Two Black Role Models Done In By Hubris

[firedupdem]

**There is so much WRONG here that I don't even know where to start**

:wtf:

and who in the hell is this person?

In the past few weeks, the two most famous and arguably most successful black men in America have taken a huge fall. It has become clear that both pro golfer Tiger Woods, just named Athlete of the Year by the Associated Press, and the American president, Barack Obama, the first black person to lead the country, suffer from a surfeit of hubris which has finally caught up with them. If both men somehow thought they were untouchable, they have been put to right. Both have crashed to earth and it may well be true that they can never recover their earlier status again.

While Woods' "indiscretions" affect only himself and his family, he has felt the sting of the media invasion and a permanent loss of privacy. His reputation as sport's good family guy is gone. For Barack Obama the honeymoon is really over, even those who wanted to give him a chance are getting tired of what is not getting done, what was promised and reneged on. There is disappointment enough in both of them.

It is tragic when an icon falls. When a black icon stumbles the tragedy seems doubly problematic. Mike Tyson, Magic Johnson, and Michael Jackson were all at the tops of their fields before revelations that made them less palatable as heroes and less of a role model for young black men. They have all been partially rehabilitated but not without a huge cost.

And now while the news if full of Tiger Woods' penchant for tawdry moments with women who can't hold a candle to the physical beauty of his wife, the information we get on Obama, while far less salacious, is even more disillusioning. The expectations of real change that had people in tears a little over a year have been so thoroughly dashed that too many of his supporters feel betrayed by their naiveté; they feel, as I do, almost foolish for believing that the status quo could really be kicked out the door. Is it even possible for our national landscape to change? Can we really progress from a country of individuals all looking for their stake to a country that actually has the notion that a stake for everyone means more for all? Having worked for weeks and months for Obama, having written glowingly about his oratory skills and his ability to gather even the disenfranchised together, as well as capture that ephemeral youth vote, I stood at rallies and allowed myself that enormous surge of hope that connected me with the rest of the country. But what was our choice?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lisa-solod-warren/two-black-role-models-don_b_394421.html

[firedupdem]

1. How in the hell does this white lady know who and who isn't a role model

for young black men?

Again,

:wtf:

[Number23]

2. This is the dumbest piece of shit article that I've seen all year.

On one hand, Ms. Warren claims that Obama has been done in because of "hubris" then spends the next 10 paragraphs basically calling him a coward. Which one is it, lambchop??

I also find it fascinating that white politicians, white sports figures, white businesspeople etc. can commit all manner of sordid sin and NO ONE links them to one another. Two men, whose only connection is that they are both black (bi-racial) and famous, are in the papers for two COMPLETELY different things and this dumbass is burning calories trying to connect the two of them together. Honey, are you really trying to connect the coverage that the President of the United States is getting to the coverage being received by a dumbassed athlete who cheated on his wife for the sole reason that they are both BLACK??! Are you fucking for real??

And then as if all of this is somehow not asinine enough, the title of this piece of refuse is basically entitled "Obama done in by hubris" and then she spends the entire article saying how it's CONGRESS and the Democrats' fault that we are in the mess that we're in. (The only thing this heffa does get right in this entire article.)

Oh, I just have to know what this woman's DU user name is. Judging by the dearth of intellect in her arguments, her blase racism, and her general overall ignorance of LIFE and the world in which we live, she sounds like a whoooole bunch of people running wild and loose around this site now. She even tosses in the obligatory "I worked months and months for him and wrote nice things about him!!one" garbage that is so common among the rapidly "disenchanted" that we're seeing here daily. This article is an embarrassment to the entire Internet.

