"Can you name anything that Barack Obama has ever done to help black people?" -Joe
Here, just from the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama article on Obama are examples of things he has done which helped black people:
"Between 1993 and 2002, Obama served on the board of the Woods Fund of Chicago, a philanthropic organization providing grants to Chicago's disadvantaged people and communities.[19]" ...
"Obama worked as an associate attorney with Davis, Miner, Barnhill & Galland from 1993 to 2002. After 1996, he worked at the firm only during the summer, when the Illinois Senate was not in session.[22] Obama worked on cases where the firm represented community organizers, pursued discrimination claims, and on voting rights cases. "
... Obama was elected to the Illinois Senate in 1996 from the 13th District, which then spanned Chicago South Side neighborhoods from Hyde Park-Kenwood south to South Shore and west to Chicago Lawn.[25] Once elected, Obama gained bipartisan support for legislation reforming ethics and health care laws.[26] He sponsored a law increasing tax credits for low-income workers, negotiated welfare reform, and promoted increased subsidies for childcare.[27] Obama also led the passage of legislation mandating videotaping of homicide interrogations, and a law to monitor racial profiling by requiring police to record the race of drivers they detained.[27]
Scotty, I was hoping you would try your hand here. You ALWAYS end up helping me. I haven't double-checked your sources, but I'm sure we'll find all sort of Daley-esque patronage in that morass.
As always, thanks. Youv'e given me some homework to do this weekend.
oriontl: I don't know if the residents wrote to their state senator. Most people don't think to do that, even when they have a legit beef. (But maybe you know something I don't.)
But I do know that Obama played a role in Rezko getting those contracts, and that Rezko helped him buy a mansion he could not afford after all the dirt started to come out.
joseph said... "Scotty, I was hoping you would try your hand here. You ALWAYS end up helping me. I haven't double-checked your sources, but I'm sure we'll find all sort of Daley-esque patronage in that morass. "
Well Joey I always try to help provide you with information. How you use it is up to you. I also know there was "Daley-esque patronage in that morass." And Rezko was involved in some of it.
Let me be serious, Scott. You and Gary Buell are very nearly the only people who come here who try to tear me a new one yet who also do your homework. I value that more than I value agreement.
What is the point of this question to start with. Why do you keep positioning Obama as the candidate for the black people ? What has Hillary done to help white people ?
"but I'm sure we'll find all sort of Daley-esque patronage in that morass."
That's your problem. YOU ARE sure before you even start your research. Why bother then ? Your question implies that he has done nothing. And after you are answered, your objective is to prove that it's wrong. Don't worry, I can bet you any amount that you will find some anti-Obama blog out there that will say it's not true. You will find people who will say anything.
James, you ARE new here. I've done rather more research than you think. Enough for me to recognize the smell of rat before I've caught sight of the beastie. Within a week or two, I hoe to follow up.
I asked the question about Obama in that way for a reason. And please be assured, in this case, it really was a question, not rhetorical, not a disguised accusation. I implied nothing, and I did not know what answer I should receive before I asked. I asked simply because I wanted data, and sometimes asking my readers is the quickest way to obtain it.
The accusations may come soon enough. I have a line of investigation in mind -- that's all.
your exchange with James T just made me think of something: and since a) i am detached from your politics being Canadian and b) not allowed to comment here anymore; i thought i could tell you what i have witnessed impartially.
On the race card-- it is sad that O used it, H wouldn't have, but what you now have is a CNN who thinks it's ok to paint H's supporters as white uneducated... or looking at the Hispanic vote, or the Black vote-- Obama might say 'cant we all just move on?' but a) his race baiting started it and more importantly b) now Pandora's box is opened wide, its easy to say let's get along while Wolf Blitzer and his ilk are standing in front of touch screens talking about race like no one has ever talked about it before. Not derogatory but just with certitudes. It is CNN now that looks out and sees black groups, white groups.. congrats! It must feel like the 50s all over again.
"Between 1993 and 2002, Obama served on the board of the Woods Fund of Chicago, a philanthropic organization providing grants to Chicago's disadvantaged people and communities.[19]"
I guess if you buy the notion that philanthropy benefits the poor, this is doing good.
