The Place Where Ludington Talks
Racism: Is the USA more or less racisist now then in the past?
If you asked me this question a few years ago, I would of said that we are less racist then what we was. Oh, it's still out there to be sure but it seemed to be something you heard less about even a few years ago then nowadays. In light of comments made by Harry Reid for a forthcoming book in which he made comments about Obama's skin color and used the term 'negro', it seems that even democrats have their own issues to deal with. Been a few Republicans over the years that have had their issues too.. don't want to leave them out.
It seems that with the election of Barrack Obama, that instead of moving the USA to a post racist society, that things have gone in the opposite direction. Obviously a lot of people had hoped things would change. Unfortunately, what changed is that many became hyper sensitive to anything that could possibly be construed as even remotely racist. Voicing any sort of negative comment toward the president and you were labeled a racist.... regardless of whatever your comment was in regard too.
Of course... and unfortunately... it seems that politics gets involved in things too. It's been happening for years in Washington and its probably going to continue to happen. Like the aforementioned Reid comments, politicians have been making dumb comments for years. Trent Lott made some 'foot in mouth' comments regarding Strohm Thurmond and his segregationist Presidential run back in I believe the late 40's. While IMO I found both the comments made by Reid and Lott were dumb and not well thought out, I don't know if they are quite as bad as what they were made out to be. On the downside of it all though is the fact that apparently the democrats seem to be less concerned about these things when they arise. When Lott made his comments, he ended up having to give up his leader position and barely kept his seat. When Reid makes a dumb comment, its not that big of a deal apparently... he apologizes and that seems to be pretty much it. When Joe Wilson made his "You lie" outburst during Obama's speech in front of congress, he was called a racist and asked to step down. Of course the statement wasn't racist at all but because so many are so sensitive to any negativity, it was labeled racist regardless.
Enough about Washington... now lets talk about this area. Racism is still alive and well here, as it is in most parts of the country and for that matter, the world. I work in retail and I see it and hear it almost every day. I think in reality that we all harbor a little bit of racism in ourselves... although I wouldn't say its in a hateful way. What I mean by that is there are times when we might be out and about in a big city and somehow we get a bit lost and end up in a area of town that isn't exactly the safest place... natural tendency is to think the worse of whoever may be near your vehicle and hope that you can get back to where you want to be. I don't necessarily think that reaction is a bad thing.. its probably more a natural reaction to the situation. Maybe like when a deer wanders into town and finds its self in a position... natural reaction for that deer if it gets approached is to either run or charge at a potential nemesis.
Of course the general face of racism is that its mainly a white people hating blacks sort of a thing. The reality of it all is that racism has no single face... it has many. There are whites out there that hate blacks... blacks that hate whites... whites that hate hispanics... hispanics that hate blacks... blacks that hate orientals... orientals that hate whites... I could go on but I think your all getting the picture.
Will we ever do away with racism? Hard to say but i'm thinking it's unlikely that we would ever see it totally disappear. It's always going to be out there whether we like it or not. What I do hope though is that those that we can come together and not jump every time someone says something. It's caused us grief over the last year in having to hear the word racist blurted out every time it seemed convenient for someone to use it.
Have I ever used words that could be considered racist? Yeah, I have... i'm not perfect by any means. I was young and dumb but thankfully as i've grown older I have become a better person and more respectful to those around me. It's probably safe to say that many of us have done the same thing, said stupid things but learned from them to be better people.
I think there is hope for us all... we are good people and in the end, we will make a difference!
It seems that with the election of Barrack Obama, that instead of moving the USA to a post racist society, that things have gone in the opposite direction. Obviously a lot of people had hoped things would change. Unfortunately, what changed is that many became hyper sensitive to anything that could possibly be construed as even remotely racist. Voicing any sort of negative comment toward the president and you were labeled a racist.... regardless of whatever your comment was in regard too.
