I’ve been spending time with an interesting 75-year-old fellow who happens to be quite wealthy and quite anti-Obama. Earlier today I stood by patiently as he explained to the former mayor of a small Tennessee town (who sports a “Pray for Obama” bumper sticker on his pickup truck) that Obama is an anti-colonialist and a hater of America. He mentioned as his evidence Obama’s book Dreams of my Father.
I wanted to find out if my older friend spoke truth or merely opinion.
I may come back to this and offer additional thoughts after I conduct more in-depth, objective research and read more of the relevant articles; however, based on my friend’s description, he seemed hopping mad that anyone (e.g., Obama) could possibly be anti-colonialist because the affected nations (Africa, Middle East, etc.) would be back-asswards if it were not for the boost given to them via the colonialism in their history.
In other words, his stance appears to be that the end justifies the means.
My first impression is that this conversation took place largely in September 2010. It is old news; it’s old opinion.
One of the fundamental questions here has to do with the morality and spiritual principles associated with colonialism. So – what is colonialism, exactly?
Colonialism is essentially controlling a territory and its inhabitants. This must necessarily occur by force.
Source: Dictionary.com
A more detailed explanation of colonialism:
Colonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. It is a process whereby sovereignty over the colony is claimed by the metropole and the social structure, government, and economics of the colony are changed by colonists – people from the metropole. Colonialism is a set of unequal relationships: between the metropole and the colony, and between the colonists and the indigenous population.
The colonial period normally refers to a period of history from the late 15th to the 20th century when European nation states established colonies on other continents. During this time, the justifications for colonialism included various factors such as the profits to be made, the expansion of the power of the metropole and various religious and political beliefs.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonialism
What might universal spiritual principles say about the act of colonialism? The most basic, rudimentary spiritual principles include treating others as we would like to be treated; basic decency. Let’s face it: Behaving Spiritually 101 probably includes the golden rule.
If those who are making pro-colonialism arguments would not mind their own culture(s) being taken over by a foreign force and colonialized, then perhaps their views really do come from a spiritually centered philosophy. But most of us know better.
Colonialism is, in effect, a mild form of slavery.
It is not surprising to me that the most right-leaning fundamentalist Christians tend to be tolerant of colonialism; after all, the Bible implicitly allows and tolerates the practice of slavery. These ultra-conservative types have no choice but to believe that kind of elitist, controlling behavior is OK, as long as Christians are the ones doing the controlling.
When the ends justify the means, then anything becomes fair game. If the end result is my expansive wealth – which enables me to provide more financial assistance to poor people everywhere – then my participation in a major Central American cocaine cartel is OK. I can create and operate a major human trafficking ring importing Asian teenage girls into the U.S for prostitution – and of course enjoy all the frills thereof – as long as I can become rich enough to help poor people.
Do you see a problem with this?
Resources: Obama
- Roots of Obama’s anti-business leanings – The President isn’t exactly a socialist. So what’s driving his hostility to private enterprise? Look to his roots – Forbes
(201009) - No, Obama is not a Muslim. No, Obama is not a socialist. The truth is far worse. – The Curmudgeon’s Attic (201009)
- White House rips Forbes article (201009) – Washington Post
- List of Obama Lies-Truth! Fiction! & Unproven! – Truth or Fiction
Resources: Opinion re: Obama as anti-colonialist
- Obama, the Anti-Colonialist – Poll Pundit
- My Kenyan, anti-colonialist worldview – Guardian U.K. (201009)
- Obama is an ‘anti-colonialist’? Political poppycock! – Washington Post (201009)
- Newt Gingrich: Obama’s ‘Kenyan, Anti-Colonial’ Worldview Rules America – Politics Daily (201009)
- Gingrich: Obama’s ‘Kenyan, anti-colonial’ worldview – National Review Online (201009)
Resources: More on anti-colonialism; debating colonialism
- Colonialism – Wiki
- Anti-imperialism – Wiki
- Colonialism debate – Debate.org
- The New York Times’s “liberal” argument for colonial occupation – World Socialist Web Site
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
NOTE: Updated occasionally…
Despite the fact that John plagiarized this comment from another forum (see Resources, below), it is nevertheless an interesting, humorous anecdote; it could even be used to create the “perfect” sound bite for Hard Right political campaigns like those of Rick Perry, Michele Bachmann, and others! The same kind of people who cheer for capital punishment would probably rejoice when hearing it. 
OK, so John really does seem to believe that 
My religious hiking friend, Bill, did not agree that