Let's take another look at those photos of Hillary Clinton at the Lorraine Hotel.

[Maddy McCall]

Remember those threads a couple of weeks ago criticizing Hillary Clinton for having the "unmitigated gall" to smile at the Lorraine Hotel and museum on the 40th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.'s death? Remember those people going so far as to use the derogatory term "monster" in their criticism of her?

Well, after perusing the gallery at the Getty photography website, it became very clear to me that the people who posted those photos cherry-picked them for the images that might make Hillary appear to be an insensitive opportunist.

Therefore, I'm posting some photos from that day which show the context of her visit to the Lorraine. Her behavior on April 4, 2008, was perfectly appropriate, as I think you'll see below.



1. Hillary smiles and waves from the balcony.



What's Charles Taylor (left) looking at, you may wonder?





2. It's the crowd that had gathered below. (which you weren't shown in the other threads--you know, CONTEXT).

Look. Smiling people in the crowd. And she warmly greeted them.







3. More photos of Hillary demonstrating appropriate reverence during her visit.











4. Remember the photo that you saw of Hillary standing behind the statue of Rosa Parks on the bus? Where she was alone, "inappropriately" smiling with her hand on Rosa's shoulder? Here's the cropped photo that you all denounced, saying that Hillary's smile was "innappropriate."



Here's the uncropped photo. That's Dr. Benjamin Hooks on the right. No, your eyes don't deceive you. He's smiling, too. Is his behavior "odd?" "Inappropriate?"




That photo of "silly Hillary," all alone on the bus, because no one would dare sit by such an "insensitive beast," right?



Wrong.





5. Visitors at the museum were happy to have Hillary with them on April 4.





6. And her behavior was not only appropriate, but also appreciated by those who showed up to celebrate King's life's work and to commemorate his untimely death on that tragic 1968 morning.





7. Now, since turnabout's fair play, let's analyze Barack Obama's behavior at the Lorraine on April 4, 2008:





Oh, that's right...he didn't even bother to show up.







Here's the entire Getty Images Hillary Clinton Gallery, if you'd like to see all of their photos of Hillary's visit to the Lorraine on April 4, 2008.

Let's have some kicks and recs for Hillary, if you're sick of the way some DUers insult her.

[Olney Blue]

1. Maddy, no matter who one supports, this is a powerful example of how

easy it is to manipulate a story. I admire your work on this!

[ColbertWatcher]

5. Agreed. Good example of...

...the GOP-controlled media cropping the story to fit their agenda.

[Maddy McCall]

6. Thank you very, very much.

:hug:

[EmilyAnne]

53. I agree that its just typical of the way context can be forgotten so as to distort a candidate's

intentions.

BTW- how are you feeling, Maddy? I remember you were having surgery a while back. I hope everything went well and you are feeling tip-top!

[merh]

69. You do realize now that the OP has manipulated the story.

Her blank image and mockery of Obama is what destroyed the "beauty" of thread and the credibility of her "efforts to add context".

In context, reasonable people would have understood why obama was not in Memphis on that day and said reasonable people would have respected it and not tried to use his absence as a means to continue the smear.

The thread would have been fine had she left that cheap shot out.

See post 32 for some context left out by the OP.

[liberalhistorian]

180. Amen, thank you! I was just thinking

the very same thing. Interesting, isn't it?

Although I will certainly agree that the rest of the OP is very good and powerful, and shows how easily such things can be manipulated to fit an agenda. I'm not at all a Hillary supporter, far, far from it, but it is completely unfair to cherry-pick and take out of context to try to make a desired point, no matter who the candidate is.

[Texas Hill Country]

176. yes, thank you.

[izzybeans]

179. I agree.

[Name removed]

2. Deleted message

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

[SaveOurDemocracy]

9. The truth too painful? n/t

[Bluebear]

14. So to which part of the post do you object? Or you just wanted to criticize the poster?

Goodness.

[Name removed]

28. Deleted message

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

[wndycty]

3. Yeah you are right, he didn't show up because its tasteless to exploit King's death for votes

:kick:

[Emit]

8. Oh, snap!

pow

[zabet]

29. Wrong. It is tasteless to constantly invoke MLK in your

campaign ads, to constantly invoke MLK as a talking point in your stump speakings, and then say it is not right to honor MLK and other black leaders on the anniversary at the Lorraine.

Obama wants to stand on MLK's shoulders but didn't honor him at the Lorraine. That is what is tasteless, no it is panderific.

[rodeodance]

45. It was BHO fans who invoked MLK's death to make vile, immature comments about Hillary

[Stephanie]

60. Tasteless defines her entire campaign.

[SoCalDem]

77. he was in Indianapolis..another place linked to the death of MLK

and Bobby K.. highly appropriate.

[liberalhistorian]

182. Shhhh! Don't confuse

the Obama-can-do-no-right-and-is-always-wrong crowd with the facts now!!!

What the OP did in leaving out the context of Obama's not being present, and where he was, is just as bad as what others did in cherry-picking and taking out of context the Hillary pictures.

[emilyg]

174. He didn't show up because he chose

to look out for himself first.

[keep_it_real]

4. Could this be defined as pandering? I don't know

[Emit]

7. A lecture on 'context.' How quaint.

[rodeodance]

46. You mock context. You are one looking foolish!!

[Emit]

66. I mock Maddy.

chill out cheerleader

edited to add, and every other HRC supporter who has grossly taken things out of context in an effort to destroy one of our fine Democratic candidates, Mr. Obama.

[rodeodance]

79. Yes, that is what you do "destroy one of our fine Democratic candidates Hillary"

[Emit]

84. No I do not.

[liberalhistorian]

183. Hillary is no Democrat. She'd rather have McCain

in the WH than Obama, if it can't be Her Royal Majesty. Some fucking Democrat.

[Name removed]

10. Deleted message

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

[QC]

19. Are you the same Bonobo who keeps posting threads

decrying the lack of civility at DU?

[cbayer]

35. The very one.

Pretty amusing, isn't it? An echo chamber apparently without mirrors.

