From: d40937@leibnitz (Jean Yves Desbiens)
Newsgroups: alt.flame
Subject: Re: A racist rears her ugly little head
Date: 14 Dec 92 00:38:00 GMT
Distribution: na
Organization: Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal
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Patrick L Humphrey (patrick@is.rice.edu) wrote:
: rissa@world.std.com (Patricia O Tuama) writes:
: >Actually, dear, these laws are in place to make up for what our par-
: >ents and colleagues did and are still doing.
:
: Some of us believe that it works better if we try not to repeat those
: mistakes, and take responsibility for *our* deeds, not our parents'.

Absolutely right, the way affirmation action works is that the bigots
think they are doing a great favor by *allowing* minorities to get a job and
that conforts them in their belief that the *put your favorite minority*
can't get anything unless they give it to them. It fuels racism
because it gives an air of moral superiority to those that certainly
don't deserve to be given such a break, It gives them a right to hate
because they are not served the gratitude they so richly deserve (puke).
Those program relieve the burden of changing their ways from the 
individual and give it to society. But people are not harassed by 
the USA as a whole, It is in their daily contacts that they feel
the brunt of racism. Affirmative action won't change the basic 
fact that *people* not companies or countries or any other of these 
entities that are racist, and that is the problem. Besides,
affirmative action can only be taken so far before it becomes
a reverse discrimination process; because they are so few applicant
for the jobs in AF there is bound to be a perfectly good non 
minority candidate that is put at the wayside. What are you going to 
say to him, you were good but we had to fill a quota, having served
the good cause of antiracism won't stop him from fuming when he
contemplates the fact he may stay out of work for a couple
of weeks or months .

: >What is this long ago shit?  Racism is still going on this very min-
: >ute and we will continue to pay for it until it has disappeared from
: >our society.

Racism will never truly disapear, it will always be lurking inside
us waiting for slightess slip of our will to control it. Thinking
that we legislate racism away or pay restitution for it like 
a jar we have broken is illusory , we can only demand forgiveness 
and start over by trying to change ourselves first and then go
outward not the other way around. Sure, nation wide discrimation 
can be cut down because it was legislated but once it is done
the minorities don't need our pity, they need to be treated with
the same respect we treat ourselves ( that is if we do respect ourselves
which isn't obvious from what we see in society ).
The days of legislated changes are over. The black leaders say
that it is time they do something for themselves, if changes 
in society aren't fast enough they can't wait for them to happen.
They have to live now, they can't wait for society to wise up.

: I don't know about you, but in my book, two wrongs don't make a right.  Your
: self-righteous attitude will insure, more than anything else, that racism
: will be with this society for years to come.
: Take responsibility for your own benighted attitude, and quit trying to
: force everyone else to bend to your will.  

You are right, as I have commented up there .    
--
SEIZE THE DAY, MAKE YOUR LIFE EXTRAORDINARY .  "Dead Poets Society"

Jean-Yves Desbiens                  | d40937@info.polymtl.ca
Etudiant en genie informatique      | 
Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal Can | To indeed be a god ...,
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