Fauxbama Impression

Ok, I guess I got a bit wrapped into the whole primary season thing and might not have been paying quite as much attention to all the details surrounding the two main candidates as I could have, but dammit people, why didn't anyone tell me Barack Obama is black? I feel like such an asshole now, particularly since I worked so hard at getting my local Klan chapter to endorse him. Needless to say, I've got a bit of splaining to do with the boys back at the lodge.

But there's a bigger point to this: Why is Obama considered black? His mom was white. I mean, how is it not offensive to only say he's black just because he's also black? By Nazi standards, I'm Jewish. But I look about as Jewish as I do Martian. Why isn't he called half-black? Maybe it's just a skin-color thing, but then George Hamilton would qualify as black too.

Because again, I think it's a bit weird to act like he's only black. I'm not trying to make a big deal out of this, as I'd vote for him even if he was green, but I fail to understand why people act like the black thing is the only part that matters.

Bad Impression

And I was thinking about this while reading in the WaPo about a "Fauxbama" controversy when Saturday Night Live used a white actor to play Obama; which apparently upset people. But that's just dumb. First off, Fred Armisen was just the natural choice. He looks more like Obama than any of the others, and while he definitely needs to work on his impression more, it was pretty good for the first time. SNL has definitely had worse impressions.

And hell, I was surprised to read that Armisen was white-asian; as I had always thought he was Hispanic. He's played Hispanic guys alot and does a decent Hispanic accent. I had assumed he grew-up bi-lingual or something. And nobody complained about that (that I know of). And there have been other white guys playing black people, including Daryl Hammond's Jesse Jackson, which I always felt was a bit borderline.

So why is it such a big deal that a white guy played Obama? Especially since Obama is only half-black anyway. Should they have gotten a half-black, half-white dude to play him? Armisen was a decent choice, and besides, the point isn't the impression, it's the laugh. I just think this kind of thing is silly and even borderlines on racism. As if non-white races are a taint on white people which makes their children non-white. If someone's Italian-Irish, they say "Italian-Irish". You're not forced to pick one and stay with it. Thus said, I guess if he said he was "Black-White" there might be a bit of confusion about this. Perhaps "Euro-African" might be better, I don't know. The racial issues are still a bit confusing. I mean, what the hell are white people?

But in any case, I just think the whole race thing is way over-played in regards to Obama. Particularly as I've already spent the $2500 I raised at the Obama Klan rally I organized last week and these guys might be a little pissed if they found out I was collecting it for a negro. If nothing else, I'll just explain the whole mom situation and see if they'll accept $1250. These are Austin Klansmen, so they're much more leniant about that kind of thing than you might imagine. It's really more about the beer anyway.