Why The Diss On Community Organizers?

Billmon asks, "Why the repeated attacks on community organizers?"

It kept popping up in all the speeches tonight -- Romney's, Guiliani's and of course Alaska Barbie's:

I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a "community organizer," except that you have actual responsibilities.

On the face of it, it's a pretty weird repetitive theme. Obama's done lots of stuff -- teaching, state legislature, writing books, etc. -- but "community organizer" seems like an odd one to fixate on. The words themselves have generally positive connotations, particularly that first one: everybody is in favor of "community" (as long as its their community).

I noticed it too. Weird. I think I'd draw a similar conclusion (and it's pretty sickening):

Which is exactly the point, I think. Used the way the GOP speakers used the words tonight (i.e. with a sneer), community = ghetto and organizer = activist.

It essentially was a coded way of pointing out Obama's work in, with and for the black community (see? even I'm doing it) on the South Side of Chicago. Also the fact that his work involved helping low-income people stand up for their legal rights, as opposed to a GOP-sanctioned "real" job like business owner or career military officer (or moose hunter.) They were trying to put Obama back on the same level as Jesse Jackson -- i.e., the black protest candidate -- and mocking him for it.