Comments on: Obama says Asians are short…

By: 8Asians.com » I May Be Short, But Nothing Short of Perspective

8Asians.com » I May Be Short, But Nothing Short of Perspective — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 23:10:25 +0000

[...] with the word “Asian,” just like any other stereotype. Even Obama’s aware of it (see his comment on his Hawaiian basketball teammates.) Which is probably why we get carded all the [...]

By: 8Asians.com » Tall, Short and Segregated Asians: Six Lessons from a Basketball Season

Wed, 22 Apr 2009 19:35:07 +0000

[...] said that (so did Barack Obama), but after this season, I’d have to qualify that statement to “some groups of [...]

By: 888 Society | Study: Americans Expect Business Leaders to Be White

888 Society | Study: Americans Expect Business Leaders to Be White — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 22:16:13 +0000

[...] (vs. just 4% of all men). And even presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama has commented that Asians are not tall. So where does this put Asians and Asian Americans in business? According to the Committee of 100 [...]

By: Jeff

Jeff — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 17:28:00 +0000

@Kaptin Kirck: I don’t see that. While some of the Asian Americans kids born in the US are taller than their parents, not every one of them is taller and even the ones that are taller are not on average taller than kids of other ethnic backgrounds. I see the height disadvantage all the time with my kids volleyball and basketball teams, which are mostly Asian American. There are regions of Chinese where people are pretty tall, but kids with ancestry from those areas never seem to play on the same teams with my kids!

By: Kaptin Kirck

Kaptin Kirck — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 20:03:13 +0000

Old world asians are short. The younger generation is about the same height as any other race. People grow better when they have sufficient food. I would be offended if it weren’t true. Your race affects your culture and tradition, and is guided by your DNA. That can’t be changed. But the mind is unaffected by any of that. My only problem with all that is when people mix the inward and outward up. He was just talking about basketball, so I got no problem with that. But it is better said behind closed doors. Not because it matters, because it shouldn’t, but because most people don’t know how to react to a little chiding. Obama’s head is really small. Maybe that’s why he spoke so easily.

By: Anosh

Anosh — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 08:38:23 +0000

Well, i heard what he said about people of asian ancestry not being as tall. i would have to say that statement is neutral. i did hear some people laughing maybe because they thought it was true or something. but here is my opinion. as an iraqi person, i dont really get the height problem too much for my people. especially since im 6 ft tall. i think it has to do with genetics first and diet second. the human race is divided into three categories which are caucasian, congoid, and mogoloid. people of caucasian origin, like white, european, middle eastern, and most indians, tend to be tall. so are people of congoid (black) origin. i havent really met too many tall asian most were average (about 5′5-5′8). asians aren’t as short as people think. its just that americans are tall due to their diet, which is pretty good compared to other countries. my family is on the tall side like im 6 ft my brother is 5′9 and my sister is 5′5. its surprsing to many cuz all three of us r taller than our parents (mom is 5 ft and dad is 5′5) my uncles are around 5′11 to 6′1. i have one thats is 5′8, which is short in my family. one my uncles is 6′5. and white and black people arent as tall as many think. i am generally taller than most white guys i see, black ppl seem to be a bit taller though by just a little though. when i was in iraq, i saw it too cuz we had many filipinos, japanese, and koreans around us. generally speaking, they stood out in the population because of their height cuz most iraqis were aorund 5′8-6ft tall. while the asians were around 5′5 for men and 5 ft for women. we would literally tower over them. its especially funny cuz i have an asian(filipina) girlfriend and she 5′2 i seem like a giant to her….lol….but i do tend to like shorter girls much better, also diet effects it. if you eat a lot of protein and healthy food u would start getting taller, but thats only before the age of 23 or so which is when u stop growing. i have seen some pretty short white, black, and yes middle eastern people. i’ve seen this guy in iraq that was around 5 ft tall. it wasnt a shock or anything but we do have short people also. i would say about 15-20% are short. and dont worry, asians today are growing bigger. did u see japanese men today? the average height for a japanese male now is 5′8. now thats tall. compared to before which was like 5′4 or so. and besides, white people r tall due mostly to diet. if u look at the pictures of the soldiers of WWII the average height for european soldiers was 5′5-5′6. now it is 5′9-5′10. so basically its diet and also medical caring they have available to them. asians are beautiful the way they are. no need to be angry about it just because obama says something stupid like that. i dont even think obama knows is gonna happend once he is in office. its gonna be a tough job for him. but hopefully he will find a way to get americans our of iraq. thanks man and i hope you don’t get offended too much by people cuz they can be ass holes sometimes with stereotypes just be cool about it. have a good day.

