Don't getting all PC on me. He is the epitomy of everything we have never had in the White House so far. He's Muslim, a man of color and while we have had the youth there before it's not typical of what we Americans vote into office.
Do you think America is really going to bring someone so completely "outside the box" as a president?
Personally I don't think America will be that accepting of the differences. The color factor may not be a huge issue in many people's minds but I think the religion factor is huge for most, simply because he is non-Christian (although he likes to remind anyone and everyone that he was brought up in a Catholic school LOL).
[question posted by hockeygal4ever]responses and comments:
Hey, Hockeygal! I'll probably get flamed for this, but I fell off the Obama bandwagon. I loved the speech he gave when he announced his intention to run for president, but I am just too afraid of his muslam/islam background. I just don't know enough to be confident that the US is first on his agenda. Personally, I'd vote for Hillary if ONLY to get Bill back! He's learned so many lessons from his presidency, I think he would influence Hillary to do a lot of good for us! :-) [clownfish]
Mail, what do you think Bosnia was all about. It was a civil war in which America was engaged in. I was there. You lefties are so uninformed. I was in the Army, I saw all sorts of trash Bill made the servicemen do. No man in the service liked Bill Clinton. He also destroyed the military with massive layoffs of career servicemen. He cut military spending as well. Clinton was death to the U.S military. Bill Clinton was a loser and we are better off with NO DEMOCRAP in office. Republicans are much better and Bush will always be better than the loser Bill "dirt bag" Clinton. His wife has no chance to win either. [TheRepublicMenu]
Yes, I absolutely agree with your concern. I have democratic views, and I think Obama is awesome, and I liked his speech. But all my friends told me basically the same thing: americans are too conservative for someone like that... And of coarse, republicans are the strongest party now. I dont think he has a chance (alas). [NordCat]
Another thought, I think the election might boil down to Gulianni and Clinton, if Gulianni announces his intentions to run. I think Gulianni has a great reputation from his days as Mayor of New York City and I think that would give him a great chance of winning as well. [clownfish]
that was rep. keith ellison of minnesota who wouldn't take an oath on the bible. [Salerno867]
The country is probably ready for him...because it is a him and not a her. I probably wouldn't vote for him. I am holding out for Hillary. Obama is too "packaged" for me. He seems young and so easily led, where Hillary has a crusty firmness to her. Because her role model is Eleanor Roosevelt, I think she might have a leg up on her awareness of history, particularly when it comes to women. I think she could rock some of the support posts where christianity is formly set when it comes to a woman being in control of reproductive health. Her having only one child reflects that approach, I believe. Frankly, I am tired of males leading. I don't think the world will be a more peaceful place because of the leadership of just one woman, but I believe that males are just not connected enough to the cycles of life and death to be effective leaders in societies that are NOT nomadic. Their ability to nuture is hindered by a higher testosterone level which does fall off by the time they are 50, but not soon enough to make them good leaders. I love men dearly, but I am ready for them to stop being leaders of this nation. [SageMother]
I firmly believe a woman in office is just what this country needs!! If she wins she is lucky that both the house and congress are currently in control of the Democrats. Will make it easier to get things passed. [maildumpster]
Wouldn't it be cool if Obama and Hilary ran among the main candidates? It's about time. America needs a change. [kbkbooks]
LOL.. I may have been the mistaken one thinking he was Republican? I was assuming and didnt really look it up. And polly... get a life. Why don't you keep saying he's not muslim over and over... that changes it immediately and now we all believe! [hockeygal4ever]
I agree that our country won't be as accepting as we should be. Lets look at the facts: Mitt Romney, a white mormon who has been the leader of a northern state has had to answer questions on his being a mormon. Hillary can't be spoken in the same sentance without "first woman president" Obama is an African-American and everyone lets you know so. The mere fact that these facts are brought up are evidence that the US is not ready. I personally have no problem with any of the 3 scenarios presented. As long as the candidates match my ideals, they get my vote. [Smith2028]
