Obama

[Scriblerus the Philosophe]

Exactly what I meant.

[Sibling Chatty]

Yeah, the corporatization of "news" has played havoc with my age and older Boomers.

When Walter Cronkite said it, by damn, he meant it. And, by all available info, approved by his bosses or not, that's what the facts were.

I wouldn't trust Stone Phillips or Wolf Blitzer or whoever (no TV at my house) on the veracity of a report any more than I would trust the news judgment of Pauly Shore...possibly less.

[Swatopluk]

On the general "race" question. The one thing one should consider/check before "interbreeding" is the blood type/group, at least if children are planned. Some mixtures can be quite risky. There is a certain correlation between blood and "race" (but I have never heard that any racist declared 0- superior to A+ or something like that).
---
I fear a constitutional amendment banning anyone from presidentship who has lived outside the US "too long" would have a lot of appeal with too many US citizens with open or hidden nativist leanings*. That Obama lived part of his childhood outside the US is already used as a scarecrow while on the other hand it did not matter that the Shrub had no first-hand experience of the world beyond the borders.

*although some of them would maybe ask for an 'Ahnold' exception

[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

Well, my wife already experienced the rumors when her boss in a very loud way claimed that the Americans (she is Venezuelan) would be "..stupid if they elect a black* 'terrorist'" (because -according to her- he is muslim  ). My wife didn't say a word but that can tell you. I guess it was prudent not to voice her support for Obama in the FL primary. 

* the lady actually didn't use the word 'black' but a very demeaning gesture used by Cubans consisting in touching the skin of her arm with the index and heart fingers. As you can see there is still a fair amount of racism among white** Hispanics against indians and blacks.

** only 5% of those are actually white 

[Scriblerus the Philosophe]

Silliness.

Never heard about that, Swato. What kind of issues to you mean?

[Swatopluk]

If you mean the blood type issue:
For certain combinations the female body can develop an auto-immune reaction against the fetus, leading to either its death or major disabilities. Look up rhesus incompatibility for more detailed info (I am not a biologist or physician and understand only bits of the explanation in the mediacal dictionary)
If you mean Obama:
Barack Hussein Obama is an "un-American" name and close to Saddam and bin Laden
His father was a black muslim immigrant (Obama himself is a Hawaii born Christian US citizen)
Obama went to school for some years in Indonesia. Since schools down there are regularly referred to as madrasa (arab: school) independent of religious leaning but most people in the US think of Koran schools (=terrorist hotbeds), Fox&Co use the word to create the impression that Obama was brainwashed by bad Islamists (and not by good American Dominionists) as a child.
So according to the Right-wingers he is not just a half-nigger but also the Manchurian candidate of the ragheads.
There were rumours (probably engineered by Rove to discredit him among Southern racists) that McCain fathered black children. Obama has black children from a black wife but being somewhat black himself that can't be used for a smear so easily.

[Scriblerus the Philosophe]

I meant the biological issues.
I have to say, I'm not sure about that. I have a friend who's gringo--verging on translucent, actually--who's mother had an auto-immune reaction against her as a fetus. Her mother had to take meds to stop it.

I could have guessed about Obama. Additionally, Romney keeps making these convenient little gaffes where he mixes up Obama and Osama.

[Aggie]

Didn't know Rh factor +/- followed racial lines (makes sense, just didn't know).  Will have to look into it.  AFAIK, it's only a factor for the second and subsequent pregnancy.

Looks like Korean blood is nearly always Rh+, so we should be OK. 

[Swatopluk]

There are some ethnic groups where the variation is practically zero (I think I remember that native Americans were unsually homogenous in that). Blood types are used to find out about the wandering of human groups in the past.

I am 0- but do not donate (I have been rejected for certain risk* factors and have not tried again)

*for myself, not potential receivers

[Scriblerus the Philosophe]

B+, myself. And I am stalked by the local blood center for it, despite being prone to anemia and therefore am not eligible to donate half the time.

