Thank you for posting this

Wow. I saw this on CNN tonight - and was moved to tears. This man has heart, was truthful, and I would attend his church too.

Quotes from this speech will be taken out of context by Fox news and the like, because their agenda is to separate us all based upon race and if that does not work, then they will try to separate us based upon our economic status. This speech had nothing to do with Obama. Rev. wright was defending his honor, whoch has been tarnished by 30sec. soundbytes from a sermon given years ago. While you Fox fans are watching soundbytes from this speech remember, "this intelligent man served America by enlisting in the Marines and the Navy...Honorably!" Whatever happened to "once a Marine, always a Marine" where are the Marines to defend their brother's right to free speech?

True dat Jennifer...

I can see why Obama wouldn't want to denounce this guy... What a brilliant man...

It is time to talk about reparations to the African American people. It has only been 40 yrs since the jim crow laws and about 100 on slavery. What about what he said doesn’t make sense??

Rev Wright disrespected all Irish immigrants to this country.

I just saw the speech and although Rev. Wright is unquestionably a learned man, his racism regarding individuals of white European descent is clear and it is now unquestionably clear to me where the rhetoric and Hypocrisy of his mentored congregant Senator Obama has come from. I hope Barack has paid him as a speech writer and coach because their messages and delivery are scarily the same. Sorry folks, but this is a cunningly intelligent divisive racist, who does not value what this country has given to him. Every time he appears he puts another nail in the coffin of Obama's campaign.

I just saw the speech and although Rev. Wright is unquestionably a learned man, his racism regarding individuals of white European descent is clear and it is now unquestionably clear to me where the rhetoric and Hypocrisy of his mentored congregant Senator Obama has come from. I hope Barack has paid him as a speech writer and coach because their messages and delivery are scarily the same. Sorry folks, but this is a cunningly intelligent divisive racist, who does not value what this country has given to him. Every time he appears he puts another nail in the coffin of Obama's campaign.

I am so happy to hear the truth spoken with such eloquence and conviction. God Bless Rev. Wright!!

A fantastic speech. If for nothing else you have to admire the intellectual horsepower of this man.

Wow! What a great speech.
If all our church leaders could lead and speak like this we would have had change already.
Anyone who now sees Rev. Wright as un-American and un-Christian, are the people we need to work the "change" in!
Please folks, stop, think and pray.

Shorter Pam Gould,
"I wrote a post about Wright being a cunning racist before I saw this speech. Then I added 'unquestionably learned man'."

If you're feeling insulted because he dissed Bill O'Reilly, then you're really slow.

amazing.

this man is no light weight.

Great Speech Rev Wright. Finally someone who will tell the truth. A man who is definately smarter than all of those talking heads in the media, a man who is more educated than most of them in the media. Way to go!!!

Wow, Pam. Did you watch the same speech?

Different, not deficient.

I know he means well but this is just sad. He just echoed a whole host of racist presumptions about cognitive development in african american children and gave them a nationalist gloss.

Comments all around the web have been positive, but there's a string on the ABC blog that is toxic. From the talking points, I'm guessing non of them acutally watched the video.

I WAS an Obama supporter before I heard this speech today.

I gave Obama the "benefit of the Doubt" when the Rev. Wright controversial sermons came out and were aired on all the NEWS channels.
I trusted Obama and his judgement and thought the whole thing was just "SPIN" and continued to support him.

I just watched the entire NAACP speech (begiining to END) tha Rev. Wright gave today and there is one message that I believe is VERY clear from listening to Wrights sermon...
....REv. Wright DOES NOT LIKE WHITE PEOPLE in the U.S. or whites in any of the European countries either.

I get the idea from his speech that he does like anyone other than Africans. I also believe that he thinks that the entire world is against the success of Africans throughout the world.

He is NOT someone who I think any good american should be listening to every Sunday.

What kind of reaction does he think he's going to get from white people when he mocks John F. Kenneedy's dialect in an historical presidential speech. (mind you the Kennedy's are BIG Obama supporters)

This speech will be bad for Obama. JUST WAIT AND SEE! He has lost my vote.

He wont be President and it's all because of a crazy preacher.

ANYONE associated with a guy like Rev. Wright could never be President.

What a shame

HUMMMM!!!!!

I agree... man it's a shame that Obama is associated with a racist like REV. Wright.

He clearly is not trying to mend any issues he has with the white community ....when you hear the remarks he has made.

Jericho, I'm not sure you watched the same speech as me. I saw someone who was respecting everyone -- someone with marvelous knowledge of the diversity of this country. He talked about people of diferent colors, different religious denominations, everything, and said "different is not deficient" "no one is inferior or superior." I have no idea how you came away with the message you got.

Jericho,

I'm not sure you watched the same speech as me. I saw someone who was respecting everyone -- someone with marvelous knowledge of the diversity of this country. He talked about people of diferent colors, different religious denominations, everything, and said "different is not deficient" "no one is inferior or superior."

When he was talking about the way the Kennedys spoke, he was pointing out that they speak differently, but that no one considered them deficient! So, he asked, why is it considered deficient when Africans speak differently?

You obviously weren't listening properly. Watch the speech again. He was pointing out differences and saying... that different is not deficient.

You weren't listening properly at all.

He lost me on the learning differences (that right/left brain stuff has been shown to a gross oversimplification, and I'm not sure how well-controlled those studies were) but I do respect the man. How people can see this and think he's a racist is beyond me.

he said "different isn't deficient" and then later said that the way white people worship god is not the correct way (because they are more reserved in their worship)

he said "no no no.. that's not the way to worship" and then went on to give a demonstatraion of black worship (implying that the "black way" is the correct way)
he just contradicted himself seconds after he accused whites of the same excact thing.

thats just ONE example

according to his argument that "different isn't Deficient" the more reserved worship style of whites isn't the WRONG way it's just "Different"

I think that we should be realistic about ourselves here. If you just do not care at all for Rev. Wright then just say so vs trying to make excuses that are really sad. I think that for those who don't like Rev. Wright or for that matter Obama will say and blog anything that is negative vs trying to say something at least positive about either of them. Will what Obama and Wright say change the mindset of those that hate them? maybe not, but I think that we need to look at the larger context vs dwelling on being so negative. Granted Wright's sermons that were posted had some really bad things in them, but I must admit that the media didn't play his full sermons with those questionable remarks in full which makes me wonder if the MSM is try to provoke angry among Americans or are they just reporting the news as usually? I am sadden that we can not have a conversation on race without negativity on both sides, but I guess we are not ready to discuss this issue because we are still fighting the sins of the past (I guess there is hope for the younger generation after all).

He cited Janice Hale and others who explain differences based on cultural differences. How is that racist?

OK for those who do not know Gandhi, Jermiah may just sound like Gandhi, but kid you not, he is not. Nothing Jermiah said brings true peace to the world. By renouncing peace - peace does not come. Peace comes with sacrifice and a true understanding of other. When he equated all, he forgot to identify the character of others. Muslims over the world believe INFIDELS should be punished. The radicals just tried to kill Afghanistan's Prime Minister. Are these people to be condoned or pardoned? I do not wonder any more where the people friendlyness without much thoughts behind it of Obama came from. It came from Jermiah Wright. Well, let the pundits evaluate Wright. For me, all of what he said is fueling - and I would not vote for Obama. It will be another Pastor in making in White House. I am afraid we may just have another four years of Jimmy Carter.

Brilliant speech! Just amazing! 6 stars out of 5!

I don't believe for a moment Jericho that you were for Obama until you heard this speech. If you were I can't understand what would offend you about this speech other than that his style is indeed "different" from white priests, pastors and rabbis. I for one think it is terrific just because it is passionate even though I think some of his theories about right/left brain ways of learning are simply balderdash when applied to entire groups of people.

Wright and his church have been sorely maligned by the sound bites...

Wright, as one of the most respected and learned of pastors of the United chirches of Christ which number some 55,000 has every right to defend himself from the hatchet job done on him by the out of context sound bites which the media played in continuous loops... tell me Jericho were you ever a US Marine? Or did you ever serve in any of the US armed forces? Did you give 7 years of your life to your country? I'll bet not.

Excellent speach. The man is a really intellectual. Very impressive......

I reject your assumtion that I am LYING when I say that I was an Obama supporter.

I promise you on my dead grandmothers grave with a Holy BIBLE in my hand that I was an Obama supporter until I heard this NAACP speech given by Wright this afternoon.

I listedned with an open mind and an open heart to Rev. Wright today aas he spoke and all he did was confirm what all of those "snippets" of his sermon implied.
That is.... he has alot of anger and distain towards WHITE america.

Jericho, just get out with the bullshit. If you really were an Obama supporter but this speech from REVEREND WRIGHT has somehow made you change your mind and made you decide to drop your support, then I question the depth of your conviction at the first place.

Either you're blind and in denial and refuse to accept the truths of this country, or you haven't been paying attention to Obama's messages from the very beginning of this campaign, or you just didn't see the same speech that I did, or you're just blatantly lying about being an Obama supporter at the first place.

Wright's speech made one thing very clear: in his mind and the minds of the people that support him the only way for Black people to succeed is to destroy the system that is run by white people.
As long as white people are in charge black people will suffer.
So it surprises me that white people would support him because he is asking them to destroy themselves in the name of justice. Even if you believe white people are the cause of the suffering minorities endure, it's a stretch to think that men like Wright would make it any better. History proves that man is incapable of creating a utopia on earth. And this idea that if we all just come together as one mankind will finally create a utopia is ridiculous. The only thing that ever comes out of people uniting like a bunch of mindless drones is death on a grand scale: Nazism, Communism, Fascism, and Socialism prove that to be true.

This man is crazy!!!!!!!!! He is unsafe for this country and so is his Obama that has been hand molded my this Anti-American/Racist man.