If, on the other hand, you think that long-term charity (as opposed to immediate relief in the case of calamities and emergencies) is corrosive, you don't accept the idea that Obama did the black community any good by serving on the Board of the Woods Fund.
Here's an article in The Nation about the Woods Fund:
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20080519/berman
I supply this link to fend off charges of citing right-wing sources.
"In the late 1980s and early '90s, the Woods Fund was at the forefront of the movement to reform Chicago's public schools, stressing the need for more local control and community involvement. That focus on education led the fund to Ayers, a tenured professor of education at the University of Illinois, Chicago, and a widely published expert on the subject. "The foundation had a special interest in the Chicago public schools, and Bill's specialty is teaching teachers," Rudd explains. "He had built a great reputation in that field."
Yada yada. Bill's specialty is teaching teachers. OK. Can we see some results? The Chicago public school system is as bad as the rest of them.
Annual Reports are usually puff pieces and this one is no different. I see a lot of airy talk about "results" but no actual hard data. but then I didn't read it carefully. If you can find some hard data about improvement in educational outcomes in Chicago public schools as a result of their programs, please correct me.
On the other hand, Obama does belong to the Trinity United Church. You've heard of it? It's pastor emeritus believes that black and white children are neurologically different and thus have different learning styles.
Different is not deficient. Remember that. Keep saying it. You may end up believing it. I won't, but you might.
But to answer Joe's question directly, Barack Obama has earned a good living since graduating from Harvard, and he married a black woman. This enriched her as well. A lot of successful black men marry white or Latino women. So I'd say he helped the black community by marrying in the community. I'm not joking about this Joe. One of the ways that groups get rich is by marrying endogamously and keeping the wealth in the family so to speak. It's not PC to point this out. Therefore it is true.
11 comments:
i don't know enough to answer that question, joseph.
but the question i want answered is:
were there, or were there not, folks, citizens, constituents,
in (illinois) senator obama's constituency who had problems with heat or light or water in the rezko buildings,
who asked (illinios) senator obama for help
but did not receive it,
or did not receive help of any quality.
that is the dynamite.
the answer to that question will point to how much or how little rezko influenced obama's legislative behavior,
and to how much or how little he cared for his disadvantaged constituents.
and it is so simple to answer.
just go and interview folks.
where are the corporate media on this central question?
p.s. for some reason, your weblog is much easier to access for comments now.
Well, look here...
http://my.barackobama.com/page/group/Africanpolicygroup
"Can you name anything that Barack Obama has ever done to help black people?" -Joe
Here, just from the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama article on Obama are examples of things he has done which helped black people:
"Between 1993 and 2002, Obama served on the board of the Woods Fund of Chicago, a philanthropic organization providing grants to Chicago's disadvantaged people and communities.[19]"
...
"Obama worked as an associate attorney with Davis, Miner, Barnhill & Galland from 1993 to 2002. After 1996, he worked at the firm only during the summer, when the Illinois Senate was not in session.[22] Obama worked on cases where the firm represented community organizers, pursued discrimination claims, and on voting rights cases. "
...
Obama was elected to the Illinois Senate in 1996 from the 13th District, which then spanned Chicago South Side neighborhoods from Hyde Park-Kenwood south to South Shore and west to Chicago Lawn.[25] Once elected, Obama gained bipartisan support for legislation reforming ethics and health care laws.[26] He sponsored a law increasing tax credits for low-income workers, negotiated welfare reform, and promoted increased subsidies for childcare.[27] Obama also led the passage of legislation mandating videotaping of homicide interrogations, and a law to monitor racial profiling by requiring police to record the race of drivers they detained.[27]
Scotty, I was hoping you would try your hand here. You ALWAYS end up helping me. I haven't double-checked your sources, but I'm sure we'll find all sort of Daley-esque patronage in that morass.
As always, thanks. Youv'e given me some homework to do this weekend.
oriontl: I don't know if the residents wrote to their state senator. Most people don't think to do that, even when they have a legit beef. (But maybe you know something I don't.)
But I do know that Obama played a role in Rezko getting those contracts, and that Rezko helped him buy a mansion he could not afford after all the dirt started to come out.
joseph said...
"Scotty, I was hoping you would try your hand here. You ALWAYS end up helping me. I haven't double-checked your sources, but I'm sure we'll find all sort of Daley-esque patronage in that morass. "
Well Joey I always try to help provide you with information. How you use it is up to you.
