Do the same rules apply to crosses hanging about the neck, or them little jewish beanies?

Just askin'.

The truth of the matter is, pictures of Obama with them in the background would be like red meat thrown to the lions for the Republicans! Hell, if I was working for them, I'd be trying to get Muslim-looking supporters into every photo-op and event that I could. That picture would've cost him a million votes. Remember the recent shitstorm Rachel Ray found herself in just for wearing a scarf?

He'll have to manage the Muslim vote with the care of a brain surgeon or every one of those votes will cost him 5 redneck votes.

Many Detroiters are Muslim, and they have no reason to vote for McCain. All other Detroiters know Muslims, and are comfortable with them. This sort of idiocy will hurt much more than it could help.

I can't say I didn't see this coming. In all the furor about Obama being a "secret Muslim" and the campaign's fervent denials, I always wished that someone would at least have the decency to point out that such accusations, while obviously intended as a smear, should not be considered so even if they are false, because there is nothing wrong with being a Muslim. I wish that Obama had had the courage to make a similar reply to that of J.R.R. Tolkien when responding to fascist accusations of his being Jewish: ".. I regret that I appear to have no ancestors of that gifted people". Instead, his denials validate the premise that being Muslim would somehow automatically disqualifies one from the presidency.

However, I fear that his response, sadly, is what is required to win. Considering that Howard Dean was savaged for the mere suggestion of being "evenhanded" in our Mideast policy (a situation that pretty much reveals everything you need to know about the Israel Lobby), I don't doubt that anything less than antipathy towards Muslims would be translated as 'softness' by those repugnant vultures. I can only hope (and I think that given his friendship with UChicago professors, I am justified in believing this) that Obama personally doesn't share these views and will indeed have the courage to take a more 'evenhanded approach' once he reaches office. I also hope that others will realize this and not demand too much of him during the campaign (though after the campaign is an entirely different story). We live in a disgusting, narrow-minded nation that has demonized an entire culture and an entire side of the political spectrum. We cannot hope to win by openly stating all of our ideals. The best we can hope for is incremental change.

of the hired help reflect badly on the candidate...providing the MSM with another "gotcha" moment..... and es both sides are playing this game

This is a shame. I am happy the campaign apologized. Personally I think all religious people are insane but they are people none the less. The whole Barack Hussein is a Muslim/9-11/Xenophobia is more a product of the Bush era media sensationalists than the aftermath of the terrorist attack. The brain numbing devices in America's living rooms and offices have convinced the local yokels that mooslems are all terrorists bent on taking away America's SUVs; that and Toby Keith/Lee Greenwood (see Morons)... This is such a huge issue that now "Barack Hussein is a Muslim" supporters have to remove their traditional garb lest they be spotted by an idiot television reporter. America the pathetic, the country of repugnant and self absorbed hedonists

Now that Obama has put out the perception that he is the Terrorist Destroying Champion of our Stalwart Allie Israel, why would he want to spoil it by being seen with people who could be perceived as "them"?

It is all about perception. He is trying to kill to birds with one stone. Obama simultaneously downplays his "Mulsim" meme while also not tarnishing his newly found Champion of Zion meme.

Is it not ironic to anyone else that he has this dual perception depending on who you talk to? Some, aka the uninformed reactionaries, perceive him as some kind of a crypto-Muslim, while publicly, to those who pay attention, he is trying to prove to the Establishment how awesome he is at being a crypto-Zionist? Who the hell does that even happen?

Who the hell is Obama trying to appeal to anyway? It is amusing watching him try to "run to the center", aka conform to the Bipartisan Status Quo on issues like Terrorism and the Israeli Lobby.

Obama is probably too busy focusing on petty wedge issues like this instead of spending his time not doing anything about telecom amnesty to not doing anything about foreign policy, besides getting the Warmongering Zionists at AIPAC all whipped up in a War Frenzy with his Interventionist rhetoric.

Oh so it's the Jew's fault. Thanks for clearing that up. Obama, who doesn't have overwhelming support among Jews, speaking in Detroit which also doesn't have very many Jews, shoos away Muslims, who DO support him, and it's his own operatives who do it. And it's the Jew's fault. Thanks again.

The decision to refuse to let Muslim headscarves behind Obama was correct. That could cost him the election after the Republicans got the images.

Those women need to understand that they represent an alien concept in the US. We tolerate it but it should not be allowed to control our elections.

I said it before and I'll say it again: an Obama sees the country as white, black and Christian.

Ethnic and religious minorities, listen up: Obama will not treat you much better than GWB or McCain. He won't treat you with fairness and respect just because he is a racial minority. Just check out what "burlydee" said in the last comment of the "Tin-eared at MSNBC" letters section. He, a black supporter of Obama, said outright that all that matters in this country are the blacks and the whites, like it or not, and it isn't Obama's fault. A lot of other supporters of Obama no doubt think the same.

Is Obama probably better than McCain towards ethnic minorities that are not a mixture of white and black? Maybe. Maybe McCain would put us in internment camps while Obama would merely monitor our phone calls, stop and search us at airports, allow violence and murders of people who are or who resemble middle-eastern Muslims to go un-investigated, like GWB did.

I have no idea. All I know is, don't believe the "race" rhetoric spewed by Obama and his black and white supporters. And definitely don't believe that they won't go with the flow when everyone hates your particular religious minority in America. To Obama and his supporters, racism is anything targeting blacks, and religious discrimination doesn't exist.

In fact, they probably don't think you are American either.