Beating the Bushes: All Politics, All The Time January 09, 2008 The Swift Boating of Barak Obama While hosting a dinner party at our home the other night, one of our guests -- a 30ish attorney with an MBA -- asked me out of the blue: "So what do you think about Osama?" Catching the devilish glint in his eye, and knowing of his penchant for being a contrarian, I quickly gleaned that he was referring not to Osama bin Laden, but rather to Barak Obama. Initially, I decided to play dumb: "I think he is a mass murderer masquerading as a Muslim Messiah." From the look on his face, I could tell he was disappointed that I hadn't taken the bait. "No, I'm talking about Osama, the guy running for president," he said somewhat churlishly. "First of all," I said, a bit heatedly, "his name is SENATOR Barak Hussein OBAMA, not OSAMA, and secondly, please don't tell me you're one of those unfortunate souls who've fallen for this barrel of b.s." "All I know is what I hear," he said, "and from what I've heard, this guy's bad news." The conversation didn't get much better. The only saving grace was that I knew he was living up to his contrarian self, and probably didn't really believe what he was saying. He was likely just trying to get a rise out of me. Nonetheless, it was terribly unsettling. The very next morning, I received an email from my assistant and man- of-all-work Art. The email title was "Obama Misinformation?" It turned out to be an email that a friend had forwarded to him containing the normal rants and baseless charges against Senator Obama, such as 1 He is the son of a radical Muslim His middle name is Muhammad His mother was an atheist He was indoctrinated at a Wahabi midrasa in Indonesia He refuses to stand during the National Anthem He took his senatorial oath of office on a copy of the Koran His church -- Trinity Church of Christ --is both racist and anti- American Not wishing to either rehash or dignify these phony charges with any words of defense, I merely sent Art several Internet links. For anyone interested in debunking these baseless myths, please go to www.snopes.com put in the word "Obama," and follow the many links that will appear. They provide the truth about Senator Obama . Now, the main issue here is why the Internet is being flooded with all these mendacious emails; why newspapers and so-called political Blogs are continuing the frontal assault -- call it "Swift Boating" -- of a United States Senator running for President of the United States. In a word: racism. It is an undeniable fact of political life that the front-runners are always subjected to far more scrutiny than the also-rans. And, for the 120 hours between his victory in Iowa and his second-place finish in New Hampshire, Barak Obama was the front-runner. Of course, in the seesaw battle betwixt Senators Clinton, Obama and Edwards, that could all change once they get to Nevada or South Carolina, not to mention Florida, California or New York. For the moment, however, Barak Obama is the one running around with a bulls-eye on his back. Truth to tell, from everything I have read, from my encounters and conversations with Obama's people, he's is pretty much what he seems to be: a classy, earnest, incredibly articulate, passionate man who, more than most, has the talent to both inspire and uplift. So what's the problem? 2 Some claim that the main drawback with Barak Obama comes in the area of experience; he's only been a senator for two years. [It should be noted here, by the way, that sitting senators rarely win the presidency. The last two were JFK in 1960 and Warren G. Harding in 1920]. I for one think this issue of experience is, frankly, overblown. 138 years ago, America elected as president, a man who had served but a single term in the House of Representatives -- a full 14 years before his election. That man was Abraham Lincoln, who went on to become -- unquestionably -- this nation's greatest president. To my way of thinking, a president does not have to be a genius in all areas of governance. Rather, he or she needs vision, common sense, and the ability to bring the so-called "best and brightest" into their administration. They also have to be articulate and passionate enough to inspire, instruct and uplift. This world of nonsense about Senator Obama's so-called "Muslim indoctrination" is just that -- stuff and nonsense. Those who are pushing and re-pushing the issue are, in my estimation, using the "M word" where two generations ago, they would have likely been using the "N word." Yes, the underpinning of all these false reports is nothing more, nothing less than bad old-fashioned American racism. That people are so brazen, so deluded and base as to accuse Senator Obama of being a Muslim "Manchurian Candidate" is odious. That people are willing to accept these charges as being true is beyond comprehension. Then again, Grandpa Doc used to say "the masses are asses." As practiced in America, politics is a full contact, no-holds-barred sport, where the ends -- victory -- generally justify the means. It is one thing to vet a candidate's record in the hope of finding inconsistency, a bone- headed vote or some youthful indiscretion. It is another to turn a candidate into America's worst fear: a ticking time bomb sent to destroy the country of his birth. I for one am as yet undecided on just who my candidate will be. I think the Democrats have fielded one of the most attractive, talented fields in years. Indeed, I could proudly cast a vote for Clinton, Edwards, Obama or Richardson without a moment's hesitation in the general election. That 3 the Democrats offer this nation the possibility of electing the first woman, African American or Hispanic president says volumes about both the party and the country. But to fall victim to the tenebrous shadows of 19th or 20th century racism is indeed, to fall from grace. America should be better than that . ©2008 Kurt F. Stone January 09, 2008 in The 2008 Campaign | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) 4 Beating the Bushes: All Politics, All The Time January 16, 2008 A Lesson From Sinai As this article is being written, Air Force One is touching down at Andrews Air Force Base; President Bush's eight-day tour of the Middle East has come to an end. From Jerusalem and Ramallah to Bahrain, Kuwait, the UAR, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, Mr. Bush scurried about pushing his dream of peace between Israel and the Palestinians, seeking allies in his war of wits with Iran, and talking up the superiority of democracy over any other form of government. He also urged Saudi Arabia and other OPEC nations to consider the strain that high oil prices are having on the U.S. economy. The Saudi response to heartfelt suggestion that they up oil production was essentially "Go pound sand." Undaunted, the Bush administration notified Congress of its intention to sell the Saudis $120 million in precision-guided bombs. Yes siree, that's showin' them Ayrabs! From articles appearing in the international Arab press, it would seem that the Muslim-in-the-street was less than overwhelmed by the American president's visit. Only in Israel -- where his popularity ratings are just a tad higher than they are here at home -- did he meet with anything even approaching approbation. One cannot help but wonder how well President Bush understands the Middle East. To aver that the Israelis and Palestinians will find rapprochement in their decades-old struggle by the end of his presidency is -- sorry to say -- phantasmagoric at best, delusional at worst. Why? For the past five years or so, President Bush has made it abundantly clear that his administration's suggested cure to what ails the Middle East is democracy. Well, I'm here to tell you that as idealistic and admirable as that may be on paper, it is anything but in reality. 1 To understand this, permit me to don my yarmulke and write not as a political op-ed blogger who happens to be an ordained rabbi, but as an ordained rabbi who happens to be a political op-ed blogger. Everyone, I am reasonably certain, is familiar with the Biblical story of the Exodus -- even if its the Cecil B. De Mille version. We should all remember how once freed from 400 years of Egyptian slavery, the Israelites Crossed the Red Sea [actually yam suf, the "Sea of Reeds"], Received the Ten Commandments, Dined on manna, Moaned, groaned and kvetched, Built the Golden Calf, Mistrusted both God and Moses, Sent 12 spies [or scouts] out to check out the land of Canaan, and Eventually, after 40 long and grueling years, entered the Promised Land. For the rabbis of old, one of the things that fascinated them most was why all this took 40 years; why God chose not to lead them on a straight path that would have taken only 6 or 7 weeks. Direct textual evidence provides one answer: God was punishing the former slaves for their lack of trust, their effrontery and their utter faithlessness. Rabbinic commentary, however, provides a far more telling answer. One will recall that with the exception of Joshua bin Nun of the tribe of Ephraim and Caleb ben Jephunneh [Y'funeh] of the tribe of Judah, all those who crossed over into Canaan were born en route.