Guest FlareonDon Posted February 21, 2017 Report Share Posted February 21, 2017 I recently came across an article on Reddit speaking on the traumas many black Americans face growing up. Many of the points the author made really resonated with me, the disparities in the black communist does a great deal of harm to all of us whether we know it or not. The most interesting part of the article to me was the idea that the majority don't see as human so they assume we commit crimes because we're just prone to it. But whites are seen as humans, because when they commit crimes they are seen as mentally ill. If there any thoughts about this article let me know, I think this is a problem that needs to be discussed in great detail. I haven't found to many other articles talking about these particular issues. In my opinion it's much to short, there are so many more things to explore with this topic.Why Black People Can Never Be ‘Normal’ | Landish 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delano Posted February 21, 2017 Report Share Posted February 21, 2017 If it took 200 years for you to have civil rights you're not a citizen. You're persona non gratis. A darks spot to be erased. Which is why we have been invisible for close to 200 years in history and the media. Any press is sure to be negative because Black people didn't disappear like the Native people. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troy Posted February 22, 2017 Report Share Posted February 22, 2017 I agree with the article save one point; we ARE normal. I've written many times on these forums that our dysfunction is a normal reaction to our environment. What is NOT normal is the inhumanity we have been subjected to for centuries in this country. Until we change our mindset to understand that we are perfectly normal. What is not normal are the people who created the conditions were are in This distinction is important. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pioneer1 Posted February 22, 2017 Report Share Posted February 22, 2017 You're right, WE are the normal ones living in an UNNATURAL environment. In an insane asylum....the SANE people are the one's considered crazy...lol. But let me drop two points........... 1. When people say "society", they often mean WHITE ACCEPTANCE. Society is made up of millions of different people with thousands of diffent subcultures and ways of thinking. There is no one set "normal". But if your goal is to get along with White people and be accepted by them....then NO....you'll never be seen as "normal" to them because you're naturally different. As a Black man who grew up in a Black city I had no problems with feeling normal because I WAS the norm. When we saw White kids in school or walking down the street THAT was abnormal. It was normal for kids to have cornbread and fried chicken for lunch, but ABNORMAL to see cabbage soup, lol. 2. Black Americans need to stop playing victim so much. We have out own subculture but often times we are too lazy to promote it, but then turn around and get angry about feeling left out. Why aren't there any Black barber shop chains nationwide for Black men like Supercutz and Boricks for White men????? Why aren't there any national Soul Food restaurant chains promoting Black American food like there are Taco Bells and Little Ceasars promoting Mexican and Italian food????? I know for a fact that PEOPLE OF EVERY RACE love soul food because I rememer a couple sould food restaurants in Detroit that used to have regular customers from Arabs, to Koreans, and Chinese who'd go in getting peas, rib tips, ect...... Some Arabs and Asians even started hiring Black people to cook food for them and sell it out of their stores! White people and many other people PROMOTE their own culture and this is how they "normalize" themselves in America. Instead, too many of us try to seek acceptance and be apart of THEIRS instead of establishing our OWN and end up feeling out of place as a result of our own laziness. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel Hopkins Posted February 22, 2017 Report Share Posted February 22, 2017 18 hours ago, Guest FlareonDon said: the disparities in the black communist does a great deal of harm to all of us whether we know it or not. BLOG ALERT!!! Maybe as a collective, disparities in the black community harm us but not as individuals because we all have different perspectives. One perspective; not all of us exist for outside acceptance and approval For example, I don't "dress up" my black in an effort to be accepted or even appreciated by the white majority. Frankly I don't give a damn if they accept me or not. I do me...and if I seek any approval it's from family, friends, associates, acquaintances and in that order. My cry is don't physically harm me because of your bias. Now if this is your point, FlareonDon, then yes harming indirectly by one's community member is a challenge. I have been harmed by black people who have been hurt by the system. Sort of trickle down hate brought on by racism, if you will. After reading the article, I noticed one thing missing from the argument. It's usually missing in all arguments of this nature...Most people never ask or answer "Why were some Africans enslaved in America"? (Noting that many Africans came willingly and were free as in never a slave) While it is reported that all the colonies/ later states participated in African enslavement - the states that abandoned the practice early were the states that didn't benefit from it. - So answer why were some Africans captured, brought here and enslaved? I've read one perspective on why some Africans were enslaved...and why they were all but shunned after their services were no longer required or legal. Once you answer "Why" then they rest of the "most hated" story makes sense. Once you answer the why - then you like most successful African-Americans will use that answer to your benefit. 