Maryland question 4, 6 & 7 all a "yes!" (Baltimore, Potomac: real estate, taxes)

[EdwardA]

Originally Posted by adelphi_sky

My issue was that there are blocks of voters in every race who may vote based on race. To be embarrassed for being part of that race for that reason is extreme and unfortunate.

Oh really?

Ohio Romney Rally - Interviews With Supporters

This argument would hold water if Cain was the GOP candidate and Clinton was the Democratic candidate. And blacks overwhelmingly voted AGAINST their party line for Cain. Then I could see that they were voting strictly because of race. So, until we get a black GOP candidate, this argument doesn't hold much weight as a majority of minorities vote overwhelmingly Democratic. And McCain/Palin Romney/Ryan hardly provided any overwhelmingly compelling reason for a lifelong democrat to vote for a GOP candidate. On the other hand, there are white voters who will ALWAYS vote GOP even if their candidate was black. This was nothing more than blacks voting their party line as with Clinton. Just so happens this time the candidate was black.

Now you are being obtuse. Blacks are generally Left of center so a person that is Black and right of center won't get much support. Although I suspect if Hermain Cain got the nomination he'd pull more than 2% of the Black vote.

A clear example of Blacks voting strictly by race was the 2008 Dem primary. Before Iowa Hillary was actually beating Obama in polls with Blacks. I distinctly remembering reading articles of how Black women didn't want to support Obama because they were worried he'd get shot.

Than he won the Iowa caucuses or as I see it validated by Whites and overnight Blacks supported him. There was no change in positions or any other event.

There's nothing wrong voting by identity millions of Irish Catholics voted for Kennedy simply because he was Irish Catholic. So I'm not sure why folks are acting like it is unfathomable.

[EdwardA]

Originally Posted by pgtitans

Couldn't agree more. I have so many friends and family that would come up with every criticism of Romney as possible, but they would defend Obama to the nth degree. When you start asking them about Obama stance on issues like gay marriage, most of them are like oh yeah I don't agree with that but that's just one issue or he's not the Pastor of the country. Pretty much any excuse they can possibly come up with. I could respect them more if they had legitimate reasons to support him, but when people say stuff like, well Congress tried to stop him from passing a jobs bill without acknowledging that he ignored the jobs bill for 2 years, then credibility goes out the window. Not to get all religious but there are a lot of people that look at Obama as if he's their god. He sets their standard of right and wrong. I'm not saying they would come out literally say he's their god, but I wonder if a white Democrat had come out in support of gay marriage, if there would be the same level of support. Even though PG overall turned down gay marriage, the margin was would have been much larger years ago.

Yup to many he is their god. I did early voting at Oxon Hill Library. As I waited four hours to vote, folks are chatting about this or that and someone asked me about Social Security. I explained my position and I guess it became rather apparent I was not a fan of Obama. You'd have thought I was a child molester. I had people saying I wasn't Black, I thought I was better, White people are mean it was just crazy.

Folks really are too emotionally invested in this man.

[adelphi_sky]

Originally Posted by EdwardA

Now you are being obtuse. Blacks are generally Left of center so a person that is Black and right of center won't get much support. Although I suspect if Hermain Cain got the nomination he'd pull more than 2% of the Black vote.

A clear example of Blacks voting strictly by race was the 2008 Dem primary. Before Iowa Hillary was actually beating Obama in polls with Blacks. I distinctly remembering reading articles of how Black women didn't want to support Obama because they were worried he'd get shot.

Than he won the Iowa caucuses or as I see it validated by Whites and overnight Blacks supported him. There was no change in positions or any other event.

There's nothing wrong voting by identity millions of Irish Catholics voted for Kennedy simply because he was Irish Catholic. So I'm not sure why folks are acting like it is unfathomable.

I'm not being obtuse. lol I'm talking about national elections between a single republican candidate and a single democratic candidate. And if you even ask most white people, they felt Obama was the better candidate over Clinton obvisouly. But to say that blacks voted for Obama against Romney because he was black is a bit inaccurate because Obama was the democratic nominee. Who else were they going to vote for? Like I said before, if Herman Cain was the republican nominee and Clinton was the Democratic nominee, I'm not so sure you'd see droves of black voters voting for Cain. They would still vote Democrat. You'd get a few cross-voters for historical purposes, but it definitely wouldn't have been a majority of black voters voting Republican just because Cain was black. Uzbeckibeckistan? lol

[adelphi_sky]

Originally Posted by EdwardA

Folks really are too emotionally invested in this man.

