The Historical Significance of the President's Stone Wall Mention
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Matthew Breen of The Advocate and Stephanie react to the President mentioning Stone Wall during his inauguration address. Stephanie says, "the fact that this was on Martin Luther King Day, (The President) pulled gay people along to that historical arch." Breen says, "it's ok to geek out on these transformational moments." Stephanie says it's like "prom week for political nerds."
Jan 23, 2013 10:32 AM
Re: The Historical Significance of the President's Stone Wall Mention
Considering the fact that he's supposedly a liberal president and that American public opinion (especially within his own party) is ahead of him on these issues, it is downright ridiculous to "geek out" over anything this guy has said or done regarding racism, sexism or the discrimination of sexual minorities.
My country is ruled by a brownish, gay immigrant who worries about getting shit done, not about giving speeches. Demand of Obama that he gets off his ass and start acting like a decent human being, instead of fawning over him as if he's not a cruel, dangerous man.
My country is ruled by a brownish, gay immigrant who worries about getting shit done, not about giving speeches. Demand of Obama that he gets off his ass and start acting like a decent human being, instead of fawning over him as if he's not a cruel, dangerous man.
By: wadadde
Re: The Historical Significance of the President's Stone Wall Mention
You're talking about Belgium, right? Only in Belgium would an Italian be considered "brownish". Anyway, I'm pretty sure that your Prime Minister would say that speeches, and symbolism, are an important political tool, and part of making real change.
The U.S. is a former colony. Remember colonies? Belgium used to have some. They tend to be fucked up. The U.S. has dealt with its colonial baggage better than most, but we still have a lot of craziness. A lot of our madness comes from having a large part of our country being originally established as a slave-based economy. There's a direct line from colonial slavery, to the civil war, to the Republican "Southern strategy". Given the amount of crazy coming from the right wing in this country, I'm proud to have a pragmatist like Obama in office.
The U.S. is a former colony. Remember colonies? Belgium used to have some. They tend to be fucked up. The U.S. has dealt with its colonial baggage better than most, but we still have a lot of craziness. A lot of our madness comes from having a large part of our country being originally established as a slave-based economy. There's a direct line from colonial slavery, to the civil war, to the Republican "Southern strategy". Given the amount of crazy coming from the right wing in this country, I'm proud to have a pragmatist like Obama in office.
Re: The Historical Significance of the President's Stone Wall Mention
There's a huge divide between the kinds of fucked up things Obama does (like putting child soldiers in jail on terrorism charges without a fair trail and after years of illegal detention OR perhaps trying to get powers to assassinate anybody, including US citizens) and how he speaks. If you watched these blockheads talking about what makes them *"feel patriotic"* about America... it's sick.
"Only in Belgium would an Italian be considered "brownish"
What? No. That's simply inaccurate and below the belt.
In practice, Obama has fought FOR the greatest enemy of young black people in America, 'the war on drugs'. The only way that anyone with a sense of decency could frame the guy as half way decent is by comparing his policies those of the most reactionary, vile scumbags America has to offer. Or, well, by only listening to his heady speeches.
As a side note, are you crazy? "The U.S. has dealt with its colonial baggage better than most" What? Were Americans ever victims of colonialism? No, so maybe you mean something else, but I'm not quite sure what you'd have to deal with. The guilt of driving entire peoples extinct? Well, I guess cowboy and Indian movies have gone out of fashion in recent years. Or, perhaps you're referring to making up for past aggression against the Haitian people who were trying to get free from France? If coups to undermine Haiti's chance at democratic self-governance are how America comes to terms with its past transgressions, then I'd kindly ask America to reconsider trying to do anything at all. Or, again, if it's about black people, then I would argue that actions speak louder than emptier than empty words.
Pragmatist... About what? Is it pragmatic in a country that has healthcare that is twice as costly as that of comparable countries - mostly because the system is a complete failure - for Obama to apply a band aid
or two on the insurance side, while doing nothing about the cost of drugs? Huh, I guess that is quite pragmatic from the point of view of Obama, but it makes no sense for a nation struggling with both a massive household debt AND a massive public deficit.
Yeah, speeches are part of the deal. I'm mainly disturbed by the contrast between reality and people's perception of reality.
"Only in Belgium would an Italian be considered "brownish"
What? No. That's simply inaccurate and below the belt.
In practice, Obama has fought FOR the greatest enemy of young black people in America, 'the war on drugs'. The only way that anyone with a sense of decency could frame the guy as half way decent is by comparing his policies those of the most reactionary, vile scumbags America has to offer. Or, well, by only listening to his heady speeches.
As a side note, are you crazy? "The U.S. has dealt with its colonial baggage better than most" What? Were Americans ever victims of colonialism? No, so maybe you mean something else, but I'm not quite sure what you'd have to deal with. The guilt of driving entire peoples extinct? Well, I guess cowboy and Indian movies have gone out of fashion in recent years. Or, perhaps you're referring to making up for past aggression against the Haitian people who were trying to get free from France? If coups to undermine Haiti's chance at democratic self-governance are how America comes to terms with its past transgressions, then I'd kindly ask America to reconsider trying to do anything at all. Or, again, if it's about black people, then I would argue that actions speak louder than emptier than empty words.
Pragmatist... About what? Is it pragmatic in a country that has healthcare that is twice as costly as that of comparable countries - mostly because the system is a complete failure - for Obama to apply a band aid
or two on the insurance side, while doing nothing about the cost of drugs? Huh, I guess that is quite pragmatic from the point of view of Obama, but it makes no sense for a nation struggling with both a massive household debt AND a massive public deficit.
Yeah, speeches are part of the deal. I'm mainly disturbed by the contrast between reality and people's perception of reality.
By: wadadde
