On a positive note, two things are going away that always bugged me:
Affirmative Action (US Supreme Court ruling)
Guantanamo Bay (not yet, but some serious discussion about it)
I think most people agree that GBay is a seriously stupid idea, but I'm sure there are plenty of mixed reactions with AA. (BTW, I live in Louisville/Jefferson County where these decisions were based.)
I'm a member of the ACLU, and the issue of AA has been the one thing I've disagreed them about. I'm actually pretty surprised the issue has been so left/right polarized.
It comes down to common sense, really. A school should not deny somebody based on race. That's pretty much the definition of racism right there. Plus, it happens on both sides: if there isn't a 50/50 split, a black kid will be denied or forced to move to a different public school if there are too many black kids in that school.
More importantly, why the hell does nobody think about just how many races there are? No law should ever have the word "black" or "white", or any reference to a specific race. We aren't white or black. I'm not white, and some dark-skinned guy isn't black. I've got plenty of roots in different countries, and skin color has nothing to do with it.
A co-worker that told me about the decision is a perfect example. Her race is basically Hispanic-Hawaiian-WTF? I don't think there's a category on the Census form for that. When I filled out my Census in 2000, I put my race as Other, because you can't pinhole something like that, and really, nobody should give a shit.
So, why try to split schools into "white" and "black" or even "white" and "minorities"? Even if you have this majority/minority crap, what the hell is a white person? I remember an old episode of Donahue where they found examples of the lightest "black" people who were offended because people called them white.
Maybe if the US Census (and the rest of the government) were color-blind on their forms, nobody would really care what race people are.
Affirmative Action (US Supreme Court ruling)
Guantanamo Bay (not yet, but some serious discussion about it)
I think most people agree that GBay is a seriously stupid idea, but I'm sure there are plenty of mixed reactions with AA. (BTW, I live in Louisville/Jefferson County where these decisions were based.)
I'm a member of the ACLU, and the issue of AA has been the one thing I've disagreed them about. I'm actually pretty surprised the issue has been so left/right polarized.
It comes down to common sense, really. A school should not deny somebody based on race. That's pretty much the definition of racism right there. Plus, it happens on both sides: if there isn't a 50/50 split, a black kid will be denied or forced to move to a different public school if there are too many black kids in that school.
More importantly, why the hell does nobody think about just how many races there are? No law should ever have the word "black" or "white", or any reference to a specific race. We aren't white or black. I'm not white, and some dark-skinned guy isn't black. I've got plenty of roots in different countries, and skin color has nothing to do with it.
A co-worker that told me about the decision is a perfect example. Her race is basically Hispanic-Hawaiian-WTF? I don't think there's a category on the Census form for that. When I filled out my Census in 2000, I put my race as Other, because you can't pinhole something like that, and really, nobody should give a shit.
So, why try to split schools into "white" and "black" or even "white" and "minorities"? Even if you have this majority/minority crap, what the hell is a white person? I remember an old episode of Donahue where they found examples of the lightest "black" people who were offended because people called them white.
Maybe if the US Census (and the rest of the government) were color-blind on their forms, nobody would really care what race people are.
Rosalina: But you didn't.
Robert: But I DON'T.
Rosalina: You sure that's right?
Robert: I was going to HAVE told you they'd come?
Rosalina: No.
Robert: The subjunctive?
Rosalina: That's not the subjunctive.
Robert: I don't think the syntax has been invented yet.
Rosalina: It would have had to have had been.
Robert: Had to have...had...been? That can't be right.
Robert: But I DON'T.
Rosalina: You sure that's right?
Robert: I was going to HAVE told you they'd come?
Rosalina: No.
Robert: The subjunctive?
Rosalina: That's not the subjunctive.
Robert: I don't think the syntax has been invented yet.
Rosalina: It would have had to have had been.
Robert: Had to have...had...been? That can't be right.
