Taxing Americans for buying Chinese-made tires and starting a “trade war” with China (Financial Times: “US tyre duties spark China clash“)
Extending the pointless and counter productive trade embargo on Cuba (New York Times: “Obama Extends Cuba Embargo 1 Year“)
Thanks, Jimmy Carter, for raising the tone of the debate and explaining to me why I’m angry (CNN: “Carter: Racism plays major role in opposition to Obama“)
On one blog, I heard a saw a great joke about Carter in this regard.
If Carter thinks that all opposition to Obama is racist in its nature what does he think about the disdain of the public for himself? Probably, that this disdain is caused by the fact that Republicans always hated peanut farmers.
Those who think those against obama are so because he is black had better get their heads out of the sand. Alot of people who voted for him are now against him. He vowed to start fixing the deficit but has taken it to a high that has never been seen. He is going to have to tax the heck out of the middle class which he claimed he wouldn’t do to pay for it. He has extended his hand and bowed to those who hate us while criticizing our friends. He is trying to push government run health care down our throats even though those in the countries that have it that way come here because they don’t get the treatment they need. Wake up people saying it’s because he’s black once again is a cop out and a blinder to cover the real issues.
I honestly do not believe the opposition to Pres Obama is race-based. All you need to do is pay attention to what he says in his speachs, what his actions, and look at who he picks for spots in his administration. Pres Obama is not naive, he is aware of these people’s backgrounds and beliefs. He may give a really good and rousing speach but when he has to speak off the cuff he comes up with some really foolish comments. He is taking this country to a place we don’t want to go.
Joe Wilson was out of line, he apologized. Let it go. And just because people are beginning to realize that Pres Obama is not running the government well, ruining it in fact, does not mean they are racists. If Hillary or Bill were in office and following this same agenda there would be uproar as well. Forget the race thing. This is not where the animosity is coming from. Wake up.
I have admired President Carter for years after his presidency and I applaud the fact that he is still an upfront, honest MAN. As for Chairman Michael Steele, I know that in his heart he knows the truth, but I know also that he wants to stay in favor with his party. But he should not forget who he is, and who surrounds him.
Daniil, Mr. Carter can and has stopped being a peanut farmer, President Obama cannot stop being a Black Man. This is a good rule to use whenever you want to criticize anyone.
Why don’t you get angry about China dumping cheap products on America and putting American manufacturers at a obvious disadvantage? Are you suggesting that the United States should just sit back and let a foreign country wipe out an industry in this country? The entire point of tariffs is to level the playing field and give American companies a fair shot. It will NOT make Chinese made tires more expensive than American-made tires. Your anger here sounds about as rational as the anger we’re seeing at these so-called Tea Party events, where people are calling Obama a socialist, communist, Marxist, Kenyan, baby-killing Muslim. It’s not rational. I am convinced that President Carter is correct is saying that racism lies at the core of this irrationality. Anything that the President does will never be acceptable, because he is a black and a black man isn’t smart enough to run this country. While all opposition to Obama may not be driven by racism, enough of it is to be a major concern to any responsible American, and we should all examine our motives in this regard. You, in particular. If you’re that “angry”, you need to ask yourself how you felt when President Bush threw out Habeus Corpus, invaded Iraq and cut taxes for the rich without ever saying how the government was going to pay for those decisions. If you weren’t equally angry then, you have a problem.
Jimmy Carter should have made clear that NOT all the protesters were in fact racist though there were some who were especially those holding posters of Obama in an African tribal outfit with a spear in hand.
Jimmy Carter I agree seems to be generalizing this a little much. But I am sure many of you cannot deny that there is some “extra” motivation by people who don’t like people of color especially those in power. Health care is just a platform to vent their frustrations; some people are sublimating their racism into political differences…
[…] I’m Angry About Obama’s Decisions…. (tags: tom.palmer obama china cuba carter racism) […]
Rita, you’re mistaken: you can take the boy out of the peanut farm, but you can’t take the peanut farmer out of the boy.