Personally I can't see why religion has to be a factor. Isn't it seperation of Church and State? Then what does it a matter if he's christian, hindu, pagan, jewish or muslim? It shouldn't. What should matter is if he can do the job or not. I don't see why politics and religion have to mix so much in our country. It shouldn't. It should be about the qualifications of the candidate, their past experiences, what their platform is, and not what their skin color is. Whoever gets in though it won't matter. You'll have at least half the population complaining about it. You'll hear how who ever got in can't do the job, how could anyone vote for them, no one did so it had to be rigged, etc. It's just how it goes with who ever is in the office. [emeraldisle]
LOL.. thank you mail! Obviously Polly is a moron. [hockeygal4ever]
Of course were're ready for him, do you know where he went to school? He went to college here in the U.S. [Sailor]
Yes he attended college in the US... but what about his time in school in the middle east? [tecklebuggg]
Obama is NOT a Muslim! He is a member of the Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago. My hesitancy with Obama for president is that he doesn't have a lot of experience. He's only two years into his first Senate term. He can say whatever he wants about what he believes or what he would do, but he doesn't have a very long track record to show what kinds of things he would support and vote for. [Idlewild]
lol hockeygal you are thinking of keith ellison. who is a muslim [4ftfingers]
according to OBAMA he is no longer a MUSLIM he was raised in a MUSLIM school because of the country he was raised in .he is a CHRISTIAN. [pirtlems]
I don't know if he's "it" but I do think most Americans are ready for something different. The majority of the American public is sick of a radically conservative political regime and are just looking for a type of change. There ARE a lot of closeminded people around, but they are definatly in the minority. [rarrimalion]
thinking of only the war i say Obama should win presidency if Hilary wins, she'll pull troops out of the war that would make all our troop deaths worthless and our enemies in the Middle East need to be dealt with eventually [hi_im_nate_dogg]
Actually, hockeygal, I personally believe that America is ready for someone like Obama. Infact I think Obama is the perfect person to kinda calm this country right now in the full wake of Iraq. He's smart, charismatic, knows what he's talking about. Even more so, he's refreshingly optimistic for a politician. First, I don't think he's a Muslim, he's a Christian. He even used a Christian song for his Democratic campaign. The whole Muslim thing was something I think was overblown by the media because of his middle name and 'cause his dad was Muslim (yeah big deal, he hasn't seen his dad since he was 2). The truth is that since America is not yet fully color-blind, his biggest challenge is that he's a simply a black man. [Zhughu]
Exactly, America is not color blind and that is what he has against him. That is the sad truth. Let all the canidates talk behind a screen and scramble their voices then let people vote. I think alot of folks would be surprised who they would end up voting for by not knowing, just knowing thier stand on America and such. Color should not matter!!! In the long run though sadly, it always plays a part somewhere from people. [lucie225]
To tell you the truth, I don't know who he is, but you said that he is a Muslim. I am sure that he won't be selected to the next USA president, because of his religion. USA has suffered from terrorists attacks, not to mantion 11/1. I am sure that just because of it, he won't get voted from people. [ILANEDRI]
No chance as he is muslim. Hilary will be President. [islander7]
If you are a true subscriber to the political forum, you'll remember the 1st ammendment to the constitution, therefore eliminating your idea of issues of religion. You have to ask yourself how nit picky will people be in the election when you compare to the current administration. [andiwpd]
personally, i would love to have someone like obama as president because i think its time for a change. we need someone who's not the stereotypical white, anglo-saxon, protestant male president. ive really become disgusted with our foreign policy over the past few years, and i think someone like obama could make a huge positive difference in the US and the world. unfortunately, i dont think the rest of the US is ready for such a change. they've been used to seeing this specific image of the president, and i dont think they want to change the status quo yet. i mean, kennedy was the first president that really stepped away from the specific mold because he was catholic as well as young and good-looking. i think the US isn't really ready for a woman either. its really unfortunate and disturbing. hopefully, the US will prove me wrong and elect obama or hilary or someone outside of the stereotypical mold, but i really don't have my hopes high. [pagli84]
