Mrs Mungo Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Didn't find much humour in the clip. Cute, but not really funny...as in "smile, but didn't make me laugh". I disagree that it's a racist issue. I don't believe that Colin Powell, had he run for office, would have been asked to show his birth cert. Why do you think that is? He's older? He's a veteran? Neither of his parents were from Africa? What? Both of his parents were immigrants, so I'm curious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovin Learnin Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Why do you think that is? He's older? He's a veteran? Neither of his parents were from Africa? What? Both of his parents were immigrants, so I'm curious. He's Republican? Maybe it's easy to like someone who espouses your own views. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom4him Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 :lol: His entire speech at that dinner is worth looking for. It's about 18 minutes long and really funny. :lol: I so agree :lol::lol: I am not a fan of Obama but this speach is.. really.. funny... and Trump is going to have to toughen up if he is serious about running. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommaduck Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Why do you think that is? He's older? He's a veteran? Neither of his parents were from Africa? What? Both of his parents were immigrants, so I'm curious. #1 I wonder how many people know that Colin Powell's parents were immigrants. It's possible that much more has been made off of Barack Obama having an immigrant father (curious, not stating this as fact, just wondering if this is because Democrats make more of a positive statement about immigrants and this was one way of appealing to a certain group during the elections?). #2 On top of a foreign father, he was born in Hawaii. Yes, that is a state, but it's in the middle of the Pacific and wonder if people have too much "stateside thinking" and that just made it easier for them to try to "distance" themselves (or try to distance President Obama). #3 Yes, in many people's eyes, Colin Powell may have come off more as having "proven himself" due to his age, his military career, his White House career, etc. Barack Obama can be seen as an upstart or a pawn due to his seeming youth, due to his seeming to have just risen out of nowhere. Some don't view him as having proven himself (I was in IL when he got into the Senate there...never really heard much about him and when we did, it was about how many votes he missed and how much he was absent). Now, people see him hop skipping out at times that they feel he should be home and taking care of business (just saying what I hear). #4 Some people may have thought it was a legitimate thing, especially when he refused to show it or questionable documents were floating through the internet on it...making people that may have brushed it off before now suspicious. Other people will simply reach for anything when they don't want someone in office (whether it's a birth cert or a speech impediment) and it can be for any reason (they don't like his politics, they don't know him enough, they don't like his ethnicity, etc). Personally, I think he should have just squished the issue of his birth cert from the beginning. If he is able to get and show his long form now, I'm sure he could have done so a few years ago as well. PS I'm a centrist...I don't like most of the parties. When I like something about each of them, there are enough issues to keep me from joining any of them...I'm independent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovin Learnin Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Personally, I think he should have just squished the issue of his birth cert from the beginning. If he is able to get and show his long form now, I'm sure he could have done so a few years ago as well. First off, thanks for you long, well-thought post, but I think the whole issue is that he DID squish the birth cert issue in 2008. The problem is that he was forced to go above and beyond by showing his long form, making the state of Hawaii do for him what they don't do for anyone else. Why is it okay for anyone to say, "Yea, we saw your state-certified birth cert but it's just not enough"? YOU need further proof. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommaduck Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 First off, thanks for you long, well-thought post, but I think the whole issue is that he DID squish the birth cert issue in 2008. The problem is that he was forced to go above and beyond by showing his long form, making the state of Hawaii do for him what they don't do for anyone else. Why is it okay for anyone to say, "Yea, we saw your state-certified birth cert but it's just not enough"? YOU need further proof. Because what was circulated was digital, recent, and looked easily falsified. So to those that doubted, it made them doubt even more. A long form has more information on it. My "short form" birth cert now does not look at all like the one my mother has. Now it's just a little card and doesn't look like a certificate at all (I had to reacquire my birth cert due to moving to another state and after 9/11 their no longer accepting my xerox copy, which was all I had in my possession). Honestly, I thought I'd be getting my long form, due to genealogical research and if this had been for genealogical research, I would have wanted to see my own long form over the short. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommaduck Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 He's Republican? Maybe it's easy to like someone who espouses your own views. