Credit card fraud is a serious problem. But race card fraud is an even bigger problem.
Playing the race card takes many forms. Judge Charles Pickering, a federal judge in Mississippi who defended the civil rights of blacks for years and defied the Ku Klux Klan back when that was dangerous, was depicted as a racist when he was nominated for a federal appellate judgeship.
No one even mistakenly thought he was a racist. The point was simply to discredit him for political reasons— and it worked.
This year’s target is the Tea Party. When leading Democrats, led by a smirking Nancy Pelosi, made their triumphant walk on Capitol Hill, celebrating their passage of a bill in defiance of public opinion, Tea Party members on the scene protested.
All this was captured on camera and the scene was played on television. What was not captured on any of the cameras and other recording devices on the scene was anybody using racist language, as has been charged by those playing the race card.
When you realize how many media people were there, and how many ordinary citizens carry around recording devices of one sort or another, it is remarkable— indeed, unbelievable— that racist remarks were made and yet were not captured by anybody.
The latest attack on the Tea Party movement, by Ben Jealous of the NAACP, has once again played the race card. Like the proverbial lawyer who knows his case is weak, he shouts louder.
This is not the first time that an organization with an honorable and historic mission has eventually degenerated into a tawdry racket. But that an organization like the NAACP, after years of fighting against genuine racism, should now be playing the game of race card fraud is especially painful to see.
Some critics of the Tea Party have seized upon banners carried at one of its rallies that compared Obama with Hitler and Stalin. Extreme? Yes. But there was nothing racist about it, since extreme comparisons have been made about politicians of every race, color, creed, nationality, ideology and sexual preference.
Some Obama supporters have long regarded any criticism of him as racism. But that they should have to resort to such a banner to bolster their case shows how desperate they are for any evidence.
Among people who voted for Barack Obama in 2008, those who are likely to be most disappointed are those who thought that they were voting for a new post-racial era. There was absolutely nothing in Obama’s past to lead to any such expectation, and much to suggest the exact opposite. But the man’s rhetoric and demeanor during the election campaign enabled this and many other illusions to flourish.
I've maintained that Obama was able to win the presidency because he snake charmed enough voters by his rhetoric of "hope" for a better USA. Two blocks of voters followed this political piped piper. They were the young, first time voter who, because of inexperience did not pay attention to a politician's past record. The second group that allowed themselves to be snookered, were older voters whose ancestors were peppered with actions and words of racism. Voting for Obama would then be evidence that they were not like their past relatives, but non bigoted. Thus, they could be spared of the ridiculous accusation that they were racist if they did not vote for Obama.
Remainder of [above] comment, continued, below:
Remainder of [above] comment:
Let's face it. Obama is one of the most bigoted presidents, ever. I will relate one example — and that is, what he is doing to the black race by his ongoing support of the American abortion industry. He is, essentially, an integral element in the process of black genocide. One, has only to intelligently read about Dr. King Junior's niece, Alveda King, and what she says about black American unrestricted and wanton, abortion. Also, here below, is a link to further illustrate Obama's racism. But keep in mind, that the greatest and worst bigotry and racism is not the spoken — but that which is put into practice:
"The President of the United States: A Sex Offender? — Why Obama's support of the abortion industry is the worst molestation of youth (9/20/09)" http://www.moralmatters.org/Ser9-20-09Pres-aSexOf…
The way to emasculate the race card fraud is to point out that racial identity is a prerequisite to racial discrimination. If we stop identifying ourselves as part of this race or that, there is no basis upon which to discriminate. By this standard, the Left stands plainly guilty of today's institutionalized racism. They're the ones who insist upon labels, and they do so in order to discriminate. Were blacks and whites to stop regarding themselves as such and began identifying as Americans, gone would be any tension the Leftist finds useful.
Great idea IF EVERYBODY WAS BLIND. But people are not all blind in America, and unfortunately some respond very negatively to differences that they SEE.
Racism will always be with us and to pretend otherwise is downright stupid.
That having been said, racial POLITICS have indeed passed their sell-by date in America. But it's hard for the Left to acknowledge reality. Some things never change.
Thank you sir.
I have believed that we will get rid of racism when we quit worrying about being one race or another. People are people and some of us are privileged to be Americans. That's all the identification we should need.
I completely agree. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said that he wanted his children judged, not by their skin color, but by their character. Character is an individual trait, not a collective trait. He was arguing for a colorblind society, not a color-obsessed society.
