Dirty Little Secret

I haven’t watched an inauguration since Clinton’s first. I was so happy and hopeful that day. But that’s nothing compared to how I feel today. Not simply because while I complained about the Republican presidencies of Reagan and Bush I, those complaints practically disappear when compared with my issues with this past administration.

I liked Clinton. I didn’t like Bush. But I never believed in either one of them. I never thought they were good men.

I believe in Barack Obama. I believe his is a good man as well as a brilliant one. I feel safe knowing he is president in a way that I’ve never felt before. I would like to bask in my happiness.

But I can’t do that and watch the news today.

Obama and Bush have handled this transition with class and sense. They handled the inauguration with class. But the talking heads – because it’s easier to comment on a lovely ceremony than to research and report on other news – are looking for conflict wherever they can find it. Now they’ve moved onto observing Gore and McCain at the luncheon, speculating on what they’re talking about. Hey, news professionals, they’re probably talking about how glad they are to finally be inside.

I think we need to be worrying less about the media having a liberal or conservative bias and worry more about how they have a stupidity bias. There are wars and conflicts going on all over the globe. It’s now come out that we tortured prisoners. We’re still in a financial and real estate mess – one that could always be explained better. The Steelers are going to be in the SuperBowl. So there’s PLENTY of serious news that they could be talking about. And instead CNN is telling me about what they’re eating at the luncheon and wondering what Senator Corbyn and Senator Clinton were talking about.

I read People magazine for gossip and info about luncheons. Or I watch E!. Doesn’t CNN have anything better to do?

Have you gotten an email “accusing” Barack Obama of being Muslim?

(For the record, I wouldn’t really care if he was Muslim, because it’s not the typical Muslims, especially not the typical American Muslims, who become crazy terrorists AND it was men who called themselves Christians who caused the Oklahoma City bombing. Just saying.)

What I find especially laughable is that the people passing on these emails are the same people who freaked out over Obama’s affiliation with the Reverend Wright – you know, his former pastor at a CHRISTIAN church.

So let’s all repeat this together – Barack Obama is NOT a Muslim.

But wait, Fox News reports he attended a Muslim school.

Yeah, when he lived in Indonesia. Where most schools are Muslim. I know a number of people who were sent to Catholic schools because they were better than the nearby public schools. . . . .but it didn’t turn any of them Catholic.

So can we please forget this whole guilty by middle name association and skin color thing? It’s beneath us as a nation.

Fine, says Fox News, but what about his terrorist hand gesture?

You mean the dapping? With his wife? Common African-American practice? The hand gesture Ironflower learned after high-fiving? The gesture that none of the Iraq vets I know ever saw done between any Middle-Easterners in their entire tours? That gesture?

Well, stutters Fox, his baby mama hates white people.

Er, Obama doesn’t have a baby mama. Unless he had kids before he married Michelle. Which I’m SURE would have come out long before now. Oh, you meant Michelle? She can’t be his baby mama, she’s his wife. And I’m pretty sure the campaign staff would be a lot darker if Michelle truly hated all white people. Perhaps she just hates ignorant white people like you?

I’m sorry if I sound bitter or if I’m preaching to the choir. But I just can’t stand that all this ignorance is actually being used to attack Obama. And that former Hillary supporters might vote for McCain because of it.

(Though the ones I saw on some news program – who have some dreadful group called Hillary fans for McCain or something – said that they were voting for McCain because of the sexism against Hillary. I’m not sure how voting for the anti-choice, anti-stem cell research, anti-gay marriage, anti-affordable health care  McCain strikes a blow for feminism, but hopefully there aren’t too many of those idiots out there)

I know there are people out there who legitimately support McCain and that’s fine. If his politics match yours, great. If you support him because you heard Obama’s really a Muslim whose baby mama hates white people, please go back to middle school where you belong. And remember, middle schoolers aren’t allowed to vote.