Waxing Politic

Are Geraldine Ferraro's Comments Racist?

2008-03-14T01:03:00.013-05:00

When politicians, celebrities, pundits and others make public statements that are deemed by the media to be controversial or outrageous, my first reaction tends to be to not jump to conclusions until I hear the whole story. It's unwise to rush to judgment based on just a snippet of what was said. It's so easy misrepresent someone's intent when you don't have the whole story. Of course, politicians, their supporters and talking heads often jump on any tidbit from a speech, and intentionally blow it out of proportion when it suits their own ends, with no regard to the context. We've had far too much of that already, in this election cycle. Here's what Ms. Ferraro said:

"If Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position. And if he was a woman (of any color) he would not be in this position. He happens to be very lucky to be who he is. And the country is caught up in the concept."

I first heard the statement quoted by a reporter on a cable TV news channel. It made me cringe momentarily. Then confusion set in as I tried to make sense of her comments. What did Ms. Ferraro really mean by those remarks? After all, this is an intelligent woman, a former Prosecutor, Congresswoman, and a Democratic Vice Presidential candidate in 1984. On face value, it seemed to me to be totally ridiculous, but I decided to reserve judgment. I needed to learn more about Ms. Geraldine Ferraro and I would start with Goggle.com. One of the things I came across which though quite interesting, I only partially agree with, is this "Special Comment" by MSNBC's Keith Olbermann:

Keith Olbermann on Geraldine Ferraro's Comments

I could find no public information from Ferraro's history that would suggest an attitude of racial bias. In addition, since this uproar started, no one who claims to know her or to have worked with her, has had anything but positive things to say about her as a person. The one thing I found which some suggest reflects a pattern of racial bias on the part of Ms. Ferraro, is the fact that she made similar remarks in 1988 when Jesse Jackson ran for President. Ferraro said at the time;

"...if Jesse Jackson were not black, he wouldn't be in the race."

I have to say that I was offended by Ms. Ferraro's comments. However, I disagree with those who have said, based only on these two instances, that she is a racist. Geraldine Ferraro is no more racist than Bill Clinton but she has no qualms about stoking the fires of racial polarity in this country, for political gain. She was trying to belittle Sen. Obama, negating his accomplishments by suggesting that his success has more to do with his race than anything else. We mistakenly assume that one would necessarily have to be racist to play the "race card". Not so, in my opinion. My take is similar to that of Sen. Barack Obama. When asked by reporters to respond to her comments, he said:

"I think that anybody who understands the history of this country knows they are patently absurd."

My conclusion is that Ms. Ferraro's remarks, as were Bill Clinton's when he compared Sen. Obama's run for the Presidency to that of Jesse Jackson's, were driven by over zealousness and desperation to the point of idiocy.

"Can you be a Catholic and a Democrat?"

2008-02-27T02:53:00.004-06:00

I plucked the title for this post, verbatim from Kristin's Ramblings, (see "Some Interesting Links" in the sidebar on the right) a fellow blogger's site. I happened onto the page while engaging in "random-blog-cruising" using the "Next Blog" link (which by the way desperately needs language filtering). The subtitle of Kristin's blog is the following:

"A Catholic young adult living her life in the real world. Pro-life, spiritual, and personal reflections straight from the heart!"

Whenever I encounter the words Catholic, Democrat and pro-life in the same paragraph, I know I've stumbled onto a spirited, if not angry abortion/right-to-life debate, so I instinctively tuned in. We've all heard the arguments before so I'll cut to the chase. The entry in question is dated May 01, 2007, should you care to check it out for yourself.

Patrick, another blogger and apparent Catholic, (pjfurlong[at]blogspot[dot]com), chimed in with this comment in response to Kristin's remarks:

"I found a quote by a Catholic hero of mine, regarding the very issue of voting and abortion, and I thought it would be relevant to share with you...

Cardinal Joseph Bernadine of Chicago, an opponent of abortion, cautioned Catholics against turning abortion into a single voting issue: "Our moral, political and economic responsibilities do not stop at the moment of birth.”Those who defend the right to life of the weakest among us must be equally visible in support of the quality of life of the powerless among us: the old and the young, the hungry and the homeless, the undocumented immigrant and the unemployed worker. ... Consistency means we can't have it both ways."