Philosophers for years have determined that our minds are the essence of who we are, not our skin colors. Diversity comes from thought, not skin color. And when you really think about it, can anyone truly believe that the essence of a person is based on what color their skin is? Only the left would think such a thing.
During the census I was asked the race of tenants I rent to. It wasn't enough to know if tenants were hispanic they wanted to know wanted to know specifically if the tenants were from Mexico. I suppose Mexican tenants are the most likely to be illegals who will vote for Obama. Talk about racial discrimination. It should be forbidden for the census to ask questions about race.
To Walter Scott Hudson:
You're right on target.
Everyday, I work with a number of different clients and vendors of all races and sex. Nobody thinks of race or gender, only how to solve the problem at hand.
The politics of diversity, in my opinion has destroyed the greatest thing about America. That people can come from all over the world, become one… Americans and strive for a better life. Is it 100% perfect, yes in theory but not always in practice. Their will always be racists of all kinds and we need to make them extinct.
I disagree that we need to make "racists" extinct. There will always be people who are racists, sexists, etc. and frankly, they have the right to be whatever they want. You can't force people to all think exactly the same way.
What you can do is to not approve of racist comments or discimination by race for employment. Hiring people because of their race or voting for political candidates because of their race should be condemned by our society. Constantly referring to people or counting people by the color of their skin should also be condemned by our society.
We are individuals, not collectives. We have individual rights, not collective rights. We are all unique individuals no matter what skin color or gender we are. We should be treated as such.
I concurr (I think thats how you spell it)
Well this has been fun
Thanks FPM
No. It's not how you spell concur.
Dear Mr. Sowell,
First I admire your total honesty, it is so refreshing. I must say that the word raciest has lost all meaning to me and many honest and ordinary people. I could not care less if I am called a racist as long as I am telling the truth. Overplaying this word and causing most people to laugh at this charge is sad because when real hate rears it's ugly head most of us will think another race hustler.
Regards ,
Confused
Being called a racist by people who are saying it is only effective if you allow it to be.
Like Glenn Beck says" Know who you are" If someone calls me a racist for being a Tea Party member I just blow it off, and get back to what they are trying to distract me from, and point that out to them also.
A very Liberal ex-coworker once told me I could not use the word "Oriental" to describe someone who was Chinese because it is not PC. I told him"I do'nt do Political Correctness" He shut up immediately. I also made it a point to use the word Oriental whenever possible after that.
That's how it's done with these people. Just refuse to play the game.
Passive resistance.
God I Love that line. "I don't do PC" I will use that from now on. You are genius.
Actually, if you are trying to describe the race of someone who is Chinese, i.e., indigenous Chinese, then the scientific term would be Mongolian.
To Bruce 1953…"Nobody thinks of race or gender, only how to solve the problem at hand."
Exactly. The left isn't trying to solve problems, but to exacerbate them. Whether it be class tension, racial tension, or political polarization, these guys are all about conflict.
A great deal of what is called racism is in fact discrimination against cultural factors. "Culture" has been defined as, "the sum total of man's learned behavior," the key term being learned. Thus, for example, if society in general shuns Ebonics or "jive-talk", it's not because of anything to do with race, but culture. Discrimination based on race is wrong because the victim is being blamed for something out of his control. Discrimination based on other factors, language in this example, can be eliminated by the victim group changing to the host language, which is what the vast majority of non-English speaking immigrants did. There is the rub. A conscious effort to refuse to adopt the majority language and to keep one that is foreign is a sure-fire way to behavior discrimination because you would be rejecting the host culture, and what sane culture would opt for the Tower of Babel?
33 years ago I was told by an employer I could no longer go to lunch with a black coworker. It hurt both of us knowing what a racist that man was being. My other coworkers, two young black men, and my friend told me it was OK, but I knew it wasn't.
Some one had to make a stand for our dignity. After a week of sad and hurt, I made my stand. Our employer gave both myself and her the same lunchtime. We went to lunch together over her protests I would lose my job. Well, I lost my job, but all of us gained more then anyone could measure, our self respect. I've never understood racism and don't want to understand it. In this great nation we are all Americans.
wow. And in 1977 you were required to show that kind of commitment to priciple and the ideals that make America.
Hard to know if i would have been as strong as you were. wow.
Shirley Sherrod lost her USDA job after a video of her speaking was put forth as an example of racism. But Obama administration officials now say the firing was unjust. I guess that tey are going to give the Shirley Sherrrod her job back with a raise as "reparations" so she can continue do just enough (if even that ) for those uppity white people and make sure they only deal "with their own kind." Now if she were white she would be long gone and probably lose her government benifits. Ahhh but some people are more equal than others.
