You're looking at it from the wrong direction. The race of the person helped doesn't make any difference. The simple rule is: if you are a republican, anything you do is racist.

Racist?

Whatever. The word is a verbal emoticon meaning "I don't like you."

I laughed when the first lady justified her racism charge with reference to the $10,000 bet. Kinsley gaffe right there--it's racist because he should have given her a lot more! Which is essentially their argument. What a joke.

What if a black man had said it? Would he have gotten 50.

My answer to all of this is yes, If there is a camera around. Mitt first and foremost is a politician, and wouldn't be cheap in freont of a camera.

PS how is the new anti-spam working out?

You got the money because you are a ginger. The world has held down gingers to long.

I am thinking of making a flow chart out of this. Of if a situation is a racist or not.

When I buy a homeless person a sandwich at Starbucks am I racist? Or is that only if the homeless person is black?

When I see a homeless person at Starbucks I know why they're homeless. You can get a 32 ounce cup of coffee at Speedway for about a buck. The hot dogs are about $2. ;-)

Calling someone racist because they gave someone money.

That's like calling me a racist because I think Obama is a Marxist, ignorant, idealistic job killer. And Bush was a religious, short term thinking that got us into wars we didn't need to do. Frankly, I don't think Romney will be better, but I'm not going to accuse him of racism either.

C'mon Amy! We know why you got the $50 - it's 'cause you're hot.
(/kidding)

this is simple allowing the perfect to be the enemy of the good...

If you can't fix all things for everybody right now, that isn't good enough... it's surprising how many people fervently believe that.

Just like the movies. When the crusty hero or anti-hero stops to pet a dog or speak kindly to a troubled child, that scene is there to make us like the main character.

How much money have these bitches given to any struggling person? And if an individual, or god forbid, a church give someone money it's shameful charity, but it's ok if it comes from a government program. Now THAT makes me cringe!

Silly Amy, don't you know only government can help black people?

Not sure, but aren't there laws against candidates giving away money to voters? That used to be a big thing down south in the old days...

I don't know about racist, but it's a bit condescending to give money to someone who isn't a beggar.

That's like calling me a racist because I think Obama is a Marxist, ignorant, idealistic job killer

Jim, I'm constantly disagreeing with many of my lefty friends who seem to see racism lurking behind any criticism of Obama (they remind me of a former girlfriend, a strident feminist who used to accuse me of being "anti-women" whenever I disagreed with her on some issue.)

On the other hand, I think it's naive to think that there's no racism driving some of the virulent hatred of the guy.

A great piece in The Economist: Newt and the "food-stamp president"

In response to Mr Williams' quixotic second attempt to coax the former speaker of the House into acknowledging that insistently calling Barack Obama "the food-stamp president" smacks of racial politics, Mr Gingrich rejoined: "First of all, Juan, more people have been put on food stamps by Barack Obama than any president in history." This incredibly misleading claim sent the crowd into an ecstasy of delight. "I know among the politically correct you're not supposed to use facts that are uncomfortable", Mr Gingrich added to the warm applause of those in attendance brave enough to face the truth.

Of course, Barack Obama has put no one on food stamps. Population growth together with the most severe recession since the advent of the modern American welfare state, which was in full swing when Mr Obama came into office, conspired to make a record number eligible for government food assistance. The Obama administration has moved to expand eligibility for the SNAP programme, but the initiative has not come to fruition. That there is a safety net, and that it succeeds in keeping millions of Americans from the misery and humiliation of hunger, may be an uncomfortable fact for Mr Gingrich, but not for Mr Obama or for any of those among us who do not lament this humane achievement.

A thought experiment: On Twin Earth, does anyone call President John McCain the "food-stamp president"? Is it "politically incorrect" there to call him that? Or is it just so tactically weird to pin that label on a white Republican who inherited a huge recession that the idea simply never occurred to anyone? If, back in our world, it's not "politically correct" and not tactically weird to pin that label on a black Democrat who inherited a huge recession, then why not?

So, Ms. Ross has a problem with Romney giving this person 50 bucks.

But if the government were to confiscate that 50 dollars from Romney and then give it to this person, all's well, right?