More seriously, the primary argument of health care “reform” advocates seems to be that it’s unethical that some don’t have insurance. That’s the extent of their argument, and if one opposes “reform,” they seem to imagine the only explanation is that one is ethically deficient. If only we cared more about others, we would join the campaign. Ipso facto we’re mean spirited if not evil; probably racist as well. For example…
http://www.salon.com/opinion/conason/2009/09/11/republicans/index.html
OTOH, the progressive socialist are so compassionate… until we look at the evidence:
http://cafehayek.com/2009/08/sen-compassion.html
I do not believe that ALL of the opposition to Obama is due to racism, BUT there is a lot of ignorance and uninformed people who are against him because he is black. That does not mean that all who oppose him are racist though. So many of the protesters in the town hall meetings and on the national mall can;t articulate why they are against policies that, in a lot of ways, will help them a great deal. All they do is call him a Marxist and a Socialist when more than half of them don’t even know who Carl Marx is or what that means. They are blindly regurgitating rhetoric that they hear other conservatives use.
The bigger issue here is that Republicans are hell bent on seeing his presidency fail. They continue to be the “Party of Loyal Opposition” without contributing anything meaningful to the debate to create better legislation. The truth is, every time an uninsured patient gets any form of treatment it makes all of our premiums go through the roof. Social Equality and Socialism are extremely different. I still don’t understand why so many of the middle and lower middle class Americans, who are probably receiving some form of social assistance, are against the idea of government offering competition to these corporations that make so much money from our suffering.
Many of those in the Midwest ans the South who blindly shout epithets and hate in town hall meetings without proper information because they value the opinion of a bafoon quitter from Alaska are simply racist.
After listening to all the attention given to Jimmy Carter, I honestly think that is what his intentions were, to get attention. I for one do not believe that Joe Wilson is racist. I think he is as upset at the health care reform proposals just like a majority of American’s are. Just because you dislike President Obama or disagree with his policies does not make you a racist.
I do find it funny that all of a sudden the democrats NOW say the president should get more respect because he is the president. But when Bush was in office it was alright for the democrats to call him all kind of things. Seems that the democrat’s should first practice what they preach
Ahh Jimmy, I never took you seriuosly then and I do not take you seriuosly now. I believe you were a failure as a president and now I believe you’re clueless as a statesman. Please go home.
Carter made it clear from the outset in his speech that he was not referring to all people who opposed Obama’s policies. The first words out of his mouth were “radical fringe element”. Listen to the speech again and don’t criticize him for something he never said.
Joe Wilson is a blatant racist. He’s a member in good standing of the Sons of the Confederacy and several other organizations which have links to white supremacists. He has also supported the movement to make the Confederate flag the standard for his state.
The man who is organizing the Tea Party movement is also a racist. On his website, he refers to the President of the United States as an “Indonesian, Muslim communist thug” and he has done NOTHING to discourage or ban the outrageous signs that have become identified with his rallies. He does not have to call the President the ‘n-word’ to be identified as a racist. That’s ridiculous.
Rich September 17, 2009 at 9:21 am
After listening to all the attention given to Jimmy Carter, I honestly think that is what his intentions were, to get attention.
Rich, when was the last time you had seen an 85 year old man starving for attention? Maybe former President Carter is taken aback by the conduct, of not all opposition, but of those who have and still are attacking the President with racial undertones.
I support former President Carter and all others who have the insight and courage to speak out against that type of behavior.
Jimmy Carter was exactly right-wing America wanted, except being a peacemaker.
Facts:
– Nuclear Engineer
– Naval Officer on the Seawolf
– Senator of Georgia
– Governor of Georgia
– President of the United States
– Peanut Farmer
– Evangelical Christian
There has been no one more qualified for that office during the past 80 years than him. He speaks truth.
Actually, technically, George H. W. Bush was the most qualified.
Devout Christian
Fighter pilot during WWII
Oil Company Executive
US Ambassador to Britain
Head of the CIA
Vice President of the United States
Carter had no experience at the national level and certainly no foreign policy experience (and that’s where he really got into trouble). I don’t see what their religious affiliation means, other than its appeal to the right-wing base. I just list it here because you mentioned Carter’s religion.
The smartest president in the last half Century was probably Bill Clinton, who was a Rhodes Scholar. The least intelligent was… well, we all know who that was.
For one those going against Obama now is probably the same ones who voted to get him into office. He has not been in office for a full year yet and yall are already criticizing him for what he is trying to make better. He is helping the POOR BLACKS I bet you all that are going against him are all white or have a financial status that you are comfortable with. I am a young female that needs all the help I can get, DO NOT act like you don’t need the help either. He is restoring what former dumb president Bush has destroyed. So get off your high horse and put yourself in his shoes or in a poor black mans shoes and visualize what he may go through on a day to day schedule. Thank you for your time and hopefully Obama stays in office another four years to prove you loathers wrong about him.