I was around to hear Dr. Martin Luther King. I was appalled that the people around me called him a communist, said he and the poor people had no right to march. In my area, I was almost alone in my admiration for him and his marches. I am still around today, but now an older white woman and an Air Force veteran living in the south. I see the greatness in Rev. Wright and can well understand how Senator Obama became a Christian because of that man. I applaud CNN for covering the whole speech and have watched it over and over, but the shallowness and narrow focus of much of the media will be the same as in the days of MLK and the poor people's marches. But this time we have an African American running for president who will probably achieve his goal and things will change. The changes will leave the pundits of today in the dust.

Sheila Jackson
Greer, SC

I am puzzled to learn from Wright that black people have different brains from white people. I thought everybody was created equal.

Oh, this is going to be an interesting concept to watch unfold in the general election.

The right brain vs. the left brain.

Jericho,

if you were indeed an Obama supporter, then your problem is that you weren't listening.

Like I said earlier, when he was talking about the Kennedy's, his point was: the kennedy's spoke differently, but no one considered them deficient. So you should not consider black people deficient when they speak differently.
There is nothing racist about it as far as I can see. I thought it was a brilliant point. What, exactly, was racist about it that you saw?

And--here we go...

A speech from Reverend Wright and all the anti-Obama pundits are jumping on it like desperate-rabid animals.

You'd think that they'll actually try spending their time supporting the candidate of their choice instead of repudiating everything the pastor of the other candidate says.

To everyone insisting that this speech will cost Obama the presidency, I'll be back posting here on the inauguration. Let's see who's right.

The problem here is that Wright, like Obama, is complex and intellectual. We are seeing that the speech was far too complex for some people, like Jericho, to follow.

Wright used a lot of examples, acting out and describing the differences -- differences that he emphasized were not deficiencies -- and some people think he was MOCKING them? He'd do "white" claps and "black caps", and say that the blacks say the "whites are doing it wrong," but then he says "but it's not wrong, it's different!" Yet people here are only hearing the part where he is saying "they're doing it wrong" and going nuts. The speech was too complex for some people to understand.

Gino,

Nothing he said brings peace? Really? How about "Different does not mean deficient". The rev said nothing that could show him as a racist. He wasn't trying to make the point that blacks are better than whites just different. The joke about the irish was probably not the best idea for this speech but it was clearly just a joke, albiet a bad one. Grow up. Perhaps this country is not ready for a president like obama but we sure as hell need him. The fact that anyone could watch this speech and not think that this man is a visionary shows just how backwards some people in this country are. By the way I am not an African American I'm an American with indian decent.

I am a republican and I must say that I was very impressed with this man. I only hope and pray that people will listen to this speech in it's entirety. I have now retracted everything bad I said about this man because I judged him based on what the news media said about him. This was an education for me and like him, I am now committed to changing the way I view others

It would be curious to see if this type of debate was going on during the 50's and 60's and to see if individuals pro and con on racial issues share the same feelings as those who live now...it would be an interesting thing to have blogging in the 50's and 60's.

Jericho:

The mocking was to illustate a point, which you apparently missed. The vast majority of Americans do not speak proper "English". Every region/culture has its own way of speaking and pronouncing, and black americans should no more be held as deficient for the way they talk than should Bostonians, Southerners, Texans, Canadians. Did JFK and LBJ talk differently than many of their fellow Americans? Sure. Did that make them deficient? No.

Where you get the idea that Wright doesn't like whites is beyond me. The only thing I got is a point that when you look at one culture through the eyes of another, sometimes it can seem strange. He even defended white people rhythm. Get a sense of humor.

He didn't diss Irish-Americans, he was very subtly dissing O'Reilly. It was hilarious.

I'm black and I have to say that I am shocked to know that I learn differently from white people.

This man is a joke!!! If he were really intelligent, he would know that you should never make generalizations. He just marginalized black and white people. I don't have to get up from my seat to learn. I'm not sure which side of the brain I use to learn, but I can guarantee that there all races of people who learn from their right or left sides of their brain.

I wonder how Latinos, Asians, Native Americans, and South Asians learn. Which side of the brain do they use?

And he threw around musical terms. I have to agree with him on some of it, but he looks nuts trying to get his point across musically.

this is a good speech - remember people the question is not do we agree with reverend wright on everything or even on most things - the question is, is he a fanatic, is he extreme - and after watching this video and learning the history of his work, it becomes clear, that no he is not - he is a normal american preacher - he has some ideas we may agree with and some that we may not - but it is ridiculous to judge politicians that have relationships with him or go to his church, based on these reasonable differences
on the other hand, pastor hagee, a mccain supporter, is much more extreme in his views against gays, women, and catholics
so let's stop attacking obama about this - it really is unfair - we need to speak up and tell the networks to stop the double standard and stop twisting reality with their soundbite based superficial reporting

Wow. If anything, the response to this speech is exposing an educational divide.

The right and left brain are conditioned to do different things. The left side analyzes, the right side has a "holistic" view. One attends to details, one attends to the whole picture.

The way we are raised, culturally, determines which side of our brain we use more. For example, in western societies, we do tasks that require the left side more than we do tasks that require the right side, so the left side becomes more trained. Our current educational system, which has us analyze things a lot, uses the left side more than the other. Therefore, the left side becomes dominant.

Hence our brains are all the same, but which side we use more -- left or right -- is different.

ANGER IS DEVISIVE! and ANGER is something that Rev. Wright has alot of.

His sermon today was fueled by anger and NOT LOVE for ALL races and people (especially WHITES)

If you are black than you most definately interpreted his speech with LOVE because he LOVES you.

Let me flip the statements and comments he made in his speech and give it from a WHITE point of view and I PROMISE you ...that you would call me a racist.

It's pointeless to argue "point of views" your perception is your reality and NOTHING i can say to you will ever change that and vice versa.

so let me just close sayiing: Treat others as you would want to be Treated and LOVE LOVE LOVE is the answer.
Arguing gets you NO WHERE!

REV. Wrights sermons are coming from an argumentative place to make points to show why Blacks should be angry at Whites.

And I think he is very succesfull at what he does, but because of his skill in angering black people to resent whites and hate what whites have done to Blacks in this country.
It is going to cause the only chance that African Americans have had in the History of Blacks in America to LOOSE once again. WAIT and SEE!

I HATE THIS. I want to see EVERYONE have a chance in this country. I want to see equality. I want to see all RACISM DIE! not just the racism towards blacks , but Blacks racism towards whites. IT'S ALL UN-PRODUCTIVE!

You have to work together to solve problems and saying that an entire race of people think and learn with their right or left side of their brains is a RACIST, blanket statment!

Thats exactly like saying all Asians are good at Algebra. Or all Swiss are good a snowskiing. All Italians are good Cyclist. All Blacks are good a basketball.

To the person comparing Obama to Carter...

Every time we look at our dependency on foreign oil today, think about the fact that Carter had the foresight to tell America this problem was coming and that we needed to change our ways. America thought it knew better and from Reagan onward we gluttonously turned on the tap full throttle. We're only just starting to pay for our foolish greed.

RESPECT EVERYONE? I would of loved to hear him finish his thoughts on the Irish "stereotyping".

He has in fact put anouther nail in the coffin of Obama "At least i hope"

musgrrl, if the term "statistically significant" doesn't mean anything to you, you probably won't understand his discussion of the studies of learning types.

I can't believe how this man is celebrated for his racist veiws. he preaches integration but his statements point towards segrigation. I understand that he was in the military...and a vetran, so am i, but if i as a white man said these things at a meeting of the naawp (which would be labeled as racist) i would be labeled as kkk. he does not deserve to be put in the lime light. if i were black i would be insulted by the comments he made about education. if black and white people are so different then how do we have black doctors, lawers, and proffesors. its idiotic to say that a black person cannot do the same things as a white person. the only thing that holds a person down is the quality of their upbringing. i do not mean their economic status, it is the values provided by their parents. as far as retrobution, if you were a slave, you are owed money for you suffering. If you ancestors were slaves, i'm sorry, you have not made the sacrifice that you are demanding to get paid for. i ask that people look at all three candidates and make an educated decision based on their plans, policies, and history.

one more thing, before you vote democrat please read about reagonomics and take a good look at how bad health care is in the military(AKA the socialized health care that Democrast want for the whole country)

musgrrl,

I'm pretty sure he was quoting a study by some lady not making it up. I don't believe it either but I don't think he made it up and I don't think that was the point of his message.

There is no question that Rev. Wright is very intelligent, charismatic and eloquent but he is, for those very reasons, frighteningly able to twist facts, scientific and otherwise. Tonight's speech, broadcast live by CNN, cannot be conveniently dismissed as a sound bite. His insistence that all Europeans and European/Americans are left brained and all Africans and African/Americans are right brained is specious -- a fact based on research that has nothing to do with racial bias. In his deliberately simplistic black and white statement, in terms of both race and learning-style approach, he also denies the heritage of all of those children who are of both historical backgrounds, including Obama, leaving them in a no-man's land in his theories of supportive and non-supportive education. In defending himself and his theories he continues to put Obama and his supporters in a bind. The beneficiary, in the end, will not be the man he would hope will occupy the White House. While Rev. Wright was an asset in the senatorial race, Obama, unfortunately, will be forced to win this election in spite of him.

Wright is a Reverend, right? Does the bible say that God created white men different from black men? Did God create a black Adam and Eve in Africa and a white Adam and Eve in Europe?
And if we all come from one Adam and one Eve, as the bible says, then when did our brains become different?
And if our brains differ then what kind of brain does Obama have, since he's half white and half black? And what about Asians, or Native Americans? Does the bible cover that too? This idea that "different does not mean deficient" is a big lie because the differences Wright speaks of are superficial and useless.

Way to miss the point, "stud." How many times did he say different does not mean deficient?

