike politician act, but he didn't. He stepped up to the plate, and talked about race and what it has meant to this country. I have been killing the guy since day one to get just a little real, so when he does, I am going to give him credit.


"..And yet words on a parchment would not be enough to deliver slaves from bondage, or provide men and women of every color and creed their full rights and obligations as citizens of the United States. What would be needed were Americans in successive generations who were willing to do their part — through protests and struggle, on the streets and in the courts, through a civil war and civil disobedience and always at great risk — to narrow that gap between the promise of our ideals and the reality of their time..."


OK "O" man, now you have me at least checking the ingredients in your "O" Aid. Do you happen to have Orange flavors?


102 comments:

Kellybelle said...

I loved Barack's speech. (And I'm tickled pink that you almost drank the O-aid.)

I'm growing more and more pissed as I watch Lou Dobbs spin the speech, though. They're still asking him why he didn't leave the church and cut all ties with Rev. Wright. And they keep harping on Rev. Wright's angry delivery. Sounded like a sermon to me.

It's exactly what Barack said might happen, that the focus will be on the "scandal" and not the real issue of race. Damn.

Anonymous said...

I was reading through my google reader and happened across your post today regarding Obama's speech today. I always knew that you were undercover when it came to supporting Barack Obama, and understand that you wanted to see more of him in terms of his blackness. You are cautious man, and I do respect that as there have been leadership in the past who have gravely let the black community down. Being constantly disappointed by what you see happening is not an easy pill to swallow.

There is not question of what a complex history the United States has when it comes to race, and more difficult when most people in this country have no idea of the history of this country. I am glad that Obama didn't turn his back on Dr. Wright., and nor should he. I do wonder with the speech giving today, will people have a conversation about race, but my cynical side tells me that we are still not ready. We will see.

Anonymous said...

Yo Field,
I am so proud of Obama, he made my day. Finally, I heard something I can feel. He talked not just to blacks, but to everyone about their own issh. Hell I don't mind being driven over, but you betta check them other mofos while you are at it. He is not some Tiger Woods acting like he does not have one drop of black blood nowhere in his family tree. Holy shit this brotha refused to divorce himself from black folks and throw Pastor Wright down the river. Hell I guess he figured these racist mofos are gonna drive me to the ends of hell if I let them. It's about damn time he said enoough to everyone, let get real and try an fix this messed up country. He also told America this is who I am and if you want me vote for me, if not you can have this country as it is. He also told white folks do not think your vote absolves you of racial guilt. Black folks, I know you are pissed, but there is some cleaning up to do in your own backyard too. Hell Field, this one time was a great moment in American politics. The man did good as the old folks say.

Unknown said...

It was the first really important speech of the 21st century. Obama is more than capable of dealing with whatever mess these fools try to throw at him.

field negro said...

"I'm growing more and more pissed as I watch Lou Dobbs..."

kellybelle, I love you; but watching Lou Dobbs was your first mistake :)

"It was the first really important speech of the 21st century."

Is...58, you might be right about that, but let me think about it.

hennasplace, I think your cynical side is right. The haters in the majority are up and running already.

Mithras said...

I've been out on South Street the past four days registering people to vote for Obama. (Got 44 so far, my goal is 150 by Monday.) On Monday, we went out near an Irish bar with green "O'Bama" signs (the apostrophe was a shamrock) - thought it would be cute. What we got was a bunch of drunk white people who were never going to vote for Obama in the first place who had finally found their excuse in Rev. Wright, and they wanted to argue about it. I was there to register voters, not fight, so I relocated.

Those people aren't going to listen to this speech and be moved. But it will rally his supporters who wondered if he could take the hit and respond in a positive way. For us, he hit it out of the park, no doubt. People approached us on the street today and told us they had cried listening to him speak. About 65,000 new Democrats registered to vote between last fall and March 4. To give you a sense of scale, Kerry carried PA in 2004 by 144,000 votes. I would not be surprised if we register another 50,000 before March 24 (the last day to register for the primary). And those new voters are overwhelmingly for Obama.

I believe the man is going to win the primary in Pennsylvania, he is going to win the nomination, and he will be the next President of the United States.

Ann Brock said...

Field when I first say the heading of your post I got excited thinking you had finally come around but it was not to be. I think Obama did a awesome job and he did not have to disowning his pastor.

Negroes like Larry Elder and Juan William are the worst thing that has ever happen to black america. Right after the speech they were on hand to start the nick picking.


The first thing out of Elder mouth is why Obama did not leave his church. Why should he leave his church family. Any way pastor moss is the pastor now not Jeremiah Wright.

The Christian Progressive Liberal said...

He (the O Man) nailed it. 'Nuff said.

This speech should close the door on the whole controversy that falls into the "making-ISH-up category by Sean Hannity and Fake Noise.

I shouldn't wish for this...but sometimes, I wish Hannity would get caught with a live boy (we'd be too busy ROFL if he got caught with a hooker, alive or dead).

Hathor said...

FN,
I don't think its skepticism, but anxiety. We all know creative thinkers and have wondered if Obama is truly one. This speech cinched it for me. I am still anxious, for if he were to be president, he would have to carry so much more weight.

Lenoxave said...

Well done Sen. Obama. Well done. If FN is checking the contents of the "O" Aid you done good.

Anonymous said...

dear field, i love obama too. cable news with the exception of olberman is having a hardtime processing the fact that obama will be the nominee. this media storm is them having a tantrum. obama just told them it is bedtime. they are still crying but they are now back in their crib. soon it will be just whimpers and then it will be silent. it sure has been stressful to listen to their tantrum. i will be glad when it's over.

Anonymous said...

Andy - I am LOVIN your tantrum comparison!!! Obama is the one, for such a time as this. His speech was the best. Thanks, Naj

Anonymous said...

Ok...Field...welcome to the Obamaholics Club.

We sip the 'aid daily. I just ran out of orange, but we have an endless supply of red!! :-D

field negro said...

danielle, I am just checking.

Not so fast timi, I am not in that "club" just yet. But I am starting to like the man and appreciate what he is going through. With mofo's like the clowns at FAKE NEWS on his ass 24/7,the guy needs somebody to get his back.

burpster said...

I think barry got another vote. I played the youtube speech for my wife, a hill supporter, and she said it was one of the greatest speeches she has heard.

I thought the preacher might end barry's run for POTUS. I no longer think that. He, with his speech today put himself on a whole other level from hill and johhn-boy. I think he played the recent "media" onslaught just about perfect.

America will be very lucky to have barry as the next president.

Anonymous said...

I think Mrs. Field has been slippin' you some sips, Field. Cheers.

Anonymous said...

Welcome! Don't hate on the Kool-Aid.

Blinders Off said...

Every letter to the editor in my local newspaper today that talked about Obama was jumping him about the words of his pastor. It has been awhile since I wrote a letter to the editor, but I had to respond and a snippet of that letter goes as follow:

Obama speech in Philadelphia on March 18, 2008 was the reality of racism in America. Many are blaming Obama for Rev. Wright’s words and want him to disown him. Some are not going to vote for him because of his former pastor. Are you willing to disown your mother, father, grandfather, grandmother, sister, brother, uncle, aunt, etc..., for the angry words they said against a person of another race? If you say you do not know someone like that, you are untruthful. The mainstream media is being divisive on how often they are showing the snippet of Rev. Wright, but not of other religious figures who speak with anger and hate..like Hagee who is endorsing McCain.

Those who are now saying they are not voting for Obama in the general election if he wins the nomination, you probably were not going to vote for him any way, but you now have a reason to justify and feel good about yourself not to vote for him.



Obama speech was HISTORICAL

UncleTomRuckusInGoodWhiteWorld said...

Top notch speech, historic for American politics, really. He showed elephant size balls giving this, but I’m not sure it will help win over blue collar whites in places like Penn or Indiana. Then again maybe it was not meant to, just meant to “keep them thinking or open” so he can hit them with further economic issues.

Maybe who he was really speaking to was the media, elite whites, blacks, and Super Delegates...letting them know he is okay and things will be okay and I can deal with it (in a presidential way and I can fight in my own way and show balls).

If he can get the majority of the media back under his spell he can define the day and focus on trying to get some of the white vote back (specifically white males who are not college educated).

In any case he won’t need to worry about them in the primary, as he has got that, it seems (unless something else stupid happens), but in the general election that will be the battle ground demographic. If he can win white male blue collar uneducated folks he can win the presidency. If he can’t then he will join the ranks of Kerry and Gore.

As far as black folks. I think most blacks will stick with Obama in very high numbers (85% ) but I think today he might have angered some leftist black radicals (like some of the professors on this blog who were obviously spoon fed neo-Maoist revolutionary black nationalism from the time they were in diapers by former Panthers and white Communists), people I like to call, “red doper diaper babies”.

Then again, those folks don’t matter. Obama doesn’t need them to win. He does need white men.

Mac Daddy Tribute Blog said...

Orange, field? What about grape?

field, I said this earlier and i'll say it again: this speech was Obama's 3 a.m. phone call, and he handled that call with courage, honesty and integrity.

field, the worse is over in this primary election. From now on, nothing Hillary says or does will bother him. In fact, any underhanded tactics by her now will show her up for the overly ambitious, deceitful person she is. Nothing house negroes like Elder or right wing white boys like Buchanan can touch him now. But to changer the subject and enhance his status, here's what I would like to see him do:
1) Give a series of policy statements: On the financial crisis, jobs, healthcare, education;
2) Give a special policy speech on Iraq, specifically the relationship between Iraq and the US economy;
3) Go abroad. There's nothing like visiting another country and taking photo opts to change the subject and to look presidential. Hey, he could even take a potential ambassador with him, such as Gov. Bill Richardson or Ambassador Wilson. This would also deal with his weakness, his foreign policy experience.

The O man can now move on.

field, I thought all black folks liked grape (smile).

Christopher said...

What a day it's been.

Barack's speech was a thing of beauty. Every bit as important and meaningful as the great speeches by John F. Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

No wonder the Borg Queen was such a bitch when asked for her opinion on Barack's speech:

The Borg Queen: "I didn't hear it."

Sure, Hillary. Sure.

La♥audiobooks said...

Oh field, I am so proud of you... I mean Obama (I think you were more than checking the ingredients, you done went and took a deep whiff of the sweet sugary aroma :)

I loved Obama's speech. To think they were trying to put the O-man in a catch 22 rut, and it backfired on their ass (oops) He's even more respected and appealing to more of the even sketptic of blacks and whites... Ha!

"when you boil pot for fish, take care you fall in"

La♥audiobooks said...

Christopher said:

"The Borg Queen: "I didn't hear it."

Sure, Hillary. Sure.
"


LOL!

Anonymous said...

One of my favorite descriptions of not only how amazing the speech was, but the preassure under which Barack had to write it (it has been noted in several media outlets that he wrote this one himself) was

"it was like riding a unicycle backwards while it was on fire!"

Which makes this speech even all the more amazing.

Admiral Komack said...

"Top notch speech, historic for American politics, really. He showed elephant size balls giving this, but I’m not sure it will help win over blue collar whites in places like Penn or Indiana."

-I frankly don't care if the blue collar whites like the speech or not.

Obama called out the media: you can run clips of Wright 24/7 or you can talk about things that are important to people (bringing the troops home from Iraq and helping the veterans, health care among others) [I am paraphrasing].

A damn good speech.

Anonymous said...

Brother Field,this old Panther can only smile and say "well done". When we meet a Black man,we have to find what we like about him; when we meet a White man we have to find something we dislike about him. This Brother O has stood in the middle and offered hope that the divide can now be worked on. One year ago I would have not believed a Black man could say the things about Amerikka without venom. I look forward to see if this dialouge about race can be seen from "our perspective" and respected as valid from our eyes. StillaPanther2

Yvonne said...

so i hear tonight that they are going through all of the old Jeremiah Wright tapes looking for Obama in the crowd at one of the inflammatory speeches. To see if he was there or not and was he lying. What is that about, anyway? How do we stand around and let the media do this any more, how we going to cover a brother's back when they try to destroy him?

I am pissed!

SLDC said...

Barack'speech was fantastic. I hope it puts an end to the whole Reverend Wright controversy that was blown out of proportion by Fake Noise. I read the entire transcript while listening to it and I have to say that Barack is amazing. So eloquent and smart and "bridge-building". He is the only solution to heal America's ills.

SouthernGirl2 said...

Barack's speech moved me to tears! It was awesome! So very powerful! I agree with MacDaddy, this was his 3am phone call & he handled the situation in an outstanding manner!

Love Barack!

Anonymous said...

Regardless of all the fucking yadda-yadda about his pastor's "controversial" statements, I thought it was a good show of balls to stand by his pastor personally.

Made me hopeful that he won't take any fucking shit from right-wing loonies when they try to fuck with him, and won't let them define the rhetorical framework in which he is viewed.

Anonymous said...

It was an amazing speech! I hope your cynicism continues to lift, FN!!! It's a heavy load, I know. :)

Anonymous said...

Hey Christopher it appears that Obama was listening to you. He kind of brought it today.

Like Field I am not drinking the O-aide either but I respect what he did today though he denounced his pastors politics which I find no fault in. I was the guy who took folks on for comparing the O man to King and that he was going to solve all our ills, Field posted my blog on it and youall have ignored me ever since.

Kellybelle I am still singing the same song about independent working class politics by the way which is why I can't even get into an argument with you all on this site and I can't get like whatshisname the N man that begs to get dissed.

Good informative blog Field. Oh if youall are interested in a serious blog from a white progressive guys perspective(no not me). The article is entitled Jeremiah Wright, Barack Obama and the unacceptability of truth" its on www.counterpunch.org You all have got to check it out he lays it out and really goes after narrow minded whites and their willful attempts to overlook black reality.

Oh brother Mac what up man the Minnesota cold is getting to you if you don't think Buchanan and the like don't have an answer to this speech. Buchanan started in on CNN right after the speech, check it out I am sure they will replay his remarks.

Never forget that they aren't just throwing rocks at Obama but this is an attack on black folks as well.

DebC said...

Field, right after listening to the speech this morning, I posted this:
---------------------------
I listened intently to Sen. Obama's speech this morning. And it was a great speech. He emerged from behind the curtain, a "whole man," as my grandmother used to say, finally expressing what I believe were HIS complete views on race.

He stood up like that whole man and SAID, "I cannot disown this man...." though he's, in his words, "already condemned in unequivocal terms the statements of Rev. Wright that have caused such controversy and in some cases, pain." (Okay, he's still got some truth to face!) He stood up like that whole man and SAID, "Did I know him to be an occasionally fierce critic of American foreign and domestic policy? Of course." "Did I ever hear him make remarks that could be considered controversial while I sat in the church? Yes." "Did I strongly disagree with many of his political views? Absolutely, just as I'm sure many of you have heard remarks from your pastors, priests or rabbis with which you've strongly disagreed." (Okay, he could have left that last part off, no need to qualify his disagreement by pairing it with that of others.). My point is - at least he stood up for a change.

That one paragraph above was all I expected from this Black man running for president confronted with a media-fueled firestorm such as this. And had I heard it when he wrote "On My Faith and My Church." for The Huffington Post, my expectations would have been met. But he did the knee-jerk thing - first (no doubt on the advice of those "handlers" of his), denouncing the words of his mentor and denying he ever even heard him say anything like that.

That didn't sit well with me at all for a couple reasons. First of all, anybody with a few firing brain cells could figure out he'd lied about never hearing Rev. Wright's statements over the 20+ years he's sat in that church. And secondly, but most important for me, "denouncing" and distancing himself from somebody who'd had his back far longer than those "alleged kingmakers" he calls advisors for the sake of making history was unconscionable to me. It had me thinking, "Shit, if he'll do that to his mentor, what about me?"

And what do I think now? The jury's still out on that one, mainly because he was "forced" to do the right thing. I know, I know - he did the right thing regarding his pastor! But would he have? He's been campaigning for a little over a year and it sure didn't look like he would have.

