For years, news organizations have failed American viewers and readers in a fundamental way. And now we see the dreadful fallout of the racial denial that exists in the American press.

Senator Barack Obama gave a speech on race relations in Philadelphia on Tuesday that is now being called "historic" by many. To those of us who fall into the same age group as Senator Obama, the theme of his speech--that racial discord in the US is entrenched, distracting, and emotional, but not necessarily intractable--was not profound. But the tone, placement, and resonance of his Philadelphia talk is.

A day later, I have identified a major reason why this is the case.

We exist in a universe where coverage floods over us, but background now means zippy graphics and special effects, rather than detailed information; where "experts" are ubiquitous but show more flash than substance, and where opinions are a mile wide but an inch deep. Consequently, consumers do not understand why race in America is a linchpin subject, even more so than the economy, stupid. The speech was "historic" because it exposes the huge blind spots in coverage, which are made possible by a media elite that has resisted the thorough racial and class integration of its ranks for decades.

In the details, we find the devil of a self-perpetuating dynamic that has doomed coverage of race in America: journalists of color, few in number, and with little in the way of final-say power, have scant influence on the coverage that reaches consumers. Major news organizations have not put a premium on elevating journalists of color into the management pipelines--with the exception of a handful of top editors, reporters and columnists working at the biggest outfits. Within that context, few big news organizations have made it a priority to find, cultivate and promote journalists of any ethnicity who are not from elite universities.

The gradual creep over the past fifty years of "professionalism" into a business that once was viewed as a "trade" has been devastating to popular journalism, as catastrophic, in my opinion, as the quickening economic crisis is proving to be. And the current trend of downsizing at big traditional news organizations has hastened a black brain drain that will have negative impact for years to come. The basic outlines of this dynamic is not new. Back in 2000, New York University journalism professor and Nation Institute Fellow Pamela Newkirk detailed the dilemma of black journalists in mainstream media in her book, Within the Veil: Black Journalists, White Media.

But now, with this presidential election hinging so powerfully on voters' perceptions of race, class and gender in the US, the absence of newsroom benches that are significantly deep with black talent is shortchanging American consumers at the worst possible time.

Consider a recent online column by Richard Prince, detailing the dearth of journalists of color in the ranks of bigfoot reporters currently covering the presidential campaigns. Prince, who is black, writes his column for the Oakland, California-based Maynard Institute for Journalism Education. He and his white counterpart Jim Romenesko at the Poynter Institute, are required reading for dispirited journalists who have seen their industry's approval ratings sink to the cellar in the past decade. But Prince stands alone in charting the steady shrinking and demoralization of a population of journalists--blacks, Latinos, Asians and women--that was small to begin with. And for those who remain, their influence in shaping the daily narrative of this historic presidential election is minimal.

At the same time, certain verities apply. Newspapers still do a better job at providing in depth analysis of complex topics than do broadcast outlets. Traditional news organizations still have more resources for flooding the zone of a hot breaking story than do upstart websites. And journalists trained and experienced at the fundamentals of reporting are more accurate in covering tough topics like race than the growing numbers of citizen journalists and blogging opinionators. But in a very basic way, the press is no better at covering race-related stories now than they were in the late 1960s, when, as Senator Obama indicated, Jeremiah Wright and his theological and political cohorts first became radicalized.

But our evolving media landscape has done little to bridge the disconnect between what Americans think they know about other ethnic groups and cultures and the realities of people's lives and experiences. The truth is that media in 2008 is not equipped to give citizens the fullness of what Senator Obama was getting at in his speech simply because its infrastructure is not geared that way.

For example, as the cable news programs and op-ed writers chew over Senator Obama's Philadelphia speech, how much attention has been paid to one portion of the talk that endeavored to highlight the pressing urgency of a subtle but crucial point--the intersection of race and class in the US?

"The fact is that the comments that have been made and the issues that have surfaced over the last few weeks reflect the complexities of race in this country that we've never really worked through--a part of our union that we have yet to perfect," Obama said. "And if we walk away now, if we simply retreat into our respective corners, we will never be able to come together and solve challenges like health care, or education, or the need to find good jobs for every American."

That one sentence--"And if we walk away now, .... we will never be able to come together and solve challenges like health care...." is, for me, the heart of the speech, the money shot. The stakes of continuing to allow government and corporations to engage in economically inequitable policies are high for more than 90 percent of Americans. Yet from the overwhelming coverage of Sen. Obama's talk that's been produced so far--and of the sickening obsession with the candidate's own racial makeup that defines most coverage--you'd think the biggest challenge we face collectively is to identify, pin down, and execute any candidate who refuses to pretend that racism doesn't exist. (The apocryphal white male, blue-collar voter, wherever he may live, surely felt during the news cycle after the Philadelphia speech, like the most popular guy at the hootenanny.)

