en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/768202 Comments by ajb81 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/isnt-migration-conflict-inevitable__trashed/#IDComment70020074 I agree with your statement that the two situations are very different. It seems that in history, there has always been conflict between people of different lands, and for the most part, it always ended in war. As time progressed humans were able to start solving disagreements through treaties and things like that that, but once the issue gets too out of hand, war is inevitable. We have come a long way as a society but we still have a lot to learn since we still end up fighting and killing each other over issues that might have solvable with negotiation. Fri, 23 Apr 2010 23:30:45 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/isnt-migration-conflict-inevitable__trashed/#IDComment70020074 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/south-park-off-the-hook__trashed/#IDComment70017242 I could understand if the Muslim people were mad at South Park for doing this if the writers of the show had not targeted every other religion or major public figure during their two hundred episodes, but they have targeted everybody. The writers of South Park use what is going on in today’s world to help make their show relevant and point out some of the wrongs that are going on. I can be offending to those that they are making fun of, but let’s face it, most of the time people are thinking about these issues and talking about already, the writer’s of South Park just have a bigger audience than the rest of us to talk to. In the end, it is only a cartoon and people are just looking to get a cheap laugh out it. I cannot believe these Muslims are making death threats to the writers of this show. In the episode, they did not even show Muhammad. They only talked about him. I am pretty sure that the Muslims do not want an image of Muhammad on TV and that did not happen. But even after the episode aired, the Muslims still complained and said they felt disrespected since they still inferred that Muhammad was in a bear costume and speaking. This is just ridiculous. In America, we have the right to free speech. That right is what protects the writers from getting in trouble when they make fun of the President, Jesus, Buddha, any other religious figure, any celebrity, and any politician. The Muslim group that had made these threats is actually located in New York City. They are here in America, enjoying all of our rights and freedoms and yet, still complaining and threatening us when we exercise those rights. I do not think this is right. So many groups have been targeted by this show and yet the writers have not been threatened throughout all of these years. These threats frightened the producers of Comedy Central so much that they actually altered the show after receiving it from the producers of South Park. They bleeped out Muhammad’s name any time it was said, any dialog that was thought to come from Muhammad, and even the speech at the end of the episode. The writers of South Park said that the speech at the end was about intimidation and fear and did not even mention Muhammad, yet the Comedy Central producers wanted to stay safe and bleeped out the entire speech to make sure the Muslims would not be offended. Being able to take a joke is part of growing up and these Muslims obviously still have a lot of growing up to do. Fri, 23 Apr 2010 23:08:46 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/south-park-off-the-hook__trashed/#IDComment70017242 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-about-the-men__trashed/#IDComment68439902 Men do have to conform a lot to the world just like women do; it is just a different type of conformity. In order to fit in, men usually have to get involved with some sort of sport and follow other professional and collegiate sports so that they can contribute to the usual conversations that happen between men. They also have to learn to keep their emotions at a minimum when around other men, but if they are with women, they usually have to open up and try to be more emotional. There are different situations that men have to conform to and it is the same way for women. Fri, 16 Apr 2010 22:51:09 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-about-the-men__trashed/#IDComment68439902 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/is-quality-the-question__trashed/#IDComment68439163 It is true that some people will unfairly benefit from affirmative action for medical school but that does not mean that they are going to succeed in medical school. Affirmative action can help them get into the school but it is up to them to do the work and make sure that they know the information well enough in order to pass the tests and prove that they are able to work in a hospital. And even if they make it to a hospital, if they mess up badly, then they will be fired. It is as simple as that. Affirmative action can only get their foot in the door, it is up to them to get through the door. Fri, 16 Apr 2010 22:44:27 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/is-quality-the-question__trashed/#IDComment68439163 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/nothing-about-the-census-is-easy__trashed/#IDComment68438445 I do not understand why so many people get offended by the census. It is just words on a paper. It is not like someone is in your face calling you a name like Negro. At one point in time, all black people were referred to as that so of course they would put that term in the census because they want to get an accurate count of everyone and their races. I would understand if Negro was the only term referring to black people, but since there are a few other choices that refer to the same race, they should not be complaining. Also, the one lady mentioned how the term Negro reminded her of slavery, but honestly we have come a long way from those days so I think it about time to start letting go of some the hate that was created back