"The Obama bullshit machine"
Chapter 1 - Bill Ayers.
*sigh*
People on the right are having a ball accusing Obama of "palling around with terroristS" (plural). These "people" include, but are not limited to, Faux "News" and the Republican Presidential ticket itself.
Let's forget for a second that they refer to "terroristS" (I guess "pals around with a terrorist--singular" isn't scary enough), and instead examine who, exactly, is William Ayers.........the linchpin of this bullshit claim.
William Charles Ayers (born December 26, 1944) is an American elementary education theorist and former 1960s anti-war activist. He is known for the radical nature of his activism in the 1960s and 1970s as well as his current work in education reform, curriculum, and instruction. In 1969 he co-founded the radical left organization the Weather Underground, which conducted a campaign of bombing public buildings during the 1960s and 1970s. He is now a professor in the College of Education at the University of Illinois at Chicago, holding the titles of Distinguished Professor of Education and Senior University Scholar.
By his own admission in his 2001 book Fugitive Days, Ayers participated in the bombings of New York City Police Headquarters in 1970, the United States Capitol building in 1971, and The Pentagon in 1972. No one was killed or hurt in the bombings that Ayers participated in, as warning were delivered ahead of each blast. It appears that the intention of each was property damage. Ayers writes:
"Although the bomb that rocked the Pentagon was itsy-bitsy - weighing close to two pounds - it caused 'tens of thousands of dollars' of damage. The operation cost under $500, and no one was killed or even hurt."[Bill Ayers, Fugitive Days, pg. 261]
Because of a water leak caused by the Pentagon bombing, aerial bombardments during the Vietnam War had to be halted for several days. I would venture to guess that this was the intended consequence of the actions of the Weather Underground.
Bill Ayers has never been convicted of a crime. Period. In 1973, the federal government requested the dismissal of the charges against Ayers and his future wife Bernadine Dohrn in the interest of national security following accusations of government misconduct.
He is a respected and tenured Professor of Education. He has come so far from his radical anti-war past that in 1997 Chicago awarded him its Citizen of the Year award for his work on the Chicago Annenberg Challenge, a grant proposal that in 1995 won $49.2 million over five years for public school reform. McCain supporters have denounced Ayers as an "unrepentant terrorist", but no less then William C. Ibershof (the lead federal prosecutor in the case against Ayers in 1973) said he believes people deserve a chance to redeem themselves, "a human reaction anyone would have."
Obama meets Bill Ayers
The two men first met in 1995, when Obama was tapped to chair the board of the newly formed Chicago Annenberg Challenge. Ayers was instrumental in creating the organization, which was to dispense grants for projects that would improve Chicago's schools.
The Chicago Tribune, after examining the Annenberg records, said they showed Ayers and Obama "attended board meetings, retreats and at least one news conference together as the education program got under way." It also said Obama and Ayers "continued to attend meetings together during the 1995-2001 operation of the program." According to the New York Times, the documents show the two attended just six board meetings together, Obama as chairman and Ayers to inform the board on grantees and other issues.
(In a press release, the McCain campaign puts the number of meetings at seven, 5 of them in 1995, 1 in 1996 & 1 in 1997.)
"He launched his political career in the guy's living room"
Obama and Ayers also were on the board of an antipoverty charity, the Woods Fund of Chicago, where their service overlapped from 2000 to 2002. And Ayers contributed $200 to Obama's campaign for the Illinois state Senate on March 2, 2001. That's it--200 bucks.
Wow.
Ayers has never endorsed Obama.
Obama has never endorsed Ayers.
Ayers does not advise Obama on policy of any kind.
Ayers does not advise Obama on anything. Indeed, since their Woods Fund days, their interactions have been sporadic (at best) and accidental. Ayers and Obama have not spoken on the phone or exchanged e-mails since Obama began serving in the U.S. Senate in January 2005, and last met more then a year ago when they bumped into each other on the street in Hyde Park (their neighborhood in Chicago).
"He's a terrorist"
That, I suppose, would depend on how you define "terrorist".
