Please Senator McCain, Ask Senator Obama to Come Clean for the Good of
America:  Enough of Drip, Drip, Drip

Introduction:  

For the good of America, Senator Obama should come clean about his
questionable associations and activities.  If Senator Obama were to be
elected with these clouds over his head, they would plague his presidency,
and America would suffer.  For the good of America, please come clean,
Senator Obama.  The American people are a forgiving people when they are told
the truth, unless, of course, the truth is unforgivable.  Please Senator
Obama, enough of drip, drip, drip.  

Proposed McCain Speech:  

Now, here are some points I hope Senator McCain makes, and I present them in
the form of a proposed speech.  

"Friends, the last time Senator Obama and I had a debate, there were issues
that my campaign was looking into about Senator Obama, but we hadn't formed
undeniable conclusions by debate time.  So, it would have been premature to
bring them out at that time before the American people.  

I have made mistakes in the past, and I have come clean with the American
people and have admitted them.  

Lately, Senator Obama or his friends have been running ads on TV in which the
viewers are reminded of the Keating Five scandal.  I was one of the Keating
Five, and I was embarrassed by the damage it did to my reputation at that
time.  Charles Keating and three of the Keating Five went to jail.  However,
two of the Keating Five were exonerated, and one of those two was me.
Remember, friends, the exonerations occurred after long and thorough
investigations.  

Now I turn to Senator Obama and urge him to come clean with the American
people.  

After records from an Illinois university were made public just recently, we
have studied Senator Obama's relationships with William Ayers, an American
radical and terrorist, who was involved with numerous domestic bombings that
took place in the U. S. in the 1970's.  Senator Obama was only 8 years old at
the time, so obviously, Senator Obama had nothing do to with domestic
terrorism.  

Yet, William Ayers has gone on with his life, and the paths of his life and
Senator Obama's life have crossed numerous times.  

When Barack Obama ran for political office, he was a highly educated man.  He
was a graduate of Columbia University with a major in political science.  He
was also a graduate of Harvard Law School and President of the Harvard Law
Review.  
For his campaign, Barack Obama went to the house of William Ayers and his
wife, also a terrorist along with William Ayers, to attend a fundraiser for
Obama's political campaign.  

And, Senator Obama's association with William Ayers did not end there.  In
the 1990's, both William Ayers and Barack Obama were both on boards of
foundations.  

As far as we can determine, Barack Obama was responsible for giving grants,
and he gave grants, totalling lots of money, to William Ayers for his
educational projects.  And what were the educational projects of William
Ayers designed to do?  To radicalize students in schools, that's what.  

Yet, when Senator Obama was first asked about William Ayers in his
presidential campaign, he said he was just someone who lives in the
neighborhood.  

Later, only after more information came to light about further associations
between Senator Obama and William Ayers, then Senator Obama stated that
Obama's children and Ayer's children went to the same school.  

Still later, Senator Obama stated that he doesn't see William Ayers on a
regular basis.  

Even Senator Obama's campaign director David Axelrod said that  Senator Obama
and William Ayers were friends.  

Incidentally, there are three major sources for information about Senator
Obama from Senator Obama himself:  his Website and his two books.  And
William Ayers is not mentioned in any of these three sources.  

The Obama disclosures are like a leaky faucet -- drip, drip, drip.  

It is not with pleasure that I make these statements about Senator Obama, but
I think the American people deserve a full and complete explanation, not a
drip, drip, drip explanation.  Senator Obama, please turn the faucet on.  

And, what about Rev. Wright?  Why did Senator Obama remain in his
congregation for almost 20 years, exposing himself, his wife, and his two
young daughters to the anger, to the hate, and to the disdain for America.
How did we learn about these aspects of Rev. Wright?  Through the DVDs of his
sermons that were sold at his church.  We did not learn about these aspects
of Rev. Wright from Senator Obama's Website or his two books, even though in
Senator Obama's second book, "The Audacity of Hope", Senator Obama states
that the very title of the book was inspired by one of Rev. Wright's
sermons.  

And what about Tony Rezko, who has been convicted of corruption charges, who
was a big campaign contributor to Senator Obama during his political career,
who was a slum lord in Obama's district when he was in the Illinois State
Senate, and whose wife purchased the home lot next to Senator Obama's,
resulting in a $300,000 reduction in the price for Senator Obama's home?  We
did not learn about Tony Rezko in Senator Obama's Website or his two books.  

And what about ACORN?  There are more than a dozen U. S. states that are
investigating ACORN for voter registration fraud.  At one time, Senator Obama
was a lawyer and a trainer for ACORN.  We did not learn about ACORN in his
Website or his two books.  

Also, why won't Senator Obama allow his records at Columbia University and at
Harvard Law School to be released for the American people to see and think
about?  We learned virtually nothing about his time in Columbia University,
where he majored in political science, or details about his time at Harvard
Law School or at the Harvard Law Review in his Website or his two books.  

Although there is a troubling something from Senator Obama's first book,
"Dreams from My Father" on Page 139, where Obama states that after some
short-term jobs, he was unemployed, and
he states:  

"In six months I was broke, unemployed, eating soup from a can.
In search of some inspiration, I went to hear Kwame Toure,
formerly Stokely Carmichael of SNCC and Black Power fame, speak
at Columbia."  

It is common knowledge that I was sixth from the bottom at the U. S. Naval
Academy in my graduation class.  That's not something I'm proud of.  But I
admitted it.  And I'm grateful that it hasn't been an impediment to my
subsequent jobs.  

It is common knowledge that Hillary Clinton, at the age of 17, was in a group
of Young Republicans, and she supported a Republican candidate for president
of the U. S..  She was a Goldwater Girl.  Later changed over to be a
Democrat.  

It is common knowledge that Senator Biden had problems with plagiarism in
college in law school.  

But we know very little about the substance of Senator Obama's past education
and career, and, as I've already stated, Senator Obama's Website and his two
books leave so much unsaid.  But how many of the American people have
actually read his two books.  People on my campaign have, and they still
think of Senator Obama as an unknown person.  

Even when Barack Obama was in the Illinois State legislature, he voted
"present" more than 120 times.  For those times, we have no idea what his
positions were.  Then, as now, he has hidden important facts about his
opinions and beliefs.  

All I ask is for Senator Obama to put country first and come clean with the
American people as so many of us candidates for the Presidency have done.  

The American people are a forgiving people when they are told the truth,
unless, of course, the truth is unforgivable.  

I've gone out on a limb in the past, because I put country first.  
I opposed President Reagan about sending Marines to Lebanon, and, horribly,
the Marines were slaughtered there by terrorist bombings.  

I put country first when I supported the surge in Iraq, even though it was
forecasted by many, including Senator Obama, that the surge would not work.
Many commentators predicted that this position of mine would mark the
beginning of the end of my candidacy.  

Yes, even when I temporarily suspended my campaign to try to help with
solving U. S. financial problems in my taxpayer-paid job as an Arizona
Senator, I put country first.  For me that wasn't a political stunt as some
have suggested.  I was sincere about it.  
Now, I ask Senator Obama to come clean with the American people.  No more
drip, drip, drip about his associations with William Ayers, Rev. Wright, Tony
Rezko, and ACORN.  Let us know about your activities at Columbia University
and Harvard Law School.  

I feel that this is important for America.  

Whether I win this election or whether Senator Obama wins this election, I
hope that the next president does not take office with serious clouds over
his head.  

If after winning an election, a president-elect has clouds over his head,
there is a strong probability that there will be clouds over his presidency.
This would not be good for America.  I hope Senator Obama puts country first
and comes clean with the American people.  

If he does, that would be great for the American people, and perhaps that
would be great for Senator Obama, too.  So be it.  

It would be great for me too, because even if I weren't elected President, I
don't want my president to have clouds over his head.  

If Senator Obama doesn't come clean and tell the truth to the American
people, I can only think that, perhaps, Senator Obama feels that the truth
about him is unforgivable.  Enough of drip, drip, drip."  

Obama's "Good Judgment" May Have Been to Copy His Mentor and Senator, Dick
Durbin

Summary:  It does not show political bravery to copy the position of the
popular senior Senator Dick Durbin.  Probably, Obama's copying Senator Durbin
was the essence of Obama's "good judgment".   

Fact 1.  Dick Durbin is a very popular senior U. S. Senator from Illinois who
entered the U. S. Senate in January 1997.  Since then until now, he remains
very popular with the voters in Illinois.  He was re-elected in 2002 with
over a 20% margin over his opponent (see
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Durbin).  

