| 'Chia Obama' Ignites Racist Firestorm |
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| by Tom McGregor | Tue, Nov 10, 2009, 02:13 PM |
 Chia Pet magnate Joseph Pedott, who resides in the Democratic Party's enclave of San Francisco, Ca. is facing public scorn from his neighbors in the home Congressional District of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D.-Ca.). Mr. Pedott proudly voted for Barack Obama in the presidential election, but his peers are rebuking him for creating and selling a 'Chia Obama' pet, because they deem it as a 'Jim Crowe era' racist depiction of America's first-elected African-American president.
The Los Angeles Times gives an acount of a 'Chia Obama' commercial: "The scene: a vast crowd at a political rally raises a tumult of adulation. Triumphal music arises. Graphics of President Obama's image slide across the scene as we hear the new familiar voice say, 'Change has come to America ... Our moment is now ... Yes we can!' The crowd chants. Slow pullback on the image of the White House. Announcer: 'To commemorate the inauguration of our 44th president with a well-known american icon, introducing ...' Jingle: Chi-chi-chi-Chia!' Announcer, 'Chia Obama!'" The next few seconds of the commercial appears as one of the strangest in TV infomercial history, as viewers see a terra cotta bust of Obama sprout a massive green afro that's rich in Omega-3. The announcer proclaims, "Chia Obama makes the statement, I'm proud to be an American.'" Th 'Chia Obama' pet was not meant to be a racist mockery of the currently-presiding U.S. president, but a glowing truibute of him, as claimed by Mr. Pedott. Mr. Pedott said, "I remember the Great Depression: It wasn't very nice." He recalled that in November he was deeply fretful about Obama, the first Democrat he had ever voted for. The nation was fraught with the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the global financial crisis, unemployment and more. Pedott added, "it's almost inhuman to put all that on a president." The L.A. Times reports that, "Pedott made a tidy living off the Chia Pet, a business he bought in the 1960s. If not an American 'icon,' they are certainly familiar: little terra cotta sculptures (turtles, sheep, etc.) onto which you spread handfuls of moistoned chia seeds. In a few days, the Chia Pet blooms in a numbus of bright-green leaves, kind of like lafalfa sprouts." To read the entire article from the Los Angeles Times, link here: To purchase a 'Chia Obama' pet, link here: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it 
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Comments (8)
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written by furrpiece , November 10, 2009 I don't get it. I didn't hear a single complaint when Bush bauble-head dolls were made after 9/11 while we were fighting wars for survival on two fronts. But, a cute iconic Chia Pet is made to commemorate Obama's election, and the loony Left goes berserk. The good news is that they will probably go way up in price since they are targeted for extinction, so buying several would be a good investment. I love America and the Free Market!
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written by Jonathan Green , November 11, 2009 Electing a Black President was without a doubt a historic feat on many many fronts. But just because we have a Black President, that does not mean we sit back, relax and do nothing. We cannot fall victim to thinking that all of our problems and future hurdles will be resolved because of the history we made in 2008. Conservative Whites mainly in Dallas County, will continue to make disparging comments about President Obama, and African American leaders in this city. The Chia Obama depicts nothing racial to me, nor have I read anything racial on a national level about the marketing of the product. Nevertheless, I find it ironic that Tom McGregor found this article and posted the article on the Dallas Blog.
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written by John Weekley , November 11, 2009 I believe we need to remind ourselves that Freedom of Speech isn't intended for the speech we agree with, but the speech we find repugnant and offensive. Much of the government-sponsored art I've seen appeared to be more like dirty third grade pranks than art. But, even the most offensive trash-for-art is protected speech. Getting upset about a Chia Pet depicting anyone seems a little much. Besides, it creates oxygen and absorbs carbon dioxide.
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written by Austin , November 11, 2009 Funny how making fun of the Commander in Chief during a time of war was "treason" this time last year and is now great fun even as troops are still locked in mortal combat. All with one change in administrations. Sad...........
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written by Byron George , November 11, 2009 The government will probably "buy out" the Chia Pet owner or tax him out of business. Write comment
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