Studies- like THE ONES HE CITED!!!!- have suggested that black children, for whatever reason, learn differently. BUT DIFFERENT DOES NOT MEAN DEFICIENT.

Yes, some people learn differently- but they're not deficient- so they CAN become doctors, lawyers, PRESIDENT.

Have any of you people ever even read a scientific journal? They don't suggest that ALL black children learn differently. Just that there is a statistically significant difference in the way that the children studied learned. THAT IS ALL. NOT THAT ONE IS DEFICIENT.

Oh, and the military does NOT have the health care proposal proposed by the Democrats. And Reaganomics only worked because he didn't care about the deficit- something our grandkids will have to pay off with 60% taxes.

Thanks so much for posting this marvelous thoughtful speech. Keep up the good work. kj

Jericho:

I can understand why you feel the way you feel towards what Rev. Wright said tonight. However, I think that in order for our country to grow from the perils of the past, we must first accept that what was done in the past was wrong and we must now chart a course to better our future. I think that if Rev. Wright would have put it in that context it would have gotten less negative feedback. I think we respond in different ways to how individuals like Rev. Wright talks/preaches. Some of us respond more on the tone of his speech, others respond more on the substance of the speech. I think that it going into what he was talking about the left and right brains. As far as the whole left brain right brain comments, it was using educational research from professors in the field of ed development. I must say that there are more opinions on what brain side is more dominate in the scholastic arena, but again we are losing the point of the comment that he is making.

Tony, to most people who found Rev. Wright offensive, "statically significant" means absolutely nothing. I don't think the Irish or most Bostonians care about those two words. He mocked the Kennedy's accent. He made comments that some Irish find offensive. And the fallout will be that Obama will suffer for it. Way to go Rev. Wright. What a way to show your support!

Let em be very CLEAR when I say that I take NO joy in saying this, but Rev. Jeramiah Wright has ruined Barack Obama's chance to be President.

Just watch the "Spin" on this speech tomorrow on all the media outlets.

Sadly ...all this NAACP speech has accomplished is to confirm any assumptions people may have taken from the first go round in the media with Rev. Wright.

This SUCKS I wanted Obama to win sooo bad to.

OK. This is going over a lot of heads.

There was a study that suggested that black children are educated in different ways. I don't know the date of the study, but it was probably in a time of deeper segregation. So, there were probably actually differences in schools, and some schools were predominantly white, and some were predominantly black.

These differences in education yielded differences in thinking. Not ability- just a different way of looking at the world.

He's NOT suggesting that there's a genetic difference, but rather a CULTURAL one. In the black schools and communities, kids are taught in a certain way, which makes them think in a certain way.

If you take a black kid and put him in the exact same environment as a white kid, with exactly equal resources and treatment, then they would have similar thought processes. But because kids are raised in different environments, they think differently. One isn't better than the other; they're just different.

It's really just common sense to me.

Tony,
Lets say you and Wright are right. Where do we go from there? Do we test every child before they start school to find out what part of their brain is more dominant, and then tailor their education accordingly?
And what happens when these children have to work in the real world? Should businesses and government jobs be tailored to operate according to the employees brain type?
Or should we just point out the difference and leave it at that and do nothing about it?
If we do nothing about it why bring it up in the first place?

This was better than great.....When I see comments that are negative...One might assume that these are the ones who are deficient...But no they are different....When you don't get it...... he speaks above your grade and pay level. But still you are different not defiecient....do you get it now..........Loved the speech...this will unite our country not devide it...And oh by the way I marched in the Marching 100 from Florida A&M University the most famous band in this country...And he had some of our moves down pretty good....... OBAMA 08 in a Landslide...This country is Ready!!!!!!

stud,

Obama doesn't want socialized medicine. He wants low cost private insurance.

The fact that you compare the NAACP to the KKK shows how ignorant you are. At a KKK rally you would find whites saying how they are better than blacks and other races while the rev. made no claims to superiority just difference. A change is coming if not in my generation then in my children's. Stud your ignorance is disgusting and you do not deserve to be called an American.

Wow what a great speech. If this doesn't fire you up I don't know what will. Different does not mean deficient, It has dawn on some of the people on this forum yet

the only danger of this speech?

That some people are too stupid to understand it.

The things I'm reading here are shocking to me. There are people who don't understand when Wright is being metaphorical and when he's being sarcastic. He was mocking the Kennedy's? Are you even listening? HE WAS NOT MOCKING THE KENNEDIES. He was saying that they speak differently but no one would ever consider them deficient!

And I thought left vs right brained learning styles was common sense!! We all have the same brain. Kids, when they're toddlers, tend to use their whole brain. But then we go into the real world, and the way school is taught uses mostly the left brain, so you become more left-brained. Because different cultures emphasize different cognitive learning styles, kids raised in a certain way will have more dominance on one side of the brain than the other. Neither side is BETTER than the other. In fact, an aim of modern education is to make kids more "whole brained', because right now our education is too focused on the left, so that kids who don't use the left so much seem stupid when really they are not.

And duh, no, not one race is entirely in one side, but different cultural groups TENDS to be more to one side. TENDS.

Girls also tend to be more right-brained than boys, which is why people wonder if the left-brain focused science and math curriculum just isn't being designed well for them. The new york times had a story on this recently, about how maybe you should teach differently for boys vs girls. Thank God Wright didn't go into that. Otherwise he would totally be misogynistic too, huh?

Wright clearly overestimated the intelligence of his audience.

Oh and this Jericho fella -- no matter how many times people tell him he's wrong, he posts the same thing over with his TOTALLY FAKE sympathy for Obama. The guy is a fake, don't waste your time. He doesn't read when people point out that he's wrong, he just posts his FAUX ANGUISH over and over again. Why are you so horrified that he's ruined the chances when all the news networks said that the speech was excellent? Because all the anchors on the news networks just don't have your vast intelligence?

"Tony, to most people who found Rev. Wright offensive, "statically significant" means absolutely nothing."

This is exactly my point- the people who are getting offended either don't or just aren't trying to understand his point. If you don't understand that the study he cited probably suggested a statistically significant difference in left/right brain for different children, you probably will take offense, but if you try to understand the matter, you'll see that it's a perfectly reasonable one.

Imitating is not the same as mocking. He was pointing out that their pronunciations of the same word are different. Are you denying that Ted Kennedy says "pock" instead of "park"?

And as he said, different does not mean deficient.

You completely missed his point. As someone posted above, this should be expected.

After reading some of the negative dialog towards Rev Wright, I think that one thing is clear. Despite what I would like to believe, Blacks and whites are different. We at times have common goals but we have different methods of how achieving should be accomplished. I initially listened to Rev Wright's 2001 comments on Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity's A.M. radio shows and I was concerned that black America would again have to fight to rebuild our dignity because of what this ignorant man said. That was my initial thought.
Then I went to YouTube.com to watch the speech in its entirety. My view of Rev Wright immediately changed. 20 second sound bites of a magnificently butchered sermon tainted the message and painted him as this Anti anything but black nigger.
Not for the purpose of destroying him but for the purpose of destroying Barrack Obama's chance at showing young blacks how far we have come as a people. Instead emphasis has been placed on how far we haven't.
Don't blame Rev Wright for causing a racial divide, blame yourself for not noticing that a racial divide exist.
How many times have you heard about John McCain's Profanity on the senate floor and during his campaign. How many times times have you heard that the gas prices are as high as they are not because of the oil companies but because of the extremely high taxes charged by the US govt (do the math).

Rev Wright are the type of people I respect because he will not sit down and bite his tongue simply because of what is view to be politically incorrect. I respect Barrack Obama rather than sell out & his Pastor and friend of 20 years he simply disagreed with his friend but would not disown him. If he would have sold Rev Wright up the river EVERY black knows Obama would have lost this election immediately.

So to those who now believe that Obama's chance to be president is over, I am here to tell you it was over before it started. Because do you honestly think a black man that will not himself to be controlled by the Clinton's or any other person would honestly have a chance at that office. If you believe that he ever had a CHANCE you are crazy.

To some he Obama is viewed as change, some view him as the future, I view him as what could be, but at the end of the day SOME blacks and SOME whites view him as nigger and nothing bigger.

I think that at times Rev. Wright speaks over the heads of lesser educated people and when this happens they feel as if they are being spoken down to. This is particularly insulting to people that harbor some racial hostility to start with.

When this happens those same people strike back in the only way they know how, by calling him names or attacking his character ie.. calling him a racist. Unfortunately there is little chance that these people can be dissuaded from this mindset, once they have it.

What saddens me most is that supposedly educated people, I refer to journalists now, could intentionally misinterpret the words spoken by this good man to support some foul political agenda.

On the otherhand, I believe that most people upon hearing the Rev. speak are awakened to the truth, that this man is obviously an extremely learned and forth right individual that wishes to unite people of all colors and is deserving of respect from both the white and black community for his efforts.

Louis,
If the difference is cultural then what should we do?
Just sit back and say, "aren't we smart we see a cultural difference." Should we give black kids passing grades when they fail tests because they are culturally different? Or should we just pass everyone regardless of how well they do in school because of cultural differences?
Or should black kids be graded and treated differently because of their race?
Tell me please.

"Do we test every child before they start school to find out what part of their brain is more dominant, and then tailor their education accordingly?

This sounds like a FANTASTIC idea to me, but there aren't enough resources or teachers to do so.

"And what happens when these children have to work in the real world? Should businesses and government jobs be tailored to operate according to the employees brain type?"

Um...no. The fact that someone is right-brained doesn't disadvantage them. It might make them less well-equipped to do the job, but then, they shouldn't be getting hired in the first place. For example, if you're hiring a math teacher, wouldn't you rather hire someone good at math instead of a painter? And isn't it more likely that the math teacher will be left-brained, and the painter will be right-brained?

Note that I didn't say that the person good at math is somehow a "better" person than the painter. Because different does not mean deficient.

