What Would Hitler Say?

All this parsing of Barack Obama's blackness reminds me of a similar conversation that Jews have. Or at least, that I use to have in middle school, when my classmates wanted to know if I was going to be bat mitvahed. The answer was no. So I wasn't really a Jew. Oh, really. My mom pointed out that Hitler never made such a distinction when deciding who to gas in the ovens. Leave it to my mom to put some perspective on an innocent childhood remark.

I guess I was Jewish enough for Hitler. Which sure makes Obama black enough for scared cab drivers. After all, Obama is literally an African American. You know, I don't think this is a race issue. I think it's a class issue disguised as a race issue. Obama doesn't come from the southern Baptist preacher tradition. He's Harvard by way of the Heartland. Seems like he's had it pretty easy. Maybe if he starts getting kicked around a bit he'll rally the troops. After all, he may only be half black, but I'm betting the racists will only see that half.