Ralph Nader and "White Guilt"

[GiggsOho]

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/jun/25/nader-critical-of-obama-for-trying-to-talk-white/

Ralph Nader reminds me of KoRn. Someone who had their 15 minutes, yet still has a bunch of followers, and pops up to stay something so freakin' stupid just to remind people "hey, I'm still alive and I matter."


Ralph, you aren't politically relevant, just like Korn isn't musically relevant. Shut up. Now.

[Roboman]

"I mean, first of all, the number one thing that a black American politician aspiring to the presidency should be is to candidly describe the plight of the poor, especially in the inner cities and the rural areas, and have a very detailed platform about how the poor is going to be defended by the law, is going to be protected by the law, and is going to be liberated by the law," Nader said. "Haven't heard a thing."

Hahah, wow. That sounds a bit racist to me.

[Dan Hollister]

Agreed.

[WarpSpeedChewy]

I admire Ralph Nader's acomplishments.....but that was a really stupid comment.

[open mind]

he should have just said that obama has made a point of trying to appeal the predominately white power structure by in large part ignoring the plight of poor minorities.

[captainhampton]

that's funny because I was thinking of the Nader and Korn similarities just the other day.

[wesgemm08]

Dude needed to get some media attention somehow, but I don't know if racist comments is the best way to go about doing it.

[WCC335]

Y'all want a single say 'fuck that.'

Anyways, I understand what he is saying, I guess, but he came off as insensitive.

[WCC335]

You know what, after actually watching the video Nader makes more sense than I gave him credit for.

[ghostyouare]

How is this racist?

[ghostyouare]

Hahah, wow. That sounds a bit racist to me.
based on thsi quote its just saying that a white republican should present his platform to white rich people in the suburbs. Is it racist because its already obvious but its not supposed to be said aloud?

[Nevuk]

His point should be valid with any politician, as not every inner-city impoverished person is black, nor is every member of the power structure white.

[Roboman]

based on thsi quote its just saying that a white republican should present his platform to white rich people in the suburbs. Is it racist because its already obvious but its not supposed to be said aloud?

Ehhh...I'm going with what Nevuk said below. He's making generalizations that are a bit too large.

His point should be valid with any politician, as not every inner-city impoverished person is black, nor is every member of the power structure white.

[WCC335]

How is this racist?

after actually reading the article in its entirety and watching the video, I think I agree. He isn't saying that all blacks are poor. He is, however, pointing out a weakness in a presidential candidate's campaign.

[offtheropes]

supergeneralization. someone's politics don't only involve skin color. the way a person's brought up and their experiences supercede that.
in that case, shouldn't everyone's cause be poverty? we all see poverty in one way or another. it's not like it affects just one people group.

[BruisedxBroken]

You know, I def feel ralph nader on many different levels. One of the main things he speaks out about is the exploitation of the poor. I, personally, am not really poor, but my city (in butte county, ca) is. Every shopping center has a check cashing store, 7-11 etc. Planned parenthood is active. We have no decent jobs, but two huge Casinos within 10 minutes of each other. This type of shit basically breeds crime and drug use, which usually only afflicts the poor. And the cycle continues. I agree with Nader on many ecological issues as well, and applaud his years of activism...

BUT...

To say that Obama has no intention of - or has never talked about - taking on predatory lenders is a straight up LIE. Two months ago, Obama hosted a townhall meeting (broadcast nationwide on Potus 08) in IL devoted entirely to addressing predatory lending practices. He spent an hour talking to three seperate individuals, all of which were poor and shared stories of how they had been "taken" by various credit fuckers. At the end of the meeting, Obama gave a brief outline on how he'd deal with predatory lenders as president (it sounded promising). I've also heard Obama, more than once, address exploitation in poor minority neighborhoods and the need for tighter health and safety regulations in inner-city appt complexes.

I'm no Obama fanboy, and I like Nader, but he fucked up on this one...

[mattybobviously]

Don't think it's racist at all, it's something that every politician should be talking about though.

[Love As Arson]

There is some truth to be found in what Nader has said. In American politics, one has to adopt a certain line, which demonstrates to the people with power that they're not a threat to their power-structure.