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Democratic Party front-runner Barack Obama's middle name is Hussein. Beverly Congdon argues that his middle name gives the impression of that Obama "has not realized or acknowledged the terror and pain Saddam Hussein inflicted on the Iraqi people, the Kurds, and others during his rule."
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Barack Hussein Obama
Beverly Congdon | 3/3/08 | Opinion
any are complaining about the apparent “smears” made by radio talk-show host Bill Cunningham. All Cunningham did, however, was call presidential candidate Sen. Obama by his full, legal name, Barack Hussein Obama.
The reason why this could be considered as a smear is obvious if you know anything about world leaders and world events. Sen. Obama’s middle name, Hussein, is the last name of Iraq’s previous brutal dictator, Saddam Hussein.
Michelle Obama complained of Cunningham using this “fear bomb” to attack her husband’s candidacy. Well, Michelle, isn’t Cunningham just using his full and proper name? He is free and correct to do so. But if even you believe his middle name is a potential threat to his run for president, maybe he should have changed it. At age 18 in the U.S. one can change his name legally. So if Barack Hussein Obama was interested in a political career, why wouldn’t he change his name? His middle name is indeed a threat to his candidacy as it appears to give appreciation to the deceased villainous dictator.
Some defend his middle name, like my father Michael Congdon, who said “Well, at the time of his birth Saddam Hussein was not at large, nor recognized as he is today.” In response I ask you this: do you think it would be possible for a candidate to be elected with the middle name Hitler or Stalin immediately following the World War II? Clearly, the answer is no. If that candidate (which most people did at that time and still do today), truly accounted Adolf Hitler with his crimes on humanity, he would certainly and promptly change his name in order to clarify that Hitler was neither being honored, nor his actions underestimated.
This makes me conclude that Barack Hussein Obama has not realized or acknowledged the terror and pain Saddam Hussein inflicted on the Iraqi people, the Kurds, and others during his rule. I have noticed this pattern amongst anti-war advocates: indifference or ignorance of Saddam Hussein and his brutal dictatorship. This in turn contributes to an incomplete understanding of the reasons why American forces overthrew and helped reconstruct the Iraqi government, and still exist to secure Iraq today. This causes one to be against the Iraq war overall. When one takes the cruel history of a leader lightly, it influences one to also underestimate the importance and urgency that actions are taken against the leader.
Kudos to the radio talk show host for calling the Democratic Party front runner by his full name.
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