The American Debate: It's little discussed, but Obama's race may be decider

[Onlooker]

There are a couple dangers here: (1) Racism itself and (2) if the Republicans steal the elections despite what the polls show, the MSM and Republicans will use the kinds of arguments raised by articles like this.

http://www.philly.com/inquirer/columnists/dick_polman/20080907_The_American_Debate__It_s_little_discussed__but_Obama_s_race_may_be_decider.html

Let us swing the door ajar and invite the elephant into the room. One big reason Barack Obama is locked in a tight race, rather than easily outdistancing his opponent, is because he is black.

...

Union organizers in the key state of Michigan complain in the press that, as one puts it, "we're all struggling to some extent with the problem of white workers who will not vote for Obama because of his color." An aging mine electrician from Kentucky is quoted as saying, "I won't vote for a colored man. He'll put too many coloreds in jobs." An elderly woman in a New Jersey hair salon is overheard complaining about Barack and Michelle Obama the other day, about how blacks supposedly have larger bones than whites, and about how she's fleeing America if Obama wins.

...

Jimmy Carter, while attending the Democratic convention, cited race as a "subterranean issue," yet at times this year it has been bared for all to see. Case in point, Pennsylvania. On the day of the Democratic presidential primary, 12 percent of the white Democratic voters told the exit pollsters that race mattered in their choice of candidate; of those whites, 76 percent chose Hillary Rodham Clinton over Obama. The same pattern surfaced in other states, including the key autumn state of Ohio.

...

Here's one hint. Last June, the Washington Post-ABC News poll devised a "racial sensitivity index," based on a series of nuanced questions that were designed to measure the varying levels of racial prejudice in the white electorate. The pollsters came up with three categories, ranging from most to least enlightened. The key finding: Whites in the least-enlightened category - roughly 30 percent of the white electorate - favored John McCain over Obama by a ratio of 2-1.

[glowing]

1. What I don't understand is how people can't understand that when they

look at Obama, there is a mergence of land of Africa and Middle America Kansas... That he is white and black. That he is the healing to the divide that has lasted wayyyyy too long.. Yet, I work with someone who expressed greatly that she wished him to be killed in office (and she was much too young to be thinking that way).

[mwb970]

2. Maybe I've got the "Sunday Blues", but I don't think O has a chance.

Geezer and Mooseburger have the media behind them. Americans as a group are overwhelmingly ignorant and unthinking. They watch Fox "News" and mindlessly accept everything they hear there. American citizens are mainly racist idiots, and they will continue to drag our country down toward its ultimate doom, just as they have been for the last 10 (20? 30?) years.

We thinking people comprise at most 15% of the population (probably more like 10%), so we have no influence whatsoever on what happens. We just have to sit and watch what the morons decide, complaining eruditely to each other all the while.

Clearly, America's best days are in the past. It's a long, downhill ride from here.

[Carolina]

4. I feel your pain and

feel similarly. I truly hope it's the Sunday blues, but...

Despite lofty ideals expressed in the Preamble to the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, a nation founded on geneocide and slavery, land theft and broken treaties AND now is fraught with willful ignorance and mindless consumerism (of plastic shit made in China) is doomed. You are right: "Clearly, America's best days are in the past. It's a long, downhill ride from here."

[melody]

6. Nonsense, on all counts

Whatever days we have are ahead of us. It's up to us to make them good or bad.

[Carolina]

13. check your history books, Dearie

every empire fails and falls

[melody]

14. I minored in history, dearie :)

Every culture has black marks. Every conquering of one culture by another includes genocide (including the one where my fellow Native Americans came over and supplanted the extant civilization). You are looking at my country (not the empire ... I'd just as soon that fall alway) from one direction only. There are others.

[mrs_p]

5. don't fall for the depression bug

until nov 5th. before then, it is absolutely imperative that you remain positive and have hope in the american people like obama does - follow his lead, b/c just like your negativity can be contagious, so can your confidence

[melody]

8. Well said. Optimism can move mountains. We have to stay positive

Anyone who doubts the future, go look at the electoral vote count. Even if McGramps wins the
popular vote (which he won't), Obama will probably take it with the electoral college. Ironic
as hell, hm? lol

[Cosmocat]

7. I get it from time to time, but a couple thoughts ...

1) I normally have pretty good "instincts." I keep trying to push it back out of bias for BO and against her for 100 different reasons, but I think that at the end of the day, the Palin pick hurts McCain. If it had been another, more accomplished female, it might have helped him, but Palin just has TOO many issues - completely unqualified, a lot of issues with her actual experience and a VERY, VERY bizarre personal life. The media IS going to try to hold it back, but just too many glitches for the MODERATE/INDEPENDANTS who will make the election one way or another, IMO.

2) Still holding out hope relative to the electoral college. As some have highighted here a number of times, BO has consistently had a better projected EV map than Kerry did.

3) The MAJORITY of nitwits relative to race are in R states regardless, and in a state like PA, where BO has enough other positives that he might only win by 2 percent instead of by 7 or 8. At the end of the day, we HAVE to have faith that BOs team knows the MATH electorally, and will find a way to get past the 270 mark.

It is VERY disheartening seeing what the media does, completely destroying BO and propping up a half senile old fool who will govern with the same ETERNALLY failed paradigm as Bushco did.

It breaks my heart.

We just have to find a way to get BO into office, with a D House and Senate, and get some things done. Once he gets in, while the meida will do EVERYTHING it can to hammer him per R talking points, we just have to hold out hope that people will see his amazing honesty and thoughtfulness, and come to accept it.

Add in that demographics are, on a daily basis, chewing off the edges of the entire republican "coalition" and ...

Get it done NOW with BO, and hope that things progress ...

[DemocratSinceBirth]

12. IMHO

IMHO, if Obama loses it won't be because of his color... It will be because the Republicants' convinced a plurality or majority of Americans that he is a Muslim which he isn't and that he is an elitist who secretly mocks them which he doesn't...

[treestar]

3. Racists are always republicans

And people who voted for Hillary maybe just really liked Hillary.

Further, the black vote would be energized. With the exception of a few morans, black voters have to be exited about having a black President. If the fundies can do so much as a minority, one would think that blacks could.

This is just another case of republicans trying to find a non-issue related meme to use. Because on the issues, they have NOTHING to offer.

[melody]

9. We nominated to one of the two major parties a black man named Barack Obama

Forgive me if I cannot be anything but encouraged by that.

[Life Long Dem]

10. I think it's manufactured.

When Obama took the Midwest there was no question that whites would vote for Obama. There were questions leading up to New Hampshire over this. Then the night before NH, Hillary did her crying number and the polls jumped about 10%. They started saying Obama isn't getting the white vote, then the west came up and we never heard anymore of this.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

11. A DU writer gives good advice for approaching racists:

A DU writer gives good advice for approaching racists:

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/Pacifist%20Patriot/68