Some Peculiar Political Mathematics

"There's no mathematical reason why someone of Arab descent could not somehow also love his family." - Aasif Mandvi

Earlier I put up a post regarding John McCain's rebuke of some of his supporters at one of his recent campaign rallies. In that blog, I quoted what has become a widely talked about question and answer between McCain and a particular supporter; however, the quote (which came from TIME contributor Ana Marie Cox who subsequently confirmed that that's what she heard) does not appear to match up with the audio in the video. This is what the exchange sounds like in the video:

Woman at rally: I don't trust Obama. I have read about him and he's an Arab.

Sen. John McCain: No ma'am, no ma'am. He's a decent family man, citizen that I just happen to have disagreements with on fundamental issues. That's what this campaign is all about. He's not, thank you.

I think when most of us read about this incident or saw the video (also included in the post) we walked away thinking, "Yeah, that's right - Obama's not an Arab." But then I paused. Had I just done exactly what I've been so angered at others for doing? So what if he was of Arab descent? Being "an Arab" or of the Islamic faith does not equal being a terrorist, right?

Of course not. As Campbell Brown of CNN discusses:

There are more than 1.2 million Arab-Americans and about 7 million Muslim-Americans, former Cabinet secretaries, members of Congress, successful business people, normal average Americans from all walks of life.

These are the people being maligned here, and we can only imagine how this conversation plays in the Muslim world. We can't tolerate this ignorance -- not in the media, not on the campaign trail.

Of course, he's not an Arab. Of course, he's not a Muslim. But honestly, it shouldn't matter.

And she's not the only one who thought the exchange was a bit bizarre. America's most trusted news man, John Stewart, also tackled the tough issue of race and radicalism last night - let's watch...



Nuff said. So, although I certainly applaud what I believe are Sen. McCain's honest and genuine attempts to calm his supporters and rebut false claims about Obama's ethnicity and devotion to the US, it is still worth noting (as Stewart so eloquently does) that being an Arab does not disqualify one from being a "decent family man".

NOTE: This clarification, however, does NOT clear up the unsurprising hypocritical mathematics McCain finds himself doing. Let me briefly sum it up:

OBAMA = Who is he? Do we really know him? He's doesn't see America like we do?

but OBAMA also = "decent family man", of whom you need not be afraid if he becomes President

Sorry, J-Mac, you gotta pick one or the other.