Now that Barack Obama has pretty much wrapped up the nomination, it's time to raise a question that lots of people have been talking about privately but not publicly. Is it possible that Michelle Obama is the force behind Barack Obama's refusal to embrace traditional patriotic symbols? Could Obama's wife be largely responsible for the candidate's damaging associations with crackpot race-baiters like the Reverend Jeremiah Wright and the Reverend Michael Pfleger? In sum, could Obama's wife be a large part of his political problem?
Obama himself seems, at least on the surface, relatively free of the kind of corrosive racial resentment that is so common among African American activists of our day. This resentment is especially puzzling as it often comes from people who, far from being victims, have actually enjoyed benefits and privileges that they would probably never get if they happened to be white.
Consider the case of Michelle Obama. She was raised in a two-parent, middle-class family. She applied to one of America's top universities, Princeton, and was admitted. Of this experience, Michelle says on the stump, "All my life I have confronted people who had a certain expectation of me. Every step of the way, there has been people telling me what I couldn't do. When I applied to Princeton, they said: you can't go there, your test scores aren't high enough."
Which is all very moving, except that her test scores weren't high enough. Michelle Obama is part of the affirmative action generation of above-average but far-from-stellar performers who were granted preferential admission to America's most elite institutions.
Michelle notes that she graduated with honors in her major. Again, the problem is that her undergraduate thesis is on the web. You might expect that she wrote about Shakespeare's sonnets or the political evolution of W.E.B. Du Bois. Well, no. Essentially Michelle Obama wrote about the problems of being a black woman at an Ivy League university.
Here is a typical passage: "By actually working with the Black lower class or within their communities as a result of their ideologies, a separationist may better understand the desparation of their situation and feel more hopeless about a resolution as opposed to an integrationist who is ignorant to their plight."
Alas, the grammar is all wrong here. More than once, the tenses are garbled. People are ignorant "of" the plight of the lower class, not ignorant "to" their plight. And"desparation" should be spelled "desperation." To wreak so much havoc on the English language in one sentence, without conveying anything of substance, is perhaps deserving of a prize. Is this what her professors were thinking when they granted her honors? Whatever the Obamorons say, let's remember that that these are not mere typos; they reflect an estranged relationship to the English language. Moreover they appear not in a daily blog but in a thesis that is supposed to reflect the culmination of one's college career.
Subsequently Michelle went on to further appointments and even managed to cash in big time on her skin color and marriage to Barack Obama. She was hired by the University of Chicago hospitals to run "programs for community relations, neighborhood outrecah, volunteer recruitment, staff diversity, and minority contracting." Here her salary was $400,000 a year.
One might expect that the reaction of someone who gets so many privileges to be grateful to a society that makes them possible. But no. Michelle Obama thinks that her very success is an example of white oppression. By a bizarre twist of logic, she converts "you're not good enough, but we'll take you anyway" into a message of "they said I wasn't good enough, but I proved them wrong."
Ordinarily these psychological peculiarities may be of little interest, except perhaps to a therapist. But Michelle now stands next to a man that may be elected president of the United States. Barack Obama wants everyone to "lay off" his wife. He doesn't seem to realize that this is not a reasonable request concerning a woman who clearly influences him and who stands to have public influence in her own right. Moreover, for months the media has been laying off her precisely because she is his wife. Like Michelle, Obama seems to confuse preferential treatment with ill treatment.
Of course we've had controversial first ladies in the White House before. The Obamas, however, aren't there yet. Will Barack Obama be ultimately forced to distance himself not just from the Reverend Wright and the Reverend Pfleger but also from his own wife?
Reader Comments ( Page 6 of 55)
76. 70 Bob
So "Bob" what has Randi Rhodes,Bill Maher,Bill Moyers, Phil Donahue,Cenk to name a few been doing? Oh thats right uniting everyone, or as you say getting paid to say negative things. But I am sure that is just a simple oversight on your part right? You were going to give the other side in your next comment right?
Brad at 6:33PM on Jun 4th 2008
77. Secular American at 4:38PM on Jun 4th 2008
“I have decided that we all should have a zero tolerance for racism, so it doesn't make a difference what percentage Obama believes in, any disqualifies him from the Presidency.”
Please come clean with yourself even if you don’t with anyone else. Using your criteria there would never have been a White House and no President should have ever held office. It is a good try but trust me you are not going to be able to sell this one to anyone. I am sure if you try real hard you can come up with something a heck of a lot better than this. By the way, I am sure you have never had a friend or a family member that is a racist, right? How much did you believe when they where sharing their ideas, beliefs and feelings with you? Not all of it obviously, but I am sure a least one or two things. Do their beliefs define you? Why should anybody else’s beliefs define Senator Obama.
Linda at 6:59PM on Jun 4th 2008
78. So "Bob" what has Randi Rhodes,Bill Maher,Bill Moyers, Phil Donahue,Cenk to name a few been doing? Oh thats right uniting everyone, or as you say getting paid to say negative things.
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There are no positive things to say about fascism or republicanism, which is pretty much indistinguishable to this day.
As to uniting, in the past year the disapproval rate for the head fascist went up to 75% and over 85% now know the country is headed in the wrong direction. All those people you mentioned contributed to that while the homer simpbaughs and foxfarters did everything they could to destroy rationality.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
But I am sure that is just a simple oversight on your part right? You were going to give the other side in your next comment right?
xxxxxx
Democrats are extremely united. Republicanist registration has sunk to 27% of the total of all voters and the last primary turned out more democratic voters than any prior election ever before in history. A huge number are former republicanists who now find their party odious.
Now that Hilary has conceded, this is a formidable army to try to overcome. Change is coming and not a damn minute too soon.
