Boys Will Be Boys?

Ezra Klein accuses Republicans of racism (Hold the front page!) while engaging in a bit of deplorable wordplay himself:

But look, let's call a spade a spade: When Giuliani sneered about community organizers on the "South side" of Chicago, it's pretty clear what he was saying: Barack Obama spent his time rabble-rousing among black people.

Is this acceptable because a lefty offered it?  If a righty wrote this the usual suspects would be leaping from tall buildings.

Ahh, well.  If Mr. Klein is so keen to defend Obama's glorious record of accomplishment as a community organizer perhaps he should hustle over to Yahoo, where the Answer people are still scratching their heads.

Oh, no fair citing this debacle, which seems to have flowed out of his days in the legislature.  Here is what Ezra is looking for - Obama led the way towards better swing seats, more sand in the sandboxes, and improved security for some South Side parks.  Geez, I feel safer already - can we go back to ridiculing Wasilla now?

MORE:  Jason Zengerle of TNR takes Ezra's "racism" argument seriously enough to evaluate and rebut it, and closes with this:

But, at the same time, I don't think we should rush to ascribe racial motives to the GOP's attacks on community organizers. Lord knows Republicans have already made racial attacks on Obama--and I'd imagine there will be more to come--but that means it's even more important that we not throw out the race-baiting charge willy-nilly, lest it gets so devalued that it loses all credibility.

It still has credibility?  Who knew?  Look, it's campaign season - Dems will spend half their time accusing Republicans of racism and the rest bemoaning any criticism as an assault on their patriotism.  I assume they just need to resolve some self-esteem issues; I had no idea any of it was meant to be taken seriously.  Of course, since Klein gets a pass for his deplorable "spade" crack, it is not being taken seriously even on the left.

Here is Marc Ambinder:

The four mocking mentions last night of Barack Obama's service as a "community organizer" have ignited a metapshereic debate about whether the term has racial connotations.

The McCain campaign says no: they insist that no one knows what a community organizer is, and whatever they think it is, it doesn't compare to being a mayor. They say that because Obama cites his organizing work as a key point on his resume, it's fair for them to tickle it. Their point is: he's a governing dilettante.

Indeed, the Obama campaign knows that many Americans don't know what a community organizer does, and they've changed the way they refers to Obama's experience too. When he talks about community organizing now, he references his organizing work for churches. That embeds the work in a more familiar context. Inner city Catholics know what community organizers do, certainly.

...The audience repeatedly laughed; they got the joke. The question is: what was the joke?

Hmm, simpleton that I am I thought it was mocking the fact that no one knows what a community organizer does.  Now I realize it is code for "Let them eat cake".  Boffo.

Comments

[Danube of Thought]

When you make 'em start explaining just what it is that "Community organizers" do, you know you've got 'em on the run. Bear in mind that for over a year now the Obama campaign and the media have just been content to tell us that he was one. Until now, not one percent of the people in America knew what the hell it meant, and the media didn't care.

[bad]

Chicago Annenberg Challenge

[GMax]

I still dont know what it means, and I read the link earlier from the pissed off community organizers including the several pages of comments. Supposedly it very important in the ghetto though, and as we all know one thing about a ghetto that everyone notices is the organization. Its frankly so obvious that I dont know why I did not understand that from the start.

[Barbula]

Well I'm just an old country boy, unused to these big city ways, but what's the difference between a 'community organizer' and a 'ward heeler'? Especially in a political machine city like Chicago? And is there any reason to hold either occupation in high regard?

[Barbula]

Well I'm just an old country boy, unused to these big city ways, but what's the difference between a 'community organizer' and a 'ward heeler'? Especially in a political machine city like Chicago? And is there any reason to hold either occupation in high regard?

[Rick Ballard]

"but what's the difference between a 'community organizer' and a 'ward heeler'?"

A ward heeler belongs to the Democratic or Republican party and is paid by assignment to a do nothing city job. Michelle Obama's father was a ward heeler. A community organizer is a communist or socialist who is funded by a charitable front organization which regularly dupes non-commie foundations out of grant money. Whenever you see "community organizer" simply drop the 'y' and place an 's' before the 't'. It all then becomes crystal clear.

[Thomas]

Mau-mauing the flak-catchers--isn't that what they do?

[Enigmaticore]

The "with black people" part is only to get the racist dig in.

However, the key part here is that Erza is basically conceding that a "Community Organizer" is just a rabble-rouser, and hence Rudy's snickering "what?" was oh-so-perfect.

How does being a rabble-rouser make on qualified to be President?

[matt]

don't community organizers hold meetings and act important and never quite accomplish anything measurable?