Ayers himself doesn't see himself that way:
"We weren't terrorists," Ayers told an interviewer for the Chicago Tribune in 2001. "The reason we weren't terrorists is because we did not commit random acts of terror against people. Terrorism was what was being practiced in the countryside of Vietnam by the United States."
Like I said--it depends on how you define terrorist. Here is how Dictionary.com defines it:
TER*ROR*IST
-Noun
1. a person, usually a member of a group, who uses or advocates terrorism.
2. a person who terrorizes or frightens others.
3. (formerly) a member of a political group in Russia aiming at the demoralization of the government by terror.
4. an agent or partisan of the revolutionary tribunal during the Reign of Terror in France.
Adjective
5. of, pertaining to, or characteristic of terrorism or terrorists: terrorist tactics.
Of all of these definitions, only #1 applies........and only partially. Why only partially? Because Ayers clearly does not advocate terrorism; his own or others:
In a letter to the editor in the Chicago Tribune, Ayers wrote, "I condemn all forms of terrorism — individual, group and official". He also condemned the September 11th attacks in that letter. "Today we are witnessing crimes against humanity on our own shores on an unthinkable scale, and I fear that we may soon see more innocent people in other parts of the world dying in response."
You can make the argument that Bill Ayers "used" terrorism in that he bombed building with the intent of causing property damage.......but I think it is a stretch to equate blowing up an empty bathroom in the Pentagon with strapping 5lbs of C-4 to your body and detonating in a crowded marketplace.
Is Bill Ayers a terrorist?? Absolutely not. That question implies present tense.
Was he a terrorist when he was part of the Weather Underground? If he qualifies for that titled, it is tenuous as best....
"TerroristS"
I have yet to hear any others examples to make up the terroristS, plural.....so let me borrow a page from the Dubya Doctrine and offer a pre-emptive strike:
"Obama was endorsed by the KKK!"
-Total bullshit. Easily disproven with a 10-second trip to Snopes.com
"Obama was endorsed by Hamas!"
-Questionable, at best. Ahmed Yousef, Hamas' chief political adviser, has in fact spoken highly of Obama and expressed hope that he will win the election. In an April 2008 interview with WABC Radio in New York, Yousef was asked whether he thought the Palestinian prime minister would be willing to meet with Obama and Clinton before the election. He responded:
Yousef: "We don't mind. Actually, we like Mr. Obama, and we hope he will [inaudible] the election. I do believe he is like John Kennedy, a great man with great principles, and he has a vision to change America, to make it in a position to lead the world community, but not with domination and arrogance."(Yousef is often quoted as saying "we hope he will win the election," but this part of the audio is garbled. "We hope he will win" is a reasonable interpretation.)
Whether this constitutes a political endorsement is debatable, as Yousef is in no position to vote for Obama himself, nor did he recommend that others vote for him. And endorsements are usually sought-after and greatly publicized, whereas Obama has in no way welcomed Yousef's supposed endorsement.
Also, saying that Hamas supports Obama is not saying that Obama supports Hamas, or that he would acquiesce to the group's demands as president. Indeed, Obama has explicitly condemned Hamas. When former president Jimmy Carter met with Hamas leaders in April, Obama criticized his decision, saying that "we must not negotiate with a terrorist group intent on Israel's destruction." And both Obama and McCain were among 90 cosponsors of the 2006 Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act, which would make it U.S. policy to "urge members of the international community to avoid contact with and refrain from financially supporting the terrorist organization Hamas until it agrees to recognize Israel, renounce violence, disarm and accept prior agreements." Obama has said many times that he would not meet or negotiate with Hamas as president, and he has criticized McCain for implying otherwise. "To engage in that kind of smear," he told CNN in a May 8 interview, "is unfortunate, particularly since my policy toward Hamas has been no different than his."[factcheck.org]
"Obama has been endorsed by Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam!!"
-See above. While it is true that Farrakhan endorsed Obama, Obama himself rejected that endorsement, and has been a consistent denunciator of Louis Farrakhan.
Hey.....did you hear that Jeffrey Dahmer endorsed Ronald Reagan?? That's because even if he did--who gives a shit??