Senator Obama broke new ground not because he decided to talk about race but because he forced American media to finally try to cover calmly and with necessary context a topic that it has primarily covered as entertainment for the better part of two decades.

Also, Senator Obama's bravery in challenging the way corporate chicanery diminishes the opportunities of Americans of all ethnicities cannot be over-stated. Yet even the few black "experts" on the leading political talk programs -- including CNN's Roland Martin; Eugene Robinson of NBC, MSNBC, and the Washington Post, and a bevy of academics including Michael Eric Dyson and Melissa Harris Lacewell--do not emphasize the importance of the class aspect of Senator Obama's Philadelphia talk. They have fallen into an unhelpful game of race-as-entertainment that the media leadership class--in its denial and unwillingness to relinquish power--seeks to perpetuate.

Thus, consumers of news, now more savvy than ever before, may indeed recognize the stink of decay emanating from the media. But they do not know its true source. The MSM-haters in the blogosphere focus incorrectly on journalists' supposed liberal biases, missing completely Big Media's biggest sin--its utter bankruptcy on matters of class and race. To those of us black journalists who have worked in major corporate news organizations and have seen first-hand the insidious negative fallout of racial denial in the industry, the campaign of Senator Barack Obama represents the inevitable, unhappy outcome of long-standing negligence on the part of the media leadership class: A viable black presidential candidate places serious matters of race and class squarely on the table and there aren't enough big-league journalists capable of skillfully and fairly carving it up.

The chickens, as Rev. Jeremiah Wright said, quoting Malcolm X, have come home to roost.

Comments (68)

1. And now, Ms Alexander, the inevitable reference to supposedly WHAT Malcolm X was using "chickens coming home to roost" for....

   the Kennedy assassination!

   Posted by Mask at 03/19/2008 @ 4:43pm

2. "A viable black presidential candidate places serious matters of race and class squarely on the table and there aren't enough big-league journalists capable of skillfully and fairly carving it up."

   Nor, for that matter, politicians. Vide HRC's damning with faint praise comment on Obama's eloquent, incisive speech ... I haven't seen or read it, but I'm glad he addressed the issue of race. Issues of race and gender are still very serious issues in this country.

   That's what we get from hrc, what can we expect from most journos whose jobs are always on the line.

   Posted by sloper at 03/19/2008 @ 4:55pm

3. If my rabbi delivered vile, hate filled sermons against Black Americans I would let him know that I disagreed and that if the sermons continued I could not remain a member of the synagogue. God is not present at only one house of worship and if the minister, priest, rabbi, or imam would deliver hate filled sermons against Blacks, Whites, Jews, Gays, Asians, Hispanics or any other group the congregation has the responsibility to remove that religious leader from the pulpit, and if that is not possible, the member of that temple, church, mosque, or synagogue should voice their displeasure by finding another place to pray. When we sit silently and allow the leaders of our religious institutions to broadcast hate we demean and debase ourselves.

   Posted by mjkoch at 03/19/2008 @ 5:27pm

4. HAPPY is not so happy. To be ignored.

   Posted by sloper at 03/19/2008 @ 5:32pm

5. Yes the good little STALINISTS here at this detestable rag called the Nation magazine are very good at deleting posts they do not agree with....

   If they ran the country we all would be working in the rice patties now......

   Posted by libzsuk at 03/19/2008 @ 5:34pm

6. happy-Get over yourself.

   Posted by i'm nobody at 03/19/2008 @ 5:36pm

7. The chickens coming home to roost line is a bad choice, I think, both in the title and the ending to your piece...

   On a different note - MJKOCH, is your temple a democracy?! I've never heard of any religious organization where the clergy could overthrow the Minister...

   Posted by nicR at 03/19/2008 @ 5:57pm

8. happy-None have been banned,as far as I know.In fact,I see your post.

   Posted by i'm nobody at 03/19/2008 @ 6:24pm

9. 'Chickens coming home to roost', is an old old saying going way back. It of course begs the question of all white and black participants in this slowmo dance with ignorance-- which came first? But rather than the 'chicken or the egg', it's about the current racial cycle of intolerance, an ongoing dance to the death. The MSM is simply the band playing the tune.

   The question is will the band stop playing when the dance floor is empty?

   Posted by hsuBfools at 03/19/2008 @ 6:32pm

10. That too me was also the "money shot." But I have next to no hope for the media, none, that ship has left the port and sank. After 9-11, after Katrina, hell after fucking up and being utter sycophants for the Iraq war, there is nothing to redeem of the main stream media. Why do you think blogging, talk radio and the many other forms of news have taken a more important role?

    The media is entertainment, chocked full of white girls gone wild and then gone missing. Or perhaps asking the same few dunderheads what they think about the latest YouTube clip. You know I think I could get a panel of my peers and achieve better results.

