Poor Biden. I know what he meant, but there is no way

to say it the right way and still get away with it.

I think that what he meant was that Obama is the first politician who truly is colorblind, like "David Palmer" on "24."

We see a politician who is smart, and good looking, and knowledgeable and, yes, articulate, who is also black. As opposed to Chisholm, Jackson, Mosley-Brown and Sharpton who are Black Politicians.

And it comes from Obama's background, of course. He is not a descendant of slaves, did not absorb, while growing up, the stories of the calamities and the triumphs of Africans in America.

He was not told of years of slavery and of the Civil Rights. Was not told, and did not experience the humiliation of an adult being addressed as "boy." Of overt and covert discrimination, of having to do with low paying jobs - the only ones that were available. Of racial profiling just for driving at night or hanging out with friends.

Sure, once Obama moved to California and to Boston to attend colleges, and after his marriage he, no doubt, become acutely aware of these issues. However, as an adult he would, like most of us, internalize them on a cerebral, not on a visceral level.

Still, Biden should have kept his mouth shut and, like Kerry "botched" joke, this will cost him his candidacy. Unfortunately, with such a crowded field, he, and others, can get only one chance.

OK, start flaming.

He was pitiful.

is now easier to understand - Biden was probably so impressed that Thomas was the first articulate, clean, and sharp African American lawyer to be considered for a judgeship that he just had to put him on the Supreme Court. Storybook, man!

Almost forgot this shameful event, when the Democrats had the votes to vote him down but did not. And Thomas received the lowest "ranking" from the American Bar Association.

After all, Biden doesn't sneeze unless a banker tickles his nose.

I doubt the tone deaf rascists on the right would ever have picked up on this...but our side sure did. Joe really wasn't going anywhere. Just as well to get it over quick. This might be a record for shortest campaign before self destructing, though. We love ya, Joe...in the Senate.

I can't see him winning, but I do hope he stays in. He's got a good head for foreign policy, and he will raise the level of debate. His big fault is that he's a terrible flannel mouth.

It's so early that eventually people have to stop talking about this--if they beat it to death forever, they'll look like they're just playing gotcha. His problem will be that he might have trouble raising money until this recedes. He needs to tighten his belt and do a lot of cheap/free appearances, and try to stay on message and not talk so damned much.

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It comes in all sizes and shapes.. take a hike-

Since they really mean that he's "white-like," not without color.

It's an interesting phenomenon among majority cultures. They seem themselves as colorless - they're just "the people." Everyone else is the "black people" or the "Asian people" or "Hipanic people," etc. If they want to absorb into and be accepted into the larger (i.e., white) society, they have to give up their racial identification. However, the larger society itself is a largely racially homogenous group, they just don't see themselves that way.

Years ago, a co-worker told me, "I don't like neighborhoods that have too large a concentration of any one race. That's why I like this community. It's all white."

Unfortunately, I think lots of white people see the world that way - anything or anyone that appears to be too much of any one race is suspect because they're too ethnic.. But anything or anyone that adopts white mores, values, appearance, etc. is just fine since many white Americans sees themselves as the true essence of society, not an ethnic group.

This is the mindset that Biden's comments revealed - and in saying this, he exposed a dirty little secret in America - that while we've come a long way, we are still considerably far away from being the kind of truly inclusive society that many Americans seem to think we are.

holding positions of power. No one would comment that the President is a white man, or that a Supreme Court Justice is a white man.

But when we have women and minority, this fact is observed. Someone recently posted a note on DU that we will know that women have achieved equality when their hair or makeup would not be mentioned when reporting about them (and I am staying above the neck..)

Color blind for me and, I think, for many, is when we vote or nominate a capable individual for who he or she is, not for what he or she is. And this is the excitement about Obama - we see an intelligent, articulate, smart and handsome person who happened to be black.

On the other hand, politics and other areas do have their games. So I can see how someone - not Obama, yet - do builds on one's race or gender to attract specific segments of voters. And we know many who would vote for a woman, or a black, or Latino candidate just based on their gender and race.

A double edge sword here, I suppose.

Like the "Dean Scream", this will be hyped into hysteria, made more evil than Osama bin Laden (at least, Bush can find Biden) ...

Biden brought this on himself and he offended a large number of people. In my view, this controversy is being driven largely by, not the media or the people who objected to the comments, but by those who are falling all over themselves trying to defend Biden and, in so doing, are in large regard insulting those of us who had every right to be offended by his comments. The attempts to defend the indefensible - something that even Biden is trying to do - is the reason this is remaining a controversy at all.