Clif Kuplen at 7:04PM on Jun 4th 2008
79. “This resentment is especially puzzling as it often comes from people who, far from being victims, have actually enjoyed benefits and privileges that they would probably never get if they happened to be white.”
Oh, I see, I don't have a right to resent rapists, pedophiles, or any form of descrimination,etc. unless I've actually been a victim? What kind of ridiculous crap is that?
Whether or not we have the right to comment on Michelle Obama as the wife of a presidential candidate aside, as her husband, Barrack absolutely has the right to stand up for his wife and ask people to back off - it's what a gentleman does for their loved one. If he allowed her to be picked apart silently then you would sieze on that in another blog as a reason we should dislike him.
The fact is, if race was not an issue in todays' society, you would have no reason to create this inane article. The fact that you have speaks volumes. It would be highly suspect if it was not addressed by Obama, et al.
ANd I have to jump on the bandwagon and point out how hypocritical it is to critisize one person for their grammar and spelling while you fail to do something as spellcheck your critique.
thinkin at 7:10PM on Jun 4th 2008
80. How can we believe anything D'Souza says? Look at his wife, all she wants to do dance, dance dance!
Surely she must be held responsible for D'Souza's drivel too!
not-pboyfloyd at 7:22PM on Jun 4th 2008
81. Mary Todd Lincoln.
Does anyone else see the similarities?
T at 7:34PM on Jun 4th 2008
82. the truth hurts, but luckily it is written by someone of color, so the observations are correct, non racist and must stand.
peter at 7:45PM on Jun 4th 2008
83. "There are no positive things to say about fascism or republicanism, which is pretty much indistinguishable to this day."
This sort of absurd remark can be refuted with a simple thought experiment: would anyone choose to live in any fascist state (take your pick) if he also had the option of living in the United States under a Republican administration (take your pick)? Res ipsa loquitur.
Incidentally, there's another test: if this really were a fascist state, you wouldn't be able to say so puiblicly without fear of government reprisal. It doesn't exactly require much courage to stand up and call a free society fascistic, though it does require a lack of discernment.
"Democrats are extremely united. Republicanist registration has sunk to 27% of the total of all voters and the last primary turned out more democratic voters than any prior election ever before in history."
Are you honestly identifying "unity" with primary turnout? Please. If it were the other way around, i.e. if the Republicans had just gone through a long, vicious and in many senses inconclusive primary (Hillary not only won the popular vote and the most important states, she was *still* able to win states, by rather large margins, up to the very end), I doubt you would be speaking about their "unity," even if every single registered Republican had voted.
Finally, how do you justify calling Obama a "statesman"? Talk about faith!
Renzo at 8:59PM on Jun 4th 2008
84. And we care about Michelle Obama why? You are preaching to a country that choose an even more illiterate C-Bush who can't barely place two sentences together in a speech for crying out loud! Affirmative action may have gotten Michelle into Princeton but daddy paid big bucks to get Bush into Yale. See, whitey had some affirmative action too!
Word has it that to even get his c grades brother Jeb wrote some of his not so comprehensive papers. He was a great cheerleader but a failure at Math(no wonder, look at our government financials)
Please write about something we all care about, like the sweet gossip of McCain's adulterous affair with a drug addicted woman 18 years younger and another young cheerleader at that! At least that’s juicy!
goddess1prevail at 8:55PM on Jun 4th 2008
85. It's frightening how many stupid and or white guilt ridden people believe in Obama. He is simply a Chicago leftist made guy.Then add his racist 'church' attendance w/20 years of not hearing or seeing things that should not be in and house of worship. Right!
He wants to talk to Leftist ( murdering ) dictators. Maybe someone should ask him if he ever tried to talk to killer black gang leaders in Chicago to reduce violence. He never even tried to talk to actual killer black gang leaders in Chi. I grew up in Chi , so I know.
Obama is a racilly confused, America hating, Marxist with his wife in control. I hope the rumors are true regarding the video of his wife's rants against whites. That dideo may still not be enough to stop the lemmings.
No plan, just hope for change. Maybe you better hope for a gas price reduction. Maybe the Muslims will stop terrorist bombers if we hope hard enough.
Jimmy Carter the worst US president ? Only if Obama loses!
St George at 9:04PM on Jun 4th 2008
86. Pboy, you bitch, I missed you. I haven't seen you on here since I've been back.
By the way......9 of Hearts
Botts at 9:23PM on Jun 4th 2008
87. I should make it a habit to read the posts before I go on repeating what others have already mentioned.
goddess1prevail at 9:18PM on Jun 4th 2008
88. Jimmy Carter the worst US president ? Only if Obama loses!
Second worst next to Bush. The historians are already writing about it! Only time will tell for Obama
goddess1prevail at 9:20PM on Jun 4th 2008
89. Renzo,
Give me a break on the "Popular Vote" crap. What is your criteria that justifies that insane remark.
I guess you'll be counting the Michigan ballots which Obama wasn't on?
And how will you be counting the popular vote in the States that don't hold primaries, but caucuses?
For someone that specializes in picking apart arguments, you sure let out a retarded statement.
Obama had a strategy on how to win the Primary, and he executed it perfectly.
There is no such thing as a popular vote in a primary or general for that matter.
Botts at 9:24PM on Jun 4th 2008
90. Are you honestly identifying "unity" with primary turnout?
I would rather identify the unity of the Democratic Party with democratic ideology and issues, not candidates. Clearly there is a unity of democratic ideas that created such a surge of democratic voters. The Republican Party didn't present itself with any "change" or any candidate worth 2 cents for that matter and after the dust settled, McCain was the only candidate that was not a fundamentalist.
Scratch that, Ron Paul was their best candidate but since his goal is to reduce government spending his party didn't want him.
goddess1prevail at 9:29PM on Jun 4th 2008