"If we do nothing about it why bring it up in the first place?"
This is a good question. A lot of scientific studies are done simply for the pursuit of understanding and knowledge. But as you suggested above, we can use these studies to make better educational strategies.

I swear that this story is true: I once tutored an inner-city youth. He was black, and very good at reading, but years behind his class in math. He wasn't retarded or slow- just not that good at math. It kills me to admit it, but after a year, I failed. He hadn't made much progress at all, and I blame myself.

Reverend Wright's speech is making me wonder how I could have been a better tutor. He was still young, at the point where his brain could still be molded. Maybe I should have tried more visual/object activities, to help build left-brain strength. I don't know, but I don't think there's anything racist about this.

I think that the vast majority of the country agrees that slavery and the treatment of blacks in america in the past 300 or 400 yrs was wrong (of course).

There are NO blacks inslaved now and in a few more years there will be no black person alive that experienced slavery first hand and the same goes for slave owners......SO Lets move forward and stop looking back.

Speeches such as Wright's only remind blacks of the past... instead of coming together with whites to make a better future.

Solidarity is what we need to rival corporate america taking over this country.
Solidarity is what it will take to solve the energy crisis.
Solidarity is the key and the springboard to solving ALL of the PROBLEMS in this country.

What point is someone trying to make when they generalize an enitire race of people (be it white or black)?

How is saying that blacks and whites think and learn completely different going to bring about cooperation and solidarity.

He should have been focusing on all ten thousand things that Blacks and Whites have in common!!

Rev Wright did a good job articulating my thoughts on different people not being deficient, because of their differences. I’m not a Christian, but this is the first sermon in a long time by a Christian that made me want to stand up and clap because finally someone conveyed my feelings. (My way of connectedness as jay smooth would say) I’m a person that has a so called "disabled right arm, im not a Christian, I love underground hip hop music, I try to question all sides of issues before I give an answer, and I don’t mind saying I don’t know the answer. Coming from the west side of Chicago I was looked at as different. I wasn’t always comfortable about that but I have grown to accept it. But Rev Wright speech made me even prouder to be who I am, a person who is different. That don’t make me better or worst, it just makes me me.

So good Job Rev Wright. I think the mainstream media is going to tear you and Barrack a New whole, but in my eyes this should do nothing but help Barrack. This was sort of not even about Barrack, yet indirectly it was.

Hopefully we realize the real issue is that people are different, and get to the point that its not about black white, democrat, republican, or whatever category or label we put on things. It’s about, fighting greed and disrespect of everyone on this earth, because believe it or not we are directly or indirectly connected with what happens in other countries. So before I am an American, or a Chicagoan, I am an earthling. F--- it that’s how I feel tonight.

Tony, you can argue this all you want but the person that will lose because of Rev. Wright speech is Obama. A lot of people will miss the Rev's point. It doesn't matter if you get it. Obama already has you in his corner.

I think this is a turning point in the race and it's not looking good for Obama.

Oh god people are stupid.

The brain is not BIOLOGICALLY different. The way you are raised culturally determines which side of the brain you USE most.

TJ:

Speaking as someone who is biracial and is going into the teaching profession as an elementary school teacher the answer to your question is how do myself and other teachers organize our lesson plans to activate both brains in all children (white, black, latin, asian, etc.) in the classroom. The classroom should not be structure as right brain dominate or left brain dominate. All of our children in America are exceptional and bright. Unfortunately, NCLB (No Child Left Behind) has caused much of the creativity in the lesson planning to be cut to teach our students what will happen on the test vs what will happen in the real world.

tj- hell no. Nobody is advocating affirmative action for kids' grades. Reverend Wright was using the brain difference as an example to support his larger theme: Different does not mean deficient. Some kids learn differently. They're not deficient.

Tj,

This speech was not about children's learning development. That was just a supportive story from a study by some doctor. He used this story to prove the point that different does not mean deficient. You people are missing the point. If people from boston watch this speech and all the get out of it is an insult about their accents then they have a bigger problem on their hands, they think with no side of their brains.

I have to reiterate that I do not agree with this speech. The tone was harsh. Even though he said some things that were factually correct and I could see where he was coming from, I don't think this speech will bring people together. I'm trying to see this from a non-black view (being that I'm black) and I have to say that it comes off harsh.

I'm a Hillary Clinton supporter. (An African-American supporter of hers)...and I must say that this man was absolutely correct. A few of the things he said could have been said differently (more "politically correct")...but even if they were, I don't think we'd be discussing them. It takes passion and fervor to raise these issues and you can't always do so politically correct. Take a step back and take a deep breath and actually think about what he said tonight. It rang true to what's wrong with this nation. God does need to damn this country, and is in the process of doing so. Doesn't make me any less patriotic or have any less love for this country. I just don't love what is being done in it. Wake up America.

Oh, no! Jerico! You missed Rev. Wright's point entirely! What you seem to have heard is exactly what he was NOT saying, or rather, what he was warning against, not advocating! Please listen again -- I was and still am an Obama supporter and felt I owed it to myself to hear what the Rev really had to say. This speech was brilliant! Not to mention inspiring and occasionally hysterically funny. Does it help you to know that I am white? I heard nothing whatever that could be deemed offensive -- perhaps what sounded odd to your ears is that he told the TRUTH, something we are unused to hearing. BTW, his Kennedy and Johnson bits were delicious! He is one educated guy, and I feel it would be a privilege to know him.

I think that what Rev Wright was saying was that europeans traditionally learn more easily from books, while african americans learn better from lectures. Both are equally capable of learning, but that teaching needs to cover both methodology to best serve the mix of students.

Of course this is an over-simplification of the truth, but likely has a good deal of truth because of the

How is one going to sort out who was sold as a slave by the African's themselves, versus the Europeans if the subject matter is reparations?

If the subject is reparations, then would the already paid federal aid, food stamps, housing, medicaid, and the like be deducted from individuals.

Even if a person files for Medicaid, at least in Florida, and one can not qualify for such unless one is declared disabled or has children under 18.

My point is more along the lines that if an elderly person receives medicaid, the state files a lien on their property, or they have to sell it outright if they go into a nursing home, and give the nursing home all of the money but $1500.00

So...... the only thing I am pointing out is there would be huge problems even going down the road of reparations.

Just throw in affirmative action.....what about qualified people who were turned away from jobs because of employer racial requirements, and the same for college applicants.

Are the people who suffered because of affirmative action going to be reimbursed?

Then throw in Muslims, Muslim nations enslaved African Americans as well...

This is like a never ending thing.....

And think about it, every nation has had slaves, indentured slaves, and serfs...

Where does this line of thinking stop and start, in relation to slavery, in general, regardless of race, and rational thinking.

What about the sex slave trade today?

http://www.royalnavalmuseum.org/visit_see_victory_cfexhibition_eastafrica.htm

..."One of the most famous slave traders on the East African coast was Tippu Tip, who was himself the grandson of an enslaved African. His real name was Hamed bin Mohammed and he was born in Zanzibar. Tippu Tip and his men took African people from their homes to sell them, from an area that stretched over one thousand miles from inland to the coast.

"..."Merchants and tribal leaders traded enslaved Africans for a variety of different objects, including guns, cloth, horses, copper, pottery, and even Venetian glass beads"...

FOR DIVISIVE, anti-Obama folks like LC, stud, musgrrl, Pam Gould, Angel, and Jericho:

It's amazing to me how the nay-sayers like you are commenting on this video saying that this man is Anti-America. He just spent 40 minutes explaining how different we ALL are and how we need to unite. He did not say Whites were wrong. He said it was WRONG to say that Blacks are wrong, uneducated or flawed because they are different. Did you hear the same speech? Or did you hear a quote or two and make a hurried decision as if spoon-fed by your TV?

This man is a former servant of this country. He does not hate America. He loves America, and he is an honest speaker about how people have been treated in this country. If you're missing that, you're simply ignoring the fact that there are people of color around you who do not feel fully embraced by America because there are not honest leaders who they can relate to. There are not enough people - teachers, leaders, etc. - around who validate the differences of all people.

And to add, the snippet quotes that the corporate media gave you over a month ago when you FIRST heard about Rev. Wright quotes him as saying "God %&@ Amerca". That's the snippet you heard. BUT the quotes leaves out that he actually said "God %&@ Amerca because she thinks she's God" as part of a larger speech. This is a point I've heard in White churches, perhape not verbatim, but this is not a foreign concept pointed out in religious circles - that our country can be so conceited at times and our actions domestic and abroad do not reflect the Godly love, culture-embracing society our leaders hypocritically promote. You need to get ALL the facts before you judge.

The media has completely taken his quotes out of context, which has angered people like you who don't want to see the full story - all you see is a crazy Black guy. You see deficient. You don't see different and you don't want to investigate to have an educated response. And taking it verbatim from the filtered media like dope addicts are just making yet another excuse to darken the obvious support from ALL races that is surrounding the All-American Barack Obama.

Times are changing and thank God, when President Obama begins his term in January, he will make wonderful change a reality for all people in this country. It would be a shame that if a moment like this costs Obama the presidency, all of you anti-Obama folks will allow a Corporate puppet like Hillary Clinton to take us down a slippery slope, or the good ol' boy John McCain to keep us in Iraq. It will be because of your fear and misunderstanding. And this country will never move past its divisions about race. We will never come together as Americans if you allow your racism to sway your choice.

TJ,
I can not believe you are that ignorant. Of course blacks should not get a free ride but the fact that blacks learn differently should be considered. If you recall the I.Q. test was discarded because it was unfair and it was acknowledged an I.Q. was based on community learning. For example: In one community Diva is use as an endearing term towards a woman. In another community a Diva is recognized as the songstress in an opera. 2 different outlooks but which one is wrong. should the one that does not understand the term diva was derived from the opera be failed in school when in his or her community this usage of the term is the norm.