[Number23]

3. P.S. LOVING the comments from HuffPost readers. The white readers are tearing this woman up nearly

as much as the black ones. That's how you know you must have REALLY stepped in some racial isht. :)

trinidadgirl: "Black folks understand the process well with the ensuing lies ,slander and the 'bring them to their knees' witch hunt,because no black success is allowed to outrun the white one. You really are a johnny come lately on this one."

cliff notes: I place your essay just a notch above Glenn Beck's recent comparison of Tiger with OJ Simpsonhttp://mediamatters.org/mmtv/2009120800144). In fact, while Beck's delusions are more dangerous-- because of the explosive mixture of race, sex and violence--your seemingly rational observations are far more troubling. This is because i have no doubt that you really consider yourself to be colorblind. I actually believe that you want Obama to succeed. But i also have no doubt, based on your article, that you don't quite understand the ways that race, white privelege and structural racism impact not only outcomes in society.

Apartment604: "This is the most idiotic article I've ever read on the Huffington Post."

Lyubansky: "How many white athletes have failed as role models, for one reason or another? Why do I not recall journalists linking Pete Rose's gambling with Ronald Reagan? Frankly, I can't think of any reason why anyone would make this connection other than to smear Obama by associating him with the embattled Woods. That such "commentary" appears on a progressive site by a (former?) supporter only makes it that much more problematic."

hotseat: "This post shouldn't be here. Please take it down, as it's beyond offensive."

And the best one yet:

Ludovic Blain: "Wow, this piece is so full of white privilege that it's hard to digest. Nope, i'd rather not do it. Suffice it to say that as an articulate black man i am so sorry that two of them have left you feeling betrayed. Maybe you've watched too many white saviour movies like Blindside, and too many black saviour movies too. welcome to the real world, where black folk don't always spend our life essence inspiring white folks." (LOVE this one!! :rofl: :rofl:)

They are eating her ass UP!!

[Brewman_Jax]

4. She even has a poor defense for herself

GMAFB! :eyes:

Race, rather mixed-race, is the only thing both have in common. Mixed-race individuals seem to be a touch more agreeable to white folks than completely black individuals. Outside of that, their troubles have nothing to do with each other. She does say out loud what most white people won't say, successful black men, esp. those that outdid their white couterparts, are very scary because they've defeated the obstacles deliberately thrown in their path, while their white counterparts get clear paths and assistance. Short answer--they make white guys look bad.

Black people are capable of selecting their own role models, kthxfuckoff. :P

As for beauty, it's in the eye of the beholder. I've seen women as or more beautiful than Tiger's wife or any magazine cover model.

For once, the comments don't give her a break. They call her the ignorant closet racist she is. :thumbsup: There are those comments that are every bit as ignorant as she is, so we're a far cry from "transcending racism". :eyes:

Generally, listening/reading white people try to talk about race is like watching a blind man describing a rainbow. :dunce:

[Number23]

6. She's defending herself on HuffPost and even other HuffPost bloggers are chewing her up!

((GOD this woman must be a DUer. She has the lame attempts at derision and scorn down PAT.))

Lisa Solod Warren - Huffpost Blogger: Wow. Isn't it interesting that so many of you think this piece is racist. What a bunch of apologists. It is nothing of the sort. Both men HAVE been brought down by their own egos and both ARE role models for young black Americans. Those are facts and the unwilliingness to see this amazes me. Both Woods and Obama are brilliant and talented men, but they have, I think both begun to believe their own press. And that is when disaster strikes."

She goes on to blather stupidly about "unkept promises" as if Obama's last day in office was tomorrow only to be met with this response by another HuffPost blogger:

Sara Haile-Mariam - Huffpost Blogger: "I don't claim to understand your motivations- and I think this piece is incredibly misguided in a way that is (understandably) offensive. You disregard black history, and then make sweeping claims for black people."

Amazing that people who insist on distorting or just flat out disrespecting black history are always the FIRST ones to quote from it.

[firedupdem]

5. WindyCity

is a face book friend and DU poster. He says she is tweeting responses saying it's unfair to call her a racist. I don't tweet so I don't know what the hell she is talking about. Huffington Post is officially crap in my book. How dare they even post that garbage.

Here are more interesting comments:

Wow, why not just throw in the word "uppity" while you're at it?

