OBAMA tells Blacks to 'Shape Up' !

[lizaa]

Obama tells Blacks: Shape up
LYNN SWEET | Crowd cheers advice to turn off TV, skip Popeyes for breakfast


Obama tells Blacks: Shape up :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Lynn Sweet

February 29, 2008
BY LYNN SWEET Sun-Times Columnist
FORT WORTH, Texas -- On the campaign trail, Democratic front-runner Sen. Barack Obama talks about how he would use the bully pulpit if president, and he offered a demonstration Thursday when he drew wild cheers as he told a mostly African-American crowd that parents need to shape up, turn off the TV, help their kids with their homework and stop letting them grow fat eating Popeyes chicken for breakfast.

"It's not good enough for you to say to your child, 'Do good in school,' and then when that child comes home, you got the TV set on, you got the radio on, you don't check their homework, there is not a book in the house, you've got the video game playing," said Obama while in Beaumont, in southeast Texas.

» Click to enlarge image

Sen. Barack Obama greets supporters before a town hall-style meeting Thursday in Beaumont, Texas. Primary elections are next Tuesday in Texas and Ohio.
(AP)


"So turn off the TV set, put the video game away. Buy a little desk or put that child by the kitchen table. Watch them do their homework. If they don't know how to do it, give them help. If you don't know how to do it, call the teacher. Make them go to bed at a reasonable time. Keep them off the streets. Give ' em some breakfast. Come on. ... You know I am right."

'I've got to talk about us'
Can change happen with words? That's a core question being raised about the Obama candidacy.

"I've got to talk about us a little bit," said Obama. "We can't keep on feeding our children junk all day long, giving them no exercise. They are overweight by the time they are 4 or 5 years old, and then we are surprised when they get sick."

Obama -- who exercises and is careful about what he eats -- said obese children need to improve their nutrition habits, invoking the name of a chain that makes delicious fried chicken.

"I know how hard it is to get kids to eat properly," Obama said. "But I also know that if folks letting our children drink eight sodas a day, which some parents do, or, you know, eat a bag of potato chips for lunch, or Popeyes for breakfast.

"Y'all have Popeyes out in Beaumont? I know some of y'all you got that cold Popeyes out for breakfast. I know. That's why y'all laughing. ... You can't do that. Children have to have proper nutrition. That affects also how they study, how they learn in school."

Obama has delivered "tough love'' messages before about personal responsibility, but he seemed to revel in his "truth-telling" while campaigning in Beaumont, on a day that also took him to Austin and Fort Worth in advance of Tuesday's crucial primaries.

As Obama stumped in the Lone Star State to Texas-size crowds -- he packed in 13,000 people at the convention center here Thursday night -- his campaign was downplaying any presumption that he will emerge in a few days as the all-but-certain Democratic nominee.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton "is working tirelessly, as is Bill Clinton, in both Ohio and Texas; these races are extraordinarily tight," Obama said during a press conference on his plane en route to Beaumont. The Obama team was shocked to lose the New Hampshire primary in January, and since then, Obama has curbed the bravado that bubbled up in the Granite State.

Obama resisted an invitation by a reporter to write the Clinton campaign obituary. Said Obama, "Remember New Hampshire?"

[Mr Gumbo]

He's right, can't say nothing.

[DBlack]

What an UncleTom. As if white and latino kids don't have the same problems. As if white and latino parents don't have their short comings.

I don't hear him telling white parents to raise more respectful kids that aren't so prone to do drugs and commit suicide.

I don't hear him telling latino parents to stop putting their kids at risk sneaking across the border, or working dangerous and low wage jobs. I don't hear him telling latino parents to stop living 10-40 in a house in poor health conditions.

I can't stand it when a pseudo-black leader spit on their own people while ignoring the issues of all. He claims to represent all people, yet he's very profficient at attacking blacks, but giving others a pass. Shouldn't he be scolding ALL parents? But of course the black Obama Koolaid-drinkers Coalition will make excuse for this disgraceful act, yet again. Meanwhile, whites love it!

Pathetic *** UncleTom is what Obama is and the more I learn of him, the more I despise his character.

[The Dragon]

Originally Posted by DBlack

What an UncleTom. As if white and latino kids don't have the same problems. As if white and latino parents don't have their short comings.

I don't hear him telling white parents to raise more respectful kids that aren't so prone to do drugs and commit suicide.

I don't hear him telling latino parents to stop putting their kids at risk sneaking across the border, or working dangerous and low wage jobs. I don't hear him telling latino parents to stop living 10-40 in a house in poor health conditions.

