Karen—refer below-you are wrong!!!! You are part of the problem because you buy into men’s dogma. You are wrong. Thank you Fai. RACISM is NOT an issue if women unite and run over half the world. Women do not have an innate need to segregate, dominate, and kill others. We simply do this when following a bunch of our men because we believe we need them to protect us. They have proven to be killers and destroyers. RACE is NOT an issue ladies. A woman in power is the ISSUE. We do not NEED religion to tell us how to act ethically. We naturally act morally when left to our own instincts. Men left to their own, wreak havoc!!! It is a fact, like evolution, and gravity. Their is no elephant in the room. Their is only the domination of the world by male dominated religion-it poisons everything. Africa— lets solve Africa. Give the women the power and the guns and take away the men’s power. Let them run things for ten years and you will have a country to contend with. But, men do not want this. They want to send them food, or whatever and enable the men to continue their dominance that is NOT working. That’s race on race extermination. Not even that catholic Bono see’s he is part of the problem, he has no solution due to his religion. Sexism is the real enemy, get rid of that and racism will disappear. So will 90% of all the other ills of the world. How will we know if we do not try it ladies? How will we know? It really pisses me off that so many women are still hanging onto men’s idea of things, of their reality. It is not real, like god whispering in men’s ears to create new religions, it is not real. There is no evidence, and women are their own worst enemies. We can not blame anyone but ourselves. Shame on us!!!!!

Good point Lorraine. I really agree. When it come to my country. I’m an American first.

Good, open response Lorraine. I agree that we are all Americans so why the need to define ourselves any way other than by American. But we do definitely identify with our heritage and perhaps not as you say, “by our physical traits.” A co-worker recently asked me who he could ask, without offending anyone, why we can’t all be defined as Americans; Why some prefer to be referred to as African-American. So how do we distinguish between race and pride in our heritage? (And this includes all heritage.)

No Tammy, it’s a shame that this man has to address the issue of race during his campaign. Has a white man ever had to discuss race during his campaign? Why has race become such an explosive issue in the campaign? Have you asked yourself that question? It has become an issue to put fear in white people. Fear of the “angry black man”. You say that he should have done this a long time ago. Well he’s always planned to bring this issue to the forefront whether this Jeremiah White incident occured or not; but not in this manner. Or as a result of Jeremiah’s inflammatory comments. But why should the topic or race be mentioned? Why because we still view ourselves as “us” and “them”. He can’t just be a man in this society. He’s viewed as black first and then as a man. If he didn’t give a speech now to quell this nonsense, then the media and his opponents would keep this issue alive detracting from the real issues. It’s a good strategy for the opposition, I’ll admit to that. But how does it benefit our country? Racism is not dead, I’m sad to say, it’s just not. Unfortunately, we’ll be having this conversation for years to come. My hope for unity stands with Obama. I would love not to ever have a conversation about race again. That would be ideal, but I’m not so optimist on that front.

Obama did not take any previous statement he made regarding his pastor back in the recent speech he made. In fact he acknowledged him once again as someone who has influenced him greatly. But does that mean that he’s agreed with everything the man has had to say. No! And I fully can understand Mrs. Obama statement about being an American. Just b/c you are born here doesn’t mean that everyone is a flag-waving, apple pie-eating, my Country Tis of Thee patriot! For African Americans, placing the word African and American together is not a depiction of an harmonious relationship within ourselve or with our place in American society. Just as Hispanics are not being welcomed with open arms now, we weren’t brought here under positive terms (to put it politely), once we got here weren’t treated fairly for many years and just b/c things are different from how things began doesn’t means its any easier to accept the things that have occurred in the past. Just as each person comes into their own adulthood, feminity, masculinity, religious affliation or what have you in their own time, I feel that each of us has a similar personal experience with defining themselves as a true American. An experience that shouldn’t be up for judgement or ridicule. Why are we expecting our leaders to be perfect and then we are so shocked and disappointed when OMG they aren’t! The Obamas seem real with the same perplexities and depth to their characters and experiences that most of us Americans share. Maybe America needs to get rid of the Salem Witch Trial mentality of persecuting each and every leader that shows some defect in his already fallible humanity and start worrying about how effectively can these leaders do their job and help to better our nation as a whole. If you want to talk about the bible , “He w/o sin cast the first stone.” Ask yourself, can you pick up a rock and throw it?

Sounds good to me.