If this had not become an issue, would he have continued his "change-train" without ever addressing the fundamental issue driving the inequity in this country? Was he planning to be the "undercover brotha," stealthily pulling the elephant out of the corner after he'd gotten the nomination, the seat? And if that was the plan, that ain't too cool either because plenty white folks would have felt bamboozled for sure - and rightfully so. I don't care how much they protest, many of them would not have been supporting him so vociferously had he come out at the bell with this speech. What happened to John Edwards is evidence of that.

I can't say for sure how this will all play out or how I will respond in November (I'm a "hold the feet to the fire kind of girl"). But this much I know is true, he has done today what needed to be done as a Black man running for president in my book - he stood up. Granted it was grudgingly, but he stood up. This speech allows him to really become the agent of "Change We Can Believe In." I hope he is being honest. And if he isn't? Well, at least he's raised the bar - a little, making race a topic his opponents will have to address.

Oh, and Rev. Wright, you can safely roll on out from under that bus now.
---------------------------------
Like you, today he had me at least entertaining the thought about November.

SagaciousHillbilly said...

I believe the O Man's speech today was the greatest speech/essay/lesson ever given on the topic of race in America.
I'm going to be proud to vote for Obama.

Mac Daddy Tribute Blog said...

Mellaneous:

I'm not thinking about that immigrant hater Buchanon. Everybody knows he knocks Obama because he wants Hillary to get the democratic nomination. After all, that's the only way Republicans can win. Buchannon and those Republican thugs got all kinds of corrupt and sexual shit on Hillary and Bill that they're saving for the general election.

On the other hand, a few videos on Rev. Wright is all they got.

BTW: Pat's sister-- Bay Buchanon-- was all over CNN praising Obama's speech and calling him "smart" and "courageous." I think that white woman got a jones for the brota myself. Peace.

Anonymous said...

I respect that you're still resisting Obamaholism, Field...that you have his back is enough for most of us...but if any video DOES surface of him walking across water, I think we all fully expect you to finally drink some O-ade, regardless of what flavors are still available.

;-)

rikyrah said...

FN,

You're making me nervous now. Um, how do I say this?

I like that you haven't gulped the Kool-Aid. I really appreciate it. Where else will we get that ' calm down, Obamaholics' soothing voice in the blogosphere.

So, I'm going to take that ingredient list away from you. You're like the bartender at the Obamaholic Watering hole, making sure we don't drink too much, and if we do, you take the keys of our cars away from us and call us the cab.

So, if you don't mind, FN. Stay behind the bar. We need you there.

rikyrah said...

These are the lines that made me cry.

He contains within him the contradictions – the good and the bad – of the community that he has served diligently for so many years.

I can no more disown him than I can disown the black community.


I realize that I didn't need anything else from the speech than this.

Liz Dwyer said...

Why do you keep torturing yourself, Field? You're so close to sipping the aid. Just taste it already! I'm sure Michelle will even put an extra cup of sugar in for you if you've got a sweet tooth.

That was quite a speech. It was so great that my mom called me up after watching it. She told me she cried and started saying she might forget about how much she hates abortion and might vote for a democrat (Obama) for the first time in at least 20 years.

I also wish I could've been a fly on the wall when Hillary watches it, since she claims she hadn't yet. And I wonder when the good Reverend is going to surface. I'd love to know what he has to say about all the hype over his comments.

BTW, Keith Olbermann had me in stitches tonight over his threesome puppet theater. It was a classic. Poor Mrs. McSkeevey.

Anonymous said...

The speech demonstrated to me that Obama has the integrity to walk the walk. He said his campaign was about unity and he demonstrated today that he truly believes that. I was upset with him for denouncing Wright's comments, with which I agree, yet knew that it was what he had to do, and then started thinking, "but isn't that just the same as...politics as usual." He proved today that it was not. He is the best presidential candidate I've ever encountered and I don't think another like him will appear again in my lifetime.

Anonymous said...

Field,

I wish I could have ditched work just to stay home and watch the whole thing. I had to settle for the middle ten minutes, but I read the full transcript at work and he made me proud to be an American. Something I haven't been able to say in over eight years.

BTW, "O"-aid comes in many wonderful flavors, just like Baskin-Robbins. :)

Anonymous said...

Hannity/Holmes & Bill O'Reilly were arguing over who "broke the news" about Rev. Wright's sermons. Now, it seems that what they attmepted to do--H & O'Reilly--backfired. They wanted to project a divisive discourse and nail the O man on his association with Wright. Now, what has happened is that their actions--whomever was the first to call attention to the sermons--have propelled the "O" man in a favorable light, have given him the moniker of the new generation man, and have allowed--by their unwitting participancy--the nation to hear one of the greatest speeches of all times by a young AA man of great and wonderful promise. Kudos to Hannity&Homes OR O'Reilly. God doesn't like ugly.

Anonymous said...

I thought his speech was bullet-proof but I guess the devil can't help but to keep his hand on the trigger and keep firing. The only way you can be swayed into believing the anti-hype is if you didn't sit down and listen to his message yourself. Unfortunately, I have to allow myself to believe that many Americans probably did and do just that. Can we just throw the people who swim on the shallow side of the pool out of the water?

Anonymous said...

affrodite, I know what you're saying. I thought about O's speech through the day, how I've never seen anything like it, and wondered if, for too many people, it was like casting pearls before swine. If that's true it will totally break my heart.

momo said...

I think my mother was considering voting for McCain until she heard this speech. It spoke right to her heart, and she heard it.

grow up girl said...

I thought you would come around....come on in, the water's fine....

the poet Shazza said...

I don't think it was or is as GREAT as Martin Luther King Jr.'s “I Have A Dream” speech nor do I think it is the single most defining moment of his career. Obama's 2004 Speech at the Democratic National Convention still hails as his most Deeply Rooted Speech about America. With that said, I thought his speech, for me, was "conversational". The issues he spoke about were more of an "I Know This Already" and yet for WHITES it was an EYE OPENER or at least that is how it was reported. I just don't get it because what Obama detailed is so "obvious" and "common" knowledge.

I felt I was being lectured to, not in the sense of Obama’s delivery but in the tone and tenor of his presentation. I also felt that what Obama spoke about, many prominent Black and White intellectuals have spoken upon with more flair, substance and purpose but then again, we are talking about Obama running for President. If the FLAGS and the State of the Union setting wasn't framing Obama, I might have connected better, or even if the speech was set in a Convention Center or Stadium I could have been swept up in the message BUT this was political and part of a series of more speeches to come to influence Pennsylvania Voters. This is why it will never be the same caliber as a King speech.

There is an old saying, “Sometime God speaks through people like Angels”. Maybe this is Obama’s Angel moment.

Talking to my Political Analyst friends we came to the following conclusions:

1. For some it will be a talking point for the next few days

2. For others, it was like a University Lecture on Race in America

3. Some will pick the speech apart and become over analyze to be used against Obama later

4. Those that support Obama will fall into the glow of his words and presence

5. The Clintons will stay away from anything that might taint Obama's views on America's Social behavior thus giving him the edge to reach those Central Pa. voters who wouldn’t consider voting for him

Unknown said...

Field.. give it up..
Don't sip... DRINK..
this is the most important speech of this century..
it should instantly be required reading in schools...
not much over here about it on the news.. but i am not surprised..
have listened to the speech twice now.. going to listen again whilst in the bath and getting dressed for work..
am going to have a great day.. hope you do too..

Anonymous said...

sorry, this is off topic, but i couldn't find a place for general comments.
Field- great blog, but you are presenting Sarkozy's junior minister - Rama Yade - as a "field negro"?! A diversity candidate in a right-wing government led by a guy with a brutal anti-immigrant stance who is sometimes downright racist? You gotta be kidding. Please take her photo away or move it to the shameful place it deserves.

Anonymous said...

@Field:

"Today, finally, the "O" man became a "black" candidate."

Field, you'd come out of the closet, too, if they forced you, night and day, to look at those Rev. Wright video snippets, ad nauseam.

The ratings on all the Cable News channels must have hit an all-time low, as they forced viewers to watch the water-torture loops of Rev. Wright attacking America from his pulpit.

It doesn't matter that much of what he had to say is right on, or that others have said, and are saying, the same thing, it just that we have a black man saying it with impunity.