Fact 2.  Dick Durbin is and was a mentor to Barack Obama for years before
2002.   (see http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=11A5AB9D-3048-5C12-
0017ACC5432F2DC6)

Fact 3.  On September 29, 2002, Dick Durbin held a news conference in Chicago
to announce that "absent dramatic changes" in the resolution, he would vote
against the resolution authorizing war on Iraq.  
(see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Durbin)  

Opinion:  It must have been obvious to Barack Obama, and perhaps suggested by
his mentor Dick Durbin, that the "good judgment" of Senator Durbin was a
"good judgment" for Obama to copy.  

Fact 4.  On October 2, 2002, at the first high-profile Chicago anti-Iraq War
rally in Federal Plaza, Dick Durbin repeated his promise to oppose the
resolution in a letter read during the rally.  (see
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Durbin)

Fact 5.  Barack Obama gave his speech at the same anti-war rally in Chicago
on October 2, 2002 at which Dick Durbin's letter was read.  

Opinion:  I am wondering if the convergence of the reading of Dick Durbin's
letter and the speech by Obama at the same anti-war rally is a mere
coincidence or a tactic of Obama to copy Senator Durbin, perhaps even
suggested by Senator Durbin, who didn't appear in person at the anti-war
rally.  In this respect, Obama was Durbin's surrogate.  

Opinion:  Such actions of the popular Senator Durbin cast great doubt upon
Obama's claim that his anti-war position showed political bravery on his
part.  To me, it does not show political bravery to copy the position of the
popular senior Senator Durbin.  Probably, Obama's copying Senator Durbin was
the essence of Obama's "good judgment".      

Obama Almost Quotes Rev. Wright When He Says, "These guys love to
throw a rock and hide their hand."

On ABC's "This Week" with George Stephanopoulos, on September 7,
2008, in talking about rumors relating to Obama's being a Muslim,
Obama said, "These guys love to throw a rock and hide their
hand."

I did an Internet search on a search engine for the following
search statement:  "hide their hand" Wright.  

Here is part of what I found.  

Trinity Church of Christ, Chicago, Il
Sermon: Watch Out For People Who Would Throw A Brick and Then
Hide Their Hand Rev. Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright

The sermon is on YouTube.com.  

Is it not obvious that Obama was simply paraphrasing Rev. Wright
by substituting the word "rock" for "brick"?  

Also, why doesn't Obama give credit to Rev. Wright for his words?
Is this another case of plagiarism?  

Comparison of Resumes:  McCain/Palin versus Obama/Biden

Resumes of John McCain and Barack Obama are compared; and resumes of Sarah
Palin and Joseph Biden are compared, after each of them graduated college.  

McCain's resume:  
*(1)Navy pilot
*(2)attended National War College
*(3)commanding officer of a Naval training squadron
*(4)Navy's liasion to the U. S. Senate
*(5)vice-president of public relations for a beer distributor business
*(6)legislator (in U. S. House of Representatives)
*(7)legislator (in U. S. Senate).

Obama's resume:  
*(1)worked at a publishing and advsory firm dedicated to assisting American
companies operating abroad
*(2)worked at a New York State-wide non-partisan political organization
focusing on chapters at existing colleges campuses in the State of New York
*(3)community organizer in Chicago
*(4)attended Harvard Law School
*(5)elected President of Harvard Law Review
*(6)civil rights lawyer
*(7)legislator (in Illinois State Senate)
*(8)teacher in law school
*(9)legislator (in U. S. Senate).  

Whose resume is better for Commander-in-Chief?  

Palin's resume:  
*(1)television journalist
*(2)worked for a commercial fishing company
*(3)member of town council in an Alaska town
*(4)mayor of the same Alaska town
*(5)elected president of the Alaska Conference of Mayors
*(6)member, then chairman of Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation   Commission
*(7)served as Ethics Supervisor for Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation
Commission
*(8)Governor of Alaska (and commander of Alaska National Guard)

Biden's resume:  
*(1)attended Syracuse University College of Law
*(2)member of a county council in the State of Delaware
*(3)teacher in a law school
*(4)legislator (in U. S. Senate).  

All facts were obtained from respective articles and links on Wikipedia.com.

Left Out of CNN's "Obama Revealed"

Here are a few facts that neither Obama nor the narrator stated on CNN's
"Obama Revealed", broadcast on August 30, 2008, that Obama had stated
previously in one or the other of his books "Dreams from My Father" and "The
Audacity of Hope".  

1.  Although it was stated that Obama went to a public school in Indonesia,
no mention was made that he had Koranic studies in that in Indonesian public
school.  (Page 124 in "Dreams".)

2.  Although mention was made of Obama's visit to Kenya, no mention was made
about his trip to Pakistan in 1981.  (Page not recalled.)

3.  During Obama's visit to Kenya, he learned that his father had been a
bigamist.  His father was married to a Kenyan woman when he married Obama's
American mother.  (page 422, in "Dreams".)

4.  During a brief statement about his U. S. Senate campaign against Alan
Keyes, no statement was made that Obama had lost his composure with Alan
Keyes and poked him in the chest.  Video of that incident that was played on
TV numerous times.  (Page 211 in "Audacity".)
 
See "Dreams from My Father:  A Story of Race and Inheritance", published by
Three Rivers Press, New York, New York, Copyright 1995, 2004.

Also, see "The Audacity of Hope", by Barack Obama, 2006, First Edition, Crown
Publishers, New York, New York.

Opinion:  Obama Predicted that American Deaths in an Iraq War Would Be in
Vain

The Iraq War started on March 20, 2003.  

Prior to the war, Obama gave a speech on October 2, 2002, when he was an
Illinois State Senator.  

At the end of that speech, as I interpret his words, Obama predicted that U.S. deaths in a future Iraq war would be in vain.  

It is true that earlier in that speech, Obama voiced his opposition to such a
war.  However, what I am focussing on here is his ending to that speech which
I quote below.  

Please note that I have CAPITALIZED words for emphasis.  

Here is the quote:  

"We may have occasion in our lifetime to once again rise up in defense of our
freedom, and pay the wages of war. But we ought not - we will not - travel
down that hellish path blindly. NOR SHOULD WE ALLOW THOSE WHO WOULD MARCH OFF
AND PAY THE ULTIMATE SACRIFICE, WHO WOULD PROVE THE FULL MEASURE OF DEVOTION
WITH THEIR BLOOD, TO MAKE SUCH AN AWFUL SACRIFICE IN VAIN."   

The full text of the speech can be found at the following links:  
a.  "Barack Obama's Iraq Speech" on Wikisource --  
http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Barack_Obama%27s_Iraq_Speech
b.  "Before the Iraq War: Obama's Bad Judgments about the Coming War" on
Pensero Postings --
http://pensereo.blogtownhall.com/2008/07/31/before_the_iraq_war__obamas_bad_j
udgments_about_the_coming_war.thtml

Interestingly, the lines that I capitalized above from Obama's October 2,
2002 speech, are a REVERSAL IN MEANING from the following lines from Abraham
Lincoln's famed Gettysburg Address, portions of which I have CAPITALIZED for
purposes of comparison.   
 
Abraham Lincoln stated at the end of his Gettysburg Address:     
 
"It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before
us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause
for which THEY GAVE THE LAST FULL MEASURE OF DEVOTION -- THAT WE HERE HIGHLY
RESOLVE THAT THESE DEAD SHALL NOT HAVE DIED IN VAIN -- that this nation,
under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the
people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."  
 
By comparing Obama's words and Lincoln's words, it appears to me that OBAMA,
IN HIS PRE-IRAQ-WAR SPEECH, IS FORECASTING THAT AMERICAN DEATHS IN A FUTURE
IRAQ WAR WILL BE IN VAIN.   
 
In my opinion, OBAMA'S PRE-IRAQ-WAR STATEMENT SHOWS BAD JUDGMENT.  Is that
what is wanted in a Commander-In-Chief?  

In addition, perish the thought that Obama even now believes that American
deaths in the Iraq War have been and will continue to be in vain.  

Before the Iraq War:  Obama's Bad Judgments about the Coming War
 
Obama's Pre-Iraq-War Bad Judgments Cast Doubt on His Ability to be Commander-
In-Chief   
 
SUMMARY:   
 
1.  In fairness, Obama showed pre-Iraq-war GOOD JUDGMENT by forecasting some
of the costs and undesireable consequences of an impending Iraq War.   

2.  However, Obama showed pre-Iraq-war BAD JUDGMENT by forecasting that
American lives that would be lost in such an impending Iraq War would be lost
in vain.   

