'Burn a Bush'? Michelle Obama invites rapper Common to a poetry reading

'Burn a Bush'? Michelle Obama invites rapper Common to a poetry reading

dailycaller.com

First Lady Michelle Obama has scheduled a poetry evening for Wednesday, and she’s invited several poets including a successful Chicago poet and rapper, Lonnie Rashid Lynn, Jr., AKA “Common.”

his poetry includes threats to shoot police and at least one passage calling for the “burn[ing]” of then-President George W. Bush

(visit the link for the full news article)

Why is there no end of the poor judgement exhibited by this administration. The poetry is offensive. It is absolutely outside of the mainstream of common sensibility and while perhaps some kind of nonsensical vanguard, does not merit being honored by being given the platform of the White House, period. It is no different than poetry that espouses racial purity or lynching. Is there a first amendment to produce it, absolutely. There is also absolutely no reason to acknowledge the author of such trash.

This is but another link in the chain of racist behavior on the part of this administration, starting with the "Beer Summit" business and including the DOJ lack of enforcement of election laws when those filing claims are white.

Were any other president to have someone who has such an anti-social message be given this honor, there would be absolute outrage.

These are the same folks who want to edit Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn in the library as they contain words they deem offensive.

One of two things is going on with this administration. They are wildly incompetent with respect to understanding the perception of their decisions or they are purposefully seeking to inflame to balkanize the electorate. While I think there is a bit of both going on, there are enough incidents of this kind of thing coming out of the administration that I have a hard time believing that they are not purposefully looking to inflame and drive divisions into the country.

dailycaller.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

reply to post by dolphinfan



I can't tell you how I laughed when I read snippets of his lyrics. Sounds like an interesting event is planned, hopefully he'll grace the audience with some of his inappropriate (or appropriate depends on what kind of evening they have planned) lyrics.

It never ceases to amaze me how people ridicule the idea of being "politically correct", but when it comes to what THEY think is "inappropriate" or "improper", they don't see themselves as being politically correct.

I personally think it's about time we got some political INcorrectness around here.

If people are offended by Common's lyrics, then don't buy his CDs.

Originally posted by dolphinfan
or they are purposefully seeking to inflame to balkanize the electorate.

Given that the media has already given you your cue, this looks most plausible to me.

I looked at what he's wrote. It doesn't sound very presidential, but neither did Obama deserve a Nobel Peace Prize, Osama wasn't the mastermind of 9/11, etc.

In other words I have ceased to be offended and agree more with what this rapper says than I even care about our current system of government. Judging by what he's wrote, "Common" has a problem with the government too. So yeah, they're probably trying to create a backlash against him or something. They use all kinds of reverse psychology and other tricks like that, that they first learned decades ago and have since mastered.

reply to post by dolphinfan


common is trash? so you're obviously not a fan of hip-hop or poetry. if you think that common is some kind of low-life heathen with nothing good to say, then you are lost, my friend. imagine, just for a moment, that you lived in an extremely poor and violent area of Chicago, the cops seem to treat you and your friends unfairly and the only people you see making money are either selling drugs, rapping or hooping. if you can put yourself in that environment for a second, you might understand how someone may express their rage in verse with violent imagery directed at the police. but you never will.

if you're having trouble speaking Common's language, you may want to go back and read some Langston Hughes. he's a million times the poet Common is, but expresses that same inner-city oppression and rage that comes from being the descendants of slaves living in a world run by the descendants of slave owners.

you don't seem to know com sense or his thoughts or opinions or stances or associated acts or anything, you just got angry because you think it's stupid or "improper." if you're so concerned with pomp and circumstance and respecting authority and being PC, then go back to England. We moved here so we could be cowboys and ruffians and artists, not polite little children sitting in the corner, only speaking when spoken to.

i'm sorry that common spitting Truth offends you, but Michelle Obama can invite whoever she damn well pleases into HER white house.

reply to post by Benevolent Heretic


Thats all well and good and I don't disagree with you. The PC nonsense has to stop. There is a difference though. The President is in a position where he is to unite people, not divide. Show casing this kind of trash does nothing but highlight serious differences within the society and serve to cause strains within them. Have white hating, racists come to the White House on Monday and then having your shills in the media turn over every rock looking for a racist at a Tea Party rally on Tuesday is not the stuff of leadership. It is the stuff of a weak leader who is unable to unite, hence if forced to divide.