then. The census did a lot of research to make sure they would get the information they needed so they should just trust in what is on the paper and fill it out. People today are too worried about being politically correct because there are too many people who are being overly sensitive to certain issues. Like I said before, it is just a piece of paper that is asking you what race you consider yourself. I am pretty sure you can leave it blank or fill in another word if you want to. People need to just relax and stop trying to create problems where there are none. If anyone should be offended, it should the multi racial people since they do not list everyone’s races. Instead, they just are usually just labeled as white or one of the other general races, but even for that situation, people should not get that offended. The census is just collecting stats. It is fine if you want to explain what race or races you identify with when you are talking to other people, but in this case, just take a general guess of what you are and forget about it. The census should just be focused on making sure that they get a close to accurate count of how many people who are in each county or state. The number of people influences different political aspects so why put so much emphasis on race. They need all this information in order to get the right amount of seats for each state in the House of Representatives, congressional redistricting, redrawing state legislative and congressional districts, and the distribution for government funds for different programs. Not all of those purposes rely on how many blacks or Negros that have African and American blood in them or white people who are Hispanic and polish or some other combination of races. It only wants a generalization so that is what people should provide. Fri, 16 Apr 2010 22:37:57 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/nothing-about-the-census-is-easy__trashed/#IDComment68438445 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/those-damn-dolls__trashed/#IDComment65681972 The doll experiment is very shocking. It is a shame that those children believe that white people are viewed as the good people and black people as viewed as the bad. It is partly society’s fault because it is obvious that there are a lot of examples on the TV and in movies that support that type of theme, but the parents are partly to blame as well. They should be the ones who explain to their children that there is no ideal race that is good or bad, instead it is based on what people do with their life that determines who is good and who is bad. Sat, 3 Apr 2010 01:57:54 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/those-damn-dolls__trashed/#IDComment65681972 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-about-multiracial-people__trashed/#IDComment65680830 I feel that you should correct Sam and the other that come up to you call you by a race that you do not identify with. Like Sam has mentioned before, most of your identity comes from what experiences you grew up and what you see yourself as. Since you have always identified as Hispanic, I would continue identifying with that race and make sure you are proud of that fact. There are too many people who have lost touch with their racial identities and I think it is very important that you stay with your beliefs about who you are. Sat, 3 Apr 2010 01:50:35 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-about-multiracial-people__trashed/#IDComment65680830 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/prom-or-no-prom-just-dont-let-the-queer-students-dance-together__trashed/#IDComment65678801 It is pretty absurd that this kind of discrimination still goes on today. It seems very unnecessary to cancel the prom based on two kids. Even if people are uncomfortable around gay couples they are going to have to deal with them at some point in life, so why not give them an opportunity to encounter it at a young age. In this day and age people are usually encouraged to come out of the closet and be themselves so why would you punish someone for trying to express their true self. We even have many TV shows that have gay characters, and movie stars that are gay. It is not very fair. The school should have come up with a better response than just canceling the whole event. It shows such a lack of respect for the whole community to do something like that. They have just made it so that they both had to wear dresses or something small like that. Although, I think it is also very offending that the school would try to control what the students are wearing to prom. Women dress in suits and things like that in the business world sometimes so why try and censor the kids when there are already people who do it. I would be very angry if I was student and I was not able to have a prom, but I would understand why the lesbian students would not just sit back and accept the discrimination. It is ridiculous. One of their arguments was that some students felt uncomfortable around that couple. What if some students did not get along with each other and felt uncomfortable around them? Would the prom be cancelled then? What if I was uncomfortable around a mixed race couple or around people of races? The prom would not be cancelled because people would consider that racist. There is no difference between those situations and the one at the high school. I understand that gays and lesbians are not a type of race but it is something that they are born with, something that they cannot control, so you should not punish them for it. The school is providing the students with a terrible example of how to handle issues that are outside of their comfort zone. They are basically saying that it is alright to discriminate against people, which is not something you should teach your children. They are also pawning off this problem to the community by stating that they hope private citizens will plan something for the students. I would be very upset if I was a parent in that area and the school was trying to make us sponsor