All the hatred

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People really seemed to be losing their minds at the idea of a black (bi-racial) man as president and some others foolishly declared we now lived in "post racial" times. But so many things that have followed since then proove that statement to be totally false.

The Tea party, the spike in activity from right wing militia groups across the country, the spike in bullying (and the victims being hounded to DEATH ), there seems to be an increasing amount of hatred in this country being displayed to a far more extreme level.

It's 2010 and yet, based on what i'm seeing, reading and hearing...I bet more than a few people would like nothing more than to go back to the "glory days" of the KKK or worse.


What is going on!? Why do you think this is happening to such a level now? Is part of it due to the increased media coverage? Certainly these kinds of things have been around before, hell our country was founded at the expense of the Native Americans who were lied to, murdered and had their land stolen from them...then you had slavery...and throughout american history many examples of hatred, abuse and violence by the "majority" against the minority. But it just seems to be especially UGLY to me these days and I wonder how much WORSE it's going to get.

Take a look at this blog. I warn you that there are crass, tasteless pictures in the blog but these are things that are all around us whether we want to admit it or not. the author of the blog expresses her concern for what's happening in America with all this hatred too.

Your thoughts?
 
Welcome to my world.

THIS has been there for decades; for as long as I can remember, so long that I forget more of these things than I remember. Here are a few big and small.

People vilified Blacks for supporting OJ Simpson yet forgot that his investigating officer was a racist in one of the most racially corrupt police organizations in the world. Oh, and that his face was darkened in TIME magazine no less at the time, solidifying the racial component in the minds of many Blacks before the trial.

The new love NOW for Jesse Helms and THEN when he died, and even during his life. He was a reprehensible man. Take a read here if you dare. And this man was my Senator for decades.

I would so more, but I am in a hurry to be honest. These two above should trigger some memories.

Indeed, since Obama was elected , I have seen basically two responses from many whites.

1) Phew! Glad that happened. Now we can just forget about worrying about that race thing. You guys have a BLACK President so it must be over. Let's get rid of Affirmative Action, Integrated Schools, and who really needs a special Voting Right Acts anyway?

2) See!!! Now you have done it. We are ruined!! This is a very SCARY day in our history. What do we even KNOW about this guy. He is not MY PRESIDENT, is he even qualified to be PRESIDENT?! I heard he was (not really born here, a Muslim, hates white, you guys take your pick)...

And what I have heard about his wife and their children makes my blood run cold to be honest. Their daughter has been called a slut and Michelle can do no right in the eyes of many. She was vilified for taking a vacation when I have never heard such scrutiny in terms of money spent in my recollection of five previous first ladies.

People, it's bad out here, and while I do know plenty of Conservatives who do not behave this way (Vil, take a bow) and can respect Conservative views, they are often shouted down by these people with whom they are presently connected.
 
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Its not just blacks though. Muslims, gays, native americans, the poor...there's so many groups now being targeted by the tea part & the gop...and worse...people who are BUYING IN to this hatefull, inflamatory, dividing rhetroic being spewed by the mouth pieces of the gop/tea party like palin, christine o'donnel, bill o'rielly etc.

nobody reads for themselves anymore. nobody does research...how ironic in this age where information is PLENTIFULL and easily accessed. they just let these talking pundints lead them by the nose. and there's alot of people who clearly have a skewed idea of america's history.


i can't exactly identify w/ you on O.J. Simpson. I felt he was guilty as hell of murder NOT because he was black , but because there was more than enough there to convince me, including the fact that he BEAT his ex-wife violently for years when they were married. statistics and experts agree that a man who batters his wife WILL enventually kill her if the abuse is left unchecked. I feel that was something nobody really addressed, but that is not the point of this thread. I KNOW what you're saying and I saw that too...but trust me it wasnt like that with everyone. I know black people who felt he was guilty too and i know white people who felt he was guilty for something more legitimate than his being black.

Yeah Ive seen people say those same things post Obama's election. It never sounds any less stupid to me. as if one man's election signals the END to centuries of abuse, oppression and racism? LOL some people just dont have a clue.

and the 2nd statement is definately at the heart of these fools in the tea party screaming "i want MY country back". even in this day and age there are scores of people who just cant accept the idea of someone other than a white man being president. its foolish and shortsighted to put it mildly.