How uppity of him!

I haven't watched Cable News consistently since they started airing the videos, and I won't go back until they cease and desist this unfair, unbalanced, without a full context, attack on the Rev. Wright, and by extension, Barack Obama.

Hell, can't we get together and start our own Cable News channel? I'll buy stock in it to set it up.

That's the only way we can assure some measure of fairness and balance on subjects critical to the interests of blacks.

Anonymous said...

Welcome to the club, Field. Here's your Kool-Aid!

I'm thinking that even if the O-Man gets the nomination and goes down in the end (with an assist from the Borg Queen and her skirt-chasing hubby, no doubt), at least he will have gone down with his head held high, unlike the last couple of losers the Democrats nominated. As distressing as the thought of President McCain is, the Democrats will be stronger for it in the end.

Anonymous said...

@ Shonufded
"Hell, can't we get together and start our own Cable News channel? I'll buy stock in it to set it up.

That's the only way we can assure some measure of fairness and balance on subjects critical to the interests of blacks."

Listen, tell me how you would do it, how much it would cost, and I will buy in and commit to getting no less than 100 others in my community to buy in. We need a voice in the MMM. I'm standing by for your full proposal (ms_hgrits@yahoo.com).

AgentX said...

If anyone missed the speech, you can swing by the http://aaopinion.blogspot.com/
page where I posted it at the top. It'll be on the front page for awhile.

Anyway I loved the speech to some degree. But this is A-merry-kkka we're dealing with here- meaning that some people (like Luntz the asshole, like John McShame, like Pat Robertson) won't get it. Others did though, so if that's what Obama wants, then ok. If mending the divide by addressing solutions is the game he wants to play, the ok Obama, play that game. You might win with that hand. So we'll see...

Muze said...

i came over here just to see what you had to say. glad the field negro saw the good that i did. i'm glad he didn't throw the rev under the bus like some of the other candidates have done for anyone in their camp who said the wrong thing.

he's pulling you over...isn't he? LOL.

how you been field? hope all is well your way.

Anonymous said...

@shonfunded

we did that - BET. enough said...

Yvonne said...

Check it out, Obama is now losing. America is basically saying kiss my white @ss and here we are.

Still pissed!

Anonymous said...

First and foremost, I have so much respect for this man even more so after listening to his speech. His words of not disowning his pastor..PRICELESS..can't put a price on integrity. Definitely his shining moment. I hope he gets the nomination and even if he doesn't..he is a shining star in my book. OBAMA 08.

Anonymous said...

How are they getting these tapes?
Who is giving these tapes to the media?

Anonymous said...

No major speech on race with all the things whites have said about blacks during this campaign, but ONE black man says something to offend some Red Legs and now it’s a major speech on race. Huh? So it was not needed BEFORE now…..why? I know why….white people got offended, if anyone says it’s not……. it’s a damn lie.

We can hear white pundits daily talk about Obama not having racial baggage like “us”……no race speech . Bill Bennett can say Obama can teach blacks how to act…no race speech…Bill O. can say he won’t go on a lynching party UNLESS there’s evidence (referring to Michelle)…no race speech.

His attempt to be even handed with White ills….and black ills..did not sit well with me.

His idea the Rev. Wright is in some kind of time capsule in 1965 made me cringe? Did we not see Katrina, did when not see Jena, did we not see James Byrd, did we not see Amadou Diallo, did we not see a 20 year-old Black woman Tortured? Yusef Hawkins is the Emmett Till of MY generation and no it's not some left over anger from the 1960's...I wasn't born!

I could go on, but I won’t. THIS is MY LIFETIME.....It is voices like Wright’s who forced change in America, not his lack of one.

No Sir Rev. Wright is NOT in a time capsule, he’s WRIGHT on TIME.

I am black and free. What does that mean? No... what does it really mean? It means I stand on my own even when others try to cut me off at the legs. I can only stomach so much of “this is what he HAS to do to become President”. I would rather see a black man free and un-bought than to see a black President, I would rather see a black man free to think, than to see a black President. I would rather see a black man lose on his OWN terms, than to watch him appease white supremacy. The issue isn’t trying to divide the black vote; it’s trying to capture the white vote in away that is problematic for me. Wright is the one who is the REAL victim in this. His life has been reduced to cut and paste. It’s is Obama decision that has impacted Wright’s life, not the other way around.

One can not be a willing participate in double “standardness” and than say its unfair. To destroy double standards, you can’t participate in them.
If one is comparing Wright and his white grandmother racist views it is uneven. Wright is one of the premiere intellectual minds. You can’t have liberation Gospel, without liberation language. I am not sure I want millions of black children watching a black man sign up to be abused by white supremacy and participate in the double standards. We need to remember liberation is not for the individual, it’s for the collective. We also need to not liberation is the one thing that is NOT “By any means necessary”. Liberation has to travel on the train of FREEDOM, not caboose of accommodation.

Some of his speech is just plain wrong. Validating white working class racist feelings does not sit well with me, you know the Archie Bunkers of the world. Black people have NOT taken anything from anybody, anytime, anywhere, so no their feelings about affirmative action are NOT valid when the white woman (Edith Bunker) they’re sleeping next to have benefited from more than anyone.

There is only so much “he has to do” that I can take. I have moved the line sooooo far back in his favor my back is against the wall. Now if it comes down to me choosing my unapologetically African beliefs or Obama. I’ll choose mine every time.


If you got to do all this crap to get the job, I hate to see what the Hell you got to do to keep it!

Anonymous said...

Shelby hits the mark here, but most of you will never admit it (in public):


The Obama Bargain
By SHELBY STEELE
March 18, 2008

Geraldine Ferraro may have had sinister motives when she said that Barack Obama would not be "in his position" as a frontrunner but for his race. Possibly she was acting as Hillary Clinton's surrogate. Or maybe she was simply befuddled by this new reality -- in which blackness could constitute a political advantage.


But whatever her motives, she was right: "If Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position." Barack Obama is, of course, a very talented politician with a first-rate political organization at his back. But it does not detract from his merit to say that his race is also a large part of his prominence. And it is undeniable that something extremely powerful in the body politic, a force quite apart from the man himself, has pulled Obama forward. This force is about race and nothing else.

The novelty of Barack Obama is more his cross-racial appeal than his talent. Jesse Jackson displayed considerable political talent in his presidential runs back in the 1980s. But there was a distinct limit to his white support. Mr. Obama's broad appeal to whites makes him the first plausible black presidential candidate in American history. And it was Mr. Obama's genius to understand this. Though he likes to claim that his race was a liability to be overcome, he also surely knew that his race could give him just the edge he needed -- an edge that would never be available to a white, not even a white woman.

How to turn one's blackness to advantage?

The answer is that one "bargains." Bargaining is a mask that blacks can wear in the American mainstream, one that enables them to put whites at their ease. This mask diffuses the anxiety that goes along with being white in a multiracial society. Bargainers make the subliminal promise to whites not to shame them with America's history of racism, on the condition that they will not hold the bargainer's race against him. And whites love this bargain -- and feel affection for the bargainer -- because it gives them racial innocence in a society where whites live under constant threat of being stigmatized as racist. So the bargainer presents himself as an opportunity for whites to experience racial innocence.

This is how Mr. Obama has turned his blackness into his great political advantage, and also into a kind of personal charisma. Bargainers are conduits of white innocence, and they are as popular as the need for white innocence is strong. Mr. Obama's extraordinary dash to the forefront of American politics is less a measure of the man than of the hunger in white America for racial innocence.

His actual policy positions are little more than Democratic Party boilerplate and hardly a tick different from Hillary's positions. He espouses no galvanizing political idea. He is unable to say what he means by "change" or "hope" or "the future." And he has failed to say how he would actually be a "unifier." By the evidence of his slight political record (130 "present" votes in the Illinois state legislature, little achievement in the U.S. Senate) Barack Obama stacks up as something of a mediocrity. None of this matters much.