[Joan]

Sorry this is off topic, but my heart is sickened. I often think, after weathering all of the unfair attacks on Bush, Cheney, et al. over the past eight years, that I can brush off the bitter, twisted thinking of the media and the left, but sometimes their comments leave me breathless.

Today I was listening to Rush and he read some comments of Jonathan Alter re it was up to the media to "take on" Palin, etc. So when I got home I impulsively went to Newsweek's site to read the dour Alter's sour comments -- but an article about Baby Palin caught my eye and I clicked on it (still having the picture in my mind of little Piper Palin grooming his hair and thinking of the love in that family.) Don't remember the woman author's name, but she blah-blahed on about having some sympathy for Palin because of the fear of carrying a Downs Syndrome baby. But, after a few paragraphs, she asked herself what a little baby was doing in that screaming crowd. She decided that Palin brought her baby boy to the convention as a cynical attempt to attract sympathy, that he was a "prop" to attract a few thousand votes, and she was glad she'd returned to her senses.

You know, don't you, it is certain that if the Palins hadn't brought their baby they'd have been accused of being ashamed of him, of hiding him away.

I wonder if it ever occurs to members of the media that their jaundiced view of the world poisons themselves, as well as us.

Well, Tom Maguire, I am sorry I went soooo off topic, but I had to get that off my mind. I started to comment over there, but would have had to register and decided they were so comtemptible that I didn't want to be on their site.

Thank you for letting me rant.

[MarkO]

What about clubs, diamonds and hearts. What are they?

No trump.

[Danube of Thought]

I'm with you, Jean. That little Trig will treasure for the rest of his life the fact that he was there to see his mother make history, even though he won't remember it.

Ever see guys with their infant kids after they've won the Super Bowl?

[kim]

Yes, Joan, actually what we've seen for the past five days is the outpouring of that poisoned soul of the left. It is, in fact, demonic.
==================================

[markg8]

Sarah Palin took a town with $0 debt in 1996 and left it $22 million in the hole in 2002, mostly from the hockey rink/sports complex she shoved down their throats which never became the money generator she promised it would. Another white elephant from another white elephant.

Even with the stable Clinton economy during most of her mayoral tenure and Jack Abramoff's crony she hired to lobby Washington to help her now indicted buddy Ted Stevens ring up $27 million in federal pork for tiny Wasilla (pop. 5000 when she entered office) she still managed to leave the town swimming in debt. Three of her pork projects even made McCain's own wasteful spending list.

The following organization is the offshoot of President Reagan's Private Sector Survey on Cost Control started in 1984, also known as the Grace Commission. Definitely not a Dem friendly group but even these guys apparently think Alaska is America's welfare queen state.

Citizens Against Government Waste
http://www.cagw.org/site/PageServer?pagename=homePage

Rank State Pork Population Pork/Capita
2000 1 Alaska $394,514,000 619,500 $636.83
2001 1 Alaska $480,297,000 626,932 $766.11
2002 1 Alaska $451,334,278 634,892 $710.88
2003 1 Alaska $393,346,750 643,786 $610.99
2004 1 Alaska $524,329,000 648,818 $808.13
2005 1 Alaska $645,502,000 655,435 $984.85
2006 1 Alaska $325,106,000 663,661 $489.87
2007 not listed
2008 1 Alaska $379,699,715 683,478 $555.54

As governor she is borrowing from Alaska's future while she wants to blow today's Alaskan windfall oil tax bonanza and the huge surpluses they've generated on bread and circuses tax giveaways.

Alaska gets 89% of it's operating budget from taxing oil coming out of the ground just like Arab kingdoms and Hugo Chavez's Venezuela. They have no state income or sales tax up there. Instead of using that windfall to pay for all the profligate spending her Republican legislature keeps sending her she's issuing bonds to pay for it which Alaskans and US taxpayers will have to pay off in future years while she takes credit for tax "rebates" while she's governor.

Her fiscal policy is a disaster in the making which won't hit til she's left the governor's office. She'd be a disaster as Vice President especially to a President who despite his grevious wounds and type A personality is already past the age his father and grandfather died of sudden heart attacks.

She can put on all the lipstick she wants but her political record is for the dogs.

[Danube of Thought]

"She can put on all the lipstick she wants but her political record is for the dogs."

That 80% approval rating among Alaskans must be a misprint. Should read "disapproval," I guess.

[Danube of Thought]

"...a President who despite his grevious wounds and type A personality is already past the age his father and grandfather died of sudden heart attacks."

Both men were heavy smokers, and his father was an alcoholic. McCain himself is neither, and his mother is eminently robust at 94.

[Buford Gooch]

I hustled over to wikipedia and looked up "Community Organizer". I got this. Really!

