This meme is working "Obama is playing the race card"

[CANDO]

The past few days have been hard on me. Two middle of the road, independent type guys I work with have said they are voting for McCain now that Obama played the race card. These guys have told me this past spring that they liked Obama and would vote for him if he gets the nomination. Just yesterday at a party with some of my wife's co-workers, the husband of the host says to me regarding the election "how can you support a guy who plays the race card?" Folks, this is not good. It is god damned brilliant of the McCain campaign to paint Obama as playing the race card. They know the reaction of any ordinary white person to the charge of racism. The last thing you want to accuse a racist of being, is a racist. The backlash reaction is exactly what they are going for, and it is working according to the situations I've experienced this past week. The Obama campaign needs to go straight at this NOW, before it sets in permanently.

[GarbagemanLB]

1. The sky is falling!

[polichick]

2. imo your buddies were just looking for a reason not to vote for him...

Sure they aren't racists themselves?

[cbc5g]

3. Bingo

Just Republicans coming back to their party. Any excuse would have worked for em.

[scarletwoman]

4. Did you ask them what the hell that's supposed to mean?

Make them define it, for cripesakes. Make them tell you exactly what Obama's "playing the race card" consisted of.

If YOU'RE not going to fight back, why come here with your Debbie Downer anecdotes and hand-wringing about what Obama's campaign should do?

[Bluerthanblue]

5. I would answer them with the reality that as a black man Obama

cannot 'play' the race card. He is living it.

White people have a choice, minorities don't. It's lose-lose.


Anyone who can't face that reality IS a racist. Like it or not. And if they demand Obama deny who he is- then they are not only racist, they are assholes.

[quantass]

7. +1

[CakeGrrl]

6. People who don't really want to vote for Obama will find any excuse

But for any of those, you hear stories of people who realize what Bush policies have done and have the good sense not to vote against their own interests.

Once again, more hand-wringing that the campaign that won what on paper was a near-impossible primary to win suddenly has no idea what it's up against. I have a lot more faith in them than that.

[sandnsea]

8. Yeah the Clintons tried that shit too

Now maybe some people will see how stupid that really was.

These aren't independent type guys - they're bigots who always vote Republican because their grandiosity has convinced them they deserve more than minorities, gays and women. Fuck em.

[Top Cat]

9. There's nothing for the campaign to set straight

Obama has never played the race card as a matter of fact he has tried his best to keeprace out of the campaign. Other's have bought race into play. Your friend were not going to give their vote to Barack anyway.

[CitizenPatriot]

10. everyone else already said it

but it makes me laugh to hear people repeat stupid things like this. As has been pointed out here, Obama can't play the race card. The accusation that he is (by McCain and your friends) is actually listed under the definition at Wiki as an example of "playing the race card". So, according to Wiki and the accepted definition of "playing the race card", it's McCain and your friends who are racists.

No one but a ignorant racist would think a black person could play the race card in an election where they do not have affirmative action, because it assumes he has something to gain by pointing out his race. WHAT does he have to gain? I hate it when we ask questions like this, upon which the entire premise of the accusation lay, and they are never answered. If the question can't be answered, the argument is invalid.

But the argument that is no longer invalid is that McCain is playing the race card in making the accusation. We can now call him a racist without reprisal.

Frankly, people like that should vote republican -- let them. And unless they are making 250k a year, let them know from me that they are not only ignorant, but shooting themselves in the foot. So we don't even have to get upset with them, they're screwing themselves. McCain is a good choice? ha ha ha. Right. They'd rather have a liar in office than a black man. How sad. Good luck to you -- it must be frustrating to have such clueless friends.

[Ichingcarpenter]

11. Sounds like you said nothing to set them straight

what did you do for the Obama campaign to set it straight?

[Overseas]

12. Did you ask your friends for an example ?

Once they give you an example, you can deflate it quite easily.
And did you ask them which race card he might be playing, since he is half white?

