The Antichrist Obama
The other day I was fiddling around on Facebook, which I like to do to fool myself into thinking I'm working when I should be writing but not, when I stumbled upon the most curious of conspiracy theories. Oh boy, do I love a good conspiracy: Oswald didn't shoot JFK, dinosaurs are fake and 9/11 was grand theater orchestrated by Darth Vader and the Devil.
Oh, no, wait a minute. That last one can't be right because what I read yesterday implied that our current President Barack Hussein Obama is actually, the Devil. So, I guess Bush was just a minion. Unlike the aforementioned theories, this last one is based on a weak straw man argument. But before I attack it, let me give you the information, so you can decide what to believe.
Take a deep breath. I know, I know. If the pimping of language wasn't enough to send you over the edge, the voice that sounds a lot like Glenn Beck chanting the faux news, uh, I mean Fox News, mantra, should be. Actually, I think the voice is that of Alex Jones, a noted documentarian of conspiracy theories of all types. However, Jones usually puts his face and name on his efforts. So why not this one?
It's a straw man argument to the nth degree. First, let's look at the fact that people are referring to a language that has been out of print and use for centuries. Then, let's ask why would you translate half a sentence and not the other half. In the video, the first half of the sentence is in English and the second half is believed to be in Aramaic. The obvious answer: It's convenient to their argument.
Let's start with the fact that Barack Hussein Obama's name stems from his Kenyan heritage. Barack, spelled as seen, means, 'blessing.' Obama, spelled as seen, means 'slightly bent' from a rare Kenyan word that means baby born with a bent limb or, perhaps, a baby born breech. This is taken from Babynames.com.
What the man in the video has done, in great Glenn Beck fashion, is mix language and meanings to force fit them into his argument. Of course, the phrase 'baraq O-bamah' sounds like the president's name but it's not. And, there is no way you can take a phonetic similarity and twist it into an interpretation. The plain fact is, that phrase in that sentence is not a name. It's akin to saying the burning bush in the fabled Bible story was George Bush because they both contain the sequence of lettters that sound like b-u-s-h.
Beyond that, what does the rest of the verse say in Aramaic? What's the Aramaic word for Satan? To further prove my point, I went looking for other sources of information. On TruthorFiction.com, I found an article that shed light on my frustration with the straw man argument that mixes languages and plays with interpretation to make its point:
Ok, so even though the video claims to be using an Aramaic interpretation only the word 'baraq' is Aramaic. The rest is a misinterpretation rooted in other languages. Hmph. There are so many ways The Bible can be (mis)interpreted. This is why I disdain religion and religious zealots and fanatics alike. Everyone's version is the correct one. Everyone else is going to Hell because they don't do as the other one does.
I will say, the thing that pissed me off the most is, this bandwagon of hate mongering disguised as religious zealotry is propagated on the Internet by black people. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I think we are above such things. It's not. I'm angry that we finally have a President that the nation rallies around and then there's this hysteria of the right wingers and those stuck equally in the middle of the country and the middle ages to equate him with the most Evil. But I expected it from the extreme right. What I didn't expect, was it to come from my own neighborhood. It's as saddening as it is sickening.
To make sure I wasn't off track, I reached out my mentor (as I often do), Robbie Morganfield, who just so happens to be a pastor in the Washington D.C. area. (Note: I'm a believer in the Trinity but not a proponent of any one religion.) Here's what he had to say:
"I looked at the video and found it to be utter non-sense: Someone claiming some knowledge of ancient Scripture without any credentials,etc. So we are just supposed to take their word for it. Also, after listening to the video, I'm really not sure what they are trying to say. If Obama's name means lightning and heaven, so what?" My point exactly. He goes on:
"The video ends with a disclaimer saying it is not saying that BHO is the Antichrist but just stating facts about the meaning of the name or some non-sense like that.... again, I don't get it." Neither do I.
Black people, especially black men, should see this moment as the next plateau to success and equality for all mankind. Obama wants to do great things for all the people in this country at great personal risk. The Secret Service publicly stated Obama gets an average of 30 death threats daily. I wonder if it's from the same people who are sending this vitriol around cyberspace. It seems like they won't be happy until this country buries another young—
This scenario sounds woefully familiar to another but with a different ending. But we don't have to worry about a hysterical mob crucifying anyone...
