Obama’s recent speeches

Just how far will Barack Obama go in his efforts to appease radical Islam? His Cairo speech was a collection of factual errors and distortions.

For example, Obama said in his speech that America and Islam “... share common principles of justice and progress, tolerance and the dignity of all human beings.” Tolerance? Dignity? Islamic countries dominate lists of the world’s top human rights violators. Throughout much of the Middle East, Christians live in fear, Jews can’t live at all, and women are treated as second-class citizens.

The president also said, “...any world order that elevates one nation or group of people over another will inevitably fail.” All cultures and nations are not equal. Some believe in liberty and the dignity of individuals. Some believe people are cattle to be herded by government. Our Constitution and the freedoms guaranteed in the Bill of Rights are foundational to America.

Linda Sumonja
Blue Springs

In reading Calvin Oyler’s letter (6/11, “Obama’s empty words”), I was struck by his statement, “Once again, the words flowed from his mouth and teleprompter.” He finished his letter referring to the president’s speech as “words, just words” and that “Obama is an empty vessel.”

For Mr. Oyler to infer that President Obama doesn’t “truly understand the sacrifice of the Americans before him” because he didn’t hear that “little catch” in the president’s throat is nonsense.

As a senior citizen and also a veteran who listened to Obama’s commemorative D-Day speech, what I heard was a sincere, heartfelt tribute to those veterans who fought and died for our country, delivered with the dignity that those veterans deserve. Nothing more, nothing less.
 
Gary Miller
 Independence

Comments

[NoMoreMrNiceGuy]

Obama does not have humility, he has arrogance Casady. What kind of clown continually points fingers at fathers while endorsing single parent, welfare moms and social programs that keep them in poverty?
We should just pull all of our militray out of all nations and only tend to our soil. When someone postures or strike out at us, we simply show humility and cower, that's the way to be.

[WoodyKC]

What are these so called "moderate" muslim nations? Saudi Arabia, nope, see how the young children are taught about other religions. Women's rights, not. What about indonesia, nope, african, nope, east european...running out of examples, please help me out with your vast knowledge.

On the other hand I agree with you, let's stop being arogant and think we can make everybody have a better life. Pull all government support for forgien activities. Reverse the Bush Administration's funding for AIDS research in Africa, as well as many other food and aid programs. Who are we to imply that they cannot handle it themselves?

[Casady]

Sorry, should read "(Don't shoot me for this, Jeanette)"....

[Casady]

Hey GC, note that I excepted "human atrocities" (i.e. unhumane treatment) from my criteria. That would fall under your cross cultural standard as well so I think we are consistent. My comments were aimed at cultural norms, not social injustices. (Don't shoot for the Jeanette) but while I and most Westerners consider the lack of women's rights in Muslim countries to be wrong, I do not feel it qualifies as inhumane treatment. It is a custom. Nothing more, nothing less. For as much as we may disagree with them, we have no more of a right to dictate to Muslim nations that they should allow their women the right to vote than they have a right to dictate that we disallow our women the right to vote.

I guess the bottom line is just because our way of life is agreeable to us, it is not necessarily agreeable universally. I personally find humility to be an honorable trait and one that we totally lacked under the arrogance of Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld. I support Obama's effort to regain it

[Casady]

Hey GC, note that I excepted "human atrocities" (i.e. unhumane treatment) from my criteria. That would fall under your cross cultural standard as well so I think we are consistent. My comments were aimed at cultural norms, not social injustices. (Don't shoot for the Jeanette) but while I and most Westerners consider the lack of women's rights in Muslim countries to be wrong, I do not feel it qualifies as inhumane treatment. It is a custom. Nothing more, nothing less. For as much as we may disagree with them, we have no more of a right to dictate to Muslim nations that they should allow their women the right to vote than they have a right to dictate that we disallow our women the right to vote.

I guess the bottom line is just because our way of life is agreeable to us, it is not necessarily agreeable universally. I personally find humility to be an honorable trait and one that we totally lacked under the arrogance of Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld. I support Obama's effort to regain it

[GCYL]

“Besides, who are we to judge cultural norms that differ from our own?” - Cassidy

“Moral relativism: To make cross-cultural comparisons, we need cross-cultural standards; cultural relativism, though, is nothing more than the view that there are no such things. Cultural relativism therefore makes cross-cultural comparisons impossible; we cannot judge one culture to be either morally superior or inferior to another. Some such judgements, though, are valid, and there must therefore be cross-cultural standards. Cultural relativism must therefore be false.”

Sorry Cassidy but I believe that judgments on humane treatment are a cross-cultural standard. I also believe that without the cross-cultural standard of humane treatment the issue of torture becomes extremely vague. Have we lost cross- cultural comparisons with countries s that find nothing wrong with the use of torture? How fortunate for them.

