Letter From The Left Coast: Obama and His School Kid Politics

Ian Bowater in his latest letter points out the misogyny of the US main stream media - make that the international media - and the way they gave Obama a free ride.

False consciousness is a wonderful thing. The week that saw the end of Hillary Clinton’s campaign for President also saw “Sex and the City” reap $100 million at the box office. The best hope of a woman in the White House for several generations to come was forced to concede. The film that equates female empowerment with an urban myth about four over-sexed harridans being told what designer shoes to wear by its Gay male creators is so popular, there has to be a crossover demographic among the fans. I have near anarchist friends in West Finchley who think the girls’ antics are great. I know highly intelligent, fully paid-up, bleeding heart on their sleeves liberal women who don’t think the anti-Hillary campaign was sexist. When she was asked to pass the Commander-in-Chief test, they dubbed her a warmonger. When she showed emotion, it was crocodile tears to get her own way. When she touted her experience, she was riding her husband coattails. When she faltered, she couldn’t control her old man. When she wouldn’t give up, she was being a stubborn bitch. When she didn’t concede on Tuesday, she was a troublemaker-in-waiting.

Another TV series might be moving to the big screen come November is “Desperate House Members”. It seems there was a conference call Thursday with Hillary supporters in Congress frantically telling her to get out. Lots of them were Super Delegates who could have forced her hand by simply switching sides. It was reported that they were pleading with her to be released from their commitments. Either they are a bunch of wimps or Hillary is a more powerful leader than we have been told. In the face of such feeble-mindedness, no wonder she stuck with her supporters on the ground – the ordinary folks, men and women who voted for her and told her not to give up.

When she finally conceded on Saturday morning, one commentator and Obama supporter pointed out that she took six and a half minutes to mention Barack. The partisan Obama express hurtling downhill with no one at the controls couldn’t hold up for six minutes to let her have her moment. Heaven forbid that they would build golden bridges over which she could depart with grace. Still it would have to be a sturdy construction because she has eighteen million followers. And therein lies the problem, it is the Obama people who have to accommodate and not disrespect the monstrous regiment of women who recognized a real champion. For most of them, their time will not come again. There is no one on the horizon. There are so few female senators, house representatives or state governors who have the stature, experience and sheer will power to fight the disastrous battalions of men who keep them from destiny.

That same establishment of political hacks, aided by the fourth estate doing double duty as the fifth column, are patting themselves on the back now that an African American is the nominee. We have come so far, they gasp with self-congratulation. That he is as much White as he is Black; that he entered the political arena in South Chicago more a tourist than a son of the soil; that he has not carried one day the burden of the history of Africans in America makes him the kind of Black man the establishment can live with.

The Obama camp was always keen to talk about code words and covert racism. Every day some Black commentator would come on and tell us what subtleties of words or body language Obama had to endure. But the women have had to take a smack in the face and pretend they’ve walk into a door. Racism has stalked this campaign from day one. A reverse racism that is desperate to be tolerant so it can sleep at night. There’s no reverse sexism, there was no affirmative action for Hillary. If women want their due, they better start looking around for a transgender candidate because otherwise it ain’t going to happen. And a taxi cab on Fifth Avenue still ain’t going to stop for a Black man at midnight.

So what now? Well… guess what… we’re still talking about Hillary. What if her supporters go for McCain in November? That’s okay! If Obama loses, it’ll be her fault and we won’t have to try that one again. That’s why there’s all the talk about his running mate and about it not being you-know-who. She can’t be V.P. without going through a rigorous vetting process. As if the wife of an impeached former president hasn’t been though enough. It’s political playground stuff from the Obama kids. The new grandees are lining up to give her another Chinese burn. Even though she gave him the ringing endorsement on Saturday, some think she hasn’t cried “uncle” fast enough or loud enough.

The Democrats have played fast and loose with the Black vote for years. Suddenly, they’re a bit leery of the distaff vote. Hillary bashing was such fun, they took their eye off the ball. They only need to look at McCain’s history on reproductive rights to know that he won’t get any cheer with Hillary supporters. Unless… one or two think Cindy McCain is one of the broads from “Sex and the City”. Did he say “broad”. Is “broad” sexist? Oh never mind, he probably didn’t mean it…

Comments

[Bill]

Nobody would know Hillary Clinton if she weren't the wife of a former president. That of course doesn't disqualify her in any way, but it did give her a leg up.

Her wonkishness wows, but it didn't help her pass health care in the '90s, and it didn't stop her campaign from imploding now. That's because, as has been widely reported, she doesn't listen. Nor does she admit error. She voted for the Iraq war, never acknowledged her mistake, then compounded it with her Iran vote.

A few months ago, she began showing signs she's unhinged. Fired upon at Tuzla? Invoking RFK's assassination as a reason to stay in the race? Comparing Florida to Zimbabwe? Pushing ahead although it was all but mathematically impossible to catch up in pledged delegates? Pandering with the holiday gas tax cut? Demanding the rules she'd agreed to be changed so that Florida and Michigan would be seated? Refusing to concede even after her opponent crossed the delegate threshhold? It was only after being confronted on Wednesday by congresspeople that she was jerked back to reality.

She had a sense of entitlement. She got sloppy. She paid the price-- and not because she's a woman.

[A reader in LA]

Why aren't you supporting Hillary for VP? Knee pads anyone?

[moviemave]

Oh Lord! And so it begins- if you don't vote Obama - you're a racist, If you don't vote McCaine - an ageist. Where will it end? It won't!Frankly, the folks on both sides of the fence I've spoke to dont want either. Get ready Mr. Bowater - cuz you are going to have enough material to fill a book - the conventioneers are coming...The clean cut kid from Chicago planted some pretty dirty stuff on McCaine's first marriage this week - hoping to stav off the Sex and the Citiest defection to the other side now that Hilary has hit the glass ceiling.

Liberalistic on the west coast

[NS]

IB said somewhere recently that he knew his UK readers didn't care about this, and he's right. Watching our own political farce is bad enough, with Gordon Brown picking pointless fights and trashing our freedoms to prove that his balls are bigger than Blair's. But the stuff they serve up in the US is always far more concentrated, if morally much the same. Obama's speeches take vacuity to new levels. Clinton makes us all feel much better with tough talk about bombing Iran. At a visceral level, you conclude that an individual can't engage in this shameless game of appearances while remaining morally intact underneath. Both are disgusting, they're all disgusting, and if that undermines our most obvious means of engaging in the political process, then so be it. We can always just stop buying crap we don't need instead. A puzzling and rather quaint feature of IB's earlier Letters was that he actually bothered to be disillusioned. Now we have the wronged St Hilary who would have offered us something so much better. IB lives forever in hope and I admire him for that. We're from different generations.

[E R Suffling]

Well, Left Coast I must remain indifferent to your musings on popular film and I am sorry to admit that more gripping events are occuring over here. Does anyone notice or respond do you think? I mean David Davis? The Irish NO vote? More importantly, will either of the candidates reach for their cheque books (and bibles)to get the DUP vote in the USA?