share.triangle.com - What did you think of Obama's speech? - Comments

Obama made me proud

Visitor — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 22:32:45 -0400

Over and over I keep seeing the same question: Why did Barak Obama attend that church for twenty years? I think you need to understand that Pastor Wright lived through the worst of segregation and civil rights turmoil. He and others of that generation fought hard to achieve equality. And of course he is left with some anger. But he is still deserving of respect for what he accomplished. I think that's enough of a reason for Obama to stay with the church.

The other thing is that, while definitely over the top, Pastor Wright has been turned into a caricature by a few cherry picked clips. Spend a few minutes watching videos that show his remarks in context. Here's a link to one:

FOX LIES

Obama doesn't represent us

Visitor — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 19:25:41 -0400

For every American who has worked to live Martin Luther King Jr's dream that we will judge a person by the content of their character and not the color of their skin, Barack Obama has betrayed us. Millions of us, of every color, so believe in Martin Luther King,Jr.'s dream that we try every day to live to those standards. We don't tolerate racial jokes; we look at the qualifications of the individual for a job, not their race; we welcome our children's girlfriends and boyfriends to our home without distinction of color; and we make the decision to leave our churches if they preach hatred against any group. It's an easy decision to make if you truly believe the dream but it's one the Obamas chose not to make, for twenty years. Now that it is politically expedient for Mr. Obama to renounce his pastor's remarks as 'divisive' and the pastor has retired, Mr. Obama tells the nation that he renounces Rev. Wright's remarks.

For all of those who have left churches to stand up for our brothers and sisters of another race, for all of us who have taught our children to live Martin Luther King,Jr's. dream, for all of us who have taken a stand socially, politically, economically to end racism, Mr. Obama has betrayed us. He doesn't represent us. He can't stand up to end racism in his own back yard, but he tells us that he's going to heal the racial divide the that his church is helping to maintain. He doesn't deserve to lead us.

Learn the REAL truth

Visitor — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 20:09:41 -0400

To all you people worked up about Pastor Wright, you really need to watch this video of a FULL sermon, not just the outtake. He is nothing like those clips they keep playing. You are being lied to and manipulated by FOX and the right wing extremists. Open your eyes. Learn the truth. Don't be a tool.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOdlnzkeoyQ&feature=related

What about the McCain-Hagee alliance?

Visitor — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 15:30:52 -0400

I find it interesting that no one has held McCain accountable for gladly accepting Pastor John Hagee's ringing endorsement. Hagee is an ultra-fundamentalist pastor of a mega-church in San Antonio, TX whose End-Times teachings are dangerous. He believes any kind of compromise in the Israeli-Palestinian is a blasphemous act against God. He has publicly called for a pre-emptive strike on Iran and considers the Roman Catholic Church to be a "false religion." His distorted biblical theology is outside mainline/mainstream Christian doctrine and clearly within the realm of extremism. Considering the fact that Hagee's vitriolic weekly messages are broadcast around the world, he has MUCH MORE influence than Rev. Jeremiah Wright ever will.

While McCain has tactfully rejected "some" of Hagee's opnions, he has chosen not denounced this man because of political expediency.

Words DO matter. I hope that Hagee's words do not influence any of our national leaders.

On Tuesday, Mr. Obama drew a

Visitor — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 15:23:34 -0400

On Tuesday, Mr. Obama drew a bright line between his religious connection with Mr. Wright, which should be none of the voters’ business, and having a political connection, which would be very much their business. The distinction seems especially urgent after seven years of a president who has worked to blur the line between church and state.

Are you serious?

Visitor — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 12:26:33 -0400

Are you serious? What you are saying contradicts exactly what Obama has done in his life, what his words and actions reflect (see for yourself - http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/2/20/201332/807/36/458633), and what he believes. It is amazing that you say Obama's beleifs = Wrights's beliefs when he CLEARLY made the distinction in his speech and on a thousand different occasions. I just think people aren't ready for this type of sharp, intellectual, strong, courageous, honest, authentic, evolved leadership...so just say that.

Is it possible for us to have an honest, intelligent dialogue without resorting to the fear and hate. Obama opened the door and told the truth whether about ALL of us, not just the Black community. Did you people listen to the whole speech, or just catch the sound bites and commentary from your favorite pundit last night!?? Obama might just be too good for a country that is more invested in denial, fear, sensationalism and status quo - a country that I LOVE, but also a country that is a laughing stock around the world precisely because of serveral comments on this board.

