Posted By:
Jim VBJerry,
I don't know that I'd call myself an Obama supporter, but it's a fair question to ask.
Ayers - His past is pretty unforgivable, but... he led a group that was opposed to, what history has determined, was a mistake of a war. His methods to fight it went way too far. However, he was never convicted of anything (I know, lame excuse). I don't think he has any reasonable ties to Obama though. They live in the same neighborhood. They served on a board trying to find ways to improve education systems. And Ayers had injected himself into local politics just at a time Obama was getting started. I don't see any long term connection. (Franklin Raines bothers me more.) I would hate to be judged by the company I have kept on school district/financial boards.
Wright - A little more troubling, but still hard to measure. My mom was born and raised in Chicago and we spent a lot of time there as kids. Racial tensions in that city have been nasty since the 1960's. Many people, on both sides have been at the radical extremes, including MLK and Jesse Jackson. I find hateful rants on both sides to be counter-productive, but it's difficult to fathom how some people have been forced to live. I've been a Catholic for 53 years and, yet, disagree with a good chunk of what that church and my parish priests say and do. I constantly find myself "mining for nuggets" of wisdom.
In summary, I don't find these any more troubling than McCain's association with the Keating Five, or the Bush administration.