Globe icon
The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view of the subject.
Please improve this article or discuss the issue on the talk page.

Community organizing is an entry-level job into the corrupt political machines that tend to dominate politics on a municipal or regional level. Through community organizing, novice pre-politicians gain experience in keeping people helpless and paranoid. Only by proving themselves through top-notch community organizing can these wanna-be politicians gain access to more lucrative opportunities such as sitting on boards to distribute other people's money to political allies. The best community organizers are given opportunities to run for office, where their prime responsibility is to compliantly do the bidding of the party bosses.

[Enlightened]

"She can put on all the lipstick she wants but her political record is for the dogs."

Care to explain Akaska's current 5 BILLION PLUS, projected to be twice as much within 2 more years, budget surplus?

I didn't think so.

[Danube of Thought]

Wait'll the Left finds out about that Wikipedia entry. Gone in sixty seconds.

[Jesse Jackoff]

"But look, let's call a spade a spade"

Racist! Racist! Reporter is a racist!!!!

[Charlie (Colorado)]

Yeah, I was kinda wondering how Klein got away with calling Obama a spade.

[Patrick R. Sullivan]

Community organizer is a polite term for 'extortionist'. But in other news, Sarah's already got her dress for the inaugural ball.

[Barney Frank]

Sarah Palin took a town with $0 debt in 1996 and left it $22 million in the hole in 2002, mostly from the hockey rink/sports complex she shoved down their throats...

Citation dumbass? The voters approved a half cent sales tax to fund the complex. Rather hard to ram anything down someone's throat by asking them to vote to fund it. Like I said...dumbass.
her now indicted buddy Ted Stevens

This would be the same buddy whom she publicly urged to come clean about his questionable dealings?

Definitely not a Dem friendly group but even these guys apparently think Alaska is America's welfare queen state.

The one actual citation you provide indicates she has cut Alaska's pork nearly in half compared to the year prior to her election as governor.

Alaska gets 89% of it's operating budget from taxing oil coming out of the ground just like Arab kingdoms and Hugo Chavez's Venezuela.

Interesting. You mean that the 'Arab Kingdoms' and Venezuela, which have nationalized their oil industries, somehow tax their own state owned asset to raise money for their government budgets?

[MayBee]

I have to hand it to Ezra that he didn't just go with the "Obama was doing the work of Jesus" line that everyone else went with.

[Patrick R. Sullivan]

Alaska doesn't tax oil. It shares the revenues that come from pumping that oil with the oil companies, and Palin renegotiated the deal. As a result she's upped the citizens' share--they're about to receive over $3,000 per resident very shortly.

Also, Alaska's governors have international trade responsibilities. Maybe Obama bought the swings from China while he was a community organizer?

[Patrick R. Sullivan]

The Governor of Alaska has these departments to oversee:

* Administration * Commerce, Community & Economic Development * Corrections * Court System * Education and Early Development * Environmental Conservation * Fish and Game * Health and Social Services * Labor and Workforce Development * Military & Veterans Affairs * Natural Resources * Public Safety * Revenue * Transportation & Public Facilities * University of Alaska

[Elliott]

I have to hand it to Ezra that he didn't just go with the "Obama was doing the work of Jesus" line that everyone else went with.

He knows that voters are looking to the future, so it wouldn't do much good to focus on what the Messiah did 2000 years ago.

[clarice]

Let's make this the convention thread..Pls no long quotes--use urls--from stuff onoine. It just makes it impossible to scroll thru the long threads.

[larwyn]

...8. The death toll in Chicago (population 5 million) is double that of all of Iraqi (population 25 million) this summer. Obama calls for the withdrawal of every American from Chicago in the next 16 months.

Take a point from Obama.

from Surber's Daily Scorecard
http://blogs.dailymail.com/donsurber/2008/09/04/daily-scoreboard-86/

[PeterUK]

"$22 million " Isn't bad for a municipal amenity.Obama blew $51 million in July,all there is to show for it is an empty suit.

[Semanticleo]

Wall street is petrified after Palim's speech.

(Dow DOWn 250 pts)

Are they the genuine pragmatists?

You folks should be smoking pot, if you're not already.

The Republican Seers WANT to lose '08.

Why don't you get that? ALERT!!! (rhetorical question--not necessary to answer)

[PeterUK]

"The Republican Seers WANT to lose '08."

If they are Seers,they will know the result of 08.Don't mess with a language you don't understand Septic.

[Semanticleo]

a CBS News reporter asked Barack Obama today, at a press briefing in central Pennsylvania, "Community organizer -- what was your reaction to that but also how is that relevant experience to the presidency?" I found the response fairly compelling.