I can't stand it when a pseudo-black leader spit on their own people while ignoring the issues of all. He claims to represent all people, yet he's very profficient at attacking blacks, but giving others a pass. Shouldn't he be scolding ALL parents? But of course the black Obama Koolaid-drinkers Coalition will make excuse for this disgraceful act, yet again. Meanwhile, whites love it!

Pathetic *** UncleTom is what Obama is and the more I learn of him, the more I despise his character.

I agree with what he said but I also agree with you in that he should have directed this to the parents of other nationalities also. We are all guilty of these shortcomings, especially us and white and Latino/Mexian families.

[s8loud]

By chastising black folks (instead of addressing the systemic issues we face), he's able to make whites (and other non-blacks) feel comfortable with him by saying what many of them think; at the same time, he's giving some attention to the black community to counteract the argument that he's ignoring "our" issues. Talk about taking political calculation to a new low...

[DBlack]

Good points s8loud, no Excellent point: You mentioned his omission of systemic issues we face. Yes he ignores that, because perhaps that would shine a light on white-dominated policy and culture in AMerikkka. And that would have YT squirming in their own skin.

...btw, we eat POPEyes because it's all that! If he had some, he would know better. Never direspect the ghettobird!

If this is what the future of black leadership in Amerikkka will be like, then we are in big trouble.

[MadameX]

Originally Posted by DBlack

Yes he ignores that, because perhaps that would shine a light on white-dominated policy and culture in America.

If this is what the future of black leadership in America will be like, then we are in big trouble.

Brotha D, I'm glad that you got down to the nitty gritty. What we have in front of is the classic case of the atypical politician. Its good that you've provided us with this format . So, we can incite/educate him and give others like him a wake up call to smell the Black coffee .

[MrAtlanta]

Gee, that's funny. I've never seen a Popeyes or a Churches Fried chicken establishment in a white neighborhood. Just like they don't sell cheap malt liquor in white-owned liquor stores in white neighborhoods.

Only in black neigborhoods do they sell that greasy, steroid injected crap. But we don't seem to know any better; we keep buying it.

I've been following this election very closely the past few months, and brotha Obama has made many of the same points in front of white crowds. It's now part of his standard stump speech, although, he's never mentioned Popeyes or nutritional habits in front of whites; only black crowds. And he's right to do so. Have you seen the size of our black youth, especially young black girls? It's frightening.

Once again, we're shooting down the message to spite the messenger.

[jimihaze]

questions are are we saying that clinton or mccain or nader would be better at being president than obama. Are we saying that obama is not black enough? Are we saying that obama has sold out? are saying that anyone but obama would do better than bush? or even huckabee?

[DBlack]

Originally Posted by MrAtlanta

Gee, that's funny. I've never seen a Popeyes or a Churches Fried chicken establishment in a white neighborhood. Just like they don't sell cheap malt liquor in white-owned liquor stores in white neighborhoods.

Only in black neigborhoods do they sell that greasy, steroid injected crap. But we don't seem to know any better; we keep buying it.

I've been following this election very closely the past few months, and brotha Obama has made many of the same points in front of white crowds. It's now part of his standard stump speech, although, he's never mentioned Popeyes or nutritional habits in front of whites; only black crowds. And he's right to do so. Have you seen the size of our black youth, especially young black girls? It's frightening.

Once again, we're shooting down the message to spite the messenger.

See, this is just the uncle tom kind of thinking we can do without. Always ready to defend the indefensible without even doing some research to assess the credibility of the assertion. By the way, Mr Atlanta, there are plenty of fast food restaurants (greasy ones too) in white locations ALL over Atlanta, so you may want to drive into white neighborhoods more.

The Big Chicken is in a white area. I can even go to Buckhead and find greasy mexican and burger and fried chicken joints. Many people of ALL races have poor eating habits. I've never been in a food joint and only saw blacks or mexicans; even in the hood.

I guess you've never heard of the Varsity, a landmark, ultra greasy, heart bursting burger and chicken fast food joint in the heart of downtown. And white folks can't get enough of it as well as black folk. Are you sure you live in Atlanta?

Don't compare food to alcohol. The zoning laws are quite different and for good reason. White folks fight undesirable zoning in their neighborhoods. In areas where there are more poor folks, they are less likely to even know what zoning is and if they do, are too concerned with more pressing matters (like daily survival).

You've never heard Obama in ANY speech in front of whites criticize white on parenting, so spare us your apologetic agenda. He's a typical anti-black, pro white panderer and it's a dayum shame!