I am Canadian and not really in a position to care one way or another but for the thousands that have no idea who he is i did a little research and apologize for adding to this topic but it may help more responders if they know exactly who this Obama is ... Barack Hussein Obama (born August 4, 1961; IPA pronunciation: [b?'??k o?'b??.m?]) is the junior United States Senator from Illinois. According to the U.S. Senate Historical Office, he is the fifth African American Senator in U.S. history and the only African American currently serving in the U.S. Senate.[1] He is a candidate for the Democratic Party's 2008 presidential nomination.[2] He was elected to the Illinois state senate in 1996. Four years later, he made an unsuccessful run for the U.S. House of Representatives. Obama won reelection to the state senate in 2002, running unopposed. As early as 2002, he was a critic of the proposed Iraq War, declaring in a television interview that he would have voted against the Iraq Resolution.[3] In 2004 he ran for an open seat in the U.S. Senate. Midway through the campaign, Obama delivered the keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention and became a nationally known political figure. He was elected to the U.S. Senate in November 2004 with a landslide 70% of the vote.[4] Obama formally announced his candidacy for the 2008 presidential election in Springfield, Illinois, on February 10, 2007.[2] Recent opinion polls rank him as the second most popular choice among Democratic voters for their party's nomination, after Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY).[5] [maddy37]
He was born in Hawaii! His mother was from Kansas. I think he is too young and inexperienced. Religion should have nothing to do with anything, but age and experience should. [creativemuse]
He's intelligent, he's articulate, he's charazmatic, but he;s inexperienced. I couldn't see electing a first year senator to the presidency. That wouldn't make sense at all. He would get eaten alive internationally as well as domestically. I personally just can't stand Hillary. I'm holding out for Guilliani. [cyntrow]
I agree with you. America is very conservative and is religious to a fault. Maybe in a few years this country may be ready for a change but I don't see it happening soon. He would be a great President but some may not understand his religious beliefs. Hey if he makes it excellent if not Hillary is great too. [AuthenticPeach]
why does everybody think he's muslim, he's not and has never been! he was never really concerned with religion until his twenties when he started to get invloved in the united church of christ - !christ! i think it's such a shame that you have people saying they don't trust him because of his muslim backrground, when he has nothing to do with islam [4ftfingers]
I stand corrected! It was Keith Ellison. I thought it was Obama. But either way, I have to say that the American public won't be accepting to him and this particular lie will probably be one of the biggest reasons. My personal opinion is that he's not a good candidate based on his background of politics. He's been easily swayed and really doesn't have a whole lot of background to go on. While at some points he has participated in some excellent changes, for example the Earned Income Tax Credit for Illinois residents, he really hasn't had much action as far as politics goes other then defeat up until now. [hockeygal4ever]
I think there may be some confusion. According to this senate speech that Obama gave, he is a Christian. http://obama.senate.gov/speech/060628_call_to_renewal_keynote_address_index.html He professed his Christian faith at the Trinity United Church of Christ on 95th Street in Chicago. I would cut & paste the relevant portion of the article but since I just registered it won't let me. [texaschristian]
From what I understand.... Obama was raised a muslim but converted to catholic... maybe I'm wrong though.. Anyway i don't think his muslim ties are what we need in america right now.. His color does not concern me.. just his muslim upbringing. It scares me....ALOT. And concerning Hillary.... I'm not too sure I would like to see a woman in office either... And dear old Bill... I agree... so what he had a fling......Who really cares? Romping in the office setting has been going on for years and years.... and besides... Monica willingly participated.... I never heard her holler "rape" [tecklebuggg]
first get your facts right his father was or is a muslim he himself is christian his mom a white woman marries a black man from i believe Zaire or maybee gambia after he was born they sepparated his father want back to his country and he was raised here in the usa!he is definatly what we need here a breath of fresh air after the money hungry lying bunch we have now he will attempt to give us national health something other countries in the western europe have had for years and i cant believe we have not!he cares about the real people and not just big business oil companies and thier own cronies !so im for him 100%.His color doesnt and shouldnt enter into it remember if your a christian like it or not our God is color blind! [revdauphinee]
