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RSS icon Comments on Obama's Turban

1

Traditional garbs must be banned. From everywherez.

Posted by Mr. Poe | February 26, 2008 8:39 AM
2

Agree, @1. It would be more interesting if we all go naked.

Posted by Fun | February 26, 2008 8:44 AM
3

who cares either way or in any way but what are the candidates' ideas for helping improve the situation in Kenya that might be of interest.

Posted by ouch | February 26, 2008 8:45 AM
4

Sorry, but if you're looking for sympathy for ragheads here, you've come to the wrong guy.

Posted by Fifty-Two-Eighty | February 26, 2008 8:46 AM
5

I don't know about your question, Eli, but the Clinton Camp response drives me insane. "No one would care if Clinton was in a turban!" is bullshit because no one is spreading rumors about her being a moslem.

Unfortunately, the fucking MSM will leave it at that without challenging the lie. And no one will care...

Posted by Mike in MO | February 26, 2008 8:49 AM
6

I don't think the Hillary camp thinks Obama is really a Muslim or a terrorist sympathizer. They don't even believe it's ethical to exploit the prejudices of others to win the nomination. It's just that they've become so deeply committed to the perceived righteousness of their cause that they -- when thinking as a group -- can convince themselves that any act in the service of their cause is allowed.

If you were to separate a Hillary operative from the others and try to reason with them, they would probably wake up. But immersed in the "Hillary cult", as I call it, they become divorced from not only reality, but divorced from their own independent sense of right and wrong.

Posted by elenchos | February 26, 2008 8:49 AM
7

I am more bothered by Bush holding hands with the Saudi men myself. I mean he claims to be straight!! Yeah right; straight to bed!

Posted by Andrew | February 26, 2008 8:49 AM
8

Its been out since yesterday that the photo was spreading around the usual right wing chain letter circuit. Drudge put it up for shits and giggles as he tends to do, and implied somebody from the Clinton campaign sent it. Because he is a right wing asshole.
The Clinton campaign was too mixed-up and disorganized to send out their flat denial first, before that obtuse Maggie Williams statement. Big mistake. However the "Hillary is eeeeeeeeeevil!" faction would rather jump all over Clinton than admit they were fooled by Drudge. Did I mention he's an asshole?

Posted by anna | February 26, 2008 8:50 AM
9

Naked is the new traditional garb.

Posted by Mr. Poe | February 26, 2008 8:50 AM
10

Hey gang, lets ask that old racist gun nut for sympathy! Yeah! He's a crusty old bigot, but I bet if we ask really nicely he will share his thoughts with us!

Posted by elenhcos | February 26, 2008 8:56 AM
11

notice the flag pin, though. it's there on his t shirt, barely visible under one of those quasi-suspender pieces.

see, he DOES love 'murka.

Posted by max solomon | February 26, 2008 8:58 AM
12

I think it's interesting that we've arrived at muslim=smear without anybody questioning it. I can understand how a muslim would never be elected, just like a mormon, a bhuddist or any number of religions that are not protestant derived. But is a turban really a smear?

Posted by Henrietta | February 26, 2008 9:05 AM
13

This is the traditional garb in some countries. It is not just Muslims who wear it.

Posted by A teaching moment | February 26, 2008 9:14 AM
14

13 didn't read the slog post! hahahahhaaha

did you like the purdy pitchures?

Posted by what. a. bitch. | February 26, 2008 9:23 AM
15

@13-that's what eli said. also, the people who are fooled into thinking that obama is a terrorist shouldn't be voting anyway; and if they do it's for mccain.

Posted by manic preacha | February 26, 2008 9:25 AM
16

Shhh, she's teaching.

Posted by Mr. Poe | February 26, 2008 9:28 AM
17

14, are you referring to someone as a bitch? Sexist!

Posted by Shame | February 26, 2008 9:29 AM
18

Tip of the iceberg.

Obama's bio and his entire family and their antecedents will be reported in detail in weeks and months to come.
Just having lived abroad, having close relatives abroad, being part of a family that is part Asian and part African, and part American, is very new and interesting. It's one of Obama's selling points and he said foreign linkages give him a better understanding of how foreigners see US policy. Typically we know everything about a president's family (Clinton's nee Blythe's oedipal smackdown of his step dad; Bushie history going back to Clipper ships and Skull and Bones rituals), so expect the same of Obama and his Kansan AND Kenyan and Indonesian connections and relations.

I fully expect People magazine to have a cover showing his living Kenyan relaties pretty soon with penetrating questions like
"what is your favorite US movie?"
"Do you think US foreign policy is on the right track?"
"what should the US president do about the situation in Kenya?"

and "are you proud to have a relative running for president in the USA and you agree that makes us a great country, right?"

This data set will be a plus for some voters and a negative for others.

Posted by unPC | February 26, 2008 9:31 AM
19

There was a Sikh cabbie attacked in Seattle just a couple of months ago by a shithead shouting "Osama bin Laden".