14 minutes ago, Pioneer1 said: too many of us try to seek acceptance stop copying me! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pioneer1 Posted February 22, 2017 Report Share Posted February 22, 2017 Mel Haven't you heard? Imitation is the HIGHEST form of flattery....lol. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynique Posted February 22, 2017 Report Share Posted February 22, 2017 I've always maintained that the descendants of slaves created their own unique culture that evolved from the "make-do" existence of their forebears, - a subculture replete with its own music and dance, its own cuisine, even its own language. This is why I've never been into Afro-centrism , adopting African names and dressing in African garb and emulating African customs in a pathetic attempt to establish a pseudo identity, when our authentic selves lie right here in this country. And a lot of "blackisms" have been incorporated into mainstream America. Opportunities certainly exist to capitalize off of this situation. Because the greater society does not adjust to us, out of expediency, many blacks do adopt a double consciousness and are "bi-lingual", presenting a facade that will not provide a reason for rejection in their field of endeavor. Fortunately for many blacks, being themselves is not a big deal anymore because who they are is not that different from the "norm". People of all ethnicities put their best foot forward, at least until they get established. Feeling no need to be accepted is a luxury only some can afford. LOL 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delano Posted February 23, 2017 Report Share Posted February 23, 2017 I have had the opportunity to drop into different worlds. Corporate America. Wall Street. European Artists. The artsy fartsy crowd. Bike Messengers. House heads and hip hoppers. I am no aware that i am always fighting to be me and not be subsumed by group think. I see myself as a Black Magickal Philosophical Hippie that can dance. I am not interested in being labelled or categorized. Prejudice is prejudging things fue to lazy thinking. However I am starting to realize don't enagage with non thinkers or close minded people. Pioneer there is a psychopathology in the black community. That exists seperate from White culture. Hell White people cant meet White People standards but berate you fir not living up to it. Early Hollywood was populated and run by Jewish people. Yet you didn't see positive Jewish images. Ralph Lauren with his whole waspy Polo things is really Ralph Lifshitz from the Bronx . Black Slaves brutalized their women. No your comparing us to a monolithic mythology. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troy Posted February 23, 2017 Report Share Posted February 23, 2017 Del I think as you immerse yourself into different worlds you gain a perspective that is necessarily more open. I too shared many of the experiences you have. Speaking of being a bike messenger, have you ever heard of Kurt Boone? He writes about delivering packages riding a fixed wheel bike. I worked as a foot messenger for a couple of years--delivering packages to offices wowed me with their grandness, and the I would be working in a few years later. Experiencing other locations is also why I balk at the idea that places like NYC are so cosmopolitan, urbane and sophisticated. In reality, NYC often is very provincial, racist, crude and segregated as any place in the country. Many communities I've visited in the south are FAR more integrated than NYC. Though mainstream media and NYC itself likes to tout itself has been better that other places... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel Hopkins Posted February 23, 2017 Report Share Posted February 23, 2017 17 hours ago, Cynique said: People of all ethnicities put their best foot forward, at least until they get established. Feeling no need to be accepted is a luxury only some can afford. LOL @Cynique you always challenge me to seek clarity! Thank you so much! Of course, I put my best foot forward with anyone I meet. Kindness and respect goes a long way... What I can't afford in this lifetime is seeking outside validation for the life given to me. When I said I don't seek the acceptance of white people; it's because I don't allow anyone to tell me who I am or what role I shall play. I tell others what role I shall play in their life and they can decide "Yes" or "no" . I was looking at my professional recommendation letters, the other day and I realized they have the same theme - " leader with an attitude" white folks code for uppity negress. It is what it is. I never felt like I needed my life validated. And yes, living like this has positive, negative and a lot of heartbreaking consequences. When I was younger, many called it hubris. If I believed I could do it; I did it. Now that I'm older it requires a lot of courage to continue to live this way. I may cry a lot, but I sleep well. I think the black community's pathological tendencies come from allowing others to invalidate us. It's as if we believe we are the illegitimate children of America and Africa and we're doing everything while failing miserably to gain legitimacy. It's as if we (black Americans) are waiting to do our version of Sally Fields' Academy Award acceptance speech "You like me, you really like me". Although it is so cliche, we have to learn to like ourselves first even if our validation never arrives. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delano Posted February 23, 2017 Report Share Posted February 23, 2017 I have an Afro-Cuban friend and he admires Black Music. I an African women tild me she felt sorry for Black Americans. My barometer with all people is one of a few things, can they think rationally, are they emotionally intelligent and are they diminishing me. That is inthe reverse order of importance. Troy iwas ridinga fix gear for 10 hours a day with stuff on m back when i was in my 40's. New Yorkers think they are at the center of things. So is the butt hole. Ill engage with different points of view. Ignore when needed or be mentally combative if i have a worthy opponent. There is as this big Jamaican dude named Bob i think that was his name. He was a massive dude he rode a fix and was a messenger. He had one leg. And Country rode fix before itwas crazy popular. And my man Chuckie. And my brother Tabu from the Soul Summit Parties in Brooklyn. Shamelessly name dropping. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynique Posted February 24, 2017 Report Share Posted February 24, 2017 @Mel Hopkins As usual i was being the contrarian in questioning the advisability of not caring about being accepted. You speak with more sincerity than I do on this subject. To me, trying to make your mark out there in the real world is akin to playing a game in which initially conforming to expectations is a ploy to get past the first hurdle. The upper hand is gained by your manipulating whoever was misled enough by your facade to give you an opportunity. The second step in the course of doing your job efficiently, is to take back yourself, and become aloof if being well-liked in the work place requires you to put on an act. I don't think I need to tell you to never underestimate the effectiveness of passive aggressiveness. In another post, we talked about there being genes for different inclinations. I, myself, never had the "ambitious" gene but I do think I have a "lazy" one. So, over the years, I did not pursue positions of authority because, as Pioneer said on another post, I didn't want the responsibility or the challenge; didn't want to take my job home with me. For some reason, however, I would often have the ear of those in authority, who would unofficially seek my input about problems that would arise. I would offer advice and when it proved beneficial, I'd gain a smug satisfaction from being the "power behind the throne". (In one case, I prevented a co-worker from being fired by pointing out certain things about him to our supervisor.) Meanwhile, I'd collect my pay check and all of my fulfillment would occur away from my regular job, doing what I enjoyed and this included writing for the love of writing. @Delano, Like you, I am comfortable in any company, even if it's hostile because i like to argue. That's why I try to stay up on things, something which enables me to converse with Millennials as easy as "intellectuals", with "bougie" sistas as well as baby mamas. I hold no degrees, my employment resume is unimpressive, but I am a people-watcher and pretty well-schooled in the book of life. @Troy I must confess, however, that the black dilemma has me stumped. Obviously it calls for a many- pronged attack on the racist, capitalistic system. But "black unity" is just an empty phrase, and talk is cheap. "Lifting others as you climb", is too often neutralized by the "I got mine, now you get yours" attitude. I'm looking down the tunnel but I don't see a light. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delano Posted February 24, 2017 Report Share Posted February 24, 2017 @Cynique in the last few years I have less patience. Ot is getting increasingly difficult to find critical thinkers or thinkers. Pontificators are much easier to find. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troy Posted February 24, 2017 Report Share Posted February 24, 2017 20 hours ago, Mel Hopkins said: I think the black community's pathological tendencies come from allowing others to invalidate us Mel I agree with this 100%. Jim Brown said this in a video a few years back. He did not invent the idea, but he articulated it very well. All people are subject to this. It is just in the Black community we cannot validate each other. We seek validation outside our community. For example, writing for a Black platform is less prestigious than writing for a Black one, winning an award from a white entity is more desirable than a Blak one. The main reason for this I believe is that white validation leads to more money. This does not have to be the case, but we make it so. @Delano I know you can ride a fix. Recall we rode 100 miles together one day. You were definitely in better riding shape :-) now i know why ;-) Cynique there is indeed a gene(s) for ambition. I think in most cases something in the environment must trigger it for the gene to be expressed. Maybe it is a discovery of a passion for a particular skill or a dire situation in which extraordinary effort and drive are needed suddenly. It could also be the right combination of ambition, greed, and egotism. Which explains why mediocre people like Trump can become President. I never really got really motivated and passionate about something until I stumbled on the world of books. I just wish I had more time to read... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delano Posted February 24, 2017 Report Share Posted February 24, 2017 European culture has a of traveling to exotic places and enslaving people. The Vikings preferred more local enslavement. White American culture isn't even that good for white people. Hollywood and Modelling is about using people. You can throw the music industry in as well. The casting couch , drugs , tge busted contracts. And allowing people to self destruct because it sells papers. Chaka Khan was using so much drugs an engineer told her she is worth more to the label dead. Maybe it's not a white thing. Perhaps it's about. The Mayans and the Egyptians were legendary. They both built pyramids that showed their knowledge of Astrology. Before the invention of the telescope. Yet both had ritual killing. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel Hopkins Posted February 24, 2017 Report Share Posted February 24, 2017 On 2/23/2017 at 2:23 PM, Delano said: New Yorkers think they are at the center of things. So is the butt hole. Bwhahahaha! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pioneer1 Posted February 25, 2017 Report Share Posted February 25, 2017 Black people not only SHOULD adopt their own sub-culture within the broader American culture, we actually MUST in order to continue our survival. Culture is more than just food and language....it's also genetic. Until this fact is first recognized BY US and accepted, then our people will continue to have problems trying to "adjust" in a system that wasn't designed for us in the first place when we should be focused on establishing our own. When I say understanding the role genetics play in culture....... I mean you can point out the fact that the mating and marriage systems in Africa are different than those in Europe- But until you recognize and accept that African genetics are different and our sexuality is stronger and more developed, then trying to base our family structures and mating habits on the European model will only lead to more broken homes and dysfunctional families. Or you can point out the fact that the diet of West Africa is different than the diet of Europe- But until you recogize and accept that African genes are different and we don't process red meat and alcohol the same way Europeans do, our people who continue to indulge in Western dietary practices will continue to suffer from obseity, alcoholism, and other maladies that result from an attemp to imitate someone who has a different nature than you. It's the same with the language and how our genes and the language centers of our brains are different than Europeans which affects how we structure our words even when we speak European languages. Ebonics has a genetic component to it.DelanoPioneer there is a psychopathology in the black community. That exists seperate from White culture. Hell White people cant meet White People standards but berate you fir not living up to it. Early Hollywood was populated and run by Jewish people. Yet you didn't see positive Jewish images. Ralph Lauren with his whole waspy Polo things is really Ralph Lifshitz from the Bronx . Black Slaves brutalized their women. No your comparing us to a monolithic mythology. Sorry bro. I seriously have no idea what you just wrote. Can you please rephrase it? Mel I think the black community's pathological tendencies come from allowing others to invalidate us. It's as if we believe we are the illegitimate children of America and Africa and we're doing everything while failing miserably to gain legitimacy. It's as if we (black Americans) are waiting to do our version of Sally Fields' Academy Award acceptance speech "You like me, you really like me". Although it is so cliche, we have to learn to like ourselves first even if our validation never arrives. Exactly, but not only that.... In my experience, when Black people....even Black children.....just BE THEMSELVES and stop worrying about what White people or any other race thinks of them, we usually end up leading anyway. We become the trend setters! I've seen this in schools growing up where having attended a mosty White school in the suburbs for 2 years, me and other Black kids would just sit around MAKING UP shit to do just to see how long it would take before the White kids would start imitating us.....lol. Like the late great Heavy D said, don't be down with anybody let them all be down with YOU. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delano Posted February 25, 2017 Report Share Posted February 25, 2017 @Pioneer. Here's a similar example. Adolf Hitler was pushing the Aryan agenda. The Blond Hair Blue Eyed German. He was a Jewish dark haired Austrian. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynique Posted February 26, 2017 Report Share Posted February 26, 2017 On 2/24/2017 at 9:21 PM, Pioneer1 said: I mean you can point out the fact that the mating and marriage systems in Africa are different than those in Europe- But until you recognize and accept that African genetics are different and our sexuality is stronger and more developed, then trying to base our family structures and mating habits on the European model will only lead to more broken homes and dysfunctional families. What it sounds like you are saying is that an active promiscuous sex life is a manifestations of the in-bred nature of black people, and that the European norm which advocates monogamy within a marriage, (and discourages out of wedlock children), cramps the style of black people. You ignore how defying white customs results in broods of out of wedlock children sired by different fathers. Meanwhile, no mention is made of the alternate possibility which would blame the breakdown of the black family on the habits left over from slavery when blacks were not allowed to maintain stable families in the manner of their European masters - standards that were not drastically different from African ones. And I don't known why you continue to make generalities that play into the stereotyping of black people as being oversexed. Is there any scientific evidence, or are there any sociological studies that support your ongoing insinuation that the reason European culture rejects polygamy is because white men are not as horny as black men?? Moreover, there are just as many black people who don't conform to all of your "theories" as there are who do. Unless you are advocating that blacks return to the "motherland'" which will nurture their true nature, the advice given to blacks in this jive-ass country should simply be to emulate whatever it takes to "get over". . 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troy Posted February 26, 2017 Report Share Posted February 26, 2017 @Pioneer1, I would be careful when trying to tie genetics to culture, particularly for African Americans. You can't look at a person and tell what their genotype is. Even if you had complete knowledge of one's genetic coding, science simply does not know enough say that these genes are associated with sexual prowess. PLUS American Black and white share people share so many genes it is virtually impossible to use these to distinguish between them based upon genetically determined behavioral characteristics on a "racial" basis. Seriously, it is wrong to think of it this way. Besides, many of the things were associate with culture have nothing to do with the color of one's skin. Culture is man made often arbitrary. I know many Black people, for example, who are culturally white (based upon they way they speak, their dress, the music they listen to, who they associate with, etc), and I've met white people who are culturally Black. This example is probably just a function of where and when these people were born. I wish they would get rid of the word "race," because it confuses people about the nature of humanity, creating unnecessary barriers between us. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delano Posted February 26, 2017 Report Share Posted February 26, 2017 There are so many issues with race, the term is meaningless. Especially to the descendants of White Slave holders. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pioneer1 Posted February 27, 2017 Report Share Posted February 27, 2017 CyniqueWhat it sounds like you are saying is that an active promiscuous sex life is a manifestations of the in-bred nature of black people, and that the European norm which advocates monogamy within a marriage, (and discourages out of wedlock children), cramps the style of black people. Now Cynique............ We've had this discussion before so I don't expect to "convert" you over to my way of thinking since you seem to be so worried about what White people will think about Black people bragging about their sexuality. But for those reading our exchange and MAY either agree with me about Blacks having a stronger sexuality or may be swayed by my argument: African culture frowns upon both promiscuity (random frequent sex with various partners) as well as out of wedlock children while Western culture is more accepting of both. But as far as sexual desire goes, too much evidence points to the fact that Black people or atleast Black men in general have a stronger sexuality: 1. It's scientifically proven that Black men have a higher testosterone rate than White men and we know that testosterone level is a primary indicator of sexuality. 2. From personal and observed experience most Black men I've known whether from the United States, Africa, or even South America have had MULTIPLE sexual partners in thier life and saw it as a badge of honor (including myself) rather than something "sinful" or "shameful". 3. In relation to that..... We know that cheating and adultery goes on in every culture it seems that most polygamous societies where men take on more than one wife are found in Africa, the Middle East, and India among men who are Black and Brown where as among White men in Europe monogamy is the norm socially speaking. 