NO< NO <NO, Ms. Sherrod was telling of an incident in her life and how she came to the realization it wasn't about color it was more about the poor. Yes, she sent them to a lawyer who just took their money and didn't help them for six months, but she also went to their farm and did, in the end, help them save their land. She just won a 13 million lawsuit against the Fed for a group of farmers. She got through whatever racism she may have felt long ago. She is now friends with the family she helped and they have come out in her defense. Before you make unwarranted accusations, find out the rest of the story. Be fair and always check the facts.
Yes, you are right but before she got to her point or "punch line" about how she was reformed-those in the audience were laughing and "amening" her because they (presumably not knowing what was coming) were thinking that she stuck it to "the man". Maybe she was giving people a life lesson but those in the audience were racist and did not have the same feelings that she had. That is mostly the point of that clip-those who attend NAACP meetings are racist.
Good comment. I've been around long enough to know the score. Glancing over the comments I can't believe how many people have such a skewed and ethereal belief in humans. I leave that up to my Priest.
Since I live on this earth and have to be practical to achieve some sort of material success, I'm fortunate to have learned from my life's experiences.
In our home when I was a kid (in upper NY), racism was never an issue. We had a few blacks in school and that was that. We were taught to treat others as they treated you. Period.
Later on in life (Army, then in business) I was overwhelmed by the sheer "attitude and intimidation" used by blacks in general. Very difficult to be even-handed. Over many years, I've concluded that the majority of blacks are below the average intelligent level of any other race. The small exceptions are smart and found that they were mixed w/ white. Like it, don't like it…it is what it is. One on one, no problem. When grouped together, you can expect violence.
There are poor neighborhoods in every city, in every country. (I was brought up in one too.) Poor Korean, Japanese, Ukrainian, Italian, Polish neighborhoods don't have anything near the crime rates as black neighborhoods. We were poor but everyone made sure our neighborhood was clean.
As an example, the Japanese and Germans who emigrated to the US after WW11, really had it tough because of the war atrocities, etc. They came AND overcame. Given enough time they made believers out of "bona fide" Americans. They worked hard, educated themselves and their kids to be loyal AMERICANS. When they became citizens, they were the proudest people on the face of the earth! (I know how my Mom & Dad felt.)
Do you often hear; "I'm Italian-American" or "I'm French-American", or…..I think not.
But in most print, visual or audio media you see & hear; "I'm African-American". DUH.
Small businesses in the US comprise of about 80%-85%, which is the backbone of this country. To make it, they need to be smart, work long hours, establish, retain and grow regular customers. As important, people they hire must exhibit initiative, loyalty and "people skills". This, in a nutshell is how small businesses survive and grow.
What proportion of the black population works in this sector? Where do you see blacks most often? It's City, County, State and Federal jobs as well as most huge national bank, retail and manufacturing companies. The reason is really quite simple. Small business owners need bright, quick learners and self-starting individuals that will help grow their business, without fear of being sued, robbed and/or losing their livelihoods.
Government jobs, i.e., from local to federal don't fire anybody…and national corporations are too scared. The blacks have sued just about everybody… siting the old standby: discrimination.
Really bad here in America. Wonder why no blacks go back to Africa? Because America is the only country in the history of the planet that the saying, "if it sounds too good too be true, it probably is" DOESN'T APPLY.
I apologize only for being so damn wordy.
The guy who wrote this article is black.
There is actually something you can tell about a person by their race: which continent(s) their ancestors came from. Beyond that you're just stereotyping.
There are only three scientific classifications of race: Negro, Caucasian, and Mongolian. All this other stuff is just nationalities and ethnic groups, and some of it is just made up, e.g., there is no such thing as a "Hispanic" race, or "White" race for that matter.
simply ignore cries of racism.
the real problem is the media ignoring 100% of news that
shows the obama administration in an unfavourable light.
(& outright lying)!
most of the voting public does not watch fox. which is the only objective
news organisation currently on the air.
Obama is a racist and has proven it thrice now – first with the harvard Professor and hios racial tirade on a Police Officer and taking the side of the Harvard Professor who was clearly in the wrong – then by accusing the State of Arizona of racial profiling instead of enforcing the law, and now with this racist black woman, Shirley Sherrod who after she was fired spew racial insults at Foxnews and enslaving black people again, and all Republicans are racists commentis given celebrity status when she is an racist based on her post firing remarks alone.