The Obama Campaign's 3 Million dollar Offer.

[lizbud]

Has anyone heard these tapes yet? If you believe Mrs. Obama speaks
English with a heavy accent, then you might fall for this drivel. Too dumb
for words.

[Edwina's Secretary]

Has anyone heard these tapes yet? If you believe Mrs. Obama speaks
English with a heavy accent, then you might fall for this drivel. Too dumb
for words.

You mean these tapes...these tapes that will blow the lid off the election might be.....fake?????

I am shocked....absolutely shocked.

Next thing you will be telling me the brouhaha over Obama's birth certificate is so much bull hockey????

[Alysser]

At this point I think Nader's gonna win.

[Giselle]

White people may be prejudiced against, but they are not being judged by people who are preventing them from rising to the top based on nothing but the color of their skin. The people who are judging the white men are those that are angry because they have been prevented for centuries from achieving the same levels of success for no reason other than the color of their skin. And they are judging the white man's motives for promoting their own. How do you stop the people already invested in power from continuing to hand that power over only to those like them? They have shown through history that they are not going to allow people "different" from themselves to have any real power. How do you break that cycle? You can't just ignore it and hope it will go away.

Ginger's Mom, you put it so eloquently

Race is a big issue. Unless you've felt racism yourself, I think it's very difficult to imagine the enormous impact it plays in your life. I live in a predominately white area. I went to predominately white schools. My interests and hobbies are dominated by an overwhelming white majority. And you can bet that I feel it. I feel it when I sign a letter with my last name. I feel it when I talk to folks on the phone and subsequently meet them in person. I see them, and then I see myself. I see the difference. They see the difference. I am all too aware of my race and my outward differences.

As much as we would like ignore our outward differences and insist that we live in an "equal" society, the fact is we DON'T. Minorities are overwhelmingly more predisposed to health problems, diseases, lack of higher education, increases in violence, etc. The problem is that racism is so deeply ingrained into our society that we can choose to ignore it. We can choose to ignore that all the lowest performing schools (in my particular area) are those with an Af-Am/Mex-Am majority. We can choose to ignore that a majority of gang violence victims are minorities. We can choose to ignore that crime-ridden inner cities in large metropolitan areas are overwhelmingly composed of minorities.

But I just can't ignore it. I am a part of it. There is criticism against race-specific scholarships and whatnot. But when you consider the societal barriers that exist for these disenfranchised groups, you really can't help but admit that it's the least we can do.

I will also admit that I'm from Oakland, CA, where the ethnic disparity is simultaneously brutally obvious and, yet, alluringly obscure.

[Cinder & Smoke]

At this point I think Nader's gonna win.

I'd go with Dennis (The Menace) from Cleveland, but he dropped out.

[Grace]

I'd go with Dennis (The Menace) from Cleveland, but he dropped out.

Did you like him for himself - or his gorgeous wife

[kt_luvs_kitties]

I tend to believe that most people hire because of qualifications, instead of race. Call me naive.

Everyone in some way has felt discriminated against, black/white/mexican etc... I am the whitest girl you will ever meet. Really, southern accent and all. I have also felt prejudice against me. The people who are prejudice, I choose to ignore. They wont change, so I wont change my mind.

I must also add that gang violence is because of the gang and the need/want to break the law. NOT because the color of their skin. I also believe that the crime ridden areas with minorites, is BECAUSE the minorities are choosing to not be upstanding citizens in this society. THEY need to break the cycle... I can not and will not support helping those areas/people when they wont help themselves.

I will never believe in giving to one race, instead of ALL races. NO RACE (IMO)is more deserving than another.

I believe we should appreiciate our race, but not dwell on it and blame everything that does not go our way on the color of our skin. Until we do that, nothing will ever change.

[caseysmom]

Giselle works her tail off in school, trust me nobody works harder than her. Its funny and sad I never thought of Asians as being discriminated against, you know I am not far from you and its just so diverse here that I truly don't see color. I enjoy everyones differences...and well mostly the food

Its sad that in the bay area you still get treated differently there is quite a huge asian population. Success is due in large part to work ethic but thats not the whole thing, I don't know any teenager that works harder than Giselle and I certainly hope the playing feel is equal for her when it comes to universities/jobs.

[Edwina's Secretary]

I will never believe in giving to one race, instead of ALL races. NO RACE (IMO)is more deserving than another.

Do I assume you are as deeply offended by the legacy system at the top colleges/universities in our country? Such as the one George Bush used to get his "gentleman's C's"? (Legacy system is when...if your father or uncle or grandfather went to the school you get in. It is the orginal "Affirmative Action." Yale, Havard, Princeton perfected the systems.)

What do you say about the boards of directors of MAJOR corporation tape recording themselves discussing why blacks are not as qualified to work for them as white folk? There are some well-known cases including Coca-Cola and an oil company in Texas -- name escapes me and I don't want to name the wrong one. I am talking recent cases.