[rodeodance]

37. seems its her/his day to be foolish

[rodeodance]

38. self-delete

[Rockholm]

56. Sent out a little alert to this one.

I am getting really sick of this.

[emilyg]

175. Bonobo fooled me once.

[ruggerson]

57. What happened to you?

You used to plead for rational discussion and civility.

Now it's as if your angry eight year old took over your keyboard.

[ClericJohnPreston]

119. Simple

Obamamania strikes all the Kool-Aid drinkers. One drink and the paradoxes and contradictions go full-tilt into absurdity and paranoia. It sickens this Left-wing Democrat.

[LisaM]

11. Maddy, those are great pictures. Thank you.

If anyone doesn't really believe that the civil rights movement mattered deeply to Hillary, they need only look at those pictures.

[liberalhistorian]

185. Funny, she was stumping for Goldwater's campaign

during the height of the movement, wasn't she?

[IndianaGreen]

12. Obama was here, at the same site where Bobby Kennedy announced the King assassination

and spoke words of comfort to the crowd. Indianapolis did not have any riots that day and days after, unlike many other cities, Memphis included.

[RaleighNCDUer]

33. Thank you for the context -

which will be ignored by them, of course.

[anamandujano]

100. That must have been Teddy's idea, to pay tribute to the Kennedys

instead of joining the others in tribute to King.

[dmr]

171. How sad for you, as a Democrat, that you don't get it ...

I have bad news for you, for all of our fellow citizens, and people who love peace all over the world, and that is that Martin Luther King was shot and killed tonight.

Martin Luther King dedicated his life to love and to justice for his fellow human beings, and he died because of that effort.

In this difficult day, in this difficult time for the United States, it is perhaps well to ask what kind of a nation we are and what direction we want to move in. For those of you who are black--considering the evidence there evidently is that there were white people who were responsible--you can be filled with bitterness, with hatred, and a desire for revenge. We can move in that direction as a country, in great polarization--black people amongst black, white people amongst white, filled with hatred toward one another.

Or we can make an effort, as Martin Luther King did, to understand and to comprehend, and to replace that violence, that stain of bloodshed that has spread across our land, with an effort to understand with compassion and love.

For those of you who are black and are tempted to be filled with hatred and distrust at the injustice of such an act, against all white people, I can only say that I feel in my own heart the same kind of feeling. I had a member of my family killed, but he was killed by a white man. But we have to make an effort in the United States, we have to make an effort to understand, to go beyond these rather difficult times.

My favorite poet was Aeschylus. He wrote: "In our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart until, in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom through the awful grace of God."

What we need in the United States is not division; what we need in the United States is not hatred; what we need in the United States is not violence or lawlessness; but love and wisdom, and compassion toward one another, and a feeling of justice toward those who still suffer within our country, whether they be white or they be black.

So I shall ask you tonight to return home, to say a prayer for the family of Martin Luther King, that's true, but more importantly to say a prayer for our own country, which all of us love--a prayer for understanding and that compassion of which I spoke.

We can do well in this country. We will have difficult times; we've had difficult times in the past; we will have difficult times in the future. It is not the end of violence; it is not the end of lawlessness; it is not the end of disorder.

But the vast majority of white people and the vast majority of black people in this country want to live together, want to improve the quality of our life, and want justice for all human beings who abide in our land.

Let us dedicate ourselves to what the Greeks wrote so many years ago: to tame the savageness of man and make gentle the life of this world.

Let us dedicate ourselves to that, and say a prayer for our country and for our people.

http://www.rfkmemorial.org/lifevision/assassinationofmartinlutherkingjr/

[JohnnyLib2]

13. Thanks, Maddy. Wish we could clear up some of the verbal

distortion and manipulation as well as you have done with these photos.

Recommended.:thumbsup:

[bridgit]

15. Thank you, Maddy, your OP played very well imo k&r'd...

cool pics :thumbsup:

[gateley]

16. I don't question Hillary's motivation for being there.

Yes, it was a good political move, but I've no doubt she admires and respects Dr. King's work, and probably would have attended anyway, even if she wasn't a presidential candidate.

But the smiling and waving shot from the hotel room door is uncomfortable to view. I just don't think she should have smiled and waved at that particular spot.

IMO :7

[Bluebear]

21. If someone said "We love you, Hillary!" . . .

I couldn't see her not acknowledging them with a smile and a wave, on the other hand.

Maddy is correct, it's too easy to isolate a photo and having not been there to try to paint a complete picture.

[gateley]

34. And I agree -- too easy to isolate a photo.

But when that's what we see published, that's what we respond to. And that's how I responded to that particular one. That's all.


Edit to add -- the other photos are touching and appropriate. I guess that's it -- I just don't feel that particular one is appropriate given where she's standing.

I would have felt the same way if it were my candidate standing there captured in the same pose, by the way.

[cali]

17. There was nothing at all wrong in what she did.

one of the stupider moments for too many Obama supporters here.

[Maddy McCall]

23. Thanks, cali.

A bunch. :pals:

[cali]

26. welcome, Maddie. It's just the truth as I see it

and really, I don't know how you could see it differently.

:hi:

[Emit]

27. I disagree to a point cali

It seemed opportunistic, and her speech -- or at least the clip I saw -- seemed forced and sappy. That, coupled with all the shit about Reverend Wright at the time, including her own comments on the Wright thing, seemed hypocritical, particularly since King and Wright have more in common than many are willing to admit.

That's just my take on the matter. :hi:

[RaleighNCDUer]

41. I disagree, on one point.

Photo #1, grinning as she comes out of the room, is inappropriate. I don't care how big or friendly the crowd was. Save it for the pressing the flesh downstairs, on more neutral ground. There was no intentional disrespect there - I think she just automatically went into campaign mode upon seeing a crowd, a learned behavioral response. Just a failure of consciousness in a long campaign.

For the rest of it, it's a matter of taste. I, personally, think it was pandering to try to get a demographic she is losing, badly. If her supporters think otherwise, fine. No problem.

