November 9, 2010

"People have been seeing too many Blaxploitation movies and kind of enjoyed Shaft..."

"... and they like the idea of this true black man... getting angry on television."

Why do people want Barack Obama to get angry? Do they? I guess the lefties do. If only he'd fight harder to make people see things his way and just force his will on us. I think the conservatives get off the hook for that particular version of racism.

50 comments:

bagoh20 said...

Rape fantasy.

Rialby said...

I think 51% of the population would like to see him get angry with America's enemies. The other 49% would like to see him to continue to express anger towards his own.

chickelit said...

If he wanted to promote racial healing, he'd voice over this

Jim said...

Isn't much of the criticism coming from the Right that Obama is TOO angry? And at the WRONG people?

Personally I think he could benefit from some time off....say, beginning January 20, 2013...

KCFleming said...

How many is too many Blaxploitation movies?

I saw Pam Grier in Foxy Brown.
Favorite line: "That's my sister and she's a whole lotta woman."

Never saw Shaft, but dug the Isaac Hayes song.
"They say this cat Shaft is a bad mother
SHUT YOUR MOUTH!
I'm talkin' 'bout Shaft.
THEN WE CAN DIG IT!
"

Sorry.
What was the topic?

Ann Althouse said...

I've never seen a Blaxploitation movie.

Ann Althouse said...

Unless "The Color Purple" or "Beloved" counts.

jr565 said...

Obama is like the Hulk. You won't like him when he's angry. Only you won't like him when he isn't angry too. And that's because he's genuinely unlikeable.
And not as in he's an evil person, only he's boring, an egghead who needs a teleprompter, a demagogue, and so sure of himself that he assumes that his election will literally cause the earth to heal. And his belief wasn't based on any thing he did, but rather his entitlement and his followers belief that his race and allegiance to the democrats (and that he wasn't Bush) meant he could literally save the world.
Remember, him getting his Nobel Peace prize based on literally nothing he did?
It's like in the movie The Man Who Would Be King. These rapscallions from the Army are captured by natives who think they are gods and slavish riches on them based on their skin tone. Until they see one of the "gods' bleed and then they march him out onto a bridge and chop the bridge so he falls to his death. That was Obama. No substance yet people were swooning and fainting at his speech. When he won many libs felt it was like a religious event. Now finally we will have the earth heal itself. And yet the guy can't even get rid of DADT, despite saying he would. Now he's revealed to simply be a man. And not just a man, but an ineffectual and shallow one.

The Crack Emcee said...

Unless "The Color Purple" or "Beloved" counts.

Those are Blaxploitation films, but in the NewAge/Oprah/Tyler Perry division.

You probably ought to forget the originals and just pick up Tarantino's "Jackie Brown" - it's got Pam Greer (the first star I had a crush on) and Samuel L. Jackson brings the "xploitation" something fierce.

bagoh20 said...

Who the hell is this Obama fella?

Robert Cook said...

I don't want to see any President get angry. That's pure theatrics meant to arouse the passions of the punters, (as the Brits would say).

Decisions of state are made behind closed doors with careful--if not usually smart--deliberation. To see a head of state having a hissy fit and acting as if he or she is "mad and not gonna take it any more" is not only embarrasingly artificial, but, if convincing and seemingly real, an indication the head of state hasn't the probity and self-possession that should be one of the minimum requirements for the job.

Real life isn't a movie and our heads of state shouldn't model themselves on John Wayne or Bruce Willis or whatever other action psychopaths we're applauding in the movie theaters lately.

Paddy O said...

It's interesting to me because it shows how much racial thought from some really is stuck in the 1970s, both culturally and philosophically.

Blaxploitation? Who thinks in these terms anymore?

Even mocking/ironic portrays of these movies are themselves fifteen years old or more.

The Crack Emcee said...

Oh - and BTW - now that I think about it, this was a particularly stupid political observation:

Obama ain't Shaft.

Anonymous said...

Real life isn't a movie and our heads of state shouldn't model themselves on John Wayne or Bruce Willis or whatever other action psychopaths we're applauding in the movie theaters lately.

Kookie, you are one pious motherfucker.

Do you have any sense of humor at all?

What do you do when you're not saving the world?

CJinPA said...

"I've never seen a Blaxploitation movie."

I was just typing that.

Of course, I've never seen The Godfather*, either. So maybe I'm not a good measure.

