If. whites don’t vote for black candidates they don’t have a chance.

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Nonsense. The House of Representatives is filled with representatives from districts that were gerrymandered, by both parties I might add, to guarantee minority representation.  Barack Obama was elected by a sweeping majority but only because so many turned out just to vote for him. They turned out to vote against Sarah Palin.  Not John McCain. Sarah Palin. Even some Republicans who remember what the party once was and are disgusted by what it has become turned out to vote against her and her kind who are the worst of what this country has to offer. 

Some voted for Barack Obama despite their racism.  Just simply because the thought of Sarah Palin possibly becoming president if something were to happen to John McCain was just too horrifying to think about.

We the people are manipulated and we would have been manipulated again had it not been for Barack Obama.  What appealed to so many was that he had not been in Washington long enough to have been bought like everyone else has been.  He’s an innocent.  Why he has sought to be conciliatory.  But he’s learning that one cannot be conciliatory to some.  To Republicans and Democrats, and Republicrats who have permeated both parties, and do not care about the people. 

This country would be so much better off if the racists would just stand up and be counted. So the rest of us could ignore you all more easily. 

I liked your article Margo and you seem to have said what needs to be said.  I’ve lived in the South and grew up during bussing and desegregation.  No, not the 50s during the 70s and eighties. White flight isn’t too far behind us -if it is at all. I recall in my sophomore or junior year of high school finding a fellow classmate weeping in the floor because someone had called her a racial epithet.  I’ll never forget that moment I knew all the people who wouldn’t say something racist in front of authority were perfectly willing to do so when they wouldn’t be punished for it. And they weren’t.

It was a good school nicknamed ‘Country Club High’ isn’t that ironic…good? perhaps I’ll look up the statistics on white flight in my home county and give you a story. I love the South but I read and weep for it as well. 

(Not that this problem is limited to the South)

It seems to me there’s an either/or approach to this discussion (and of the political landscape in general, for that matter). Of course disagreeing with the president is not in itself an act of racism.  To suggest such a thing is ludicrous.  However, all people who disagree with the president are not absolved of the possibility of being racist.  There are some people whose language has indicated that they will not accept a black man as leader of the free world.  Specifically decrying diversity on a picket sign is hardly a ringing endorsement of embracing our differences.  

Having said that, I strongly believe it’s neither reasonable nor productive to paint all Republicans with that same broad stroke.  Just as it’s not helpful to paint all Liberals as all being of one mind on everything. Arguments like those, whether they come from the entertainers of Fox News or MSNBC (don’t kid yourselves; they’re not journalists) are deal breakers for me.    

You know, once upon a time ago, there was a 14 year old girl in a state run, all girl institute. Some girls, like her, where put there because there wasn’t any room in the foster care system for them. They had done nothing wrong, except being born into an abusive home or other things along those lines. However, most of the girls there, were there because they were juvenile delinquents. Criminals, that the jails had no room for, or were too young to go to jail. 

 This young girl fell into the former category. She got along the best she could, being a minority in this closed community. It was pointed out to her everyday by the other girls and the staff, that she was a minority, and had better watch her back. Her being a minority effected everything. From what bed she slept in to what and when she got to eat. 

 One day, something happened that set off a riot. This girl was out in the quad ( a big lawn in the middle of4 "cottages".) , talking to a friend, who had just had a baby, when she noticed everyone running towards the quad. Some girls were trying to get into the cottages; They were trying to get away from the rioting ones.  Some made it, most didn’t, so they joined in the crowd for safety. 

This girls first thought was to get the baby to the cottage, so it wouldn’t be hurt. She didn’t even get to turn around before another girl was before her. The other girl told her she wasn’t good enough to hold that baby because she was a minority. The  other girl grabbed the baby and tossed her to her mother. By this time a crowd had gathered. As soon as the baby was snatched, the crowd grabbed girls and beat her. They beat her until she was broken and bloody. The police, who had managed to rally 20 mins. into the riot, had to use pellet guns and full riot gear to make a hole so they could get the girl out.  Total time for this to happen: 36 mins. 

After the girl was pulled out, she was taken into a cottage to await medical care.  While she was being attended to by the paramedic, another girl who hadn’t been involved in the riots, came up and attacked the girl while screaming racial slurs.  She managed to kill the girl, with a blow to the temple, before the staff supervisor could restrain her.  

4 mins and 30 seconds later, the girl was brought back by the paramedic. She was rushed to the ER. Per state law, a caseworker had to be present so the girl could be admitted. A caseworker was assigned this duty. While in the ER, the girl "died" again, this time for 3 mins and 16 seconds. Again, she was brought back. The girl was admitted to the hospital, over the caseworkers very loud protests.  A week later, she was discharged. That very same caseworker came to pick her up and bring her back to the state run facility. During the ride back, the girl had to listen to how a worthless "racial slur" wasn’t worth the time or the money being wasted on her. The majority were so much more worthy. 

I was that girl.  If anyone has a reason to hate based on skin color, it would be me. Do I?  No. I don’t even hate the girls who did that to me.  They made a choice that day and they have to live with it the rest of their lives. I do hope that they found peace, but then again, I wish that for everyone. 

Personally, I don’t give a fig if you’re black, white, purple, red, tan, orange, or neon green. If you act like a fool, I will treat you like a fool. If you act like a decent person, I will treat you like a decent person. If that makes me a racist, and it certainly does by some peoples definitions, then I guess I am. 

President Obama is making the same mistakes any other person would make with the same level of experience. White or black, it doesn’t matter, the man wasn’t ready. That fact is unavoidable. It might be unpleasant for some, joyful for others, but there it is and there it will remain. 

We, as a country elected him. Now we have to teach him, learn from him, and learn with him. We can hope he listens to us when we speak. We can vote him out of office if he doesn’t or we can give him another try.  It’s not about black or white and it never had been. It’s about him doing the job he was elected to do with the best interests of this country in mind. 

Of course, that’s impossible because there is no pleasing everyone all of the time. This is why our founders set down the bill of rights, the constitution, and even the declaration of independence . Think of them as a frame & foundation  for a house.  Yes, things need tweaked, but the overall foundation should be left alone, or the whole thing will fall apart.  

 Former President Bush didn’t listen to the people and he didn’t uphold his office. That man did more to erode our rights than any other president in our history. If any president was marching us into a state other than a democratic republic, it was him. Get your facts correct if you "think" you know else wise. Ever read the Patriot Act? The Real ID act? Been to the airport recently? 

 Us uneducated racists would like President Obama to correct the things wrong with the foundation of this country. If he doesn’t, we’ll ask the next president. (Even if she/he’s neon green)