Sexism

A New Racism And Sexism: Controversy Over Michelle Obama’s Derriere

Ronald 17 Comments

Barack Obama being the first racially mixed President, but with an image of being totally “Black” even though his mother was white, has been subjected to constant racism by talk show hosts on the RIght, by Fox News Channel, by code language used by Republican politicians, and by ordinary citizens, particularly in the South, who are unable to accept that we have a President who represents a minority heritage, rather than the white Caucasian majority which is rapidly moving toward being a minority itself in the next 30 years.

But now the attack on First Lady Michelle Obama, who is totally African American, unlike her husband, is accelerating on the issue of her appearance, with jokes and criticism being issued by the likes of Rush Limbaugh, the original heavy set “gas bag”; Republican Congressman James Sensenbrenner of Wisconsin, who also is overweight; and even by coaches and teachers in their professional roles, something totally inappropriate!

The comment is made that her arms are too muscular, but also her posterior is overly large, forgetting that she is 50 years old, and cannot be expected to have the body of a 25 or 35 year old.

And for Limbaugh and Sensenbrenner, who are both overly heavy themselves, to comment about being overweight in the derriere, is an amazing case of hypocrisy and gall, but what else is new about conservative talk show hosts and Republicans being so?

So now the new racism and sexism is in play without any shame, and shows us how little progress has been made in electing the first minority President in American history twice by popular vote majorities!

But just as Barack Obama ignores attacks, Michelle Obama is also dismissive of stupid, foolish, ignorant statements about her appearance, keeping her dignity in the midst of a flailing opposition which has nothing to offer the nation except personal insults and character assassination.

And meanwhile, the public opinion rating of both Barack and Michelle Obama continues to soar into the stratosphere!

The Growing Looniness And Insanity Of Obama Critics: Joe Arpaio And Richard Cebull

Ronald 1 Comment

It has been said that politics is entertainment, and the right wing has been more and more the lunatic fringe, never letting up on their vicious attacks on President Barack Obama.

Bill Press, the talk show host and liberal activist, has just published THE OBAMA HATE MACHINE regarding this, but even since publication, we are seeing more evidence that the pace of hate is growing ever faster.

Now we have Maricopa County, Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who is being investigated by the federal government for racial profiling and abuse of power in the handling of illegal immigrants, and Hispanics and Latinos in general, and the kind of harsh conditions that are used in jails in his county.

Arpaio now has decided to accuse Barack Obama as having a forged birth certificate, and held a press conference a few days ago to revive the “birther” conspiracy theory which has been ridiculed and exposed as false so many times that it makes one want to scream! This is his way of getting revenge on the Obama Administration, and it shows that Arpaio is a loose cannon out of control, not giving a damn about what people say or publish about him. He is an example of the worst element in law enforcement, and undermines respect for that very important group who do not need a lawess, arrogant man such as Arpaio to ruin their reputation.

And then we have US District Court Judge Richard Cebull of Montana, appointed by President George W. Bush to the federal courts in 2001, and becoming the Chief Judge for the district in Montana in 2008, who has done the most outrageous thing possible for a federal judge. He sent an email that was both racist and sexist about President Obama, stating it was a joke, showing terrible judgment, and making one wonder whether he could ever be objective in future court trials and cases in Montana. The joke was that that African Americans were equivalent to dogs, and that Obama’s white mother had had sex with animals. Cebull apologized profusely, but the damage was done, and saying it was not racist and sexist, but only anti Obama was insufficient, as a federal judge does not have the right to express political views that could affect his supposed objective judgments on cases involving race and gender that come before his court. Cebull issued a profuse apology, but that is simply not enough!

The answer is that Arpaio needs to be forced from office for his corruption and abuse of power, and that Cebull resign in disgrace, or face impeachment investigation and removal by the US Senate for his behavior, since both people are totally beyond the pale in their dealings and utterances.

Those who believe in fairness and equity in the field of law and justice MUST fight to remove these cancers from our law enforcement and judicial communities!

Evangelical Christians, Orthodox Jews, And Prejudice Against Women, Gays, Blacks

Ronald 1 Comment

It is a very unpleasant reality that people who claim extreme religiosity, whether evangelical Christians or Orthodox Jews, often have proved to be bigoted and prejudiced against women, gays, and blacks. It is a sad commentary on those who profess to be closest to God!

This reality rears its ugly head when we learn that the leader of an evangelical group in Iowa has called upon Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann to withdraw from the Presidential race, even though she is polling better than Texas Governor Rick Perry and former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum in the state polls before the Iowa Caucuses that occur thirteen days from now. What reason other than being a woman could there be for such a statement? It is well known that evangelical Christians believe in the “traditional” role of women as walking behind men and being subjugated to their husbands. Also, Orthodox Jews see women as not worthy to sit with men at a synagogue service, and separate men from women at weddings. It is time for such discrimination to end in both religious groups!

It is also well known that both groups are anti gay, and both have promoted racist attitudes against African Americans historically, and have not repudiated such attitudes even recently. This is a good explanation why the “n” word has been utilized so often in both evangelical and Orthodox Jewish circles.

All of this is extremely outrageous, and undermines the whole concept of what it means to be religious!