I have to confess I feel a little sad and fatalistic about all this.

I think it took guts for him to be so honest about his relationship with his pastor on the one hand, and so willing to act as witness to his good character on the other.

(Sorry guestguest, yet again your assertions have little in common with what is actually going on)

I fear that he may drown in this one.

I fear that America won't have listened to his speech.

He's demonstrating complete faith in the American people to be able to rise above this with him and throwing himself on their mercy.

I don't know if America is ready to invest that faith in him.

If he does go on to win it will cetainly say something very good about America.

I think that's what he's doing. Giving "y'all" an opportunity to be great - bit like the whole Mandela campaign against poverty.

Oscar Wilde said "we are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars"

I hope that Obama is right and that America is sick of being in the gutter.