03 July 2010

Seriously, it took five minutes.

I should never ever read the comments on YouTube. It always hurts. There is no greater source of ignorance on the Web, with the possible exception of Yahoo! Answers.
I happened across one today where the commenter, one hennypenny247, said:

FREEDOM is a word I have NEVER heard from Obama’s mouth. For a man who so consciously uses words to redefine events, this omission has great meaning. It’s about time we all started talking about the missing, unspeakable F-word.

I am forced to assume from this comment that this woman (I’m guessing from the name that she’s a woman) didn’t hear Obama’s inaugural address:

Rather, it has been the risk takers, the doers, the makers of things — some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and FREEDOM.

Also, she missed his famous Race Speech, the turning point in the Democratic primaries...

Those stories—of survival, and FREEDOM, and hope—became our story, my story; the blood that had spilled was our blood, the tears our tears; until this black church, on this bright day, seemed once more a vessel carrying the story of a people into future generations and into a larger world.

and the big speech in Berlin during the campaign...

At the height of the Cold War, my father decided, like so many others in the forgotten corners of the world, that his yearning—his dream—required the FREEDOM and opportunity promised by the West.

and his message to Congress, the “not the State of the Union” speech from last year...

And a twilight struggle for FREEDOM led to a nation of highways, an American on the moon, and an explosion of technology that still shapes our world.

and his actual State of the Union from this year...

For America must always stand on the side of FREEDOM and human dignity.

and his speech in Cairo...

Moreover, FREEDOM in America is indivisible from the FREEDOM to practice one’s religion.

But I do have an unyielding belief that all people yearn for certain things: the ability to speak your mind and have a say in how you are governed; confidence in the rule of law and the equal administration of justice; government that is transparent and doesn’t steal from the people; the FREEDOM to live as you choose.

The fifth issue that we must address together is religious FREEDOM…FREEDOM of religion is central to the ability of peoples to live together.

and the speech after the Fort Hood shootings...

We are a nation that guarantees the FREEDOM to worship as one chooses. And instead of claiming God for our side, we remember Lincoln’s words, and always pray to be on the side of God.

and his speech just two days ago on immigration.

Our founding was rooted in the notion that America was unique as a place of refuge and FREEDOM for, in Thomas Jefferson’s words, “oppressed humanity.”

I’m sure there are more. This is just what I got in five minutes with Google, CTRL-F, and a bit of the ol’ cut-and-paste. Anyone with internet access (which, presumably, YouTube subscribers have) could have done the same. In FIVE MINUTES.
He uses the word “freedom” all the time. hennypenny may not have been listening because her ignorance is more comfortable than paying attention, but he still says it. She can argue that he doesn’t mean these things (as long as we have Guantanamo and renditions and the War on Drugs and illegal wiretaps and Justice Department lawsuits defending the National Day of Prayer I’m inclined to agree) but she can’t argue that he hasn’t said them.
In other words, her statement tells us nothing about Obama. All it says is that she hears only what she wants to hear. What argument does she think she’s winning?

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