You insist you are prejudice free (assuring us that you were even an Obama voter - What more multicultural cred do you need, right?) Yet, notably, you never seem to have penned an article to ask, "Why have Eliot Spitzer and Mark Sanford let down young whites everywhere? Now who is left to drag them up from their indignity?"

of course its more convenient to blame 1 black man than 41 white senators, the overwhelmingly white republican party, the irrational white teaparty movement, & the self-serving white-owned & operated insurance/financial/pharmacuetical/military/industrial complexes. like susan smith famously said, "a black guy did it !"

:rofl:

Who do u think u are writing such a despicable article?? The ONLY
thing these two have in common IS their skin color. And yet you just compared them because thy've BOTH 'fallen'? Obama 'failed' to do what he still has THREE years to accomplish?? This is the last time I will have ever read an article from this place

[kwassa]

7. Is "hubris" the new version of "uppity"?

It is in this author's world.

The real hubris is her own, in her column. She has strong opinions on a subject far beyond her knowledge base.

The comments section is GREAT!

woah woah woah! when did Tiger Woods become black or a reflection of black role models? Nope sorry dear, the only ones hanging their heads in shame over Tiger are the Cablinasian Societies of America.

:rofl:

[Number23]

8. Girl, this piece has already generated at least one rebuttal.

http://thefreshxpress.com/2009/12/obama-tiger-success-race-failure/

My favorite bits:

"Furthermore, is Obama’s term over? Anyone who is “betrayed by their naiveté” should feel doubly ridiculous for thinking the change they voted for would come overnight. Status quo is not “kicked out of the door” like a weak, stray cat. Status quo has to be rallied against, systems have to be put in place to combat it, people have to put in work. Status quo will remain the “status quo” if people are too lazy to stick around for the entire fight."

"...The fact that the President wants to make changes and adjustments to get the healthcare reform passed speaks to exactly the man he was during the election — someone who wanted to unite people instead of divide people along political lines. Besides, the “real America” bit didn’t work during the election and it’s not working now. Unfortunately, we are a nation divided by our politics. Karl Rove and his 50-plus-one strategy encouraged and solidified that to the point where people like Lisa, who probably doesn’t even realize it, demand that divide stay in place. Obama doesn’t want to disenfranchise half the country with his politics. That was a Karl Rove tactic. Like it or not, there are still Republicans and Independents in this country who count too. Thank God Obama isn’t making moves based on polls. Before the Iowa primary, “the polls” said a Black man would never be president. “The polls” were wrong."

Thank you so much for posting your OP, firedup! This whole thing and the subsequent discussions have been downright illuminating. :)

[SemiCharmedQuark]

10. OMFG! She compared Barack Obama to Mike Tyson!?!

*facepalm!*

[SemiCharmedQuark]

9. LMAO at her Twitter! "You would be surpised at the number of black people I know!"

Let's play "I'm not a Racist" Bingo!

[CBR]

11. You should post this in GD or GDP... if you are so inclined.

It seems like these things are never discussed there.

[NOLALady]

23. I seriously doubt

there would be much discussion if posted there.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

12. Duuuuuuude. Check out Wonkette on this article. FANTASTIC!

http://wonkette.com/412783/412783#comments

[firedupdem]

13. "Jesus goddamn"

:rofl:

Thats about all I could muster after reading that crap myself. My husband couldn't even finish it! Was that not a disgusting piece of shit?

The comments are priceless:

imissopus says at 8:00 pm, December 16th, 2009

- ReplyMeanwhile I, Arianna Huffington, an immigrant Greek of no discernible talent or particularly acute intelligence, have a bloggy thingy on the intertubes where you can read my political commentaries and learn about miracle herbs that cure AIDS.