    The unfortunate side effect of sensational journalism is not that it exists, but that many Americans still get the bulk of their news from it. It's changing, and maybe, because of ratings, the news media will adapt, but ONLY because of ratings.

    Posted by Tzimisce at 03/19/2008 @ 6:45pm

11. Hey Happy2,

    I have noticed in the past, that some of MY posts seem to disappear when i get a little pithy..? Maybe the people here at the nation are not interested in real free speech, just in speech that they agree with... And by the way, i NEVER cuss in what i post, i just tell it like it is , from the redneck perspective.. HAHAHAH

    bill..

    Posted by tidbit100 at 03/19/2008 @ 6:47pm

12. HAPPY, you seriously got banned? Had to have been a mix up. How can they let the hate-filled bile of Libzsuk remain on the pages and your account gets banned?

    I've been censored on here before. Don't exactly know why other than pointing out the obvious. While I don't agree with a majority of your posts, I have never found them to be "ban" worthy. Maybe I missed whatever post of yours caused your dilemma?

    On topic, I thought this was a well written article and makes a great point. Unfortunately, I fear a majority of Obama's speech went right over the heads of many in the media business.

    Posted by FritztheCat at 03/19/2008 @ 6:48pm

13. Ban Rese before Happy, at least Happy posts new things. Rese does still post long rants about Israel and tinfoil hats right? (I have her on ignore)

    Seriously if he has been banned, I would like to know why? I mean Happy does get on my nerves, but he's no Rio who spouts "Hillary Rotten Satan's favorite daughter" and "Barack Osama"

    Posted by Tzimisce at 03/19/2008 @ 6:55pm

14. Posted by TZIMISCE 03/19/2008 @ 6:45pm | ignore this person

    you are overstating your case. true some of the MSM have been particularly complicit with this war,but not all.

    many of the big stories of investigative reporting have come from the major newspapers, including the Times. the blogs just don't have the sources and the funds.

    Posted by emile duBois at 03/19/2008 @ 7:11pm

15. when MalcolmX used that phrase, it was in the context of the 200 years of violence suffered by blacks in this country. Wright's speeches too must be judged in that same context.

    Posted by emile duBois at 03/19/2008 @ 7:14pm

16. that should be 300 years of violence suffered by blacks.

    Posted by emile duBois at 03/19/2008 @ 7:15pm

17. Posted by MJKOCH 03/19/2008 @ 5:27pm | ignore this person

    there are plenty of rabbis who deliver hate filled speeches, both here and in Israel.

    Posted by emile duBois at 03/19/2008 @ 7:17pm

18. Banned? The Obama-Wright One-World-0rder hath begun.

    Posted by winyahn at 03/19/2008 @ 7:59pm

19. Posted by MJKOCH 03/19/2008 @ 5:27pm

    That is one issue that Obama has not addressed but there is the political dimension that probably means he has committed political suicide because there is a significant section of those who would have voted for him, even across party lines. These will not be able to "nuance" his position as well as his panicking disciples now are.

    It seems that there are only three options in this sorry mess:

    1. Obama is as ethnocentric as Trinity is in its Mission statement and philosophy and his rationalisation is disingeuous.

    2. Obama is not as intelligent as we imagined and really can't see the inconsistency of his grand rhetorical words and belonging to such a politico/religious group.

    3. Obama wants to be a nice guy and lacked/lacks the strength of character to dissociate himself from, not only one pastor but also a whole errant local Church. That is OK for a follower but is a fatal weakness in one who aspires to lead a whole nation.

    Posted by harvey 79 at 03/19/2008 @ 8:01pm

20. BRING BACK HAPPY!

    Posted by TransitDave at 03/19/2008 @ 8:19pm

21. FIGHT CENSORSHIP!

    Posted by TransitDave at 03/19/2008 @ 8:19pm

22. FIGHT THE POWER!

    Posted by TransitDave at 03/19/2008 @ 8:21pm

23. POWER TO THE PEOPLE!

    Posted by TransitDave at 03/19/2008 @ 8:22pm

24. The haters are throwing a funeral party. Time for Obama to work on other fronts. He needs to somehow connect more to Hispanics!! Weaken that weird Hillary-Hispanic bondage - mostly anti-Bush, name recognition..

    If any of you Bush/war voters are open-minded in the least remember you can always impeach Obama. As the cons posts have proven, there's no limit to the potential for delusional, negative spin.

    Posted by winyahn at 03/19/2008 @ 8:22pm

25. Well, HAP, I don't know what to tell ya. Maybe the "moderators" will read the snippets of support you have here and make a decision to reinstate your privileges. Like I say, I don't agree with many of your view points but I respect your right to voice them. I really don't think you "sabotage the threads with extreme, off-point personal attacks and/or obscenities." Other posters, yes.

