Most White People in America Are Completely Oblivious
 

http://www.alternet.org/most-white-p...age=1#bookmark

A good article by Tim Wise.

Here's an excerpt from it:

You can read it all here.

Excellent essay. I'll quote the second paragraph:

And I'll quote a third.

FYI: The essay's only reference is from "Slangin’ Rocks…Palestinian Style," in Police Brutality: An Anthology.

Agendas all around... :rolleyes:

I think most people have a problem with indifference, apathy and the ability to see anything beyond their own little corner of the world. "Everything is fine-n-dandy until the problems reaches me." It's all about "those people" and "their problem" until it becomes OUR problem. Furthermore, I believe most people will tend to try and disassociate from a given problem rather than try to help solve it in any way. "F**k ____! Let them rot!"

Sadly, I not only believe that this just "How some people are.", but that this has coalesced into a major political movement. I believe that this is not a good thing, in fact, I believe it will be the end of us as a nation.

IMHO, "Screw you Jack, I've got mine.", CANNOT possibly build a cohesive, mutually beneficial society. All such a thing could possibly lead to is further division, discord and acrimony.

I am frequently insulted and ridiculed for expressing this belief.

I no longer care.

You think I'm an idiot and I think you're an idiot.

As Orwell wrote in 1984; "Under the spreading Chestnut Tree, where I saw you and you saw me."

Have a nice day!:)

Dave

However, if black people believe that this gives them the right to assault police officers after they commit felonies, that's where I part company with them.

Hence my critique of the the essay's ONLY reference...

Does 'parting company' differ in any important way from what Bluestreak was talking about?

It's an essay, not a scientific paper. But you don't like it, so you will find your little stones to throw.

References are for academics and others to verify facts and quotations. Do you have any facts or quotations you find dubious? Or is this going on about 'references' just of the nature of a 'cheap shot?'

It means I disagree with, not that I'm apathetic about, rioting in the streets to protest a cop (justifiably) shooting a felon who is assaulting him. Historical prejudices among law enforcement towards blacks, while still existent to a degree far less than decades ago, does not justify lawlessness, burning and looting on the streets of Ferguson.

I agree.

However, to further clarify I wasn't speaking of apathy towards the rioting, I was referring to apathy towards the plight of the black community. I believe that the vast majority of Americans are disgusted with the rioting and looting. I imagine there are few who are actually enjoying this. But, I also believe there are few outside the black community who honestly care about the conditions that led to this tragic situation in the first place.

I've been reading comments about it all morning. They range from somewhat ignorant to downright disgusting.:(

Dave

Arson, rioting and looting your own community ain't exactly a good way to curry favor/empathy with White America. To me, it strengthens my view that policing a seemingly lawless place like Ferguson is a tough and unforgiving business.

Just curious, why is there a "black community"? Maybe I'm just an ignorant life long suburbanite but where I live we have folks of all ethnic backgrounds in our area. My kids have friends who are white, black, asian, indian, hispanic and my wife and I are friends with many of the kid's parents. I don't belong to a "white community" and from what I know, none of them belong to a "community" of their ethnicity.

I'm sick of being told because I'm white that I don't understand the "black community." Is it because I don't live in a large city where there is more racism? Is it because I was raised to respect others, like I've raise my kids and I judge people on their character? This may be way off but if you consider yourself part of a ethnic "community" are you simply being as racist as the people your accusing?

'Black community' is a collective noun, just a way to refer to lots of people at once.

There is a ton of irony in your objection to the term in a post that does a lot of referring to a lot of people at once. If there is no 'black community,' who is it that's being RACIST by daring to observe that their skin color is often relevant to how people think about them and act towards them?

BTW, see the reference to 'White America' in the post preceding yours. Racist, in your view?

There is a black community of high density in ferguson because all the section 8 bud housing is within a couple of concentrated blocks. Their enclave was purposefully built to be isolated, with minimal foot and vehicle traffic with the city proper. Over 80% of the black males under 25 in this complex are unemployed. Over 90% of the residents are black.

Which is to say it is a ghetto and deliberately so.

Property owners decide if they'll accept section 8.

Pete

Yes, that's true. But often times, the Housing Authority, or some other gov agency, purchases the property for the purpose of making them section eight.

Ah yeah OK, makes a lot of fucking sense.

Why don't you try for awhile to look at people's character and not their ethnicity. Seem like your argument hides behind this finger pointing nonsense that if your white you must be racist. Using terms like "white america" maybe applies to where you live but not me. Seems like it also gets used as an excuse quite a bit.

