Are Obama-Free Car Bumpers a Sign of Racism?

by on August 25, 2008 6

Re Jacob Weisberg's piece saying that racism is the only thing that is keeping Obama's lead so low, I just drove about 500 miles in the last few days thru this great land of ours, blue states only, and I saw barely any Obama stickers apart from the one on my car's hinder. I think I saw 4 or 5 all told. At this time in '04 I seem to remember plenty of Kerry Edwards stickers. I still see them. Now, yes, I saw Obama lawn signs in bourgeois Martha's Vineyard and Woods Hole, but on the road I say people are loath to advertise their love of Obama. It's young people and old lefties like me who are gaga for Barack, while a lot of older people are a little afraid to suffer the potential social consequences of being obviously enraptured with a black man. Just a theory. I still say it's a landslide. I don't think I saw one McCain sticker. Now those people are really crazy.

About Philip Weiss

Philip Weiss is Founder and Co-Editor of Mondoweiss.net.
Posted in US Politics

{ 6 comments... read them below or add one }

  1. Michael Blaine says:
    August 25, 2008 at 12:21 pm

    Well, the Kerry/Edwards bumper stickers didn't do much good, did they?

    Besides, Democrats frequently put their bumper stickers on crooked (while Republicans' are on straight), and thus hurt their cause.

  2. Michael Blaine says:
    August 25, 2008 at 12:23 pm

    That is, if Democratic partisans can't take the time to affix a sticker properly, why should they be entrusted with the government?

    No bumper stickers are better than sloppily-placed ones.

  3. Madrid says:
    August 25, 2008 at 12:52 pm

    You are wrong as usual, Phil, just as you have been about Obama supporting a just resolution of the I/P conflict. I hope his choice of VP has made you a little more realistic about these prospects.

    In any case, McCain is going to win in a landslide… (Additionally I was driving in the NE and saw quite a few of hte black McCain stickers– I also saw not one Obama sticker).

  4. Todd says:
    August 25, 2008 at 12:54 pm

    Your patents' generation is irrational when it comes to the holocaust, and your generation is irrational on the subject of race.

    Could it be that Obama has turned many people off with his words and asociates? My guess is that some people are tired of hearing that they are racists if they don't vote a certain way. Who wants to be smeared into voting a certain way? It's not bullying, it's just good advice from wiser, more concerned citizens.

    Maybe many people don't like Obama as a candidate, and don't sport his bumper sticker. Who complains about a lack of bumper stickers, anyway? I think that bumper stickers should be banned.

    Whatever you say, Phil.

  5. MRW. says:
    August 25, 2008 at 1:12 pm

    You can't buy Obama bumper stickers anywhere. You have to go to the website to get official ones — any ones — including the magnet stickers.

    This is really different from 2004 when vendors across the country put out their versions of Bush/Cheney and Kerry/Edwards, even though there was official campaign fare.

    I saw one ad over this weekend for a "free" Obama/Biden sticker. It did not have the official Obama colors, and any nethead knows the freeness offered was an effort to collect email addresses and would probably avoid like the plague.

  6. cooper says:
    August 25, 2008 at 2:52 pm

    I see plenty of Obama stickers in my urban metro area.

    A few are on cars driven by white folk- usually it's one of those Japanese-made hybrids purchased at a $5k premium so their sage owners can conspicuously save $2k in fuel costs over the life of the car.

    Most of the Obama stickers- I'd say 90-95%- are on cars driven by black folks. There are a lot of those here, Phil- they most likely don't get up to the Vineyard on a regular basis.

    I'll make sure to tell them they can stop losing sleep worrying about being perceived as racists. Phil has sprinkled some good ol' tikkun on their soul parade.

    Wonder if the good Rev. Wright sports an Obama sticker when he cruises out the gates for a ride around town?

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