The Laughable/ Desperate Republicans

      Having tried and failing hopelessly with Sarah Palin and the gender card, the snake-bitten and pathetic Republican Party has decided to play the race card. The measure of their desperation can be seen firstly in the naming of an African-American as their party leader and secondly in selecting Piyush "Bobby" Jindal to give their reply to Pres. Obama's speech to Congress.

     It was painful listening to Jindal. He tried to play the poor immigrant card, then the hard working ethnic card and finally the " we Americans can-do card". He contradicted himself on the Katrina fiasco, saying that the rebuilding was done by private actions, when in fact most of the spending ( in the billions) has been by the federal government. He also seem to have forgotten that it was the Bush " great job Brownie" administration that failed the people of New Orleans and responded so incompetently, whether it was the rescueing, the housing or the rebuilding. I guess he (Jindal) was overcome by the assignment, and to think that he is being touted as the saviour of the Republican Party.

      Jindal may truly believe in the conservative values of the Republican party. Is this why he has changed his name to Bobby? Is this why he has changed his religion to Catholic, waituing until the death of his grandfather to do so? No,No,No. It 's all political expediency. He obviously did not think that having an exotic name..Piyush and being a Hindu would be good for his political career. Louisana, one of the poorest states, with a very low literacy and high corruption among public officials. is overwhelmingly white, catholic and conservative. That is why the Indo- American, Hindu Piyush became the American, Catholic Bobby. Talk about self-serving. Even denying his identity and his heritage

     Barak Obama, on the other hand, an African- American (white, Christian American mother and a black Muslim Kenyan father) was Barry as a teenager, wandering the world from Hawaii to Indonesia to Chicago, discovered and celebrated his identity. He embraced his "exotic" name and was proud of his heritage. How re-assuring for the growing number of "mutts" that are increasingly a part of the American political, social and cultural mosaic. One offers hope and pride in self, the other limbo. The contrast is stark.

      The Republican party has become a shadow of itself. Eight years of George Bush. two draining wars, an economic meltdown, the failure of free enterprise/ capitalism, the greed of Wall Street, the growing unemployment, the toxic mortgages and the corruption have created a perfect storm that has engulfeed the Republicans. They are hapless and leaderless and so they have come up with this latest racist gimmick......create this Potemkin village, this facade that they have seen the light and are so eager to show that they are not out of touch with the changing demographics/ realities of the 21st century that they are willing to let an African-American and an Indo- American lead the party. They have allowed their "house servants", to come upstairs. Some of them (Shelby), have even resorted to again questioning whether Pres. Obama is really an American. What a pathetic, morally bankrupt, intellectually challenged, craven and crass bunch.