*(Or any of those Italian snuff films.)

I'm Full of Soup said...

I predict we will hear some unscripted and devastating soundbites from Obama where he blames everyone else for his troubles. And I suspect Hillary!'s operatives are installing the hidden microphones as we speak.

wv = united [also could be spelled untied which is what the Obama admin is today]

YoungHegelian said...

Don't the lefties in Madison all have the bumper sticker that says "If you're not not outraged you're not paying attention" on their volvos, just like they do in DC?

Outrage is the outward emotion that your heart is pure and your mind is clear.

Or so much of the left see it. For the rest of us, it just means you're pissed off about something or the other.

Unknown said...

The KosKidz want to see him go ballistic with an M-4 and gun down all those white, racist, bitter, teabagging MFs clinging to their guns and religion and then get down with all their women...

(Just finishing that one Kos guy's fantasy from last Tuesday)

Ann Althouse said...

I've never seen a Blaxploitation movie.

Unless "The Color Purple" or "Beloved" counts


It's not a true blaxploitation movie unless it has Shaft or Slaughter in the title. Or Pam Grier is in it.

You really do live a sheltered life in Madison, don't you?

Robert Cook said...

I don't want to see any President get angry. That's pure theatrics meant to arouse the passions of the punters, (as the Brits would say).

Decisions of state are made behind closed doors with careful--if not usually smart--deliberation. To see a head of state having a hissy fit and acting as if he or she is "mad and not gonna take it any more" is not only embarrasingly artificial, but, if convincing and seemingly real, an indication the head of state hasn't the probity and self-possession that should be one of the minimum requirements for the job.

Real life isn't a movie and our heads of state shouldn't model themselves on John Wayne or Bruce Willis or whatever other action psychopaths we're applauding in the movie theaters lately.


Cook wants all our POTUSeses to be like Martin Sheen or Sam Waterston.

PS The last President to get mad was LBJ.

The Drill SGT said...

edutcher said...
PS The last President to get mad was LBJ.


You forgeting Clinton's deposition?

I did not have sex with that woman Ms L.....

Paddy O said...

I'm Going to Get You Sucka was on one of the independent broadcast channels earlier this week. I remember seeing in when I was in junior high. My wife had never heard of it. She's only three years younger than me.

I had to explain it was a parody of blaxploitation films.

Then I had to explain what a blaxploitation film was.

Issob Morocco said...

The heavy use of the following phrases in his 60 Minutes chat, "...you know..." and the "...I mean...", is a sure sign of someone who has no idea what he is doing so he tries to convince the audience by this phony connection, as if they feel the same way but just cannot see it.

They did feel it in 2008, they aren't seeing it in 2010.

Anonymous said...

What is weak about this discussion is that McWhorter is disappointed in Obama not because of his policies but style. They think Obama's slide is all about his lack of expressiveness. Catch a clue, guys.

former law student said...

America elected Obama and the Democrats because they wanted to see sweeping change. But Obama didn't deliver, preferring to take baby steps. Well, you can't cross a chasm in two steps.

So America punished the Democrats, particularly the arch-compromisers, the Blue Dogs. America rejected the DINOS.

So it's time to double down, and give Americans what they wanted back in 2006 and 2008. No more DINOS. No more compromises.

Jim said...

What is weak about this discussion is that McWhorter is disappointed in Obama not because of his policies but style. They think Obama's slide is all about his lack of expressiveness. Catch a clue, guys.

It's just a continuation of the DNC Talking Points that their electoral disaster was a matter of "messaging."

If you count calling everyone who disagrees with "racists," "brownshirts," "Nazis," "bitter" or "scared;" then yeah...it was your messaging.

But those were just Kinsleyan gaffes: they said what they really thought. Their disdain for voters came shining through. As does Obama's.

Unlike a Clinton or a Reagan, Obama doesn't believe in persuading. He believes that he is smarter than everyone else, so your failure to agree with him can only due some failing on YOUR part. Therefore, he takes it upon himself to CORRECT your errors.

No one likes holier than thou, hectoring demagogues. Except of course those who see themselves reflected in those demagogues.

This is why the KosKidz NEED Obama to get angry. Because THEY are angry. They loved Obama when he was railing against Bush: because THEY were railing against Bush. He SEEMED angry too, so they fell in love with him out of pure narcissism: he was so much like THEM.

