So it should be no real shock that after Sarah Palin stoked the fires of hatred by attacking Barack Obama's patriotism and all but accusing him of being a terrorist, that the Secret Service has reported a spike in threats against Obama:
The Secret Service warned the Obama family in mid October that they had seen a dramatic increase in the number of threats against the Democratic candidate, coinciding with Mrs Palin's attacks.That result is exactly what John Lewis meant when he said:
During another period, in the not too distant past, there was a governor of the state of Alabama named George Wallace who also became a presidential candidate. George Wallace never threw a bomb. He never fired a gun, but he created the climate and the conditions that encouraged vicious attacks against innocent Americans who were simply trying to exercise their constitutional rights.John Lewis has it exactly right: "Toxic language can lead to destructive behavior." Sarah Palin spent weeks on the campaign trail stoking the fires of hatred. It may have been all that she had to campaign on, for she certainly did not have the capacity to discuss the issues of the day with any coherence, but that does not excuse her for throwing lit matches around in a powder magazine.
Mark my words: We will see our cities burn if something happens to Obama, and I suspect that outcome is desired by the mouth-breathing racists who would seek to harm him. I hope that the Secret Service is up to the job that it has been given.
(H/T to C&L)
7 comments:
If Obama gets JFKed, then it's going to be Open Season on the Southern States. No, really - the Coasts will not just shake their heads sadly, cry a bit and be about their businesses, it would be a Second Civil War, and a horribly, horribly bloody one. It would be an act of vicious racism and divisiveness that the rest of the country simply would not abide.
It's a case of one death potentially costing millions. What worries me is that some of these neds are so choked up with rage they think it's a price worth paying to see that a black guy doesn't do more than answer the phones in the White House.
(Colin Powell answered his, by the way, says it's a bit late to worry).
I will not participate in a war of and on race - how stupid does one have to be? RACE is for fools and media that continues to lose audience and need conflict for revenue.
Why are you fanning flames that most of the voters don't think exist?
To Mark,
If you think racism and hate is confined to the Southern States, you need to get out more. Rabid rightwingers are not geographically specific. Neither are murderers.
Earl,
I don't intend to participate in a war over race issues either, but I will do all that I can to protect my family.
I think the fact that threats against Obama exist is a subject worthy of discussion. The country should be aware of them - if for no other reason than to be able to speak out in protest and warning about them. To ignore the threats only condones them.
No, I don't think any threat to any American should be ignored. I am confident that the Secret Service is such a professional organization that it will protect our President. I also think they carry their responsibility to new heights, and that they magnify every suspects ability to get through them too much, but the end result is a living President all the way to the end of his term, and that is the bottom line. They do good work.
Mark, I don't think there will be a second civil war. But I think there would be trouble and I also think that the Secret Service is likely the best in the world. They are aided by the law, which makes a crime of even half-assed uttering a comment that approves of a presidential assassination.
Apologies if I seem to come across as being all sweeping and head-up-backside with "The South", I mainly had in mind a recent comment from some KKK mucka-a-muck. I know there are plenty of good and tolerant people all over the shop.
Tangentially, I'd be as happy if the threat on anyone's life was treated that seriously by the law, but I suppose if someone's gotta have more protection than others, then it makes sense for it to be someone under a lot of threat.
Wouldn't want that many people peering over my shoulder for anything, to be honest.
The central valley here in Kalifornia has plenty of Obama-hatin' inbred redneck mutha f'ers. And the less inbred types live down in Orange County and the Inland Empire. So it ain't just Alabamans by any means...
- Badtux the Geography Penguin
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