Does matter what color the Ferguson looters are they're wrong for what they are doing and should be ashamed of themselves.

That was my first instinct about Darren Brown.

It's not my fault this enormous and entitled thug who attacked a police officer happened to be black. :rolleyes:

Perhaps I should refer to Ferguson and similar places as "Areas wherein there is a high concentration of people who are not primarily of Caucasian, Asian or Arab descent, nor are they South Pacific Islanders, Inuit Eskimos, Native Americans, Inca, Mayan or Mongols".

Hmmmm...................

Nope, "black community" shall suffice. It's much less work.

Dave

Why don't you stop being a dick?:p What the hell else do you call people? What, we can't refer to anybodies race now? Is this some sort of right wing political correctness?

Hey Mike-----I'm White! Did that offend you?

Dave

Absolutely.

Dave

If they wanted to pick a case to make a point this was not the one.

And, what sense does it make to burn down your own neighborhood ?
It quite likely will not be rebuilt.

Right.......property owners....businessmen...capitalists.......sucking the government teat. My cousin did that up in Ohio for a few years. Until he bought a building too close to an affluent neighborhood and all those "job creaters" got wind of what he was up to. They almost made him turn in his Ronnie Reagan Fan Club card.

He's one of the main reasons Republicans make me want to puke with all of their hypocritical BS.

Just thought I'd interject that little tidbit.

Dave

None, it's a very stupid thing to do. BTW; Who is "they"? And please don't make any references to race or Mike will excoriate you.:p

Dave

Whoever they were they probably weren't even from there. And what is the deal with the guys with the mask. They must have really gotten in to the movie.

Your boy Wilson isn't exactly Barney Fife.

http://www.commondreams.org/news/201...tches-ferguson

The guys with the masks are possibly from a group called "Anonymous".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anonymous_(group)

Techno-Anarchists, basically. Also, look closely at the images of the looters and rioters....

They're not all black. (Oh, damn, there I go again.)

Dave

Ah..so we're back to requiring that blacks bow and scrape and yes massr' to "curry favor" with the whites before they will be treated respectfully huh?

I find that horrible offensive...that you'd think blacks have to "curry the favor of whites" to be treated equally. They can curry till the cows come home and guess what, the whites will only take more advantage of them. The whites will only abuse them all the more. Don't you know the white ethos? You don't curry favor with white folks by being weak and passive, you curry favor by showing strength, by bombing and destroying. That's the only way to win the respect of the white man.

Peacefully protesting to curry the favor of whitey, that didn't work in the 60's it ain't gonna work today either. White will just ignore them as usual.

Amen Potter.

So, he was only assaulted by a robbery suspect drug abuser who outweighed him by 100 lbs? Does it require a robbery suspect drug abuser at more than one hundred fifty to count?

Or, should we just go that he was attacked by a robbery suspect drug abuser?

They are both the same height.

Wilson is 6'4" 210 lbs.

Brown was 6'4" 292 lbs.

From the pictures I've seen of Brown that extra 82 lbs is fat.

So the leaner man should easily been able to handle the fat one in a fight.

Give Wilson another 10 years of sitting on his butt eating doughnuts and he'll be 292 too. Then it would be an even match.

Well, you've just admitted it wasn't so, as typical, your point is invalid.

Reading through this thread I can only draw one conclusion - there are those who apparently must continue to make this an issue about race, facts be damned. Prior to the Grand Jury investigation, the limited facts that were available didn't support that narrative.

Now that the Grand Jury has reached a conclusion and more facts are available, that narrative stands in stark contrast to those facts. But that doesn't matter. The left still, for some reason remains fully invested in ginning up race hatred and hatred of the law enforcement community. Hell, the headline from the Common Dreams rag headlines with the word "injustice."

Why?

No, it's very valid.

Throughout this whole saga Brown has been portrayed as a giant Goliath attacking a scrawny little David. The truth is Wilson is a pretty big dude himself.

A big dude who supposedly is in fear for his life by way of being beaten to death through the open window of an SUV. How do you get beaten to death through the window of an SUV that you are driving? A Cop SUV at that. You've got what? 500 Horsepower at your command? All you have to do is hit the gas and the Dude on the outside is fucked.

So, you are thinking the police should run when confronted by a hoodlum.

Precisely.

Joad has zero knowledge base.

If you are in a vehicle that is running and someone who is unarmed and on foot confronts you, you have a tremendous advantage over them and you do not need to shoot them in self defense.

Cool, you now have a friend in Zero backing you up.:rolleyes:

Okay, I just read the article and looked at the "injuries" to Wilsons face.

Ummmmm..................

What injuries?

Dave