Obama appearantly can also speak "Negro" when necessary

[Devastatin Dave]

deleted because I'm sure that people wouldn't get it

[Pannonian]

DD, is this your way of welcoming back Kukri?

[Devastatin Dave]

DD, is this your way of welcoming back Kukri?

Just tryin to get that boy workin...

[Mooks]

The republican party is just trying to annoy the democrats. Theres nothing racist about calling Obama a light skinned black man that doesnt have a negro accent....thats what he is. Hes rich and hes only half black.

[Crazed Rabbit]

The republican party is just trying to annoy the democrats. Theres nothing racist about calling Obama a light skinned black man that doesnt have a negro accent....thats what he is. Hes rich and hes only half black.

You think there's a "negro accent"?

CR

[HoreTore]

You think there's a "negro accent"?

CR

Sociolect would be a better term.

[Major Robert Dump]

Sometimes I think democrats, especially the ones who enjoy their holy entitlements, are kind of like abused wives who withstand the punishment of the abuser because he buys them nice things, pays the bills and mows the lawn. Harry Reid is only throwing black people down the stairs because he loves them. It's different when they're alone.

[Lemur]

I'll let a negro columnist do the talking, since I'm about as ebonic as the Osmonds:

John Cornyn and Michael Steele think that Harry Reid's comments are the same as Trent Lott's.

"In 2002, Democrats expressed outrage at Senator Lott and called on him to step down as leader. That same standard should be applied to Senator Reid and his embarrassing and racially insensitive statements; statements, I would add, that Senator Reid still has yet to clarify," Cornyn said in a written statement.

"As we await his explanation, Senator Reid should do the right thing, follow the example that he himself set in 2002, and step down as majority leader."

I think you can grant that, in this era, the term "Negro dialect" is racially insensitive and embarrassing. That said, the fair-mind listener understands the argument--Barack Obama's complexion and his ability to code-switch is an asset. You can quibble about the "light skin" part, but forget running for president, code-switching is the standard M.O. for any African American with middle class aspirations.

But there's no such defense for Trent Lott. Lott celebrated apartheid Mississippi's support of Strom Thurmond, and then said that had Thurmond won, "we wouldn't have had all these problems over all these years.'' Strom Thurmond run for president, specifically because he opposed Harry Truman's efforts at integration. This is not mere conjecture--nearly half of Thurmond's platform was dedicated to preserving segregation. The Dixiecrat slogan was "Segregation Forever!" (Exclamation point, theirs.) Trent Lott's wasn't forced to resign because he said something "racially insensitive." He was forced to resign because he offered tacit endorsement of white supremacy--frequently.

Claiming that Harry Reid's comments are the same, is like claiming that referring to Jews as "Hebrews" is the same as endorsing Nazism. Whereas a reputable portion of black people still use the term Negro without a hint of irony, no black person thinks the guy yelling "Segregation Forever!" would have cured us of "all these problems."

[Sasaki Kojiro]

"Negro dialect" and "honest injun" are both insignificant if you aren't dumb enough to make wild assumptions about someone's character based on their use.

But don't they realize how silly they sound calling for his resignation? Why didn't they just point out the fuss made over honest injun and compare it?

[KukriKhan]

DD, is this your way of welcoming back Kukri?

Just when you think he's gone away, race-relations comes up, and Dave always delivers. :) (thanks for that edit Dave; you're right.)

The US commentariat seems mostly concerned with measuring the degree of racism revealed by remarks made by white politicians. So far, on a scale of 1 to 10, Reid's defenders score it a "1", while they see Lott's contribution a "9" or more. The other side paints both as 10's and resign-able offenses.

My problem with Sen Reid's observations of Obama's light-skin and non-negro dialect, is the underlying assumption made: american voters will find Obama more palatable, and less threatening, than other black politicians with darker skin and inner-city dialects. He (Reid) in effect is talking about marketing a black man to a racist nation. I think this shows a fundamental disrespect and condescension toward american voters.

Disrespect and condescension are not fire-able offenses. But if I were a Nevada voter, I'd be looking for someone else who understands and respects me, next election.

[naut]

Obama appearantly can also smoke "Ganga" when necessary