This thread isnt meant to discuss "who's at fault, the right or the left"...but
I will admit, as a liberal feminist who is in favor of gay rights, women's rights, civil rights etc...I sometimes DO take a prejudicial view of conservatives based on their general platform. I've had to apologize before for that. I have a couple relatives who are republicans who were APPALLED by Bush and are dismayed by the tea party. They also dont see why people dont want to see gays have equal rights. So yes...not ALL "conservatives" are like Sarah Palin, Ann Coulter or Bill O'rielly and if I'm guilty of anything, its that sometimes i DO paint with a broad brush against conservatives when I know that not everyone who is "right alligned" is a racist, bigot, sexist, homophobe etc.

but regardless of which side you're on....dont we ALL (hopefully) reach a point where we realize we dont want extremists running this country? Is it REALLY acceptable to the majority public to see racism, homophobia and bigotry flare up the way it has over the past two years?

you want to talk about terrorists or who is hurting this country? look at the Westboro Baptist Church or the TEA PARTY.
 
Jill Monroe said:
i can't exactly identify w/ you on O.J. Simpson. I felt he was guilty as hell of murder NOT because he was black , but because there was more than enough there to convince me, including the fact that he BEAT his ex-wife violently for years when they were married. statistics and experts agree that a man who batters his wife WILL enventually kill her if the abuse is left unchecked. I feel that was something nobody really addressed, but that is not the point of this thread. I KNOW what you're saying and I saw that too...but trust me it wasnt like that with everyone. I know black people who felt he was guilty too and i know white people who felt he was guilty for something more legitimate than his being black.
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I feel the same way. Me thinking that OJ Simpson murdered his wife has nothing do with his race. There were many hints that he killed his wife, like him beating and abusing her during their marriage. And also, even some non-whites thought he was guilty too.


But anyway, I think racism should stop. I'm not an Obama fan, but I don't mind what race or religion our president is at all. I care if the president is doing his job right, and if he's keeping the people of America safe.

I'm not a republican or democrat, but I can't stand obnoxious people like Bill O'Reilly. He is an ignorant and racist man who pretty much hates everyone who's not like him, and he's an example of a strong, opinionated Republican. And I hate how he thinks we should blow up all the Muslim countries in the middle east, just because he thinks that all the people there are bad because of what the terrorist did.


But overall, racism has been going on for centuries and unfortunately it can't stop because of some of the ignorant people out there.
 
I agree on Bill O'rielly. That man is a cancer. He's a racist, blowhard bully and i don't understand how someone like HIM gets to keep his job after every attack on blacks, gays, muslims, women or whomever he sets his sights on but the CNN news report Ron Sanchez gets fired for calling that fake ass Jon Stewart a bigot!? But THAT is a topic for another thread. The main thing is I agree w/ you about Bill O'rielly and those like him and speaking of "bullies"...he's a prime example of one. one who gets PAID to do it which makes it even worse.

There's so much hatred and division in america right now. It's not even about who to blame (as far as "the right or the left"). I'm really concerned with where this is all going and how far it will go before the breaking point.

Just yesterday, there was another article from the NYT about a young muslim teen who was harrassed and then BEATEN to a near coma by peers at his highschool. First they called him gay, then when they found out he was muslim, the beat him, calling him a "fucking terrorist". some of the comments that followed the article from people were even more appalling.
 
Jill Monroe said:
Just yesterday, there was another article from the NYT about a young muslim teen who was harrassed and then BEATEN to a near coma by peers at his highschool. First they called him gay, then when they found out he was muslim, the beat him, calling him a "fucking terrorist". some of the comments that followed the article from people were even more appalling.
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That's horrible! I hope the poor guy is better now because it's just rude to judge someone by their religion and call them a terrorist, but to beat them up just because there are bad people that are the same religion is just going WAY to far.


But I've heard stuff like that, where some people automatically think your a bad person or a terrorist just because you're a Muslim. This has got to stop!
 
Got any statistics to back up the idea that there is an increased amount of hatred in the US over the last 10 years or so? You may be right, but everyone views the world through their own lens, you know?
Here's an example:
A few years ago I saw a documentary about a white man who through the use of makeup and prosthetics lived as a black man and a black man who lived as a white man. One day the white man (pretending to be black) was wallking down the sidewalk with the real black man and as they approached a white mother with her child, the mom stepped off the sidewalk and led her daughter off as well. The black man thought they were being racist because the mom was clearly scared of them. The white man thought they were being polite by yielding the sidewalk. The whole documentary was like this. The black man saw racisim everywhere he looked. The white man never saw any. The truth was likely somewhere in the middle, but they each viewed these situations with their own lenses.
That's why I like statistics. I know they can be manipulated, but at least they can be a starting point for a conversation.
 