Of course... and unfortunately... it seems that politics gets involved in things too. It's been happening for years in Washington and its probably going to continue to happen. Like the aforementioned Reid comments, politicians have been making dumb comments for years. Trent Lott made some 'foot in mouth' comments regarding Strohm Thurmond and his segregationist Presidential run back in I believe the late 40's. While IMO I found both the comments made by Reid and Lott were dumb and not well thought out, I don't know if they are quite as bad as what they were made out to be. On the downside of it all though is the fact that apparently the democrats seem to be less concerned about these things when they arise. When Lott made his comments, he ended up having to give up his leader position and barely kept his seat. When Reid makes a dumb comment, its not that big of a deal apparently... he apologizes and that seems to be pretty much it. When Joe Wilson made his "You lie" outburst during Obama's speech in front of congress, he was called a racist and asked to step down. Of course the statement wasn't racist at all but because so many are so sensitive to any negativity, it was labeled racist regardless.
Enough about Washington... now lets talk about this area. Racism is still alive and well here, as it is in most parts of the country and for that matter, the world. I work in retail and I see it and hear it almost every day. I think in reality that we all harbor a little bit of racism in ourselves... although I wouldn't say its in a hateful way. What I mean by that is there are times when we might be out and about in a big city and somehow we get a bit lost and end up in a area of town that isn't exactly the safest place... natural tendency is to think the worse of whoever may be near your vehicle and hope that you can get back to where you want to be. I don't necessarily think that reaction is a bad thing.. its probably more a natural reaction to the situation. Maybe like when a deer wanders into town and finds its self in a position... natural reaction for that deer if it gets approached is to either run or charge at a potential nemesis.
Of course the general face of racism is that its mainly a white people hating blacks sort of a thing. The reality of it all is that racism has no single face... it has many. There are whites out there that hate blacks... blacks that hate whites... whites that hate hispanics... hispanics that hate blacks... blacks that hate orientals... orientals that hate whites... I could go on but I think your all getting the picture.
Will we ever do away with racism? Hard to say but i'm thinking it's unlikely that we would ever see it totally disappear. It's always going to be out there whether we like it or not. What I do hope though is that those that we can come together and not jump every time someone says something. It's caused us grief over the last year in having to hear the word racist blurted out every time it seemed convenient for someone to use it.
Have I ever used words that could be considered racist? Yeah, I have... i'm not perfect by any means. I was young and dumb but thankfully as i've grown older I have become a better person and more respectful to those around me. It's probably safe to say that many of us have done the same thing, said stupid things but learned from them to be better people.
I think there is hope for us all... we are good people and in the end, we will make a difference!
Views: 171
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Sweater Cows! on
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I heard somewhere the remark "I'm not racist I hate everybody". I love that, and it's true during pms no matter who you are I don't like you!!!
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Permalink Reply by AQUAMAN on
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Dave, your second paragraph, about being a hyper-sensitive society now hits the mark. Rev. JJ and his buddies look for anything with a magnifying glass these days to get attention and make sensationalizm. However, I do like the pms levity remark of SJ too, LOL.
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Permalink Reply by XLFD on
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Racism is a difficult topic to touch, but Dave has handled it pretty well. I think people have two instinctive impulses which makes it hard for us to ever completely negate racism, or various other -isms: the first is the mind's tendency to classify 'things' and generalize about 'things' based on only a few perceptions, the second is a primal fear of what is perceived as different from oneself and one's associates. Most people can overcome or inhibit these instincts, yet some cannot.
Racism is frequently invoked where there is none, and is sometimes overlooked when there is plenty. Harry Reid is someone who has no business being a political leader, but I doubt whether he harbors significant amounts of racist sentiments. But then, I never thought Trent Lott was either during his much tamer statements. Attachment of the racist label-- or other label-- without good reason is a true barrier to free speech.
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Permalink Reply by Charles Cœur de Lièvre on
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> orientals that hate whites...
Funny part is, they have a track record of hating each other far more passionately than has ever been directed at anyone else!
This song sums up all else I have to say: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXnM1uHhsOI
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