Sikhs aren't even Muslim.

Posted by Fnarf | February 26, 2008 9:32 AM
20

haha...what a douchebag. he's such a KNOB!

Posted by Emily | February 26, 2008 9:34 AM
21

The difference between Obama wearing a turban and Hillary dressing up in traditional muslim clothing is that Hillary is whiter than the day is long, and unlikely to be mistaken for a muslim. Obama's got the non-whiteness and Hussein middle name, which coupled with the photo makes a nice little smear.

Of course, people who actually believe in this sort of thing are idiots and people who act in violence on this kind of information (like the poor non-muslim Sikh attacks) are the worst kind of idiots. My worst nightmare is being surrounded by a mob of people who are moronic and violent, because they can't be reasoned with. As long as we keep them separated, I think we'll be ok.

Posted by bearseatbeats | February 26, 2008 9:44 AM
22

@18

If I went around saying Hillary was unelectable because the right will attack her with sexist stereotypes, you would say I'm reinforcing the glass ceiling. You would say that if I'm exploiting other people's prejudice for my own benefit, then I myself am invested in the institutions of sexism.

But for some reason you're allowed to use other people's bigotry against Obama. For some reason, it's allowed for team Hillary to cynically use racism and chauvinism to their own advantage without they themselves being called racist ad chauvinist.

And now you're going say, "Oh, I didn't mean anything. I was just innocently pointing out some unfortunate facts." No doubt you deplore this state of affairs, but hey? It helps Hillary, so why not?

Posted by elenchos | February 26, 2008 9:47 AM
23

This response from the Obama camp so retarded. It's just like his answer to the "Muslim" question at the California debates. He wore the turban on a visit to Kenya. Members of his family are Muslim. Neither should be considered a "smear" and he should be willing to stand up and say so.

Posted by josh | February 26, 2008 9:51 AM
24

america dumb. think turban is angry hat. i am manbitch.

Posted by superyeadon | February 26, 2008 9:52 AM
25

Clinton (through Wolfson) has denied having anything to do with this. Haters are relying on the word of Matt Fucking Drudge.

If we learn later anything to discredit Wolfson's statement, fine, but until then calm down.

Posted by Big Sven | February 26, 2008 9:56 AM
26

i read (and I can't remember where, sorry) that this outfit came from a somali-kenyan group on the border, no idea of religious affiliation.

Posted by Jiberish | February 26, 2008 10:13 AM
27

For what it's worth, much of northeastern Kenya is inhabited by Somali nomads. The Clinton camp was right that this is traditional Somali clothing. Newsflash, but the political borders in Africa don't correspond to tribal and cultural borders.

And yes, many Somalis are Muslim.

Posted by ksm206 | February 26, 2008 10:18 AM
28

Big Sven @ 25 -- Wrong you are! Anyone named "Clinton" is guilty of anything anyone says, anywhere ... and any attempt to raise objections to this immutable law is further confirmation of their perfidy.

Posted by RonK, Seattle | February 26, 2008 10:18 AM
29

@18 - Obama talks about this family history from this father's side in his autobiography. I'm sure the press will probably interview his relatives though. I do wanna see how beautiful his sistors are since one is full Kenyan and the other is 1/2 white and 1/2 Indonesian.

Posted by apres_moi | February 26, 2008 10:31 AM
30

Saying this is a Muslim turban isn't necessarily correct at all. Somalis are mostly Muslim, but turbans are in a ton of different countries and have different meanings in different countries and contexts. In Iran, a black turban indicates that you're a high ranking imam, and a descendant of Muhammed. If you're Sikh, it's just to control the hair that you're forbidden to cut, which is meant to make you identifiable as a Sikh, and therefore force you to act when you see injustice. In some places, it's just decorative, akin to a baseball cap here. I have no idea what this one means.

Posted by Gitai | February 26, 2008 10:38 AM
31

What I like about this election is that it's bringing to surface all the "-isms" that aren't usually discussed anymore. Zenophobia and Racism are definitely coming up alot now.

Of course, the main thing will be to tell middle america and all the "Bubbas" and "Bubbettes" (my HS band teacher in SC would call girls who's name he didn't know that) that Obama's not a Muslim and that whenever diplomats visit other countries it's customary that they wear the local cultural clothing that's being asked by the locals to wear. Refusing to do so is an insult to the country she/he's visiting. If this was Bush or Clinton wearing this, then no one would give a damn because they're white.

The main issue that really needs to be discussed is that Americans don't go overseas like citizens of other 1st-World developed nations do. From a young age, Aussies, Canadians, Kiwis (NZ), Brits, and EU citizens are encourage to open their minds by going overseas. Americans?? Well we're told that if we want to see the world that 1. Go Join the Military 2. Win the lottery or strike it rich somehow. 3. Wait until you're retired. To the mind of most Americans traveling is left to the rich and priviledged. When someone outside of that group does travel, they belittle them labeling them as too good for their kind, saying how lucky and privedlged they are and to basically stay in the country and get their head out of the clouds and get back to being a "productive" American by working long hard hours. We're not taught or encouraged to save our money to travel. Instead we're told we should save our money to buy the next new technological gadget, nice car, or something frivolous. Not encouraging the average citizen to travel the world, even if it's to places throughout America, the Caribbean, Canada or Latin America, makes most Americans close-minded and not able to know that the world exists.