Archon said:
Got any statistics to back up the idea that there is an increased amount of hatred in the US over the last 10 years or so? You may be right, but everyone views the world through their own lens, you know?
Here's an example:
A few years ago I saw a documentary about a white man who through the use of makeup and prosthetics lived as a black man and a black man who lived as a white man. One day the white man (pretending to be black) was wallking down the sidewalk with the real black man and as they approached a white mother with her child, the mom stepped off the sidewalk and led her daughter off as well. The black man thought they were being racist because the mom was clearly scared of them. The white man thought they were being polite by yielding the sidewalk. The whole documentary was like this. The black man saw racisim everywhere he looked. The white man never saw any. The truth was likely somewhere in the middle, but they each viewed these situations with their own lenses.
That's why I like statistics. I know they can be manipulated, but at least they can be a starting point for a conversation.
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archon, how can you dismiss the very REAL problem of racism using a documentary that was EDITED before it ever broadcast? you're white and male. when it comes to discrimination in any form its not remotely the same for you as it is a black man, latino man, gay person or a woman in this country. people say you shouldnt talk about it anymore and that somehow is the "best way" to deal with it. but its not because its still here and its being passed from one generation to another.

we arent living in "post racial" times by anymeans. racism has become more covert (at least in the corporate world) while its busting out among sections of the population (the Tea Party)

statistics don't cover EVERYONE. they are usually generated from a focused study of a section and that is used as a "small scale representation" of the greater whole but if you want statistics, you can go to the u.s. justice dept. and see for yourself the hard data regarding the surge in racist/hate groups popping up in america.

and um, do you watch the tea party people acting up? "this country was founded by white men with guns" are you really going to tell me that racism ISNT one of their driving motivations?
 
and um, do you watch the tea party people acting up? "this country was founded by white men with guns" are you really going to tell me that racism ISNT one of their driving motivations?
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Source? I searched for when/where this happened, but came up only with a story on another forum. I've been to some Tea Party events and there were certainly other ethnicities represented there. I can safely say that racism isn't a motivation of the Tea Party. They (and I include myself here) disagree with the policies being promoted by the current administration and are tired of the inability/unwillingness of the current Republicans do to anything about it.
I'm not saying racism doesn't exist. I'm saying some people see racism everywhere and that isn't the case either.
 
Archon said:
Source? I searched for when/where this happened, but came up only with a story on another forum. I've been to some Tea Party events and there were certainly other ethnicities represented there. I can safely say that racism isn't a motivation of the Tea Party. They (and I include myself here) disagree with the policies being promoted by the current administration and are tired of the inability/unwillingness of the current Republicans do to anything about it.
I'm not saying racism doesn't exist. I'm saying some people see racism everywhere and that isn't the case either.
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The saying is on an extremely popular new car decal as detailed in this blog, complete with the racist hatred and vitriol that has been put out there and connected with elements of the Tea Party over and over.
 
Archon said:
Source? I searched for when/where this happened, but came up only with a story on another forum. I've been to some Tea Party events and there were certainly other ethnicities represented there. I can safely say that racism isn't a motivation of the Tea Party. They (and I include myself here) disagree with the policies being promoted by the current administration and are tired of the inability/unwillingness of the current Republicans do to anything about it.
I'm not saying racism doesn't exist. I'm saying some people see racism everywhere and that isn't the case either.
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the source was a blog i posted from a person (a black woman) who also went to a tea party rally and saw it for herself, not to mention the slogan painted across the back of a truck "this country was founded by white men with guns".

stating that "other ethnicities" were present does not mean anything. black people and women stomp for the republican party hard all the while ignoring the fact (bared out over and over again through history) this party couldnt give a shit about them or any other minority.

in 2009 *I* witnessed a tea party rally right outside of my job across the street from the state capital and i felt FAINT. i saw with my own two eyes the signs, heard the chants, saw the OBVIOUS presents of skin heads, aryan nation people etc. Sarah Palin , during one of their gatherings at the gaylord resort hotel later that same year, declared "men across this country are going into their closets, getting out their guns and getting them ready for ACTION because they don't like what's happening!" wtf is THAT supposed to mean? [i already know what it means btw] please don't try to tell me this is some peacefull, well meaning movement. it isnt.
 
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