Beware the man who refers to himself in the third person!

hisownpetard

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Tue Apr-29-08 11:10 AM
Original message

Beware the man who refers to himself in the third person!

It's a sign of an ego out of control, too big for a mere pronoun like "I" or "me" to suffice.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Jeremiah Wright.

After the Bill Moyers interview, I was impressed with Rev. Wright's knowledge. He even used a word that Bill Moyers had
apparently never heard ("hermeneutics"). I looked it up. I was impressed. I wrote posts on DU in support of the man's
right to preach what he believed in, in spite of the fact that some of the things he said were definitely off-the-wall.

However, after the speeches he's given during the last few days, I no longer feel I have to give him the benefit of the doubt.
Much as I tried to not believe this, he is apparently an ego in a fancy robe, demanding that his 15 minutes be extended to endless TV appearances
which will culminate in a book deal, with said book to be produced and on the market, umm, say around ...November?

I was quite surprised when Richard Wolffe said, on Countdown the other night, that during Obama's book tour for "The Audacity of Hope," Rev. Wright was
present at one of the signings. Wolffe thought there would be great closeness and camaraderie between the two, given the way Obama obviously felt
toward the pastor. Wolffe said it was quite the contrary, that even back then he could sense a vibe of jealousy or anger from Wright, directed at the
fact that Obama was receiving so much attention and Wright was, in effect, on the sidelines.

Clearly, this is not a man who likes being on the sidelines.

When I saw the speech he gave at the NAACP, strutting and preening and over-acting, mocking the way the Kennedys speak (WTF was that about, anyway?),
and damning Obama with faint praise, I had to finally admit to myself what I was hoping wasn't true: Rev. Wright knows exactly what he's doing, and what he's
doing is trying to derail Obama's candidacy in any way possible.

Was he mocking the Kennedys because Teddy et al endorsed Obama?

Was he jealous because Obama is valued (among other things) for his great ability as an orator (something which, obviously, Rev. Wright prides himself on).

When the controversy first started, I admired the fact that Obama did not rush to the microphone and condemn his former pastor but, rather, tried to show
understanding - which was certainly more difficult to do than to just come out and totally disown him.

Rev. Wright, however, is not one to turn the other cheek.

I am literally sick to my stomach to read that, according to some polls, this Rev. Wright issue might be hurting Obama with the middle-class white voters he's
seeking support from before the next primaries. But I'm hoping that they will be able to see this for what it is - a self-centered, over-dressed, intelligent, well-
educated but sometimes misguided pastor whose ego has overtaken his principles - trying to turn the spotlight away from one of his parishioners and onto himself.

Yet even in a case as important as this, where Obama's chances of becoming President of the United States may be directly effected,
Obama's true character has shone through.

He owes no further debt of respect to Rev. Wright.
Let it be over.
Amen.