By Charles Coulter, Kansas City Star Editorial Board

So the Rev. Jeremiah Wright made comments that some portray as hate-filled and anti-American.

So what? I think that's covered by something called the First Amendment.

And some want Barack Obama to distance himself even further from his spiritual mentor. Why?

Rev. Wright has not said anything that has not been said or is not being said in bars, poolrooms, barber shops, hair salons or anywhere more than three black people gather.

And don't fool yourself. It's not just the black urban poor, those without jobs, education or hope, who express these comments. Many members of the black middle class have the same sense of history; the same sense of anger.

And it ain't illegal to be angry.

Rev. Wright is not the first black minister to condemn this country for its racist practices.

The Rev. Martin Luther King did more than proclaim a dream. He called out America for what it did and was doing to people of color all over the world (slavery, discrimination, the Vietnam War). He did it in a more sophiscated way, but his message was the same.

But Rev. King did not call for black people to burn the flag, to destroy property, to kill white people or to leave the country. And, as far as I can determine, NEITHER HAS REV. WRIGHT.

Rev. Wright is not leading nor advocating a revolution. He is just venting, and in many ways, preaching to the choir. Shouldn't a man or woman be judged more by his or her actions?

Sen. Obama has done nothing to indicate
he is anti-American. In fact, his whole life is a testament to the American Dream.

And if Sen. Obama were to totally distance himself from every black person over the age of 30 who has at one time or another said or thought God damn America, he probably could hold his next campaign rally in a phone booth.

If you don't like Obama, fine. If you don't like his policies, fine. But let's not waste any more time over a made-up issue.

Let's get back to the issue of how to make this country a success for all of its people -- black and white, rich and poor, woman and man.

Charles Coulter is Opinion Page Editor for The Kansas City Star