“If Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position. And if he was a woman (of any color), he would not be in this position. He happens to be very lucky to be who he is. And the country is caught up in the concept.”
First of all, I should be honest and admit that I don’t give a rat’s @$$ about ANYTHING Geraldine Ferraro has to say. Then again, when someone says something as offensive and egregiously brain-dead as she did, how can one let that pass without comment…and the accompanying well-deserved ridicule? That she’s either been appointed by the Clinton campaign or appointed herself as an officially-sanctioned attack dog is beside the point. Her position with, and support for, the Clinton campaign made her a de facto spokesman for Hillary Clinton. Whether she meant her comments to be seen in that context, or whether she thought she was speaking as a private individual, the damage is done.
I don’t for a minute believe that Ferraro is a racist, nor that she’s stupid. Unfortunately, you’d never know it by listening to her. Even worse, she had the gall to accuse the Obama campaign of attacking her and spinning her innocent observations for their candidate’s self-aggrandizement. Um…hello? You say something grossly inappropriate and offensive about a candidate who just happens to be black…and you can’t believe that it’s being taken “out of context”?? Memo to Ms. Ferraro: how about you get a (&^%$#@ grip on reality…and while you’re at it, how about pulling your Manolo Blahniks out of your mouth? And your anterior from your posterior?
Barack Obama is where he is because of WHO he is, not WHAT he is. Being an African-American, as he said yesterday, is hardly an asset. To his credit, Obama has remained above the fray, which demonstrates which Democrat is conducting their campaign with class and dignity. Would that Sen. Clinton could see her way clear to doing the same.
Who knows? Perhaps Ferraro is right. I don’t know…and I don’t much care, because it doesn’t matter. The fact that it’s virtually impossible to have a dispassionate discussion about race and/or gender in this country without causing a shitstorm should hardly come as a surprise to any intelligent observer. This has been a reality longer than I’ve been dragging my sorry @$$ around this planet. Surely, a woman as intelligent, experienced, and accomplished as Geraldine Ferraro would understand and respect this unfortunately universal truth.
That Clinton and her campaign merely winked at Ferraro’s comments only confirms the depths to which her campaign has sunk. The candidate certainly isn’t going to take off the gloves in the way that Ferraro did, and it’s always much simpler to leave the spineless insults and the impugning of reputations to your surrogates. Hey, if they go overboard, you simply cluck disapprovingly, throw your surrogate under the (metaphorical) bus, and everyone walks away applauding you for having such high standards. Yeah, right…whatever….
I have no dispute with Ferraro’s right to say what’s on her mind. She’s dead wrong, but then the First Amendment doesn’t proscribe the utterance of statements that make you look like a complete DUMB@$$. She’s even free to resign with her oh-so-(not)-contrite letter to Sen. Clinton.
Dear Hillary -
I am stepping down from your finance committee so I can speak for myself and you can continue to speak for yourself about what is at stake in this campaign.
The Obama campaign is attacking me to hurt you.
I won’t let that happen.
Thank you for everything you have done and continue to do to make this a better world for my children and grandchildren.
You have my deep admiration and respect.
Gerry
Yep; there’s nothing quite like compounding rampant borderline racism with stunning ignorance, insensitivity, and a total lack of contrition, eh?
Sounds like someone needs to crawl back under her rock….