I also know there was "Daley-esque patronage in that morass." And Rezko was involved in some of it.
But I did answer your question.
Let me be serious, Scott. You and Gary Buell are very nearly the only people who come here who try to tear me a new one yet who also do your homework. I value that more than I value agreement.
What is the point of this question to start with. Why do you keep positioning Obama as the candidate for the black people ? What has Hillary done to help white people ?
"but I'm sure we'll find all sort of Daley-esque patronage in that morass."
That's your problem. YOU ARE sure before you even start your research. Why bother then ? Your question implies that he has done nothing. And after you are answered, your objective is to prove that it's wrong. Don't worry, I can bet you any amount that you will find some anti-Obama blog out there that will say it's not true. You will find people who will say anything.
James, you ARE new here. I've done rather more research than you think. Enough for me to recognize the smell of rat before I've caught sight of the beastie. Within a week or two, I hoe to follow up.
I asked the question about Obama in that way for a reason. And please be assured, in this case, it really was a question, not rhetorical, not a disguised accusation. I implied nothing, and I did not know what answer I should receive before I asked. I asked simply because I wanted data, and sometimes asking my readers is the quickest way to obtain it.
The accusations may come soon enough. I have a line of investigation in mind -- that's all.
What about the question was unfair, may I ask?
your exchange with James T just made me think of something: and since a) i am detached from your politics being Canadian and b) not allowed to comment here anymore; i thought i could tell you what i have witnessed impartially.
On the race card-- it is sad that O used it, H wouldn't have, but what you now have is a CNN who thinks it's ok to paint H's supporters as white uneducated... or looking at the Hispanic vote, or the Black vote-- Obama might say 'cant we all just move on?' but a) his race baiting started it and more importantly b) now Pandora's box is opened wide, its easy to say let's get along while Wolf Blitzer and his ilk are standing in front of touch screens talking about race like no one has ever talked about it before. Not derogatory but just with certitudes. It is CNN now that looks out and sees black groups, white groups.. congrats! It must feel like the 50s all over again.
"Between 1993 and 2002, Obama served on the board of the Woods Fund of Chicago, a philanthropic organization providing grants to Chicago's disadvantaged people and communities.[19]"
I guess if you buy the notion that philanthropy benefits the poor, this is doing good.
If, on the other hand, you think that long-term charity (as opposed to immediate relief in the case of calamities and emergencies) is corrosive, you don't accept the idea that Obama did the black community any good by serving on the Board of the Woods Fund.
Here's an article in The Nation about the Woods Fund:
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20080519/berman
I supply this link to fend off charges of citing right-wing sources.
"In the late 1980s and early '90s, the Woods Fund was at the forefront of the movement to reform Chicago's public schools, stressing the need for more local control and community involvement. That focus on education led the fund to Ayers, a tenured professor of education at the University of Illinois, Chicago, and a widely published expert on the subject. "The foundation had a special interest in the Chicago public schools, and Bill's specialty is teaching teachers," Rudd explains. "He had built a great reputation in that field."
Yada yada. Bill's specialty is teaching teachers. OK. Can we see some results? The Chicago public school system is as bad as the rest of them.
Here is the Woods Fund's 2006 Annual report:
http://www.woodsfund.org/Folder_1042751691717/Folder_1207620197753/File_1207621161199
Annual Reports are usually puff pieces and this one is no different. I see a lot of airy talk about "results" but no actual hard data. but then I didn't read it carefully. If you can find some hard data about improvement in educational outcomes in Chicago public schools as a result of their programs, please correct me.
On the other hand, Obama does belong to the Trinity United Church. You've heard of it? It's pastor emeritus believes that black and white children are neurologically different and thus have different learning styles.
Different is not deficient. Remember that. Keep saying it. You may end up believing it. I won't, but you might.
But to answer Joe's question directly, Barack Obama has earned a good living since graduating from Harvard, and he married a black woman. This enriched her as well. A lot of successful black men marry white or Latino women. So I'd say he helped the black community by marrying in the community. I'm not joking about this Joe. One of the ways that groups get rich is by marrying endogamously and keeping the wealth in the family so to speak. It's not PC to point this out. Therefore it is true.
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