FOR THOSE WHO GET IT; NO EXPLANATION IS NECESSARY, FOR THOSE WHO DON'T, NO EXPLANATION WILL SUFFICE. Stay focused Barack.

I am a 51 year old white

Visitor — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 12:21:00 -0400

I am a 51 year old white woman. Rev. Wright's comments do not offend or shock me. I completely disagree with them, but in no way does it bother me when others hold opinions drastically different from my own. And because I, an ordinary woman, believe that I am fully capable of hearing someone else say words that I find wrong, and yet not be persuaded or offended and continue to hold my own opinion, I am sure that Mr. Obama, a very intellegent and insightful man, can do the same. I take him at his word that this church and this pastor engaged in many good works, and provided spiritual support to him. It does not seem inconsistent at all to me that he enjoyed the benefits of his church, while not agreeing with everything that his pastor said from the pulpit. I don't care in the least what religion a presidential candidate is, or what his or her religious leader says. I think it's disingenuous for all these bloggers to suggest that he feels the same, or should have walked out. None among us can say that we hold the same beliefs as everyone else that we allow to hold a place in our lives, our family members, our fellow church members, church leaders, friends. We don't abandon people who disagree with us, even if we strongly disagree, if they are people that we value for other reasons. At least the mentally healthy among us don't. Mr. Obama didn't say the words himself, and he has made clear his complete rejection of them. And then he went beyond that , beyond this particular moment in his campaign, to call us to really address the issue of race which has been such a hurtful issue throughout our history. Mr. Obama is the first politician in my adult lifetime to speak to us as thought we are intelligent people capable of taking action to help ourselves, and not in sound bites, or catch phrases, as though we are not capable of understanding more, or retaining complex thoughts in our brains.

FOR THOSE WHO GET IT; NO EXPLANATION IS NECESSARY, FOR THOSE WHO DON'T, NO EXPLANATION WILL SUFFICE. Stay focused Barack.

AMEN!

Visitor — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 12:08:20 -0400

AMEN!

Thanks for making my point.

Visitor — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 12:07:46 -0400

Thanks for making my point. Here is the chocie we face...the thinking of this clown or something finally different.

Action vs. Words. See for

Visitor — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 12:06:29 -0400

Action vs. Words. See for yourself what Obama has done in his life (aside from advocate for the poor instead of taking a high-priced law firm position - would you have done the same??). Here's what his words AND actions reflect (see for yourself - http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/2/20/201332/807/36/458633), and what he believes. It is amazing that you say Obama's beleifs = Wrights's beliefs when he CLEARLY made the distinction in his speech and on a thousand different occasions. I just think people aren't ready for this type of sharp, intellectual, strong, courageous, honest, authentic, evolved leadership...so just say that.

I watched the interview of

Visitor — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 12:02:58 -0400

I watched the interview of Senator Obama by Anderson Cooper about the statements made by the Pastor of his church. The Pastor's statements sounded like the ranting of an old man who had experienced much discrimination during his life, while Senator Obama's replies sounded like those of someone who had experienced much the same kind of discrimination but who had risen above that, and who is now asking America to rise above that with him, expressing, at the same time, his deep disapproval of the Pastor's statements.

What I found surprising, however, was Anderson Cooper's asking Senator Obama why, given the Pastor's statements with which he disagreed, the Senator had not simply left the Pastor's church. Now, perhaps Anderson Cooper has never been faced with leaving his church because of disagreement with its Pastor, or with some aspect of its doctrine, or its proclamations, or its approach to some newly emerging condition in the world. But leaving one's church must be a lot more difficult, or simply more inappropriate than Anderson Cooper seems to believe, since almost every member of every congregation of every church has a disagreement with some aspect of the church, so, if leaving one's church was easy, there would be more empty pews in America's churches than one could count! For example: every woman in a Catholic Church who uses birth-control pills should leave the church; every white (black) person in a de facto segregated white (black) Christian church should leave the church; every person who accepts gay marriage in a church that condemns it should leave the church; every person in an American Catholic Church, who believes in the separation of church and state, should leave the church because the head of the Catholic Church is the head of another (Vatican) state; and on and on one could go.

A continuing member of a church who has no differences with some aspect of it is the RARE EXCEPTION. So the significant question is not why Senator Obama didn't leave his church, but rather how does he show that he has risen above the outrageous ranting of an elderly and retiring Pastor in the way he shows his own devotion to America and to what he's trying almost desperately to help it become. His recent speech on this question was about as close as anyone could come to an answer, and a historical speech it was, going as it did beyond just that question to a much broader and vital question for all Americans.