3.  Obama showed pre-Iraq-war GROSSLY BAD JUDGMENT by forecasting that, in
such an impending Iraq War, maybe the fighting would be over in 2 to 6
months.   

4.  Since Obama's pre-war bad judgment relating to the length of time of "fighting" is directly related to the presidential duties of Commander-In-Chief, ONE MAY DOUBT OBAMA'S JUDGMENT AS IT RELATES TO THE PRESIDENTIAL DUTIES OF COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF.   
 
 
INTRODUCTION:   
 
The Iraq War started on March 20, 2003.   
 
Please note that I use CAPITALIZATION to emphasize some of my own ideas, and
I also use CAPITALIZATION to emphasize some of the words in quotations that I
provide below.   
 
In this article, I am considering two pre-Iraq-war statements by
Obama:   
I.  Obama's October 2, 2002 speech, and  
II.  An article entitled "Obama Challenges Opponents to Speak Out on War," by
The Associated Press, March 3, 2003.   
 
Prior to the Iraq War, Barack Obama made a number of statements, some of
which he has lauded as being examples of his good judgment.   
 
Moveover, OBAMA IS INFLATING THAT LAUDED PRE-WAR GOOD JUDGMENT TO SERVE AS EVIDENCE THAT OBAMA HAS GOOD JUDGMENT GENERALLY.  One of
Obama's campaign slogans is "Judgment to Lead".    

However, some of Obama's pre-war statements show, in my opinion, OBAMA'S BAD
JUDGMENT.   
 
Understandably, for political purposes, Obama has ignored such instances of bad  judgment in pre-Iraq-war days.  Yet, when considering examples of a person's  judgment, it seems to me only fair to point out examples of bad judgment as well as good judgment.   
 
 
I.  OBAMA'S OCTOBER 2, 2002 SPEECH
 
More specifically, Obama gives great weight to a speech he gave at an anti-war rally in Chicago on October 2, 2002 when he was an Illinois State Senator.  In that speech, he stated  that he opposed the U. S. having a  war with Iraq.  Obama quoted a  portion of that speech in his book,  The Audacity of Hope, by Barack  Obama, 2006, First Edition, Crown   Publishers, New York, New York,
ISBN-13:978-0-307-23769-9,
ISBN-10:0-307-23769-9, www.crownpublishing.com.   
 
On page 295 of that book, Obama quoted the following portion of his October
2, 2002 speech as follows:   
 
"I know that even a successful war against Iraq will require a U.S. occupation of undetermined length, at undetermined cost, with undetermined consequences. I know that an invasion of Iraq without a clear rationale and without strong international support  will only fan the flames of the  Middle East, and encourage the worst,  rather than the best, impulses of the  Arab world, and strengthen the  recruitment arm of AI Qaeda." 
 
In my opinion, portions of the speech that Obama quoted show pre-war good
judgment of Obama.   
 
However, there are other portions of the October 2, 2002 speech that, in my
opinion, show Obama's having pre-war bad judgment.   
 
The full text of the speech can be found on Wikisource (related to Wikipedia)
at the following link --  
http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Barack_Obama%27s_Iraq_Speech
 
For your convenience, here is the FULL TEXT OF OBAMA'S OCTOBER 2, 2002
SPEECH:   
 
"Good afternoon. Let me begin by saying that although this has been billed as
an anti-war rally, I stand before you as someone who is not  opposed to war
in all circumstances.
 
The Civil War was one of the bloodiest in history, and yet it was only
through the crucible of the sword, the sacrifice of multitudes, that we could begin to perfect this union, and drive the scourge of slavery from our soil. I don't oppose all wars.  My grandfather signed up for a war the day after Pearl Harbor was bombed, fought in Patton's army. He saw the dead and dying across the fields of Europe; he heard the stories of fellow troops who first entered Auschwitz and Treblinka. He fought in the name of a larger freedom, part of that arsenal of democracy that triumphed over evil, and he did not fight in vain. I don't oppose all  wars.
 
After September 11th, after witnessing the carnage and destruction, the dust
and the tears, I supported this Administration's pledge to hunt down and root
out those who would slaughter innocents in the name of intolerance, and I
would willingly take up arms myself to prevent such a tragedy from happening again.  
I don't oppose all wars. And I know that in this crowd today, there is no
shortage of patriots, or of patriotism. What I am opposed to is a dumb war.
What I am opposed to is a rash war.

What I am opposed to is the cynical attempt by Richard Perle and Paul
Wolfowitz and other arm-chair, weekend warriors in this Administration to
shove their own ideological agendas down our throats, irrespective of the costs in lives lost and in hardships borne.
 
What I am opposed to is the attempt by political hacks like Karl Rove to
distract us from a rise in the uninsured, a rise in the poverty rate, a drop
in the median income - to distract us from corporate  scandals and a stock
market that has just gone through the worst month since the Great Depression.
 
That's what I'm opposed to. A dumb war. A rash war. A war based not on reason
but on passion, not on principle but on politics.
 
Now let me be clear - I suffer no illusions about Saddam Hussein. He is a
brutal man. A ruthless man. A man who butchers his own people to secure his own  power. He has repeatedly defied UN resolutions, thwarted UN inspection teams,  developed chemical and biological weapons, and coveted nuclear capacity. He's a bad guy. The world, and the Iraqi people, would be better off without him.  But I also know that Saddam poses no imminent and direct threat to the United States, or to his neighbors, that the Iraqi economy is in shambles, that the Iraqi military a fraction of its former strength, and that in concert with the international community he can be contained until, in the way of all petty dictators, he  falls away into the dustbin of history.
 
I know that even a successful war against Iraq will require a US occupation
of undetermined length, at undetermined cost, with undetermined consequences. I know that an invasion of Iraq without a clear rationale and without strong international support will only fan the flames of the Middle East, and 
encourage the worst, rather than best, impulses of the Arab world, and
strengthen the recruitment arm of al-Qaeda.
 
I am not opposed to all wars. I'm opposed to dumb wars. So for those of us
who seek a more just and secure world for our children, let us send a clear
message to the president today. You want a fight, President Bush? Let's
finish the fight with Bin Laden and al-Qaeda, through effective, coordinated
intelligence, and a  shutting down of the financial networks that support
terrorism, and a homeland security  program that involves more than color-
coded  warnings.
 
You want a fight, President Bush? Let's fight to make sure that the UN
inspectors can do their work, and that we vigorously enforce a non-
proliferation treaty, and that former enemies and current allies like Russia
safeguard and ultimately eliminate their stores of nuclear  material, and
that nations like Pakistan and India never use the terrible weapons already
in their possession, and that the arms merchants  in our own country stop
feeding the countless wars that rage across the globe.
 
You want a fight, President Bush? Let's fight to make sure our so-called
allies in the Middle East, the Saudis and the Egyptians, stop  oppressing
their own people, and suppressing dissent, and tolerating corruption and
inequality, and mismanaging their economies so  that their youth grow up
without education,  without prospects, without hope, the ready recruits of
terrorist cells.  
 
You want a fight, President Bush? Let's fight to wean ourselves off Middle
East oil, through an  energy policy that doesn't simply serve the interests
of Exxon and Mobil.
 
Those are the battles that we need to fight. Those are the battles that we
willingly join.  The battles against ignorance and intolerance. Corruption
and greed. Poverty and despair.

The consequences of war are dire, the sacrifices  immeasurable. We may have
occasion in our  lifetime to once again rise up in defense of our freedom,
and pay the wages of  war. But we ought not - we will not - travel  down that
hellish path blindly. NOR SHOULD WE  ALLOW THOSE WHO WOULD MARCH OFF AND PAY THE ULTIMATE SACRIFICE, WHO WOULD PROVE THE FULL  MEASURE OF DEVOTION WITH THEIR BLOOD, TO MAKE  SUCH AN AWFUL SACRIFICE IN VAIN."   
 
IT IS THE LAST PARAGRAPH OF THE QUOTED FULL SPEECH THAT I AM CONCERNED WITH, and that I have  CAPITALIZED.  The lines from Obama's October 2, 2002 speech that I capitalized above are a  REVERSAL IN MEANING of the following lines from Abraham Lincoln's famed Gettysburg Address,  portions of which I have
CAPITALIZED for  purposes of comparison, and quote below.   
 
Lincoln stated:     
 
"It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before
us -- that from  these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause
for which THEY GAVE THE LAST FULL  MEASURE OF DEVOTION -- THAT WE HERE HIGHLY RESOLVE THAT THESE DEAD SHALL NOT HAVE DIED IN VAIN -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."  
 
