From the "Black People Arrest Themselves" files

[garbon]

Yeah, it is actually a problem he can "do" something about.

Of course, he should ahve kept his mouth shut to begin with, but I do appreciate that he gives us there little insights into his true thinking from time to time.

Agreed on all counts.

[garbon]

we gets to actually do something to 'bridge the racial divide'

What are you using "actually" to mean in this sentence?

[Berkut]

Still glad you voted for the guy, Berkut? 

Every time I think it was a mistake, Sarah Palin makes the news again, so no, not really.

I guess I am sad I was forced to vote for him, and I don't think there is much doubt (at this point - it is still early) that McCain would have made better policy and choices in almost every single major issue Obama has "addressed" so far.

But then again..Palin...:puke:

[garbon]

So you were wrapped up in concern that McCain would die leaving us with Mme. Palin as president?

[Berkut]

So you were wrapped up in concern that McCain would die leaving us with Mme. Palin as president?

Indeed.

Plus it was the latest in a long line of what I saw as pandering moves, which I understood (and even defended him on) but it kind of became a lot to swallow after a while.

But mostly it is the fear of Palin as President.

[alfred russel]

Classy statement from Gates:

I would like to applaud President Obama for bringing Sergeant Crowley, me and our families together. I would also like to thank the President for welcoming my father, Henry Louis Gates, Sr., who for most of his life has been a Republican! My dad turned 96 this past June, and the fact that he worked two jobs every day is the reason that my brother, Dr. Paul Gates, and I were able to receive such splendid educations. I am honored that he chose to join me at the White House, along with my fiancée, my daughters, and my brother.

SGT. CROWLEY: "We Agreed to Move Forward."

Sergeant Crowley and I, through an accident of time and place, have been cast together, inextricably, as characters – as metaphors, really – in a thousand narratives about race over which he and I have absolutely no control. Narratives about race are as old as the founding of this great Republic itself, but these new ones have unfolded precisely when Americans signaled to the world our country's great progress by overcoming centuries of habit and fear, and electing an African American as President. It is incumbent upon Sergeant Crowley and me to utilize the great opportunity that fate has given us to foster greater sympathy among the American public for the daily perils of policing on the one hand, and for the genuine fears of racial profiling on the other hand.

Let me say that I thank God that I live in a country in which police officers put their lives at risk to protect us every day, and, more than ever, I've come to understand and appreciate their daily sacrifices on our behalf. I'm also grateful that we live in a country where freedom of speech is a sacrosanct value and I hope that one day we can get to know each other better, as we began to do at the White House this afternoon over beers with President Obama.

Thank God we live in a country where speech is protected, a country which guarantees and defends my right to speak out when I believe my rights have been violated; a country that protects us from arrest when we do express our views, no matter how unpopular.

And thank God that we have a President who can rise above the fray, bridge age-old differences and transform events such as this into a moment in the evolution of our society's attitudes about race and difference. President Obama is a man who understands tolerance and forgiveness, and our country is blessed to have such a leader.

The national conversation over the past week about my arrest has been rowdy, not to say tumultuous and unruly. But we've learned that we can have our differences without demonizing one another. There's reason to hope that many people have emerged with greater sympathy for the daily perils of policing, on the one hand, and for the genuine fears about racial profiling, on the other hand.

Having spent my academic career trying to bridge differences and promote understanding among Americans, I can report that it is far more comfortable being the commentator than being commented upon. At this point, I am hopeful that we can all move on, and that this experience will prove an occasion for education, not recrimination. I know that Sergeant Crowley shares this goal. Both of us are eager to go back to work tomorrow. And it turns out that the President just might have a few other things on his plate as well.

[Caliga]

Gates might have made a very bad decision initially, and exacerbated it a bit later, but he's a smart enough man to know when he needs to give... either that or had enough friends/advisors who were smart enough to know that.

[Barrister]

I'm 99% sure that someone in the Whitehouse wrote that statement (and a similar one for Crowley) well before either met the President.

[garbon]

Indeed.

Plus it was the latest in a long line of what I saw as pandering moves, which I understood (and even defended him on) but it kind of became a lot to swallow after a while.

But mostly it is the fear of Palin as President.

I fear some freak occurrence will allow Pelosi to take the throne but that doesn't motivate me to act all crazy.

[Neil]

So you were wrapped up in concern that McCain would die leaving us with Mme. Palin as president?

If McCain lives until 2013, Berkut will be forced to admit that it was his vote that destroyed the United States.

[Caliga]

I'm 99% sure that someone in the Whitehouse wrote that statement (and a similar one for Crowley) well before either met the President.

Possible, but I don't see Gates allowing anyone to ghostwrite for him.

[KRonn]

Pres Obama's first "Gate"?

Gates-Gate.     

[Caliga]

If McCain lives until 2013, Berkut will be forced to admit that it was his vote that destroyed the United States.

Even if McCain didn't die before his 1/2 terms, he'd be setting her up for a powerful shot at the Presidency if she managed to complete at least one VP term without looking retarded.

[Berkut]

Not a bad statement, but an apology for acting like a grade-A asshole and accusing someone of racism on no grounds at all seemed to be missing from it.

[KRonn]

Gates might have made a very bad decision initially, and exacerbated it a bit later, but he's a smart enough man to know when he needs to give... either that or had enough friends/advisors who were smart enough to know that.

Yeah, Gates' statement was quite good, classy. Whether it was him or not, still he sanctioned it so gets good credit for it.

Crowley also spoke well about things to the media at the White House.