[JohnnyCougar]

13. Tell them they're wrong, and McCain is a whiny bitch.

Tell him McCain's just crying because he is losing, and accusing Obama of playing the race card when he did no such thing.

[EC]

14. Did you ask them how he was playing the race card?

Or imform them that it was McCain back in June that DID put Obama's face on a $100. bill? Or even ask them just to not vote? Did you tell them that the politics in this country isn't a game and that McCain would be like asking your great-grandfather to run the nation. Did you let them know that everything in Government is computerized and McCain doesn't even know what he's looking at when he looks at the screen?

Your friends statement should have motivated you to dispute their stupid statements, not just wring your hands and remain silent.

[JackORoses]

15. racists aren't going to vote for Obama in the first place

but thanks for your Concern.....

[Life Long Dem]

16. Would they leave the nominated candidate for McSame if it was a woman?

Specifically if Clinton played the gender card against McSame? I'd say these repubs would leave no matter which candidate.

[EffieBlack]

17. An Obama ad or response would have much less impact on your friends than YOU setting them straight

Why sit back, wring your hands and leave it up to the campaign to do it when those guys are sitting right there with you? They're certainly much more likely to listen to you than to a 30-second ad - YOU, not the campaign, need to go straight at this now.

[WinkyDink]

18. Code for: "Don't vote for the Black guy."

[CANDO]

19. Thanks to all who replied

Some of you jumped to the conclusion that I didn't challenge them on this meme. Damn straight I did. I pointed out to them they are falling for exactly the thing these filthy Republicans always do... turn the election into a grade school mud fest. Just ignore the real damage they've done to our country at all costs. And I didn't say any of them are my "friends". I work with two of them and the third is the husband of one of my wife's co-workers. But a word of caution to any of you who think this shit doesn't matter...I live in Pennsylvania. I'm a Teamster and you wouldn't believe the redneck mentality in probably the majority of them. Damn sad, but true. And furthermore, these kind of people would rather argue than let you explain something with any substance or detail. Like I said, two of them are really independents who at first said they liked Obama, but now have turned on him. Some of you flamed away at me like you live in some fantasy world and you don't care what people think. That is really something, just write off the votes of people who we need to go our way. The sky is not falling.....yet.....but as long as Obama doesn't hit back fucking hard, forget it....this is all over. Flame away, I've got my opinions and ideas, and you've got yours.

[CitizenPatriot]

22. OK

Sorry if I misunderstood your position; I do get what you're saying and I know it is legit, it's just that people are clueless. You have to figure out what their issue would be -- e.g., if they're teamsters, why in the heck would they vote for mccain? show them the clip from ohio where mccain lied to that women re DHL. Obama has a bill he co-authored to strengthen the unions in this country! it is one reason he gets shit on by the msm, because they are terrified of the money they will lose if this bill passes, which forces the elite to pay their work force honorably and restore the balance of pay that used to exist between profit and workers pay. you might try to tell them that, it's like how their big bosses hang at the country club and don't sweat, while meanwhile, they're living off the sweat and hard labor of the teamsters. I worked with a lot of teamsters in line of work, and I never met one who didn't think the Man was out to screw him. That man is McCain. I mcCain gets elected, there will be no more unions. Trust me. and all those bennies for OT and all that crap will be GONE. See how the price of gas hits them then. Take it from me, my union has lost more and more bennies during the last 8 years and we're barely holding on.

[dsomuah]

20. But McCain did play the race card

Show them the video clip which puts Obama's face on a dollar bill. That's where Obama's comment came from. Everything Obama spoke of in that speech was based on something that actually happened.

[Onlooker]

21. I think you should say to them

"Obama's half white and he talks, acts, and carries himself white.* So, how can he play the race card?" Given their apparent limited ability to think, you will have them thoroughly befuddled.

* http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6hC4GdFOYQ

[CreekDog]

23. The meme "Obama is a Muslim" is also working for about 10-15% of the population

since things don't need to be true to be accepted.