By comparing Obama's words and Lincoln's words, it appears to me that OBAMA,
IN HIS PRE-WAR SPEECH, IS FORECASTING THAT AMERICAN DEATHS IN  AN IMPENDING IRAQ WAR WILL BE IN VAIN.   
 
In my opinion, SUCH A PRE-WAR STATEMENT OF OBAMA SHOWS BAD JUDGMENT, unless, of course, Obama now believes that American deaths in the Iraq War  have been and will continue to be in vain.  Such  a belief, would be, in my opinion,
another  example of  Obama's bad judgment, this time  Obama's ongoing-war bad judgment.  

 
II. ARTICLE ENTITLED "OBAMA CHALLENGES OPPONENTS TO SPEAK OUT ON WAR," BY THE
ASSOCIATED PRESS, MARCH 3, 2003  
 
A quotation from this article can be found at both of the following links:
http://www.talkleft.com/story/2006/10/22/15415/699
and  
http://thinkonthesethings.wordpress.com/2008/01/13/barack-obamas- march-2003-
public-statements-opposing-the-iraq-war/
 
From the article entitled "Obama Challenges Opponents to Speak Out on War,"
by The Associated Press, March 3, 2003, I quote as follows.  

Please note that I have provided CAPITALIZATION for words I want to
emphasize.  The quote is:   
(begin quote)
"What's tempting is to take the path of least resistance and keep quiet on
the issue, KNOWING THAT MAYBE IN TWO OR THREE OR SIX MONTHS, AT  LEAST THE FIGHTING WILL BE OVER AND YOU CAN SEE HOW IT PLAYS ITSELF OUT," said Obama, a state  senator from Chicago.
(end quote)   
 
Clearly, OBAMA'S PRE-WAR FORECAST AS TO HOW LONG THE FIGHTING WOULD LAST WAS A PRE-WAR GROSSLY BAD JUDGMENT.  It is now 5 years later, and the fighting still continues.   
 
Even, hypothetically, if Obama tacitly assumed  that the time period for
"fighting" in an impending Iraq War in 2003 would be virtually  the same time
period as the "fighting" in the first Gulf War (just under 7 months, from
August  2, 1990 to February 28, 1991), such a  hypothetical assumption would
also show pre-war  GROSSLY BAD JUDGMENT.   

A wide variety of circumstances differed between  the first Gulf War in 1990-
1991 and an impending  Iraq War in 2003, and there would be virtually  no
reason for any sound thinker to believe that  the time period of "fighting"
an impending Iraq  War would be substantially less than (2 months)  or
substantially equal to (6 months) the time  period of "fighting" in the first
Gulf War (just  under 7 months).   
 
Moreover, there are numerous wars, aside from  World War I, World War II, and
the Korean War,  in which the United States carried out  "fighting", that
Obama should have known about  on March 3, 2003, and he should have known
that  "fighting" in those wars spanned time periods  much longer than 2 to 6
months.  Such previous  wars include:  Vietnam War (over 10 years);  Kosovo
War (3 years); and NATO War in  Afghanistan (over 2 years by March 3, 2003).  
 
Also, there are other wars, where the United States did not carry out
"fighting", but wherein "fighting" between opponents in those wars had taken
periods of time much longer than 2 to 6  months.  Such previous wars include:
Iran-Iraq  War ((over 7 years); Arab-Israeli Conflict (over  54 years by
March 3, 2003); and the Soviet War  in Afghanistan (over 9 years).   
 
Since such a pre-war judgment by Obama relating  to a time period of
"fighting" in an Iraq war  was clearly a GROSSLY BAD JUDGMENT, and since
judgments about "fighting" where the United  States is "fighting" (and
perhaps even where the  United States is not "fighting") are directly
related to the presidential duties of Commander-In-Chief, I think it is fair
to say that ONE MAY DOUBT OBAMA'S JUDGMENT AS IT RELATES TO THE  DUTIES OF COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF.   
 

Obama States That He Is the Beneficiary of Unusually -- and at
Times Undeservedly -- Positive Press Coverage

     Recently, the McCain Campaign ran a TV ad that points out
that Obama is a favorite of the media.  

     This is a fact that has been known by Obama, himself, for a
long time, for at least 5 years.  As a matter of fact, Obama has
written about this very thing in his second book, The Audacity of
Hope, by Barack Obama, 2006, First Edition, Crown Publishers, New
York, New York, ISBN-13:978-0-307-23769-9, ISBN-10:0-307-23769-9,
www.crownpublishing.com.  

     I have read that book, and for those of you who have neither
the time nor the inclination to read the book yourself, I provide
you with a quote below.  

     Please note that the words that are capitalized in the quote
below have been capitalized by me for emphasis, not by Obama.  

     On page 120 of that book, Obama states the following:  

     "But for the politician who is worried about keeping his
seat, there is a third force that pushes and pulls at
him, that shapes the nature of political debate and defines the
scope of what he feels he can and can't do, the positions he
can and can't take. Forty or fifty years ago, that force would
have been the party apparatus: the big-city bosses, the
political fixers, the power brokers in Washington who could make
or break a career with a phone call. Today, that force is
the media.
     A disclaimer here: For a three-year span, from the time that
I announced my candidacy for the Senate to the end of my first
year as a senator, I WAS THE BENEFICIARY OF UNUSUALLY -- AND AT
TIMES UNDESERVEDLY -- POSITIVE PRESS COVERAGE. No doubt some of
this had to do with my status as an underdog in my Senate
primary, as well as my novelty as a black candidate with an
exotic background. Maybe it also had something to do with my
style of communicating, which can be rambling, hesitant, and
overly verbose (both my staff and Michelle often remind me of
this), but which perhaps finds sympathy in the literary
class."  

     It is clear, that then and now, the media favors Obama, and
that Obama knows it.  And, knowing it, it is not surprising that
Obama and his campaign take advantage of that media favoritism as
much as they can.  In my opinion, they use media favoritism as an
integral part of their campaign.  Media favoritism trumps
lobbyists.  
     
     To find my other postings, simply search the unique name
"Pensereo" using a search engine.  

Is Obama a Racist?  In Obama's Own Words

     Being curious by nature, and having a general attitude of  giving
a person the benefit of the doubt, I recently finished Obama's first book, 
"Dreams from My Father:  A Story of Race and Inheritance." 
More specifically, the edition of the book was published by Three Rivers
Press, New York, New York, Copyright 1995, 2004, paperback edition, 
ISBN 978-1-4000-8277-3 (Original edition ISBN 1-4000-8277-3). 

     In 1995, Barack Obama was 34 years old. 

     I'm sure that Obama supporters love the book. 

     However, some of his statements in the book disturbed me by
what seems to me to be racially negative comments and
stereotypes.  Some of the statements were also negative about
American children and American tourists. 

     It occurred to me that if such statements had been made
about Jews, Obama would be accused of being an anti-semite. 

     Also, if Obama were white and had made such negative
comments about blacks, then he would be accused of being a
racist. 

     Should a black man be exempt from being accused of being a
racist simply because he is black?  

     For all those persons who have neither the time nor the
inclination to read the over 450 pages of his book, I have copied
selected portions which disturbed me from the point of view of
racial and American negativity. 

[ PRELIMINARY NOTE:  I have CAPITALIZED WORDS that I want to
emphasize.  These words were NOT capitalized by Obama ]. 

Page 47: 
Telling some of the things he learned from his mother, Obama
states: 

"She had always encouraged my rapid acculturation in Indonesia:
It had made me relatively self-sufficient, undemanding on a tight
budget, and EXTREMELY WELL MANNERED WHEN COMPARED TO OTHER
AMERICAN CHILDREN.  She had taught me to DISDAIN THE BLEND OF
IGNORANCE AND ARROGANCE THAT TOO OFTEN CHARACTERIZED AMERICANS
ABROAD."   


Page 211: 
After Obama and his white girl friend (that he loved, whom he
had been seeing for almost a year, and whose parents he had met
and described as very nice and very gracious, on page 210) had
seen a play by a black playwright; they discussed the play, and
Obama states: 

"After the play was over, my friend started talking about WHY
BLACK PEOPLE WERE SO ANGRY ALL THE TIME.  I said it was a matter
of remembering--NOBODY ASKS WHY JEWS REMEMBER THE HOLOCAUST, I
think I said--and she said that's different, and I said it
wasn't, and she said that anger was just a dead end.  WE HAD A
BIG FIGHT, RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE THEATER.  When we got back to
the car she started crying.  She couldn't be black, she said.
She would if she could, but she couldn't.  She could only be
herself, and wasn't that enough." 