an event that is always a school function. Sat, 3 Apr 2010 01:35:18 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/prom-or-no-prom-just-dont-let-the-queer-students-dance-together__trashed/#IDComment65678801 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/whats-with-the-theme-parties__trashed/#IDComment64284989 I do not really like the idea of theme parties, but I can understand why people do it so that they can make their party a little different and make it stand out. But with all the theme parties that I have been to or heard of, I have not of many that would be considered racist. Most of them are making fun of TV shows and others are just random jobs where people just like to dress up like a business person or army guy or whatever. These parties would not be considered racist; if anything, they would be considered sexist since the women who attend these parties are usually expected to dress in a slutty manner. Sat, 27 Mar 2010 02:25:27 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/whats-with-the-theme-parties__trashed/#IDComment64284989 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/does-this-rudeness-thing-cut-both-ways__trashed/#IDComment64284401 It happens that way because it has always been that if a white person makes a racist comment around other ethnicities, then they automatically assume the white person is a racist. This is most noticeable with African Americans. It always seems like they think they have the right to make fun of white people because white people have been putting them down for so long and it is just the black man’s way of getting even. I do not know why it is still like this, but find to be very irritating. I have seen black people use racist terms to other white people’s face and it is like they expect the white person to just take it and not respond. If a white person does respond with a racial term to them then it becomes a huge ordeal. It is sad that this still happens but it is something that we as a country need to work on. Sat, 27 Mar 2010 02:18:25 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/does-this-rudeness-thing-cut-both-ways__trashed/#IDComment64284401 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/why-is-this-racist-really__trashed/#IDComment64283268 Saying that white people have a different style of play basically means that they are not good enough to play in the NBA. Try and restate it anyway you want, but if you are creating a league for whites only because the NBA is too fast paced then you are admitting that this other league will be slower and not as good. I would be embarrassed to participate in the white only league. One of the reasons people play sports is to play against the best competition. In order to find the best competition, you have to let everyone participate. This league is just defeating the point of having a professional league. This type of league is also reflects badly upon our country and its great advances is has made with race relations. People have tried to use segregation before it did not turn out so well. Granted this is a different situation since there is still the NBA but maybe the white players in that league would want to play in the all white league which would create a problem since that would lower the number of whites in the NBA which is already not very high. A worst case scenario would be if this league actually caught on and all the whites moved to the league and we were left with a white league and a black league. Then one league might not have a big enough audience and not get enough funding so it might collapse, thus leaving us with one league of one race. This is a very farfetched idea but there is always a possibility that it could happen. Even if it happens to a lesser degree, it would not be good for the sport of basketball. If this idea gets the go ahead then what is to stop college teams from starting all white teams? There would be a league for the white style of play so kids in college would want to practice it and possibly try out for the league. The black students would still only have the NBA, which white students could still play in. This would be very unfair to the players who are minorities. The classification of who is a pure white person and who is not would also bring up a lot of issues. I have a feeling that there would be a lot of debate on whether or certain players believe they should be allowed to play or not and it could get out of control. I believe that this league is a very bad idea and that the person who thought of it should definitely reconsider. Also, he should accept that he is a racist. He is excluding people based on their race. If that is not racism then I do not know what is. Sat, 27 Mar 2010 02:05:49 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/why-is-this-racist-really__trashed/#IDComment64283268 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/native-americans-question-two__trashed/#IDComment58858783 Even though you just you just moved here, you are still living on red land. It is understandable that you would not want to be considered a part of what happened a long time ago, and to some degree you are excused, but if you want to live in a certain country, you have to accept both the good and the bad of what it has to offer. If you were forced to move here for some reason then it might be a different story, but since I would guess your family chose to live here, then you should be ready to accept some responsibility for it. Fri, 26 Feb 2010 19:19:33 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/native-americans-question-two__trashed/#IDComment58858783 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/who-could-compete-with-this-woman-on-a-level-playing-field__trashed/#IDComment58858077 It is pretty amazing that she is able to accomplish what she has in her situation. There are so many parts to her story that are remarkable. The fact that she only has a fifth grade education really caught me off guard. I know people in college that struggle with financial stuff and here is this woman