It looks as if the McCain campaign is pulling out the Rev. Wright and Bill Ayers associations now. Since the economy is doing great, stock market is surging ahead, and we aren't at war or anything, then I guess this is what we should be talking about, right?
I don't usually like to dwell on the non-issue stuff like personal attacks, but I feel compelled to fight back against these smears. NY Times did an interesting article about Obama and Ayers and came to the conclusion that there is really no close connection between the two, other than the fact that they both are interested in and involved in education reform in Chicago and both sat on two separate education boards at the same time.
From the LA Times, 10/5:
"Evidently there's been a lot of interest in what I read lately," she (Palin) said. "I was reading today a copy of the New York Times. And I was really interested to read in there about Barack Obama's friends from Chicago. Turns out one of his earliest supporters is a man who, according to the New York Times, was a domestic terrorist, that, quote, 'launched a campaign of bombings that would target the Pentagon and the United States Capitol.' "
The New York Times article, an investigation published Friday into whether Obama had a relationship with Ayers, concluded that the men were never close and that Obama has denounced Ayers' radical past, which occurred when Obama was a child."
It seems like all the candidates have their past associations, ethics lapses and embarrassing religious affiliations that they would like to forget. Obama has his Reverend Wright, while Sarah Palin has her church with its controversial Jews for Jesus sermon as well as the visiting "witchcraft" pastor. Biden has his plagiarism charges, while McCain has his Keating 5 Scandal. Obama has his association with Ayers, while Palin has her association with the Alaska Independence Party. Biden has his problems with a college paper, while McCain had his wild college years where he graduated 894th out of 899 students.
Most any adult who has worked in the public eye - be it in corporate America or in politics - will have their share of skeletons in the closet. It’s easy for people on the right or left to focus on just those stories (and exaggerate or distort them without careful scrutiny of the actual facts or of the larger context of the situation) that confirm why the candidate on the other side is wrong. There is a tendency to focus on these skeletons without equally weighing what the person has accomplished or believed in for most of their lives.
What bothers me most in all this is the hypocritical mudslinging...
Sarah Palin speaking to Bill Kristol of the New York Times.
"To tell you the truth, Bill, I don't know why that association isn't discussed more," Palin said, "because those were appalling things that that pastor had said about our great country, and to have sat in the pews for 20 years and listened to that -- with, I don't know, a sense of condoning it, I guess, because he didn't get up and leave -- to me, that does say something about character."
Well then, what does this say about her character? I don't think she got up and left...
Two weeks ago, she (Palin) sat in church as her minister introduced David Brickner, executive director of Jews for Jesus, according to Politico. "He's a leader of Jews for Jesus, a ministry that is out on the leading edge in a pressing, demanding area of witnessing and evangelism," said Rev. Larry Kroon of Wasilla Bible Church.
Brickner then gave a classic Jews-for-Jesus talk about how Jews had rejected the Messiah and the need to convert Jews to Christianity. He goes on to say that strife in the Middle East reflects a judgment against Israelis and Jews for not accepting Christ:
What we see in Israel, the conflict that is spilled out throughout the Middle East, really which is all about Jerusalem, is an ongoing reflection of the fact that there is judgment. There is judgment that is going on in the land, and that's the other part of this Jerusalem Dilemma. When Jesus was standing in that temple, He spoke that that judgment was coming, that there's a reality to the judgment of unbelief. He said "I long to gather you, but..." what? "You were unwilling." God never forces His way on human beings. And so because Jerusalem was unwilling to receive His grace, judgment was coming. He says, "Look, your house has left you desolate!"... Judgment is very real and we see it played out on the pages of the newspapers and on the television. It's very real."
And while we're on the subject of "sitting in the pews" or should we say "standing next to the pastor while he's preaching about witchcraft," .... http://www.youtube.com/...
Now, can we talk about the economy, healthcare, energy, ending the war, etc.?