[Two Americas]

135. much appreciated

I have a lot of respect for that cali.

[Beaverhausen]

18. too bad Obama supporters can't ever admit a mistake

now, who does that remind you of?

[liberalhistorian]

188. Oh, my, now that is just too rich! Considering

all of the "mistakes" the Queen Hillary crowd can't seem to even acknowledge, let alone admit. But of course, she can do no wrong, can she?

[K Gardner]

20. Where's the Crown Royal shot?

[Maddy McCall]

22. Who's that guy in your sig image?

He's kinda hot, for an older guy.

[QC]

61. Pretty long in the tooth, though. n/t

[rodeodance]

48. You and other BHO fans have had already to many bully type photos of that--now you want

to include it as spam also. figures!!

[jenmito]

24. I guess her drama coach IS worth the money!

:rofl:

[rodeodance]

49. The drama is you looking like a foo. Take a lesson from your mature BHO fans on this thread.

.......I guess her drama coach IS worth the money!
Posted by jenmito


:rofl:

[jenmito]

67. I look like a foo? What does a foo look like?

:rofl:

[Moochy]

78. A Foo Walks into a Bar

[rodeodance]

82. More faux outrage over a typo. figures!!

[Moochy]

83. typo

:D

[jenmito]

157. I wouldn't have said anything, but since you were trying to INSULT me, I have every right to

make YOU look like the "foo"! I'm HARDLY "outraged" about it! :rofl:

[golddigger]

172. Definition of "foo." A FOOL who laughs at a typo.

[merh]

25. He didn't show up because of death threats

It wasn't only his safety that was an issue, it was the safety of the others paying their respect, it was the safety of the security that has to protect him, the average joes that wanted to be there that day.

Barack Obama honors MLK every day when he galvanizes people to judge him not by the "color of his skin, but the content of his character." Barack Obama has come to epitomize and indeed embody the very aspect of Kings dream, when Iowa, Idaho, Kansas, Wyoming, Washington, Wisconsin, Texas respond to him they way they have responded.
When Obama says "there is not a black America or a white America," he touches on Dr. King's "we are all caught up in a single garment of destiny."
Barack Obama's campaign has inspired millions of Americans, OF ALL RACES, to dream, to hope, to see themselves as AMERICANS first.
It seems to me, you want him to constantly prove his "blackness" before his Americaness.
"A tiger does not have to proclaim it's tigritude!"

[Olney Blue]

30. I didn't know about the death threats in Memphis. God, I hope he stays safe.

:scared:

[merh]

44. see post 32

They all get death threats and they all have secret service protection.

[PVnRT]

31. Hate to point this out

The second photo on Number 4 is not the uncropped version of the first one. She's not even looking in the same direction.

[maddiejoan]

101. hate to point this out

but the shape of the photo can tell you immediately that it's cropped

[PVnRT]

147. OK

It doesn't change the fact that you were trying to present two different photographs as being the same one.

[maddiejoan]

150. I was what?

I wasn't doing anything.

[jackson_dem]

32. The outrage over it was fake and aimed to cover up Obama not bothering to show up

Even McSame made the trip.

[rodeodance]

40. no, they just manufactured a reason and the sheepie followed-thread after thread.

[merh]

43. Some of you amaze me

You can't be that dense. I can't decide what drives you to stop using reason, what it is that allows cheap emotions guide you.

Think about it, just think about it. How dangerous would it have been for him to have gone to that place that day?

Fanatics like anniversaries, they love to do their damage on anniversaries and what better damage could be done, what better message of hate could be sent than to take out that black man who thinks he can president on the same day at the same place that other loud mouthed black man got what was coming to him.

Mr Obama, 46, was given full Secret Service protection last May.

It was the earliest juncture for any presidential candidate since the practice was first introduced following the assassination of Senator Robert Kennedy, two months after Dr King died from a shot fired by James Earl Ray, an escaped convict and racist.

The prospect of Mr Obama meeting a similar fate is etched deep in the collective psyche of many American blacks, particularly those old enough to remember the events of 1968, who overwhelmingly back the Illinois senator over his rival Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/04/03/wobama103.xml

So out of an abundance of caution, and not just for him, but for the crowds that were there paying respect, for the other candidates and leaders who went to pay their respect, it was decided it was best he not go to Memphis. Remember, he has secret service protection, they make a lot of the calls, their job is to keep him safe, their job is to keep all of the candidates safe.

Mr Obama was due to be campaigning that day in Muncie, the Indiana town where on April 4th 1968 Senator Kennedy broke the news to a stunned crowd that Dr King was dead.

His campaign, however, has postponed the Muncie event citing "logistical issues".

Logistics, how about death threats.

.

[jackson_dem]

95. Do you work on Obama's Secret Service detail?

[merh]

97. No, you don't have to be in the secret service to be reasonable.

You might want to try to put your emotions aside and use a little reason and logic, you might be surprised and find that being rational and understanding is a better than being snarky and hate filled.

[jackson_dem]

102. Why didn't Obama attend Tavis Smiley's summit on black America?

Do you "know" of any death threats he received regarding that? Or maybe it is his campaign strategy of staying away from the black community, for fear of being seen as "too black", for certain primaries, PA being one of them?

[merh]

103. Why didn't Hillary go to Camp Crawford?

Has she stood up with Code Pink and Cindy Sheehan?

Stop moving the goal posts and deal with the OP and the bullshit attempt at context when none was truly given.

[jackson_dem]

105. Hillary showed up to Smiley's State of the Black Union summit. Why didn't Obama?

You know the answer, even if you wish to suppress it in your mind.

[merh]

106. That's not the discussion

unless you want to go through a litany of events that both have not gone to and compare.

Stick to the issue in this post and stop moving the goal posts. You won't like the results.

[jackson_dem]

108. You, typical for Obama apologists, invented a reason for him skipping Memphis

[merh]

110. It is not invented.

How sad that you refuse to use any reason whatsoever - logic isn't in your vocabulary, is it? You think moving the goal posts and pulling straw man arguments out of your ass proves something.

