It’s probably too late, but I’ll say this anyway: ignore all the coverage you see of the speech that Obama gave today, and go watch or read it yourself. It’s a little slow at the beginning, but I think it’s one of the best speeches on race in America (and how it affects our political discourse) that I’ve heard from a national politician in a very very long time.  Instead of running from the issue, or smoothing it over with meaningless platitudes, Obama grabbed it head on and spoke frankly. I think every politician could take a lesson here. And if they actually paid attention to that lesson, they could help create a climate in which a substantive and productive discussion on race in America could take place.
I have been – and remain – an Obama skeptic. And there are a good number of things I’d change about that speech, were I giving it. That said, I think it represents a real step forward in political discourse. We’d all do well to take a look at it ourselves, instead of through the filter of cable news or short online summaries.
Catzmaw
I liked the speech, and particularly like that he wrote it himself instead of by committee, which seems to be the way most political speeches get written these days.