--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, enlightened_dawn11 <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "authfriend" <jstein@> > wrote: <snip> > > Has nothing to do with "editorial perfection." I'm > > saying you read into my comments something that wasn't > > there and missed what was there. > > > motes of dust...fine, i retract what i said as having anything at > all to do with your comments, and stand so corrected.
Thank you. > now i am curious, what do you think about the general premise i was > making, and the conclusion i reached? OK, let me move them down here: > > > > > i find it odd that those who would criticize our next > > > > > President for the company he may keep hold him to an > > > > > impossible standard, and one that is impossible for > > > > > any public figure to uphold. > > > > > > > > > > the way these accusations are always framed imply that > > > > > as a public figure, you are responsible for the lives, > > > > > values, judgments, speech and actions of everyone you > > > > > have ever had more than a passing association with, > > > > > past and present. I think that's *sometimes* the attitude, but by no means "always." I also think there's a range of possibility in terms of meeting standards. No public figure is going to meet an absolute standard, but some come closer to it than others, in terms of the nature of their associations and the degree to which the associations seem repellent. And I think Obama tends to *invite* this kind of criticism because he really does present himself as holier-than-thou, spotless and untouchable. Plus which, some of his repellent associations have been quite recent, such as with the homophobic "reformed gay" Donnie McClurkin. Just in general, if he had been more straightforward and forthcoming about his past associations from the get-go, it would have been much more difficult for folks to use them against him. So I think there's some truth to your premise and conclusions, but the situation isn't nearly as cut- and-dried as you make it sound.
