🚀 go-pugleaf

It's unfortunate, especially if you believe that the world should be a 
nice place, but, racism is here. It might go away of its own accord with 
long, patient persuasion, but it will never go away if it is stifled. 
We'd like to think of ourselves as enlightened individuals, but just 
liking the thought doesn't make it true. Most people default to the 
easiest possible way of dealing with the world around them, which is, by 
pigeon-holing people into pre-defined categories. It doesn't mean we are 
evil, just human. All races do it, because it is the way of the human 
being. We can consciously strive to overcome this tendency, and possibly 
succeed, but we must constantly check ourselves against backsliding. It's 
a life-long project requiring constant maintenence, simply because we, as 
humans, need an efficient way of dealing with the world around us, and 
prejudice, in the dictionary sense of the word, is how we do it. BTW, the 
word prejudice does not imply anything racial, it describes the process 
of making up one's mind about something before gaining direct knowledge 
of it. 

It may be a noble goal to try to overcome our automatic prejudices, it 
would certainly be challenging, but such a goal cannot be achieved by 
this thing called affirmative action. AA merely pastes another 
complication over an ugly reality, creating conditions in which 
resentment can grow. Surely, something must be done, but is this the best 
way? I cannot help but automatically suspect the accomplishments of 
successful black people (did they get there because of AA?), even though 
I know several who are very intelligent, motivated people. The sad fact 
is, the legitimate accomplishments of black Americans is devalued by the 
question that hangs over the whole group: Was it AA that put them where 
they are? All people should be respected for their achievements, 
regardless of color. This will not happen as long as we have this 
mechanism for guaranteed equality of RESULT. A better approach would 
certainly be guaranteed, and zealously enforced, equality of OPPORTUNITY.