And yes, you are naive if you believe most people get hired because of their qualifications. They get hired because of where they went to school, who they know, how well they interview, how well they dress, and ...yeah qualifications.

It is called the halo effect. We tend to want to associate with people who look like us...who remind us of ourselves. People get hired by people they look like or talk like or... Of course, most organizations today work to change this pattern. But change comes slowly.

"Give in to one race?" There are attempts to level the playing field -- for those who look different -- sex, race, disability, etc. It is not "giving in" to any one group.

I have noticed over the last few weeks lots of ..."them"...."They" shouldn't get government assistance. "I" get it because I deserve it. "They" are free-loaders. "I" am different. "They" do not have a right to an opinion about what happens to the US government. "I" am different. "I" am entitled.

And those laws...Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, Equal Pay Act, etc. protect YOU just as much as THEM.

[Cinder & Smoke]

[Dennis the Menace]
Did you like him for himself - or his gorgeous wife

I've *watched* Dennis since long before he aquired his "trophy" wife ...

I've sometimes been in awe of how downright GOOFY some of his ideas are.
And then, every so often, he slips in an almost workable idea I agree with.

He's sorta my "None of the Above" guy!

[blue]

Has anyone heard these tapes yet? If you believe Mrs. Obama speaks
English with a heavy accent, then you might fall for this drivel. Too dumb
for words.

So if you heard the "tapes" at least give a clue where you heard them or you are talking out of your posterior. Again.

You mean these tapes...these tapes that will blow the lid off the election might be.....fake?????

I am shocked....absolutely shocked.

Next thing you will be telling me the brouhaha over Obama's birth certificate is so much bull hockey????

The BS about BO's CLB could very well be BH, its just odd that presenting a CC of the CLB is so difficult to produce. BO even recently went back to HI, he could have sent one of his disciples to retrieve it for him. Nor should be hard to prove he was never a citizen of Indonesia, or if he was that he reafirmed his USA citzenship by the age of 18.

I have to wonder if the Clinton's are funding Berg and his lawsuit.

[Cinder & Smoke]

BO's CLB ...
CC of the CLB ...

Your personal short-hand?

[kt_luvs_kitties]

You are right, I am offended IF someone {anyone} gets into college, just because their parents went there. Only if they work for it, and deserve it.

Just like I believe that NOONE should get something for nothing. Noone should get college scholarships, based on race. In my mind, race= nothing. It means nothing to me. I love my race, I hope that others love theirs. BUT it should NOT entitle ANYONE to ANYTHING, IMO.
-------
:And yes, you are naive if you believe most people get hired because of their qualifications. They get hired because of where they went to school, who they know, how well they interview, how well they dress, and ...yeah qualifications:

Almost all of the above is what I define as qualifications... Schooling, interview, dress... The only I dont is who they know...
-------------


Hey, minorities get into college for free... ISNT that on a HIGHER playing field ? An unfair advantage?? My parents and myself have to pay for my schooling, work hard EVERYDAY, but someone else, can just get in for free? That is not equal OR fair to me...


Edited to add: And no, myself or my family has never been on ANY government assistance. I believe that people who TRULY need it should get it.

[blue]

Your personal short-hand?

BO-Barack Obama, CLB-Certificate of Live Birth, CC-Certified Copy, and BH of corse is Bull Hockey.

Ill happily admit I was hoaxed if this plays out the way the Obama worshippers hope it does.

[Giselle]

Katie, it's just not that nice and simple in our society. =/ You may feel, from your experiences, that society IS that fair and equal and that gang violence and inner city crime are direct results of minorities' lack of interest in gaining a better life, but it's NOT. *Nobody* truly wants to be in the ghetto, working min. wage jobs and facing constant, daily violence.

Here's a disturbingly common scenario:

How can an inner city minority girl go to college when 1) she skipped preschool because her mother could not afford it 2) went to underfunded and, basically, cr@ppy public elementary/middle schools 3) went to an underfunded high school ridden with bad influences, etc. 4) her parents are busy working minimum wage jobs and not giving her the attention she needs 5) she doesn't have the access to the proper resources to get out of her situation, etc. etc.?

There's a reason why there are so many young/teenage pregnancies in inner cities. There's a reason why drugs are such a big problem, as are pimps and prostitution. It's not a life style they choose. It's often the only options available. It's sad. It's extremely sad, but how can they escape that cycle when there's no loophole out? *This* is why we need affirmative action programs.

I guess it's very difficult to talk about when we're coming from two totally different atmospheres. =/

Caseysmom, thanks for the compliments The Bay Area is very diverse, but that also makes us all aware of our differences. Oakland is a prime example. East/west Oakland are extremely crime ridden and inhabited primarily by af-ams and hispanics. North Oakland, near Piedmont, is extremely affluent and predominately white. The two best Oakland schools are in North Oakland. Some of THE worst schools in perhaps the state are in east/west Oakland. It's just sad that this disparity even exists, but it does.