"Is it really about race?
Or is that a convenient canard for the fact that a lot of people do not like egotistical politicians whose ideas about change are really just a socialist rerun!"
I'm sure for a few people it IS about race, but those people are a minority. I think what makes 0bama undesirable for most folks around here is his far left wing liberalism/socialism.
Race, as you said, is just a convenient way to explain away the people's rejection of 0bama's ideals...."It couldn't be his liberalism that people don't like, it has to be his race."
The thing about folks in Appalachia is that they will respect a man, even though they might not call him by a polite name for what he does and can do. A competent black electrician, for example, will be hired even if he isn’t the object of politically correct posturing. So a black candidate who only talks and doesn’t do anything well but talk is not going to be the object of a large vote across racial lines. Doug Wilder was elected because he showed an ability to do things other than talk.
We all like to say things like that, since it makes us sound all educated and progressive in a safe manner, but I think the truth is going to be hard to hide, especially in areas long considered really liberal. The Deep South already went thru it's era of racial turmoil, but I think you'll find more than a few pockets of white resentment at the results of court activism on racial quotas and affirmative action rulings as well as perceptions on reverse affirmative action.
The NORTH is still in a place of racial tension and I'll bet that white backlash comes to the forefront in the privacy of the voting booth. This really isn't so much about color as it is about entitlement backlash. Unfortunately, in the minds of many, that equivocates the issue to a "black thing." I'm not certain that is correct. But I seem to be immersed in the entire issue all day during my work hours since I teach deep in an inner city public high school. So I see this thing from the inside out and that might ummmmm (forgive me) "color" my perspectives a little bit.