This just in: Deep and virulent racism exists in the United States.

Are you surprised? Of course not. So why does it seem like lately every public eruption of private racism gets so much attention? I couldn't care less about Facebook polls asking "How racist are you?" or Twitter users creating racist hashtags. Of course, Facebook and Twitter need to enforce there own anti-hate policies, but other than that, there's nothing new in the message of individual incidents. What's new is the medium in this 21st century.

Frankly, I wouldn't care if someone was a bigot as long as he could not infect or impact anyone else with his ignorance. Alas, we live in an interconnected society, and one person's prejudice is bound to eventually impact someone else's life. That's when it matters.

It matters when the administrative arm of a major political party does nothing about a racist picture and caption, featuring our president, until it gets caught five days later. So much for outreach to black folks.

It matters when a Facebook poll makes a joke of encouraging the assassination of our commander-in-chief.

It matters when members of our armed forces joke about assassinating our commander-in-chief.

Personally, I'm glad to hear what was once only whispered in like-minded company. It's all coming out in the open. Good to know where you stand. I'll decide if it matters.