This is how his speech or understanding is butchered. You want to disagree so badly you fight with any type of ignorance you can conger up.

There are so many things wrong with what Rev. Wright did in his speech that I don't know where to start and am not sure I can cover them all.

1. The theories of biological differences in learning, linguistics, and music are bogus. They have never been verified by real researchers or scientists.

2. Europeans did not use the diatonic scale with major and minor primarily until after Bach. Music before Bach was modal -- different scales with different relationships between notes. Furthermore, even after Bach, modal music is still written and frequently found in folk music. Just listen to Bulgarian dances or Hungarian religious music or Greek singing and it will be obvious.

3. The pentatonic scale is hardly exclusive to Africa. Ask Cantor Nate Lam or any learned Jewish music authority about the three main modes used in Jewish liturgical music.

4. As for rhythms, there is plenty of music influenced by African tradition that is in four/four with the first and third beats emphasized -- jazz is full of them. Likewise, although most music in the European tradition is in four/four, three/four (waltz), or six/eight, there is plenty that is in different time signatures. Again. look to the folk music of the middle ages throughout Europe -- Michael Praetorius, a 16th Century German -- catalogued lots of it, and most was neither in four/four nor in the major/minor diatonic that Wright referred to. Plus, what would Wright make of such as Stravinsky, Bartok, Schoenberg, all of whom were modern European composers? And if you want to hear things that violate all the supposed conventions Wright referred to, listen to parts of Wagner or Mahler.

5. Wright completely confused the linguistic principles with differences in dialect. Listen carefully to his speech and you will see what I mean.

6. Furthermore, while Noam Chomsky (referring to his pioneering work in linguistics not his political garbage) was pretty convincing in postulating an innate grammar imbedded in the brain, virtually everybody agrees that learning any specific language is environmental and not biological.

7. The idea that Africans have a different brain organization from Europeans is so dangerous that I'm shocked Wright didn't grasp the implications of his assertions. If Africans have a different brain organization, then it would be hopeless to attempt to educate them in math, science, engineering, and so forth -- all those things that require left brain skills. If Africans have a different brain organization, putting them into integrated schools is a disservice to them (because we are teaching them with wrong methods and expectations) and to the non-Africans who will be cheated out of proper attention because time is being wasted on a biologically futile quest to Europeanize African brains.

8. If his ideas are taken seriously, this means a two tier or at best a two track education system.

9. I strongly believe, and I think the scientific evidence is there to back it up, that there is more left/right brain difference within groups of children than there is between groups of children.

10. Wright basically asserted that there is inborn biological difference between those of European stock and those of African stock that culture and education cannot overcome. I believe that biology is important. I believe that culture -- deep culture -- is important. I believe that education is important. The balance among these elements is even more important. But the consequences of the view that there are innate biological differences that trump culture and education is very dangerous. I do not believe a civil society democratically constituted can withstand such a view. Democracy as we know it in America, that goes beyond mere plebiscite and extends to freedom of speech, of association, to reliable contracts, fair courts, rule of law, and the notion that no one should, on the basis of biological characteristics alone, be excluded from full citizenship rights, cannot withstand the notion that there are innate biological differences between races that trump our common culture and our universal standards of education.

The Jericho guy is what's call a "concern troll." Ignore him. He's a fake.

Maybe this is God's plan for this whole situation. Whether Obama wins or not, America has been challenged to really heal our racial issues. I see real HOPE! A real deep conversation has begun. Praise God from whom all blessings flow. God has heard the cries of the people. We are OK, just like we are. I'm OK and you're OK. We can learn to love one another, while appreciating our differences. Different, not deficient... Rev Wright doesn't hate white people, he is explaining to a diverse audience why black children hate themselves before they are six years old. He is explaining that if we view each other both white and black as different, but not deficient we can understand and appreciate each other. I love you, but first, I had to learn to love myself. I hope this makes sense. God bless America. Do not be afraid, but you are watching a miracle unfold, a prayer being answered, by which all of us (all of America) will be blessed if we get through the pain. God bless America!

Tony,
Can you imagine every teacher having to go and be retrained on how to teach according to brain type?
And we'd have to provide different text books to every student based on brain type. Can't teach a class if it's made up of a mixture of brain types. Classes would have to be segregated by brain type!
Sorry, but for all of you that think Wright is a genius, you're wrong. If you take what he says as truth and try to apply it to reality you get stumped because his thoughts can't be applied to reality.

this man is a true soldier of life. let this be a lesson to all who saw or rather an enlightment and opportunity to go fourth proudly with head held high, mind fine tuned , strong and well ready for the fight that is life in this world especially this place we call America. the time is here dont give up the fight for what is right.

TJ,
I'm black, and I scored 135 on my i.q. test in school. and I grew up in the inner city, poor as dirt. So I get offended when someone tells me that I somehow can't be as intelligent as a white person because of how I was raised culturally.

We treat others as we do because of the way we are, not because of the way they are.

1) Differences are important as far as education (everyone has an individual learning style, and yes, there are patterns based on demographic: age, sex, race) as far as medicine (certain drugs have markedly different effects for different demographics)and in many other facets of life
If we pretend they don't exist, then only the most popular solutions/techniques exist, marginalizing everybody who it doesn't really work for.

2) Both McCain and Clinton have associated themselves with people who have said or done things they don't support. Nobody has called for McCain has Parsley and Hagee, who he has not repudiated, nor has anyone asked. Clinton has Bill (who did some nasty stuff, not just said nasty stuff) and nobody demanded that she repudiate him, in fact, in some circles she gets points for loyalty. The connection of Wright to Obama is really based on the prejudicial view that all blacks are alike, and probably all know each other.

3) Wright's service and spirituality are sincere, and not spun. He could easily have come out and soft-pedaled, but that would not have been honest. For someone as obviously learned and smart as he is it is impossible to ignore too many black kids shot by police, too many black kids in schools that don't work, too many black kids in prison, too many black abortions, too few black faces in places where they serve as positive models. For every parent, white or black, that is mad that his kid doesn't get playing time, that his kid didn't get the scholarship, that his kid is in the back row, again, think about the patterns of recognition over the past century. or lack of it.
It's shocking Wright's not madder.It's shocking lots of folks aren't.

Tj,

Your an idiot.

Liam, you know why no one has called out McCain for his association with Hagee regardless of what the latter said? Because in the media's view, Obama is an easier target for supposedly being associated with hate. It's so unfair and so typically unfair to Black people and the Black church.

WOW!
Not only was I able to view this on CNN, but I was able to experience Dr. Wright at my church earlier today.

I almost cannot blame some of the negative comments towards him, because I know many people are just being introduced to Dr. Wright through the media's negative witch hunt.

Since I have known of and experienced his intelligence for years, I can say that today's speech truly represents the brilliance of this man. For those who took what they wanted and ran with it, I believe they went into it with an already closed mind ready to discount anything he said.

The problem is we think we have to agree with everyone in order for them to be right; however, we have to realize that we are all truly different. For too long this country has covered some of the ugly aspects of being an American, and if someone who is not "typical" to speak out against, the "typical" minds view them as whatever -ist word they can find. If more of us educated ourselves enough to recognize and understand the cultural differences, the more we can work to embrace them.

"The Truth Shall Set You Free." This man immerses himself in that in which He Believes, and which is the Only truth he Knows, the Only Truth ultimately worth knowing. This, his Faith, in turn simply defines his noble claim to existence, and ultimately his legacy here on earth as a notable human being and a spiritual leader to many. "This" is more than ANYONE with the gall to dissect this man's "essence" shall probably ever amount to while riding this third rock from the sun (but they COULD, if they stopped dissecting and started listening to his sermon and started Seeking True Change, starting within themselves first - Thoug Shall Not Judge).

So take note: This man takes no part whatsoever in succumbing to the circumstances of the times surrounding his controversy, nor is he held prisoner by it. He rose to the occasion as a true son of God and he spoke His Truth. To those expressing negative opinions about him before looking at the mirror first, please notice how worried and troublesome he was that you and the FOX washbrains feel so and so about this fellow human being's Religious Convictions. I think he's loosing constant sleep over it, endlessly worrying over the garbled noise and non-cohesive ennui coming out of those pop culture-handicapped brains of yours.

If this is how the majority of our country will decide who will be our next president, or if it is even one of the considerations, perhaps we all deserve what we get.

Looking at the history of the world we do seem to be heading in a weird direction right now that strongly indicates our love for ultimately destroying ourselves. The attitude of the illiterates posting here with arguments irrelevant to anything in particular only seem to reaffirm that.

If at the end of this (or the general) campaign Barack, the hands-down best candidate in this process loses, I hope he remains happy, upbeat and content, puts this whole thing behind him and goes on with his life to bigger and better things.

If I were Obama and I was chosen NOT to be a leader of a land where the majority of good, decent and vastly ignorant and set in their ways Americans do not wish to participate in the global changes undeniably unfolding on Earth in this time and place, I would feel OK with it.

I think this will ultimately help obama. How can hilary or mccain use the rev against obama after this speech? Its played 3 times in its entirety on CNN Today so all obama needs to do his reference it. I think hilary is going to have a real hard time using the wright "scandal" against obama with the super delegates now. I think they would have to be smarter and atleast a little more open minded than some of the ignorant people on this forum like jericho and Tj.

When you're black, and have grown up in the inner city you know Wright's talk is garbage. It's simple: all of my black friends that didn't graduate from high school did bad in school because they didn't care about their education. Only 15% of my class graduated from high school, why? Because no one cared about education. It had nothing to do with cultural differences that caused their brain to operate in a certain way.
Wright is giving excuses for many people that spent most of their time committing crime and smoking dope. And how do I know this? Because I saw it first hand growing up poor and black in America.