Now that he's on the defensive having to defend his own policy decisions, he's not "leaning forward" into the enemy (to use his own words). He's on his heels and weak in their eyes. But they're STILL angry. So he's not like them any more.

THAT is real source of the disconnect between Obama and the "professional Left."

The Drill SGT said...

former law student said...
So it's time to double down, and give Americans what they wanted back in 2006 and 2008. No more DINOS. No more compromises.


Let's hope FLS, Harry, Barry and Nancy keep running headlong into walls for another 20 months...

Unknown said...

former law student said...

America elected Obama and the Democrats because they wanted to see sweeping change. But Obama didn't deliver, preferring to take baby steps. Well, you can't cross a chasm in two steps.

...proving fsl lives in a Petri dish at the UWM Department of Economics.

KCFleming said...

What's the Matter with Kansas? Part 2.
By Thomas Frank
2011

Synopsis: GOP trickery again.
Stupid, stupid Kansans!!

Anonymous said...

"Shaft" was a big deal when it came out, much bigger than just about anyone expected. In Times Square they had to keep the theaters open 24hrs a day to accommodate the massive crowds. The day it opened, the lines wrapped around the block all the way over to 6th Avenue. I finally got in for the [Sunday!] 4:00am showing, and the place was packed - found a seat at the top of the balcony.

And what an experience it was, too, seeing and hearing the all-black audience jumping out of their seats and screaming at the screen; "SHAFT, LOOK OUT, THAT FOOL'S TRYIN' TO KILL YA!" Every moment of tension brought a chorus of voices, first from this section, than from that section. And often all at once.

And I can tell you, Obama is no Shaft.

kimsch said...

Black Dynamite is a campy blaxploitation spoof that's pretty funny. It's available on Netflix streaming...

wv: mismssi

mississippi missing an s, the p's, and two i's

Big Mike said...

All time best Blaxploitation movie was Cotton Comes to Harlem. Godfrey Cambridge as "Gravedigger Jones" demonstrated that he should, by rights, have had a longer and bigger acting career. Directed by the legendary Ossie Davis.

Should have had a sequel, and two or three to spare.

former law student said...

I had to explain it was a parody of blaxploitation films.

Then I had to explain what a blaxploitation film was.


I used to laugh at my mother in law complaining about something "the seniors" (her agemates) did, like stuffing sugar packets in their purses at restaurants, to save money.

But this "blaxploitation" thing makes me hate my fellow boomers. The pop culture of your youth is not world's enduring culture. Shaft came out four decades ago. When Shaft came out, no one was talking about Busby Berkeley movies as if they reflected some profound political truth of the 1970s. Move on. It's a new millenium.

Hoosier Daddy said...

America elected Obama and the Democrats because they wanted to see sweeping change.

What is interesting is how that runs counter to what Americans truly want which is stability, not change. When was the last time you got all excited when your boss came to you and said: "There's going to be some changes around here!"

One of the more popular bumperstickers I saw during the Bush regime was: "I miss Bill." which proved my theory that the 'good old days' trumps change everytime.

The Crack Emcee said...

Folks, it's John McWhorter:

There will be no "moving on".

ricpic said...

I think Barry gets it that his whole shtick is to remain non-threatening while cutting America off at the knees. He dasn't reveal the fierceness of his hatred.

holdfast said...

We like Shaft getting angry because he's a good cop in a sh*tty world - the same way we feel about Dirty Harry or John McLane. Shaft is just the black version of that.

coketown said...

I think Obama getting angry would have the same dynamic as a black woman getting angry. Think Foxy Brown, or really anything with Pam Grier in it. Obama would make a convincing drag queen. He lacks the machismo necessary to play the role of the angry black man. If he got angry, he would shriek instead of yell. And he would punctuate it with two quick snaps of the finger.

hombre said...

Jim wrote: Now that [Obama's] on the defensive having to defend his own policy decisions, he's not "leaning forward" into the enemy (to use his own words). He's on his heels and weak in their eyes. But they're STILL angry. So he's not like them any more.

The dilemma for the lefties is always that manipulating social issues and redistributing wealth for political gain is not a platform from which they can govern effectively.

Since Americans are wary of tyranny, the left has had to fall back on the other thing they do well on a large scale, agitating.

Perhaps the election will restore some semblance of the natural order we saw during the Clinton years: Republicans govern while Democrats focus on whining, abortion, race-baiting and blow jobs.

