White Privilege (updated)

For those of you who have not had the chance to watch Tim Wise speak, I'll tell you this: I don't agree with everything he says, but if you can view or read his thoughts without looking at yourself and asking questions, you're probably a lost cause anyway. Here's an update on the concept of White Privilege that he wrote during the race for the Oval Office:

http://www.redroom.com/blog/tim-wise/this-your-nation-white-privilege-updated

In retrospect (and exceedingly in the moment as I watched it unfold), it makes me cringe that McCain even made the decision to bring on Palin. What was a calculated move to pick up votes backfired epically. I do think McCain would have made a good President. As a registered Republican who is moving away from any party and more and more frequently referring to himself as a "conservative", I am more closely tied to McCain's policy than Obama's. Let's just say one thing: Stimulus Package. Ugghhhh.

And another thing: I'm so sick and tired of people acting like George W. Bush is clinically retarded. The ultimate omission? The perception cultivated by the media that Kerry was in some way smarter than Bush. Admittedly (and certainly observed over his 8 years in office), he is not a great public speaker, and suffers from a slight case of the malady known as "social awkwardness". He did some goofy stuff. But does anyone remember Clinton basically saying he thought a female mummy was attractive? Knowing what we know now about the man, doesn't that just make you're skin crawl? Pick your poison. Smooth slimeball, or awkward Samaritan? I digress.

Back to White Privilege. I was reading and found this article. Respond with your thoughts on how this applies:

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=hill/090209

If Phelps had been dogfighting, do you think he would have incurred the same wrath of Mr. Vick? A more severe circumstance than getting caught with a water bong to your mouth, but...eh? Food for thought? I think this may apply more to our fixation with celebrity than anything. I bet there are many people out there who would have written it off quickly and simply called him a thug if he were black.

Changing a day at a time. It's all we can do.