Comments on: FDL Book Salon Welcomes Earl Ofari Hutchinson: How Obama Won

By: libbyliberal

libbyliberal — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 00:55:25 +0000

I just heard that Congress’ pension is handled by AIG? An email going around. Any truth to that or conflict of interest there?

SNOPES SAYS THIS IS FALSE

By: Nicole Belle

Nicole Belle — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 23:07:54 +0000

He is not part of the administration. He wrote a book and should be treated with respect for that.

Never said he was nor do I think I was ever disrespectful to him.
EOH isn’t an economist. Looking for specific answers from him on that may not be a reasonable thing, especially in a book salon about what got Obama elected. I don’t think it’s disrespectful to say so.

By: eCAHNomics

eCAHNomics — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 23:03:16 +0000

I haven’t read the book, and I arrived late to the salon. But given the timing, i.e., the book was about the election but that’s over, I think the commenters were trying to get the author to extend his analysis of the skills Obama exhibited during the campaign to those required to govern. In reading the comments, it seems that wasn’t happening.

By: libbyliberal

libbyliberal — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 23:03:04 +0000

Respect all around. :)

By: Twain

Twain — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 22:54:42 +0000

He is not part of the administration. He wrote a book and should be treated with respect for that.

By: libbyliberal

libbyliberal — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 22:54:40 +0000

Thanks, Nicole. It was an interesting salon and I will check out his book.

Still enjoying Crooks & Liars! Keep up the good work.

By: Nicole Belle

Nicole Belle — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 22:51:32 +0000

FWIW, I don’t think EOH was ever an Obama apologist, especially in his writing.

Although it was clear that he didn’t have much use for the Bush administration, EOH was never partisan in his writing at all and was pretty tough on BO.

I suspect that he conflated more than one poster when protesting the use of “straw man”. But also, I don’t think that the economy is his forte, nor did he have clear answers for what should or shouldn’t be done.

By: BooRadley

BooRadley — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 22:51:03 +0000

Nicole and Earl, thank you very much for the chat. I apologize, I know many of my comments were off topic.

If you’re interested you can google Hugh and selise for their many excellent posts in Oxdown.

It’s critical imho that liberals/progressives remember that we’re politically impotent without the Black Caucus, GLBT communities, and labor unions. We need to keep reaching out to one another to build those bonds.

By: libbyliberal

libbyliberal — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 22:46:59 +0000

Good for you, selise. I thought I had missed something on the thread and it felt like a defensive response on his part. We don’t expect him to be an Obama apologist.

I wasn’t sure about straw man. I know there are “straw men” buying guns in America on behalf of Mexican cartel gang members. That is the context there. I appreciate you checking it out because I know I have heard it in the context you used it.

By: BooRadley

BooRadley — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 22:43:12 +0000

Thanks very much. I just feel there is so much ignorance about U.S. History, Ida B. Wells’ terrific efforts against lynching, the Colfax Massacre,Tulsa 1921. I just learned yesterday aboutSpringfield in 1908. These were very similar to pogroms taken against Native American tribes, and in less lethal ways against Asians, the Irish, and women.

I don’t think any U.S. city today in any way approaches the lethality of the Warsaw ghetto, but the goals of achieving effective segregation are similar.

From a historical perspective, those massacres are the the easy stuff. How many Americans lost their farm or their store, because they had ancestors who were slaves? Prior to ‘64, if you were not 100% European American, you had little access to adequate medical care, habeas corpus, or the judicial system. Left and progessives have been terrific on FISA, but prior to ‘64, habeas corpus had pretty much been reserved to males who were 100% European American.

Buck O’Neil, of the Negro Leagues could not attend high school in Florida, because only four high schools in the entire state would admit students of both genders who were not 100% European American.