Our progressive wingnuts are aware that at the end of the day, Obama is still president and Tiger is still history’s greatest golfer no matter how many Hooters waitresses he might have been banging in between tournaments, right?

imissopus says at 8:03 pm, December 16th, 2009

- ReplyTen bucks says there’s some nutbag posting on Stormfront right now congratulating all the libs on finally realizing these two uppity nigras needed to be taken down a peg.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

14. Check out this post by JJP!

http://www.jackandjillpolitics.com/2009/12/hey-everybody-check-out-this-trinflinity-over-here-tiger-and-obama-are-both-uppity-negroes/#comment-25984195

[firedupdem]

15. Excellent Thread....I have to start visiting those sites more often!

I have never cared for HP anyway, but I will never click on that mucked up site again.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

16. I posted on HP that I thought it was a racist post. They deleted my comment!

Can you believe that bullshit?

[firedupdem]

17. I just heard from another friend that HP is in full defense mode...

deleting comments and supporting this garbage. I guess I shouldn't be surprised. I've never cared for that Arianna or whatever her name is. She's been talking slick for weeks now.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

19. Two White Role Models Done In By Hubris: The Bret Michaels-George Bush connection

http://www.feministing.com/archives/019353.html

[firedupdem]

18. I see there is already one person claiming it's not racist on the

post in GDP. :eyes:

[Number23]

24. Girl! A poster named Dark Moon brought The PAIN in that jack and jill thread!

"This is one of the reasons why Progressives will never be taken seriously. To keep throwing hissy fits because the half Black man didn’t do exactly what they want is beyond ridiculous. As soon as Obama was elected, he was confronted with one of the worst financial crises after World War II, rapacious corporations, banks and financial shenanigans founded on greed and has cost trillions of dollars to repair, The Pakistan/Afghanistan crises, reconciling with an unjust war in Iraq, Climate change, and jobless rates that have not been seen in over 20 years. Coupled with that having to deal with unmitigated racism and hatred which was unleashed that is frankly quite staggering. No one could honestly foresee these events even during the campaign and the weight of all these problems cannot simply be fixed by waving a magic wand. Even Bush coasted into a presidency and a government that was fairly pristine—no major wars or financial problems and even when the country was struggling after 9/11, brain dead citizens still voted him into office a second term (where was the outrage and call for change then)—yet Obama is somehow lazy, no good uppity n*gger who has done nothing."

"...Real adults know that to come to any resolution--it takes tact and compromise. Strong arming his way through the government would have made him look like some uppity HNIC and they still would have complained that that he is nothing more than a deranged Mugabe (and that he will soon kill all the white people), which is why we have separation of powers and our government doesn’t look like China or Saudi Arabia... What more do they want Obama to do"

The chills! The chills! Running all up my arms and legs....

[FrenchieCat]

26. I'm gonna start posting over there......

Cause I'm tired of the holier than thou "Libs" here at DU who all seem to know one (1) Black person
who is also disappointed about this President. Weird how the 4% of Blacks who don't approve
of Barack Obama all know someone who posts at DU. Who would have thunk it? :rofl:


Then of course, I'm thinking some Libs are disappointed cause they voted for the Negro
for nothing! He was supposed to do all of the Al Sharpton things without the Al Sharpton hair do!

[jmm]

20. I don't have the time to read the whole thing now but

she lost me at the title of the article. When I see more articles about white role models then I won't feel the need to call out people who expect every black person to be a "credit" to their race. What's she's really pissed off about is that her magic negroes are human.

[Number23]

25. "What's she's really pissed off about is that her magic negroes are human."

Yep! In a nutshell!

[FrenchieCat]

27. Hush, now Child! DU Folks don't want us saying that.

It's supposed to like "playing" the race card or so I was told.

[Name removed]

30. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Name removed]

31. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[noiretextatique]

21. can't even read this POS...butt expect more of this crap

as more of the "i am so cool...i voted for a black guy" crowd feel their privilege is not getting the magical negro to change things fast enough for their liking.

[firedupdem]

22. You said it! That's exactly what it's about. n/t

[FrenchieCat]

28. Many are soooooo terribly disappointed

They Voted for the Negro for nothing....ya know!

[FrenchieCat]

29. What can I say?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=7259743&mesg_id=7259743

[kwassa]

32. Many of the DU posters are so young they don't know any Democratic president

other than Obama. That is all this poll shows.

and what a massive amount of whiners there are on DU.