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Because what was circulated was digital, recent, and looked easily falsified. So to those that doubted, it made them doubt even more. And how is that different from now? How many committed birthers have been convinced by Hawaii's (unprecedented AFAIK) release of the long form? And is Obama further obligated to provide more and more because of their doubt? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 #1 I wonder how many people know that Colin Powell's parents were immigrants. It's possible that much more has been made off of Barack Obama having an immigrant father (curious, not stating this as fact, just wondering if this is because Democrats make more of a positive statement about immigrants and this was one way of appealing to a certain group during the elections?). I guess I can sort of see the latter, but the former really surprises me. Do you think it's true most people are unaware that Colin Powell's parents are immigrants? Huh. #2 On top of a foreign father, he was born in Hawaii. Yes, that is a state, but it's in the middle of the Pacific and wonder if people have too much "stateside thinking" and that just made it easier for them to try to "distance" themselves (or try to distance President Obama). This is weird to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsBasil Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 I was not aware that Colin Powell's parents were immigrants. :blush: I never though President Obama was anything other than an American citizen though. The arguments made didn't make sense to me, so I disregarded them a long time ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Remudamom Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Agreeing with all that think he is funny. He is SO funny. Really in the wrong line of work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Audrey Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Hawaii doesn't release long form birth certificates for any reason. The "short form" is the only form anyone can get for the state of Hawaii. I have in my possession birth certificates from 3 different US states and 2 different German states (with a Certificate of Birth Abroad for those latter two). They are all different. You must make allowance for the fact that not every state does things the same way. eta: I would bet that your MA birth certificate was not an official copy and that's why it wasn't accepted. The short form is the official copy in Hawaii. I believe Maryland is the same way. My brother has tried many times to get a copy of his long form birth certificate and each time he is sent a short certified copy. He has been told repeatedly that "this is the only birth certificate we issue, period." So, this is not a new problem, and it isn't limited to Presidents. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
La Condessa Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 The President has an incredible amount of class. The person who lacks class is the racist one who demands his birth certificate all the time. Racism is certainly not class. We all know that if he was white, no one would ask for his birth certificate. Okay, I haven't read any of the posts after this one yet, so maybe this has already been said, but the quote above is an outrageous statement. The constitution states that the president must be a natural born citizen. This is a requirement for every president we have ever had, and every time we elect a new president, they produce this document. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovin Learnin Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Okay, I haven't read any of the posts after this one yet, so maybe this has already been said, but the quote above is an outrageous statement. The constitution states that the president must be a natural born citizen. This is a requirement for every president we have ever had, and every time we elect a new president, they produce this document. And once our elected official has produced said document how many times have we asked for additional proof? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Florida. Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 And once our elected official has produced said document how many times have we asked for additional proof? And to whom does that document need to be shown? To every citizen who demands it, or to those who certify eligibility? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
junepep Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 The clips were all great :D I only regret that I wasted 10 minutes of my life reading the nonsense that made up the rest of this thread. And for those just tuning in, the president has now released two birth certificates. The one that is considered the only LEGAL form of birth certificate in his state WAAAAYYYYYY BACK in 2008 and another just two weeks ago that is not considered a legal birth certificate in Hawaii, yet he did so because the 'birthers' insisted that it would satisfy them. Obviously it hasn't. Nothing actually will, because their whole movement is based off of the concept of Obama's "otherness". You can decide for yourself whether 'birthers' and Trump are racist or not but please at least read the other comments in this thread before posting, especially MrsMungos as she has addressed all salient points to date. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mary in VA Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 I agree, President Obama and Bush were both funny. The President is a US citizen. I don't think there is really any question of that anymore. I'm sure some of the "birthers" are racist and there are always people who believe in conspiracies. But I also believe some reasonable people had questions because when this whole thing started his grandmother in Kenya had given an interview saying she was present when he was born in Kenya. That is what kicked the whole thing off. Without that I don't think anyone but "conspiracy theorists" would have pursued it. I'm not an Obama fan, but I'm glad the whole thing is over!! Mary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 But I also believe some reasonable people had questions because when this whole thing started his grandmother in Kenya had given an interview saying she was present when he was born in Kenya. That is not true. A certain someone with a definite agenda and speaking through a translator tried to make that happen. It isn't what happened. It's very obvious from the conversation that there was a mistake in the back and forth with the translator. Source (includes link to wma of the conversation in its entirety) McRae: "Could I ask her about his actual birthplace? I would like to see his birthplace when I come to visit Kenya in December. Was she present when he was born in Kenya?" "She says yes she was. She was present when Obama was born," said the translator. Smoking gun? Only if you stop the tape there and don't listen to the rest of the interview. McRae immediately followed up by saying, "Okay, when I come in December, I would like to go by the place, the hospital where he was born. Could you tell me where he was born? Was he born in Mombasa?" The translator can be heard translating, and then, he said, "No. Obama was not born in Mombasa. He was born in America." Said McRae: "Whereabouts was he born? I thought he was born in Kenya." The response came back, "He was born in America, not in Mombasa." "Do you know where he was born?" McRae continued. "I thought he was born in Kenya. I was gonna go by and see where he was born." "Hawaii. She says he was born in Hawaii," the translator said. "In the state of Hawaii, where his father, his father was also learning there. The state of Hawaii." "I thought she said she was present," McRae said. "Was she able to see him being born in Hawaii?'' "No, no," the translator said. "...She was not ... she was here in Kenya. Obama was born in America ... Because the grandmother was back in Kenya and Obama was born in America, where he is from, where his father was learning, learning in America, the United States." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommaduck Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 I guess I can sort of see the latter, but the former really surprises me. Do you think it's true most people are unaware that Colin Powell's parents are immigrants? Huh. This is weird to me. I was unaware his parents were immigrants until it was mentioned here. On the second one, I was just brainstorming possibilities ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommaduck Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 That is not true. A certain someone with a definite agenda and speaking through a translator tried to make that happen. It isn't what happened. It's very obvious from the conversation that there was a mistake in the back and forth with the translator. Source (includes link to wma of the conversation in its entirety) She says she was present when he was born, but she was in Kenya and he was born in Hawaii? I think the questioner was being a pain, but I also think the translator was not clear to the grandmother. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 She says she was present when he was born, but she was in Kenya and he was born in Hawaii? I think the questioner was being a pain, but I also think the translator was not clear to the grandmother. I agree that it was unclear. I think she started to answer before it was finished. I think she was saying yes, she was in Kenya when Obama was born before she realized the questioner was implying that is where Obama was born. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommaduck Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 I agree that it was unclear. I think she started to answer before it was finished. I think she was saying that she was in Mombassa when Obama was born before she realized the questioner was implying that is where Obama was born. Yeah, I got that also. I blame the translator. I also have to thank you. I never read all of this...only heard that his grandmother claimed to have been there when he was born and that he was born in Kenya (grandma being the "proof") :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WishboneDawn Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 I am embarassed at the birth certificate issue and I think it's silly. However, I'd be very careful about throwing around allegations of racism. Absent specific proof, the default position should not be that those who challenge the president, even on fringe issues, are racist. Lisa When people hold unreasonable positions in defiance of all the evidence it's not completely out of line to suggest motives that are inherently unreasonable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 On the second one, I was just brainstorming possibilities ;) Oh, I know. It is just weird to me how many people don't equate Hawaii to the US. I know there are plenty of people who feel that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slartibartfast Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 I guess I can sort of see the latter, but the former really surprises me. Do you think it's true most people are unaware that Colin Powell's parents are immigrants? Huh. I would be surprised to find that *most* people know the actual true facts around any political figure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slartibartfast Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 Yeah, I got that also. I blame the translator. I also have to thank you. I never read all of this...only heard that his grandmother claimed to have been there when he was born and that he was born in Kenya (grandma being the "proof") :glare: When my great grandmother was that age she would sing "It's a Small World" randomly and without notice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Negin Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 