I hadn't heard about Rh factor being an issue for mixed ethnic group people. I knew it happened, like I said I have a friend who dealt with that, and my family probably narrowly avoided it (Mom's AB+, Dad is B-) as well, as there are three of us, but I didn't know it was more likely to strike that particular situation.

[Darlica]

I meant the biological issues.
I have to say, I'm not sure about that. I have a friend who's gringo--verging on translucent, actually--who's mother had an auto-immune reaction against her as a fetus. Her mother had to take meds to stop it.

As I understand it, us pasty Caucasians can come with almost any Rh set up.  And the problem only arises when the mother is Rh- and the man is Rh+, If the baby becomes Rh- all is fine but if the the baby becomes Rh+ there are a great risk that the mother will start producing Rh antibodies, these will attack the foetus own red blood cells and cause it's death if not medicated. The A, B or 0 has nothing to do with it.

[anthrobabe]

 
my daughter (age 17) got off the bus last week talking about the idiots in her american history class-- they believe and they teacher does nothing to disuade them that
*Obama is 100% black (no other ethnicity anywhere-- like his mother is the hired nanny or something) -- yes Virginia we live in a very racist town-- very nasty mentality but can not afford to move (sometime I'll tell you the story of how my daughter was told to go back to Mexico--- she was born in Tucson not all brown people are Mexican (gobs of central america, etc come via Mexico---- the real kicker- she is  Puerto Rican-etc!) morons
*Obama is Muslim- and all muslims to their thinking are of the Taliban persuasion- so like all good Native American indians they should be dead so
Obama is going to make all USA females wear the head to toe covering and make us pray 5 times a day
*Obama is a direct relative of Sadam Hussein and the family will take over America.
and on in the same vein as you've mentioned

some of these people are old enough to vote this time. 

I like senator Obama-- like him alot-- but have not decided on my vote yet.

[Darlica]

  indeed!

Sometimes I wonder what actually is going on in the schools on the other side of the big pond?
I seems like it isn't what most people on this side of the pond would call sensible education any way...

And it scares me that what should be a domestic problem for USA (a problem that needs to be treated) actually affects a great deal of the rest of the western world.
Why? Foremost because right wing politicians in the rest on the western world thinks the State is an good example of how schools, and hospitals and such can be run with out or with minimal government help. Secondly, because one day these poorly educated kids will be either in a position of power them self or they will at least be the ones who decides who the next US president (the single most powerful politician in the world) will be.

[Opsa]

I'm so disgusted with the whole election all ready that I don't know what to do. I'm just hoping that someone comes forward and says something that makes very real, clear sense before I have to go to the polls.

The race issues in this country seem to change ever so slightly depending on where you live and what color you are, but mostly on when and how you were raised. In the upper to middle east coast states in the sixties, we were told to be nice to black people (liberal guilt?) even though we never quite seemed to have any as guests in our homes until maybe the eighties. "Spanish" people were rather ethnically exotic and therefore tolerated. In the eighties I had a  best friend with a Mexican mom and thought absolutely nothing of it until one day we went looking at apartments and one landlady (from the southwest) went on and on about how she didn't want any Mexicans living there. We were both flabberghasted! Native American Indians were viewed as fine, but when I went up to Montana for a visit, the Indians lived in the slums and the black and white people got along fine!

So I guess it's really proximity of concentrated populations. I think people tend to start building walls against eachother when they feel there is some sort of obvious measurable cluster of people who are different enough around. Put a bunch of people of the same color together for long enough and they'll start bunching up into religions or political affiliations that don't trust eachother. Put people of the same race and religion together and they'll start splitting hairs about something else.

I don't know why Obama's camp made such a fuss over something that seems to me to be quite obviously not racist, and I don't know why Hillary's camp didn't pop right back with a sincere apology and let it be over. It's completely ridiculous. If these people can't be diplomatic in their own country, what are we going to do? (But hell if I'll vote Republican!) What's Edwards doing?

[ivor]

That free Gobmint edumacation is great idn't!     We need mo' bigga gobment! 

I don't like my choices much for President.  Social welfare on one side and Corporate welfare on the other.  Isn't there someone in-between?