The contempt expressed by Republicans for Obama's past as a community organizer would be amusing if it weren't so sincere. Contempt for community organizing (a phenomenon on both sides of the political spectrum) is essentially contempt for democracy. How exactly are citizens supposed to look out for their interests if not by organizing to pursue them?
Today at TAP Online, The People's Champ Paul Waldman writes:
Perhaps most oddly to some ears, Palin even mocked Barack Obama for having worked as a community organizer after graduating college: "This world of threats and dangers is not just a community, and it doesn't just need an organizer," she said to derisive laughter and cheers. One could respond that this world of threats and dangers is not just a small-market local TV station, and it doesn't just need a sports reporter, since that's what Palin did when she finished college.
In other words, while Obama was working on things like developing education programs for poor youth and helping tenants get asbestos removed from their apartments, Sarah Palin was attempting to further her career as a sportscaster. Obama was focused on helping working Americans; Palin was focused on herself. Neither gives one a background in national security, but in evaluating the background of a potential public servant, the best community organizers likely overshadow the best sportscasters. Most people would probably vote for Martin Luther King over Howard Cosell.
Nothing's wrong with trying to further your own career, but if you're trying to contrast your priorities and experiences with your opponent, you might want to have a record worth contrasting.
--A. Serwer
