Once upon a time, analysts, pundits and historians explored the relationship between a given subject and his father. We do so for possible insight into the subject’s values, character, decision-making process, biases, interests, fears, etc. You know — acorn, tree.

But the standard intellectual inquiry, for some reason, does not apply to the long, intimate relationship between Barack Obama and the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, who called himself a “second father” to young Barack.