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"Everytime [sic] I think the Democratic race card players could not get more vile, more deranged, more patronizingly demeaning to blacks, someone manages to defy even my vivid imagination," thunders blogger William Jacobson. He's referring to a passage in a Washington Post editorial about critics of U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice--a passage that in our view is useful for its clarity.

At issue is a Nov. 19 letter to the President Obama, written by Rep. Jeff Duncan of South Carolina and signed by 97 House Republicans, which declares that the signatories are "deeply troubled" that the president is considering nominating Rice secretary of state, and that they "strongly oppose" such a nomination.

"Ambassador Rice is widely viewed as having either willfully or incompetently misled the American public in the Benghazi matter," the letter states. We noted Tuesday with some amusement that Rep. Jim Clyburn, a South Carolina Democrat and member of the Congressional Black Caucus, was claiming that "incompetent" was the latest code word for "black."

The Post focuses on the critics rather than their choice of words. Here's the passage that outrages Jacobson: "Could it be, as members of the Congressional Black Caucus are charging, that the signatories of the letter are targeting Ms. Rice because she is an African American woman? The signatories deny that, and we can't know their hearts. What we do know is that more than 80 of the signatories are white males, and nearly half are from states of the former Confederacy."

Rep. Jeff Duncan is suspiciously pale, according to the Washington Post. U.S. House/Wikipedia.org

Let's examine this argument carefully. The Post acknowledges that "we can't know their hearts." But it finds a (literally) prima facie reason to suspect them of invidious motives: Almost all of them are persons of pallor. The Post is casting aspersions on Duncan and his colleagues based explicitly on the color of their skin. And it is accusing them of racism!

A couple of other items related to race and politics caught our attention over the Thanksgiving weekend. First, Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., an Illinois Democrat and CBC member, resigned from Congress "amid federal ethics investigations and a diagnosis of mental illness," as the Chicago Tribune reports. That sets up a special election to fill the vacancy:

Some Democrats quickly offered to broker a nominee to avoid several African-American contenders splitting the vote in the heavily Democratic and majority black 2nd Congressional District, which could allow a white candidate to win.

This passes with neither editorial comment nor a disapproving quote. It's hard to imagine the same absence of reaction if a group of pols offered "to broker a nominee" with the goal of preventing a black candidate from winning a white-majority district.

Then there's the email from the Obama campaign--yeah, they're still coming, though at a slower pace than before the election--inviting supporters to take a survey. Among the questions: "Which constituency groups do you identify yourself with? Select all that apply."

There are 22 boxes you can check off. Some are ideological ("Environmentalists" and perhaps "Labor"), some occupational ("Educators," "Healthcare professionals"), some regional ("Americans abroad," "Rural Americans"). There's a box for "Women" but none for men, though there's a separate "Gender" question, which hilariously has three options: "Male," "Female" and "Other/no answer." Touré will no doubt soon inveigh against the "otherization" of the Gender No. 3.

What caught our attention were the ethnic categories: "African Americans," "Arab-Americans," "Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders," Jewish Americans," "Latinos" and "Native Americans" (the last, of course, refers to American Indians, not natural-born citizens).

Notice anything missing?

One explanation for the absence of a "white" or "European-American" category (or, alternatively, several dozen specific European ethnicities) could be that whites tend to vote Republican, and the campaign is interested in Democratic-leaning voting blocs. But several other of the Obama survey categories lean toward the GOP, too: "People of faith," "Rural Americans," "Seniors," "Small business owners" and "Veterans/military families." Counterpart groups that are Democratic-leaning or swing-voting are missing from the list, too, including nonbelievers, urban and suburban dwellers, and the middle-aged (though there are categories for both "Young professionals" and "Youth").

The reason for the absence of a "Whites" category is that white identity politics is all but nonexistent in America today. That wasn't always the case, of course: For a century after the Civil War, Southern white supremacists were an important part of the Democratic Party coalition. They were defeated and discredited in the 1960s, and the Democrats, still the party of identity politics, switched their focus to various nonwhite minorities.

Obama's re-election was a triumph for this new identity politics--but the Post's nasty editorial hints at a reason to think this form of politics may have long-term costs for both the party and the country.

The trouble with a diverse coalition based on ethnic or racial identity is that solidarity within each group can easily produce conflicts among the groups. Permissive immigration policies, for example, may be good for Hispanics and Asians but bad for blacks. Racial preferences in college admissions help blacks and Hispanics at the expense of Asians.

One way of holding together such a disparate coalition is by delivering prosperity, so that everyone can feel he's doing well. Failing that, another way is by identifying a common adversary--such as the "white male." During Obama's first term, the demonization of the "white male" was common among left-liberal commentators, especially MSNBC types. The Post has now lent its considerably more mainstream institutional voice to this form of bigotry.

This seems likely to weaken the taboo against white identity politics. Whites who are not old enough to remember the pre-civil-rights era--Rep. Duncan, for instance, was born in 1966--have every reason to feel aggrieved by being targeted in this way.

The danger to Democrats is that they still need white votes. According to this year's exit polls, Obama won re-election while receiving only 39% of the white vote. But that's higher than Mitt Romney's percentage among blacks (6%), Latinos (27%), Asian-Americans (26%) or "Other" (38%). It's true that Republicans suffer electorally for the perception that they are hostile to minorities, but Democrats also stand to suffer for being hostile to whites.

The danger for the country is that a racially polarized electorate will produce a hostile, balkanized culture. In 2008 Obama held out the hope of a postracial America. His re-election raises the possibility of a most-racial America.

Hacks and Flacks

"The White House could finally have its chance to close the books on its Benghazi public relations disaster," according to a report in PR Week. Oops, that's not from PR Week or another journal of flackery. It's from the Associated Press, which explains the background:

Rice's reputation took a serious hit this fall when she relied on unclassified talking points provided by the intelligence community that portrayed the attack in Benghazi, Libya, as a spontaneous assault by a mob angered by an anti-Muslim video posted on YouTube.

Intelligence officials quickly amended their assessment to conclude the attack hadn't been related to other film protests across the Middle East. But that revised narrative was slow to reach the public, prompting Republicans to allege a White House cover-up ahead of the Nov. 6 election.

What America needs is faster narratives. Imagine how much better off the country would be if there existed a group of disinterested professionals whose job it was to get information to the public in a free society.

Two Renegade Conservatives in One!

"In the wake of the Republican election debacle, it's essential that conservatives undertake a clear-eyed assessment of who on their side was right and who was wrong. Those who were wrong should be purged and ignored."--Bruce Bartlett, TheAmericanConservative.com, Nov. 26

"My book, Impostor: How George W. Bush Bankrupted America and Betrayed the Reagan Legacy, was published in February 2006. . . . Among the interesting reactions to my book is that I was banned from Fox News. . . . I later learned that the order to ignore me extended throughout Rupert Murdoch's empire. . . . Other dissident conservatives, such as David Frum and Andrew Sullivan, have told me that they are banned from Fox as well. More epistemic closure."--same article

What Time Is It?

"The entire Christian calendar is based on a miscalculation, the Pope has declared, as he claims in a new book that Jesus was born several years earlier than commonly believed," reports London's Daily Telegraph:

John Barton, Professor of the Interpretation of the Holy Scripture at Oriel College, Oxford University, said most academics agreed with the Pope that the Christian calendar was wrong and that Jesus was born several years earlier than commonly thought, probably between 6BC and 4BC.

If that's right, wouldn't that make it about 2017 by now--meaning that Barack Obama should be out of office? No wonder that, as Breitbart.com reports, "Obama's Thanksgiving message eschewed any direct reference to thanking God."

The Airing of Grievances

Here's an excerpt of a strange Thanksgiving Day editorial from the Times-Union of Albany, N.Y.:

We're going to break with tradition today and offer up some complaints. . . . We lament that Thanksgiving still finds American soldiers in Afghanistan. . . It's lamentable that so many people in the Northeast are still coping with the devastation of Superstorm Sandy. . . . Global warming isn't just an opinion, and that its effects won't be just minor annoyances. . . . We do regret that Sandy seems to have ended hope for a special legislative session to deal with the ever more pressing need for an increase in the minimum wage. . . . We do lament that so many people were not merely disgruntled with an election. . . but were so full of rage that they've filed secession petitions in all 50 states. . . . Finally, we lament the imminent shuttering of a well-known American company, Hostess Brands.

Don't they know Festivus is next month?

Fox Butterfield, Is That You?

"Gun-related violence has fallen steadily since 2006 in Virginia despite record firearm sales, according to a university professor's analysis."--Associated Press, Nov. 24

Metaphor Alert

"These patriotic Americans are concerned because they are afraid that they will be forced to carry the burden of a recession whose wrath they have already felt. They are asking for a 'circle of protection' from non-profits, religious leaders, cultural figures and politicians, as we enter into the so-called 'fiscal cliff' negotiations. But even further than that, they are asking for an agenda that will dismantle the systemic injustices that have plagued these communities for decades."--Russell Simmons, Puffington Host, Nov. 26

That Ought to Cut Down on CO2 Emissions

"Doha: The World Holds Its Breath Before Climate Change Summit"--headline, Daily Telegraph (London), Nov. 23

Oh Well, It Seemed Like a Good Idea

"Cash-Strapped U.S. Postal Service Turns to Same-Day Delivery"--headline, FoxNews.com, Nov. 22

"Postcard Mailed During World War II Arrives at New York Home"--headline, FoxNews.com, Nov. 23

Some People Never Learn

"Why Men Are Just Hopeless at Housework: And Why Their Women Should Stop Moaning About It, by Anthea Turner"--headline, Daily Mail (London), Nov. 9

"Push to Step Up Domestic Use of Drones"--headline, San Francisco Chronicle, Nov. 24

Sic 'Im, Boy!