seriously hockeygal, he is not muslim. i think you are thinking of keith ellison, he was the one who swore in on the quran. (sorry, am sayin this over and over jus incase you don see my other posts). but i jsut wondwered, do you think muslims are bad for your country? i don't know who you like but it's interesting, quite a few famous people are muslim. like david chappelle, akon, michael and jermain jackson, charles bilal the mayor of a texas city. jermain jackson was on the uk Celebrity big brother recently, and he is the most peaceful person i have ever seen, a really great man. [4ftfingers]
Speaking of PC Lookin form north of the border anything is better than what you have there now we are not perfect but since Bush has been in the white house our neighbors to the south the relationship has gotten bad. From what i have seen on the news and read I hope that Obama is elected but if is comes down to Hilary or Obama the choice will bring out all sorts of special interest groups running each one into the ground. If you leave religion, race adn sex out of it adn go by the candidate adn there platform Obama would be the better of the two. [huggiebear22]
Well in a perfect world we would leave race, sex and religion out but unfortunately that's never going to happen. Even if we did leave those issues out... Obama is very inexperienced and easily swayed on his thoughts. Look at his political background alone and you will see a lot of wishy washy changes in what he "believes" in. I personally don't think he is ready for the position. [hockeygal4ever]
I'm sure Obama will make a fine president or VP. His faith has nothinhg to do with it and the rumors that he is a muslem are indeed being perpatrated by the Republicans to get the Southern Rednecks to not vote for him. Sad state of affairs really that the conservaties have to resort to slander like that and the Dems will slander Rudy and Rommey the same way. [Poofs_that_r_cheesy]
I agree! And as educated voters, we will have to sift through all the rumors and garbage to get to the truth about the candidates. :-) [clownfish]
I doubt it. I mean, in America, Muslims are synonymous with terrorism and 9/11. And after what America has put up with these few years, I don't think that anyone would vote for a muslim at all because of such conditions. However, as with Hillary Clinton, who would be the first woman to ever become "Madam President" in the history of the USA, Obama would be the first colored president in the history of the USA, as well as a Muslim. Overall, "Muslim President"? I don't know. And as for "Madam President"? Perhaps. Only the majority can decide. [DuoMaxwell]
But I do have to say mail.. the Muslims in this country are definitely in the minority and it would be doubtful that based simply on religion he would get enough votes even in a gaming society. And I do have to agree with Maxwell that I don't think America will be accepting enough at this point in time. I'm not even sure they're going to be accepting enough to take on "Madam President" as he said. [hockeygal4ever]
Well, all I can way is that. Let's just hope that peoples minds will open up to the real essence of why we are here. Peace! [siampinoyglobal]
I think that the US is ready for someone else! White, black, man, woman whatever. America needs help and a leader who is about us the people and not about everyone's problems in others countries and such. I understand defending our country and getting the bad guy, but why is it our place to help them with thier government when ours needs just as much help. Then on top of that, our soldiers getting killed over thier government, oh it just burns me up... Back to reality and the topic at hand, America needs a new light and I think that a whole new aspect on the future of this country may lay in the hands of the unthinkable as some may call it. I personally don't care and do think that we are ready for a change, a BIG change and if it means a black person, wonderful, a woman that's even better. And I do think that regardless of thier religion, just as long as they do the job, it should not matter. That is not our buisness. Some things just should not matter when it comes to certain things in life. race, sexuality, religion... How is him being a non-Christian gonna affect our government I mean really. He is not trying to be a preacher. Why should he be downed because of his color? We all bleed the same. Hmmmmmm, maybe I shouold keep these feelings to myself and not post them but I am because for people to see skin and religion as what is gonna make or break our government, then that is bad. What if you could not see the canidates just hear what they have to say? Then have to vote then what would you do? Think about it people!!! I don't want to offend or anything like that but come on... Clinton, "he did not inhale," so what? That is not our buisness, his personal life, yeah it was entertaining but really did it really affect the way he ran this country???? [lucie225]