Page 220: 
In describing personal attributes he desired, Obama states: 

"Yes, I'd seen weakness in other men--Gramps and his
disappointments, Lolo and his compromise.  But these men had
become object lessons for me, men I might love but never emulate,
WHITE MEN AND BROWN MEN WHOSE FATES DIDN'T SPEAK TO MY OWN.  IT
WAS INTO MY FATHER'S IMAGE, THE BLACK MAN, SON OF AFRICA, THAT
I'D PACKED ALL THE ATTRIBUTES I SOUGHT IN MYSELF, THE ATTRIBUTES
OF MARTIN AND MALCOLM, DUBOIS AND MANDELA."


Page 301: 
On his way to Kenya, Obama is thinking about his conversation
with a young British passenger seated beside him on the plane.
The British passenger is a student of geology who is on his way
to a mine in South Africa, and Obama states: 

"How much could I blame him for wanting to better his lot?  MAYBE
I WAS JUST ANGRY BECAUSE OF HIS EASY FAMILIARITY WITH ME, his
assumption that I, as an American, even a black American, might
naturally share in his dim view of Africa; an assumption that in
his world at least marked a progress of sorts, but that for me
only underscored MY OWN UNEASY STATUS:  A WESTERNER NOT ENTIRELY
AT HOME IN THE WEST, AN AFRICAN ON HIS WAY TO A LAND FULL OF
STRANGERS."


Bottom of page 301 to top of page 302: 
After travelling in Europe for more than a week, Obama states: 

"I began to suspect that my European stop was just one more means
of delay, one more attempt to avoid coming to terms with the Old
Man.  Stripped of language, stripped of work and routine--
stripped even of the RACIAL OBSESSIONS TO WHICH I'D BECOME SO
ACCUSTOMED AND WHICH I HAD TAKEN (PERVERSELY) AS A SIGN OF MY OWN
MATURATION--I HAD BEEN FORCED TO LOOK INSIDE MYSELF AND HAD FOUND
ONLY A GREAT EMPTINESS THERE.  WOULD THIS TRIP TO KENYA FINALLY
FILL THAT EMPTINESS?  The folks back in Chicago thought so." 


Page 311: 
Obama, visiting Kenya for the first time, enjoying how he fit in
so comfortably in a black society, Obama states: 

"HERE THE WORLD WAS BLACK, AND SO YOU WERE JUST YOU; YOU COULD
DISCOVER ALL THOSE THINGS THAT WERE UNIQUE TO YOUR LIFE WITHOUT
LIVING A LIE OR COMMITTING BETRAYAL. 
How tempting, I thought, to fly away with this moment intact.  TO
HAVE THIS FEELING OF EASE WRAPPED UP AS NEATLY AS THE YOUNG MAN
WAS NOW WRAPPING AUMA'S NECKLACE, AND TAKE IT BACK WITH ME TO
AMERICA TO SLIP ON WHENEVER MY SPIRITS FLAGGED.  But of course,
that wasn't possible.  We finished our sodas.  Money changed
hands.  We left the marketplace.  The moment slipped away.  "


Page 312: 
In reflecting on his dislike of tourists in Kenya from Europe,
Asia, and America,  Obama states: 

"I took the opportunity to study the tourists as Auma and I sat
down for lunch in the outdoor cafe of the New Stanley Hotel.
THEY WERE EVERYWHERE--GERMANS, JAPANESE, BRITISH, AMERICANS--
TAKING PICTURES, HAILING TAXIS, FENDING OFF STREET PEDDLERS, MANY
OF THEM DRESSED IN SAFARI SUITS LIKE EXTRAS ON A MOVIE SET.  IN
HAWAII, WHEN WE WERE STILL KIDS, MY FRIENDS AND I LAUGHED AT
TOURISTS LIKE THESE, WITH THEIR SUNBURNS AND THEIR PALE SKINNY
LEGS, BASKING IN THE GLOW OF OUR OBVIOUS SUPERIORITY.  HERE IN
AFRICA, THOUGH, THE TOURISTS DIDN'T SEEM SO FUNNY.  I FELT THEM
AS AN ENCROACHMENT, SOMEHOW; I FOUND THEIR INNOCENCE VAGUELY
INSULTING.  IT OCCURRED TO ME THAT IN THEIR UTTER LACK OF SELF-
CONSCIOUSNESS, THEY WERE EXPRESSING A FREEDOM THAT NEITHER AUMA
NOR I COULD EVER EXPERIENCE, A BEDROCK CONFIDENCE IN THEIR OWN
PAROCHIALISM, A CONFIDENCE RESERVED FOR THOSE BORN INTO IMPERIAL
CULTURES." 

Obama's Own Words: For Nonsupporters: Part III

For all those persons who had neither the time nor the
inclination to read over 480 pages of Barack Obama's first book,
here are some quotations taken from that book, "Dreams from My
Father:  A Story of Race and Inheritance", by Barack Obama,
published by Three Rivers Press, New York, New York, Copyright
1995, 2004, paperback edition, ISBN 978-1-4000-8277-3 (Original
edition ISBN 1-4000-8277-3).  For your information, in 1995,
Barack Obama was 34 years old. 

This "Part III" covers Chapters 15 to Epilogue of the book. 

[PRELIMINARY NOTE:  I have CAPITALIZED WORDS that I want to
emphasize.  These words were NOT capitalized by Obama]. 

Page 301: 
On his way to Kenya, Obama is thinking about his conversation
with a young British passenger seated beside him on the plane.
The British passenger is a student of geology who is on his way
to a mine in South Africa, and Obama states: 

"How much could I blame him for wanting to better his lot?  MAYBE
I WAS JUST ANGRY BECAUSE OF HIS EASY FAMILIARITY WITH ME, his
assumption that I, as an American, even a black American, might
naturally share in his dim view of Africa; an assumption that in
his world at least marked a progress of sorts, but that for me
only underscored MY OWN UNEASY STATUS:  A WESTERNER NOT ENTIRELY
AT HOME IN THE WEST, AN AFRICAN ON HIS WAY TO A LAND FULL OF
STRANGERS."

Bottom of page 301 to top of page 302: 
After travelled in Europe for more than a week, Obama states: 

"I began to suspect that my European stop was just one more means
of delay, one more attempt to avoid coming to terms with the Old
Man.  Stripped of language, stripped of work and routine--
stripped even of the RACIAL OBSESSIONS TO WHICH I'D BECOME SO
ACCUSTOMED AND WHICH I HAD TAKEN (PERVERSELY) AS A SIGN OF MY OWN
MATURATION--I HAD BEEN FORCED TO LOOK INSIDE MYSELF AND HAND
FOUND ONLY A GREAT EMPTINESS THERE.  WOULD THIS TRIP TO KENYA
FINALLY FILL THAT EMPTINESS?  The folks back in Chicago thought
so." 

Page 311: 
Obama, visiting Kenya for the first time, enjoying how he fit in
so comfortably in a black society, Obama states: 

"HERE THE WORLD WAS BLACK, AND SO YOU WERE JUST YOU; YOU COULD
DISCOVER ALL THOSE THINGS THAT WERE UNIQUE TO YOUR LIFE WITHOUT
LIVING A LIE OR COMMITTING BETRAYAL. 
How tempting, I thought, to fly away with this moment intact.  TO
HAVE THIS FEELING OF EASE WRAPPED UP AS NEATLY AS THE YOUNG MAN
WAS NOW WRAPPING AUMA'S NECKLACE, AND TAKE IT BACK WITH ME TO
AMERICA TO SLIP ON WHENEVER MY SPIRITS FLAGGED.  But of course,
that wasn't possible.  We finished our sodas.  Money changed
hands.  We left the marketplace.  The moment slipped away.  "

Page 312: 
In reflecting on his dislike of tourists in Kenya from Europe,
Asia, and America,  Obama states: 

"I took the opportunity to study the tourists as Auma and I sat
down for lunch in the outdoor cafe of the New Stanley Hotel.
THEY WERE EVERYWHERE--GERMANS, JAPANESE, BRITISH, AMERICANS--
TAKING PICTURES, HAILING TAXIS, FENDING OFF STREET PEDDLERS, MANY
OF THEM DRESSED IN SAFARI SUITS LIKE EXTRAS ON A MOVIE SET.  I
HAWAII, WHEN WE WERE STILL KIDS, MY FRIENDS AND I LAUGHED AT
TOURISTS LIKE THESE, WITH THEIR SUNBURNS AND THEIR PALE SKINNY
LEGS, BASKING IN THE GLOW OF OUR OBVIOUS SUPERIORITY.  HERE IN
AFRICA, THOUGH, THE TOURISTS DIDN'T SEEM SO FUNNY.  I FELT THEM
AS AN ENCROACHMENT, SOMEHOW; I FOUND THEIR INNOCENCE VAGUELY
INSULTING.  IT OCCURRED TO ME THAT IN THEIR UTTER LACK OF SELF-
CONSCIOUSNESS, THEY WERE EXPRESSING A FREEDOM THAT NEITHER AUMA
NOR I COULD EVER EXPERIENCE, A BEDROCK CONFIDENCE IN THEIR OWN
PARCHIALISM, A CONFIDENCE RESERVED FOR THOSE BORN INTO IMPERIAL
CULTURES." 

