When Wright Is Wrong

Are you near a window? Take a look outside. See that smoke on the horizon? That's what remains of Barack Obama's campaign after it was torpedoed by none other than his own minister. The U.S.S. Hope is now taking on water, listing seriously to port, and in danger of going down for good. That would leave the U.S.S. Hillary unchallenged in Democratic waters.

For those of you who missed it, about a month ago a video surfaced of the Reverend Jeremiah Wright, Obama's longtime minister in Chicago, delivering fiery sermons in which he blamed the world's evils on us white folk. Hoping to quell the ensuing controversy, Obama delivered an eloquent speech on race relations in 21st century America.

Just as the uproar seemed to be settling down, here comes the Reverend Wright seeking to clarify his past statements. Instead of saying that his words were somehow misunderstood or taken out of context, Wright laid it on even thicker than before. He blamed AIDS on the man, said that drag addiction among black Americans was a government plot, and that 9/11 was America's chickens coming home to roost. He even said that the only reason Obama distanced himself from Wright earlier was to placate the white man. As a result, the whole controversy has flared up again. Recent polls show Obama's popularity taking a serious hit. This is bad news for the Obama campaign, especially with crucial primaries coming up in Indiana and North Carolina on Tuesday.

More importantly, this controversy is unfortunate. With all the problems (problems largely the result of the Bush administration) facing our nation today, people are losing their focus on what's important. Who cares what a crazy preacher has to say? Hell, most people tend to sleep through Sunday sermons anyway, so why start giving a shit about them now?

Now I'm all for free speech, but damn, use some judgment. Voicing your opinion is one thing, but that doesn't justify spewing hate and vitriol all over the place. And what just what the hell kind of religion is Wright representing? It doesn't sound particularly Christian to me. Not when you use your religious pulpit to advocate hate, suspicion, and intolerance--regardless of which race is targeted.

More importantly, one has to question Wright's motivations in his recent moves. Was he really seeking to clarify his thoughts, or taking advantage of the sudden publicity he had received in a bid to masturbate his own ego? Hard to say, but don't stand in front of him unless you're armed with a roll of paper towels.

I still support Obama, mainly because his message of hope is just what America needs. After seven years of George W. Bush constantly invoking the fear of a fiery death at the hands of terrorists, it's time for a change. Even more importantly, Obama is just damn eloquent. His speeches are just downright inspirational. And who gives a crap whether they really mean anything? Sometimes it's just feels good to, well, feel good about your future. And after George W. Bush, an intellectual dwarf who could barely put together a coherent sentence using the simplest of monosyllabic words, that would be a welcome change.