Stop Obama

Politicians are often the people least reliable to act in the public’s interest. Ironically, acting in the public’s interest is precisely what politicians are elected to do. They rarely do it. Politicians typically act on their own behalf, moving in a direction or adopting a policy that best benefits them, that secures their job or their power, while selling out the American people—ignoring suffering, missing opportunities to do good—at every opportunity. Part of the problem is the stupidity of the average American. Americans with book-smarts, some with advanced degrees, who are nonetheless dumb as a bag of hammers. Lazy voters. Underinformed voters. Voters who roil in hyped-up resentment and anger virtually around the clock. By this I mean virtually anyone at all who takes Glen Beck seriously or Fox News aficionados harboring superstitious, paranoid fear of the “mainstream” press. Anyone at all who regards former Alaska half-term Governor Sarah Palin as anything more than a money-grubbing joke who enriches herself at the expense of stupid people are, themselves, Stupid People.

Virtually anyone, conservative or liberal, who only reads one type of newspaper or only watches one kind of news coverage, who is unwilling or afraid to hear multiple sides of complex issues, is an idiot. These are stupid people, and they are the ones who call the shots in this country. These are the stupid people who vote for a liberal black president and fail to even notice whomever else may be on the ballot. These are stupid liberals who love President Obama but then fail to show up two years later to ensure the president has a strong team in Congress; they just blow off the midterms and allow Even Stupider People—the Glen Beck and Michel Bachmann fans—to vote certified lunatics and immovable, aging Old Rich White Men into Congress. There’s absolutely no point whatsoever in voting a guy like Barack Obama into the presidency if you’re going to tune out when he needs you to show up two years later and vote the Tight Sphincter crowd out. But that’s what we do—that’s what stupid people do: they think, for whatever bizarre reason, that the president is an emperor or a king. The president needs Congress to get anything done, and this nation has traditionally voted one way in a presidential election and then gone to sleep two years later when your vote really, really counts.

This is why the nation is in such terrible trouble. Conservatives love to blame the president, but it has not been the president vetoing bills and standing in the door while the nation suffers unprecedented economic and social challenges. It’s the Republicans who continue this heinous, evil strategy of obstruction; choosing not to govern and, worse, choosing to prevent anyone else from governing in a failed attempt to prevent the president’s reelection and, now, in an obvious attempt to destroy the historic political viability of Hillary Clinton, who has announced nothing and is running for nothing. But the Republicans are ready and anxious to waste millions—with an “M”—on useless, stupid hearings while continuing to obstruct, getting nothing done in Congress whatsoever except the 38th attempt at repealing The Affordable Care Act, at a cost of some ten thousand or so dollars per vote. These are votes they can’t win, but Conservatives, who preach fiscal responsibility as their motive for loathing the president’s health care reform law, are more than willing to waste time and half a million dollars (and counting) on symbolic votes to repeal it.

This is all clearly and obviously about racism; about Conservative White America in turmoil over the black man in the White House. The nation’s prolonged and deepening suffering as a result of Republican obstructionism is an artifact of White America’s unwillingness to come to terms with its own deeply-rooted hatred of blacks. The conservative fringe behaves a lot like drug addicts: mean and in denial, blaming everyone else for the consequences of their own irrationality, while the root cause of their dysfunction is patently obvious to everyone but them. Barack Hussein Obama Is A Black Man And They Hate Him. And this is what disturbs me most about all of this: not even Republican obstructionism which has racism clearly and obviously at its roots, but White America--liberal and conservative--refusing to admit it or to even acknowledge the remote possibility.

The never-ending Republican hustle over the tragedy in Benghazi, Libya, is, transparently, obviously, all about stopping Hillary Clinton. Republicans, specifically, are about to spend millions of dollars on useless witch hunt hearings. This is a transparently political persecution of Hillary Clinton, the prohibitive 2016 Democratic nominee and likely unbeatable candidate for president. This is about Republicans, yet again, placing politics ahead of people, spending millions that could be feeding, clothing, and housing people on stupid hearings in what will be a fruitless effort to harm Clinton. You may recall, Republicans actually impeached Clinton’s husband, former President Bill Clinton, and his popularity is off the scale. These hearings will not harm Hillary Clinton, will not stop Hillary Clinton. They are wasting their time and wasting our money. As usual, they are not governing, and the American people are either too stupid or too disengaged to throw these people out.

Exploiting Tragedy: Benghazi is an obvious dog whistle for slinging mud at Clinton. No matter how many people go hungry or lose their homes, there will be absolutely no governing. Only the endless campaign.

Stop Hillary

The never-ending Republican hustle over the tragedy in Benghazi, Libya, is, transparently, obviously, all about stopping Hillary Clinton. Republicans, specifically, are about to spend millions of dollars on useless witch hunt hearings. This is a transparently political persecution of Hillary Clinton, the prohibitive 2016 Democratic nominee and likely unbeatable candidate for president. This is about Republicans, yet again, placing politics ahead of people, spending millions that could be feeding, clothing, and housing people on stupid hearings in what will be a fruitless effort to harm Clinton. Recalling Hillary Clinton to testify would be a big risk. When backed into a corner, the Clintons are famous for eating the lunch of their attackers. Republicans eager to damage to Clinton may, in fact, help Clinton’s political prospects by providing, once again, a national platform for Clinton and images which will be played and replayed ad nauseam. You may recall, Republicans actually impeached Clinton’s husband, former President Bill Clinton, and his popularity is off the scale. These hearings will not harm Hillary Clinton, will not stop Hillary Clinton. They are wasting their time and wasting our money. As usual, they are not governing, and the American people are either too stupid or too disengaged to throw these people out.

The amount of suffering and harm the Republicans are causing just on the *speculation* of a 2016 Hillary Clinton run is a national obscenity. During his first term, Republicans obstructed President Obama no matter how much harm they caused the American people or America’s global prestige, in a failed attempt to prevent Obama’s reelection. During his second term, Republicans are obstructing Obama clearly and obviously in an effort to damage Hillary Clinton, who is not currently in government and who has announced nothing. Clinton’s long shadow cast across the political landscape and the near-certainty of a 2016 Clinton win piques GOP paranoia to the extent where they will continue their pattern of disenfranchisement of the American people through grotesque partisan obstructionism based largely upon a ghost of a presumption. This is the very definition of evil and, as I’ve said many times before, Republicans Are Evil and Racist. Yes, if you are a Republican, I am talking about you. Talking about any Republican who tacitly goes along with what has now become a sad legacy of shameful political maneuvering and overt racism by people whose main focus is keeping their jobs by pandering to ignorance and stoking paranoia.

Politicians spend 100% of their time pandering to, in fear of, trying to please and measuring the opinions of Stupid People. Worse: they know we’re stupid. That is the most fundamental truth of politics: they know we are stupid and easily manipulated. They spend all of their time and all of their money in an effort to manipulate us. And we, all of us, fall for it. Why? Because the majority of black folk only listen to Rap and Soul, while the majority of white folk listen only to Country and Rock. Because we, none of us, value one another enough to extend ourselves, to broaden our horizon, to learn other cultures. We are all stuck in our own tribes, with our myopic blinders on, shaking our fist at the other guy. We are all superstitious, believing myths, casting aspersions and jumping to conclusions based on incredibly stupid things like skin color or national origin. We are all, each in his own way, Stupid People. And, in that view, we are getting what we deserve.

Blame the politicians all you want. If you’re not even trying to hear and experience other points of view, you are part of the problem.