Do we?
Without any prodding, Morganfield thought there was a similarity too.
"l'll say this...: If they thought that George Bush— who lied and deceived us into war, causing thousands to die needlessly and ruined the economy in the process and then denied a problem existed and the list could go on and on — was sent by God then it is no wonder they think Obama is of the devil. They are largely polar opposites," he said. It reminds me of the scribes in Mark 3 and Matthew 12. They accused Jesus of being of the devil because he cast out devils... Jesus responded by saying the devil would not cast out the devil. My question is what evil has Obama done?"
I say forgive them for they know not what they do. That was directed toward Jesus. It's not as if there could be any confusion, though. The days of Obama being hailed as a messiah are, indeed, over.
Oh, no, wait a minute. That last one can't be right because what I read yesterday implied that our current President Barack Hussein Obama is actually, the Devil. So, I guess Bush was just a minion. Unlike the aforementioned theories, this last one is based on a weak straw man argument. But before I attack it, let me give you the information, so you can decide what to believe.
"And he said unto them, "I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven." — The Bible, King James VersionThat's it. It's not even the entire sentence that has people's panties in a bunch, slandering the President all over the Internet. It's the last five innocuous words: As lightning fall from heaven. It could be an actual lightning strike. It could be a meteor. It could be a missile. It could even be airplanes shot out of the sky by military aircraft. I digress. Fanning this fire, or igniting it, I'm not sure, is an anonymous video posted on YouTube. If you haven't seen it, don't worry, I've got that for you too.
Take a deep breath. I know, I know. If the pimping of language wasn't enough to send you over the edge, the voice that sounds a lot like Glenn Beck chanting the faux news, uh, I mean Fox News, mantra, should be. Actually, I think the voice is that of Alex Jones, a noted documentarian of conspiracy theories of all types. However, Jones usually puts his face and name on his efforts. So why not this one?
It's a straw man argument to the nth degree. First, let's look at the fact that people are referring to a language that has been out of print and use for centuries. Then, let's ask why would you translate half a sentence and not the other half. In the video, the first half of the sentence is in English and the second half is believed to be in Aramaic. The obvious answer: It's convenient to their argument.
Let's start with the fact that Barack Hussein Obama's name stems from his Kenyan heritage. Barack, spelled as seen, means, 'blessing.' Obama, spelled as seen, means 'slightly bent' from a rare Kenyan word that means baby born with a bent limb or, perhaps, a baby born breech. This is taken from Babynames.com.
What the man in the video has done, in great Glenn Beck fashion, is mix language and meanings to force fit them into his argument. Of course, the phrase 'baraq O-bamah' sounds like the president's name but it's not. And, there is no way you can take a phonetic similarity and twist it into an interpretation. The plain fact is, that phrase in that sentence is not a name. It's akin to saying the burning bush in the fabled Bible story was George Bush because they both contain the sequence of lettters that sound like b-u-s-h.
Beyond that, what does the rest of the verse say in Aramaic? What's the Aramaic word for Satan? To further prove my point, I went looking for other sources of information. On TruthorFiction.com, I found an article that shed light on my frustration with the straw man argument that mixes languages and plays with interpretation to make its point:
"Dr. (Tom) Finley (Professor of Old Testament and Semitics and Chair at Talbot Theological Seminary in Ca) said that in Hebrew "bama" means "back," "hill," or "high place, place of worship" (Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament). In Isaiah 14:14 the term refers to "the heights of the clouds" (KJV) or "the back of a cloud" (a Jewish translation called Tanakh) or "the tops of the clouds" (NRSV).
However, he said that the normal word for "heavens" in Hebrew is "shamayim," and that is the word used in Isaiah 14:12 ("How you are fallen from heaven.")
“Even if we granted that bama could mean "heaven" by itself (that is, without adding a word like "clouds" after it),” Dr. Finley said, “the combination that the video makes, "baraq u/o bama," could only mean "lightning and heaven," not "lightening from heaven" or "the heights").
