[Vision2020] McCain's Attacks Fuel Dangerous Hatred

[Tom Hansen]

>From Frank Schaeffer's column i ntoday's (October 10, 2008) Baltimore Sun 
at:

http://tinyurl.com/4yda9w

Frank Schaeffer is the author of "Crazy for God: How I Grew Up as One of 
the Elect, Helped Found the Religious Right, and Lived to Take All (or 
Almost All) of It Back."

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McCain's attacks fuel dangerous hatred
By Frank Schaeffer 
October 10, 2008 

John McCain: If your campaign does not stop equating Sen. Barack Obama 
with terrorism, questioning his patriotism and portraying Mr. Obama 
as "not one of us," I accuse you of deliberately feeding the most unhinged 
elements of our society the red meat of hate, and therefore of potentially 
instigating violence. 

At a Sarah Palin rally, someone called out, "Kill him!" At one of your 
rallies, someone called out, "Terrorist!" Neither was answered or 
denounced by you or your running mate, as the crowd laughed and cheered. 
At your campaign event Wednesday in Bethlehem, Pa., the crowd was seething 
with hatred for the Democratic nominee - an attitude encouraged in 
speeches there by you, your running mate, your wife and the local 
Republican chairman.

Shame! 

John McCain: In 2000, as a lifelong Republican, I worked to get you 
elected instead of George W. Bush. In return, you wrote an endorsement of 
one of my books about military service. You seemed to be a man who put 
principle ahead of mere political gain. 

You have changed. You have a choice: Go down in history as a decent 
senator and an honorable military man with many successes, or go down in 
history as the latest abettor of right-wing extremist hate. 

John McCain, you are no fool, and you understand the depths of hatred that 
surround the issue of race in this country. You also know that, post-9/11, 
to call someone a friend of a terrorist is a very serious matter. You also 
know we are a bitterly divided country on many other issues. You know 
that, sadly, in America, violence is always just a moment away. You know 
that there are plenty of crazy people out there. 

Stop! Think! Your rallies are beginning to look, sound, feel and smell 
like lynch mobs. 

John McCain, you're walking a perilous line. If you do not stand up for 
all that is good in America and declare that Senator Obama is a patriot, 
fit for office, and denounce your hate-filled supporters when they scream 
out "Terrorist" or "Kill him," history will hold you responsible for all 
that follows. 

John McCain and Sarah Palin, you are playing with fire, and you know it. 
You are unleashing the monster of American hatred and prejudice, to the 
peril of all of us. You are doing this in wartime. You are doing this as 
our economy collapses. You are doing this in a country with a history of 
assassinations. 

Change the atmosphere of your campaign. Talk about the issues at hand. 
Make your case. But stop stirring up the lunatic fringe of haters, or risk 
suffering the judgment of history and the loathing of the American people -
 forever. 

We will hold you responsible. 

Frank Schaeffer is the author of "Crazy for God: How I Grew Up as One of 
the Elect, Helped Found the Religious Right, and Lived to Take All (or 
Almost All) of It Back."

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Seeya at Farmers' Market, Moscow.

Tom Hansen
Moscow, Idaho
 
"We're a town of about 23,000 with 10,000 college students. The college 
students are not very active in local elections (thank goodness!)."

- Dale Courtney (March 28, 2007)


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