Dear Friends & Family,

As the presidential election draws near, I am struck by the strongly
negative tone it has taken these last few weeks. It
seems that the politics of character assassination has been a
hallmark of this campaign. This has been true on both sides, though I
think that the McCain/Palin team has taken it to an extraordinary
level, perhaps out of desperation. I got into a political discussion
this past weekend. The person I was
talking with said to me, with a look of horror on his face, "You
know, he [Obama] is a Muslim! I immediately found myself refuting
the absurd inaccuracy of that rumor, which McCain supporters have
been doggedly pushing, despite the fact that Barack Obama is, by his
own declaration, and by all evidence of his very public life, a
Christian. What I should have added (and I kick myself for not
taking the opportunity) is, "but what if he was a Muslim?"

John McCain, at a recent rally, chided an overzealous supporter for
calling Sen. Obama an Arab. McCain took the microphone away from the
woman and said, "No ma'am, he's a good and decent family man. You
don't have to be afraid of him." I was shocked by both this woman's
ignorance, and at McCain's response, which was intended as an
attempt to tone down the negativity in his campaign rhetoric. I'll
give him the benefit of the doubt. It was good of him to defend
Obama's honor, but McCain did not address the more important
questions. That is, What's wrong with being an Arab, and what
difference should it make whether a presidential candidate is a
Muslim? Are we to infer that all Muslims are terrorists? What about
the 2.8 million Muslim-Americans across the nation? (statistics vary
from 2-7 million) This is America, where anyone can grow up to be
president. That is what we have been taught all our lives, at least.

I could not easily find stats on how many American Muslims are
actually U.S. citizens, but one must assume that out of such a large
population that it must be a fairly huge number. The vast majority
of these are hard-working law-abiding people who, like most everyone
else, are busy pursuing the American Dream. Many of them are
enlisted men and women, fighting our wars, defending us against our
enemies. I cannot imagine how insulting and hurtful it must be to
them to be branded as terrorists! This kind of hatred and fear is
extremely dangerous. It is the kind of thinking that led our
government to incarcerate Japanese-American citizens in concentration
camps during WWI. (many Italian-American and German-Americans were
also held in detention facilities during that war) It is the kind of
thinking that led to the slaughter of six million Jews at the hands
of the Nazis. Is this where we are headed in America?

I was finally relieved to hear Colin Powell articulate these very
thoughts when he endorsed Barack Obama on Meet the Press. He also gave a very thoughtful and well-reasoned rationale for his endorsement. I am including a short video clip of that interview. You can watch it here:
http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/19/powell-endorses-obama/?hp

I am also including a link to what may be the best editorial I've yet
read that debunks some of the myths that have been circulating about
this campaign, the distinctions between the two presidential
candidates, how the policies of the last eight years have brought us
to the dismal state of affairs that we now find ourselves in, and the
dangers that we face should those policies be extended another four
years. Thanks to my good friend Jan for sending this article from
the New Yorker.
http://www.newyorker.com/talk/comment/2008/10/13/081013taco_talk_editors

And, just for fun, here's a link to a very funny Doonesbury
comic strip that was in the Sunday Boston Globe recently, which really nails it! Thanks to Jacki for pointing it out to me. I should read the funny papers more often!
http://www.doonesbury.com/strip/dailydose/index.html?uc_full_date=20081012

Best,
Willie T