Obama's birth certificate a fake?

[VictorCharlie]

Ouma there is no way qualify that statement. People that irrationally dislike the President will cling to any detraction. Trying to make racism the inception of birthers simply cheapens real accusations of bigotry and prejudice.

[OumaFan]

Well no I can't say specifically it was 50% racism, 20 % funny sounding name, 20 % lived somewhere else as a kid, etc., etc. And I'm sure not everyone who latched onto it did so for racist reasons, some love a conspiracy, some may have just been angry about the election for purely political reasons, etc. But there is no doubt in my mind that it was a major factor in the whole thing. I would argue it was the main factor but obviously I can't say that for sure. Still, would a White President with a somewhat funny name who spent time living out of the country been subject to the same scrutiny? Of course its just a hypothetical but I think its fairly clear he would not have been.

The race card is played far too often. And not just with Black people in the US, you should be able to criticize Israel without being called an anti-Semite according to Miles. But that doesn't mean that racism is never an issue. The race card is played too often, without a doubt, but I would also argue that its used to stifle debate at times.