There are evil pukes in this world who have hate like yours in their hearts, you use your words to damage, they would use other weapons if they could, if given the chance. The secret service doesn't want them to have the chance.

http://www.myfoxchicago.com/myfox/pages/Home/Detail?contentId=3271179&version=4&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=VSTY&pageId=1.1.1

Yes, it's a link to fox, a place you hillary folks love to visit these days so you should be familiar with how to navigate your way around over there and you shouldn't be offended. The video of the KKK's death threats is real.

There was another site dedicated to such threats that has been removed from the internet. Only a moron would think that security wasn't an issue that day - security for everyone.

[jackson_dem]

116. Again, you have no evidence to support your claim

Obamites invent all sorts of "explanations" for what Obama does without any evidence.

The logical explanation can be found in the racial two-step Obama has been playing. He didn't appear in Memphis for the same reason he did not appear at Smiley's summit. The only time he associates overtly with anything that is considered "black" (MLK is a national hero, but as you noted, he has a special link to the AA community and AA history) is before primaries with large black populations (SC, MS). Pennsylvania is not such a state.

[merh]

118. And hillary attended that summit why?

And has she associated with Cindy Sheehan and Code Pink?

You need to get past your irrational hatred and realize that the secret service isn't going to come out and announce the threats.

Again, expecting you to use reason and logic is expecting far too much, understanding is definitely out of the question.

[jackson_dem]

120. She is a Democrat. Democrats are concerned about black issues

Sheehan and Code Pink are not the same thing. Has Obama? Sheehan is on the fringe of American politics like it or not. Tavis Smiley is a prominent black leader who brings together black leaders from across the nation and from different walks of life to talk about the state of black America.

You need to realize Obama is a politician and politicians have strategies. He has a two-step strategy on race depending on which primary is up next. To assume that because he didn't show he had received a death threat is baseless and paranoid.

How many campaign events has he canceled? Has he canceled more than the norm for a politician? If he had we would have surely heard about it because it would increase sympathy for him.

[merh]

122. Bullshit

She attended for political purposes. Tell me what did your concerned dem do after Katrina, when she go to NOLA to give her support, to reach out to folks in need?

And I gave you the link to the video of the legitimate threats and promise to kill Obama, he was assigned secret service detail earlier than has ever happened before because of those threats. If you ever actually read the links provided and get your head out of your ass, you might realize that being cautious and safe does not equate to being paranoid.

And yes, Code Pink and Cindy Sheehan are the same thing, Hillary does what she does for political purposes, just as you say obama does. That does not mean the concerns about memphis were not real.

[jackson_dem]

125. He was assigned it because Durbin was scared and convinced him to request one

The summit was the State of the Black Union, not the summit on blacks in one city.

Politics and principle coincide when it comes to Democratic concerns on minority issues, as well as many other issues ranging from labor union issues to women's rights.

As to their records on black issues, both have a 100% NAACP rating.

Cindy Sheehan is viewed as a joke by most of the country. Tavis Smiley is a serious national leader who places a special focus on black issues. You can't compare the two.

[merh]

126. And the threats are real

They both are playing politics. Did Hillary go to memphis 10 years ago to pay her respect? 20 years ago? 5 years ago?

[jackson_dem]

130. Just like the threats on Tavis Smiley and Mayhill Fowler from Obamites are real

So if Tavis cancels an event that must mean he has gotten a death threat? Obama didn't show because it is consistent with his campaign strategy regarding race.

I don't know and I don't care. It was political for her to go as it was for McSame. However, it was a good thing. It was a display of national unity to see 2 of the 3 presidential candidates go there to honor an American hero. It is a shame, as well as ironic, that one who utters a lot of words about unity was not present. His unity talk is just that, just words...

Speaking of threats, you don't think Clinton has gotten them? McSame?

[merh]

137. Would you stop using the childish terms.

I support Obama because I see him bringing change that Hillary does not offer. If she gets the nomination, I will vote for her because it is about keeping the RNC out of the office. It is about dems winning.

Sorry if it bothers you that I dare to challenge you or the OP on the bullshit distortions you like to post. Your double standards are sickening. If others are threatened it is not by me and I don't support the threats. I actually understand the need to seek security when threats are made. That appears to be something you don't understand. It was not just about his safety, it was about the safety of everyone going to pay their respect.

As I said in my posts in this thread, all the candidates have protection because they all have received threats.

Now tell me, has Hillary ever gone to Memphis to show her respect prior to this election cycle?

[jackson_dem]

139. What double standards? You invented a fairy tale to explain away why St. Obama wasn't there

That is why Obama's supporters get a bad wrap. They will stop at nothing to avoid any cognitive dissonance, as ClericJohnPreston has written about so well many times here. He didn't show up. The most likely reason is his campaign strategy. You can't accept that a man who claims to desire to "transcend race" uses his race when convenient and downplays it when that is expedient. So you came up with an "explanation" out of thin air.

Obama got some criticism for not showing up, like Clinton and even McSame did. If what you claim--with zero evidence--is true then why didn't they leak their concerns? That would have gotten him off the hook and perhaps even helped him by giving him a sympathy bounce.

I didn't blame you for anything. My point was simply this: public figures get death threats. The notion that Obama is uniquely receiving them is another fairy tale. That said, I presume he is getting more than Hillary who in turn is getting more than McSame but these are candidates for the most powerful position in the world and they know these kind of threats come with the territory. Thankfully, none have amounted to anything since 1981 and none have been successful since 1968 for a presidential candidate and 1963 for a president.

I don't know and don't care. The role of a senator from New York is not the same as that of a presidential candidate. Did Obama ever visit Selma before 2007?

[merh]

149. You and your straw man arguments. Keep moving those

goal posts and keep distorting the issues and the discussion. Your faux outrage is duly noted, put you down for "I can't believe" indigation and note for the record your dismissal of the facts. You know, those silly things you like to overlook like Obama was signed secret service much earlier than any candidate before him because of the threat; and, like the video images of the top KKK nut promising to take him out.

