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pennywise121 · 04-15-2005, 06:50 AM

lol john.
sounds like a certain country i can think of....... but its ok, right? Manifest destiny and all.

i'm being facetious of course, but the point remains the same.

in this situation (philanthropists/racists), there are a couple of things that strike me. first, the fact that one tribe is racist already injects the racism to the system, and an imbalance occurs. your point is well taken, however. even in this case, imagine instead of racism, tribe-ism. it works well. those predisposed (in this case as most others, through socialization) to feel superior already believe they have power that needs to be defended and maintained.

now, lets take your average white male in america. middle class, he is not very racist, he is just about to graduate college and hears about all the tech jobs being given to immigrants who will work for less (this actually is happening because of the united states' policy of giving preference to immigrants with needed/desired skills. 1965 immigration reform act set up 45,000 special slots for this purpose alone). he is concerned because there may not be a job waiting for him. in this situation, he feels that he should have preference for jobs in his own country. he believes there is power being lost, and the stage is set for discriminatory beliefs/actions.

basically, my hypothetical is to show that even the least discriminatory among us are just as likely to participate in -isms.

seeker, the only instance i can think of is that of an only child, before they have a conception of power or competition with other siblings at home, in this society at the very least. i dont want to start a flame war with most of us, but it would seem that it is our social definition of power that causes many of our problems. in our society, money is power, and material goods an extension of that power. we work with social capital just the same; prestige is a commodity just as any object is. ultimately, if there is no conception of power and no competition, there should be no need for -isms. but we live in a society where there is power and there is competition, and we are ALL discriminatory in some manner, however small it may be.

i do not make broad generalizations lightly; to destroy a beautiful quote quite thoroughly: show me a person who is not discriminatory, and i will show you a person who is lying to themselves...... or you.

04-15-2005, 06:50 AM	#27 (permalink)
pennywise121 Upright Location: Sacramento	lol john. sounds like a certain country i can think of....... but its ok, right? Manifest destiny and all. i'm being facetious of course, but the point remains the same. in this situation (philanthropists/racists), there are a couple of things that strike me. first, the fact that one tribe is racist already injects the racism to the system, and an imbalance occurs. your point is well taken, however. even in this case, imagine instead of racism, tribe-ism. it works well. those predisposed (in this case as most others, through socialization) to feel superior already believe they have power that needs to be defended and maintained. now, lets take your average white male in america. middle class, he is not very racist, he is just about to graduate college and hears about all the tech jobs being given to immigrants who will work for less (this actually is happening because of the united states' policy of giving preference to immigrants with needed/desired skills. 1965 immigration reform act set up 45,000 special slots for this purpose alone). he is concerned because there may not be a job waiting for him. in this situation, he feels that he should have preference for jobs in his own country. he believes there is power being lost, and the stage is set for discriminatory beliefs/actions. basically, my hypothetical is to show that even the least discriminatory among us are just as likely to participate in -isms. seeker, the only instance i can think of is that of an only child, before they have a conception of power or competition with other siblings at home, in this society at the very least. i dont want to start a flame war with most of us, but it would seem that it is our social definition of power that causes many of our problems. in our society, money is power, and material goods an extension of that power. we work with social capital just the same; prestige is a commodity just as any object is. ultimately, if there is no conception of power and no competition, there should be no need for -isms. but we live in a society where there is power and there is competition, and we are ALL discriminatory in some manner, however small it may be. i do not make broad generalizations lightly; to destroy a beautiful quote quite thoroughly: show me a person who is not discriminatory, and i will show you a person who is lying to themselves...... or you. __________________ Food for thought.