Oh I do agree when u say people r just not open to it and they still will vote based on color and religion. Not a doubt in my mind. I am just saying it Should Not matter. Unfortunatly, we live in a world of color. It is sad but true. Color seems to be more important than religion in some cases. I personally don't judge a book by its cover nor did I teach me children to. But it is America. I so think that if he made it though, he is ready for anything that is thrown at him. He knows what is in front of him to begin with so it's not like he did not know before he announced he was gonna run for President. So, your point is valid, but I just think that he is ready, America is ready, in my opinion, and I do hope someone new brings a brighter future for America. [lucie225]
Obama has in no way claimed to be a Christian, even though he attends a Christian church. (Standing in a garage doesn't make you a car.) He has, however, claimed that he has a background that is strongly influenced by Islam including the dedication of members of his family to the religion. Islam teaches that you should make no friend of a Christian or Jew except to eventually break your vow and crush them and that deception is a legitimate form of warfare. That's not intolerance. That's fact. Is this the kind of person you want to run our country, secure our borders, and protect us from terrorism and radical Islam? [chadd_atl]
sorry revdauphine but that's taken out of context. the qaran says not to befriend christians and jews who mock the muslim faith. the religion of islam condemns the killing or persecution of people merwely because they embrace a different religion. the quaran mandates the absolute freedom of religion in society. it forbids muslims to fight unless you must do so to defend your life or to resist aggression and keep your society free from other's intrusiosn. that is why there are so many fighting the coalition forces, they believe they are fighting in self defence, they can't understand the need for us to be there. it is certain people who wish for their religion to be dominant, and so they will manipulate the quran to suit themselves. but the average muslim beleives this is wrong! [4ftfingers]
I can't even understand why the religious beliefs of anyone who is running should have any bearing on the race. It simply shouldn't be a factor. Barack Obama is the most charismatic politician to come around in quite some time. Whe he talks, I listen. With that being said, he may still be a little too inexperienced at this point and I would love to see him run on the same ticket as Hillary. That would be a great 1-2 punch. As for looking "outside the box", maybe it's time that Americans opened their eyes and noticed that what is the norm for a president hasn't really been working that well for them for the past 7 years. [inked4life]
obama a muslim? are you sure? [porgie]
Going to a Christian church DOES NOT make you a Christian. I can go to a temple but that doesn't make me Jewish. [maildumpster]
If you seen the press confrence thingys he had when he first announced his presidency. you know he is ready as a president. I like how he composed himself when the protesters came. and how his entire family was with him when he was talking. [bkwiatv1]
I'll vote for Hillary before I would vote for him. He hasn't been a senator long enough to have any real experience. If he had been the governor of Ill. I might feel differently. [charlene2350]
I have to be honest. I hope Obama wins because he's black. I think having a black president would show the world that we've come a long way. Realistically, I don't think he has a chance because there will always be enough white voters to vote against him for no other reason than that he is black. So now I turn to Hillary. I think it be great if this country had its first woman president. I think that'd say a lot for our country as well. Of course if neither of them were qualified, i wouldn't let race or gender be a factor. [owens07]
Oh, my goodness. Mr, Obama is NOT Moslem. He and his family attend the Trinity United Church of Christ on the south side of Chicago. Disinformation already. [pollyandry]
I'm not sure but I know in NY she is the front runner in the polls. [maildumpster]
When I was growing up learning how the government worked I was taught that you had to be a wasp to be president. WASP = white, anglo saxon protestant. I don't know how the country is going to feel about putting a Muslim in office when it was Muslims that caused 9/11 (no I am not saying that all Muslims are terrorists if anyone should think so) Then again we have a large population of Muslims that may just be able to vote him in. Guess we should just wait and see. [maildumpster]
**************he is not moslem********************** [pollyandry]
haha beat you to it! ;) [4ftfingers]
Unfortunately for him, I think the fact that he is Muslim will prevent him from being President based on the feelings of many people in this country. I think people will be more reluctant to vote for him based on his religion. He is probably a very nice, intelligent and caring person but I think people will end up voting for someone else. [kgwat70]