Anonymous said...

And if "Shaft" was still around today, he'd kick Obama's ass from one end of the mosque to the other.

Trooper York said...

I love Blaxploitation movies. I remember going to fortyduece with some of the dudes I played b-ball with. They called me Salami like the white guy from "The White Shadow."

My top Ten Blaxploitation movies in no paticular order:

Coffy
Foxey Brown.
Black Momma White Momma
Blackula
Shaft.
Shaft's Big Score
Shaft in Africa
Cleopatra Jones
Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold
Superfly
Sheba Baby

And that's just the short list.

It doesn't include more mainstream movies that ripped off the vibe but would not be considered real Blaxploitatiion like Mandingo and Across 110th St that had more mainsteam stars.

Trooper York said...

And let me just tell you Pam Grier is one tasty piece of chocolate!

former law student said...

Republicans govern while Democrats focus on whining

Democrats focus on whining? From the sneer of Rush Limbaugh to the screech of Mark Levin, conservative whining dominates talk radio for 14 hours a day.

Trooper York said...

Priscilla threatens Coffy with a knife, and Coffy reacts by shattering a wine bottle and threatening her with the jagged edge]
Coffy: So, you wanna play with knives, huh? Well you picked the wrong player!
Priscilla: No, no please look I didn't mean nothin'! Please!
Coffy: Now I'm gonna give you another slice to match the one you got from that dope-pushin' pimp, unless you tell me where he keeps the stuff!
Priscilla: No, please! He'll kill me! Ow... ALRIGHT, alright! He's got a fireplace! It's in a box under the ashes!
[Priscilla's tough-looking black lesbian lover/pimp returns suddenly]
Priscilla: Harriet! Harriet!
Harriet: What the hell is going on here?
Priscilla: She busted in here tryin' to make me! Get her outta here!
Harriet: Come on, bitch!
[fight ensues between Coffy and Harriet, and Coffy escapes]
Harriet: Lousy bitch! (turns to Priscilla) I go away for half an hour for you to turn a trick... and I come back and find you ballin' some niggah bitch! You WHITE TRAMP!
(Coffy, 1973)

Trooper York said...

Don't you mess with Black Momma or White Momma!

mccullough said...

Live and Let Die was the 007 foray into the Blaxploitation genre. Yaphet Kotto made an excellent Bond villain. And that guy from the 1980s 7-Up commercials was also very good. I always thought George Clinton should have same the theme song. Don't know why the let Paul McCartney do it.

Fr Martin Fox said...

FLS--in making a point about the 2008 election results--began his statement saying,

"America elected Obama and the Democrats because they wanted to see sweeping change. But Obama didn't deliver, preferring to take baby steps. Well, you can't cross a chasm in two steps."

"America" does not have a collective will or thought or desire. Americans, individually, have countless thoughts and desires. Of course I realize it's a shorthand way of talking about these things, but I think it tends to lead to wrong conclusions.

Elections are how we agree to manage things; but they do not necessarily manifest a collective will of the people as a whole. Sometimes the trends are strong enough to support such claims, but it's not necessarily so.

So this business of saying things like, America or "the electorate" wants X, or now has changed its mind--based on elections results--is a result of this sort of approach, and the more someone presses the point, the more fallacious it is.

Long Time Listener said...

Shaft's OK, but I think Dolemite is the best, the character and the movie. There were several Dolemite movies made. Easily the funniest of the genre, though often unintentionally so.

Trooper hits some good ones, and Coffy is one of my favorites. Superfly is damn good, too. Also enjoyed The Mack and Black Caesar. If you have never seen any blaxploitation movies, especially classics from the 70s, you are missing out.

Paddy O said...

"They called me Salami"

Now I have an image of Trooper York cruising around in his Hotel California looking for pickup basketball games and/or a shower to sing in.

dbp said...

former law student said...
So it's time to double down, and give Americans what they wanted back in 2006 and 2008. No more DINOS. No more compromises.


Yeah, hard-core liberals will easily win in districts that just chose Republicans over moderate Democrats. Good plan.

Trooper York said...

We always sang Do-wop on the corner.

We were after all mostly wops with a couple of half mick/half wop and a couple of the brothers mixed in.

Trooper York said...

I just ran a copy of "Scream Blackula Scream" on my computer.

A classic!