politicalsoup

I get election poll updates in my e-mail every day and I look at how things are shaping up and the stories that come along with it. But perhaps more than that, I love to read the comments attached to these stories to get my daily dose of how ignorant, stupid, racist, sexist, and uninformed people are in this country. To think that these people’s vote has the same power as mine is offensive and disturbing, something that can make anyone crawl up into a little ball and cry.

Don’t believe me? Here’s today’s most egregious gem. This is straight quoted from a post by “Jerry” on usaelectionpolls.com about Obama:

“HE IS THERE BECAUSE HE IS THE RACIAL CANDIDATE ! THE BLACK ONE and his entire campain is trying ton play on WHITE GUILT ! I HAVE NONE ! I WAS NOTE INVOLVED IN SLAVERY BUT GIVEN A CHOICE I WOULD HAVE !”

Wow.

I mean, where do I even begin to try to attack the millions of things wrong with this statement. While this was perhaps the most jaw-dropping of all the things I read attached to this story - along with Palin being called a “doofus,” people back and forth about ACORN and stealing their vote back, Bush-bashing, and liberals telling conservatives to go to their KKK rally instead of the polls on Nov. 4 - the civil and halfway intelligent comments posted happened to be overwhelmed by the flowing idiocy. And sure, while poll-tests were used primarily to discourage blacks from voting during the civil rights area, perhaps it’s not a bad idea to bring them back to try to keep people like these from having any say in how our government is run (alright, that’s my obnoxious, civil liberty-stripping comment of the day, now back to business).

Media outlets (of which I fall into that category, though I do not tackle national politics in my small town paper capacity), are trying to focus on issues and report on the latest mud being slung be either candidate. I love that some media outlets take time to fact-check the crap being spit out of both candidates’ and their campaign’s mouths. But really it’s the outside sources, the bigots, the ignorant, and the uninformed that really bring the real magic to the political season. There’s nothing like hearing people spouting on about how Obama the Muslim will awaken all the Islamic and Communist terrorist sleeper cells to unleash massive crippling attacks against the nation. I wonder if it’s some sort of defect in the brain or an actual conscious choice to hear something like “Obama will take 50 percent of your salary to fund his socialism” or “Obama is a Muslim therefore he hates America and all the terrorists are going to blow up everything in America” and believe it. There’s a line between not supporting a candidate and being a hate-mongering animal.

Let me set up an analogy to prove it. I’m a Chicago Cubs fan. Therefore, I am NOT a Chicago Sox fan. As such, I don’t particularly want to see the Sox EVER beat the Cubs in the crosstown classics during interleague play. I laugh at my Sox friends when they lost in the playoffs and likewise they point out that the Cubs were completely lackluster in theirs. Yes, we disagree and want the other side not to do well, but it’s civil. Now if we behaved about Sox vs. Cubs like some people do about Republicans vs. Democrats it would be something more like: “Mark Buhrle uses steroids seven times a day and is also an abortion clinic worker in the offseason and he hates baseball and America because he plays for the Sox! The Sox cheat in every game that they win - they must be paying off the umpires to give them all the calls and are corking all of their bats and juicing all their players! Ozzie Guillen is a slaveowner who likes to fondle white boys before he decapitates them!” And for it to be truly effective, I’d be able to tell another Cubs fan and not only would they believe it, they would tell it to the next person. Now how ridiculous is it?

Politics are important. They play a role in everyone’s day to day lives, yes. You can disagree with a candidates proposals and think your party has a better person for the job. Fine, you’re entitled to that. You can speculate that Barack Obama is paying people to commit voter registration fraud - also fine with at least some scrap of legitimacy to the claim. But when you’re going around spouting off that Obama is unfit to lead because he’s black or because he’s Muslim (which he’s not) is just ludicrous.

It’s sad, very sad, to consider that people in this nation still have such deep seated hatreds and prejudices. The truth is that the color of skin or the belief in God, a god, many gods, or no god, or the genitalia beneath your underwear has NO bearing on whether you’re fit to lead a country. It amazes me that in places people can still not vote for Obama - even if they agree with his policies - because he is black. It’s sick.

This may be an appropriate place for me to say, yes, I do support Barack Obama for president and yes, I tend to lean liberal. Yes, I have been raised by conservative parents - parents who ARE racist and ARE ignorant. Yes I do live in Indiana which is typically a conservative lock.

My beef is not with conservatives. My beef is with idiots. I don’t care if you’re black or if you’re white or brown or yellow or red. I don’t care if you’re man or woman, old or young, Christian or Muslim or Buddhist or Hindu or atheist. But if you’re able to be mature and civil and reasonable in your beliefs, I will respect them. I will respect my mom when she says she thinks Obama’s health care plan is ineffective and explains why. I will not respect her when she says Michelle Obama looks like a monkey. (Both of which did happen in the last conversation we had)

Why not take an opportunity to quote Martin Luther King Jr.:
People should be judged by “the content of their character.”

I believe in this statement, not just as an argument for color but for anything. I will judge you by the content of your character. Am I wrong to think that I am better than Jerry from usaelectionpolls.com? Perhaps, that’s pride, that’s vanity on my part. But I certainly do judge his character to be reprehensible. I don’t know who you are, where you live, or what your overall beliefs are, Jerry. I don’t know anything about you except your name and your quote. But I am sure that without ever meeting you, that you are horrid and you are despicable. You are what is wrong with this country.

Fixing the economy, fighting terrorism, providing health care - to me, all these are somewhat insignificant compared the the great problem most beautifully exemplified by Jerry. This is problem with this nation that would greater benefit the good of our people and our future if it could be remedied.

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