From the bottom of Page 316 to the top of Page 317: 
Discussing some aspects of his life back in America with his
relatives at dinner,  Obama states: 

"After the introductions were over, Jane pushed me toward a small
table set with bowls of goat curry, fried fish, collards, and
rice.  As we ate, people asked me about everyone back in Hawaii,
and I tried to describe my life in Chicago and my work as an
organizer.  They nodded politely but seemed a bit puzzled, SO I
MENTIONED THAT I'D BE STUDYING LAW AT HARVARD IN THE FALL."

Page 422: 
Obama recounts a narrative from his grandmother begun on page 406
about his father Barack senior and his grandfather, Barack
senior's father, named Onyango.  About his grandmother's
narrative, Obama states: 

"What happened in America, I cannot say.  I know that after less
than two years WE RECEIVED A LETTER FROM BARACK SAYING THAT HE
HAD MET THIS AMERICAN GIRL, ANN, AND THAT HE WOULD LIKE TO MARRY
HER.  Now, Barry, you have heard that your grandfather
disapproved of this marriage.  This is true, but it is not for
the reasons you say.  YOU SEE, ONYANGO DID NOT BELIEVE YOUR
FATHER WAS BEHAVING RESPONSIBLY.  HE WROTE BACK TO BARACK,
SAYING, "HOW CAN YOU MARRY THIS WHITE WOMAN WHEN YOU HAVE
RESPONSIBILITIES AT HOME?  WILL THIS WOMAN RETURN WITH YOU AND
LIVE AS A LUO WOMAN?  WILL SHE ACCEPT THAT YOU ALREADY HAVE A
WIFE AND CHILDREN?  I HAVE NOT HEARD OF WHITE PEOPLE
UNDERSTANDING SUCH THINGS." ."

Page 438: 
About his return to Chicago after his graduation from Harvard Law
School in about 1991, Obama states: 

"Upon my return to Chicago, I would find the signs of decay
accelerated throughout the South Side--the neighborhoods
shabbier, the children edgier and less restrained, more middle-
class families heading out to the suburbs, the jails bursting
with glowering youth, MY BROTHERS WITHOUT PROSPECTS.  All too
RARELY DO I HEAR PEOPLE ASKING just what it is that we've done to
make so many children's hearts so hard, or WHAT COLLECTIVELY WE
MIGHT DO TO RIGHT THEIR MORAL COMPASS--what values we must live
by.  INSTEAD I SEE US DOING WHAT WE'VE ALWAYS DONE--PRETENDING
THAT THESE CHILDREN ARE SOMEHOW NOT OUR OWN." 

Page 441: 
Describing his wedding to Michelle Robinson and one of the
guests, his half-brother Roy, Obama states: 

"THE PERSON WHO MADE ME PROUDEST OF ALL THOUGH, WAS ROY.
Actually, now we call him Abongo, his Luo name, for two years ago
HE DECIDED TO REASSERT HIS AFRICAN HERITAGE.  HE CONVERTED TO
ISLAM, and has sworn off pork and tobacco and alcohol.  He still
works at his accounting firm but TALKS ABOUT MOVING BACK TO KENYA
ONCE HE HAS ENOUGH MONEY."

[To link to more comments and postings by Pensereo, simply search
"Pensereo" in a search engine.] 

In Obama's Own Words:  for Nonsupporters:  Part II

For all those persons who had neither the time nor the
inclination to read over 480 pages of Barack Obama's first book,
here are some quotations taken from that book, "Dreams from My
Father:  A Story of Race and Inheritance", by Barack Obama,
published by Three Rivers Press, New York, New York, Copyright
1995, 2004, paperback edition, ISBN 978-1-4000-8277-3 (Original
edition ISBN 1-4000-8277-3).  For your information, in 1995,
Barack Obama was 34 years old. 

This "Part II" covers Chapters 9-14 of the book. 

[PRELIMINARY NOTE:  I have CAPITALIZED WORDS that I want to
emphasize.  These words were NOT capitalized by Obama]. 

Page 193: 
Relating to tensions in the black community between color
consciousness between blacks, such as good hair, bad hair; thick
lips or thin; if you're light, you're alright, if you're black,
get back, Obama states: 

"Later, I would realize that the position of most black students
in predominantly white colleges was already too tenuous, OUR
IDENTITIES TOO SCRAMBLED, to admit to ourselves that our black
pride remained incomplete.  And to admit our doubt and confusion
to whites, to open up our psyches to general examination by those
who had caused so much of the damage in the first place, seemed
ludicrous, itself AN EXPRESSION OF SELF-HATRED--for there seemed
no reason to expect that whites would look at our private
struggles as a mirror into their own souls, rather than yet MORE
EVIDENCE OF BLACK PATHOLOGY." 

Page 199: 
In writing about his discussions with a Black Muslim named Rafiq,
Obama states: 

"In a sense, then, RAFIQ WAS RIGHT when he insisted that, DEEP
DOWN, ALL BLACKS WERE POTENTIAL NATIONALISTS.  The anger was
there, bottled up and often turned inward.  And as I though about
Ruby and her blue eyes, the teenagers calling each other 'n i g g e r'
and worse, I wondered whether, for now at least Rafiq wasn't also
right in preferring that the anger be redirected; WHETHER A BLACK
POLITICS THAT SUPPRESSED RAGE TOWARD WHITES GENERALLY, or one
that failed to elevate race loyalty above all else, WAS A
POLITICS INADEQUATE TO THE TASK." 

Page 211: 
After Barack and his white girl friend, that he loved, whom he
had been seeing for almost a year, had seen a play by a black
playwright, they discussed the play, and Obama states: 

"After the play was over, my friend started talking about WHY
BLACK PEOPLE WERE SO ANGRY ALL THE TIME.  I said it was a matter
of remembering--NOBODY ASKS WHY JEWS REMEMBER THE HOLOCAUST, I
think I said--and she said that's different, and I said it
wasn't, and she said that anger was just a dead end.  WE HAD A
BIG FIGHT, RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE THEATER.  When we got back to
the car she started crying.  She couldn't be black, she said.
She would if she could, but she couldn't.  She could only be
herself, and wasn't that enough." 

Page 220: 
In describing personal attributes he desired, Obama states: 

"Yes, I'd seen weakness in other men--Gramps and his
disappointments, Lolo and his compromise.  But these men had
become object lessons for me, men I might love but never emulate,
WHITE MEN AND BROWN MEN WHOSE FATES DIDN'T SPEAK TO MY OWN.  IT
WAS INTO MY FATHER'S IMAGE, THE BLACK MAN, SON OF AFRICA, THAT
I'D PACKED ALL THE ATTRIBUTES I SOUGHT IN MYSELF, THE ATTRIBUTES
OF MARTIN AND MALCOLM, DUBOIS AND MANDELA."

Page 265: 
Relating to the death of his father, Obama's brother Roy told him
about some details about the father's burial that happened in
Kenya, since Obama had not attended the funeral, Obama states the
words of his brother Roy: 
"The government wanted a Christian burial.  THE FAMILY WANTED A
MUSLIM BURIAL." 

Page 282: 
After having having discussions with Rev. Wright, Obama states
about Rev. Wright: 

"He had grown up in Philadelphia, the son of a Baptist minister.
He had resisted his father's vocation at first, joining the
Marines out of college, DABBLING WITH liquor, ISLAM, AND BLACK
NATIONALISM in the sixties. 

Page 284
Having left a meeting with Rev. Wright, Obama was reading a
brochure that he had picked up in the reception area, and
referring to the brochure, Obama states: 

"It contained a set of guiding principles--a "BLACK VALUE
SYSTEM"--that the congregation had adopted in 1979.  At the top
of the list was a commitment to God, "who will give us the
strength to give up prayerful passivism and BECOME BLACK
CHRISTIAN ACTIVISTS, soldiers for Black freedom and the dignity
of all humankind."  Then a commitment to the black community and
black family , education, the work ethic, discipline, and self-
respect." 