who is running a business with practically no knowledge about how to manage a business. I am very curious to see what her book that she keeps all her financial records in looks like. With ten customers and getting loans through the bank, she must have been very organized in order to keep track of what she owed and what other people owed her. I would also like to know how calculated the interest on the deferred payments from her customers. I am also impressed at her work ethic as well. Being able to get loans, buy her supplies, distribute her supplies and collect the money on credit, and paying the loan back on time is an impressive feat for one person, especially in her situation. I would be curious to see how well she would do in America if she was brought over now versus if she was born here. I feel like living in Haiti, or any third world country, would provide a lot of motivation for some individuals to go out and take risks on their ideas since they do not have many other choices. Some people who are born in America do not have that motivational drive from trying to survive because their parents might provide everything for them like food, shelter, and education. Even the people who are in poverty in America have it better than the Haitians since there are a lot more opportunities to be taken advantage of here, and the fact there are homeless shelters and other similar helping agencies that are available to people who are struggling. On the other hand, some people are just born with the talent, so maybe even if she were born here she would still thrive in the business world. If she were to come over to America now, it would be interesting to see how fast she would be able to pick up on the ways of American business. She had her own system that worked very well for her, but there are many more forms of competition in business in America then there are in Haiti so it would be a lot harder for her. After living in America for my whole life, I feel a great amount of respect for those people who live in the third world countries and are able to survive and find a way to make a living like Yvrose. Fri, 26 Feb 2010 19:13:18 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/who-could-compete-with-this-woman-on-a-level-playing-field__trashed/#IDComment58858077 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/native-americans-question-three__trashed/#IDComment58857971 Some people may not find this to be upsetting because they have not ever been confronted by the problem personally. I feel like if those who do not care about this issue were sent to a reservation to talk to some of the Indians and see how they live now, then maybe they would feel more strongly about it. There is also the fact that the wrong doings happened a long time ago that most people are becoming desensitized to the whole thing. It is that mentality of I did not do anything and neither did my parents or their parents so why should we care? I do not agree with that kind of mentality, but it seems as if that kind of thinking will continue to be used since there is no real solution for how to deal with the wrong doings right now. Fri, 26 Feb 2010 19:12:19 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/native-americans-question-three__trashed/#IDComment58857971 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/lgbt-class-question-one__trashed/#IDComment57705195 I do not think there is much of difference for what gender the gay couples are as long as they can prove their qualifications for being able to be good parents. It would be a different life if you had two dads or two moms, but I believe that as long as the parents can provide a loving environment and can satisfy the children’s needs then it really does not matter what gender the parents are. Children who are living in orphanages would definitely benefit from being able to live in a home with distinct parents, no matter what their sexuality. Sat, 20 Feb 2010 01:46:48 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/lgbt-class-question-one__trashed/#IDComment57705195 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/lgbt-class-question-four__trashed/#IDComment57704436 I completely with what he has said. Continuing to break the rules is not a good way to progress through life. The rules of the bible are out of date for this day and age but I am not saying that we need to rewrite the bible in any way. I think the bible serves as a good guideline for people because it outlines what you need to do be a good person. I believe that if you follow the main rules like you should not kill others or commit adultery or the ones like that, then you are living an acceptable life as long as you still believe in God and worship him. Sat, 20 Feb 2010 01:40:14 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/lgbt-class-question-four__trashed/#IDComment57704436 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/another-reason-why-gay-marriage-matters__trashed/#IDComment57703148 It is ridiculous that the gay couples do not have the same rights as straight people by now. This video puts the whole issue in to perspective for those who oppose gay rights. The children are able to live normal lives while having same sex parents and they are deeply saddened by the fact that their one mother might be deported. Is it really worth splitting up a family because you do not think that gay couples deserve to be considered married and get the same rights as married folk? The government should realize that the children who are being raised by gay parents are in a much better situation than they would be in a foster home. As Richards pointed out in class, it is a long and hard process for gay couples to go through to be able to adopt children and if they have that kind of tenacity, then it proves that they are dedicated to trying to be parents. They have to continue to be good parents because if they do not do a good job then they will have to give up their kids. With that kind of pressure, you would think that gay couples would do everything possible to be