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No problem voting; Alfonso Saahir; Beaver County Times; November 2, 2012. At the time of this writing, this letter appeared only in the print edition of the BCT. I apologize for any transcription errors.
In two previous letters [“Look to the Constitution,” 2/27/05; “Muslims are obligated to pray,” 12/1/06 (I didn’t critique them.)] from Mr. Saahir, he appeared to believe American Muslims weren’t being treated fairly.
In the first letter, Mr. Saahir asked, “Is there any case history where American Muslims have committed any ‘terrorist’ attacks against the U.S. government?” Bad question, Mr. Saahir. In the days before the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Army Sgt. Hasan Akbar murdered two officers at Camp Pennsylvania in Kuwait and wounded 14 other soldiers, the result of his gunfire and throwing hand grenades into a tent where the soldiers were sleeping. In his diary before the murders, Mr. Akbar wrote, “I may not have killed any Muslims, but being in the Army is the same thing. I may have to make a choice very soon on who to kill.” Mr. Akbar was found guilty and sentenced to death. It happened again on November 5, 2009, at Fort Hood, TX. We also need to remember Islamist attacks thwarted over the last several years, like the planned attack on Fort Dix, NJ, in 2007 by the “Fort Dix Six.”
The most recent previous Saahir letter I critiqued was “Out of touch.” Other letters from Mr. Saahir are here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.
Below is a detailed critique of the subject letter.
“For those African-Americans who are voting for President Obama because he is African-American, I say to you, do not be ashamed of your decision for voting that way.”
[RWC] I’m sure Mr. Saahir also meant to write, “For those whites who are voting for Mitt Romney because he is white, I say to you, do not be ashamed of your decision for voting that way.”
Since Mr. Saahir is hung up on skin color, let’s go with it. The unemployment rate for October 2012 was 7.9%, one-tenth of a point higher than September and when President Obama took office in January 2009. Last month was the first below 8% since Mr. Obama took office. For black Americans, the news was even worse. The BLS report says, “Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rate for blacks increased to 14.3%,” up from 13.4% in September.
“It’s okay to celebrate and vote for someone who identifies himself as an African-American and is the president. This president is a reflection of the dignified and intelligent people we are.
“This is not to say other people are not dignified and intelligent.
“We are aware of Caucasians and other ethnic people who voted for President Obama. But it seems there are traumatized racists who continue to call him baboon, monkey, liar, gangster and other derogatory names.”
[RWC] Who are “we?”
“We are aware of Caucasians and other ethnic people who voted for President Obama?” White voters were 74% of the total and 43% voted for Mr. Obama. Black voters were only 13% of the total and 95% voted for Mr. Obama. If white voters had been as bigoted as it appears black voters were in 2008, Mr. Obama would have been little more than a footnote in history. Yes, I meant to use the term “bigot.” If someone votes for or against a candidate because of something as stupid as a physical trait, he’s a bigot.
As far as I can tell, Mr. Saahir didn’t object when people called then-President George W. Bush a liar, pictured him as a monkey, and so on. A local teacher had multiple side-by-side photos of Mr. Bush and monkeys on his now-defunct website. Folks on Mr. Saahir’s side of the aisle routinely referred to Mr. Bush as Hitler, and let’s not forget the books, movies, and plays that described the assassination of Mr. Bush.
I missed Mr. Saahir’s letter decrying the treatment of Stacey Dash when she endorsed Mr. Romney.
“This language is a terrorist attack on all African-Americans. This kind of hatred of President Obama is not a respect for the value of his leadership. So if your vote for President Obama is because he is an African American, so be it. Vote!”
“My vote for President Obama is in his moving America toward a better workable, inclusive America.”
[RWC] Besides the “moving America toward a better workable, inclusive America” stuff, did you notice Mr. Saahir didn’t tell his readers why they should vote for Mr. Obama other than his skin color?
© 2004-2012 Robert W. Cox, all rights reserved.