Further, according to Dr. Finley, “What Jesus said in Luke 10:18 was, in the KJV, "Satan as lightning fall from heaven." If he spoke it in Aramaic, then "from heaven" should be "min shemayya." If Hebrew it should be "mehashamayim." It is impossible that he would have used "bama" for "heaven," whether in Hebrew or Aramaic. In Greek it is "ek tou ouranou." And of course this doesn't address how to account for "and" in the alleged name "baraq u/o bama."
Dr. Finley concluded, “Someone has been playing around with these languages in a rather silly way.”"
Ok, so even though the video claims to be using an Aramaic interpretation only the word 'baraq' is Aramaic. The rest is a misinterpretation rooted in other languages. Hmph. There are so many ways The Bible can be (mis)interpreted. This is why I disdain religion and religious zealots and fanatics alike. Everyone's version is the correct one. Everyone else is going to Hell because they don't do as the other one does.
I will say, the thing that pissed me off the most is, this bandwagon of hate mongering disguised as religious zealotry is propagated on the Internet by black people. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I think we are above such things. It's not. I'm angry that we finally have a President that the nation rallies around and then there's this hysteria of the right wingers and those stuck equally in the middle of the country and the middle ages to equate him with the most Evil. But I expected it from the extreme right. What I didn't expect, was it to come from my own neighborhood. It's as saddening as it is sickening.
To make sure I wasn't off track, I reached out my mentor (as I often do), Robbie Morganfield, who just so happens to be a pastor in the Washington D.C. area. (Note: I'm a believer in the Trinity but not a proponent of any one religion.) Here's what he had to say:
"I looked at the video and found it to be utter non-sense: Someone claiming some knowledge of ancient Scripture without any credentials,etc. So we are just supposed to take their word for it. Also, after listening to the video, I'm really not sure what they are trying to say. If Obama's name means lightning and heaven, so what?" My point exactly. He goes on:
"The video ends with a disclaimer saying it is not saying that BHO is the Antichrist but just stating facts about the meaning of the name or some non-sense like that.... again, I don't get it." Neither do I.
Black people, especially black men, should see this moment as the next plateau to success and equality for all mankind. Obama wants to do great things for all the people in this country at great personal risk. The Secret Service publicly stated Obama gets an average of 30 death threats daily. I wonder if it's from the same people who are sending this vitriol around cyberspace. It seems like they won't be happy until this country buries another young—
This scenario sounds woefully familiar to another but with a different ending. But we don't have to worry about a hysterical mob crucifying anyone...
Do we?
Without any prodding, Morganfield thought there was a similarity too.
"l'll say this...: If they thought that George Bush— who lied and deceived us into war, causing thousands to die needlessly and ruined the economy in the process and then denied a problem existed and the list could go on and on — was sent by God then it is no wonder they think Obama is of the devil. They are largely polar opposites," he said.
I say forgive them for they know not what they do. That was directed toward Jesus. It's not as if there could be any confusion, though. The days of Obama being hailed as a messiah are, indeed, over.
Posted by LoisLane at Tuesday, September 01, 2009 8:40 PM 
Categories: Black Power,Under Current
Tags: career life conversation
Categories: Black Power,Under Current
Tags: career life conversation
I certainly don't believe Obama to be the anti Christ, mainly cause I don't believe the other nonsense spouted about the 'actual' christ. I have no love or hate for Obama but I honestly don't believe him to be the polar opposite of Bush. Maybe that could be true of personality and image but his plans are almost exactly the same as Bush and Clinton before him.
What I find to be more dangerous about Obama is that people trust him for absolutely no reason. His record since becoming president (constitutional issues, Justice department, etc) should leave one scared sh*tless. We recognize puppets when they are in banana republics but seem to miss them when they are here, Bush/Clinton notwithstanding. Besides personality I can't seem to find a lick of difference: NAFTA, GATT, CODEX, Corporatism, Eco Policy, Foreign Policy *structurally same*; interventionist who talks, anti civil liberties, unsound money, Lobbyist appointments to cabinet, backpedaling on promises, outright lies... So far its given a pass in the media but what would you expect of Americans, most with attention spans of 3 year olds?