Race helps Mr. Obama in another way -- it lifts his political campaign to the level of allegory, making it the stuff of a far higher drama than budget deficits and education reform. His dark skin, with its powerful evocations of America's tortured racial past, frames the political contest as a morality play. Will his victory mean America's redemption from its racist past? Will his defeat show an America morally unevolved? Is his campaign a story of black overcoming, an echo of the civil rights movement? Or is it a passing-of-the-torch story, of one generation displacing another?

Because he is black, there is a sense that profound questions stand to be resolved in the unfolding of his political destiny. And, as the Clintons have discovered, it is hard in the real world to run against a candidate of destiny. For many Americans -- black and white -- Barack Obama is simply too good (and too rare) an opportunity to pass up. For whites, here is the opportunity to document their deliverance from the shames of their forbearers. And for blacks, here is the chance to document the end of inferiority. So the Clintons have found themselves running more against America's very highest possibilities than against a man. And the press, normally happy to dispel every political pretension, has all but quivered before Mr. Obama. They, too, have feared being on the wrong side of destiny.

And yet, in the end, Barack Obama's candidacy is not qualitatively different from Al Sharpton's or Jesse Jackson's. Like these more irascible of his forbearers, Mr. Obama's run at the presidency is based more on the manipulation of white guilt than on substance. Messrs. Sharpton and Jackson were "challengers," not bargainers. They intimidated whites and demanded, in the name of historical justice, that they be brought forward. Mr. Obama flatters whites, grants them racial innocence, and hopes to ascend on the back of their gratitude. Two sides of the same coin.

But bargainers have an Achilles heel. They succeed as conduits of white innocence only as long as they are largely invisible as complex human beings. They hope to become icons that can be identified with rather than seen, and their individual complexity gets in the way of this. So bargainers are always laboring to stay invisible. (We don't know the real politics or convictions of Tiger Woods or Michael Jordan or Oprah Winfrey, bargainers all.) Mr. Obama has said of himself, "I serve as a blank screen on which people of vastly different political stripes project their own views . . ." And so, human visibility is Mr. Obama's Achilles heel. If we see the real man, his contradictions and bents of character, he will be ruined as an icon, as a "blank screen."

Thus, nothing could be more dangerous to Mr. Obama's political aspirations than the revelation that he, the son of a white woman, sat Sunday after Sunday -- for 20 years -- in an Afrocentric, black nationalist church in which his own mother, not to mention other whites, could never feel comfortable. His pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, is a challenger who goes far past Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson in his anti-American outrage ("God damn America").

How does one "transcend" race in this church? The fact is that Barack Obama has fellow-traveled with a hate-filled, anti-American black nationalism all his adult life, failing to stand and challenge an ideology that would have no place for his own mother. And what portent of presidential judgment is it to have exposed his two daughters for their entire lives to what is, at the very least, a subtext of anti-white vitriol?

What could he have been thinking? Of course he wasn't thinking. He was driven by insecurity, by a need to "be black" despite his biracial background. And so fellow-traveling with a little race hatred seemed a small price to pay for a more secure racial identity. And anyway, wasn't this hatred more rhetorical than real?

But now the floodlight of a presidential campaign has trained on this usually hidden corner of contemporary black life: a mindless indulgence in a rhetorical anti-Americanism as a way of bonding and of asserting one's blackness. Yet Jeremiah Wright, splashed across America's television screens, has shown us that there is no real difference between rhetorical hatred and real hatred.

No matter his ultimate political fate, there is already enough pathos in Barack Obama to make him a cautionary tale. His public persona thrives on a manipulation of whites (bargaining), and his private sense of racial identity demands both self-betrayal and duplicity. His is the story of a man who flew so high, yet neglected to become himself.

Mr. Steele, a research fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution and the author of "A Bound Man: Why We Are Excited About Obama and Why He Can't Win" (Free Press, 2007).

Some of you O-people need to wake up--the speech was ill-advised as it could do just as much to hurt him as to help in the era of the soundbite. Sounded like he was reading from a script that he did not write.

Anonymous said...

I'm sorry but Barak is done. He has plummeted in the polls. It's over.

This is depressing. My parents lived through the assassination of King. Now I've lived through the media assassination of Barak. I knew this was going to happen. I held off my support until after he won Maine. Well after SuperTuesday.

White folks we're searching for something. So, it was bound to happen. They couldn't find anything on him or his wife. So, they looked at his associations. God, aren't we all guilty by association. Rev. Wright makes me ill. I'm sorry but this dinosaur should have kept his mouth shut. And yes, I agree with some of what he says but some of this stuff is just too extreme and crazy. He is a disgrace!

Right now I really hate my country. I hate my government. I COMPLETELY HATE the media. I absolutely refuse to vote in this election. They say ignorance is bliss. I'm beginning to think it's true. I really wish I'd never paid attention to the elections. It was always so easy to show up at the polls, pull a lever, and go home. Barely concious of my choice's voting record or legislative accomplishments. But always supportive of my party. A party in which I will NEVER have an allegiance to again. I'm disgusted that black leadership has so aligned itself with the democratic party. I'm disgusted that we blacks don't really have a lot of options. Maybe I should move out of this country. I really hate it here.

This white racist powers structure that preaches equality is such bullshit. It's equality for them. Everybody else gets token crumbs. This is such bullshit!

Admiral Komack said...

Steele is hatin'.
Poor baby.

Anonymous said...

Ok, let's concede that perhaps Shelby Steele has some really valid points. What was Obama supposed to do? Keep debating Hillary and keep letting other people dictate to him what he should have done? It's high time he started talking about who he is and what he truly stands for, and the speech on race was the start of that.

And he has other speeches to make on other topics that will, I hope, show what he plans to bring to the table, because the time has come to start getting ready to take on McCain and stop having in-party fighting.

If yesterday's speech makes him plummet in the polls long-term and if it sabotages his aspirations for the oval office, well, that says a lot about America, doesn't it? And it will say a lot about whether whites have any real desire to move forward on issues of race, won't it?

We have yet to see the end of this story, and it's still to early to sound a death knell for Obama OR Clinton. What Obama said wasn't canned...it sounded like him...and that might help him or hurt him...but it was necessary.

Anonymous said...

Obama wrote the speech all by himself, anon, and why the hell did you post an article by self hating house negroes like Shelby steele?

Anonymous said...

I have a big contingent of old friends (most of them White) from my college days back in the 70's who are still in Pennsylvania. Most of them were Hillary supporters prior to this week. But now when I talk to them, they're moving into the Obama camp. Many are even donating. The speech is one factor.

But what's interesting, is that a lot of them are favoring Obama due to the unbelievable immaturity of the Hillary supporters. A lot of the Hillary people were just turning red with the hate they were spewing last night, as though they were angered that someone could give such a sensible speech on a topic like this. And these erstwhile Hillary supporters now cannot back a candidate whose supporters are so full of hate.

Pennsylvania is probably a Hillary state due to the demographics there and the fact that it's a closed primary, but Obama will still pick up a healthy share of delegates, and he's on the fast track to the nomination. He's just too far ahead, and Hillary is only ruining the Democratic Party by staying in this thing like this.

In fact, it's become clear that Hillary wants John McCain to win. Her political career is over now, especially with about a half-dozen lawsuits from her own ex-fundraisers coming up-- by Peter Paul, and also the fiasco with Norman Hsu and others. But she's frustrated and blames Obama for her travails, so she wants to take the Democratic Party down with her. Sad.

What's even worse, is that some Hillary Clinton staffer got busted recently for collaborating with a staffer from Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell's office-- Rendell being a big Hillary supporter-- to try to rig the voting machines in Pennsylvania, in an attempt to reduce the numbers of Obama's advantage there!!! WTF??

Any disenfranchisement or vote-rigging BS, like the vote-machine rigging that showed Obama with zero votes in Harlem, is going to result in massive general strikes in Pennsylvania and quite possibly even riots.

Oh, and it'll also result in Rendell's people, and eventually Rendell himself, getting their sorry asses thrown into prison. Good riddance. And Rendell getting a stick up his ass from his PO'd cellmate due to this vote-rigging in Pennsylvania, will be quite richly deserved. When Rendell goes to Hell for the way he has been flouting democracy, just like Hillary Clinton and Bill Clinton themselves, they'll all finally realize that their love of power at the expense of the people has meant their eternal doom for it.