[and later on ths same page]

"There was one particular passage in Trinity's brochure that
stood out, though, a commandment more self-conscious in its tone,
requiring greater elaboration.  "A DISAVOWAL OF THE PURSUIT OF
MIDDLECLASSNESS," the heading read.  "While it is permissible to
chase "'middleincomeness' with all our might," the text stated,
those blessed with the talent or good fortune to achieve success
in the American mainstream must AVOID THE PSYCHOLOGICAL
ENTRAPMENT OF BLACK 'MIDDLECLASSNESS' that hypnotizes the
successful brother or sister into believing they are better than
the rest and TEACHES THEM TO THINK IN TERMS OF 'WE' AND 'THEY'
INSTEAD OF 'US'!" "

Bottom of page 286 to top of page 287: 
In thinking about faith as discussed by Reverend Philips and
Reverend Wright, Obama states: 

"And I would shrug and play the question off, unable to confess
that I COULD NO LONGER DISTINGUISH BETWEEN FAITH AND MERE FOLLY,
between faith and simple endurance; that while I believed in the
sincerity I heard in their voices, I REMAINED A RELUCTANT
SCEPTIC, DOUBTFUL OF MY OWN MOTIVES, WARY OF EXPEDIENT
CONVERSION, having too many quarrels with God to accept a
salvation too easily won." 

[To link to more comments and postings by Pensereo, simply search
"Pensereo" in a search engine.]  

In Obama's Own Words, for Nonsupporters: Part I

For all those persons who have neither the time nor the
inclination to read over 480 pages of Barack Obama's first book,
here are some quotations taken from that book, "Dreams from My
Father:  A Story of Race and Inheritance", by Barack Obama,
published by Three Rivers Press, New York, New York, Copyright
1995, 2004, paperback edition, ISBN 978-1-4000-8277-3 (Original
edition ISBN 1-4000-8277-3).  It is noted that in 1995, Barack
Obama was 34 years old. 

This "Part I" covers Chapters 1-8 of the book. 

[PRELIMINARY NOTE:  I have CAPITALIZED WORDS what I want to
emphasize.  These words were NOT capitalized by Obama]. 

Page 24: 
About his grandfather, Gramps, his mother's father, in discussing
how Gramps would deal with his customers as a furniture salesman,
Obama, states: 

"I would hear in him the breezy, chatty style that he must have
decided would help him with his customers.  He would whip out
pictures of the family and offer his life story to the nearest
stranger; he would pump the hand of the mailman or make off-color
jokes to our waitresses at restaurants.  Such antics USED TO MAKE
ME CRINGE, but people more forgiving than a grandson appreciated
his curiosity; so that while he never gained much influence, he
made himself a wide circle of friends." 

Bottom Page 25 to top of Page 26: 
About stories his grandparents told Obama about his absent father
who had returned to Kenya, Obama states:  

"The stories gave voice to a spirit that would grip the nation
for that fleeting period between Kennedy's election and the
passage of the Voting Rights Act:  the seeming triumph of
universalism over parochialism and narrowmindedness, a bright new
world where differences of race or culture would instruct and
amuse and perhaps even ennoble.  A USEFUL FICTION, ONE THAT
HAUNTS ME NO LESS THAN IT HAUNTED MY FAMILY, evoking as it does
some lost Eden that extends beyond mere childhood."  

Page 47: 
Telling some of the things he learned from his mother, Obama
states: 

"She had always encouraged my rapid acculturation in Indonesia:
It had made me relatively self-sufficient, undemanding on a tight
budget, and EXTREMELY WELL MANNERED WHEN COMPARED TO OTHER
AMERICAN CHILDREN.  She had taught me to DISDAIN THE BLEND OF
IGNORANCE AND ARROGANCE THAT TOO OFTEN CHARACTERIZED AMERICANS
ABROAD."   

Page 50: 
In describing some aspects of his mother, Obama states: 

"In a land where fatalism remained a necessary tool for enduring
hardship, where ultimate truths were kept separate from day-to-
day realities, she was a lonely witness for SECULAR HUMANISM, a
soldier for New Deal, Peace Corps, position-paper liberalism."  

Page 122: 
In describing some of the ways he spent time when living in New
York City, Obama states: 

"Political discussions, the kind that at Occidental had once
seemed so intense and purposeful, came to take on the flavor of
the SOCIALIST CONFERENCES I SOMETIMES ATTENDED at Cooper Union or
the African cultural fairs that took place in Harlem and Brooklyn
during the summers--a few of the many diversions New York had to
offer, like going to a foreign film or ice-skating at Rockefeller
Center."  

Page 133: 
In 1983, after deciding to become a community organizer, Obama
states: 

"When classmates in college asked me just what a community
organizer did, I couldn't answer them directly.  Instead, I'd
pronounce on the need for CHANGE.  Change in the White House,
where REAGAN and his minions were carrying on their DIRTY DEEDS.
Change in the CONGRESS, COMPLIANT AND CURRUPT.  Change in the
MOOD OF THE COUNTRY, MANIC AND SELF-ABSORBED.  Change won't come
from the top, I would say.  Change will come from a mobilized
grass roots.  That's what I'll do, I'll ORGANIZE BLACK FOLKS.  AT
THE GRASS ROOTS. FOR CHANGE." 

Page 139: 
After some short-term jobs in Chicago, Obama was unemployed, and
he states: 

"In six months I was broke, unemployed, eating soup from a can.
IN SEARCH OF SOME INSPIRATION, I went to hear Kwame Toure,
formerly Stokely Carmichael of SNCC and BLACK POWER FAME, speak
at Columbia." 


Page 154: 
Describing some aspects of his education in Indonesia, Obama
states: 

"In Indonesia, I had SPENT TWO YEARS AT A MUSLIM SCHOOL, two
years at a Catholic School.  In the Muslim School, the teacher
wrote to tell my mother that I made faces during KORANIC STUDIES.

My mother wasn't overly concerned.  'Be respectful,' she said." 

Page 163, first paragraph:
At the age of about 22, thinking and imagining about different
men that he knew who had differing opinions, Obama states: 

"Each image carried its own lesson, each was subject to differing
interpretations.  For there were many churches, many faiths.
There were times, perhaps, when those faiths seemed to converge--
the crowd in front of the Lincoln Memorial, the Freedom Riders at
the lunch counter.  But such moments were partial, fragmentary.
With ours eyes closed, we uttered the same words, BUT IN OUR
HEARTS WE EACH PRAYED TO OUR OWN MASTERS; we each remained locked
in our own memories; WE ALL CLUNG TO OUR OWN FOOLISH MAGIC." 

Page 163, last paragraph:   
In comparing his feelings to the feelings of others about
religion, Obama states: 

"I realized then, standing in an emply McDonald's parking lot in
the South Side of Chicago, that I WAS A HERETIC. OR WORSE--FOR
EVEN A HERETIC MUST BELIEVE IN SOMETHING, if nothing more than
the truth of his own doubt." 

[To link to more comments and postings by Pensereo, search
"Pensereo" in a search engine.]  

Obama Gets Burned After Playing with Fire, the Fiery Rev. Wright:
Instances of Obama Burns
 
MAIN POINTS

     a.  Rev. Wright is well known as being outspoken and making
fiery comments that many regard as negative.
     b.  Obama has maintained loyalty to Rev. Wright for 20 years
in spite of many of Rev. Wright's outspoken negative comments
about the United States, about white people, and about some
Blacks who are successful in American society.  
     c.  Rev. Wright has known Obama for 20 years.
     d.  Some of Rev. Wright's recent remarks have been overtly
negative about Obama, and these remarks have burned Obama
PERSONALLY -- third degree burns.  
     e.  Some of Rev. Wright's recent remarks have been veiled
negative reflections on Obama, and these remarks have
also burned Obama PERSONALLY -- first degree burns.  
     f.  It took Rev. Wright to get negatively PERSONAL about
Obama, and burn Obama PERSONALLY, for Obama to disassociate
himself from the fiery Rev. Wright.  


DISCUSSION

     Obama has known Rev. Wright for 20 years, and he has excused
his fiery comments many times, because Rev. Wright is from an
older generation.  In Obama's March 18, 2008 speech in
Philadelphia, Obama stated, "I could no more disavow Rev. Wright
than I could disavow the Black community".  