“One can look at certain extreme sects of the Christian faith and cite the same injustices.” – Cassidy

Our government isn’t run by certain extreme sects of the Christian faith, at least not any more. Setting that issue aside, I’m not impressed with your need to “drill down” inside the American sub culture to find something in common with a foreign county norm. Your argument is we can’t pass judgment on 90% of that country because of the 1% in our country. Actually we can pass the same judgment on both of them.

[Casady]

Err, um Connie, I voted for McCain.

Just pointing out that National Review is not an unbiased source. I didn't mention being for it or against it. Be careful putting words in peoples mouth.

[ConnieP]

Note to Casady. By definition, what gets written in National Review is OPINION-- never intended as a "fair and balanced" view which is what the major networks and newspapers ought to put forth. Conservatives have taken the liberals' criticisms (some of it deserved) for the past 8 years. Now that the balance of power has changed --just as you had HOPED-- well, you'll just have to put up with what the other side has to say.

[Casady]

Jeanette, I agree that there are Muslim nations where women's rights are a hugh issue but there are more moderate nations where it is not. Besides, who are we to judge cultural norms that differ from our own? One can look at certain extreme sects of the Christian faith and cite the same injustices.

I don't think America is the moral compass that many think it is. Surfing one round through the cable listings will pretty much tell you that. Therefore, short of acting on human atrocities, I really don't think it's our place to dictate what's right and what's wrong to other cultures.

[jeanette]

I'm sure a lot of women, given the choice, would not come here. But I also know the history of the millions of people from all over the world who have risked life and limb to get here. That is not happening anywhere else in the world.
Are we the best country in the world? I can't judge because I haven't seen them all, but is the United States the best opportunity to acquire the best, happiness the most successful life possible? Absolutely!

[Jim]

"If you gave women in this country a choice of where to live, I would have to venture a guess that they wouldn't pick an Islamic country."

If you flipped that around and gave women in an Islamic country a choice of where to live, do you think the majority of them would choose the U.S.? If so, what do you base that on?

[jeanette]

Can you really say that the United States and Islam "share common principles of justice and progress, tolerance and the dignity of all human beings" and keep a straight face? If you gave women in this country a choice of where to live, I would have to venture a guess that they wouldn't pick an Islamic country.
If that's the way they choose to live, that's their decision, but to say the two ways are comparable is pushing it.

[Casady]

Look up "douchebag" in the dictionary and I guarantee there will be a picture of Sean Hannity next to the definition.

[Jim]

The Cairo speech was so good that Hannity had to resort to blatantly dishonest editing to make the President say anything remotely controversial.

Linda's letter does the same thing.

[Casady]

"I wish I had written this, but Rich Lowry of National Review shows us how Obama's speeches regarding other historical events would have read:"

Nope, no media bias there.

[ConnieP]

I wish I had written this, but Rich Lowry of National Review shows us how Obama's speeches regarding other historical events would have read:

On the Sack of Rome: "Any time a major urban area is plundered so quickly, it is concerning to us. We are sure the Gauls and Chieftain Brennus understand Roman worries about the utter devastation of their city."

On the Blitz: "Any time a city is bombed for 57 straight nights, we take notice. That is something that interests us. We hope all national air forces involved in this dismaying conflict behave responsibly."

On the creation of the Berlin Wall: "Any time a barrier divides people we get worried, and perhaps even chagrined. We hope all Germans can work this out amicably, and agree on construction standards and building materials going forward. We, as Americans, stand ready to observe closely."

On the boat-people exodus from Vietnam: "Any time people resort to watercraft in such numbers that is certainly notable. I'm sure the Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam will work with its duly constituted maritime authorities to resolve this matter in a manner satisfactory to all parties.”

[Kee]

Placing the problems of the Palestinians on the same plane as the suffering of the Jews during the holocaust gave me a problem. On the other hand the anti-Smemites probably never noticed it....

[Casady]

I have to admit, I thought his Cairo speech was really good. It reached out while still holding the line on that fact that we will protect ourselves by any means necessary.

[Keith Williams3]

“Obama said in his speech that America and Islam “... share common principles of justice and progress, tolerance and the dignity of all human beings”

Linda, Obama didn’t say terrorist share this common principle he said Islam; Islam is not bad its people who use it that makes it bad. Those people are terrorist that happen to be Muslim.

[whispering_to_kc]

Oddly, those "Islamic countries dominating lists of the world’s top human rights violators" that Linda is so worried about are mostly our people.

Serving our interests (regional influence, oil, rendition/torture to get around "our Constitution and the freedoms guaranteed in the Bill of Rights foundational to America"), those Islamic despots are mostly our boys.

Cattle? Linda is sheeple. Her letter is a "collection of factual errors and distortions".