``Charles!...That party's over..'' .d.
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I've been thinking about those posts and Obama and maybe there is another way to approach the terrain from a different pov.
Let's start with this. IMHO, Obama seems to give the impression that the basis of a unity between black, white, brown, etc, is found in the idea that we are after all, all alike underneath. This is an immature or not well thought out idea. I had it myself for the first few years C.O.R.E. and other minor civil rights demos---never made it to the big historical leagues.
But this idea of being the same under neath all the obvious differences is actually wrong headed. The real point is we are not the same. We should treat each other the same, and on the individual level differences are very important as they compose some of the personal identity and history that makes us who we are.
So, then what happens to equality, since we are no equal? Equality applies in the institutional sense, were race, ethnicity, class, gender (all social constructions of course), must be equal before law, before the institutions of society and the economy.
So, then this changes the concept of diversity. Diversity is not based on equality, but acceptance, tolerance, hopefully including the embrace of difference, an enjoyment in difference at the individual level.
Obama's problem then is he hasn't figured these distinctions out, hasn't them from experience to philosophy, to political policy and applications in the political economy and society.
Since most of his supporters haven't dealt with these conceptual and political problems, they just intitute some kind of unity based on sameness between people--in the above naive sense.
Well, the left needs to start doing its teach-in thing here and bring our more timid and less reflective liberals up to speed.
Chances now look better that OB might win. That would be the time to start working on these ideas in the more open political field.
CG