     Over 20 years, it has been made very clear that Rev. Wright
is not shy about expressing his own views, in a fiery manner, no
matter how controversial. They are fiery and controversial about
the United States, about white people, about Louis Farrakhan, and
about some Blacks who are successful in American society.  

     But wait!  There's more.  Rev. Wright has known Obama for 20
years too.  Only within the last week, Rev. Wright has made some
controversial remarks about Obama PERSONALLY, and NOW Obama
disavows Rev. Wright.  [Aside:  Does Obama also disavow the Black
community, which he seemed to intertwine with Rev. Wright so
tightly?  ]

     What are some of the controversial remarks by Rev. Wright
that burned Obama PERSONALLY?  What are those "Obama Burns"?

     For overt statements about Obama, let's call them third
degree burns. In addition, what should we call recent remarks of
Rev. Wright that may be regarded as veiled negative opinions he
has about Obama?  Let's call them first degree burns.  

     Third Degree Obama Burn No. 1:  

     In a recent televised interview with Bill Moyers, Rev.
Wright stated that Obama is a POLITICIAN, and as such, Obama says
what a politician has to say, to get elected.  Obama, the
politician, follows polls and public opinion, and these factors
contribute to what he says to win an election.  Rev. Wright states
no high toned nobility about what Obama is about.  Rev. Wright does not
anoint Obama with special characteristics that single out Obama's virtues.  
All he says is that Obama is a politician and acts accordingly.  With Rev.
Wright's knowing Obama for 20 years, that is certainly a third
degree Obama Burn.  

     Third Degree Obama Burn No. 2:  

     Rev. Wright said that if Obama is elected president, he (Wright)
will "come after him" because he will be an establishment person.
Rev. Wright, of course, has negative opinions about establishment
persons in general, and about some successful Blacks in American
society in particular.  As evidence of these negative opinions,
recall Rev. Wright's disparaging remarks about Condoleezza Rice
and Tiger Woods in one of the YouTube.Com videos that has been
talked about and viewed many times. This certainly is another
third degree Obama Burn.

     First Degree Obama Burn No. 1:  

     With reference to Rev. Wright's patriotism, Wright
emphasized that he had been in the U. S. Marines and the U. S.
Navy.  He contrasted his patriotic military service with Vice
President Cheney who has never been in the military.  With
respect to Obama, recall that Obama has never been in the
military.  In this respect, Obama is in the same negative boat as
Cheney.  The negative contrast between Rev. Wright and V. P.
Cheney and the implicit similarity between Obama and Cheney is
certainly a first degree Obama Burn.  

     First Degree Obama Burn No. 2:  

     Rev. Wright recently commented very favorably about his
mother and father who raised him.  He certainly has shown loyalty
to, and praise for, the loved ones who raised him.  In contrast,
recall Obama's March 18 speech in which he stated, "my white
grandmother ... a woman who on more than one occasion has uttered
racial or ethnic stereotypes that made me cringe".  This contrast
between Rev. Wright and Obama with respect to the people who
loved them and raised them is certainly another first drgree
Obama Burn.    

     As stated above, it took Rev. Wright to get negatively
PERSONAL about Obama, and burn Obama PERSONALLY, for Obama to
disassociate himself from the fiery Rev. Wright.

     Finally, burns often take a long time to heal
and leave scars.   

Obama as a Flip-Flopper:  When He Was an Illinois State Senator
from Chicago, Obama Supported Suspension of State Sales Tax on Gas

In 2000, as an Illinois state senator from Chicago, Obama
SUPPORTED suspension of state sales tax on gas in Illinois.  He was
very happy to help his Chicago constituents and to tell the media
about it.  See article below. 

Now, in 2008, Obama is AGAINST tax relief for gasoline for all
Americans.  Mr. Obama, what's wrong with the rest of us?  Most of
us don't come from your district or Illinois.  Don't you like us? 
Now, even your constituents in Illinois will suffer. 

Also, in 2008, have you called for investigations of oil companies as you highly praised
in 2000?  If not, why not? 

Here is the article: 

Obama Says General Assembly Suspends Sales Tax on Gas
Chicago Citizen.  Chicago, Ill.:Jul 6, 2000.  Vol. 35,  Iss. 13,
p. 2
Abstract (Summary)

"Our action will bring much needed relief to area residents who
have already been hit hard by the highest fuel prices in the
entire nation," Senator [Barack Obama] said. "Furthermore, gas
retailers must post on each pump a statement that indicates that
the state tax has been suspended and that this temporary
elimination of the tax should be reflected in the price per
gallon of gas."

Full Text (248  words)
Copyright Chicago Weekend Jul 6, 2000

Obama Says General Assembly Suspends Sales Tax on Gas

Senator Barack Obama (D-Chicago) announced recently that the
General Assembly has suspended the state's five percent tax on
gas. The suspension is in response to rapid increase in fuel
prices that have heavily impacted the Chicago-land areas. Obama
said consumers should see a seven to 10 drop in prices beginning
this weekend.

"Our action will bring much needed relief to area residents who
have already been hit hard by the highest fuel prices in the
entire nation," Senator Obama said. "Furthermore, gas retailers
must post on each pump a statement that indicates that the state
tax has been suspended and that this temporary elimination of the
tax should be reflected in the price per gallon of gas."

Obama praised lawmakers at the State and Federal levels who have
launched investigations into possible price gouging by oil
companies. But he also called for an increased emphasis on fuel
conservation.

"These calls for investigations into the oil industry come on the
heals of several months of sleep price increases, but what also
needs to be addressed is the conservation of a resource that is
quickly becoming a non renewable resource. Our nation is one of
the largest consumers of gas in the world. We need to learn how
to conserve our resources and depend more on alternative forms of
transit. I would encourage more people to take advantage of
buses, trains, car pooling etc. to help lower fuel demand," Obama
added.

Indexing (document details)
Subjects:      Energy industry,  Finance,  Government,  Industry,
State government,  Taxation
Locations:     Illinois
People:   Obama, Barak
Document types:     News
Publication title:  Chicago Citizen. Chicago, Ill.: Jul 6, 2000.
Vol. 35, Iss.  13;  pg. 2
Source type:   Newspaper
ProQuest document ID:    493066261
Text Word Count     248
Document URL: 
http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=493066261&Fmt=3&clientId=68282&RQT=309&VName=PQD

If this link doesn't work for you, because you don't have an appropriate
account, ask your local library if they have access to ProQuest,
the Ethnic NewsWatch database. 

I think a significant problem that Obama has, which will come to
light, is a personal characteristic of his seeking to to avoid
difficult choices and take an EASIER way out of a situation.

Here are just five examples. 

(1).  As a child and young man, he was called Barry, not Barack.
That was EASIER for him and for the people who knew him. 

(2).  In 1988, at the age of 27, he became a Christian to enable
a career in politics and to enable a relationship with Michelle
Robinson, who later became his wife and the mother of his
children.  It would be a lot EASIER to be Christian for politics
and for dating.  To read a fact-based, fictional satire called
"When Barack and Michelle First Met", go to this link:
When Barack and Michelle First Met

(3). At the Harvard Law School, from 1988-1991, he was known as a facilitator of compromise between
opposing  advocates.  He promoted his personal attitude of taking
an EASIER way out.  In my view, it may be hard to compromise
sometimes, but it is a lot EASIER to have opponents compromise
than to have one side successfully advocate and win the
opposition over to its side.  A related article, "BARACK OBAMA: A MEDIATOR OR A LEADER?" can be read at:
BARACK OBAMA: A MEDIATOR OR A LEADER?

(4). In the often-mentioned October 2, 2002 speech in which Obama
spoke out against the U. S. going to war in Iraq, Obama, an
Illinois state senator, stated,        
     "What's tempting is to take the path of least resistance and
keep quiet on the issue, knowing that maybe in two or three or
six months, at least the fighting will be over and you can see
how it plays itself out." 
Here is a link to this speech:
Obama's Iraq War Speech

In my opinion, the temptation to "take the path of least
resistance" is a  temptation to take an EASIER way out, which
apparently he had yielded to before the speech and after the speech. 

(5).  In 2003, rather than Obama making a difficult choice among
(a) confronting and challenging Rev. Wright about his hate
America rhetoric or (b) leaving Rev. Wright's church, Obama took
an EASIER way -- doing nothing. 

Finally, in my opinion, Obama's personal characteristic of
seeking to take an EASIER way out of making difficult choices
will be a big negative with respect to his electability.  To me,
this is not a characteristic of a good leader.