By: Journey

Journey — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 04:02:35 +0000

I just watched the clip. I think sometimes we are a little sensitive. He was just stating that on average asians are shorter and that’s true. It’s like saying black people are darker.

By: Dave

Dave — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 23:19:33 +0000

blah blah blah…. blah blah blah… complain complain…. oh dear those words hurt me…. *cry*

Either
a) treat him as you treat Imus
b) treat him as you treat Clinton
c) treat him as you treat Bush
d) this double standard giving people a pass because you like him is why you all fail ethics
e) treat him as you treat the comedians because politicians are about the same (laughs*)
z) and political correctness = hypocritical

I hate political correctness and I hope people never lose the right to say whatever they want. Toughen up, learn to listen in the face of adversity and discuss to overcome, instead of forcing people to shut up.

For all of you who are politically correct. I think you must hate Comedy Central and have little to no sense of humor, emotional security, and cultural diversity (includes humor across the cultures).

Oh and Obama’s speeches are good for those who listen to vague phrases. They are all phrases and one-liners without action. He (his speechwriters are) is good at making open-ended statements that are vague and call for vague action. For example (taken from an Obama speech);

“And so if we do not change our politics – if we do not fundamentally change the way Washington works – then the problems we’ve been talking about for the last generation will be the same ones that haunt us for generations to come.

We must find a way to come together in this country – to realize that the responsibility we have to one another as Americans is greater than the pursuit of any ideological agenda or corporate bottom line. Democrats of California, it’s time to turn the page.”

His speeches are fluff with pretty words. Have you ever listened to a speech from a scientist or a professional? They can tell you how they will do things, when they will do it, and what they expect. Nothing is vague, nothing is pretty, it is the simple 1+1=2. Whereas Obama’s speeches are 1+1=? MOREOVER, Bush is the same, uses fluff and patriotic vague statements.

You people are easily fooled. Then again, I am a fence sitter… It is somewhat hard for me to pick which politician is the lesser of evils. I hate politics in general…

The words and phrases Hypocrite, Double Standard, High Strung, and Vague come to mind…

/END rant…

Have a nice day everyone… toodles…

Hey kids… grow up… everyone sing with me now… “sticks and stone may break my bones but words will never hurt me…” It’s time people who cry foul over “words” go learn this lesson…

By: Tom

Tom — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 23:58:16 +0000

The point is, that’s it’s inappropriate for a Presidential candidate to make comments about race in general manner, even if those comments are generally true. True Asians are on the whole shorter than Caucasians/Blacks. It’s also true that Blacks score lower on the SATs generally than other races. Does that justify me saying, “I was valedictorian, but it was at a predominantly black school so I had an easy time of it.”

Can you imagine him as President going to China and remarking on how short the people are? Not appropriate. Disappointing.

By: Bo

Bo — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 21:28:43 +0000

I stand 5′ 8″ tall. I get a lot of “Wow, you’re tall for an asian female.” comments ALL THE TIME from asians, caucasians, blacks…practically everyone. How different is that comment from what Obama said? Should I get offended everytime someone makes a comment about my height and assume that person is saying something that overly stereotypes asian people? Of course not. Yes, I agree with what several people have said about how Obama should have known better…but in reality what he was saying was based on his own personal experience.

Sounds to me like most people’s discomfort with Obama’s comment isn’t so much related to the actual content or implications but the lack in judgement it demonstrated. Am I wrong?