"In Los Angeles, Questions of Police Brutality Dog LAPD"--headline, TheDailyBeast.com, Nov. 24

At Least He Was in Brief

"In Brief: NM DWI Suspect Caught With Pants Down"--headline, El Paso Times, Nov. 21

The World's Oldest Profession

"Judge: Hostess Can Sell Assets"--headline, Detroit Free Press, Nov. 22

The Lonely Lives of Scientists

"Giving Thanks: Scientists Seek World Record for Most Pieces of Used Toilet Paper Collected"--headline, ScientificAmerican.com, Nov. 22

Wrong, It's Colonel Mustard in the Library With the Candlestick

"Spaghetti in Parchment With Clams"--headline, The Wall Street Journal, Nov. 24

Worst Candy Bar Ever

"Canada's Last Asbestos Mine May Have Future as Mars Stand-In"--headline, Canadian Press, Nov. 25

Questions Nobody Is Asking

"Is Paula Broadwell's Wardrobe Fair Game?"--headline, Washington Post, Nov. 22

Answers to Questions Nobody Is Asking

"What's at Stake in Doha Climate Talks"--headline, Nature.com, Nov. 23

Question and Answer

"Why Isn't Sandy Obama's Katrina?"--headline, Commentary website, Nov. 14

"Hurricane Sandy Is New York's Katrina"--headline, Village Voice, Nov. 21

Congo Slips Out of Chaos--Now That Would Be News

"Congo Slips Into Chaos Again as Rebels Gain"--headline, New York Times, Nov. 26

Look Out Below!

"The Fall of Jesse Jr."--headline, Chicago Tribune, Nov. 22

It's Always in the Last Place You Look

"Ambassador to Azerbaijan Finds Democracy Where None Exists"--headline, Commentary website, Nov. 21

Too Much Information

"NYC Sends Health Teams to Post-Sandy Food Handouts, Rubbing Some Wrong Way"--headline, FoxNews.com, Nov. 21

News of the Oxymoronic

"What if JFK Had Survived His Assassination?"--headline, Yahoo! News, Nov. 22

Breaking News From 1969

"We need Congress, right now, to enact a minimum tax on high incomes."--Warren Buffett, New York Times, Nov. 26

Breaking News From 2009

"Close Guantánamo Prison"--headline, New York Times, Nov. 26

News You Can Use

"Let's (Not) Get It On: Having Sex WON'T Jump-Start Labour, Couples Told"--headline, Daily Mail (London), Nov. 22

"Facebook Not So Fun With a Click From Boss or Mom"--headline, Reuters, Nov. 26

Bottom Stories of the Day

"Money From California Carbon Auction Less Than Expected"--headline, Associated Press, Nov. 22

"UN Climate Change Chief Getting Frustrated With United States"--headline, Washington Examiner, Nov. 23

" 'World Is Committing Suicide on a Grand Scale': Prince Charles Warns of Doomed Planet Unless We Solve Green Issues"--headline, Daily Mail (London), Nov. 24

American Woman

A very young feminist wrote a letter to Hasbro to complain about sex bias in one of the company's board games, CBC reports:

My name is R______. I am six years old. I think it's not fair to only have 5 girls in Guess Who and 19 boys. It is not only boys who are important, girls are important too. If grown ups get into thinking that girls are not important they won't give little girls much care.

Also if girls want to be a girl in Guess Who they'll always lose against a boy, and it will be harder for them to win. I am cross about that and if you don't fix it soon, my mum could throw Guess Who out.

My mum typed this message but I told her what to say.

The company replied:

Guess Who? is a guessing game based on a numerical equation. If you take a look at the characters in the game, you will notice that there are five of any given characteristics. The idea of the game is, that by process of elimination, you narrow down who it isn't, thus determining who it is. The game is not weighted in favour of any particular character, male or female.

This prompted a reply, this time from R______'s puzzled mother, Jennifer:

Unfortunately, she is now no clearer as to why there are only five female characters for her to choose from in her favourite board game, compared to the 19 male characters her brother can pick. (Obviously, she could choose to be a male character, but as you know, that's not usually how children work). . . .

But I must confess that, despite being 37 years of age and educated to Masters level, I am equally at a loss.

Why is female gender regarded as a "characteristic," while male gender is not?

A question for the Obama campaign! But the company did finally satisfy Jennifer and her daughter, with a letter promising to consider adding more female characters in the future.

The sad irony, though, is that when she grows up, R______ will wish the real world had a sex ratio closer to Hasbro's.

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(Carol Muller helps compile Best of the Web Today. Thanks to Chas. Hamilton, Ed Grinberg, Ed Lasky, Miranda Brougher, David Hallstrom, John Williamson, Fred Furia, Kyle Kyllan, Lynn Bateman, Jeryl Bier, James Paternoster, Marion Dreyfus, Joel McLemore, Hillel Markowitz, Phil Magaril, Frank Abbott, David Fischer, Merv Benson, Paul Faulkner, Irene DeBlasio, Dave Ceely, Ed Thompson, Michele Schiesser, Herbert Harjes, Roger Claypool, Dave Undis, Lee Yates, Miguel Rakiewicz, Craig Werner, Edward Himmelfarb, Stephan Dejean, Eric Jensen, Dan Tracy and Daniel Mullen. If you have a tip, write us at opinionjournal@wsj.com, and please include the URL.)