So President Barack Obama just named federal appeals judge Sonia Sotomayor as the nominee for the next Supreme Court Justice.

So what do we know about her?

Well, she's Hispanic.

Also, she's Puerto Rican.

And...she's Hispanic.

Plus, she's Puerto Rican.

Case closed.

That's the joy of racial politics and the media that swallows it– all you need to know about a person is their racial makeup -and in the words of the cop grimly taping off the bedroom in my vacation condo, there's "nothing more to see here."

So far, every single headline I've seen mentions the woman's race - which, as you know, is by design. It's a terrific strategy, this vaccine against scrutiny. Simply make sure you nominate anyone who is the "first" of anything and you create an impenetrable cone of immunity around the nominee (protecting mainly against the media, and of course, conservatives). You could say this strategy worked with great success during the last presidential election – that if Barack wasn't black, he would have just been another white policy wonk – a less persuasive version of John Edwards, without the wayward weenie.

Granted, I don't know the first thing about Sotomayor (I'm sure she's a nice lady!) other than she's Hispanic, and an "inspiring woman" who grew up in "poor surroundings, etc... But it all sounds a bit familiar in an unnerving way. The bottom line is, when a person's "story" is the story, it's purely a diversionary tactic to take you off the ideological ball.

It's a clue to everyone – especially the media – that this time you should do more than order the commemorative plates.