Free Speech, Prejudice, and Political Contributions

One thing I heard Obama say that bothered me was how he supported the Jewish and cut off any financial support from other people who opposed them, basically telling them they were out of his life or something. Clinton said she'd done something similiar. Yet John McCain has been mature enough about free speech to acknowledge we don't have to agree with everything someone believes, to not cut them out of a democratic process. You can't say you support free speech and then treat ANY group as if they're part of a Cold War group, which is, these days, anything not PC. I'm not saying you exchange favors, or support other groups, but you can take a form of support from someone, and use it for good, without embracing the same ideology. To claim taking support would also mean you support a group's beliefs or agenda almost suggests a belief that there IS an "exchange" of sorts, which gets iffy. People have prejudice from ignorance, and sometimes, because of experience, and personal experiences. That doesn't condone it, but you can't throw the baby out with the bathwater and I think both Obama and Clinton show signs of going along with lobbyists if they claim to distance themselves and absolutely cut out those they don't agree with. On the other hand, I'm not saying McCain isn't using lobbyists.

I'm just saying, you don't have to condone beliefs or support them, but to cut people off is sort of like saying "I hate people who say they hate this kind of people."

We need people who are open-minded enough to understand prejudices to begin with, who can draw the line, but still mediate and listen, and I think this is a problem still with not understanding even our worst adversaries.

And, in a way, Obama was faced with this issue when his pastor made inflammatory and racial comments. Obama, just weeks before, was saying how he wouldn't tolerate prejudice against certain groups, and how he cut them off and sent them a letter saying he didn't want their support, and yet he still goes to his church.

The thing is, I DO believe he can go to his church and not agree with everything his pastor says. But Obama should extend this opinion to groups which may be outside of his personal experience. Again, not to support or condone, but to draw people together by their commonalities and understand where prejudice is coming from to begin with.

I'm just making a point. I'm not condemning, just trying to be constructive in my criticism.