Obama does not have the experience needed to be president. With that said, Bush has us in such a mess we need someone who can hit the ground running and know what they are doing. Obama needs a few more years before he gets enough experience to do that. [janet069]
I agree that he is too inexperienced. My question was merely based on the fact that as much as we Americans love to say we are PC... our actions say otherwise, quite often! I don't think the American public is willing to welcome someone that truly is so much "outside the box" from what we've accepted in this position previously. My topic said nothing of what I believed of him etc. but merely questioned if the American public itself was ready to accept such drastic changes. I think the answers alone here prove my point. So many spent time arguing as to if he was or wasn't Muslim that few even mentioned if he knew what he was doing, etc. THAT will be the issue at hand when voting time comes and people will be unwilling to accept the questionable aspects of his religion. Right or wrong, I really think this is how the American people will handle it all. [hockeygal4ever]
I am not sure I like him to be honest with you. It has nothing to do with his color I just have a bad feeling about him. I am voting for Hilary, or Gore (if he runs, he is my favorite democrat). But more then likely Hills wil get my democratic vote during primarys. [liperoterachel]
Don't get me wrong..I've been waiting my whole life for a woman president..but augh, does it HAVE to be the Clintons? They've just this..yuck factor to me. Obama..though he may end up being a loaded gun, I don't think its likely. I'm usually a good judge of character, and I have a nose for lies..yes he's young, but there is a sincerity about him. He's educated about what he's talking about, I sense a respect for women..and he voices so much of what I and people I know have been talking about for YEARS. We NEED to think outside th box. How is it sanity to think inside the box? Can you name many of our great people throughout history? Mozart? Michaelangelo? How about different leaders in the past..the ones reknown as brilliant? So many of our greatg thinkers, THEY thought outside the box for their times. We need to get past what's 'accepted' and what's considered 'normal' to what makes sense, what's right, what will probably fix so many of our problems. So far he's in the lead votes wise, yes I know it's early yet..and he has i only narrowly. But there's not enough feminists in the U.S. .. at least I really honestly hope not. I've such a bad feeling for her, especially since Hillary said that she's going to make her husband an ambassador! How the heck is that good?! Nooo.. Obama has spoken of paying teachers more, making sure kids will finish their educations..which is a BIG issue. Something we've all been stressed out about. He's spoken about how terrible our school systems are..which most of us have seen. He's spoken about all these common problems..about how so many people have had basically no luck, and people with just the right background are rewarded..regardless talent or work! He's focusing on all the stuff that matters. There's millions of desperate people who'll vote..and I know because I've tasted desperate, if I could vote I would probably if the elections were right now. I'm going to watch and see how much I can learn about these people. Not from what they are, or thgeir lives exactly..but the kinds of people they are. What they stand for in truth instead of just what they're saying. By the way..Obama though despite his connections to the middle east IS a christian, just no longer catholic. Rascism is still a minority, and I don't know that many folks who judge presidents by their race. I didn't judge Bush just because he was Texas. It means nada. I think Obama has a good chance of being president. So does Hillary..but Obama so far has said more of what's been on ALOT of people's minds for years. He could be what we all need. [xParanoiax]
I don't think America will do this I hope not anyway. If the mayor of New York on 9-11 I would vote for him. I think he would make a good president. My opinion I think he did a great job when that happen in our own back yard. I think that this one Obama is not right for the presidentcy. I don't usually answer political post but this one I needed to voice my opinion. I don't think America is ready for a Muslim not this close to 9-11. My views on this topic. Don't want to upset anyone but I have a right to think what I think and you have a right to think what you think. Now if the Governer of California was able to run for office I would vote for him too. [bwrattybaby]
No, I dobut it. He may be in the lead now, but I doubt it. I bet Kerry winds up with it or whoever it is that is running against Obama and Hillary. [Sacrificialclam]