This ignorant **********

[deevergote]

Aside from disagreeing with his opinion in general, the only thing I see wrong with his standpoint is the fact that he's generalizing ALL black people. Affirmative action, NAACP stepping in at the slightest hint of racism, etc... Yes, those things aren't complete fiction, but they're hardly the norm. I have a number of black friends (as well as friends in just about every "major" minority group.) None of them have ever gotten a job, education, whathaveyou for their race alone. None of them have ever had the NAACP (or any other race-specific group) step in on their behalf for ANY reason. Most people have not.
There was a time when black people (and other minorities) were heavily discriminated against by the white majority in America, and that was accepted. Affirmative action, and other such things, made sense in those times. They were rather extreme, but they were necessary to swing things in the other direction. Now, they're not as necessary, since racism is generally not an accepted practice in most parts of the country. Yes, it still exists... but nowhere near the extent of days past.

[Mista Juice]

Although the last comment was unnecessary.

he didnt just say "get a grip" like the OP said.. he said "get a grip on how the world really works".. which is unfortunately a comment that has a lot of truth to it.. the world shouldnt be that way, but it is..

[GenDBlade]

Oh jeez. America=mixing pot of the world. and we still cant get along. Damn rediculous.

[deevergote]

Of course not. People like to pick on differences. If we were all exactly the same, but our heights varied by 1/2"... we'd separate into groups of tall and short, and start killing each other over it.

Hell, look at the tribal wars in Africa. They're all black, but they're in different tribes, so they kill each other. They don't look different. They may share the same religious beliefs (I'm not very knowledgeable about them, so maybe not.) They're just in different tribes... really, nothing more than a social difference, yet it's enough to hate and kill.
Here in America, we have a very diverse population... lots of very obvious differences to pick on! Race, color, religion, sexual preference, body type, hair color, income, social status, profession, recreational habits, political beliefs, sports teams, music types (I avoid dating girls that like country music, because I don't like country music... )

[GenDBlade]

You're right.We are the human race. no difference at all between us, cept that some of us have a darker tan, or thinner eyes. whatever. we need an alien attack or something to unify the humans.

[deevergote]

Yeah, if we have something more different than ourselves to hate, we'll be unified... until that target is gone. Then it's back to the internal human hatred.


And honestly... if I was living in Africa (or any area near the equator), I wouldn't hate the dark skinned people... I'd envy them! They're properly equipped for that climate. I'd burn to a freakin' crisp, and I'd be gasping for air (my little cold-weather nostrils are designed to take in denser, cooler air...)
All our "racial" differences are really just adaptations to the climate. We all have the same general internal makeup... It doesn't matter what color your skin is, your mind, emotions, etc... are all capable of the same things as everyone else.

Many "racial" differences are actually cultural differences... and a person's race doesn't always mean that they adhere to the cultural profile normally associated with that race. Those cultural differences are very often just that... different... not wrong in any way.

[Tnwagn]

This guys has his own beliefs, which he is entitled to. He is fairly reasonable compared to a number of people. There are plenty of Muslim warriors who want nothing more than to kill the infidels and there are the KKK who want to string up ***s, blacks, and Jews to trees.

This guy just doesn't like black people based on the interactions he's had with them in his own life. If you had been treated poorly by a certain type of people, be it a certain race, religious group, gender, region, etc., wouldn't you feel sour to that group of people?

[deevergote]

I have been... and I don't. I have enough sense not to generalize. Even the cultures that I'm not fond of don't influence my feelings toward individuals. Of course, that's me... and the way I see the world.

Still, I do agree that a person is entitled to their opinion, as long as it has no negative impact on those that he dislikes. In his interactions with the black guy there... the black guy got aggressive, but the Polynesian guy, who doesn't like black people, remained civil. Seeing as he doesn't like black people, you'd think he'd unleash a string of slurs and insults, but he treated the man with respect.

[sikz6]

I have been... and I don't. I have enough sense not to generalize. Even the cultures that I'm not fond of don't influence my feelings toward individuals. Of course, that's me... and the way I see the world.

Still, I do agree that a person is entitled to their opinion, as long as it has no negative impact on those that he dislikes. In his interactions with the black guy there... the black guy got aggressive, but the Polynesian guy, who doesn't like black people, remained civil. Seeing as he doesn't like black people, you'd think he'd unleash a string of slurs and insults, but he treated the man with respect.