    Posted by FritztheCat at 03/19/2008 @ 8:22pm

26. (throw me a bone, here, guys and gals...)

    Posted by TransitDave at 03/19/2008 @ 8:23pm

27. But then again, what do I know? I'm "x-rated and animated." LOL!

    Posted by FritztheCat at 03/19/2008 @ 8:23pm

28. "If they ran the country we all would be working in the rice patties now......"

    Yes, if the liberals and The Nation ran the country, we would have been invaded by the Vietamese...in their war canoes.

    Posted by metinker at 03/19/2008 @ 8:29pm

29. To MJKOCH: I'm sorry you feel this way, but the very point Barak Obama is trying to make is how people put too much emphasis on what is not important. He can only denounce the words the man said and explain how the man did not say those words or show those actions in his presence. Maybe the slick one in all this is was Jeremiah Wright who tried to hide his true colors and got busted via video tape.

    But again, what should be focused on here is the issues that hurt us all as a country regardless of color. Economics, health care, and war. His speech was about verifying that we have wounds to heal, but also how to not let those differences get in the way of helping the entire country.

    Posted by MMarie at 03/19/2008 @ 8:48pm

30. LIBZSUK.. Evidently, Ann Coulter did not read or listen to the part of Obama's speech where he did speak of his grandmother, her feeling and the words she spoke of that made him cringe. And this again is the point of Barak's speach. What is needed to make others succeed is not going to make others fail. Just because there are still some systems that need help to catching blacks, browns, and poors up to par, does not mean we need to take from others that are working fine for rich white. For example, there are many ways to get poorly funded schools the books they need, which will not take away books from schools who already have them). We have got to stop FIGHTING each other's race and TALK ABOUT each other's race.

    Posted by MMarie at 03/19/2008 @ 8:59pm

31. Posted by MMARIE 03/19/2008 @ 8:59pm

    Hard to believe our local Right-of-Right-wing Troll is quoting a woman who said she'd campaign for HILLARY over McCain?!?!?!

    Posted by Mask at 03/19/2008 @ 9:41pm

32. & pasted it on multiple pages.

    Posted by winyahn at 03/19/2008 @ 9:43pm

33. Posted by JOMAMMA 03/19/2008 @ 10:41pm | ignore this person

    maybe it's because of all the abuse they've taken since 9/11. and how do you know what imams preach in mosques?

    you have an irrational fear of the "other" and you react by spewing hate.

    Posted by emile duBois at 03/19/2008 @ 11:12pm

34. I agree and have always wondered why America has never had any Muslims denouncing any imans...or pro America demonstrations from the Islamic community....

    Posted by JOMAMMA 03/19/2008 @ 10:41pm

    You make the assumption that, as the Jewish and Christian faiths are organized into singular bodies, that therefore the Islamic community aligns itself in the same way. It's a fascinating phenomenon, Muslims who have hugely different viewpoints can and do worship at the same mosque, mainly because any Muslim is welcome in any mosque, as long as he says shahadah and respects the imam and the fellow followers. In fact, Muslims all over this country have protested this war, but as individuals.

    Posted by yutsano at 03/19/2008 @ 11:25pm

35. JOMAMMA - I'll try this...

    What are some possible negative implications of Wright for an Obama presidency? Be specific. What might he actually do as president? What to you most fear America would face, were Obama POTUS?

    Posted by winyahn at 03/19/2008 @ 11:33pm

36. Posted by HAPPY2 03/19/2008 @ 7:34pm

    Are you till HAPPY2BEACOWARD?

    How are your tibetan stocks doing this week?

    Posted by crabwalk at 03/20/2008 @ 07:29am

37. Posted by WINYAHN 03/19/2008 @ 11:33pm

    john is terrified that his taxes might get raised to pay for his war against the wrong country. That would mean he might have to sacrifice a round of golf or two.

    Posted by crabwalk at 03/20/2008 @ 07:31am

38. The AMPCC statement read in part:

    "American Muslims utterly condemn what are apparently vicious and cowardly acts of terrorism against innocent civilians. We join with all Americans in calling for the swift apprehension and punishment of the perpetrators. No political cause could ever be assisted by such immoral acts."

    1) We assert unequivocal condemnation based on our religious values and our identity as American Muslims;

    6) We warn against opportunists who will exploit the misery and hysteria of the public in order to promote a political agenda aimed at tarnishing the name of Islam and Muslims;

    hmmm, prescient, no?

    Dr. Agha Saeed, the national Chair of the American Muslim Alliance, Stated:

    "These attacks are against both divine and human laws and we condemn them in the strongest terms. The Muslim Americans join the nation in calling for swift apprehension and stiff punishment of the perpetrators, and offer our sympathies to the victims and their families."

