Suddenly Wright is Important?

I’m pretty angry this morning. Actually, I’ve been pretty angry for a few days now because of the hypocrites that mindlessly follow every word Obama says and defend every action he takes.

For weeks and weeks we’ve heard about how Obama’s connections to the racist anti-American Reverend Jeremiah Wright were unimportant. It was a creation of the media. It was a creation of racist white people. White people don’t understand the black church.

Apparently, neither do half-black people, and Jeff Jarvis isn’t pleased that gears have been changed and 180 degree about faces have been done.

Now I’m actually angrier about Obama and the Rev. Wright than before. When I complained about what Wright said the first times, I was told that I didn’t understand the history of the black church, I didn’t understand black liberation theology, I didn’t listen to the whole context of what he said. Bull.

But now Obama repudiates Wright. And all Wright did was repeat the exact same crackpot crap that some of us had complained about before.

So before, I was as good as called racist or at least clueless for criticizing the not-so-good reverend. But now when Obama finally criticizes him, the New York Times editorial page — in a classic of doublespeak soft-headed mush from wimps — praises him for “the most forthright repudiation of an out-of-control supporter that we can remember.” Jesus.

So what happened to the context?

Reverend Wright hasn’t changed his tune. He’s still spinning the same yarns he was a few weeks and years ago. He’s still claiming America is a deeply flawed country building empires and oppressing people. He’s still claiming that AIDS was let loose into the black community as some kind of eugenics experiment. None of this is new.

For weeks and weeks we’ve been told that those remarks are meant to be taken in a certain context. That white people don’t understand the black church and the deeeper meaning of these comments. They mean nothing, and white people are making a mountain out of a molehill. Obama’s supporters have consistently questioned every aspect of people’s problems with the remarks and told us (us being those who disagreed with it) that we were misintrepreting.

Those exact same people are now applauding Barack Obama for distancing himself and publicly repudiating him for his remarks.

Why?

Did Barack misunderstand the context, also? Reverend Wright has the absolute right to say whatever the hell he wants. Obama has the right to freely associate with who he chooses. I just question the fact that those people who said everyone was misunderstanding Wright are now applauding Obama for distancing himself from a guy who was merely misunderstood.

I apologize if this makes me daft, but what changed? Is the context only a bad thing when Barack sends the message down to his people that things being said are bad?

I’m having a hard time reconciling this. Any help would be greatly appreciated.