Like white Republicans and Reagan. I'm surprised he hasn't been declared a saint yet by the Vatican.

[bowian]

Originally Posted by pgtitans

If there were such varying degrees of Democrats in PG, then why would so many overwhelmingly vote for Obama?

Because he would be considered the best choice for them. What was the alternative? Excactly what appeal does Romney hold for blacks specifically? Hispanics specifically? Women specifically? Exactly what did he to do court the vote of these groups? From what I saw and read, he was obviously appealing to something very specific and trying to touch a certain nerve.

I remember when Jesse Jackson ran for president. I don't recall the same, overwhelming black support for him. Not like there was in 2008 and in 2012 for Obama. There are many who prefer Obama, and more than just black people. You can get into how blacks are just voting for Obama just because he's black, but while you are at it, discuss how many whites (especially white males) voted for Romney just because he is white. You can get into the percentages and proportions of each race voting for each candidate, etc. But in the end, Obama was re-elected, narrowly or not.

Originally Posted by pgtitans

The fact that a county could overwhelmingly vote Obama but then turn down same-sex marriage, speaks to race.

I disagree on that point. That phenomenon speaks to a big influence besides race -- religion. The fact that a black pastor could tell his or her flock not to vote for Obama (or not to vote at all) because of same-sex marriage, speaks more to religion than race.

Originally Posted by pgtitans

Look at how Montgomery County, which is also very Democratic, voted for same sex marriage and explain why the two counties aren't consistent with how they voted if people weren't voting based on their cultural views?

Why? Because people were voting based on their religious and moral views in PG. The church and homosexuality, the black church and homosexuality, and the history of the black church and its influence on black people are all complex issues. Also, while black people may be liberal politically, they are also rather conservative socially. All of that needs to be taken into account.

I don't think you can just throw PG and MoCo voting patterns beside each other and draw such conclusions like the above.

[bowian]

Originally Posted by EdwardA

A clear example of Blacks voting strictly by race was the 2008 Dem primary. Before Iowa Hillary was actually beating Obama in polls with Blacks. I distinctly remembering reading articles of how Black women didn't want to support Obama because they were worried he'd get shot.

Than he won the Iowa caucuses or as I see it validated by Whites and overnight Blacks supported him. There was no change in positions or any other event.

Meh. You can't just draw this conclusion. You have to go back to the Clinton presidency, the perception of Clinton by blacks, and black people's support of Clinton. And put it all in context. When his wife ran for president, someone told me that by electing her, the country would have Bill Clinton and his influence back in the White House. Some blacks, tongue-in-cheek, called Bill Clinton "the first black president" because of his attention to issues impacting blacks, his cabinet appointments, etc.

So his wife runs against Obama. If there was an issue regarding initial black support for Obama, perhaps that was related to blacks judging his ability to win votes from whites. After Iowa, perhaps that ability was more clearly seen. I wouldn't debase such thinking by describing it as white validation. Was the support just because he was black? Maybe. But it could also be that he is worth supporting. In other words, not just a black candidate, but a good black candidate.

[HandsUpThumbsDown]

Against Demographics}

Just read this, Edward.

[bowian]

Originally Posted by UrbanScholar

Actually my point was not about gullibility (should have been more specific). The part I agree with is that, considering the struggle that the African-American community has had with civil rights and fairness, that their should greater understanding of the challenges that other minority groups (ethnic or otherwise) are having navigating through our greater society.

And they should understand the challenges of hollering against homosexuality in the church while engaging in secretive homosexual relationships. And their pastors paying off victims. With tithe money, perhaps. Such "Eddie Longism" really confuses the issues. People really need to think for themselves. No sense in being smart in everyday life and becoming an intellectual flatliner when you're sitting in the pew.

[adelphi_sky]

Originally Posted by bowian

Also, while black people may be liberal politically, they are also rather conservative socially. All of that needs to be taken into account.

Bingo!!!

[UrbanScholar]

Originally Posted by bowian

And they should understand the challenges of hollering against homosexuality in the church while engaging in secretive homosexual relationships. And their pastors paying off victims. With tithe money, perhaps. Such "Eddie Longism" really confuses the issues. People really need to think for themselves. No sense in being smart in everyday life and becoming an intellectual flatliner when you're sitting in the pew.

Amen