    Posted by crabwalk at 03/20/2008 @ 07:39am

39. In the meantime the rabid hounds have been loosed, spinning, bullying, demanding, renouncing, managing, framing the issue with a force of desperation. Watch the arrogant blowhard, suspected murderer Scarsborough with his surly, racist sneer, the confirmed racist Buchanon, given a 24-7 megaphone, the juvenile, spoiled white punk of privilige Tucker Carlson, whining about the liberal leisure class...It is interesting to watch these tools sense a rising tide and strike out to staunch the current with the same fits of apoplexy as Clinton when confronted with the charismatic figure of Obama. They must destroy him, he threatens their world.

    Posted by Lil at 03/20/2008 @ 08:05am

40. "If my rabbi delivered vile, hate filled sermons against Black Americans I would let him know that I disagreed and that if the sermons continued I could not remain a member of the synagogue..."

    How about Palestinians? I notice you left them off your list.

    White America lectures African-Americans that they should not bring up the spectre of our shameful heritage of slavery or acknowledge the continuing legacy of racism. We tell them to behave themselves. Show deferrence.

    Posted by Lil at 03/20/2008 @ 08:20am

41. MJKOCH said:

    If my rabbi delivered vile, hate filled sermons against Black Americans I would let him know that I disagreed and that if the sermons continued I could not remain a member of the synagogue. God is not present at only one house of worship and if the minister, priest, rabbi, or imam would deliver hate filled sermons against Blacks, Whites, Jews, Gays, Asians, Hispanics

    Yeah, but Jeremiah Wright didn't say anything hate filled against whites, Jews, Gays, Asians or Hispanics. The most controversial statement he made was in his indictment of American injustice. Wright in fact has long preached out against homophobia and sexism. Wright has worked with white and Jewish leaders. There have been whites in attendance at his sermons. Wright's most pointed remark about white America was that they do not understand what it is to be black because they have never been called the n-word. He was especially referring to the Clintons, who have for so long claimed a "special relationship" with black America. So that is what white America and the corp media are calling racist? It's racist now to point out that America practices racism, and that white people don't understand what it means to be black? What next? Will your rabbi be called racist if he says non-Jews don't understand the legacy of discrimination and genocide endured by Jews? Will women become man-haters if they claim men don't understand issues of gender because they are not women?

    Is this the best some in white America has by way of claiming "hate speech?" You have John Hagee cozying up to McCain and talking about ethnically cleansing Palestinians, and GOP relationships to Bob Jones University where interracial marriage is still considered sin, and a Mormon previously running for President whose holy book claims blacks are "cursed" with dark skin for innate features of lying and stealing, and Rev Wright is the best straw man that can be trotted out and declared as evidence of black "racism?" Because he says white people don't understand what it is to be black? Are you really frackin' serious?

    I ain't running for Prez, but I think I'll write a book next year, and title it, "The Audacity of Whiteness"...

    Sin

    Posted by sincere1906 at 03/20/2008 @ 09:04am

42. How is it possible for someone to post that they're banned from posting?

    Posted by i'm nobody at 03/20/2008 @ 09:41am

43. What's all this "legacy" of slavery and racism BS. Yes, we've made real progress over the last 40 years, but racist discrimination still exists. Just the latest evidence is the middle class people of color homebuyers with good credit who were steered for no good reason into sub-prime mortgages.

    It's not just the history, folks, it's also the daily reality. And that goes for the lives of the working class of all colors, too.

    I really do have to find the time to watch this damn speech. Even my mom told me I should!

    Posted by cka2nd at 03/20/2008 @ 10:19am

44. Posted by JOMAMMA 03/20/2008 @ 09:06am- Jo, did you ever stop by Obama's website? It is pretty clear what his intentions are if he gets into office. On this same token- please tell me which candidate has stated specifics about what they intend to do in office- especially McCain, he hasn't defined a single thing he intends to do besides broadening "the war on terror".

    Posted by jro555 at 03/20/2008 @ 10:27am

45. Found this over at Truthdig:

    Judge to ex-pastor: ‘You lied'

    When the Rev. William Procanick put his hand on the Bible during his sex-abuse trial in Oneida County Court earlier this year, he swore to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

    But as the former Clinton pastor was sentenced Friday to three years in prison for inappropriately touching a 7-year-old girl at his home last March, Judge Michael L. Dwyer said Procanick sacrificed his honesty the day he testified.

    "As a minister of God, you got on the stand and you lied," Dwyer told Procanick, the 54-year-old former pastor of Resurrection Assembly of God church on Kirkland Avenue.

    A jury found Procanick guilty Jan. 22 of first-degree sexual abuse and endangering the welfare of a child.

    Dwyer said he believes Procanick was being honest when he told the girl's mother in a recorded phone call that he was wrong to caress the girl's body while she was trying to fall asleep.