This is nonsense. The media sets the agenda and everyone in the country just falls in line arguing about none issues while America goes to hell in a hand basket. I am not sure that a society so unwilling to think critically deserves a candidate like Barack Obama, Mcain or Clinton. America is getting too dumb. Rev. Wright is not an issue people. Let's get back to health care, to the war, to education, to the sort of dialogue that is going to stop America's precipitous economic and cultural decline. We're allowing ourselves to get too dumb

Aeap,

LET ALL WHO PUT ON THEIR CAMO UNIFORMS TO FIGHT FOR THIS COUNTRY STAND UP,

LET ALL WHO HAVE BEEN TO WAR FOR THIS COUNTRY STAND UP,

LET ALL WHO HAVE LOST FRIENDS AND FAMILY BY THE HANDS OF AN ARMED ENEMY IN DEFENSE OF THIS COUNTRY STAND UP,

You say i do not deserve to be called an american, well i agree, i am a patriot who has and will STAND UP so people like you can SIT DOWN and complain about equal rights while drinking your triple latte. i am signing off, where i work revelee sounds at 0600!

Okay, Wright speech clearly required a few biology lessons.

Right and left brain dominance is cultural not biological.

Girls are more right-brained than boys; minorities are more right brained than caucasians. It is statistically, it is not every single person in an entire race.

You can study or teach in ways to match various learning styles. Right now in America they are trying to make teachers teach in ways to match more learning styles or encourage "whole brain" development. Like, one way for more right-brained is to use movement and role-playing. That is why Wright was saying how the black kids were more active in class: right-brain learns through analogies, movement, visuals. Left brain is through reading and calculations.

Wright and Obama are trying to inspire discussion of race; looking at how people don't understand brain hemispheres and learning styles, I think they should be trying to inspire discussion of biology.

I think we should all be thankful that the trolls are wasting their efforts here rather then harassing Trinity members in hospice.

I liked the speech. I disagreed with some of it - but overall I liked the speech.

I admire the man now - disagree with him (seriously) on some points but I now like and respect his views, even when they were different from mine.

But then what do I know. I'm a Canadian, an athiest and I'm white - so I guess that's three strikes, eh?

TJ, Wright has probably done more to take black kids off the streets and help them with their education that you ever will. Watch his Bill Moyers profile and all the things he does for the community, or shut up. People need to care about each other, haves need to help the havenots. Kids who have never grown up in disciplined environments have no role models to learn discipline from. Wright tries to provide them with these role models and a disciplined environment.

Oh, and no you don't have to test kids differently if they have different learning styles, you can just teach differently. Pick up a study skills book, there is always a chapter on left vs right brained. If you were smart you wouldn't have said so many dumb things here.

As a white man brought up in a racist family I've perpetuated the "deficiency" rationale most of my life. It's only in the last couple years I've been able to be more objective in my view of race, culture, religion, and so on. When I heard Rev. Wright's sound bytes I was shocked and appalled that he had a relationship with Obama, but now I understand it completely.

I'm ashamed that I fell into another trap laid by corporate media, another skewing of our world to support agendas. Rev. Wright is not a hater, he's an illustrator and this speech should be shown to all knowledgeable people across America, not so they can formulate opinions on Wright, but so they are exposed to this important and "descriptive" message.

I am a 43 year old white man with 2 bacheleors degrees and a Secondary Education teaching credential.

My opinion is that Reverend Wright is an extremely intelligent man and an excellent teacher. Lots of posts above against Wright's speech seem to be from folks who I bet came with a negative view of him already in their minds. They are close minded people. It's probably not worth anyone's time to try to argue with such people.

God bless Reverend Wright. Thank you, Reverend Wright for taking the time to try to educate us with this speech. I greatly appreciated the lesson's title: "different but not deficient".

You showed resepct for all people, and the ones who say you did not are just looking for something to be nergative about and to criticise you about.

On an entirely different subject, Barack Obama will be President because there are not enough ignorant people in the country that will form a majority that will vote for McCain instead. There are a lot of ignorant people in the country, but not enough this time to defeat Barack Obama. Not this time.

Finally we will have a truthful person as President, a man who cares about people of all colors and backgrounds, not just the rich.

Thank God!

Had to correct a few typos in the post I published earlier:

I am a 43 year old white man with 2 bachelors degrees and a Secondary Education teaching credential.

My opinion is that Reverend Wright is an extremely intelligent man and an excellent teacher.

Lots of posts above against Wright's speech seem to be from folks who I bet came with a negative view of him already in their minds. They are close minded people. It's probably not worth anyone's time to try to argue with such people.

God bless Reverend Wright. Thank you, Reverend Wright for taking the time to try to educate us with this speech. I greatly appreciated the lesson's title: "different but not deficient".

You showed respect for all people, and the ones who say you did not are just looking for something to be negative about and to criticise you about.

On an entirely different subject, Barack Obama will be President because there are not enough ignorant people in the country that will form a majority that will vote for McCain instead.

There are a lot of ignorant and racist people in the country, but not enough this time to defeat Barack Obama. Not this time.

Finally we will have a truthful person as President, a man who cares about people of all colors and backgrounds, not just the rich.

Thank God!

@earl: "Don't blame Rev Wright for causing a racial divide, blame yourself for not noticing that a racial divide exists."

*standing ovation*

Great quote, my friend.

What surprises me about the comments in this thread is the lack of consideration of the context of this speech. This is a black pastor speaking to an audience of black people historically told they are inferior, at an organization whose sole purpose is to combat that perception. OF COURSE he's going to contrast the way whites speak, or dance, or worship.

He's turning the same lens used to denigrate black culture onto white culture. When you look at white culture through that lens that presumes that different DOES mean deficient, you get a distorted caricature of the subject. That's the whole point!

And regarding the dig about the Irish ... listen again. That wasn't a dig against the Irish -- it was a dig against Bill O'Reilly.

One thing I do agree with though: This is going to hurt Obama more than help. Why? Because most Americans are too stupid to properly interpret the reverend's comments. They'll see the "making fun of Kennedy" clip, and some angry-black-man shouting, and draw the conclusion that Wright is a hate-filled racist, instead of the incredibly intelligent and all-inclusive guy that he seems to be.

When did lattes become the universal shorthand for all-talk-no-action?

Is there not a soldier on earth who digs a nice mocha?

Be serious, yall.

I see a major problem here in general. Both Barack Obama and Rev. Wright are far more intelligent than the usual familiar and more comfortable boneheads that talk to us about politics and religion and race - and many Americans - far behind their counterparts in Europe and Asia - are simply unable to follow them and keep up. The main obstacle that is holding this country back from listening such brilliant leaders is its obsession with ignorance.

The Obama spin is in full gear. Lipstick...Pig...

I will never forget Reverend God Damn America.

The Obama spin is in full gear. Lipstick...Pig...

I will never forget Reverend God Damn America.

I'm surprised so many commenters think that Wright's comments about differences in right/left brain, rhythms, etc. indicate those differences are biological. I haven't re-watched the whole speech to confirm this, but I'm pretty sure he is referring to cultural differences. That's the whole context of his speech -- the differences between the way different cultures do things.

I think this speech gives us two options: Either to judge his speech, OR take a higher ground by reasoning out his arguments. Surely each of us will pass different verdicts but we need to first of all forget about his analogies. Some were perfect, while others weren't. We all should take the theme of his speech "Different doesn't mean deficient" and reason out for ourselves what to belive.

I advise both Obama and Hillary Clinton's campaign not to spin Wright's argument, not to criticize nor support the argument. Rather both teams should throw this out to the greater American public and raise this to a stage of a National discourse as Obama attempted to do with his Race speech - Towards a more perfect union.

I have listened to the whole speech a third time tonight, and i think there is no better time to heal the world. I have decided to embrace every white,Indian, Asian, Chinese, African, African American, European, Arabic, Christian, Muslim, Jew, Atheist, straight, gays, lesbians, Democrats, Republicans, Independents - no matter how different they may be to me. I have come to see that we all are truly God's children, and a United States of America. I do not think the "United" in USA was a mistake - Out of many, One people.

God bless America. I love you all.

Rev. Wright's NAACP speech is elegant. Different just means different rather than deficient. I am not surprised that domesticated primates like Jericho, musgrrl, stud, Gino are not enlightened.

By the way, statistics is concerned with the collection and interpretation of quantitative data and the use of probability theory to estimate population parameters.

Rev. Wright's NAACP speech is elegant. Different just means different rather than deficient. I am not surprised that domesticated primates like Jericho, musgrrl, stud, Gino are not enlightened.

The Right/Left brain stuff is debatable. After all, statistics is concerned with the collection and interpretation of quantitative data and the use of probability theory to estimate population parameters.

I'm Hispanic and I know so much more of the African community than some of my friends of other diverse groups. Go to a Black church. You'll be singing and praying and you will feel the spirit! I loved the speech! It reminded me of MLK. This is not so much about us or Barack although we were privileged to hear the speech. He was speaking to the African American community.They should be aware of their history but proud of their heritage, their church and their community.We are all different yet equal.I loved the intro!
I taught for twent-six years. He is speaking the truth about the right/left brain.Yet there are the exceptions. To answer the person above, Hispanics learn in cooperative learning. I recommend these books:
Teaching with the Brain in Mind by Erick Jensen Right Brain Children in a Left-Brained World byJeffrey Freed and Laurie Parsons
Frames of Mind:The Theory of mulitple Intelligences
Teaching and learning through Multiple Intelligences Allyn and Bacon
There are seven styles of learning. Barnes and Noble has a plethora of books on this subject.
Rev. Wright has nothing to do with my choice as president.
I'm voting for Barack, NOT the Nuke Iran Obliterator or the man taking us to war for 100 Years.
the man that

I am not Rev Wright to know this for sure, but I assume that some of us who are angered at his speech might be missing the point. But if you are angered by something he said maybe I am not getting your point.lol

Look im not a Christian and I dont take the Bible literally, but I do see the goodness in the book. I do see how the book can help some. My point is that Rev Wright speech was meant to hurt people or devide people. I thought it was about how we all got to live on this earth so why are we judging each other. Why are we taking advantage of people or leaving people out because we are different. We are missing the goodness that we all have by doing that. We are diffrent people and lets show each other respect and not paint the whole world with the same broad brush. That’s what I got out of the speech. If you want to pick apart the speech word for word cool. But ask yourself if you really think he was making a hate speech again and if your answer is yes then you are right. I can’t judge you for that. Its your first amendment right.

holla

It would be an honor and so valuable to attend this man's church. He is a prophet.