The charge of racism is typically thrown around by the intellectually lazy Very rude and offensive. Calling me "intellectually lazy". :( I have to say that I am offended. Taken altogether, what do you think these claims are trying to imply about Obama? Brilliant. Your entire post and others are gold. :) anyone who attends a roast is fully aware of what it is. They know they will get skewered. That's why it's called a roast. This thread is for those who do think it's funny. I doubt the OP was trying to start a debate. She wanted to share with others who enjoy this type of comedy. :iagree: Because no other president has been asked to do this. Exactly. You can't say something is racist unless the person starts off their remark with "I am racist, and..." . I respectfully disagree. How many people are going to be that honest and say that they are in fact racist or whatever? I don't see many other than KKK members be that upfront about it. And even they cover their faces because they're a bunch of cowards. I was in a store in NY many years ago, a small store selling bags. (Now, when we're in the U.S., particularly after 9/11, and since we are Middle Easterners and look Middle Eastern obviously, we are treated or looked at with a bit of caution, to put it rather mildly ;) - less so on the coasts and more so in the middle of America). But back to my NY bag store story. I was there as a grad student (where I was being intellectually lazy :tongue_smilie:) and my mom and sister were visiting. The owner of the store was fine. Then 3 black girls walked in. She immediately raised her voice at them and said that the shop is about to close, they need to leave, she put up the closed sign, you get the picture? We were not dumb. She didn't want them in her store. Simple as that. She was fine with us (since we're actually white even though some are confused about what we are :lol:) being there. She thought we were going to spend $ and precisely because of that, we didn't. Now, did she ever say ""I am racist, and... I don't want you in my store"? No, she did not. And she was in no hurry to put up the closed sign once they left. Why do you think that is? He's older? He's a veteran? Neither of his parents were from Africa? What? Both of his parents were immigrants, so I'm curious. Brilliant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calandalsmom Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 Originally Posted by Rivka You can't say something is racist unless the person starts off their remark with "I am racist, and..." . Really? On what do you base this assertion? I wonder if the perpetrators of lynchings were careful to utter these types of phrases before they hung innocent men. Because if they didn't, according to your logic, they were just hanging black men for looking at white women maybe because... they enjoyed it? Since they weren't racists, having not avowed they were? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivka Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 Originally Posted by Rivka You can't say something is racist unless the person starts off their remark with "I am racist, and..." . Really? On what do you base this assertion? I wonder if the perpetrators of lynchings were careful to utter these types of phrases before they hung innocent men. Because if they didn't, according to your logic, they were just hanging black men for looking at white women maybe because... they enjoyed it? Since they weren't racists, having not avowed they were? Oh my gosh. Sarcasm really doesn't come across on the net. Sorry, I thought the overall context of my post would have made it clear that this is not what I believe. I totally, 100%, agree with you. I was trying to express my frustration with the way people bend over backwards to avoid seeing racism and to attack anyone who says that they see it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Negin Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 Oh my gosh. Sarcasm really doesn't come across on the net. Sorry, I thought the overall context of my post would have made it clear that this is not what I believe. I totally, 100%, agree with you. I was trying to express my frustration with the way people bend over backwards to avoid seeing racism and to attack anyone who says that they see it. Phew. Thank you for clarifying that. :grouphug: :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calandalsmom Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 Oh my gosh. Sarcasm really doesn't come across on the net. Sorry, I thought the overall context of my post would have made it clear that this is not what I believe. I totally, 100%, agree with you. I was trying to express my frustration with the way people bend over backwards to avoid seeing racism and to attack anyone who says that they see it. LOL Sorry! I definitely fell into the sar- chasm.:( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Negin Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 LOL Sorry! I definitely fell into the sar- chasm.:( :lol: Me too. But that's not too unusual for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivka Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 Phew. Thank you for clarifying that. :grouphug: :) I'm so glad that people asked me to! How awful if I had just left everyone with the impression that I was a flaming bigot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Negin Posted May 6, 2011 Share Posted May 6, 2011 I'm so glad that people asked me to! How awful if I had just left everyone with the impression that I was a flaming bigot. :grouphug: You're very sweet. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studyguides123 Posted May 6, 2011 Share Posted May 6, 2011 Nice Video. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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