Anonymous said...

BTW, you people hating on Obama here or saying he's "finished," and citing Shelby Steele of all people, who has always been an Obama-hater-- WTF???

Of course Obama's behind in PA, it's a Hillary state due to the demographics and we've long known that.

And saying he "should have given the speech earlier"? Again-- WTF??? Will anything please you people? The guy was a top grad at Harvard Law School, busted his tail pounding the pavement for Blacks and underprivileged people in Chicago for years, has taken on the Clinton machine and beaten it-- and all you can do is get all mad about how he should have done this and that even earlier? That's just lame. Really freakin' lame. Obama can't do everything yesterday, he has to respond to issues as they come up.

And as for Whites "using this as an excuse to hate a Black candidate," most of my White friends in Pennsylvania have now been tilting in favor of Obama with this speech. Many of them once staunch Hillary supporters.

Obama is way, way ahead in the pledged delegates and the popular vote, and while he'll probably be behind in Pennsylvania, he'll pick up lots of votes and delegates. At the end of the day, the superdelegates are not going to risk another 1968, even the destruction of the Democratic Party, and go against the will of the voters in the Democratic Party. They're going to support whoever's ahead in the pledged delegates. Just keep your cool and stay in the fight.

Anonymous said...

Casey, I think you're right that Clinton wants McCain to win, but I don't think it's b/c she feels her presidential aspirations are over and done with. She wants him to win, be a lousy one-term president, and be the savior to come back and rescue the Democrats in 2012.

Anonymous said...

Some strategies now for us foot soldiers to help the Obama campaign, as compiled by my friend, especially if you live in Pennsylvania, Indiana, North Carolina, Kentucky, Oregon or any other of the upcoming states:

1. Call into radio shows, write pro-Obama letters to the editor, and reach other mainstream media channels (especially local TV interviews if you can get them) to show your support for Obama. This helps to foster some "buzz" in favor of Obama, and do it in a public way.

2. Using these same media channels, put the pressure on Hillary Clinton. Bring up her many fundraising scandals with e.g. Peter Paul (whose lawsuit will be arriving in October against Hillary), Marc and Denise Rich (Marc Rich being pardoned by the Clintons), Norman Hsu (who jumped bail rather than face prosecution for his crimes) and others. Mention the Clintons' own shady dealings with people like Frank Giustra and the uranium dealers from Kazakhstan.

Most importantly, demand release of the Clinton Foundation papers, the Clinton tax returns and otherwise. Be tough and hit them with this every day.

2. Donate to the Obama campaign.
http://tinyurl.com/2hndny

3. Make calls, knock on doors, distribute literature in Pennsylvania, Indiana, North Carolina, Kentucky, Oregon and other states. Obama will probably lose some of the states ahead due to the demographics, but that's no problem-- it's a race for delegates, and that's where we need to maintain our focus.

4. Register Black voters.

5. Volunteer on poll day to be a monitor-- especially important, since there are reports that the Hillary Clinton and Ed Rendell staffers have been busted trying to rig voting machines in Pennsylvania-- and encourage people to vote.

6. Volunteer to help bring African-American voters to the polls.

This has to be a full-on effort, and since Hillary is still continuing her idiotic campaign probably into June, despite the fact that it's basically over, we need to run up the delegate count as much as possible.

The Hillary Clinton camp thinks that we African-Americans are just a bunch of maggots, to be insulted and ignored in the belief that we're too dumb to see what they're doing. Well, then we maggots need to devour Hillary Clinton, Bill Clinton and Ed Rendell from head to toe. We need to show them our ferocity. Work with your local media and let's get this done.

Anonymous said...

I did something so crazy yesterday after hearing that speech. I bought Obama's book, The Audacity of Hope! I wanted read exactly what he wrote about his political career and hopes and you know what, if more people read it (like Shelby, for instance) then maybe they would know what the heck they're talking about when it comes to Obama.

Then again, maybe lots of people have read and are willfully misrepresenting things. .... nah, people don't do that.

He staunchly claims the virtues of the Democratic Party while calling out the same old, same old party machine way of doing "business". He readily admits to being a "freak", an "outlier" in his political career. He firmly puts forward the fact that our system has degenerated to the sound bite and bitter, bitter fighting and grudge matches wherein no real work gets done on behalf of the many struggling people who really want so very little from our government.

He claims common sense as his guide in life and reflection on words and acts, not the safest high ground. He loves the contest and the acclaim, and doesn't claim any false humility but does point out that fewer good people are willing to brave this current climate in order to serve the public.

Yes, Mrs. Clinton and her husband are fighters and yes, that is one of many reasons that her supporters rally to her. They know that the way things stand today, only a fighter can still stand when the bell rings. But here's the thing. She's a DIRTY fighter and she's only going to continue the way things are.

That's why she's got Murtha's endorsement. Period. He's one of the champions of pork and whatever he may say about the the war, it pales next to the fact that it doesn't serve him or his district in the least if he's held to ethical standards or transparency.

Just keep writing your own representatives, local, state, national and making your wishes clear. Just keep writing your local paper. Just keep contributing what little you're able to spare, in terms of time and energy, if not money. It's the ONLY way to make any sort of difference at all.

west coast story said...

I was off site yesterday in an all day meeting with engineers. Immersed in total boredom, I found a link to Obama's speech on my PDA and read it during the meeting. I fought tears the whole time. I really never thought I'd live to see someone like Obama. It validates my initial feelings of total respect and admiration for him that I had when I finished reading his first autobiography last summer. This guy is the real deal. I want him to win the nomiation and the presidency but even if he doesn't, we have a real leader here. Better yet, a real leader who can motivate people to roll up their sleeves and get to work. This is the new direction for black folks I have been praying for.

west coast story said...

Why are you worrying about the words of a self-hating Negro like Shelby Steele? Steele is an Uncle Tom, a phrase nearly absent from my vocabulary. He hates his black skin and he is the right wing version of all the old-school lefties (my generation, sadly) who refuse to support Barack because in Barack, they see what is missing in themselves. This isn't about disagreeing with Obama or believing he is unqualified, this is about protecting the status quo. These guys are afraid that an Obama presidency will make them irrelevant. One can only hope.

Mac Daddy Tribute Blog said...

Regarding Mr. Shelby Steele, here's a more or less verbatim telephone exchange between me and my very curious 12 year old nephew. He goes to a school for gifted kids in Atlanta. I live in Minneapolis.

"Uncle Mac, how come nobody say they got problems anymore? How come they just say 'I got issues'?

"Well, maybe they're trying to say that their problems are much tougher, or much deeper than people realize."

"Uncle Mac, my teacher gave me Mr. Obama's speech to read for homework. What are you reading?"

Well, I'm reading a blog called the field negro. I'm reading an article by a guy named Shelby Steele."

"Uncle Mac, do Mr. Steele have problems?"

"No, son. He has issues."

Anonymous said...

Deacon Blue,

Hillary Clinton's political career is finished and she knows it. The Peter Paul case is going to trial in October, and it's gonna be ugly like no other trial the Clintons have faced. She and Bill have all but bankrupted themselves with this campaign-- they've been able to raise money since their corporate donors are tapped out (and frankly, don't want to contribute to a loser, anyway) and she has little grass-roots support.

More importantly though, Hillary is gaining the enmity of the Democratic Establishment now since the race is effectively over, yet she futilely continues on-- to the point of severely damaging not only Obama, but the Democratic Party in general for November, with this divisiveness.

This in fact is one of the big ironies of Hillary's blunder here:

Speaking honestly, I'd say that even if Clinton were to have dropped out of the race back in February and thrown her support behind Obama, with a strong and unified party, I'd still peg Obama's chances against McCain as 50:50. McCain's tough, and of all the Republicans running, he's really the only one with some integrity, the only one many of my fellow Dems would vote for. (Back when Hillary was assumed to be inevitable, to their utmost dismay, McCain was their favored candidate.) The truth is, he has been a reformer, pushing against tobacco companies and corrupt campaign finance arrangements. And while he's crazy on the Iraq War, he's actually said publicly that Alito is too conservative, and he'd support more moderate SCOTUS justices.

