Letters To The Editor: Like Obama or Not, He Is Our President
Like Obama or Not, He Is Our President
Editor, Times-Dispatch: I was embarrassed when Sen. Jim Webb would not shake President George Bush's hand.
I am again embarrassed when I see Virginia parents not allow their children to listen to President Barack Obama's address to students.
The office of the president represents our country, our liberty, and the opportunity for a free education. Whether one likes the president or dislikes him, he is the president. All students should have the chance to listen to him and take advantage of our American freedom to then discuss his speech.
Rick Court.
Chester.
Racism Is the Reason Obama's Not Liked
Editor, Times-Dispatch: I am appalled by the reaction to President Barack Obama's speech to students. At first I thought that the right was being unkind to the president. Then as I listened to what they were saying, I figured out what the true problem was: They don't want their children to listen to him. They don't trust him and don't agree with his politics
Presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter had basically the same political platform, yet there was no national outcry when their messages were taken into classrooms. That negates the political argument. So why the visceral upheaval about a benign speech?
You can find the answer in history. Look at our country's two biggest internal upheavals -- the Civil War and the Civil Rights Movement. Race was a motivating factor in both events.
While we have made progress since the violence of the 1960s, we all bury our fears deeper down now. After all, it isn't politically correct to be racist, so we find other claims to mask the true face of our opposition. Look at the raw facts of the school speech controversy. Politics had very little to do with it -- there was none in the speech and everyone knew that.
Our president pulled himself up by his bootstraps. He overcame poverty, the loss of his father at an early age, and other roadblocks to obtain the most prestigious position in the land. Surely this is a man all people can be proud of. He is a reflection of how far we as a nation have come. Why would we want him to fail? If he fails, we all fail.
Blair K. Grigg.
Richmond.
Now the Government Wants Christians' Help?
Editor, Times-Dispatch: After receiving a Bible study e-mail from my church "provoking thoughts" on the recent health care debate, I was struck by the absurdity of a Christian leader supporting the very politicians and ideas that have pushed religion into the fringe of modern culture. And yet, here we are again, church leaders attempting to relinquish their responsibility and calling to do God's work.
If the Christian community had not abdicated its responsibilities beginning with the New Deal and later with the Great Society, we would not be faced with so many of the ills that plague our country today. The Christian community has become irrelevant as a result of letting big government legislate and mandate through the redistribution of wealth and social engineering.
There was a time when end-of-life decisions would be held with one's pastor. Now, if politicians are successful, we will be treated to a discussion under government auspices about the fate of our loved ones. This is madness.
The same government that has systematically mandated, legislated, and by court action, removed God from all facets of our society has come to the Christian church for help in supplanting more of our liberties. This effort is like aligning with the Devil to fulfill a responsibility the Christian Church abandoned. What a travesty.
Edward W. Clark Jr.
Blue Ridge.
Opening on Sundays Would Be a Service
Editor, Times-Dispatch: If the Ukrop family thinks this is a good time to cash in its chips and sell its business, then we have no choice but to thank it for its years of service and wish family members well. But if the family is calling it quits because it can't see a way to maintain profitability, then it is making a big mistake.
When I moved to Richmond, I was immediately impressed with how Ukrop's managed to fend off national competitors (remember Safeway, A&P, and WinnDixie?) while setting the standard for innovation, customer service, and community involvement. I've been here long enough to remember how its stores used to close at 8 p.m. as a courtesy to the many high school students who worked there. But one summer they tried keeping the stores open until 10 p.m. They found that their customers preferred it, so the hours remained.
If Ukrop's has lost market share in recent years, perhaps it's because it has been less willing to change with the times. While it may be admirable that the family respects their founder's desires and maintains its commitment to keeping the stores closed on Sundays and not to sell beer or wine, it is doing a disservice to their customers and their employees as a result.