Were David Duke to write a couple of poems, would it be OK to have him invited to the White House? Of course not. It would not be appropriate because Duke offends many people who have every reason to expect that the President is their advocate and supporter. The White House is known as the "Peoples House" for a reason.

That the terrible problems within the black community are described and celebrated in these poems is yet another element of this idiocy. Could they not find poems of the desired racial background who wrote uplifting poems? Somehow Bill Clinton was able to do that.

If bad taste was an olympic event, Michelle Obama would be a gold medalist.

And if you don't agree with me, then I'll have the "star" write a song about busting a cap on you.

Originally posted by bsbray11

Originally posted by dolphinfan
or they are purposefully seeking to inflame to balkanize the electorate.

Given that the media has already given you your cue, this looks most plausible to me.

I looked at what he's wrote. It doesn't sound very presidential, but neither did Obama deserve a Nobel Peace Prize, Osama wasn't the mastermind of 9/11, etc.

In other words I have ceased to be offended and agree more with what this rapper says than I even care about our current system of government. Judging by what he's wrote, "Common" has a problem with the government too. So yeah, they're probably trying to create a backlash against him or something. They use all kinds of reverse psychology and other tricks like that, that they first learned decades ago and have since mastered.

explain to me why that is a better explanation than "michelle obama enjoys the poetry of common." couldn't that possibly be an explanation?

Tell me, which sounds most plausible?

In their diabolical world-domination scheme, the Illuminati chose to portray the Obama's as supporting common's anti-government, anti-corporate anti-establishment poetry in order to help them... do what, again?

-or-

in order to appear to be on the same side as the poor, oppressed, anti-establishment segments of our society, the elitist Obamas enlisted common to show their "every man" appeal.

-or-

they decided to have a white house poetry slam and she thought "hey, I know. I'll invite that guy from my home town, Common. I really enjoy his style."

to me, a mix of options 2 and 3 sounds the most likely. but it could be a covert reverse psychological operation, too. who knows?

for the record, i'm a conspiracy theorist. I just think you guys are grasping at straws.

Originally posted by dolphinfan
reply to post by Benevolent Heretic

 

Thats all well and good and I don't disagree with you. The PC nonsense has to stop. There is a difference though. The President is in a position where he is to unite people, not divide. Show casing this kind of trash does nothing but highlight serious differences within the society and serve to cause strains within them. Have white hating, racists come to the White House on Monday and then having your shills in the media turn over every rock looking for a racist at a Tea Party rally on Tuesday is not the stuff of leadership. It is the stuff of a weak leader who is unable to unite, hence if forced to divide.

Were David Duke to write a couple of poems, would it be OK to have him invited to the White House? Of course not. It would not be appropriate because Duke offends many people who have every reason to expect that the President is their advocate and supporter. The White House is known as the "Peoples House" for a reason.

That the terrible problems within the black community are described and celebrated in these poems is yet another element of this idiocy. Could they not find poems of the desired racial background who wrote uplifting poems? Somehow Bill Clinton was able to do that.

dude, you're being ridiculous. find me one quote from a common song that is so horribly offensive that this will affect the nation? there are a lot of americans, myself included, who enjoy his music and poetry and style. don't we have a say? or is this just something that the moral majority will always be able to bitch about?

you want people to talk about the problems of race and class in the inner city, but you want them to be polite about it? well, pay for their college education and make sure they graduate high school and don't spend all their time in the streets. if someone doesn't have the same freedoms and environment as you, they will speak, act and think differently.

all these "what ifs" and "couldn't they have gotten..." are quite silly. if you don't like Common, you don't have to be involved with this event. but to characterize him as some racist hate-monger and act like his mere presence at the white house will tear this nation apart is CRAZY. you call the White House the People's House, well Common is among the People. just like you, he deserves his say. maybe if you sold millions of records and got paid every single night just to show up somewhere and spit, you would be invited to the white house too!

back up your statements, please, and maybe give yourself back a little cred.

Personally I've not listened to Common, however I found it highly laughable not about his lyrics per se but that Michelle Obama is including him in her event. Yes like I agree with the post she just may have a fondness for his music or he's a fellow Chicagoan. Will he get to recite any of his past lyrics that the OP mentioned or will they censor him and have him recite something more "politically correct"? My earlier comment on whether or not he will be inappropriate or appropriate is based on what is hoped to be gained by his participation. This event will serve a purpose whether Common is aware of it or not but what purpose is the question?

The Obamas' are ALL of Americas president/first lady.
Not just a narrow aspect of the population.

