I get up this morning, and ThePete notices a couple of "news" items on DrudgeReport.com. He and I both have similar thoughts on politics, he a bit more indignantly than I. Apparently, there are a few things that are passing as news in the world, items of "interest" that really do not matter a hill of beans in this world. Here are a few of them: 1. "Prime Minister Tony Blair is a human with a youthful past" -- Ok, that's not the real headline. The real headline is "Young Blair's obscene gesture". Apparently, an old picture of Blair as a College student has been finally revealed in its entirety to the public. It used to be viewed cropped to only show a feathery-haired young Blair wearing an old fashioned "Barbershop"-style hat. Now you can see him holding his hand in an "obscene" gesture as if he is jerking himself off. This is just an interesting thing...not something to get all hyped up about. It is totally irrelevant what our politicians did in the past (unless they killed someone or committed fraud or theft). It's what they DO in the time they are in office which really matters. Even if they say something seemingly hypocritical while they are in office ("I'm against drugs even though I smoked weed in College"), we can't hold past things for or against them. Anyway, we can just enjoy the picture for what it was and learn a little more about his past, but not hold it for or against Blair or give it a reason for what he has or hasn't done. Oh, and for those who think Bush is free from a past like this, watch this video of himself, a grown man out of College, making a very pointed obscene gesture at the camera while he was Governor of Texas. And I have many, MANY more objections to things he's done IN the office of the President that is the real news of the day. 2. "Our Ancestors Didn't Have the Same Morals Regarding Slavery As We Do Now!!!!" -- this must be obvious to all of us, yet the Baltimore Sun felt it was important to point out that "a new twist" to Barac Obama's "intriguing family history" has arisen : ancestors on his mother's side owned slaves. WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT TO KNOW???? WHY IS THIS A TWIST???? WHO CARES???? There's a 99% chance that I have Portuguese/Spanish ancestors who tortured Jews into becoming Christian during the Inquisition, yet that has no true relevance on how I am as a person. Now, the article goes on to say that "The report, on Reitwiesner's Web site, carries a disclaimer that it is a "first draft" - one likely to be examined more closely if Obama is nominated" and that this information "could add a new dimension to questions by some who have asked whether Obama...is attuned to the struggles of American blacks descended from West African slaves." I would say that this is an interesting way of looking at someone, but not the be-all and end-all of why someone should or should not vote for him as a potential leader of the nation. It may be an interesting topic of conversation, but said conversation should only realistically last about 10 minutes, in my opinion. But then again, I'm not black and don't have the smidgen of a connection to black slaves besides an "aw shucks, parts of our past as Americans suck and I'm glad that slavery no longer exists" opinion of history. Then again, I caught Al Sharpton on The Daily Show last night. It was revealed that his slave ancestors (his great-grandfather) were owned by ancestors of Strom Thurmond (past segregationist/Presidential candidate/Dick Tracy villain). Sharpton reacted to this by saying that the best moral or thing to take away with this revelation was that slavery is not an "ancient" practice in America's deep past, but something that is only three generations away. Jon Stewart agreed, saying "hey, I even knew my great-grandfather, the father to my grandfather". Sharpton then basically said that this information only gives some credence to the amount of progression black Americans have experienced; within 140 years, they have gone from things to 3/5 of people to separate but equal, disenfranchised citizens to full citizens with some racial/socioeconomic problems still to iron out. And finally, a 1/2 black and 1/2 white man whose mother's ancestors could have been cotton-picking, slave-o! wning neighbors with Strom Thurmond, is in a good spot in the race for President. It's inspirational! Hmmm...maybe I should retract my "really do not matter a hill of beans in this world" stance now...
Orignal From: A Day of "Who the 'F' Cares?!?!" in the News
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