"...And then thereÕs Glenn Beck. HeÕs on a crusade to convince the lemmings of Foxland that President Obama is governing under the principles of Black Liberation Theology, a Ògrave perversionÓ of Christianity in which Òminorities are saved in the sense that white people constantly confess and repent of being racist and meet the economic demands of minorities via the redistribution of wealth as a consequence of, in some form or another, reparations.Ó What? Oh, Glenn.

I have to say, I donÕt know how these Fox viewers do it. Listening to a Beck argument is like living in an M.C. Escher drawing Ñ fantastical illusions that defy logic and strain the brain.

Blacks, stunned by this new topsy-turvy world of racial politics, continue to rally around Obama. In opinion polls, they consistently rate ObamaÕs performance and policies highly, I suspect as much out of solidarity as conviction.

Whether the president likes it or not, heÕs the nexus of this debate. I, for one, think that he should stand up and redirect it from the negative to the noble. There will be some grumbling to be sure, but there already is.

ItÕs your choice, Mr. President. I say stand up Ñ for America, for common humanity, for civil discourse. To paraphrase the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., they canÕt ride your back unless itÕs bent."

Charles Blow in the NYT