Admittedly this is a progressive enclave, but for whatever it’s worth, after Obama’s win in Iowa, I noted that mood here in Bennington went from from widespread cynical disinterest regarding the primary elections to a near-giddy enthusiasm about the possibility that Obama might have a really shot at the nomination.
It’s good to know that the Pony Express made it through the snow to get this old news to television deprived Bennington.
I heard an interesting take on Hillary’s comment that she is the best candidate to beat the Republicans. On Fox News (yeah!), Dick Morris said that Rodham-Clinton is really stating that a black man cannot get elected, but that she won’t say that specifically for obvious reasons. He knows her well, and I think he might be right.
My concern about Obama is his seeming disinterest in any reference to the numbers of black men populating our jails and prisons. He cannot be oblivious to the racial inequities embedded in U.S. culture, top to bottom; to the fact that racism is alive and well in the States — though to talk about it among white people is seen as either rude or irrelevant (“…but slavery happened hundreds of years ago. Move on, for God’s sake!”); and that nominating and electing Obama will trigger a shock for black people and enlightened whites who will discover that he is the classic black man’s white man who delicately ignores the systematic destruction of black men via the twin portals of the educational and criminal justice systems. We have a Tom on the Supreme Court. We do not need another in the Oval Office. When is someone going to ask him directly about his stance on these issues? And on the death penalty?
still giddy here
Text God somebody did ask him a few years back and: A. he is against Capital Punishment and B. he opposes manditory sentences.
I’m not surprised that you got a mixed reaction up there. Listening to Pacifica I learned that many on the Left distrust Obama. Glenn Ford ( a black blogger not the original guy waiting for the “3:10 from Yuma”) considers him a Uncle Tom sell-out. Others think he’s a “Centrist” who wants to “Privatise” Social Security and invade Iran.
In fact many of them are mad at Dennis Kucinich for urgoing his people to caucus for Barack if Dennis didn’t make the 15% cut-off.
Hmmmm. I didn’t phrase that well. What I meant was, before Iowa everyone seemed incredibly cynical and disinterested. After Iowa, a giddy pro-Obama interest set in. (Although there are still a few that seem to remain quite cynical about the ultimate importance and meaning of the whole thing.)
“Listening to Pacifica I learned that many on the Left distrust Obama.”
One more reason to support him… If the Pacifica crowd was behind him, we’d be doomed. I hate those idiots.
Apparently the liberal enclave at Bennington must dislike Hillary as much as the rest of us.
Or as Captain Jack Aubrey of Master and Commander said, “one must always choose the lesser of two weevilsâ€Â.
BTW – “Pacifica” is not a monolith.
This Pacifica listener/sponsor who has friends and colleagues who are programmers at the KPFK station – remains somewhat giddy.
Now, she really has to investigate her giddiness to understand it better.
Just a personal opinon – I hate being spoonfed “radical” paranoia and conspiracy theories. Amy Goodman has some decent interviewwsk, but overall Pacifica IMHO is the “Left’s” FOX – an echo chamber.
Reg, I am with you on the radical paranoia – yikes! – but there’s much more than that on Pacifica. Check out some of the local programmers – Jon Wiener, Ian Masters, Susie Weissman, the media program on the weekend, etc. Good people doing good work.
Good music programs too.
I’m in the Bay Area and the only KPFA I’ve been able to handle for many a year were the blues and gospel shows on Saturday morning – Johnny Otis, Tom Mazzolini and Emmit Powell. I quit listening to most KPFA “public affairs” in the 70s (when we used to listen to William Mandel for laughs…) Way too “Berkeley” for me to wade through.
I don’t know about KPFA – I’m down south – oh but I do fondly remember Johnny Otis!
Those shows are only on KPFK and I think they’re the leftovers from the Mark Chubb regime and Marc Cooper. I like that Reg “our FOX”. pretty good.