By Staff
Our presidential election has come down to the battle of the old guy versus the black guy with the Muslim-sounding name, but actually saying either of those things remains frowned upon.
Instead, both candidates try to more subtly call each other names, quietly fanning the flames of hatred to get elected.
John McCain at least gets to suffer thinly veiled barbs for something he actually is.
It's hard to argue against the idea that McCain has a few years on his opponent.
It's also not ridiculous to question whether a 71-year-old man should be president.
These questions, however, should be presented directly, not through subtle wordplay.
Barack Obama himself has made clever quips about McCain's age and if the younger candidate thinks youthful energy tops tired experience, then he should say so clearly.
Instead, Obama and his people never exactly come out and say that McCain should head off to Florida to play shuffleboard, but it's heavily implied.
Obama also very clearly hints, but never says, that being young means having new ideas, while being old means being unable to change. Subtle jabs McCain must endure from his opponent, however, pale in comparison to the cleverly veiled remarks that question Obama's age, race and religion. Of course, only the most blatant racists actually say that Obama should not win the election because of the color of his skin, while smarter, less blatant racists raise the issue indirectly.
This collection of more clever, but still prejudiced, political operatives use Barack Hussein Obama's non-traditional name against him, subtly suggesting he has some sort of secret Muslim identity. These ignorant folks clearly link any hint of an Islamic background to terrorism and imply that anyone with a Muslim- sounding name must harbor plans to blow up America.
The same people who bash Obama because of what his Christian preacher said now want to label the man a Muslim.
Never mind that Muslim and terrorist are not synonymous and there's absolutely no reason why a Muslim could not be president. Instead, consider that despite Obama's repeated assertions of his belief in Christianity, a portion of the public actually believes he has some sort of Islamic double life. While that notion seems absurd, Fox News, a channel as biased towards Republicans as ESPN is towards sports fans, reported the story that Obama had been educated at a radical Muslim school. There's no truth to this story, but that has not stopped an Internet smear campaign aimed at spreading these made-up facts. Unfortunately, truth is not important to racist ideologues.
According to Politico.com, "Barack Obama Muslim" is the third most popular Google search for the presidential candidate's name, behind "Barack Obama" and "Barack Obama biography." In addition, a CBS News poll in August found that, in response to an open-ended question about Obama's faith, seven percent of Americans identified him as a Muslim – more than any other response.
While dirty tricks and name-calling have long been a part of American politics, this simply goes too far. If McCain and Obama want to discredit each other, they should do so directly, not through wordplay and behind-the-scenes smear campaigns.
As a voting public, perhaps we need questions about McCain's age and Obama's religious upbringing answered. If we do, then we have the responsibility as voters to respond to the truth and not be swayed by those with devious agendas who would lie to get their favored candidate elected.