Their arrogance in not seeing that and just catering to their nrrow base is what is absolutely pitiful about this.

Originally posted by RicoMarston
explain to me why that is a better explanation than "michelle obama enjoys the poetry of common." couldn't that possibly be an explanation?

Tell me, which sounds most plausible?

That could be an explanation, and Michael Jordan might have been wearing Nikes all along because he really thought they were the best shoes. Nike also paid Jordan millions.

I don't buy all the "incompetence" and "simply bad taste" excuses anymore. You are talking about arguably the most powerful head-of-state family in the world, right at the center of a crossroads of more dirty money, power and corruption than could be found most anywhere else on Earth. I hardly think anything they do is coincidence, incompetence, or even just bad taste. They are a favorite media sideshow for good reason. And this article is no accident.

Originally posted by Benevolent Heretic
It never ceases to amaze me how people ridicule the idea of being "politically correct", but when it comes to what THEY think is "inappropriate" or "improper", they don't see themselves as being politically correct.

I personally think it's about time we got some political INcorrectness around here.

If people are offended by Common's lyrics, then don't buy his CDs.

Instead ask yourself what you and others would say if someone advocated burning obama instead of Bush.

We all know the answer - you'd be screaming "RACIST".

The issue that even you should be able to figure out is that by giving people like this rapper a forum at the White House, the obama's make it seem like they agree with his messages of hate and violence.

That's why the OP called it "another dumb choice" on the part of the obama's.

reply to post by RicoMarston

OK.

"Black gem in the rough

You’re rugged enough

Use your mind and nine-power, get the government touch

Them boys chat-chat on how him pop gun

I got the black strap to make the cops run

They watching me, I’m watching them

Them dick boys got a lock of cock in them

My people on the block got a lot of pok* in them

and when we roll together"

Now maybe you think this is cool and maybe you think it is art. 9 out of 10 people in this country would disagree with you and that makes it a poor choice to be highlighted at the White House. It is poor taste, poor judgement and to suggest that this continued kind of racial pandering on the part of the administration does not have a reaction on the other side, you're being foolish.

I don't want folks talking about the inner city and the manifest problems there. I can't think of anything more boring than having a discussion for the 1000th time, including that one. The business has been discussed to death and most of us certainly don't need poems to celebrate the violent dysfunction that exists today within our cities. You can also get off the "they don't have the same rights and freedoms" rubbish. Its tired, old and nobody buys it any longer other than the folks who think they deserve more rights and freedoms.

Prediction - he won't be there. He will develop a scheduling conflict or some excuse which will make it impossible for him to attend. He won't be there because he never should have been invited in the first place and when this starts to get news they will drop him like a bad habit.

Originally posted by centurion1211

Originally posted by Benevolent Heretic
It never ceases to amaze me how people ridicule the idea of being "politically correct", but when it comes to what THEY think is "inappropriate" or "improper", they don't see themselves as being politically correct.

I personally think it's about time we got some political INcorrectness around here.

If people are offended by Common's lyrics, then don't buy his CDs.

Instead ask yourself what you and others would say if someone advocated burning obama instead of Bush.

We all know the answer - you'd be screaming "RACIST".

The issue that even you should be able to figure out is that by giving people like this rapper a forum at the White House, the obama's make it seem like they agree with his messages of hate and violence.

That's why the OP called it "another dumb choice" on the part of the obama's.

you know, in poetry, the write will often use sarcasm or hyperbole or overly violent imagery to portray their thoughts and feelings in a way that is easily accessible. saying something like "burn a bush" probably didn't literally mean set george bush on fire in common's mind when he wrote it.

if connor oberst, a white poet, singer and songwriter, put in a poem that he wanted to "burn obama" and provided reasons to support his stance that weren't racial, there would be no problem whatsoever.

it does not mean that Michelle and Barack Obama want to burn bush. Obama was very clear that he would not be prosecuting or investigation any members of the bush administration for any alleged wrong doing. furthermore, he has continued the foreign policies of the bush administration. anyone who thinks that the Obamas want to burn bush is either incredibly ignorant or trying to stir up drama. which are you?

reply to post by dolphinfan


okay. i get it now.
you are part of the reason why there are racial and social inequalities in our nation.
i give you three lengthy examples of Common talking about love and real life and struggle and you come back with "yeah but he said that he carries a gun and isn't afraid to use it on cops, so he's a bad person." on top of that, you injected race into a quote from a song about the People fearing the Police enough to arm themselves against them.
i'm over this thread.