Remember too, the US economy long-term is hosed, but there'll be a bump in August-December or so-- that's due to the delayed action of the Fed rate cuts.

So McCain would be tough, and again, the irony is that had Hillary shown some maturity and dropped out in February-- and if Obama were to lose anyway to McCain-- then yes, Hillary would have had a chance for a political return in 2012. Still a small chance, due to the snowballing scandals and essentially her bankrupt finances, but a chance nonetheless. The risk for her of course, is that 50:50 says Obama wins against McCain, but she'd at least gain the respect of her Party. (And even then-- by 2016, Hillary would be 68 or so, in at least generally good health, with US demographics tilting even more toward Democrats. So she herself could ride on Obama's coattails.)

But now, if Obama loses in November 2008, and especially if the Dems' overall performance is disappointing-- especially with this recession raging-- then Hillary will angrily be blamed for splitting the Party and running arrogant negative ads against Obama, which in turn has caused fissures in the Democratic coalition, alienated Black voters and raised questions among the public about Democrats in general.

Not only would Clinton be unable to run for POTUS in 2012-- she'll be facing primary challenges in New York, angry colleagues and general opprobrium from the media and other Democrats for being someone who sabotaged the Party, and gave national control to the Republicans, at one of the Dems' biggest opportunities in an entire generation.

Also, nobody would trust the Clinton machine or donate to it, considered its demonstrated failure in delivering the goods when Hillary had all the advantages.

The point is, Hillary has effectively destroyed her political career by alienating her fellow Democrats and showing her delusional obsession with power. If she'd stood aside when Obama took his big lead, she'd have gained the support of her fellow Democrats. Instead, she's continuing in this futile campaign and boosting the Republicans.

Hillary will probably win a few of the states ahead with their demographics, lose a few-- and we'll wind up in June right about where we are today, with Obama winning the nomination anyway, but exhausted and with less of a campaign war chest to take on McCain. And other Democrats will lose because the DNC was unable to organize behind their candidates for so many months while the GOP got a headstart.

So Hillary will rightfully be blamed for taking down the Dems in November, and the rage and resentment from her own party will destroy whatever's left of her shameful political career. If Obama were to win, then Hillary might be forgiven (although still facing her other problems). But if Obama were to lose, he'd still be viable for 2012, since Dems would realize that Hillary's delusional campaign would have damaged him and the part. IOW, the biggest loser if Obama loses in 2008, would be Hillary herself, and she's too blind to recognize that.

Anonymous said...

My post, should read-- Hillary's been unable to raise money, so much so that she's been dipping into her personal accounts.

Mr. Ellington said...

Field, I'm a huge fan of your blog...perhaps my reggae podcast dedicated to Brother Obama might inspire you some more...lol.

www.paparobbie.podomatic.com

LittleMissSolo said...

Field,

I feel like a proud parent reading this post! I'm sure this day can only be topped by my son crossing the stage at graduation :)

I'm pressed for time here so I cannot say all the things I'd like, but... that speech was undeniable. It made me proud, it made me emotional, and the revelation of this mans character is even more apparent.

I heart Obama.

And, whenever you're truly ready Field, I've got a Big Gulp in the fridge for you.

Anonymous said...

Ok West Coast. So Steele is "self-hating Negro like Shelby Steele? Steele is an Uncle Tom"...

If I would have posted the text of that op-ed piece under another writer, you would have read it with an open mind...there are vaild points there, please admit it...

Honestly, now have you even read the book he wrote about Obama and his candidiacy...be honest now :)

The Christian Progressive Liberal said...

And the weasel aka, Chris Wallace is still whining about why Obama won't show up on Fox News.

Spinning his pastor and his church are two good reasons, right there.

As for Juan Williams and Larry Elder - one's convicted and the other's a born liar. Pick one; the descriptions fit. And if I were Juan, I'd try to keep a low profile - there are some ladies at the Washington Post who still feel he didn't get what he deserved for subjecting them to his advances (in other words, SEXUAL HARASSMEN).

Woozie said...

Obamade comes in all flavors imaginable. Fruit pounch, iced tea, grape, orange, malt liquor, watermelon, chicken, o lawdy I think I creamed my pants.

west coast story said...

I have heard Shelby Steele speak on CSPAN numerous times including the three-hour In Depth show he taped. I've heard his commentary on other television stations and on talk radio. I am no fan and would not spend money on anything he wrote.

I don't have a problem with listening to peple I don't agree with. I even drop in on Fox just so I can know what lies they are telling. I listen to the conservative pundits on CSPAN regularly, and sometimes agree with them. But Steele really has issues. HIs whole Iconic Negro theory sounds like something he dreamed up while dead drunk and thought it still made sense after he got sober. As long as Oprah has been around, it's incredible that anyone could accuse her being a cypher. Her black woman identity is clearly established, and this comes from a black woman who is not a particular fan of her show but admires her accomplishements enormously.

Anonymous said...

Casey, your comprehensive analysis of Hillary Clinton almost has me believing her political hopes are dead. I wish I could believe it, but I'm fearing she will rise from the bathtub with the knife like Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction.

But for the moment, I'm with your reasoning. Maybe she could switch sides over the GOP...it wouldn't take much of a policy shift for her to do so. ;-) (Of course, preventing the GOP from killing her in a cigar filled backroom is another matter entirely.)

Anonymous said...

Anonymous said...
@shonfunded

"we did that - BET. enough said..."

It was called Black Entertainment Television, not Black News Television. Enough said.

Seriously, we need a station devoted to "hard news," and analysis, with a target audience other than blacks.

Target all groups: Whites, Latinos, and Asians.

Certainly, CNN, Fox News, MS-NBC, etc. have a stranglehold on the news business, and present a mainly white view of the news, and world events.

And they're not going to give up market share without a fight.

Yet, their viewership is made up all ethnicities, races, and nationalities around the world.

I know that for such an idea to have legs it has to address much of what went wrong with BET.

Can it be done? Sure, but it has to be approached with a "can-do" mentality, and optimism.

Anonymous said...

"Anonymous said...
Shelby hits the mark here, but most of you will never admit it (in public)..."

Crap is crap no matter how you try to dress it up, or perfume it.

Sorry, I won't waste my time refuting Shelby's conclusions. Some things are just self-evident.

Anonymous said...

If Obama had any balls he would eagerly participate on FOX news...what is he afraid of? Jesse, Al amd numerous AfAm commentators participate on the network...until then he will not have my vote...he wont need it anyway...balck floks are so beholden to the democratic party it is sickening...

Per Shelby's article, Oprah is a "bargainer" plain and simple...if it weren't for 35-54 year old white women, where would she be? I can't knock the hustle, but we must realize who pays her bills. She is very very lucky she is not caught in this Rev Wright/Wrong mess as she got involved in the Iowa caucus and made her exit after that.

Anonymous said...

I'm feeling a little ill.

I still have a problem with what's going on. There were SO MANY good things in Obama's speech. I don't want to detract from that. But I don't think criticism and praise should be mutually exclusive.

And that goes directly to my point about his speech. I don't think ANGER should be considered to the exclusion of hope and faith.

Obama seems to claim that the kind of criticism and anger showed by Wright is the kind that is DIVISIVE, PROBLEMATIC, maybe even NIHILISTIC.

What?

This is just how the historical memories of king and X were dichotomized...one as the "safe" unity guy, the other as some radical hateful black power guy. WHAT?

Anger is a USEFUL emotion. I still believe that is a necessary PART of healing, of seeking liberation and freedom.

Obama said -

"They weren’t simply a religious leader’s effort to speak out against perceived injustice. Instead, they expressed a profoundly distorted view of this country – a view that sees white racism as endemic, and that elevates what is wrong with America above all that we know is right with America; a view that sees the conflicts in the Middle East as rooted primarily in the actions of stalwart allies like Israel, instead of emanating from the perverse and hateful ideologies of radical Islam."

Wait what? Racism isn't endemic in america? I'm so SICK of people SILENCING the anger and the criticism and the SPEAKING OUT about what is wrong by claiming that it is not useful.

