dagblog - Comments for "InBloguration: Seeking the Silver Section"

Thanks for writing. I, too,

Shelley — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 22:53:55 +0000

In reply to InBloguration: Seeking the Silver Section

Thanks for writing. I, too, had silver tickets and your blog is almost an exact narrative of my experience.

Also in defense of the media:

DF — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 07:44:12 +0000

In reply to I think a more appropriate

Also in defense of the media: We keep watching.

I think a more appropriate

Orlando — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 05:20:08 +0000

In reply to And that would be an entirely

I think a more appropriate question would have been, "What does this moment mean to you?" I agree that "Did you ever think you'd see this day?" is a bit patronizing, but in defense of the media, they are, as a group, far too stupid to realize it.

And that would be an entirely

CaliforniaPaige — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 23:59:02 +0000

In reply to OK, I'll stop beating this

And that would be an entirely appropriate reaction! :-)

OK, I'll stop beating this

acanuck — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 21:12:30 +0000

In reply to You might be right about the

OK, I'll stop beating this horse now. But fair warning: If, four years from now, I see Wolf Blitzer asking an African-American, "So, did you ever imagine you'd live to see this happening AGAIN in your lifetime?" I'm going to throw a shoe through my prized flat-screen TV.

You might be right about the

CaliforniaPaige — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 20:13:00 +0000

In reply to It is indeed friggin' cool,

You might be right about the repitition of asking that same question to well-known dignitaries like Powell and Jackson -- but from the looks I saw on probably hundreds of thousands of faces on Tuesday, the fact that this intelligent, thoughtful, skilled and compaassionate leader is African American is hugely significant.

A few miles walk from the capitol, I fell into step with a woman with a Jamaican-sounding accent who said she'd come from Canada for the occasion, and she told me about how she remembered listening to Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech, and to her, this day was a realization of that dream.

And yes, I agree this is simply the beginning. Our nation was forced by dwindling international credibility and a domestic crisis to turn to the best person for the job and put aside race-based prejudice. I'm inspired to think that, as a people, we're that much closer to setting aside other long-held prejudices, and that it won't be long before it is commonplace to see a woman, an asian, an openly gay man or lesbian, a smoker, a non-Christian, or a two-headed and three-armed alien in a position of high leadership in the US. Or even someone who embodies all these things.

It is indeed friggin' cool,

acanuck — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 23:07:36 +0000

In reply to ill have to check out the

It is indeed friggin' cool, Deadman. It's awesome. But watch the Daily Show clip, and maybe you'll see what's bugging me. Faced with a black interviewee, that is THE question that gets asked. If I'm Colin Powell (or even Jesse Jackson) getting asked that the third or fourth time, I'm thinking, "Hey, I've actually got some ideas about foreign and domestic policy; I don't just have happy feet 'cause some brother's in the White House!"

Stereotyping is bad even if it's all innocent and well-meaning; it reflects a profound intellectual laziness on the part of the media. Now that the inauguration is over, can everyone please stop calling Obama "the first African American president?" Like being president isn't already a unique enough status! Maybe the reference would be appropriate if an issue arises over civil rights, voting rights or affirmative action. Or immigration, because of his Kenyan father.

But for the rest, get over it! George Bush was never referred to as the 43rd white president, nor was Washington called the first. You now have one black president, and you'll hopefully have others in the future. Women, Hispanics, Jews -- the whole nine yards. America is growing up. Time to focus on the crucial fact: you've got an intelligent, thoughtful, skilled and compassionate leader at the moment you (and the world) needed him -- that's what's friggin' cool!

ill have to check out the

Deadman — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 22:15:43 +0000

In reply to Last night, Jon Stewart

ill have to check out the daily show take, but i gotta tell you, i don't think the question is that annoying or patronizing (ubiquitous, i'll grant you, but only because it's obvious and relevant). Asking the question of other black people is not belittling the accomplishment of Obama or questioning the intelligence of the race - it's recognizing that this country was borne out of and remained until very recently steeped in social and institutional racism. Obama himself said it - his father sixty years ago probably wouldnt have been served at a local restaurant and now his son was becoming the most powerful person in the world. Come on, that's friggin cool. I certainly thought there was no way I was going to see that happen.

think you were too easily annoyed on this one!

Ha. They disappeared on me.

Michael Wolraich — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 21:15:00 +0000

In reply to How did you get the ticket?

Ha. They disappeared on me. So much for my angst. I have a friend who's going to work for Obama.

Last night, Jon Stewart

acanuck — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 21:14:23 +0000

In reply to InBloguration: Seeking the Silver Section

Last night, Jon Stewart picked up on the same point I did, running a montage of white reporters asking black participants if they ever thought they'd live to see the day. He made clear that all the networks did it, not just CNN.

Why that ubiquitous, annoying, patronizing question? I think this might be the subtext: "Wow, I sure never thought I'd live to see a black man come out on top. Please don't kill me!"