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"...but what could you expect of Americans, most with the attention span of 3 year olds?" EXCELLENT POINT! The only that seems to satisfy these inbred retards (no offense to the physically or mentally challenged) is war. They are only happy when we are bombing or killing people in other countries. They make me ashamed of being an American. As the article stated no one seemed to mind all of Bush's bad moves that cost the country trillions, bankrupt an economy and needlessly killed over 23,ooo Americans and over half a million Iraqi citizens (UN General Assembly estimates). For some reason they seememd ok with that but need to make President Obama the antichrist? I shouldnt compare them with anyone who is mentally challenged or your typical 3 year old both are insulting respectively. I think most 3 year olds are basically smarter than that.
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Hi Dee,
I think Obama gets the benefit of the doubt. We are all watching his actions to see if he will do the things he's promised. I believe that when coming into office after a presidency like the one we are still hungover from, it is wise strategy to move slowly and methodically.
He has his plate full with health care reform, this brouhaha in Afghanistan and all the other things we DON'T know about. Then he has to deal with the crazy GOP. Eventually, IMHO, his time will run out and he'll need to have proven his worth but that time hasn't come. It's only been 8 months and some days. Give him time. I'm extremely interested in repealing the Patriot Act and the rebirth of Habeus Corpus.
I should further note, that I am not supporting the idea that he should not be challenged or called to the carpet when he lies or breaks a promise, etc. Failure and incompetency is unacceptable from anyone. I'm just saying that he should be given a chance to fail and if that happens the points should be rooted in fact not conjecture as in this straw man's claim.
Thanks for reading. Do come back.
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You so thoroughly dealt with that, there is absolutely nothing left for me to say. Exceedingly excellent observation and rebuttal. Never met no one quite like you, i only hope to be able to write as well as you one day.
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Awww, Wes. That's such a fantastic compliment. Thank you ever so.
You keep up the writing, despite your blue days and the critics, and you'll be simply phenomenal. I imagine you have blue days and critics because I do.
"There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible: the fear of failure." -- Paulo Coelho
I truly believe that.
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I do not understand how is it that the dixie chicks were drug under the bus and accused of some of everything for giving a statement about bushn but all of these ignorant, bible beaters can say whatever.
another thing i get really angry when dumb ass americans try and disect our names as if we were spawned from the devil I have had to deal with that all my life.
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Hey Deej,
You bring up such a good point. The Dixie Chicks were ostracized and torn apart by mainstream media. How on Earth does this guy get away with this without any blowback? I think it's why there isn't a name or a face on the video. It goes to show you, the difference in the two administrations. And it's too much work for MSM to find out who's behind it.
That's an interesting factoid about majority perception of ethnic names. My name is odd but its etymology is anglo-saxon, so I don't experience that much. However, my middle name is Arabic, so I avoid using it in airports.
Thanks for sharing and adding to the discussion.
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I heard about this after I voted. It's a scary though.\Very good Blog!!!
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@Marcel:
Would have knowing about this video before the Election change your vote?
Another video has started to circulate. More of a continuation on the same theme. Check this one out:
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This is an incredibly well written post. If only we could send this to every illiterate bible thumper on the planet. Unfortunately, due to their illiteracy, they would only understand the video part and we would be back to square one.
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Thank you, Mimi.
It's so sad that you are so right. I have a feeling I'm preaching to the proverbial choir. This even though I sent the link to the guy who sent me the video and was commenting about its veracity. I really did expect to hear from him and his crowd. Wonder what happened? It's not like he changed his position.
I think this is your first post on the Met. I do hope you come back to share your thoughts.
Thanks again!
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It is certainly sad when ignorant cowardly tyrants such as President Obama's predecessor are able to turn around the meaning of "freedom" and "liberty" and send us into the dark ages of fear and intolerance. It is still beyond me how the evilness of Rove Cheney Bush could question the decency of its opponent. I mention this simply because the heavy opaque drapes were opened on January 20th when President Obama took that oath and tossed the evil into the fire. This is why so many either hate or love the new president. Those who prefer the reputation of the USA being fear, greed and bullying the world hate the administration while those who welcome the fresh air and sunlight are happy. Those who say there is no difference between Rove Cheney Bush and Barrack Obama are just lost.
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