That's like telling a trauma victim to STOP telling their story, stop being upset about it, stop feeling hurt, even when they're secondarily retraumatized daily.

I think it's a mistake to think that the only way to build and grow and progress is to elevate the "good progress" over the "Bad"...we have too long of a history of talking about the "good progress" as a way of specifically ECLIPSING, SILENCING, RENDERING INVISIBLE the continued perpetuation of racism, white supremacy, and the other isms in all their many forms.

I don't think its nihilistic to speak LOUDLY about the shit that's going on and has BEEN going on and WENT on. I don't think its divisive to get FUCKING ANGRY about it and SPEAK on it. PREACH on it.

ok i'm stopping now...i can't be vaguely coherent or articulate when i'm getting heated.

here i think this is a really good article addressing some of what's been said/going on...

http://www.lipmagazine.org/~timwise/NationalLies.html

-Elizabeth

Anonymous said...

Does this mean that every community will now have a BHO Boulevard>>

field negro said...

"Does this mean that every community will now have a BHO Boulevard>>"

Only in the bad parts of town.

And elle you are right, the "O" man did write his speech all by his lonesome.

Whasuup "muze", nice to hear from you again. Yeah things have gotten a little deep around here since the last we communicated. These Nigras are ready to take it to the streets.

afrodite the speech was bullet proof but these clowns shoot for the head.

thank you rikyrah, I am trying to be the calming force, but I am running out of antidotes for that O-Aid :)

paparobbie, I am a huge fan of folks who comment on my blog.

west coast story said...

White women like Oprah so she's suspect? this is the same BS negroes said about Obama. Is a black person only valid if they have a mostly black following? How would that work when blacks are only 12% of the population? That's just the victime talking right there. someone tell what black, anger has bought black folks in the last 20 years. Anyone. Most of the people buying gangster rap are white kids. I don't hear anyone calling out rappers on the status of their ghetto passess.

Ann Brock said...

@anonymous 6:40 Why should Obama please those on Fox News? We already know what they are about. He have showed them they can kiss his tan A%%. He will not disown his pastor for that job. That in it self says a lot.

Anonymous said...

Update for you field.

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/longisland/ny-liwhit0320,0,137008.story

Anonymous said...

I thought this speech was inspirational and while I still need to hear more, like who will be in his cabinet, for example, I think the man showed an ability to react diplomatically yet maintaining all integrity. He spoke to a depth of personal relationships and to a possibility of reconciliation. To me that reveals some more of the substance I've been looking for. I was impressed.

I'm a philly native so I have to ask - what was the scene like yesterday?

Anonymous said...

Wow Field the folks on this comment page are downright eloquent. Especially deb, befree and Elizabeth well put you all very well put. Field you have some extremely insightful folks on this thing people are talking about Obama being eloquent but you guys are something else.I think we could form a party and fight for what we really want.(lol)

I was wondering why nobody has taken on Earl Ofari Hutchinson for his foot shuffling routine on FOX. He is a joke. I don't know what he supports I think he opposed Obama just to get on TV. Now I don't drink the O-aide either but I will defend my brothers right to run like anybody else with the same standards as anyone.

And what's up with the political analyst self acclaimed woman on CNN I can't think of her name but Field she deserves a House Negro award. You know the one little curly haired woman who is obviously half white and half black and doesn't seem to be too proud of one the halves.

Anonymous said...

I hope I'm not out of line here, but I have to vent.

Maybe it's the fighter in me saying this, but I want blood. I really want to get back at these people who are continually going after Obama. The media. The A-list bloggers. Anyone perpetrating the hate.

If the nomination is taken from Obama, then it's time to leave the knuckle draggers in the DNC behind and form our own third party of inclusion. AND we have to convince Obama to leave the Democratic party. If those idiots support Hillary and her bullshit campaign tactics, then they don't support the party's ideals that drew all of us in in the first place.

I've talked to a number of people in and out of work and we're pissed off that the media is trying to hijack the election. I hate it even more that the white people I know will never vote for Obama, thanks to watching Rev. Wright every half hour on the hour on all news channels (and even fucking Entertainment Tonight)

I don't know how y'all are feeling, but I really do want to point the finger at these people and say "God damn you" because they are taking a good man down for things he never said or believed.

Anonymous said...

Earl Ofari Hutchison? (giggles)

Oh yes, the guy who said Geri was right. I remember laughing at his last HuffPo post.

DebC said...

mellaneous...thanks! e

lizabeth, here's one of Tim Wise's sites with more essays if you want to read more: http://www.timwise.org/

Anonymous said...

Good evening everyone, I'm recovering from my O-Aid hangover. I thought I was still in my buzz when I saw the quote from my previous post on the side bar - Thanks for that Field! That speech put me over the top. It was wonderful. I am so glad, that Barack finally 'took it to them'.

After watching the Jeremiah Wright clips played over and over throughout the weekend, I couldn't imagine how O could recover. I watched the speech at work, and after it was over, I was really speechless for a good 5 minutes, just really taking it all in. Fast forward 24 hours and there are still no words I can string together to express how thoroughly he impressed me, and made me even more proud that I voted for him.

However, just as that weird moment of sobriety and reality hits me right around the last swallow in a good bottle of white rum, I remember where I live. I remember this electorate and I remember that because Obama has finally and successfully been put out there as 'the Black candidate', and the choice of electing whom I think is easily the most prolific, articulate (YES articulate) and brilliant politicican ever, is left at the feet of an electorate that is used to being fed 15 second sound bites sans context from a ridiculously biased MSM, its hard to have faith.

I'm reminded, sadly, of why my father calls presidential elections in particular, democracy in theory, and fear in practice. Damn.

So I'm with you Field on not believing he can win the general. After watching that speech and really believing that no one could argue against it but a Grand Wizard, I be damned if 10 minutes later, the sheets didn't come out.

It's alright though, I'm still proud of him. And I'll keep sipping on that O-Aid down to the last swallow in the bottle. And another thing Field, I'll let you make it with your choice in flavor, I know West Indians like orange!

Francis Holland said...

I think it's fair to say, as a matter of historic fact, that no Black man in American history has ever told so many white people so much truth at one time.

Because, when was the last time that all of white America stood still to find out what ANY Black man was going to say on this subject?

Oh, you can point to Colin Powell's infamous speech on Iraq, where he showed the bunkers from which Sadaam Hussein had nuclear bombs pointed at your local WalMart store, but every supposed "fact" in that speech has since been disproved.

No, Barack Obama, without a doubt, achieved an historical feat by compelling all of white America to listen to this, link to the entire speech, show it over and over again on television, and CONSIDER it as a group.

Ironically, in their efforts to discredit Obama, white color-aroused extremists are compelled to bring in and publicize the words of even more radical Black men, like Pastor Wright and Malcolm X, trying desperately to conflate these men but re-publishing their views - over and over again - in the process.

Black America - our ministers and musicians and voterss - have NEVER gotten so much attention in a presidential election, ever!

Anonymous said...

i, who is not an american are moved by his speech.

brilliant!! eat dust hillary...

Anonymous said...

This little old white Florida woman would have refused to vote for Senator Obama had he disowned his pastor. This country will not heal until we face racism head on and thank goodness one person seems willing to help us do just that! What a profoundly moving speech from the right person at the right time!

Say good bye Hillary! You are the voice of the past.

nyc/caribbean ragazza said...

Now that Florida and Michigan are not going to hold primaries again, it's going to get very, very ugly.

Hillary did not deny that her campaign has sent DVDs of Rev. Wright to superdelegates. She is trying to damage Obama so the delegates will pick her as the nominee. It's the only way she can "win".

sigh.

rikyrah said...

mellaneous said...

And what's up with the political analyst self acclaimed woman on CNN I can't think of her name but Field she deserves a House Negro award. You know the one little curly haired woman who is obviously half white and half black and doesn't seem to be too proud of one the halves.


LOL

Her name is Amy Holmes, and she's already been House Negro on the sidebar. She hasn't escaped FN's sights.



Thanks for noticing the Handkerchief on Earl Ofari Hutchinson....he tried to hide it, but it's become more obvious with every passing day.

Anonymous said...

Uh... "O" is still 1/2 white . Ack and get over it!