Former Secretary of State Colin Powell finally asked a question that has not been asked often enough in the US Presidential Campaign-- Is there something wrong with being a Muslim in this country? "The answer's no," he continued "that's not America."

During the announcement of his endorsement of Senator Obama, Powell acknowledged that Senator Obama is a Christian and has always been a Christian but "really the right answer is, what if he is [Muslim]?" Powell said, noting that some Republican's concern with the whether-he-is matter is troubling.

Not all Americans share Obama's sentiments. For America to be trotting around the world preaching tolerance, claiming to be a model of democracy, the country continues to spend a lot of time debating whether or not Barack Obama is a secret Muslim.

In America, there are people who declare that they will vote against Obama whether or not it is proven that he is a follower of Islam. "His name just sounds too close," two Williamsburg residents agreed.

Senator Barack Obama, who has proclaimed to be a committed Christian on several occasions, assured the public that they "would not hear from [his] campaign or [ the Democratic] party the kind of politics that uses religion as a wedge. . ."

People that feel that there is a possibility that Senator Obama is a Muslim must be ignorant about Islam. Under no circumstances, even with something as great as the U.S. presidential election at stake, can a Muslim denounce his faith.

Furthermore, these people ignore the hypocritical message that they send in the land that claims to be the model of freedom, justice and equal opportunity. "Is there something wrong with some 7-year-old Muslim-American kid believing that he or she could be president?" Colin Powell asked.