Disclaimer: Thread diversion. jwhitham's interesting mention of Brian Eno's "Africa" comment reminded me of the debates it inspired. The misplaced objections of a few to the comments Eno made in an old interview were a matter of misunderstanding. (I'm referring to a few hotheads back then, not jwitham's remarks.) On the surface, the comments might indeed seem inappropriate, as Eno noted in the interview. But in the specific context of the conversation, they were an "out of the box" and intentionally provocative means of encapsulating sets of characteristics by using continental groupings of people for the purpose of representation. For example: "Do you know what I hate about computers? The problem with computers is that there's not enough Africa in them. This is why I can't use them for very long. Do you know what a nerd is? A nerd is a person without enough Africa in him or her. I know that sounds sort of inversely racist to say, but I think the African connection is so important." -Brian Eno, Wired magazine, May 1995 He's talking about general sensibility, not color, not race. :-)