[jackson_dem]

165. What outrage? Did you hear me complaining about him not going to Memphis?

I just don't buy the fabricated excuse for him not being "present."

[jackson_dem]

143. Obama supporter destroys your fabricated excuse for Obama not showing up

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cornel-west/on-obama-not-going-to-mem_b_95179.html?page=19

[merh]

148. You are wrong yet again. But it is your habit to distort what you

read. I can't decide if it is because of you are just unable to understand what you read or if you are are just one for fabrications and distortions, which would explain your unwavering support for hillary.

Dr. West is disappointed that Obama didn't go, he doesn't destroy anything, he doesn't even consider the "whys" much like you. I'm disappointed he didn't consider the "whys". So your response is as fabricated as you false outrage. For you it is just a "gotcha". Read the comments and you will see that there are just as many folks supportive of his absence as there are against it. This is my favorite response "If he had gone there, he'd have been accused of pandering or being racist. When Clinton and McCain go, it's seen as enlightened."

Tell me, has Hillary ever gone to Memphis to pay respect to Dr. King before this election cycle? Was this her first visit?

[jackson_dem]

166. Do you know who West is? Do you think he didn't talk to the O campaign before writing that piece?

Dr. West is a highly respected progressive and a big Obama supporter. The idea that he wrote a piece criticizing Obama without first contacting the Obama campaign for an explanation is a stretch.

[merh]

168. My foot, you don't call up the campaign and say "hey, I'm mad

cause you didn't go to Memphis so I am writing an short article on HuffPost about it." And if you were so informed about that summit, you would know that West was annoyed that Obama didn't make it to the summit. He spoke of the tight rope he walks. I betcha he didn't call him then to say, "I'm gonna talk about you" just like he didn't call before he wrote that short comment about Memphis. As pointed out to you, plenty of folks disagree with West.

Relative to your other post, again, it would be nice if you hillary supporters could try just a little bit of honesty, at least with yourselves. Emotion drives your rejection of obama, his policies are almost identical to hillary's policies, their records are similiar. I've said, I don't hate the woman and will vote for her if she is the nominee. That is the truth. I don't trust her, especially after what she said about Iran and that "middle east umbrella", but I don't hate her.

[ClericJohnPreston]

123. BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA

You call for reason and logic, and invent and rationalize to circumvent cognitive dissonance, you myopic kool-aid drinker.

Typical Obamination reaction, you blame Hillary reflexively.

You ought to see yourself from the neutral corner I'm in Obamite. You're so far gone, you wouldn't even know what is up or down, yet alone "logical".

One word: PERSPECTIVE

You don't demonstrate any!

[Maddy McCall]

124. .....

:thumbsup:

[merh]

129. ...

pathetic

[merh]

128. What am I blaming Hillary for?

Please explain your irrational reaction.

[ClericJohnPreston]

131. Irrational?????

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA....you are too funny you Obamite lemming.

"What am I blaming Hillary for"?-MERH

MERH: "She attended for political purposes. Tell me what did your concerned dem do after Katrina, when she go to NOLA to give her support, to reach out to folks in need?"

Obamite Lost and Found

Missing: PERSPECTIVE
RATIONALITY
A FRIGGIN MIRROR!!!!!!!!!!!!

[merh]

134. Irrational, yes.

That is how one describes the post of another that uses childish terms like those in your "BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA" posts.

I guess you missed the fact that the summit that Hillary attended while she was "showing her concern" was in NOLA. She is so concerned she can go to NOLA to make that summit but yet, not so concerned that she ever bothered to travel to NOLA after Katrina. Hell, she hasn't done much of nothing to show her concern about Katrina/Rita survivors and the needs of those areas destroyed by the worst natural disaster to ever strike our nation.

Call me silly, I notice these things, its personal for me. She went to NOLA to politic, not out of concern for anyone but her campaign.

And you answer my question that I asked the other poster, if you can. Did Hillary ever go to Memphis to pay her respect to MLKjr before this historic trip? Did she pay her respects 10 years ago, 15 years ago, 20 years ago.

Now go call someone else childish names and pull your petty "neutral corner" crap some place else.

[Two Americas]

132. can't blame him there

I can't blame him for that jackson_dem. Blacks carry a higher burden when seeking positions of power. He is forced to pay attention to not making whites too uncomfortable - that is the sad reality.

All politicians play demographics. If they don't, they get criticized - "he is ignoring that community!" and if they do they get criticized - "he is pandering to that community!"

[jackson_dem]

144. I agree

[Two Americas]

161. attention Obama supporters

There is no more passionate and prolific defender and promoter of Senator Clinton here than jackson_dem. Are we really to believe that jackson_dem is the enemy, the representative of all things evil, who must be bashed and smashed and destroyed at all costs?

I just challenged a criticism that jackson_dem made against Obama and the earth did not stop spinning and it did not cause Bush to bomb Iran, nor did it cause McCain to surge in the polls, nor Hannity to have material to use against us, nor did it advance any secret "Rovian" plan. Nor did jackson_dem feel compelled to make vicious personal attacks in response.

No one has more strongly advocated against the wisdom of a Clinton candidacy than I have, starting the day after the 2004 election when the talk first started. But here we are. If I can treat Clinton supporters with respect and dignity, then I see no reason why everyone here cannot.

Please don't tell me that "they started it" or "they have it coming." Two wrongs do not make a right.

[nonoxy9]

195. When I vote for change I go for the pols that all do the same things!!

It was SOOOO courageous and heartfelt for both Hill and McSame to do the obvious thing on such an anniversary.
Honestly! If you can't see them for they're similarities and politics as usual you are a lost cause.

[rodeodance]

36. A big REC for HIllary-and maddy

[PoliticalAmazon]

191. Yeah for Pimp-Mama Hillary working an American tragedy like a $2 hooker...

...on the Saturday night before the rent is due.

