Obama Fades To Black

Why President Obama interjected himself into the middle of a Black Man vs. White Cop local fracas in Boston is inexplicable. He did it at a national press conference after first admitting he did not have all the facts. It is a first-class gaffe, made as his poll numbers are eroding steadily. To use the word he used to describe the Cambridge police – the president acted stupidly. The president has since publicly regretted his use of the word.

Obama is up to his ears in black love; his problem is with white peoples' trust. His misguided attack on law and order finally gives Republican opponents a meaty issue to attack his administration. Issues such as abortion, gay marriage and stem cell research are all wrapped in a moral/religious component which winds the watches of 30% of the white population, mostly from the religious right. Law & Order is a broad white man's fixation that meshes with the frenzied and powerful gun lobby. The impact on whites is overwhelming as they view a crime and prison population which is disproportionally black.

Professor Gates behaved badly as he reacted to Police Officer Crowley who was doing his duty. In this case, he was responding to a possible burglary of Gates’ own property. Google has the police report as well as a civilian's witness report on the affair. Reportedly there are audios of the affair. It is clear Gates over reacted with a Boston variation of a howling war dance when confronted by the police in his home instead of expressing a civilized appreciation for police efficiency.

There is also an indication that there was a previous attempt at break in at the Gates property that earlier jammed the front entrance door. Gates' ugly conduct insures that future police protection of his property will be circumspect and bureaucratically delayed as all reports are carefully double checked and verified; by that time the crook will be long gone as response time is compromised.

During the arrest Gates hectored the police with the specious celebrity defense, DON'T YOU KNOW WHO I AM? Yah, Gates has 50 honorary degrees, is a member of prestigious executive boards, passes out Harvard scholarships to black applicants and is a tenured professor at Harvard University. He even has a hamburger named after him at Mr. Bartley’s Burger Cottage. It is called the Professor Skip Gates Burger - it is topped with pineapple and teriyaki sauce.

So what? More reason to behave properly. His resume will now have a footnote about his misbehaving. Apparently the creepy professor shamelessly wants to make a documentary of the affair. A squalid attempt at self vindication or to recast the affair as an episode of racial profiling? Worst part is Obama stuck his neck out for the embarrassing professor who is appearing as a black agitator.

In less than a week the disorderly conduct charge was dropped against Gates. The Cambridge Mayor, the Governor of Mass and the US President are black, so draw your own conclusions – or maybe it was the influence of Mr. Bartley’s Burger Cottage trying to protect the integrity of its product that exerted the pressure.

Much to Obama's chagrin, Gates is defended, in the main by black media, and criticized by white media. The best most white journalists say is that the police and Gates are both guilty. This is a cop out, a politically correct absurdity. There is no evidence of racial profiling in this case, despite civil rights hacks' claims otherwise. Limbaugh is in his glory. He has a solid issue on reverse discrimination and already waved the bloody shirt of the Duke lacrosse team travesty as an analogy.

The day after his mistake, Obama again went on national TV to make amends by stating he called the professor and the police officer and that his use of the word stupid was a poorly calibrated choice of words. He wants to sit down at the White House over a beer with both men, lamely referencing the occasion as a teaching moment. Good luck! Even if the professor and the policeman bury the hatchet, the President expended trust in his bad judgement and now brought serious lingering questions on his ability to unify the country on race issues.

Obama may succeed in walking back the tension he helped to create. But he will be unable to put the racial cat back into the bag. As far as Officer Crowley, KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK. Recommend Professor Gates find a new address in Cambridge.

Next time I prepare a hamburger at home, I will put a slice of pineapple on it with a dash of Teriyaki sauce. Thank you professor for the recipe... and for one of those so called teaching moments. Colonel Robert E Bartos USA Ret.