Timing, if you think that being against affirmative action is RACIST and I am a BIGOT for it, then I think you are way off base. I am most certainly not racist or a bigot in any fashion. Just because you are against AA doesn't mean you are a racist or a bigot. This attitude is prevalent amongst supporters of it, and it really is an ignorant view. I have dealt with discrimination and being a minority many times in my life, despite the fact that blacks and hispanics in this country believe that they are the ONLY ones who have *ever* experienced *any* kind of discrimination. I have lived and worked in Mexico and Germany. I stuck out like a sore thumb in both places. In Mexico I was the hated American oppressor, and had to deal with people not cooperating at work, worrying about not getting kidnapped and beaten by taxi cab drivers, and paying 2x the price of items due to my skin color. The fact that I spoke fluent spanish helped, but I had to get over the first impression to deal with that. I understand racism, pal, and I also understand the principle of hard work and persistence in achieving success in this country. Handouts from "the white man's pity" have not succeeded in their FORTY years of existence, and are inherently racist. But I totally see where you would want AA if you were a *chosen* minority. It's the easy way out. It's something for nothing.
I agree that not everyone is born with the same opportunities and same circumstances. Some are born more advantaged than others and this does correlate to race. Nevertheless, not all whites are born in priviledge and not all minorities are born unpriviledged. An affirmative action program that focuses solely on race may give preference to the son of a wealthy black doctor over the son of poor, unpriviledged white parents. This isn't that far off the mark. Many beneficiaries of AA aren't from disadvantaged backgrounds but come from middle class backgrounds not much different than the whites who they are chosen over. This fact also means that AA doesn't really help the ones truly disadvantaged as is often claimed.
Watch out, Timing, since you have offended this gentlemen's sense of decorum with your odious conduct, he may challenge you to a duel and give you a right thrashing!
Dude, first of all, just because you write ten lines, or twenty lines, doesn't mean your post has content. So you and your buddy T.J. need to quit insulting people's posts because they didn't meet your number of words requirement. This isn't an essay writing contest. I would expect two people who went to a fine instiution such as Rice to understand that quanity doesn't always equal quality and vice versa. Its a stupid insult that has no content. Second, I can't not believe you equate being insulted to racism. AA doesn't attempt to make up for someone's disadvantage in life of having been made fun of. That's not racism. The mere fact that you were allowed to work in a country that you were not a member of the majority makes your point even more moronic. The fact that you weren't obstructed from making a living gives you no right to exclaim that you know what racism is. All you did was confirm Timing's accusation of your knowledge of the issue, which is you are completely lacking, and all your posts come down to is the same old tired right wing rhetoric. You in no way addressed the issue of racial politics in this country with your completely irrelevant example.
True not all people have the same opportunity. However, a hand out is not the way to get to equality, it is going to take hard work and understanding to reach that goal. No one should be discriminated against, and the courts correctly ruled that these 5 men were discriminated because of their skin color. I hope everyone can see the inherent wrong in that. DD
The definition of racism and its intended "cures" are a moving target. There is no set definition. The question is where do you draw the line? Is AA needed, as you say, to allow people to gain access to jobs? Or is it needed to allow people access to universities? Or is it needed to promote people once they already have a job? You claim the line is "if it obstructs you from making a living". Well, people hindering my performance at work would fit under that heading. This is yet another example of how the *chosen* minorities in this country who are *priveledged* enough to receive benefits from AA think they are the only people ever to suffer hardships. We need to embrace a society that looks to hard work and learning as the route to success, not the path of "I'm owed something" or "gimme gimme".
Timing: For once, I agree with TJ and bigtexx. They stated their opinions and you made it personal. Just because you don't agree with them, it doesn't give you the right to insult them. Being passionate about your beliefs is fine. Calling people clowns and bigots for disagreeing is inappropriate.
Have you read what these two have posted over the last six months? Well I have and if it were simply about disagreeing then this wouldn't be an issue. But Jeff... I as an English speaker know what you're trying to accomplish so I'll simply ignore their dog and pony show from now on.
Exactly. In this medium, it's hard to ignore what people have posted in the past. I've had a well-deserved problem with that. We should start ignoring him especially since he's not even making an effort to make it look like two separate posters any more.
Thank you for bringing some sense to this. I make a concerted effort with each and every post of mine to provide content-rich, insightful contributions to the bbs. Each time I am insulted I feel a great sense of satisfaction, because I know that when a poster resorts to making use of insults, they cannot logically counter my post. Samuel, I'm usually especially satisfied when I read your posts about me.
If you don't like what they post, you can either ignore them or place them on your ignore list. I agree that TJ, in particular, has been harsh but I addressed that with him in another post last week. I'm not picking on you. I'm just trying to restrain was has been a really harsh forum lately.
