Ralph Nader just went invisible to me

[schmoomom]

He calls Obama Uncle Tom. And when it's pointed out to him and he's asked if he would like to use other language to explain what he's saying? He says "Absolutely not."

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Comments

[mollydot]

I can't watch videos, and I don't know how offensive "Uncle Tom" is*, but from reading a quote, he's asking Obama not to be one, not saying that he is. Or is there enough history in the term/Nader's previous rhetoric to make even that offensive?

*I do know what it means, just not the cultural weight behind it.

Earworm: Placebo

[mollydot]

Thinking about it more, he's also implicitly equating corporate with white, and poor (or the American people, can't remember the quote now) with black. What I can't decide is whether that's a good, bad or neutral thing to do.

Y'know, I think I'm attempting to deconstruct. Does that mean I finally know what it means?

[magicpointeshoe]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uncle_Tom

What he was attempting to do was use visual stereotypical charactures to describe what Obama could be, even suggesting that he could be an Uncle Tom is really offensive as heck. Obama is not a race traitor.

[mollydot]

Thanks. (Mostly for the comment. Wikipedia still doesn't give me a good feel for how bad it is)

[thebohomama]

bitter much?

Absolutely stunning. There are better ways of saying what he wants to get across there. Unacceptable.

[neels]

ROFL ... there should be some sort of stupidity test that tv presenters have to pass. Pretty revealing, though.

[choptliver]

Ralph once told my sister she should be recalled by her mother. He's never been a diplomat.

But yeah... maybe people can stop interviewing him now.