zlacker

>>chengm+(OP)
Hard call, but I think an occasional story related to politics may be ok if it is about some kind of major event that transcends politics-- just as a story about technology might occasionally appear in a magazine about politics if it is an important enough story.

>>pg+l
I agree, but this story doesn't transcend politics. The candidate who was leading in the polls in Iowa won Iowa. This is his victory speech, and its content is typical political victory speech content. The only thing remotely interesting here is the color of the candidate's skin, which shows we still have a problem with racism.

>>Zak+N
Ah, so this is why YNews wants to avoid political points, the horrible comments.

Obama's race is irrelevant, he is a very charismatic and thoughtful candidate. He seems to have the spark of greatness to him which I think is what makes this good enough to cross to hacker news. A lot of successful entrepreneurs also have great charisma.

>>mrtron+61
Obama's race may be irrelevant to you, but it certainly mattered to him: he claims that his drug use was an effort to avoid thinking about race, he became a 'community organizer' working in low-income areas (in a neighborhood that is 97.8% black), his legal career focused on "community organizers, discrimination claims, and voting rights cases," and the subtitle of his autobiography is A Story of Race and Inheritance.

If Obama matters to you, you'd better start thinking about his race, since it's been his obsession for decades.

Edit: and don't forget his scary church: http://www.tucc.org/about.htm . It's as bad as Romney's church was thirty years ago.

>>byrnes+E1
I think "obsession" is a bit hyperbolic.

Have you ever been a minority anywhere? I only lived in Japan for about a year, but I was very aware of how differently I was perceived as the tall white guy. I don't see how you can grow up black in the U.S.A. and not have that be a fundamental part of shaping your experience, especially when you consider the racial history here. Add to that his white mother and time living outside the U.S., that is a lot of influences to assimilate.

I'm not sure what your point about the church is. Yes, it is very pro-black and pro-African, but I don't see anything that is explicitly "anti" anyone else.

Would be interested to see the welcome for a white person walking in on Sunday, though. :) Having said that, I did go to a church once where ours was the only white family among black Haitian immigrants. And that was a pretty cool experience.