Any time we prejudge people based on skin color or ethnic background before we make any effort to get to know and understand that individual or group, we are engaging in racism.
As I see it, the main reason that our political primaries are getting so ugly now is that most of us do not spend enough time talking about racism, sexism, and other forms of prejudice. Since these subjects make most people uncomfortable, many choose not to discuss them at all.
However, we do pay a price for this stunted growth of the mind called “denial.”
When deniers are suddenly forced to confront issues, they tend to speak first and think later, and this can result in absurd remarks that make those with better communication skills want to sink into their seats, cover their eyes and ears, and exclaim, “yikes !”
Sorry to be so blunt, but just because Barack Obama is a smart black man and Hilary Clinton is a smart white woman, this does not automatically make them enlightened gurus of black culture or white womanhood (respectively) any more than McCain's fame as a POW assures us that he will “put America first” if elected.
We need to listen very closely to what all these candidates are saying and ask ourselves, “Do I want this person to be the leader of our country?” Some things I am hearing in the media lately are troubling to me because I expect such a leader to be someone who has already explored the issue of “isms” in depth.
Such a leader should be a deep-thinking person familiar with this subject matter to such an extent that his or her views are already very well worked out.
This being the case, such a leader should be able to articulate those views to the public with a certain clarity. So why all the stumbling and blabbering and remarks more reminiscent of Archie Bunker's household than a political primary?
I don't know about you, but I am not giving any of these candidates a pass. I am looking very carefully at what they say, what they do, and who they associate with.
If we really want “change” we need to set our standards for president at a much higher level, and if we compromise them, we do so at our own peril.
Lisa Backus
Auburn
However, we do pay a price for this stunted growth of the mind called “denial.”
When deniers are suddenly forced to confront issues, they tend to speak first and think later, and this can result in absurd remarks that make those with better communication skills want to sink into their seats, cover their eyes and ears, and exclaim, “yikes !”
Sorry to be so blunt, but just because Barack Obama is a smart black man and Hilary Clinton is a smart white woman, this does not automatically make them enlightened gurus of black culture or white womanhood (respectively) any more than McCain's fame as a POW assures us that he will “put America first” if elected.
We need to listen very closely to what all these candidates are saying and ask ourselves, “Do I want this person to be the leader of our country?” Some things I am hearing in the media lately are troubling to me because I expect such a leader to be someone who has already explored the issue of “isms” in depth.
Such a leader should be a deep-thinking person familiar with this subject matter to such an extent that his or her views are already very well worked out.
This being the case, such a leader should be able to articulate those views to the public with a certain clarity. So why all the stumbling and blabbering and remarks more reminiscent of Archie Bunker's household than a political primary?
I don't know about you, but I am not giving any of these candidates a pass. I am looking very carefully at what they say, what they do, and who they associate with.
If we really want “change” we need to set our standards for president at a much higher level, and if we compromise them, we do so at our own peril.
Lisa Backus
Auburn
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