    However, Procanick instead testified in court that he did nothing wrong other than spend time alone with the girl, who was a friend of the family, Dwyer noted.

    If Procanick had accepted responsibility from the beginning instead of straying from the truth, Dwyer said, Procanick would likely have faced a lesser punishment and possibly avoided jail time.

    "The truth would have set you free," Dwyer said. "You had a chance to be a man and say, ‘I made a mistake.' But as always, the cover-up is much worse than the original crime."

    Procanick's defense attorney, George Aney, noted that Procanick still received a sentence less than the maximum, which was up to seven years in prison.

    "It's considerably less than the maximum, but considerably more than he deserved," Aney said.

    Aney also took issue with how Dwyer and the victim's mother used harsh language to attack Procanick's Christian values.

    "You are just an evil man," the victim's mother said Friday in court. "You lied, and you had your wife lie. And all these people who showed up in court to support you, did you lie to them, too?"

    The Observer-Dispatch does not identify sex-abuse victims and their families. The victim's mother said her daughter is still waking up scared at night because of what happened, and she continues to see a therapist. The young girl also feels that everybody is mad at her, the mother said.

    Assistant District Attorney Doug DeMarche Jr. then read a note written by the girl, who did not appear in court Friday.

    "Bill made me sad and scared," DeMarche read. "I thought I did something wrong, because I trusted him."

    Dwyer gave Procanick an opportunity to speak in court, but Procanick had nothing to say to the victim and her family.

    Aney did not plan to speak in court, he told Dwyer, but he felt obligated to respond to what the victim's mother said about Procanick and his wife.

    "I believe she shows her own lack of Christianity by referring to people as liars," Aney said.

    After the sentencing, Aney further commented about what was said in court.

    "I respect Judge Dwyer for what he said this morning, but I have to say I disagreed with him," Aney said. "I have every right to express my feelings, and my feelings are that we are not permitted to call anybody a liar. That's a judgment someone higher than I makes."

    DeMarche, however, said he can understand why the girl's mother spoke of Procanick in such harsh terms.

    "She had a lot of faith and trust in Mr. Procanick, and he violated that trust," DeMarche said. "I think she's justified in being angry."

    http://www.uticaod.com/homepage/x1637676857

    Now that Obama's lynching has gone off as planned, think the MSM will run this story about Hillary's former pastor? Or would that upset the planned election of either Israeli-firster Hillary vs. Israeli-firster McCain?

    Posted by Lil at 03/20/2008 @ 11:32am

46. Posted by WINYAHN 03/19/2008 @ 8:22pm | ignore this person

    I wouldnt have to worry about OBAMA presidency at this moment.....McCain just took a double digit lead on both Obama and Hillary..

    Gee, maybe that Wright thing and the tearful Obama speech didnt have the impact that you thought it might.

    It seems at this time Americans are seeing past the Obama mystique and seeing that he has no clothes....just flowery rehtoric.

    Posted by CPT at 03/20/2008 @ 11:44am

47. CPT-McCain has a double digit lead over Hillary,but not Obama.Only Hillary dropped in the polls and I wouldn't pay too much attention to GE polls yet since McCain is running for president,but the other two are still running for the nomination.

    Posted by i'm nobody at 03/20/2008 @ 12:05pm

48. CPT-Once people figure out that McCain can't remember who is who and what is going on in Iraq and Iran he will go down in the polls.

    Posted by i'm nobody at 03/20/2008 @ 12:09pm

49. CPT-If you look at state by state GE polls Obama still wins because of the electoral college thing.

    Posted by i'm nobody at 03/20/2008 @ 12:22pm

50. Posted by CPT 03/20/2008 @ 11:44am

    Care to share that poll with the double-digit lead.

    I went to pollingreport.com and couldn't seem to find it. In fact, most of the polls had Clinton and Obama both ahead of McCain.

    Posted by Hman23 at 03/20/2008 @ 12:32pm

51. Hman-Rasmussen polls have been proven to be accurate and they do show Hillary dropping against McCain and Obama behind McCain,but only in a national poll.State by state polls show Obama winning because of the electoral college.

    Posted by i'm nobody at 03/20/2008 @ 12:38pm

52. Posted by HAPPY2 03/20/2008 @ 10:12am

    So, you censored me?

    Hypocrite and a coward, eh?

    Posted by crabwalk at 03/20/2008 @ 12:50pm

53. Posted by JOMAMMA 03/20/2008 @ 09:06am

    Hard work sometimes-- making up things to FEAR about. Especially about someone that's as intelligent and considerate as Obama. Seems like the known qualities of McCave should be enough for you to FEAR about without making up stuff about someone else that has a lot more in creditable experience and potential than you have shown in any proven McCave credibility. Perhaps you should hear all of Wright's sermons and read all of Obama's published and spoken policies before stating there's nothing there to make any different assessment than the one you've based on ignorance.