Obama and his supporters along with Rev. Wright are a danger to America. I hope the worst for Obama and his supporters!!!

Truthfully i disagree with those who think Jeremiah Wright's speech today is a nail in Barack Obama's Presidential coffin. Never have i believed in Obama's candidacy than now. I personally think everyone should be judged by his or her own actions.
I just listened to this speech for the fourth time now. I feel inspired and motivated. I can now relate better to Obama's message of Hope and Change. I now understand why Obama would not throw this man under the bus when it was politically correct to do so. I now understand the reason most people connect with Obama's message of hope, despite some lack of Wasshington experience. I think i now understand better Obama's faith in the American people. I now understand the "something" about Obama that made him so unique and an excellent choice without concrete reasons.
I think there is a philosophical connection that attracted Obama to this man - high intellectual analysis, which transcends the level of reasoning of the average politician. I now reassess most of Obama's comments, and see the reason why he titled one of his books: "An Audacity of Hope", after one of Wright's sermon.
Just like MLK, i believe history shall judge Wright as a national hero who could relate change in a more concrete term for neutrals like myself. A change in attitude is what can make our great country regain its moral leadership around the world.

Marcus I agree Rev. Wright is a prophet... Too bad he is also stupid, hateful, and racist! I hope you go to his church and never come out, you fucking loser!

thank you for providing this - God bless you!

Yikes! Is TJ still there? Children learn better from humans- NOT lectures. They learn better from doing. No offense, but I can tell you know nothing of teaching children. As a teacher one has to know how a child learns, or you are not a good teacher.
Multiple Intelligences and Learning Styles - Emerging Perspectives on ...
Left Brain Right Brain Quiz
Funderstanding - Right Brain vs. Left Brain

Um, if I like, stay here and um, say "he's angry" then you'll believe me, not your eyes and ears, right?

And if I say he's racist and um, Obama is going to lose because of him, then, uh, repeat it elebenty seven times, you um, won't think I'm a troll but a brilloiant analyst and um, you'll all go and, um, vote for um, the angriest bully, John, uh, McCain.

Right?

Okie-dokie then.

::thud::

Stud,

Thanks, but I never asked you to join the military. If I felt my country was under attack I would defend it, don't try to guilt trip me.

"Just like MLK, i believe history shall judge Wright as a national hero who could relate change in a more concrete term for neutrals like myself. A change in attitude is what can make our great country regain its moral leadership around the world."

Thank you Emeka. I've already watched this speech THREE times. Great people inspire others to ascend to greatness. This speech by Jeremiah Wright is a firm testament to that.

HAHAHAHAHA SEAP he was not mocking Irish people. It was a not so subtle dig at O'reilly! I cant believe you didn't get it.

the only danger of this speech?

That some people are too stupid to understand it.

The things I'm reading here are shocking to me. There are people who don't understand when Wright is being metaphorical and when he's being sarcastic. He was mocking the Kennedy's? Are you even listening? HE WAS NOT MOCKING THE KENNEDIES. He was saying that they speak differently but no one would ever consider them deficient!

And I thought left vs right brained learning styles was common sense!! We all have the same brain. Kids, when they're toddlers, tend to use their whole brain. But then we go into the real world, and the way school is taught uses mostly the left brain, so you become more left-brained. Because different cultures emphasize different cognitive learning styles, kids raised in a certain way will have more dominance on one side of the brain than the other. Neither side is BETTER than the other. In fact, an aim of modern education is to make kids more "whole brained', because right now our education is too focused on the left, so that kids who don't use the left so much seem stupid when really they are not.

And duh, no, not one race is entirely in one side, but different cultural groups TENDS to be more to one side. TENDS.

Girls also tend to be more right-brained than boys, which is why people wonder if the left-brain focused science and math curriculum just isn't being designed well for them. The new york times had a story on this recently, about how maybe you should teach differently for boys vs girls. Thank God Wright didn't go into that. Otherwise he would totally be misogynistic too, huh?

Wright clearly overestimated the intelligence of his audience.

Add to this:

THE IRISH JOKE WAS A DIG AT O'REILLY. GOD DAMN!! SOME PEOPLE ARE STUPID! NO WONDER BUSH GOT ELECTED

VMorris, I am sure that Native Americans will never forget God damn America either...

VMorris I am sure that Native Americans will never fortget God Dman America either...

mssgrl,

Who cares what side of the brain you learn from? Yes, he makes generalizations. We all know we are unique and different. The culture that we live in might have some values that might shape us, but it's up to us. His whole message is - when we see someone different from us, we just view them as just that - different, not deficient, as in 'something wrong w/ them'.

I was impressed w/ his speech. The press does an injustice to him by just portraying him in soundbites.

mssgrl,

Who cares what side of the brain you learn from? Yes, he makes generalizations. We all know we are unique and different. The culture that we live in might have some values that might shape us, but it's up to us. His whole message is - when we see someone different from us, we just view them as just that - different, not deficient, as in 'something wrong w/ them'.

I was impressed w/ his speech. The press does an injustice to him by just portraying him in soundbites.

Since Rev. Wright's speech is on the Internet, those who do not understand the concept of his speech should take notes while listening and once the speech is over do some research to better understand the meaning and the man.
What I am getting from Rev. Wright's speeches, is passing on information that is a part of the history of America. A part of history that has been left out of every history book that has been written. We have a choice, either we accept the information or we reject it. If we accept the information, we as a nation will move forward and leave a better nation to our children and grandchildren. If we reject the information, our children and grandchildren will rehash the same issues that we are facing today.
My grandmother use to say "we can learn something from anyone." But we have to be open-minded to receive the message.

There are a number of news personnal and bloggers who describe Rev. Wright as being hateful and a racist. When I listen to people speak and some of the words in the message are not clear, I use my Webster's New World Dictionary and Thesaurus for clairfication of those words for a better understanding of the message. I decided to use the dictionary to define racist for those who feel they are describing Rev. Wright. According to my dictionary a racist is(a.) supremacist, favoring racism, bigoted: see conservative, prejudiced. The definations: supremacist, conservative, and prejudiced. 1) supremacist - one who believes in the supremacy of a particular group. (supremacy - domination, mastery, supreme authority: see Power) 2) conservative: tending to conserve, tending to preserve established institutions; opposed to change, moderate; cautious. 3) prejudiced - preconcieved, usually unfavorable idea, an opinion held in disregard of facts that contridict it; bias, intolerance or hatred of other races.

Rev. Wright is a well learned man who is an expressive speaker. A man who should be respected for the service he has given to this country, and for the thirty years of service he has given to his community. How many hateful, racist people give a lifetime of service to others?

I have a saying "You can't see in me what you don't have in you."

White people are running scared, because for once there are intelligent black leaders coming out and they are pointing out things wrong with this country...and they're right.

The times, they are a changin'

The real problem we face with this issue and in America today is the fear of retribution and the denial of reality. A large portion of white America is in denial about the level of racism that still exist within themselves and within America as a whole. They are in denial about the severity of the influence of America’s racist, brutal and bias acts that have occurred in our distant and not so distant past. At the same time, White Americans realize that serious wrongs have been done and are fearful that they will somehow have to pay for their transgressions.

That truly sad part is that they don't really get it. As we always have done, Black Americans as a whole are Americans first. We don't deny our Blackness or our past, but we strive to overcome and are still fighting as a whole to be treated fairly and given an equal opportunity to succeed. Barack Obama's message personifies the message of Black America which should personify the message of America. If we all work together on equal foundation America as a whole will be lifted to heights that we have never seen, but always knew we could achieve. There is nothing wrong with the rich getting richer, but that should happen as everyone one gets richer and not at the expense of the masses which has nothing to do with color. That is just pure economics. Until we become our brother's keeper, we will continue along this path to nowhere! Obama '08!

The real problem we face with this issue and in America today is the fear of retribution and the denial of reality. A large portion of white America is in denial about the level of racism that still exist within themselves and within America as a whole. They are in denial about the severity of the influence of America’s racist, brutal and bias acts that have occurred in our distant and not so distant past. At the same time, White Americans realize that serious wrongs have been done and are fearful that they will somehow have to pay for their transgressions.

The truly sad thing is that they don't really get it. As we always have done, Black Americans as a whole are Americans first. We don't deny our Blackness or our past, but we strive to overcome and are still fighting as a whole to be treated fairly and given an equal opportunity to succeed. Barack Obama's message personifies the message of Black America which should personify the message of America. If we all work together on equal foundation America as a whole will be lifted to heights that we have never seen, but always knew we could achieve. There is nothing wrong with the rich getting richer, but that should happen as everyone one gets richer and not at the expense of the masses which has nothing to do with color. That is just pure economics. Until we become our brother's keeper, we will continue along this path to nowhere! Obama '08!

the right brain common is true. i am african american and went to all white schools from age 5-21. and i did learn by using creative side of my brain. i was a biology, chemistry and nursing student.

i used pictures, charts and great hearing to learn, which are right brain ways of learning.

Obviously i had to read tons of books, and I represented the information in symbols...so yes..that is true!!!

did i mention that i was a dean' list student and graduated w/ a 3.7 GPA

I am a white man who has supported Obama financially and with my vote.