"This is very curious," Obama said. "So this is work I did [20] years ago. They haven't talked about the fact that I was a civil rights lawyer; they haven't talked about the fact that I taught constitutional law; they haven't talked about my work in the state legislature or in the United States Senate. They're talking about the three years of work that I did right out of college as if I'm making the leap from two or three years out of college into the presidency.

"So, look, I would argue that doing work in the community to try to create jobs, to bring people together, to rejuvenate communities that have fallen on hard times, to set up job training programs in areas that have been hard hit when the steel plants closed. That that's relevant only in understanding where I'm coming from, who I believe in, who I'm fighting for and why I'm in this race. And the question I have for them is that why would that kind of work be ridiculous? Who are they fighting for? What are they are advocating for? They think that the lives of those folks who are struggling each and every day, that working with them to try to improve their lives is somehow not relevant to the presidency?

"I think maybe that's the problem -- that's part of why they're out of touch and they don't get it 'cause THEY HAVEN'T SPENT MUCH TIME WORKING ON BEHALF OF THOSE FOLKS."
(EMPHASIS MINE)

[RichatUF]

cleo-

Wall street is petrified after Palim's speech.

It was closer to 345 today. A number of factors, but once the Obama Bear Market ends we should have a nice rally to the end of the year.

[Semanticleo]

".Don't mess with a language you don't understand Septic."

I separate people into two distinct groups
as to intelligence.

People who recognize a rhetorical question, and those who do not.

[Semanticleo]

"A number of factors"

I would love to hear the others......

[kim]

Right, Leo, failed civil rights lawyer, law prof who didn't publish, State Senator voted present 130 times except when he had a chance to kill newborns, and do-nothing Senator. Yup, compelling. But not exactly favorably. You don't even understand this carp anymore; what's come over you?
=========================

[Semanticleo]

"You don't even understand this carp anymore;"

Kim;

You are ecstatic over Palin, and your have the nerve to ask about crap?

[Jeff J]

"I would love to hear the others......"

I did not hire a needed employee today because I need to save money for potential future Obama tax increases. I told her to come back in two months.

[kim]

You are not enamored of Obama, yet you can't see what a pitiful response he made?
====================================

[Semanticleo]

"I told her to come back in two months."

Even if the top tier is 49%, you'd be an idiot. Besides, who did you think was going to pay for the Iraq debacle?

At what point does Bushistic optimism become delusion?

[kim]

When the surge fails, Leo; you walked into that one.
================================

[Semanticleo]

"You are not enamored of Obama,"

I am content to wait to see how this temporary hard-on (Palin) diffuses into mainstream conciousness.

'The race belongs to the one with stamina'.

[Danube of Thought]

Please stop responding to this weeping coward, who seems to have a lust to debase himself and the goal of disrupting threads here. If you stop responding, he'll stop interrupting.

Hey Cleo, what does your son think about the surge?

Joe Klein is perhaps most famous for looking the American people in the eye and lying--repeatedly--about his authorship of the book "Primary Colors." He is about as trustworthy as Bill Clinton or John Edwards.

[kim]

Stamina? That would be Sarah Palin's middle name, it seems.

But Obama's close; he has the stammering part down pat.
====================================

[baked alaska]

http://www.crooksandliars.com/Media/Download/32499/1/TDS-Rove-Bill-O-Hannity-090308.wmv

[kim]

Heh, Tom, I'm keeping him pinned down on this thread so he won't disrupt the other. No sacrifice too great, and all that. Besides, I've been inside Leo's OODA loop all week and it's about time for him to break free. I want to watch.
===========================

[Patrick R. Sullivan]

Oh my god, Cindy is a disaster. She just squandered all the energy Sarah created.

[PeterUK]

"I separate people into two distinct groups
as to intelligence.

People who recognize a rhetorical question, and those who do not."

Bingo,Semanticleo puts the ball in her/his/its/their own goal.You still don't understand do you Septic.
BTW you are on shaky philosophical ground with this new statement.

[Forbes]

• What's the difference between a "community organizer" and a pit bull? Teeth.

• What's the difference between a "community organizer" and a seeing-eye dog? Even a blind man can tell the dog is actually helping someone.

• What's the difference between a "community organizer" and a Chihuahua? The Chihuahua will eventually shut up.

• What's the difference between a "community organizer" and a puppy? One will grow up to become a loyal servant of mankind.

• What's the difference between a "community organizer" and a Shih Tzu? zu.

Ezra Klein argues that it's racist to make fun of "community organizers" which gives us another idea for a joke: What's the difference between a "community organizer" and a pit bull? It's a black thing, you wouldn't understand.

[sophy]

I do not know how to use the rs gold ; my friend tells me how to use.