    Posted by hsuBfools at 03/20/2008 @ 1:18pm

54. jomama-We can't afford the borrow and spend republicans.

    Posted by i'm nobody at 03/20/2008 @ 2:14pm

55. Posted by JOMAMMA 03/20/2008 @ 1:40pm

    guess you'll have to work smarter.

    Posted by crabwalk at 03/20/2008 @ 2:20pm

56. So, now the US is "a Third world country".

    Like Sweden and England, I guess.

    Posted by crabwalk at 03/20/2008 @ 2:21pm

57. How does this affect you? Many families have lost businesses, farms and ranches, and homes that have been in their families for generations because they could not afford the inheritance tax. Those willing their assets to loved ones will not only lose them to these taxes

    this is a cannard. Not a single family farm has been lost to inheritance taxes. Any person worth his salt knows how to set up trust to avoid crazy levels of inheritance tax.

    Posted by crabwalk at 03/20/2008 @ 2:44pm

58. [The Nation blog]...where opinions are a mile wide but an inch deep...[and make the BEST fertilizer].

    Posted by CPT 03/20/2008 @ 11:44am

    How is the Big Bad Wolf doing in the polls relative to the Three Bears?

    Posted by I'M NOBODY 03/20/2008 @ 12:09pm

    Seriously. You have got to wonder when John McCain is going say something incredibly stupid. Half the conservatives I know worry about him simply because they think it is a bad idea to let someone who was systematically tortured - and by all appearances has an anger problem - have access to the button. And I, I was just happy to find out there was another thing that my conservatives friends and I could agree on.

    Posted by JOMAMMA 03/20/2008 @ 1:40pm

    Should have thought about that before you supported a greater than trillion dollar war. It costs to be the boss, John.

    Posted by srjenkins at 03/20/2008 @ 2:45pm

59. Posted by CRABWALK 03/20/2008 @ 2:44pm

    Trusts only provide tax benefits up to...$2 or $3 million, if memory serves. It is supposed to get up to $4 or $5 million, in the next few years. So, Crab, I think you are missing the fact that JOMAMMA is really talking about passing on more wealth than that and doesn't think the government should get it. But, I'll wager he also doesn't have enough money to warrant the expense of moving it offshore (which only because feasible for people firmly in the high net worth category). He does like to engage in that little fantasy here every now and again though.

    Posted by srjenkins at 03/20/2008 @ 2:52pm

60. Posted by SINCERE1906 03/20/2008 @ 09:04am

    Sin, are you an Alpha? I was just wondering since your id includes "1906".

    Posted by k330k at 03/20/2008 @ 2:56pm

61. The way the media works in America is no surprise to me. i'm used to the bias. If you're black and juvenile and you commit a crime, your picture will ne televised. that's not the case for white, juvenile, criminals. But that's just one aspect. If Americans didn't solely get their news from the popular news outlets, then a snippet of one speech among thousands would not be as influential as it is. If they had the time to research all speeches given by Wright as well as his history in the community, they would probably have a different view of the man. Oh well.

    Posted by k330k at 03/20/2008 @ 3:05pm

62. NINE FIVE ONE

    951 Gaspra a Flora asteroid orbits the Sun between Mars and Jupiter. Its rocky metallic surface is pocked with impact craters.

    Saint Romuald born in 951 f*cked himself stupid as a youth & left home when he saw his daddy Sergius kill his opposite in a duel.

    Rommy became a monk & wrote, ‘Empty yourself completely. Sit waiting like the chick who tastes nothing & eats nothing but what her mother brings him.' He got canon's eyes for that & did rather well in real estate.

    Emperor Shizong also known as Wuyu was a drunk who liked to hunt. Wuyu took to the field in 951 & stopped Chinese advance. He was brutally butchered by his own officer after the battle.

    Born 951 Grigor Narekatsi, Armenian monk, poet, mystical philosopher & theologian. His father Khosrov was archbishop. Grigor wrote ‘on exposing the unseen, on the disclosure of secrets, on laying open the cover up.'

    Donald Rumsfeld,Champion of Aspartame 951 that sweet poison & architect of the Iraq invasion said, in an interview with the New York Times, ‘Oh my goodness gracious me, we can know an awful lot of what is going on in this world by punching a mouse on its nose. I'm standing heredoing something & I think, what in the world am I doing here? It's a big surprise.' The Don once, ‘ferocious in pursuing what he wants' now dwells in an adobe house, across from a working dairy farm. His family has horses, a donkey, a mule, cats, and Reggie the dog. Joyce his missus said, ‘Don has the Reaganesque fixation with clearing brush and chopping wood.' They ride, ski, hike, fish, and skate on the dairy farm pond. The people of Iraq & Afghanistan must be wishing him well in his retirement.

