Barrack Hussein Obama

[Ned]

Does his name bother anyone?

[loinburger]

No

[Lorizael]

*shrug* Barrack's a pretty ugly name, if you ask me. But I'm pretty sensitive to word aesthetics.

[Winston]

I wouldn't worry. If he doesn't live up to expectations, he can always be sold off for 40 gold.

[loinburger]

Originally posted by Lorizael
*shrug* Barrack's a pretty ugly name, if you ask me. But I'm pretty sensitive to word aesthetics.

I like to pretend it's Brak instead of Barack.

[loinburger]

Oh, as to whether this bothers anyone, I googled "barack hussein obama freerepublic" on the assumption that if anybody is bothered by his name then it would probably be a freeper.

OK, Ok, Ok, all you have to do is look at his middle name...it is "HUSSEIN"......he is a Muslim, he is not for America...IMHO. Currently he is the darling of the Left....they will eat each other up between him an Hildabeast....I imagine it will be a Hillary/Obama ticket....then watch out America.....

So there you have it, somebody is apparently bothered by his name.

That being said, it's pretty telling that the majority of freepers apparently think that the whole "ooooh his middle name is Hussein" thing is idiotic.

[Lorizael]

I knew two 'r's looked wrong. Damn you, Ned.

[Arrian]

Slate ran a piece on this question and they figured that the name will be a problem amongst the morons of the country.

It doesn't bother me. It's just a name, and AFAIK, he didn't pick it.

-Arrian

[Jon Miller]

Umm, I am pretty sure he is Christian?

JM

[Ned]

Barack Hussein Obama
By Greg Tinti on December 18, 2006 at 11:39 PM

For about a week now, I've been hearing and reading all over the place that Barack Obama's middle name is Hussein. And to put it as plainly as I possibly can, I don't give a crap. I don't care if his middle name is Hussein. I don't care if it's Osama or even bin Laden. Hell, his name could be Barack Princess Consuela Bananahammock Obama for all I care.

The obvious implication that some are trying to infer is that Obama has some connection or affinity towards radical Islam. And while plenty of people are happy to make the inference, no one has yet pointed out one thing Obama has ever done in his private or public life that has shown that he is sympathetic to jihadism. Period.

Take Republican strategist Ed Rogers, for example, who dropped Obama's middle name on Hardball and when asked why he thought it was important enough to mention on a later broadcast, he refused to answer. Perhaps he was trying to be funny, I don't know. But it struck me as a blatant attempt at floating a pretty nasty idea out there without having the balls to follow through.

Which is why I'll give Debbie Schlussel at least some credit for having the cojones to complete the thought rather than just letting it hang out there.

And while Obama may not identify as a Muslim, that's not how the Arab and Muslim Streets see it. In Arab culture and under Islamic law, if your father is a Muslim, so are you. And once a Muslim, always a Muslim. You cannot go back. In Islamic eyes, Obama is certainly a Muslim. He may think he's a Christian, but they do not.

[...]

So, even if he identifies strongly as a Christian--and even if he despised the behavior of his father (as Obama said on Oprah)--is a man who Muslims think is a Muslim, who feels some sort of psychological need to prove himself to his absent Muslim father, and who is now moving in the direction of his father's heritage, a man we want as President when we are fighting the war of our lives against Islam? Where will his loyalties be?

Is that even the man we'd want to be a heartbeat away from the President, if Hillary Clinton offers him the Vice Presidential candidacy on her ticket (which he certainly wouldn't turn down)?


First of all, I have to say that it's crap like this has helped the right side of the blogosphere gain a reputation as being anti-Muslim because implicit in Schlussel's argument is the notion that no one with a Muslim name can ever be trusted to be against jihadism and loyal to the causes of the US. Of course, this is patently ridiculous since many of academic crusaders against jihad and Islamic extremism are Muslims.

Second, I find it incredibly condescending for Schlussel to write that Obama "may think he's a Christian." Uh, I'm pretty sure he likely considers himself to be a Christian. That other Muslims consider him to be a Muslim says absolutely nothing about Obama himself.

So, the point is, the character of the man and his positions are what should matter and neither can be determined from a middle name. That some Republicans/conservatives/whoever, have decided to try to use his middle name to play into fears about terrorism is really low. And I think it shows that Hillary isn't the only person grasping at straws when it comes to a candidate with a clear record and no scandals in his shadow.

[Arrian]

Yeah, the name will be a problem with the morons of the country.

-Arrian

[Lorizael]

And there are so many morons.

[Ned]

Regardless of Obama-supporters' best efforts, his name and the fact that Obama's father is a Muslim is going to be a major factor any upcoming presidential race. Kennedy's catholicism was a major factor in '60, just as it was previously when Al Smith ran.

And if you think that Obama's father is unimportant, think about the crucifixon that recently engulfed Mel Gibson over his father's blatant anti-Semitism, or when Schwarzennegger first ran when it was pointed out that his father was a NAZI.

[DinoDoc]

Originally posted by Arrian
Yeah, the name will be a problem with the morons of the country.

So it's another thing for Ted Kennedy to mangle? Barrack Hussein Osama!

[Jon Miller]

I am not fighting any war against Islam? And I don't support those that are.

In fact, claiming that the US is, pisses me off because as a US citizen, it includes me.

JM