[Evergreen Emerald]

39. Excellent!

Deserves a kick.


Great job Maddy.

[rodeodance]

42. There were serveral days of those lying threads with posters coming with hate-filled

comments. It was so sickening.

[Autumn]

47. Thank you for this Maddy

kicked and recommended for Hillary and you.

[mkultra]

76. is your sig intentionaly wrong?

[cornermouse]

50. kick

[rodeodance]

51. Thanks Maddy

[Buzz Clik]

52. Wow. That was so .... empty.

Hillary and McCain creating a photo-op over the site of MLK's murder was obscene.

Obama didn't show up because he knows that.

EDIT: Here's your picture, Maddy, of Obama acting appropriately on that day. Not some cynical photo opportunity by a woman who uses surrogates -- including her husband -- to attack Obama's race, but a solemn speech.



No catch in the throat. No throwing of bookbags. No waving and giggling from the point of death.

[rodeodance]

90. your post is worthless. There are MATURE BHO on this thread--you are NOT one of them.

[Buzz Clik]

160. Thanks for that, Tinkerbell. I'll check back with you when I need an update on my growth.

[PoliticalAmazon]

190. I doubt BO supporters would applaud Hillary pimping such a heinous event....

...Indeed, it is YOUR post that is worthless.

I mean, upon further reflection, I don't even know if Karl Rove would have slithered into this level of slime.

You can be "proud" of one thing: Hillary has out-slimed Karl Rove.

[shayes51]

54. beautiful

[rasputin1952]

55. I have no dog in the fight...but I can say that people crop, choose

the photo's they want others to see and bypass content when they "report" on certain things.

I have no problem w/HRC smiling or laughing, I wasn't there so I have no idea if it was appropriate or not, after all, someone could have recalled something funny. I know that at both my father's and stepfathers funerals, quite a few things were said that were funny, and the vast majority of us laughed and smiled at remembrances of things past.

Why this is an issue is beyond me. MLK Jr's assassination was indeed tragic, but in life, it has been said he had a great sense of humor, why not celebrate that as well?

Rosa Parks, a figure of great dignity and courage...but even she admitted the bus seating was planned, as was the seating of the students in Woolworth's. Does that make the act less than noble or less than courageous under the circumstances, of course not.

I marched in planned and unplanned Civil Rights marches, showed up at planned and unplanned rallies...all the while knowing that police, fire-hoses and possibly dogs and tear gas were awaiting us. Was I courageous?...not really, there is security in numbers. What these people did was stand up, often alone, to power that could have been unleashed, (and often was), at any time.

I celebrate their lives, as I celebrate anyone who stands up against tyranny, but that does not mean I won't smile, or perhaps laugh when i realize some of what happened or what was said.

The photo's of HRC should not be seen as portrayed, but for what lies beneath, a respect and celebration for those who have blazed paths on the road to equality.

[BleedingHeartPatriot]

58. Oh, Maddy,

Damn it.

:cry:

And, K & R.

:kick:

I saw her years ago at her book signing. She is someone people like being around.

Even a few R's seem to like to hang out with her.

and an edit for my smiley. :-)

[ruggerson]

59. kicked and recommended

thanks Maddy

[AZBlue]

62. Were you at the Lorraine? No? You obviously hate MLK & Rosa Parks!!!

[PoliticalAmazon]

192. Correction: "Did you pimp MLK's death? If not, you hate MLK and Rosa Parks!" n/t

[Lannigan]

63. Thanks Maddy.

:kick:


K&R

[libbygurl]

64. Excellent post and pics, Maddy. Context keeps going missing a lot of the time, conveniently so

...for some people to manipulate pictures and events. Beautiful work there!

[whatchamacallit]

65. Ok, she sucks 1/1000th less than I thought

Still way too much suck for me.

[rodeodance]

88. and your post sucks 99% more than i had previously thought your post suck

[whatchamacallit]

154. Thank You!

I'd be worried if you liked them, cuz that would mean we are of like mind. :scared:

[Hutzpa]

68. Maddy you can

pull your hair, :banghead: jump off a skyscraper for all I care,
your candidate has past that line of demarcation, the line you don't
cross as a Democrats, my suggestion to you is to stop wasting our
time with these BS post and start thinking about how were going to
solve the crisis at hand.

[ClayZ]

127. I think Maddy is about to switch to Obama/44

Her frog is looing a little green around the gills, don't you think?

[Hutzpa]

152. Well woohoo

what is she waiting for....c'mon girl the trains about to leave
the station better jump onboard.

What a patience train by the way...

[desi]

70. Error: You've already recommended that thread.

I tried anyway Maddy...Most Excellent!!!

:kick:

[Irishonly]

71. Great Pictures

Thank you

[GoldieAZ49]

72. Good job Maddy

thank you

[Catherine Vincent]

73. Great post, Maddy.

But some of us already knew the idiots posting that photo cherry picked it. It was simply another reason to bash Senator Hillary Clinton.

[TacticalPeek]

74. You good.

:)

[SoCalDem]

75. These were all posted before.. and i didn't see anything wrong with them

:shrug:

[rodeodance]

87. figures that you would see nothing wrong with BHO fans USING MLK to make

vile ugly comments about a Democrat!! Not surprized at all you see nothing wrong with that!!

[PoliticalAmazon]

193. Wrong. Figures you would see nothing wrong about HRC pimping an American tragedy...

...She's worked the Lorraine like a $2 hooker the Saturday night before the rent is due.

Work it, Hillary! Work it!

[mkultra]

80. i didnt matter then and doesnt now

It was an odd time to be smiling but if you take enough photos of someone your bound to get them looking stupid.


Obama made the right choice not to be there, for his safety and for others.



If you constantly address the worst on our side, you will be the worse on yours.

[rodeodance]

89. "If you constantly address the worst on our side, you will be the worse on yours" fits your side

[Levgreee]

81. only very few people were actually getting on her case for the Rosa Parks photo

nice job destroying a fake issue, though

[rodeodance]

85. you forget the many sheepie who were on those threads. It is an issue when

BHO fans intentionally us a figures such as MLK and Rosa Parks to make their own file political statements. DU in that respect was shameful

[AtomicKitten]

86. Probably one of your lamest attacks on Barack which is a shame.

It was going so well until then.

