I think this is a subject that a lot of people are finding very hard to come to terms with. I've seen various public discussions that sort of dance around the issue, or state it implicitly. But the issue is, WVa, and much of the rest of Appalachia, will never vote for Barack Obama because he is black. If you have trouble believing this, follow me over the jump for an appalling video.
Even though TPM's Josh Marshall has made a plain case that Obama's problem in the Appalachian region has its roots in racism, he still has trouble coming right out and saying it. He uses a more scholarly and genteel formulation, speaking of how the area was historically anti-slavery, and mentioning towards the end of the piece that "they were as anti-slave as they were anti-slavery, both of which they viewed as the lynchpins of the aristocratic and inegalitarian society they loathed." To put it that way almost makes a virtue out of something quite foul. It makes me want to ask, why the kid gloves?
Maybe there's a sense that we have to tread lightly here, or risk losing dependable democratic voters forever. If that isn't it, then I've got nothing.
I think it's time to make it as plain as possible. There's a narrow region of our country that is still under the grips of mind-poisoning racism. This malady can't be healed by gentleness, or high-toned language that might well go over the heads of those who suffer from it. It must be confronted directly, with plain talk, logic, and passion. That effort needs to begin with our media.
The left-leaning The Real News takes an unabashed look at the problem in a piece they have up on their site. You've got to see it to believe it. This is what we are up against.
Here's The Real News clip: