Obama's 'Terrorist' Connection according to the New York Times

I think the Ayers connection is crap whereas the Wright connection is legitimate. Wright is probably a decent guy but he has some really idiotic views. He has views that offend me and many others and the relationship between him and Obama is not so tenuous.
McCain has a more legitimate reason to hammer on Wright rather than Ayers but his campaign is probably scared to inject race so directly.

 

I don't see a big issue with this, Ayers was considered a terrorist how many years ago? Now he is a teacher and respected in his community. I think there are more important issues to worry about during this election.

Oh and think about this Obama is judging the man by who he is now, not the mistakes of the past. I would rather have a president that can look beyond things that happened 20 or more years ago and look at the person as who they are today.

 

talking about this makes mccain look very bad. Over and above everything else, it is obvious that it is not working. this reminds me of the "stay the course" policy. Not recognizing failure and not being able to change direction in the face of ineffectiveness, reflects badly on mccain

 

The effort to create a hubbub about the professional and local issues/local education focus between Bill Ayres and Barack Obama....and somehow twist that into a relationship with a terrorist is typical "fear politics" that has dominated Republican politics for the last several decades.

Think about it. Obama and the now elderly Ayres shared an interest in local education in the Chicago region. They live in the same neighborhood. Ayres, based on his earliest (pre radical days) education....and his post radical days has become a diploma'ed locally (Chicago area) respected and knowledgeable person and professional in the area of education.

Somehow the Right Wing is labeling him a "terrorist".

They are creating the image of a plane hijackling, World Trade Center/ Pentagon aiming militant Al Queda--death to America enemy. In reality this guy is a 60 year old educator.

As a youth Ayres was and became a radical American against the particular aspect of the American government that was conducting the Vietnamese war. Ultimately a majority of Americans turned against government policy and opposed the war in Vietnam. American public opposition to the Vietnam War, for many reasons was dramatically greater than any level of American opposition to the War in Iraq.

Ayres was far more than one against the war he was a leader in the most radical of groups against the war. These groups, including the Weatherman and the ultra extremists of SDS ultimately built bombs and exploded bombs to protest the war and made efforts to stop American involvement in executing the War.

The entire scope of all of the most radical efforts during that period pales in comparison to the "terrorist" activities of today waged by Al-Queda against the West and existing Arab nations such as Saudi Arabia.

The political radicals of the Vietnam period didn't threaten a nation, try and destroy its economy, or try to kill massive numbers of people.

It appears that somehow Ayres, who went into hiding at one point escaped prosecution and jail time. Others of his ilk were prosecuted and spent jail time. They have since did their service and returned to society. They are far far, dramatically different than the crazed Al-Queda radicals of today.

Its astonishing to hear the claims by the Right Wing, even more so in the midst of the worst financial crisis ever faced by the US since the Great Depression of the 1930's. Clearly this financial crisis, if not confronted has every ability to dismantle the American economic situation, if not the world at large. It requires a lot of serious focus.

Its further interesting, that in perspective, in his own words, Ayres has acknowledged his past, acknowledged his very leftist political leanings, acknowledged his role in the political underground of the late 1960's and early 1970's and acknowledged a level of regret for the most negative impact of his politics--the bombings and deaths caused by several relatively small bombings. He has also loudly and clearly denounced the actions by Al-Queda.

In a small way, both George W. Bush and Dick Cheney had certain very similar reactions to Vietnam to William Ayres. Both of them desperately didn't want to fight in Vietnam similar to Ayres.

George Bush avoided serving in Vietnam by joining the Texas Air National Guard. Even as there were waiting lists to join this service, he somehow got in before others. I wonder how that happened? I wonder why a branch of the military had waiting lists of young men wanting to join....while alternatively facing a military draft.

I guess it had something to do with a virtual guarantee that the members of the National Guard of that period weren't going to Vietnam.

Dick Cheney simply managed to avoid the draft via continued educational and finally marriage exemptions.

Neither of them expressed strong political arguments about the Vietnam war at the time.

About 40 years later they got us all riled up and had us attack Iraq in 2003, even as Saddam Hussein had nothing to do with the Al-Queda attack in 2001.

Maybe if they had felt more deeply, and gotten more involved back in the 1960's they wouldn't have gotten us into the war in 2003. Maybe they wouldn't have used the twisted political craziness of branding a 60 year old American educationalist as a terrorist and then trying to put the fear of G-d into the American electorate about this nonsense while we face the biggest financial crisis of the last 65 years.

 

I don't think many people believe the connection .
I am optimistic with the young black guy .

 

What does his color have to do with the connection and Obama's down play .......and misleading statements?