And so, in the spirit of that urging by Cardinal Bernadine, I support Barack Obama with the belief that the value and dignity of human life DOES NOT END at conception, and I believe when I look at the issues holistically, Barack Obama is the best man for the job. And so, in regards to health care, the issues in war torn areas like the Middle East, the Congo, and Sudan, as well as a host of other issues like gun control, taxes, social security, the environment, civil rights and immigration, Barack Obama is the man that is most in line with my ideals, with my morality.

I hope that helps you understand why I support the man. I assume we will disagree still, but for me, I just can't vote or not vote for a candidate on one single issue..."

I was particularly intrigued by Patrick's comments. They seem so contradictory, considering the source, yet they are so insightful. Kudos to Patrick! I'm reminded of the dilemma many right-wing conservatives are struggling with at this moment. The Limbaughs, Coulters, and Hannitys of this country have asked a similar question:

"Can you be a Conservative Republican and support John McCain?"

Lately it seems that they are beginning to see the ridiculousness of their positions on that issue. Not that it will matter in the end, since as I've stated in an earlier post, Senator Barack Obama, a Democrat, will be the next President of the United States.

Barack Obama vs Hillary Clinton: The Change vs Experience Debate

2008-02-25T17:56:00.003-06:00

The Clinton campaign must have concluded by now, that the strategy of attacking Sen. Barack Obama on the assertion that Senator Clinton is more experienced, has not worked. It is a strategy that was doomed to failure from the outset. By adopting that strategy, Sen. Clinton has essentially played into the hands of her Democratic opponent.

Given the brilliance of Obama's strategies to date, there is no doubt that the campaign anticipated this type of attack early in the game. They used that knowledge to design the "politics of change" campaign as an inherent countermeasure. By building his campaign on the ideas of, "change we can believe in", "no more politics as usual" and "politics of the future", Obama has effectively made the debate over change versus experience, null and void.

Check out this video of Barack Obama on the campaign trail addressing the experience issue:

Hillary Clinton's "Valedictory Moment" During the Texas Presidential Debate

2008-02-23T16:41:00.000-06:00

Senator Hillary Clinton's touching remarks directed toward Senator Barack Obama, at the conclusion of the Democratic presidential debate in Austin, Texas on February 21, has been described by some in the media as valedictory in nature. Others surmise that she was attempting to show her softer side for the benefit of her critics. To me, it seemed as though Hillary was laying the groundwork for an inevitable concession speech in the not too distant future.

"I am honored to be here with Barack Obama," she said. I am absolutely honored."

Then turning to face her opponent, they shook hands as she continued.

"Whatever happens, we're going to be fine. You know, we have strong support from our families and our friends. I just hope that we'll be able to say the same thing about the American people, and that's what this election should be about."

In that instant I channeled the following response to Sen. Obama which apparently he chose to ignore, perhaps because of the recent plagiarism accusations against him: "Thank you Senator Clinton", he should have said, "I want you to know that I will convene the first ever Universal Healthcare Steering Committee when I am President, and I hope you will accept my invitation to you, to chair that committee."

I waited for him to say something like that. It would surely have brought down the house and would have given the pundits and bloggers red meat to chomp on for weeks to come.

When I knew Barack Obama would be President

2008-02-22T00:46:00.000-06:00

In August 2007 I predicted that Sen. Barack Obama would be the next president of the United States of America? Prior to his entry into the presidential race, I had never even heard of him. I heard his name mentioned on television one night. Someone was reviewing a book written by him entitled "The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream". The curious title piqued my interest and led me to search for the book on Amazon.com. After reading many of the hundreds of rave reviews, I felt compelled to purchase the book.

By chance, I learned about the audio version of the book available from iTunes.com. I purchased it and listened. At times, I listened while driving, with my iPod playing through my car stereo. At other times I listened while relaxing in my favorite chair. My first surprise came when I realized that the audio book was narrated by Barack himself. Audio books are often narrated by professional voice-over artists. I remember thinking that if he should fail at every one of his chosen endeavors, his voice alone, could earn him a decent living.

I was unprepared for the next surprise when it came. It was the feeling I experienced when I finished the book. It was like having a dessert so incredibly scrumptious that even when your plate is empty, and your stomach is ready to explode, you want to continue having it. I simply did not want it to end.

By the time I had gotten to the end of the book, I was convinced that this guy was presidential material. I predicted then, that Obama would be the next President of the United States.