Posted on 06/29/2007 10:10:42 AM PDT by Mike Bates
For a presidential candidate who has refused to be pigeon-holed as the "black candidate," Sen. Barack Obama found himself fading in a staged battle for the hearts of black voters Thursday night.
Billed as the "All-American Presidential Forum," the televised debate brought the eight Democratic contenders to Howard University, one of the most prestigious schools in the network of historically black colleges.
The gathering of presidential hopefuls was also a prime time showcase for Tavis Smiley, a media celebrity, and his book, The Covenant with Black America, a New York Times best-selling collection of essays that offer solutions to a variety of problems plaguing impoverished minority communities.
It was the first time a panel of journalists of color, with a black moderator, posed the questions to the candidates.
Close ties shine through
It was clear from the answers to the first questions that Obama's chief rival, Hillary Clinton, spoke with greater confidence on race issues, and in fact she brought many of the women in the audience to their feet when she addressed the alarming rate of HIV/AIDS infections in the black community.
"If HIV/AIDS was the leading cause of death of white women between the ages of 24 and 34, there would be an outrage in this country,'' she said.
What black woman hasn't uttered those same words at one time or another?
While it should have been Obama's night, Clinton's close ties to the African-American community shone through in her remarks, offering a boldness that frankly was missing from Obama's responses.
For example, when asked if racism is still an intractable issue of the day, Clinton acknowledged that progress had been made, pointing out that she shared the stage with an African-American and a Latino candidate.
"But there is so much to be done," she said.
(Excerpt) Read more at suntimes.com ...
Un-frickin-believable! I've never heard that stat! Any stats on other dim controlled, cesspool, breeding grounds?
No kidding, and listen to this: There were ads pointing out these stats in the subway system here in DC. It was titled “Reality Check.” And who did the advertising firm put in the ad? A WHITE teenager. What a joke, huh? Talk about ignoring the elephant in the room. My word.
“Osama Obama is purely put up by the Hildabeast machine, and will become her VP Candidate to assure the duped black votes.
He has no chance, and will only be a token “inclusive Party” posterboy, and a black-voter-getter.”
Yes, it’s no different than a professional wrestling match. This was all arranged before he began to run. She can’t beat a woman. She could beat a white man. She couldn’t beat a black man. But she could beat a black man who’s admitted he’s used drugs, and his name is Barak Hussein so he has 0 chance of winning, BUT, when he is out, his war chest will go to the DNC and it will be funneled to her. Yawn.
table of stats:
http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/topics/surveillance/basic.htm#aidsrace
pie-chart here:
http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/resources/factsheets/At-A-Glance.htm
In 2005, blacks (including African Americans), who make up approximately 13% of the US population, accounted for almost half of the estimated number of HIV/AIDS cases diagnosed.
888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888
It’s real.....too bad attitudes of black leaders who saw to it that it worked out so well for klintora to use it as a campaign issue
Clinton’s wars were conducted with only political calculation. He dropped bombs on Bosnia from 30,000 ft. and sent cruise missiles into Libya and Afghanistan in a push-button “war” because he did the political calculation that the electorate would not stand the sight of body bags and daily casualty counts. Likewise, the Cole, the embassy bombings, WTC I were all treated as “crimes” to be dealt with as “law enforcement issues” because he shied away from using the word “war”. They are masters at manipulation, and language is the first tool for that.
Maybe white women don’t have as much unprotected sex or as much sex with drug addicts as some black women do.
did joe biden have his straight or afro curly plugs on?
Vn thanks for the data. Here’s the rest of the story vis-a-vis my assertions (from CDC). It does not take a village, it takes personal responsibility...
RISK FACTORS AND BARRIERS TO PREVENTION
Race and ethnicity, by themselves, are not risk factors for HIV infection. Even though HIV testing rates are higher for blacks than for members of other races and ethnicities [4], rates of undetected or late diagnosis of HIV infection are high for black men who have sex with men (MSM) [5].