This.
It's one thing to not like someone or something, but we are all capable of making our own actions. Therefore, generalizing or assuming that person or thing and all others relative to it do/feel/ those things or act that way is naive.

Hell, if that were the case every person in the world would be considered "rapists, murders, terrorists, child molesters, etc." Why? Because i assure you, one of those acts has been completed by at least one person from every race, ethnic background, heritage, religious group, etc.

just my .02, take it or leave it.

[Law Grandeur]

rofl

[WilliamW]

My wife is attending a very rigorous accelerated nursing college here in St. Louis and they have a "Black Nurses Association". In fact, it's national.

http://www.nbna.org/

Now then... If someone started a "White Nurses Association" people would be yelling racist and they would be shut down.

Technically you can't say "I don't like him because he's black" just like you can't accept someone into into a position solely because of their color. You CAN take skin color as a plus factor but you can't take it as a negative factor (funny how that works).

I don't support how he said what he said, but I do support his reasoning.


And the guy at the end who is talking about "if there is one person who's oppressed" he comes off as a nut job. The world isn't fair. Not to whites, or blacks. He's crazy

[quickangel93]

all i gotta say is he better not go back home to his hood. people will be waiting for him there.


i think racism is stupid. people even now these days keep separating themselves to higher themselves in life. which i think is ignorant. entitles to his opinion or not, something like that should be kept to yourself when your out in public.

[deevergote]

He did keep his opinion to himself until he was asked.

[Tnwagn]

This.
It's one thing to not like someone or something, but we are all capable of making our own actions. Therefore, generalizing or assuming that person or thing and all others relative to it do/feel/ those things or act that way is naive.

Hell, if that were the case every person in the world would be considered "rapists, murders, terrorists, child molesters, etc." Why? Because i assure you, one of those acts has been completed by at least one person from every race, ethnic background, heritage, religious group, etc.

just my .02, take it or leave it.

I was basing my comment on repeated actions by multiple individuals of a specific group, not single problems created by a single individual of a certain group.

So, a single Mid-West woman could kill her husband but that doesn't make all Mid-West women husband killers. However, if there was a repeated pattern of women from the Mid-West killing their husbands I would be reluctant to marry that woman.

Deev, you drive all over the place when you work, right? I take it that you drive in some unsavory areas as part of your area you have to cover. I bet that you take extra precautions when in those areas, especially if you are approached by people that area. You have no way of know whether the person approaching you is going to try and sell you girl scout cookies or slip a knife between your ribs. All you know is that based on the area you are in that there is a greater likelihood of the person being confrontational.

[deevergote]

To be honest, I feel safer in the "minority" areas than I do in the "white" areas. The only issues I've had with people getting violent have been with "white" people.

I do stay on alert in the ghetto areas, but not because of the ethnicity of the population. I do so because the poor, densely populated urban areas have a higher crime rate. Also, the simple fact that there are more people around in general raises the risk of theft. I'm more likely to lock my car in those areas, whereas in the rural areas, I'll walk half a mile with my car running on the side of the road.

However, I AM aware that someone of a different race might have something against ME. When a white guy holding a notebook is taking pictures and knocking on doors in a predominantly black neighborhood, someone might have a problem with that. I don't expect it, but I am prepared for it.
Would I hold someone in that neighborhood in contempt for disliking me for being white in their black neighborhood? Not really. I understand that their experiences with white people may not have been pleasant in the past, and that their entire life (if lived in such an area) was spent in the company of other black people. People fear and dislike that which they do not understand. They are allowed their opinion. They are allowed their suspicion. I will only hold it against them if they act on it... attack me, call me names, etc... Because THEN, I am being treated unfairly.


That's my point here. Although I don't agree with the opinion of the man in the video, I respect it... because although he holds such an opinion, he doesn't show a lack of respect, even to those that he dislikes. Even when discussing his dislike of black people with a black man (who was getting rather aggressive), he still maintained a respectful demeanor.
A negative opinion of a race is not racism. Acting on that opinion in a negative manner is. As long as your opinion doesn't affect your fair treatment of members of the race you dislike, what harm is done? Why would such an opinion be "wrong", when it is merely an opinion?