Seventy years ago, hardly anybody wanted to shop on Sunday, but for many of us today it's a necessity. With unemployment reaching heights not seen in decades, opening the stores on Sunday might be less an imposition on the staff than a missed opportunity to provide jobs for those who sorely need them. First the Braves, then Circuit City, then Black Dog. Those were lamentable and maybe unavoidable. But losing Ukrop's, too? Say it ain't so.
Mike Raff.
Richmond.
Reader Reactions
I think from President Washington to President George W Bush, it was safe to say when our president fails, we fail. If you pay attention to Obama’s words and actions, it is clear he is not in for the same reasons 43 before him were.
Based on objective evidence it is now safe to say if Obama wins, The United States of America loses. If Obama loses, the United States of American wins.
Pay attention.
I guess LLR1971 is too young to remember Carter’s presidency.
It’s funny that as long as the drivel sounds intelligent then the speaker is “intelligent.“
ProudAmerica – Thank you – I was just responding and I see there is no need!
The last statement you said I want to highlight again. The people who pull the race card, regardless of what race they might be, are the ones who are promoting racism in American.
Posted by ( LLR1971 ) on September 17, 2009 at 11:48 am
No matter how you look at it Randy racism is a factor in how President Obama is being treated…...but when I watch the news I see mostly enraged white people shouting as if they are a part of some kind of lynch mob.
Racism is not a factor. Nobody cares that he’s black. I’m not saying racism doesn’t exist, and that there aren’t racists in this country because it does exist. But it’s only a few in the minority. You mostly see the few enraged white people that the liberal media shows you instead of seeing the HUGE movement of people from all races and political parties worried about the direction their country is headed and uniting together to save it. Of course only a racist like you would see a “lynch mob.“
No president has lied more than George W Bush but if any black senator had yelled at any white president he/she would have been dealt with very harshly.
No they wouldn’t have because people like you would have shouted “racism,“ sort of like your doing now.
What is all the fuss about skin color anyway? Why should skin color or absence of it make white people better than anyone else?
Nobody is bringing up skin color except the democrats! Wake up people. The only people bringing up race are liberals and democrats, like you.
Only a racist would say that they don’t see the underlying racism in all of this.
No only a racist would see racism in everything and everywhere, where it truly doesn’t exist. The rest of us have risen above children like you.
No matter how you look at it Randy racism is a factor in how President Obama is being treated. It is not that he is inept, many Presidents have had failed ideas and programs, do you remember George W. Bush’s “NO Child Left Behind” crap?
It is natural that we won’t agree with what politicians do, but when I watch the news I see mostly enraged white people shouting as if they are a part of some kind of lynch mob.
There is a more civil way to express oneself.
No president has lied more than George W Bush but if any black senator had yelled at any white president he/she would have been dealt with very harshly. Mr. Randy for you to say that the race card is being played unnecessarily is crap.
The promise of America is that all men are created equal and that anything is possible in America, even a black man becoming president. However I guess that’s where some white people draw the line. What is all the fuss about skin color anyway? Why should skin color or absence of it make white people better than anyone else?
Only a racist would say that they don’t see the underlying racism in all of this. Oh, by the way, the only INEPT president we’ve ever had was George W Bush. He could not even give a proper speech without sounding like an idiot. I’m a Democrat and have always watched presidential addresses and even though I may not have agreed with the past Republican presidents they at least sounded intelligent. Have a nice day…
rickprovost and Randy have made all the salient points, covered all the important bases and deconstructed the basic argument masterfully.
The last paragraph of Ms. Griggs letter
although not the meat of the argument is an area that always amazes me.
“Our president pulled himself up by his bootstraps. He overcame poverty, the loss of his father at an early age, and other roadblocks to obtain the most prestigious position in the land.“
Stanley Ann Dunham may have had a few lean days when she was a teenage student with a baby to raise but poverty was never an issue.
Barack obama was educated at Punahou which is the most expensive and prestigious elementary school in Hawaii.
From there to Occidental in LA.
Columbia and Harvard.
