God Bless Jeremiah? No, God Damn Jeremiah!

I have defended Wright up until this point even after the Moyers interview, which I thought was rather harmless and thought it showed the pastor in a positive light. I defended him against criticisms, giving him the benefit of the doubt that he didn't mean to infer that Obama said things for purposes shielding his true thoughts, or for political expediency. But now with consecutive appearances before the NAACP and NPC, he has actively and quite unnecessarily inserted himself deeply into the Democratic campaign, and he has proven me wrong by affirming that indeed he did mean to imply Obama is something of a pandering, disingenuous politician. Whether intentional or no, whether passively or aggressively, the pastor is actively engaged in the process of throwing Obama under the bus.

I continue to argue that it is unfair to hold Obama accountable for his pastor's comments, or for the media or the other two candidates to try to conflate the two men into a single entity. But I am no longer cutting Wright any slack. At all. Perhaps Barack won't or can't denounce him (and I admire him for not doing so), but that doesn't prevent his supporters from doing so.

In a mirror corollary to Obama's position, I am, if not entirely in agreement with, then mostly sympathetic to Wright's socio-political preachings (save for AIDS conspiracy theories and the like). And the man certainly has a right to speak his mind in and about America.

My denunciation is of the man himself, for allowing his enormous ego to damage Obama's campaign. It is hard for me to believe the Reverend is completely unaware of the harm he might inflict. And if that is the case, then one must wonder if he is not intentionally attempting to undermine Obama's chances due to some interpersonal dynamic between the two not yet understood. But whatever the reason, it is unforgivable. With friends like that, who need enemies?

(I hate to end with a cliche, but there it is.)

Update: If an old friend is deliberately trying to run your campaign bus off the road and into a ditch, then the moral imperative is to throw that old friend under that bus and back up over him a few times, for the benefit of not only yourself, but for all the passengers on board, for the good of the country and the world. After having given Wright every benefit of the doubt, only to be rewarded with intentional personal betrayal, Barack did the right thing today.