Notes From D.R. | Random Thoughts on the Passing Scene

Fred Barnes, George Will, and Brendan Miniter on tonight’s State of the Union Address.

UPDATE: Will moonbats disrupt the speech?

SECOND UPDATE: Apparently, they did. More from the Globe.

THIRD UPDATE: The full text of the speech.

Massachusetts Attorney General Tom Reilly, recognizing the huge role that racial politics will play in this year’s gubernatorial race, selects Marie St. Fleur, a Haitian immigrant state representative, as his running mate.

This is a very shrewd move by Reilly, as the presence of St. Fleur (who has impeccable left-wing credentials) on Reilly’s team will dull some of the progressive ardor for Deval Patrick. Reilly was widely seen as not being palatable enough to the left to secure the Democratic nomination, but with the selection of St. Fleur, he has bolstered his liberal credentials considerably.

How will Patrick respond? My guess is that he’ll select lefty Stop & Shop heiress Deborah Goldberg as his running mate, forcing Bay State Democrats to choose between an all-liberal team (Patrick & Goldberg) or a "moderate"/liberal mix (Reilly & St. Fleur). Patrick must now be concerned about losing his liberal luster; while he was expected to derive strong support from those who felt Reilly wasn’t blue enough for their tastes, Reilly’s selection of St. Fleur alters that perception. I still think Patrick will ultimately secure the Democratic nomination, but he’s going to have to sweat a little more.

UPDATE: This evening, Howie Carr noted that in the Democratic primary, voters can select the governor-lieutenant governor combo of their choice, which means that in theory Democrats could select a Patrick-St. Fleur ticket to challenge the Republicans in November. I doubt that such a hard-left ticket could win; the problem, of course, is that if they lose, we’ll never hear the end of phony racism allegations (and if they win, we’ll have the clothes taxed off our backs!)

SECOND UPDATE: More from the Globe and Herald.

THIRD UPDATE: St. Fleur mired in scandal. More from the Globe and Herald.

Left-wing scientists try to prove that President Bush’s supporters don’t care about black people. Lord…love…a…duck. More from Michelle Malkin.

Feminist playwright Wendy Wasserstein passes away at 55.

Another al-Qaeda operative runs off at the mouth.

UPDATE: Do we take the terror threat seriously?

Sam Alito’s basically in, folks.

A $28 million opening weekend for Big Momma’s House 2? Oh my…

ABC News anchor Bob Woodruff has been seriously injured in Iraq. More from the Washington Post.

The Washington Post and the Boston Herald ran interesting stories this weekend about this Friday’s release of Something New, a romantic comedy about a black woman (Sanaa Lathan) who shocks her social circle when she falls in love with a white man (Simon Baker). Both articles lamented the fact that, nearly forty years after Loving v. Virginia, interracial relationships are still considered controversial in some circles.

It’s not a surprise that such relationships are still considered taboo in certain quarters; though legal segregation is dead and gone, there is still an unfortunately high amount of psychological segregation in the United States, especially when it comes to issues of romance and dating. The implicit pressure to "stick with one’s own kind" still looms large in many minds.

It is lamentable that four decades after the death of legal segregation, American society still has to struggle with the problems posed by psychological segregation–the belief that racial "loyalty" or "solidarity" trumps all other considerations. Attacks on people who choose to date outside of their race, as well as attacks on those who contradict the cultural and political preferences of other members of their ethnic group, are manifestations of such psychological segregation.

Criticizing a black woman for dating a white man reveals not only insecurity, but also an odd desire to maintain racial lines of demarcation in a post-Civil Rights era. Those who desire "racial unity" are blind to the fact that such "unity" inevitably leads to racial chauvinism, which inevitably leads to racial conflict. The Post article notes that at one point, a black character accuses Lathan of "sleeping with the enemy." The designation of the white man as the "enemy" tells you all you need to know about this mentality.

There are many people who consider dating outside of their race, but ultimately elect not to for fear that their families may disapprove. While there are times in which such disapproval is based on legitimate "cultural" differences, there are also times in which such disapproval is based on little more than, well, black and white. In these cases, the perversity of psychological segregation is fully exposed, as inevitably the objection boils down to a fear that such dating will result in marriage, thus "diluting" the perceived racial "stock" of the family in question. If the question of culture is moot–i.e., if the person happens to be of a different race but does not embrace a self-destructive lifestyle–then the objection to a potential marriage is based solely on a fear that the introduction of "new blood" to the family will somehow send the family downhill. This is, of course, the mentality that the US Supreme Court rejected in Loving.

It’s unfortunate that in 2006, there are people who still believe that the "integrity" of each race must be preserved by frowning upon interracial dating and prospective marriage even when cultural differences are moot. This psychological segregation is a malady that prevents the full realization of Martin Luther King’s dream. It appears, then, that this movie will end up giving a few people nightmares.

UPDATE: Simon Baker and Sanaa Lathan on the movie.

Singer Gene McFadden, famous for the 1979 hit "Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now," passes away at 56.

Remembering those who died in the Challenger disaster twenty years ago.

UPDATE: Moe Lauzier on Christa McAuliffe.

SECOND UPDATE: The Washington Post remembers.

THIRD UPDATE: NASA’s memorial.

FOURTH UPDATE: A tribute from the Concord Monitor.

FIFTH UPDATE: From the Boston Globe.

SIXTH UPDATE: Honoring the heroes.

Remembering those who died in the Challenger disaster twenty years ago.

UPDATE: Moe Lauzier on Christa McAuliffe.

SECOND UPDATE: The Washington Post remembers.

THIRD UPDATE: NASA’s memorial.

FOURTH UPDATE: A tribute from the Concord Monitor.

FIFTH UPDATE: From the Boston Globe.

SIXTH UPDATE: Honoring the heroes.

Massachusetts Attorney General Tom Reilly taps prosperous progressive Chris Gabrieli as his running mate in the gubernatorial race.

UPDATE: A wet kiss for Reilly from the Globe.

SECOND UPDATE: Reilly’s opponent, Deval Patrick, rides Barack Obama’s coattails.

THIRD UPDATE: Gabrieli won’t join Reilly.

Mitt Romney declares that his religion will not hamper his odds if he runs for President in 2008. More from the Washington Post.

UPDATE: More on Romney from the Weekly Standard.

Spurred on by the New York Times, Ted Kennedy and John Kerry announce plans to filibuster Samuel Alito’s nomination to the US Supreme Court.

UPDATE: The moonbats who support a filibuster.

SECOND UPDATE: Alito’s still getting confirmed.