Hey col. I have not seen many of CJ posts. He may be an idiot. But in several of the thread i have posted he has spoken sense so I dont think it is fair to dismiss him

Well, originally I was going to compliment mikke on his wonderful expansion a very good post by the cat.

So will I too get the scathing attach that CJ Morgan received from Col.

He said no more than one line, it only agreed with the original post.

Of course I am racist, I am also friutist, vegetableist etc.

Yes I would say "He was of middle eastern apperance" but does that make the statement "They had red hair" hairist, or "they had a fair complexion" also wrong.

Col, does:

"only because their numbers are so insignificant that an event of “One” measures as an event in the total Indian population numbers"

mean that it is OK to call you an idiot because ..

their numbers are so insignificant that an event of “One” measures as an event in the total numbers of idiots on OLO

Americans like many of us -
usually tend to see the world through
our own experiences. And, of course, we
don't always get it right.

The history of American race relations - is a long
and complicated one. However,
the strong hostilities that originally existed against
Japanese, Irish, Italian, and other immigrants gradually
lessened as these groups have gained entry to the broad
American middle class, where they are now seen as equals
rather than as rivals. Antipathy is greatest against
those groups who remain relatively impoverished, such as
blacks or Chicanos. This semtiment is strongest among
low-status whites, who feel most threatened by the economic
progress and comptetition of the minorities.

The evidence from other countries, including Australia, also
shows a consistent pattern of racial intolerance among
low-status members of the dominant white group.

Many people tend to judge other cultures by the standards of
one's own. To many, it's self-evident that their own norms,
religion, attitudes, values, and cultural practices are
right and proper, while those of other groups may seem
inappropriate, peculiar, bizarre, or even immoral.

These attitudes ensure its members' solidarity and cohesion.
The difficulty is, of course, that under certain conditions
these attitudes can lead to the exploitation and oppression
of other groups.

We have to remember that in the long run, racial and ethnic
inequality will always tend to be dysfunctional for society,
partly because it prevents the society from making full use
of the talents of all its members, and partly because,
sooner or later, it inevitably generates hostility and even
violence.

Questioning issues such s racism on
Public Forums such as this is a good thing. And may
possibly lead to a better understanding of the problems
involved.

disgustingly low percentage of govt support.
thecat,
no offence intended to anyone & I realise that there are always some individuals who get the short end of the stick but the statement above is plain & simply way out & utterly unjustified. I am always on about the huge %age of public funding being syphoned into Bureaucrat pockets & hopefully one day we get a sincere Government which knocks that abuse on the head. However, what is commonly referred to as neglect or insufficient funding & support is nothing more than the unwillingness of people to simply cough up some initiative & do something positive for themselves & their community. Believe me, I get told this by many indigenous themselves everyday. There is only so far a group of people can go to help others if they have no intention of helping themselves. You could throw unlimited support at some people & it will not change the situation. That, thecat, is the crux of the dilemma.

Actually Foxy… recalling Rwanda (among many atrocities across Africa and around the globe)

“a consistent pattern of racial intolerance among low-status members of the dominant white group”

Should be corrected to read

“a consistent pattern of racial intolerance among low-status members of any ethnic any group” (dominant or otherwise)

Fiji for instance (Fijian versus again, Indian) and

Sri Lanka would be another non-white example too

I recall a forceful resistance to intermarriage which exists in many traditionally “non white” parts of the world and the ostracizing of children and the mothers of mixed-race children in Asia, along with the issues of why the legislation known as “the Half Caste Act” was, rightly or wrongly, introduced in Australia

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Half-caste_act)

I suggest you do not particularize a negative aspect of behavior as being specifically “white”

when such intolerance is endemic among people of just about every race or ethnic subgroup and has been so since the dawn of time.

You see, it is not because people are white,

it is because those who feel “power-deficient” (for whatever reason and by whatever measure),

see competition for the lowest level of resource, in any field of human need, by someone of an identifiably different group,

as a threat to their own best interests.

Obviously, the most “marginal” in any society tend to be

1 the newest arrivals (except where “arrival” was determined by force of arms… eg the Roman and Norman invasion of UK).

2 those who feel deprived by the “cards they were dealt” in life.

The solution

Assimilation

Where “These attitudes ensure its members' solidarity and cohesion.”

But it does take several generations at least for newcomers to “assimilate”

And silly notions like “multiculturalism” just perpetuate divisions and work against

What you state as “solidarity and cohesion”

Thecat,

I think Martin Luther King Jr .Said it best when he said " we will remain racist untill we can meet a man in the street, talk a bit, then 10 minutes later not remember his colour(but what he said)"

It's a bit like saying "some of my friends are black" that in itself notes the 'difference' and is racist.

Put another way a friend of mine used to say "I'm not a homosexual but I slept (had sex) with quite a few who were."

Despite my my up bringing in two cultures and as I discovered yesterday, I have a 1/2 niece who is indigenous (long lost, never met, birth family i.e. half brother.), I too note the differences. The difference is, do I roll around in the lesser side of my European centric culture, claiming it as my birth right to be racist/boorish (the attitude proffered by Col) or do I work to change an emotional flaw in me?

This boils down to do we try and overcome our lessor emotional baggage or remain a captive to it.

TC, I think the issue is a matter of sensitivity to the people involved.
i.e. The blackface routine was insensitive as an american was involved.
in the case of the KFC it was a case of Yanks projecting their arrogance and insensitivity. If the complaint had come from a W Indian then it may have been a case of insensitivity.

This isn't a black armband or sense of inferiority, just a mature confident recognition of our innate racism and a WIP desire to grow.... common sense.