    Posted by lin at 03/20/2008 @ 3:40pm

63. The American Eagle

    Radio on the wall play us the number one the hit song, ‘the American Eagle has no brains it flies into walls.' Francesca the most mysterious person he never really knew despite her outrageously wacky hat she did know all about sex said, ‘this head automatically turns off any thing in bad taste.' Then when she had nailed everyone's rapt attention ‘you can tell people about witchcraft but you can't lead them to it.' That set everyone with presents back on their high heels. Radio on the wall play us a great tune or go to hell, ‘Yes it is Francesca here.' The Radio kept blaring rap crap while she sang, ‘If you don't possess a purple tiffany box you can't expect to grow like a yellow daisy.' ‘Radio on the wall tell me why, why do American Eagles fly into walls and knock their brains out.' Francesca got off the phone jiggling like a teabag & shouted out to all within range, ‘I need to have a pee desperately,' & she left right left right left right left with Staggers & her kittens following in single file tails between their legs. ‘Radio on the wall why do American Eagles hit the wall?' With his last gasp in extreme agony he wheezed, ‘The American Eagle has no brains it flies into walls.' Unwanted, alone, uncared for, now stone dead, his crocodile skin boots still sit in the repair shop. Remember his last wish was to expire with perfect plastic teeth. Those shining eyes could only be described as terminal fireballs. He fried with extreme prejudice in the updraft. ‘Radio on the wall play us all a bugle call.' The monster python swallowed a whole sheep & never spat out any shredded wool. ‘Radio on the wall a song to aid digestion, if you please.' After my farewell remarks Francesca pressed the END continuously but it did not END. Heaven does not kick in until you're dead. Radio on the wall I am tired of poets, give me history.

    Posted by lin at 03/20/2008 @ 3:42pm

64. 'This has been a high-tech lynching of an uppity black man' -- Clarence Thomas, Associate Justice of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, at his 1991 Supreme Court confirmation hearing.

    Posted by HonestLiberal at 03/20/2008 @ 3:52pm

65. Regarding Wright, he is a racist scum and parasite, nothing more.

    (Well, actually he spits his venon from a pulpit in Gods house, which makes him a vile hypocrite as well) The sooner the country is rid of his ilk, the better we will be.

    CT

    Posted by CHIP THORNTON at 03/20/2008 @ 3:54pm

66. Think you or I would be out of jail yet?

    Posted by JOMAMMA 03/20/2008 @ 3:58pm

    Because in America, all that matters is money. He isn't in jail because he is rich. Guess who has fostered that mentality. Republicans have. You believe you should be able to pay your way out everything if you have enough money. Well this is an example of your systems at work. A justice system that with enough cash in your pocket will never work.

    Posted by Cccomfo1 at 03/20/2008 @ 5:36pm

67. NINE FIVE ONE

    951 Gaspra a Flora asteroid orbits the Sun between Mars and Jupiter. Its rocky metallic surface is pocked with impact craters.

    Saint Romuald born in 951 fucked himself stupid as a youth & left home when he saw his daddy Sergius kill his opposite in a duel. Rommy became a monk & wrote, ‘Empty yourself completely. Sit waiting like the chick who tastes nothing & eats nothing but what her mother brings him.' He got canon's eyes for that & did rather well in real estate.

    Emperor Shizong also known as Wuyu was a drunk who liked to hunt. Wuyu took to the field in 951 & stopped Chinese advance. He was brutally butchered by his own officer after the battle.

    Born 951 Grigor Narekatsi, Armenian monk, poet, mystical philosopher & theologian. His father Khosrov was archbishop. Grigor wrote ‘on exposing the unseen, on the disclosure of secrets, on laying open the cover up.'

    Donald Rumsfeld,Champion of Aspartame 951 that sweet poison & architect of the Iraq invasion said, in an interview with the New York Times, ‘Oh my goodness gracious me, we can know an awful lot of what is going on in this world by punching a mouse on its nose. I'm standing heredoing something & I think, what in the world am I doing here? It's a big surprise.' The Don once, ‘ferocious in pursuing what he wants' now dwells in an adobe house, across from a working dairy farm. His family has horses, a donkey, a mule, cats, and Reggie the dog. Joyce his missus said, ‘Don has the Reaganesque fixation with clearing brush and chopping wood.' They ride, ski, hike, fish, and skate on the dairy farm pond. The people of Iraq & Afghanistan must be wishing him well in his retirement.

    Posted by lin at 03/20/2008 @ 6:11pm

68. Posted by JOMAMMA 03/20/2008 @ 3:45pm

    Well, good luck with that. You'll need a smart team of lawyers. Maybe since your such hot stuff, you can ask one of the Pritzker's for a referral next time you see them at a dinner party.

    Posted by srjenkins at 03/20/2008 @ 7:26pm