His road to the presidency was star blessed.
He did not have roadblocks he had political and monied bulldozers to pave the way.
Plus at least two last minute juicy scandals that got just a little help hitting the media from guru David Axelrod.
No skullduggery, just divine providence.
Certainly no roadblocks.
There is very little information out there about Mr. Obama except for his own words in his own books.
Writing your own history makes for a very rosy resume.
Blair, that was a nice try. After all, isn’t it easier to attack someone’s character than it is to debate specifics of their argument? Isn’t it easier to cherry-pick the extremes from the other side and tar the rest with the same brush than it is to confront the substance of their position?
You are right to say that many conservatives don’t trust Obama and don’t agree with his politics. But your selective “evidence” falls far short of persuading fair-minded people that their motives are racist. We don’t need to travel back in time to the Civil War to find examples of internal upheaval. Go back to the last administration. Wouldn’t it be accurate to say that the left did not trust Bush and didn’t agree with his policies? And wouldn’t it also be fair to characterize the left’s general response to anything associated with Bush as “visceral upheaval?”
So given current events – with the Obama Administration and Democrats on Capitol Hill pushing to reorganize our country around policies and values that are antithetical to about half of population – wouldn’t that be a more logical and mature explanation for the noisy pushback? Be honest, Blair. Partisanship, rancor, bad behavior and excessive rhetoric flow in two directions. Do you really believe that resistance to the aggressive re-engineering of our society has nothing to do with all the sound and fury, and somehow, this time around it’s motivated simply by racial animus? Do you really believe that those who opposed Bill Clinton with equal fervor have suddenly abandoned their political ideology in favor of some dark racial impulse?
Give it some thought. I understand that it’s easier to just cry “racism” than it is to make a reasoned argument. But maybe next time you’ll be able to overcome your own prejudices and see that even if some people disagree with you politically, that doesn’t make them bad people.
I used to think America would become another France, or something at that low level. Now I see we won’t make it that high, maybe Rowanda or some similiar African so-called nation.
“Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose.“
The Race Card has officially been replaced with the “CRY” Wolf Card!
Take Kanye as an example, Taylor Swift was dumb founded when racism hit her right square in the face. Simply put she didn’t recognize it, chances are she doesn’t have a resist bone in her body and had no clue as to what had just happened to her!
That young lady has more class and talent in her little finger than Kanye will ever dream of!
Reverse discrimination is alive and well.
There’s seems to be no way to disagree with this president without being accused of being a racist. No matter what you say, no matter how you say it, BHO’s apologists will call you a racist.
As of September 1st at 8:00 am, please note, the accusation of racism is no longer valid or meaningful. You accusers have so overused and cheapened the accusation, it is fully expected and shouldn’t be taken seriously. This is certainly a regretful turn of events, because when real racism exists and is pointed out, the first response will be skepticism, not diligence.
But, when I look at who actually has the racial hangups, I see Jeremiah Wright, I see Van Jones, I see both of Barack Obama’s autobiographies - I don’t see confederate flags, nooses, burning crosses and overgrown corn-fed hillbillies with baseball bats here - and I know writers like Blair Grigg are searching as hard as they can, high and low to find them because they want racism to be the answer in the worst possible way. When it comes to bigotry, this time, the shoe is on the other foot.
I believe that, by screaming charges of racism, these accusers believe that they can deflect the discussion away from the substance of the president’s numerous failures and proposed programs that have “bad idea” written all over it (TARP - he voted for it, Cap & Trade, Auto Bail Outs, Cash for Clunkers, Skip Gates, failing to properly vet individuals like Van Jones, calling for government administered health care without clearly understanding the magnitude of the program).
Laugh it off America, accusations of racism should be expected. Sadly, the accusation of racism has been simply reduced to a political tactic. Who is the victim? The person who is genuinely a victim of racism, but, won’t be able to get anyone to take him seriously because, for political purposes, it was over-used to defend an inept president.
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