good parents and it is better for children to have loving parents then to be raised in a foster home or orphanage. I can understand the fact that people do not like that the word marriage would be used to describe the gay couple because it is written in the bible that people should not do that. That is one issue that the gay community should be a little flexible with. I think they should allow it to be called something else, like a union, but it should have the same rights that a married, straight couple does. Gay couples are still people and they deserve to be treated like it, especially in America. Some straight parents may not like that their children might see that kind of behavior, but you cannot hide your kids from it forever. America is becoming more and more diverse with different races and sexualities and people have to learn to be accepting of it or else they will have a hard time growing up in the upcoming years. The United States has done many great things for human rights over the years. Blacks and women have been able to overcome their adversity and get their rights, and I think the gays will be able to change the way people think in the upcoming years. Hopefully they will be able to find a way to get their point across very soon so that situations like this do not happen to other families. Sat, 20 Feb 2010 01:28:19 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/another-reason-why-gay-marriage-matters__trashed/#IDComment57703148 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/all-that-is-solid-melts-into-air-including-our-words__trashed/#IDComment56562502 It is a shame that many languages around the world will become extinct, but the fact that there are still 7,000 languages documented is amazing. I believe that it is a natural process for a language to die out, but it is the beginning languages that help shape the current languages of today. Many words in the English dictionary derived from other languages that are not as well known today. Who knows, maybe the dominating languages that we know today will eventually be replaced in a few hundred years by a more efficient language. It is sad to see them go but it is also exciting to see what progresses. Fri, 12 Feb 2010 23:06:27 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/all-that-is-solid-melts-into-air-including-our-words__trashed/#IDComment56562502 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/why-is-the-conversation-always-about-black-and-white-people__trashed/#IDComment56561167 I agree that when you talk about races, black and white are the most common terms to bring up, especially in America. The examples that Laurie presented are very good at explaining why that happens. I believe that describing people as black or white is a universally accepted way of referring to people because those are the two terms that everyone knows. I know some people may view this generalization as racism, but it is how everyone has referred to talks about race in the past and, most likely, will continue to be referred to in the future. It is just the easiest to refer to certain groups and have most people understand what you are saying. Fri, 12 Feb 2010 22:54:07 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/why-is-the-conversation-always-about-black-and-white-people__trashed/#IDComment56561167 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/animals-vs-humans-vs-welfare-cheats__trashed/#IDComment56560011 I think it is ridiculous that an elected politician would make such a statement. I feeling like giving speeches is one thing that they put a lot of practice in to so that they will not a mistake like that. Politicians are the people who should be the most politically correct since they are representing a mass of people and it does not look good for Bauer when he makes comments like that. It will be especially damaging to his career because of the weak apology he provided for his comment. Simply saying that you wish you had used a better metaphor is not a good apology. I also do not like he said his grandmother was not highly educated and then quoted her. If you do not think that someone is well educated, then why quote them? It does not help get your point across and it also does not look good when he is putting down his own family. While I know there are people out there who are taking advantage of welfare, there are also a lot of people who are receiving it because they truly need it. Since our nation’s companies are experiencing a lot of downsizing and layoffs, you would expect more people filing for welfare because they cannot find another place to employ them. In these struggling times you would expect some sympathy from the politicians. Another good point is what Richards brought up in the introduction to this piece about how welfare does not only benefit the poor, but also pays a sum to the wealthier parts of America. Bauer should have done his research on this topic before making his speech because now he has just damaged his career by being unprepared for this topic. It is not fair for the rich people to look down on poorer people and a general assumption about them as a whole. Just because Bauer grew up with a better opportunity does not mean he is better than anyone else. There are those who do not apply themselves and feed off of the government’s money, but there are way too many people who do not fall under that category. A lot of children are born in to these situations and there is nothing they can do about it until they can get an education to become a productive member of society; unfortunately, some of these kids cannot afford to go to school and suffer for it. Instead of insulting these people, Bauer should be focused on helping them or coming up with a better program. If you are going to criticize a current program, you should have an appropriate way to fix it. Just complaining about the problem is not going to solve anything. Fri, 12 Feb 2010 22:43:10 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/animals-vs-humans-vs-welfare-cheats__trashed/#IDComment56560011