[Stephanie]

91. The photos in the earliers threads were AP & Reuters pix available at Yahoo News

Yours are from some other source - the HRC campaign, perhaps?

Regardless, you're a day late and a dollar short. It was ugly of her to campaign on the site of MLK's assassination on the date of his death. What if Obama campaigned in Dealey Plaza on November 22? Or posed for photos at the Ambassador Hotel on June 5. It was a crass, tasteless move and her behavior was tasteless as well.

[rodeodance]

141. It was an ugly tasteless move for Obama fans to distort those pics as they did on DU.

[Stephanie]

92. Here are mine. We just show you the FACTS, and YOU call it HATE.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=5402329

[onenote]

93. As an obama supporter, I was about to thank you for this until I saw the end of your post

I agree fully that the photo "controversy" was exaggerated and silly . I also thought the false outrage from some of my fellow obama supporters -- claiming that HRC was seeking a cheap photo op by attending the ceremonies in Memphis -- was ridiculous.

But just as ridiculous was the false outrage of some Clinton supporters about Obama's decision to address the anniversary of King's assasination in Indianapolis. As I said at the time, the important thing was for people to remember and think about it, not where anyone stopped and did that.

You were right to point out the folly in the photo controversy. But you blew it at the end.

[JimGinPA]

94. Really, It Could Have Been A Great Post From A Supporter...

But...

[guyanakoolaid]

96. OMG! She's not wearing her American flag lapel pin!

:puke::patriot:

[TLM]

98. Following your logic.... the VAST numbers of pictures of Ozzy Osbourn not peeing on the Alamo...

somehow prove he didn't pee on the Alamo?


And I consider Hillary's actions very much like Ozzy's in that neither was a malicious act of hatefulness, but rather simply one of disregard.


Ozzy wasn't being intentionally disrespectful to the Alamo, he was just out of touch with reality because of drugs and booze.

Hillary wasn't trying to be disrespectful or patronizing to MLK, she was simply out of touch with reality.

[Beausoir]

99. Anyone of normal intelligence knows that Senator Clinton showed deep respect.

Only the most feeble-minded person would try to make it an issue.

Thank you for taking the time to explain it to the less intelligent folks here at DU.

It won't sink in, unfortunately. They are simply incapable of absorbing facts.

[SwampG8r]

104. oh man i was all ready to go yup

and comment on how the OP you are responding to was kinda snarky and flamebaity
and then you had to toss a snark in at the end of it

[Jamastiene]

107. What a woman.

Yes, I mean Hillary, but I also mean you Maddy. You nailed it with that post. I wish I had your skills. My hat's off to ya. Job well done. :pals: :hi: :loveya:

[Radical Activist]

109. I'm pretty sure everyone assumed it was a crowd she was smiling and waving to.

That isn't a revelation and it doesn't change a thing. You just don't get it.

[Beacool]

111. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Great job Maddy!!!!

I'm sooooooo sick of Hillary being trashed endlessly on this board simply because she won't drop out and pave the way for Obama.

She's a good person who in her lifetime has done a lot to help other people, even though some seem to choose to forget it right now.

:hi:

[Shakespeare]

112. I think her being there at ALL was tacky.

And since when did pols start making a pilgrimage to the assassination location? Bad, bad taste. Are they going to start showing up at Dealey Plaza every November 22 now?

I don't think it was in good taste for her OR McCain to go to the Lorraine Motel on April 4. It's an utterly empty, photo-oppy gesture.

[juajen]

113. Maddy, thanks for these photos and commentary. They're great!

I love that Hillary never loses her cool, no matter how others act. She's always gracious and compassionate and brilliant.

[anonymous171]

114. The real issue here is that she isn't wearing a flag pin.

Doesn't she love America?

[goclark]

115. He was being respectful of HC and MLK's memory for not showing

that is #1.

Get the visual if Obama was there and HC was there too....

People would be going crazy to see Obama, touch his jacket,snap his photograph and it would have been a mob scene.

But he wisely made a brilliant speech and certainly honored MLK.

African Americans completely understood why he was not in Memphis and I am African American.

#2 --- Your new photos do bring a different slant to the event.

What I wonder is why her high paid staff didn't see the photos in all the papers and all over the blogs and didn't jump right on the right track?

Why did it take this long?

Glad that you were able to do this post ~ thanks

[ClayZ]

117. Dang it, Maddy, I was about to *ick and *eccomend your OP

until I got to the DISTRACTION at the bottom! Otherwise, it would have been a great post.

Just goes to show, how the MSN spins!

[TheDonkey]

121. Um' how does that explain Hillary bursting out of the Hotel room all giggles and waving like a fool

while others appropriately had composure. She was there for a photo-op plain and simple and didn't even bother with proper etiquette.

[cboy4]

133. Excellent analysis.

:thumbsup:

[Divine Discontent]

136. rec'd

this shows how photos and more precisely email forwards that are sent across the US in the millions can lie - I've seen forwards that are just absolute FILTH and trash Obama like there's no tomorrow! It reminds me of 2000 and 2004 forwards. GOPers do it much more than Democrats, much more....

one has to wonder if a Obama/Clinton shock ticket might not just be something that occurs, btw like you said, to hush everyone up. If not, I hope Obama picks a great uniting person.

[JVS]

138. Disgusting that Hillary pimped the legacies of MLK and Rosa Parks in one day for a cheap photo op!

[PoliticalAmazon]

187. GMTA. I used practically the same words. n/t

[HereSince1628]

140. She doesn't wear flag pins.

How can I vote for the conservative candidate when she hates the flag?

[DrFunkenstein]

142. She Is Literally Standing On The Place He Was Murdered...If This Was Auschwitz

Would she dare look so chipper?

