Another View of the Election

A member of this blog has been keeping up on the entries, which lean heavily political right now. Here are some important responses which deserve consideration, not only to offer balance, but to afford an even deeper understanding of the issues:

"...in law school, I read case law and law journal articles that revealed how little change has been effected through the courts/laws. And often, whenever there is change, it is rolled back through the courts/laws to a point where the initial vision of the change is lost and forgotten (as in affirmative action). Some argue, and I believe this as well, that one of the major reasons for the failure to achieve social justice through the law is that the Constitution is flawed. It's the wrong document with which to base our whole system of laws. It sanctioned slavery, the disenfranchisement of women, the oppression against Native Americans, internment, etc., etc... Plus there is the historical fact that the Framers were white supremacist patriarchs. In addition, the non-elites were actually generally against the ratification of the Constitution. There were even riots in some areas. Ultimately the Constitution was ratified through trickery, deceit, and violence. In fact, if anything, trickery, deceit and violence are the keys by which our government continues to operate...

...Obama's nomination and possible presidency are highly significant for the reasons many have talked about. There are concerns, though. One is that it will be harder to argue for the existence of systemic racism when we have a Black president. (Related to that is the possibility that voting for a Black president might serve to ameliorate white guilt--"I'm not racist. I voted for Obama."--the step-child of the more well known, "I'm not racist. My best friend is Black.") Another concern is that Obama, when faced with the realities of representing the interests the President often must represent, will lose sight of his initial vision. Plus, on a societal level, the rednecks aren't the ones we have to worry about. They're like the smokescreen that hides the systemic racism. Notice how (even, and especially liberal) white folks loooove to hate on the Klan, but then turn around and talk about single welfare mothers and their "hand outs" or unqualified job candidates and government "set asides/quotas."