So what does this have to do with the row concerning Obama's photograph. It's the way that the 85-90% of Americans that don't even possess a passport perceive of that photo. If most Americans can't name and locate the 7 continents on a map, then that's one of the major concerns of this nation for the 21st century.

Posted by apres_moi | February 26, 2008 10:55 AM
32

It just makes Obama look like an oversized Oompa-Loompa

Posted by NapoleonXIV | February 26, 2008 11:29 AM
33

I have a pic of Sen Clinton wearing the Habib - the long black cloak dress where you can only see her eyes.

Except it's kind of hard to tell it's her.

She's standing next to McCain with the Saudi princes.

Posted by Will in Seattle | February 26, 2008 11:33 AM
34

I love Obama. When he wins, he'll put all the rednecks in camps.

Posted by superyeadon | February 26, 2008 11:36 AM
35
Posted by NapoleonXIV | February 26, 2008 11:40 AM
36

Apres-moi, Americans are more likely than French or Brits to go overseas, I'm pretty sure. Beach trips to Benidorm, or hen and stag parties to Prague don't count. The French are the most insular people around, and most Brits have never been to the large cities just a few miles from where they live. Aussies and kiwis, yeah, they travel more than anyone.

Posted by Fnarf | February 26, 2008 1:08 PM
37

I love the BBC. They explain that what he's wearing is non religious. It's just traditional Somali Normadic clothing -
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7265115.stm

These are the normal clothes that nomadic people wear.

The head turban is especially used by elderly people as a suggestion of respect. It is something that has no meaning whatsoever in Somalia culture.

If you see someone dressed like that in Somalia, you think it is a nomadic person - that is all.

There is no religious significance to it whatsoever. It is mainly the nomadic people who use it. Some of them are religious, some are not.

It is simply a tradition of the place where they are from.

In this particular place, Wajir in north-east Kenya, the community is majority ethnic Somali.

They have a council for Peace and Development, and when they get delegates they dress them as a nomadic person.

I have been trying to track down the old man in the photo with Mr Obama, and I have been told he is Mohammed Hassan, the chair of the council itself. But he is not in town today, and we could not get hold of him.

This debate reminds me of people back home in Somalia, who say that women should not wear trousers, or other cultures who say men should not wear a tie. I just don't think it makes sense.

Posted by apres_moi | February 26, 2008 1:42 PM
38

Okay, America--here's your chance to disprove all those stereotypes that you're a bunch of xenophobic racist ethnocentric redneck ignoramuses. Or that you can even conduct a relatively fair presidential election (after two very questionable ones).

The whole world is watching...

Posted by Andy Niable | February 26, 2008 2:04 PM
39

I'm kind of surprised that I'm the first to point this out, unless I missed it in the above comments, but did no one else find Eli's closing questions, "Wrong country, wrong underlying religion, and, of course, wrong potential outrage?" ridiculous? As though there is a right country, a right religion, and, of course, right potential outrage?

Posted by johnnie | February 26, 2008 2:32 PM
40

The Muslim question is the new Jewish question...

Posted by UpRight | February 26, 2008 2:50 PM
41

This is so typical of a Stranger post regarding anything to do with religion...but especially anything that hints at Islam or what is condescendingly referred to as "traditional cultures." A bunch of hipsters who say offensive things to be ironic. A bunch of hipsters who wish Seattle was in Scandanavia and want to forget this nation's history of racism or xenophobia...or don't want it mentioned constantly...or just enjoy mocking it when people mention it because "sensitivity" is what's mainstream in Seattle. And then there are the bigots who say whatever and the hipsters think they're better than because....I'm not sure why.

Posted by Wow | February 26, 2008 2:57 PM
42

And then there are those who look down their noses and bloviate to no apparent purpose whatsoever.

It's all good.

Posted by NapoleonXIV | February 26, 2008 3:01 PM
43

Hey NapoleonXIV, "Bloviate" me. How's that? Bit more succinct, yes?

Posted by Wow | February 26, 2008 3:04 PM
44

If you think Americans are ignorant of different nations outside the U.S., they are just as ignorant of the Native people in the U.S. We all supposedly lived in tipis and wore warbonnets. This is even more embarrassing, they live here and don't even know their own history!

Posted by Kat Campbell | February 27, 2008 1:16 PM
45

Barack Obama's campaign reminds me and several others of the movie "The Omen". He dosen't have a son named Damien does he??????????

Posted by Sassy | March 3, 2008 12:47 PM

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