Blacks are also more likely to face challenges associated with risk factors for HIV infection, including the following.
Sexual Risk Factors
Black women are most likely to be infected with HIV as a result of sex with men who are infected with HIV [2]. They may not be aware of their male partners’ possible risk factors for HIV infection, such as unprotected sex with multiple partners, bisexuality, or injection drug use [6, 7]. Sexual contact is also the main risk factor for black men. Male-to-male sexual contact was the primary risk factor for 48% of black men with HIV/AIDS at the end of 2005, and high-risk heterosexual contact was the primary risk factor for 22% [2].
Substance Use
Injection drug use is the second leading cause of HIV infection both for black men and women [2]. In addition to being at risk from sharing needles, casual and chronic substance users are more likely to engage in high-risk behaviors, such as unprotected sex, when they are under the influence of drugs or alcohol [8]. Drug use can also affect treatment success. A recent study of HIV-infected women found that women who used drugs, compared with women who did not, were less likely to take their antiretroviral medicines exactly as prescribed [9].
Lack of Awareness of HIV Serostatus
Not knowing one’s HIV serostatus is risky for black men and women. In a recent study of MSM in 5 cities participating in CDC’s National HIV Behavioral Surveillance System, 46% of the black MSM were HIV-positive, compared with 21% of the white MSM and 17% of the Hispanic MSM. The study also showed that of participating black MSM who tested positive for HIV, 67% were unaware of their infection; of participating Hispanic MSM who tested positive for HIV, 48% were unaware of their infection; of participating white MSM who tested positive for HIV, 18% were unaware of their infection; and of participating multiracial/other MSM who tested positive for HIV, 50% were unaware of their infection [10]. Persons who are infected with HIV but don’t know it cannot benefit from life-saving therapies or protect their partners from becoming infected with HIV.
Sexually Transmitted Diseases
The highest rates of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are those for blacks. In 2005, blacks were about 18 times as likely as whites to have gonorrhea and about 5 times as likely to have syphilis [11]. Partly because of physical changes caused by STDs, including genital lesions that can serve as an entry point for HIV, the presence of certain STDs can increase one’s chances of contracting HIV infection 3- to 5-fold. Similarly, a person who has both HIV infection and certain STDs has a greater chance of spreading HIV to others [12]. A recent CDC literature review showed that high rates of HIV infection for black MSM may be partly attributable to a high prevalence of STDs that facilitate HIV transmission [5].
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Sorry if I offend, but this is my number one pet peeve.
True...because it would represent on the order of ten times as many deaths as it currently does.
I think Joe - and the rest of 'em - would've looked darn good with cornrows.
Republicans should encourage Obama to divide the pro-Hillary voters.
He is soooo sweet.
Not when Dems and libs are pandering to them.
Obama brings nothing to the table for Hillary!, because she's also got the Illinois electoral votes in her pocket. It's a 'Rat state and getting 'Rattier. Those are the traditional reasons why a presidential candidate selects a Veep. The Clintons do everything with a political calculation at heart. They'll hammer Obama into submission and then throw him under the bus if he makes any trouble. Obama isn't stupid. He'll look at the political gameboard and resign the game before crossing the Clintons.
Hillary! can read an electoral map just like we can. A look at 2000 and 2004 shows that two states hold the keys to victory: FL and OH. They stick out like sore thumbs. The closer of the two will be OH, and my guess is that once Hillary! gets the nomination she'll put in a call to our new Governor, Ted Strickland, and offer him a spot on the ticket. And based on the '06 elections, that will be enough to put OH in the 'Rat column and Hillary! in the Oval Office. It will then be a matter of how big the win is. If things turn around in Iraq, my guess is that Hillary! wins a narrow victory, similar to the 2000 map but with OH flipped. If Iraq in 2008 looks like Iraq today, Hillary!, and the rest of the 'Rats, win by a landslide.
Sure he does. The sheer joy (for many libs) of voting for BOTH the first female at the top of a national ticket AND the first black. Ah, ecstasy!
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