Well...there have been some rather interesting discussions about race--or rather more specifically about black/white race relations here--sparked by Obama, in part, but discussions that we don't have often enough.
So to kick off more controversy, take the poll!
In short, while I'll assume all of us are well-meaning when it comes to race, I've seen various levels of naivite, obtuseness, and ignorance of history in some of these discussions. Which makes me wonder what kind of a sense some of us have about actual racial history and the current state of things.
Based on this and this, I've always thought we weren't necessarily the best qualified group of people to be making definitive pronouncements on race...but we do about just about everything else, so why should this be different?
Also some general thoughts about moderate and deep knowledge. Moderate knowledge you can get from research--from watching TV, from taking courses in school, reading books etc. For strong knowledge in addition to the background information, you would have had to have candid conversations about race with people who are black (chatting superficially with a co-worker is not the same thing) and to have spent time exposed to black neighborhoods, living in them and/or working in them, for example--enough to get a sense of how, and when, a "black" perspective is not the same as your perspective (unless, of course, you're black!)