Even with a crowd, there is a certain level of solemnity that you should show when standing on the place where the towering man was murdered, crushing the hopes of a nation, on the F'N DAY OF THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE MURDER!!!

[PoliticalAmazon]

189. She pimped it into a cheap political event. She is fucking disgusting. n/t

[ima_sinnic]

145. so? sorry, it doesn't change one thing I feel about HRC--she is toxic

and your stupid cheap shot at Obama at the end just makes you look petty and childish. are you implying that he "has no respect" for MLK because he didn't show up in Memphis to glad-hand and bullshit the voters like she did? ironic that she poses in front of signs demanding "Jobs for All" while the outsourcing corporations are really her biggest contributors and the constituency to whom she is most loyal and beholden.

[Phillycat]

146. Excellent thread, Maddie, thanks for your work on this.

of course, you could post pictures of Hillary feeding leper children with her own hands and you'd still get people here trying to twist it into something bad.

[not_too_L8]

151. Context? He honored King in another location with a beautiful speech

That's is how you manipulated the story

[Quixote1818]

153. I support Obama, but I agree with you 100%. I never signed on to that BS

It's too easy to catch someone at the wrong time and have people make assumptions about it.

K and R

[Seabiscuit]

155. Thanks for correcting the record, Maddy. Kool-aid is no truth serum, that's for sure.

Its imbibers distort and smear and lie about everything.

[durrrty libby]

156. Wow ...........Maddy you are a treasure, as is Hillary

:toast: :applause: :woohoo: :applause:

[Straight Shooter]

158. Great job, Maddy, as always.

Knowing that people like you support Hillary serves to confirm that I'm supporting the right candidate, no matter what happens.

:thumbsup:

[nichomachus]

159. Great pictures -- but totally missing the point

Politics is about perception and the news cycle. All that really matters is the photo that gets in the news.

You can show me 10,000 pictures of you in church, studying, donating money to the poor, bandaging a leper's wounds, etc. But, if one photo of you flashing your boobs at Mardi Gras hits the front page of your local paper, none of the others matter.

The photo of Hillary with the red-carpet-style grin-and-wave was the one that most people saw. That's what they remember.

It's not fair -- but it's the way it works. Yes, she was reverent at other times, but it was the one where she wasn't that made news -- just as when Dubya flashes someone the bird. That's what will get sent around the Internet at lightning speed -- not the pictures of him just sitting reading a book. (ha)

[mistertrickster]

162. You know what else? SHE'S NOT WEARING A FLAG PIN!

Why does only Obama get ragged on for not wearing a flag pin?

Hmmmm . . .

What does it tell you when the mainstream media really want Hillary?

Maintain the status quo.

[txaslftist]

163. I've been away.

I'm glad I missed whatever spat this is about.

[ronnykmarshall]

164. Thanks Maddy!

:kick:

[samsingh]

167. nice pictures

i hope Hillary can keep a high ground. She has the chance at nobility and decency.

[nvme]

169. Your right about the non-appearance of Obama

I see nothing wrong with Obama not appearing at the site where MLK was Murdered. I see nothing wrong with him not appearing at the Jenna 6 deal. If he got nailed as being "too black" then his message would be lost behind all the punditry. It shows no disrespect. It shows a candidate who wants to control his message. It shows a candidate that wants to appeal to a broader base.
I think with exception of the snide comment about Obama not being there this is an exceptional post. Obama isnt running a Civil rights platform. If he did show then he would have been accused of pandering. maybe as president of the United states of america, he will pay his respects to show that ultimately MLK was right about his "Dream". I hope to see it realized.

[Dinger]

170. Maddy, I Nominate That For Post Of The Day : )

Powerful and moving. I am proud of her and of all people whoworked so hard and gave up so much for the civil rights movement.


This picture has been in my classroom for years.

[defendandprotect]

173. Well, congratulations for pursuing this story . . .

IMO, it's an important holiday for our nation ---
and glad to see that HRC was assisting in the remembrance.

[emilyg]

177. Thank you very much.

[BuyingThyme]

178. Hillary tried to keep a CIA assassin from testifying before Congress.

Write her off.

[Lucky 13]

181. Didn't you post this exact same thing last week?

You guys know how to beat a dead horse. I'll give you that.

[jettison]

184. Agreed

Even when the story was posted on DU, I thought it was an absurd, non-issue. It still is. The Obama folks that would attack Hillary for smiling at the wrong time sound just as absurd as the Hillary folks who would attack Obama for something his preacher once said when he wasn't even in church. All of them, gutter politics, and non-issues.

[PoliticalAmazon]

186. Hillary will pimp ANYTHING for a photop....

If I was on that balcony, I would be so overcome with sadness that the last thing I would have done is turned to the crowd, smiled and waved. Not Hillary. Nope, it's PIMP IT BABY, PIMP IT!

Then she goes downs and smiles and shakes a few hands!!

It is absolutely disgusting. She pimped one of the worst things that ever happend in our country's history for a cheap political opportunity.

I'm actually glad Obama wasn't there. It was a political-pimping circus, and I would have been disappointed if he would have used it in the way Hillary did.

In fact,I find this thread disgusting. To try to turn Hillary's pimping of such a heinous event into a slam against OBama is...well, frankly, it's something Karl Rove would do.

[loyalsister]

194. It probably wasn't her fault

The problem is placement. She was in a position where she would quite probably inevitably have to respond to a crowd. She has been trained to do it with a certain enthusiasm. That location and her required campaign duties just really didn't jibe. Allowing it to happen was not good.

It inspired discussion here and people have expressed discomfort. While I can see the point in pointing out what happened to her while she was there, I don't think it is fair to minimize the discomfort that the image aroused in a lot of people.

[peace13]

196. If it makes you feel any better ,

it is not the press that makes me upset with Hillary. It is the video of her selling the Iraq war in the run up. That turned the page for me and I will not go back. That is all.

[susanwy]

197. Nice!

I especially like the last photo.

[Danieljay]

198. Quite the opportunist! and a LIAR! n/t