Just something to think about...and I believe we just divide the delegates in FL and MI, and ALSO really look at how Hillary is handlig this issue as opposed to Barack...very telling indication of the kind of President each would be.

Moving on after the Rev

Ted Gary — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 11:50:42 -0400

Rev Wright is a living piece of American history, and as we have seen, pulpit rhetoric has less of an effect (positive and negative) than we would imagine on public policy and private behavior.

The Black church in America (sorry to use such a horrid term, but it's useful for this context) is the only institution that was able to empower free expression for Black people beginning with Reconstruction through the late 1960's. Simultaneously with the civil rights breakthroughs of the 'sixties, a wave of church decline began to sweep across America.

Contributing factors include the effects of pop culture, unpopular wars, corrupt politicians, corrupt religious leaders, and wrong-headed economic policies. The faithful, surrounded by these noises, found (for a while) a voice in the rise of evangelical politics.

This jet stream of opportunity was a place where the innate conservatism of both Black and White churches would merge in their hope to encode the moral imperatives of Christian principles into national law. This stream was dissipated by its own inability to pick the right battles, and to acknowledge that the "un-churched" have very good historical proof that religious leadership mated with political power is a corrosive blend (review European history). Righteousness and morality only have their beauty and power when the roots are in love for one another, not in civil and criminal law. The best that secular law can hope to accomplish is to keep the lid on the most heinous and destructive impulses of people.

The Black church is a place where (for example) the June 1921 air raid fire-bombing of a thriving Black business community in northen Tulsa, Oklahoma will be described. Other institutions in America don't tell the story. Most African Americans have a relative who was directly and painfully discriminated against, and the healing is incomplete. Young African Americans demonstrate their historical ignorance of the demoralizing pain of the n-word by using it as a term of endearment to one another. Older African Americans don't let the word pass their lips except in the context in which Rev Wright used it.

Rev Wright's sermon clips are not useful because the style of delivery obliterates the ability of America at large to receive the message. On that point I agree with you very much. Nevertheless, the content must be considered. I did an experiment by transcribing parts of the clips and reading them in the personal style of Glenn Beck and Ron Paul. It was a very revealing listening exercise. Sadly, it's a little like the scene in one of the Airplane comedies where the lady says "I speak Jive", and the subtitles scroll to decode the slang exchanged between the two men.

The point is...

Visitor — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 09:35:46 -0400

...Obama has billed himself as one who has enough moral courage to bring the USA through tough moral issues. That he can't deal with a major one in his own backyard is telling.

And yes, I would challenge my pastor if he said remarks half as hateful as Rev. Wright's. Not because I'm without sin. It's because the temptation to hate does live in my sinful heart, and I don't need to hear hatred encouraged from the pulpit.

Comments on the above post

Visitor — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 06:49:20 -0400

A question about your comment, "In the church, especially the Black church, there is a hierarchy as it relates to the minister and this person is exalted to some degree. You don't question; you don't criticize to his or her face; you appreciate and respect and revere."

How can you as a parent, take your family to a weekly gathering that preaches hate such as this? What is the net effect on families and especially young children? What is disturbing is that you apparently don't make any connection between Rev. Wright's rhetoric and the divisive attitudes it leads to among his followers. I suspect many Obama supporters had no idea...now they do.

No, "Former Obama supporter"

Joe M. — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 23:42:18 -0400

No, "Former Obama supporter" is right. It is the understanding of Obama's action. Action speaks louder than glamous speeches. If Obama can't change or pursuade Rev. Wright and his church in your 20 year relationship, how can Obama make any change in our country and in our bipartisanship government? In addition, not only Obama sat back and listened to this (which he now admitted on Tuesday) for the past 20 years, but also Obama praised Rev. Wright and gave him full support both financially and publically. Even praised Rev. Wright and credited him on Obama's book the Audacity of Hope. Rev. Wright not on promoted hates of racism among Blacks but also promoted Anti-American Government for years. YEARS!!! 20 YEARS!! -- That ought to be enough for anybody to feel disbelieve.

What did you think of Obama's speech?

mwilliam — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 11:36:05 -0400

What did you think about Sen. Barack Obama's speech Tuesday? Below is an excerpt from the speech. What are your thoughts?