"I am also saying that being practically alone in my race/ethnicity* I feel at a disadvantage in posting because it is unlikely that I will have anyone else who shares my race/ethnicity to corroborate and/or expand on the statements that I have made."

   That is, of course, a built-in issue, since you ARE practically the only black person posting regularly, but I would hope that everyone would factor that in. When I watch TV, I see that that there is not 100% agreement among blacks on issues. Al Sharpton does no agree with Clarence Thomas on everything...nor should he! But if either Sharpton or Thomas were the only black poster in Mudcat, I know *I* would not feel constrained to agree with either of them because of their position...even though I could not possibly appreciate their life or viewpoint personally.

You see? It takes an enormous amount of disclaimers and juggling of words, just to approach some of the meat of the discussion.