Reverend Wright is an eloquent speaker who is doing his parishoners, race and the NAACP in general. He took what was a stirring and emotional speech and turned it into a farce by twisting the accent with which Kennedy delivered his innagural address (with lines such as "Let both sides explore what problems unite us instead of belaboring those problems which divide us.")

I listened to the actual audio from Kennedy's innagural address (which Reverend wright should have done before making his ill considered comment) and found that Kennedy clearly said ASK in clear English. No need to know how to spell EEEask because that is NOT what Kennedy said.

This speech could have been viewed as an elloquent call to change rather than an insulting parody of one of our greatest presidents and one of the world's top 100 speeches. Reverend Wright is indeed an intelligent man. He needs to engage that intelligence before making false statements and using them to justify ignorance.

I really don't want Hillary as my candidate but my main man Obama needs to step up and at least correct the facts. I actually agree with mcuh of what Reverend Wright said, unfortuanately he inserted a lie (not an opinion, listen to the speech) and then used it to divide white and black america along the lines of language.

i guess now we can say SHAME on all you foul talkers and haters of wright and Obama.truth hurt and i know you feel the heat and hurt because he is a man of truth and speaks the truth without fear

Obama Man I think you are missing the point and probably taking what he said a bit too personally in that regard. He was simply trying to state that, yes, one of our greatest and most beloved presidents did have an accent, but we loved him anyway, and would never ever think any less of him for speaking the way he did. Therefore, we shouldn't judge others based on such things. His point being, “Different does not mean deficient…”.

I believe we are witnessing history. The fact that there have been so many discussions on topics that would never be talked about prior to this controversy, allows me to hear different people's perspectives and begin to gain a better understanding of others. I can understand where the negative and positive commenters are coming from. I will say this, Rev Wright studied, along with bringing a wealth of prior knowledge and experiences with him to this speech and gave his conclusion and explanation of how DIFFERENT is perceived. How can I knock the man for this, he is using his brain, he is trying to understand.
Everyone is so quick to believe they have the right answer. For this reason I am no longer a conservative, because conservatives see one way, a right wing blueprint and see anything different as wrong when the nature of liberal thinking is to have a better understanding of issues and attack them in a way as seen from different vantage points.
Rev Wright is a human being so please stop condemning this man for using his brain and commenting the same as many of you have commented. All i ask is that before you comment you do as much research as this man did. Because I did not research nearly as much as he did I can neither agree or disagree with his statements, but I can appreciate them and look more into them.
And please stop trying to make Wright and Obama one person. I have no reason to believe that Mr. Obama has the unability to think on his own. If he is anything like me then he can listen to another man talk about anything and take what he wants out of it. I can definitely see Rev Wright having the capability of interpreting and translating the bible in an interesting way, but I would have to go to his church on numerous occasions to say definitely. The truth is none of us know anything about this man still. Obama probably knows him best from sitting in his church for 20 years, but that is only the preacher side, but it's more than any of us.

Rev Wright' speech is on C-span 2 right now, He reminds all passionate speech is an art form and he is an absolute master orator. It is refreshing to listen to his speech as he is not afraid to say what needs to be said and HEARD.
Thank you for posting this speech

BTW he is now on the National Press club Live on C-Span 2.

THE PEOPLE THAT SAID HE IS RACIST WERE NOT GOING TO VOTE FOR OBAMA ANYWAY. IF YOU INTERPRETED HIS SPEECH AS RACIST YOU ARE REALLY A CLOSET RACIST

A minister does not make a man nor does a church. You have to understand that racism is a real problem within this country. As a Catholic, I have attended church for almost 40 years, and I still have a problem with some of their viewpoints, and yet I will be a Catholic until I die. You all know deep in your hearts that a minister in a church does not shape a man, especially a man that is a product of so many cultures. You have to remember, the powers within this country wants to keep us apart, keep the races at war with one another, only then can they truly control us. Obama is an amalgamation of black, white, Indonesian, and Hawaiian cultures. He is America! Only a man that has been molded in this fashion can repair the image of America around the world and heal the rift within this country between the various races. Using the antiquated theory of Reverend Wright, he is blessed with the ability to use both sides of his brain and represents a fresh breath in Washington’s stagnant air. If you happen to subscribe to the idea that a man you see for a couple hours on Sunday can shape your character then how about a man you are married to. Bill Clinton is a habitual liar whose main talent is deception and manipulation. He lied to the nation without even blinking and has had numerous affairs. He strongly supported NAFTA and is receiving donations from Islamic extremists as we speak. What about Whitewater? Lets be fair, if we are to say that a minister shapes your character then we must question the character of Hillary. I am amazed that people never mention all the questionable affairs of the Clintons. From Hillary’s lover that committed suicide while she was with Bill to the federal files found illegally in her office during the impeachment of Nixon. When will we give her the same scrutiny we are giving Obama. Lets be fair!

Clearly he believes some stuff that isn't true. That might be hurtful to white America. Whatever. What I take away from this speech is his resilience. He won't back down because more than Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, or John McCain, Rev. Wright has changed his world. The man is accomplished in a way that the vast majority of national politicians aren't.

Reverend Wright expended much of his speech explaining how European-Americans and African-Americans learn differently. Who can dispute that most of our learning comes originally via our senses with the final interpretation of the brain? Take our auditory system for example. Do we hear and interpret the same thing when listening to the same person? According to Wright, yes. Later in his speech, when he mimics JFK's dialect, he presumes that Whites and Blacks hear and interpret the same thing. But to my ears and at least one other responder on this site, JFK's words were completely lucid. To sum up Wright, we all hear and interpret (our brain at work) the same thing yet we learn differently. Reverend Wright unintentionally contradicts his own self.

I haven't listened to all of Rev. Wright's speech but I have to say I enjoyed what I heard. When he did the impersonation of Pres. JF Kennedy, I just smiled - it's a pretty good impersonation! And his point was that the accents of white American's are accepted while the accents of black American's are frowned upon. He wasn't mocking these presidents. People who are so used to the sanitized yet insanely divisive news reportage coming from FOX or MSNBC or ABC cannot appreciate the authenticity of a speaker like Rev. Wright. We've gotten so used to highly processed junk news and speech that we can't digest the organic truth. Some of you will leap on this and say, 'organic? yeah, you mean BS.' But you who do that are probably the same people who can't think deeper than the sound-bites your brain has become programmed to accept. I don't completely buy Rev. Wright's description of the right-brain, left-brain learning styles of ALL AfricanAmerican/EuroAmerican children. I think there may be some truth to it, but in fact, as a teacher of many years and a life-long learner, I know that there are many different learning styles within and amongst ethnic groups. For example I am a more right-brained, intuitive learner but I'm white. Is that because I grew up in a predominantly black neighborhood? Is it because my parents were first generation East European Jews? Or is it also genetic? My father was very left-brained, my mother the more creative one. Is there gender involved? I think that Rev. Wright over simplifies things when he describes learning styles this way. Nevertheless, overall I can tell that the problem people have with Rev. Wright is they can't stand to hear the truth. He tells it like it is, for the most part and how it is is too much for most American's to stomach.

what more does Rev. Wright have to say? Jericho and others but your feelings INSIDE where they are safer and LISTEN to what Rev. Wright is saying. He was not talking about hating white people he said we need to respect people's differences. In a 4/4 timed song, you clap 1-3, I clap 2-4...that is a true difference.

I love this man! He is not afraid to speak the truths that so many Americans (black and white) want to keep hidden!

It is time to change our ways of thinking. Because someone doesn't function like the majority of people FEEL they should does not make them deficent. It seems to label difference as a deficent is an easy way to deal with the "problem" rather than taking time out to understand and adjust.

A change is going to come.

For those of you who watch this ENTIRE speech in it's ENTIRE context and still have negative things to say about Rev. Wright, that is your issue. Instead of blaming Preisdent Obama(LOL) and Rev. Wright for being racist and un-American, maybe you need to look in the mirror at yourselves. You have the problem, not Obama and not Rev. Wright.

A Change Is Going To Come!

Amala [9:58AM] writes that the reason that people dislike the ravings of Rev.Wright is that "they can't stand to hear the truth"

A couple of points to teach the teacher a bit: Accents and grammar are different things. Perhaps you and the good Rev. should look them up. Accents do not excuse poor grammar. Perhaps you should look at "code switching" in some of your teaching handbooks. Not teaching acceptable forms of speech and writing does a disservice to all students.

If someone's is born in the United States, that person is not an immigrant. An immigrant is someone who migrates to another country. Is it possible that your school does not carry dictionaries or is it more likely that you do not know how to use one? As a suggestion, because words have actual meanings, looking at words you do not understand in dictionaries can be very handy in deciding the truth of statements. [Perhaps you should pick one up.] Because words have actual meanings, it is easy to see that Rev. Wright is wrong [lying?] and that being born in the United States makes being an immigrant here impossible. As a "teacher" and "life-long learner" you should be ashamed of yourself for not knowing this very basic fact.

Wright chanted that Arabic is a language and not a religion over and over at one point. This tactic is a rhetorical fallacy known as the straw-man fallacy. This technique, by definition, gives false views to a real or imagined opponent solely to create the appearance that one's own views are better/more defensible than they actually are or to draw attention away from an issue at hand. I have never heard anyone suggest that Arabic is a religion and would bet that you have not either. Suggesting that people who disagree with Obama or Wright hold such a ridiculous view is a technique of lies meant to paint them as fools. Not understanding this fact and arguing the truth in the statement clarifies exactly who the fool is.

Painting people who disagree with Rev. Wright [a person who frequently expresses some uplifting ideas that may actually have had some value were they not overshadowed by the hatred that is being spread along with them] is weak-minded at best.

I feel sorry for the children whose minds you play a part in shaping.

Obviously those of you whom were unable to formulate positive motives and intentions from watching & listening to this speech have not been looking around over the course of the last few years..simply stating facts is all