4. Even in social settings, I don't know about YOU but everywhere I've been whenever there are multiple races of men coming into contact with women Black and Brown men are the ones primarily looking at and flirting with female strangers that they find attractive. I rarely see White or even Asian men OBVIOUSLY staring at or flirting with women they don't know. It happens, but not as often as we do. Take all these facts and personal observations (from me atleast) in and it seems to me that Black people....or atleast Black men....have a stronger sexual desire. I personally think this is a GOOD thing, not someting bad or shameful or "animalistic". But then again, I'm not coming from a Western religious or moralistic point of view but from a more natural one. Meanwhile, no mention is made of the alternate possibility which would blame the breakdown of the black family on the habits left over from slavery when blacks were not allowed to maintain stable families in the manner of their European masters That's because the breakdown of the Black family TODAY has little to nothing to do with slavery nor it's after effects. If it did..... You'd see far more dysfunction and broken families during the late 1800s and early 20th century when we were just coming out of slavery than you see today; when infact the Black family was MORE INTACT during that time period than it is today! There's a very good reason why the Black family is more broken today than is has been since our being here in the United States.....women have more freedom to LEAVE their men today than they had in the past.Is there any scientific evidence, or are there any sociological studies that support your ongoing insinuation that the reason European culture rejects polygamy is because white men are not as horny as black men?? YES. As I said, we tend to have more testosterone......you do the research.the advice given to blacks in this jive-ass country should simply be to emulate whatever it takes to "get over". . That's terrible advice! It's that "let's just do what we can to get over" mentality that keeps Black Americans in a subservient, defensive, and survivalist condition in their own country. Just as it's better for a person to seek their OWN HOME even if it's just an apartment rather than settling for a corner on the floor in someone else's mansion; it's better for Black Americans to develop their OWN system (as you said above) than to constantly seek to "fit in" and "get over" in this one. Lol @ "jive ass"....... Troy Besides, many of the things were associate with culture have nothing to do with the color of one's skin. Culture is man made often arbitrary. I know many Black people, for example, who are culturally white (based upon they way they speak, their dress, the music they listen to, who they associate with, etc), and I've met white people who are culturally Black. This example is probably just a function of where and when these people were born. That's because human beings (of all races) are quite versatile and can adapt to various culures even if those cultures don't "jive"...lol...with their nature. We do what it takes to survive and thrive. But when the pressures are off and the rules (legal and social) are relaxed, people tend to gravitate towards their truer nature. I wish they would get rid of the word "race," because it confuses people about the nature of humanity, creating unnecessary barriers between us. If the word "race" were eliminated, the only people who'd be confused would be people of color because White people would STILL know who they were and would see themselves as different. One of the reasons Whites were able to come in and colonialize most of Africa is because White Europeans regardless of nationality saw themselves as ONE RACE superior to the others while Africans didn't (and still don't) think of themselves in racial terms at all but more along ethnic and "tribal" (if you will) terms that prevented them from uniting. Infact, if you took out the racial classifications in the United States you'd have a situation similar to that of Latin America with FAR MORE confusion and far more discrimination. Here when White cops shoot unarmed Black men or White employer discriminate in hiring Black applicants, we have identification markers like "Black" or "White" to make the argument and and observe if any solution has been achieved. If there was no terms for race.....how would one identify racism when it occured? How would you make the argument? You'd just have this group systematically targetting other people outside their group and know "something" was wrong but wouldn't quite know how to articulate it....like we have in Mexico and other Latin American nations where White Latinos are oppression their darker "Latino" citizens but since their all "Latinos" they can't claim racism. DelanoHere's a similar example. Adolf Hitler was pushing the Aryan agenda. The Blond Hair Blue Eyed German. He was a Jewish dark haired Austrian. ? I'm not the smartest person in the world so you're going to have to provide more of a context or explain a little (or perhaps a lot) more clearly WHAT point you're making. I mean, I UNDERSTAND what you just said above and I agree. But how does it tie in with the statements you made before about Black psychopathology, Hollywood being ran by Jews, and assuming Blacks are a monolith????? There are so many issues with race, the term is meaningless. Especially to the descendants of White Slave holders.If the term "race" is meaningless, then what do you mean when you say "White" slave holders? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delano Posted February 27, 2017 Report Share Posted February 27, 2017 @Pioneer I can't assume how much you know based on your posts. There is no argument that I am capable or willing to put forth. Since i feel that we may be in a mutual monologue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troy Posted February 27, 2017 Report Share Posted February 27, 2017 Pioneer, race is an artificial construct it has no basis in genetics. For example, Del, who is relatively dark skinned may have more in common genetically with a so-called "white" person than he does with you or I. You simply can't tell by looking at him. Below is my ethnicity make-up. When you get these reports they don't say race, because again it has not basis in genetics. My genetic ancestry covers essentially all of sub-Saharan Africa is which is about a genetically diverse as you can get. I guess genetically that make me a mongrel, but culturally I'm Black American, the northern big city variety, but with a strong affinity for the south--perhaps because of a genetic predisposition for southern climates ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pioneer1 Posted February 27, 2017 Report Share Posted February 27, 2017 Troy Race is indeed a construct, but it's not artificial. It's a classification system that is no more artificial than language or mathematics itself. Look at these 2 girls of different races and tell me that their differences are just "artificial" or a matter of opinion: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troy Posted February 27, 2017 Report Share Posted February 27, 2017 Pioneer that fact that these women look different is a statement of the obvious. But your instance in grouping people into racial categories does not make any more sense than it did before But I will play your game. What so-called race is the person pictured below? Explain your answer. (Don't cheat and look for Time the article. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pioneer1 Posted February 27, 2017 Report Share Posted February 27, 2017 I don't have to cheat because as far as I'm concerned race is just as PHENOTYPICAL as it is genetic. Meaning if you LOOK White....as far as I'm concerned you ARE White regardless of what your parents were. But to answer your question: She looks like a MIXURE of 2 (maybe 3) different races to me. Certainly Caucasian/European is atleast ONE of the races she's mixed with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troy Posted February 27, 2017 Report Share Posted February 27, 2017 So what is her race? I'll take your response as a you don't know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pioneer1 Posted February 27, 2017 Report Share Posted February 27, 2017 No. Admittedly I DON'T know, but she looks mixed to me. But using someone who straddles the fence of racial identity to disqualify racial categories is like using a transgendered person to prove that sex or gender doesn't exist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troy Posted February 27, 2017 Report Share Posted February 27, 2017 That fact that you can look at the photo I posted and are unable to assign a race illustrates my point. Further there is no genetic test one can run to determine one's race. Do you get it now? Race is as arbitrary as the screen name you picked. Gender is completely different. You can both examine a person and test them genetically to determine their gender. The person pictured is a man (mental issues aside). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pioneer1 Posted February 27, 2017 Report Share Posted February 27, 2017 A couple years ago The New England Journal of Medicine put out this article:Since Medicare was established in the United States nearly 50 years ago, disparities in health outcomes between whites and blacks have persisted,1 with only limited improvement in the past decade.2 In 2008, life expectancy was 5.4 years shorter for black men and 3.7 years shorter for black women than for white men and white women; cardiovascular disease and diabetes accounted for 38% of the racial gap in mortality among men and for 54% among women.2 Higher levels of blood pressure, cholesterol, and glucose among blacks with hypertension,3,4 cardiovascular disease,5,6 and diabetes,7 respectively, contribute to substantial excess morbidity and mortality from myocardial infarction, congestive heart failure, stroke, peripheral vascular disease, and kidney disease. Similar disparities in risk-factor control have been reported for Hispanic adults with those conditions,4,5,7 but reports on Asian or Pacific Islander adults have not been included in most national studies. http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMsa1407273#t=articleThe NEJM is a SCIENTIFIC journal, yet they mentioned RACE and used terms like "Black" and "White". The American Red Cross said: Different ethnic and racial groups also have different frequency of the main blood types in their populations. For example, approximately 45 percent of Caucasians are type O, but 51 percent of African-Americans and 57 percent of Hispanics are type O. http://www.redcrossblood.org/learn-about-blood/blood-and-diversity If race is simply an artificial construct why do so many scientists and medical professionals seem to believe otherwise? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynique Posted February 27, 2017 Report Share Posted February 27, 2017 @Pioneer1 You claim black people have enhanced sexuality, then you flip and say that African culture "frowns'"on promiscuity and multiple partners, 2 indulgences that are compatible with a strong sex drive. Why, then, would Africans adopt customs that stifle their "true" nature. Why would they maintain strict family traditions that put restrains on sex if they are a race of "horny toads"? And I beg to differ that Western culture is more forgiving of promiscuity and out-of-wedlock-births, 2 indulgences that go strongly against the white middle class values and ethics that are still in tact today, and have been embraced by the black middle class ( not middle income). As for the breakdown of the black family, the welfare system has something to do with this because it turned ghettos into latter-day plantations where lax slavery habits re-surfaced. And, the reason i have a problem with you touting the sexuality of black people is because this stigmatizes black men as being more prone to rape, and objectifies black women as being hot, readily-available sex partners. African Americans are too racially mixed, and the black experience too varied to categorize these people by using "alternate facts" and generalizations to make your case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troy Posted February 27, 2017 Report Share Posted February 27, 2017 Pioneer the NEJM is wrong for using the term for all the reasons I provided. It is sloppy to use the term, but it is the language of our time. Perhaps when we learn more about the genetic basis of some diseases and physical characteristics we can use the names of those genetic markers to more accurately describe the differences between people. Hopefully when we are smart enough to understand genetics completely, we will also be wise enough not to use those differences to group some people as being superior to others. Just because the government, medical organizations, and even religious groups do something doesn't make it right. for centuries years they all believed in the superiority of white people over black people and they even made it legal for white people to enslave black people. none of this was right and it was based on stupidity, ignorance, and greed. Again, I wish we would move beyond using terms like black and white. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delano Posted February 27, 2017 Report Share Posted February 27, 2017 I'm enjoying this from the sidelines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Brittany Posted February 27, 2017 Report Share Posted February 27, 2017 Race is indeed a social construct that is maintained culturally, but culture is not genetic. To say that it is entirely genetic is the same justification racist whites use to exclude and persecute people based on skin color and is not something that should be stated lightly. It is ridiculous to think that any culture is so special that it must be preserved for all eternity at all costs because that only results in zealotry, inbreeding, detrimental genetic disease and conflict. Our genetic differences are based in mutations that proved beneficial in our environment, but say nothing about our social capacity. It is easily proven that culture is taught through children who grow up with parents of a different race and take on that culture. They only feel 'different' when outsiders point out that people who look like them are expected to act a certain way. I think Pioneer1's personal observations are just that and have no biological basis. Blacks are often raised in a hypersexual environment due to our 'culture', and African culture is so stereotyped and disrupted by historical events and conflicts that you can't draw any conclusions about it developing naturally. Much of sexuality has a psychological basis that has nothing to do with biological drives. Humans are above are social creatures and value the acceptance of a group and social cooperation above all else because that is how we survived predation and were able to feed ourselves. It is normal human behavior to desire the approval of the widespread culture. Without social cohesion humans would not be in the position we have over all other animals. But there is no 'normal' human behavior. We have always adapted to our environment and the social situation to survive and the fact that our behavior is on a continuum helps us adjust to changes quicker than any other species. To say that someone's culture is a fixed quantity underestimates the human species. Will blacks ever be considered 'normal'? That depends on the definition of 'normal'. In America our culture is dominated by the descendent of white European immigrants. So it is up to them whether our culture will ever be considered mainstream, and I think that is happening faster than most people realize. But since there is not a 'normal' human being it is really up to individual black people to determine whether they are accepted and respected by the dominant culture or not. The only way to be truly 'abnormal' is to behave in such a way that you cannot function acceptably in society. We can go on about human dignity and such, but why would a successful dominant culture accept behaviors that are not beneficial to them? Having biases is a natural and often useful human trait. If a group of people run into a snake and it kills someone it would be expected for their culture to have a dislike of all snakes, even those who have never seen one. When humans apply bias to other humans it is sad and ugly, but it is also inevitable. I do agree with the original blog posts last point that Black people have to take care of themselves. White people cannot fix black problems any more than we can fix theirs. I personally view much of 'black' culture as a excuse for anti-white culture behaviors that some black people cling as strongly to as any white racist. If you understand culture as a tool to provide group cohesion and not an absolute thing to be put on a pedestal the world is much less dismal. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troy Posted February 27, 2017 Report Share Posted February 27, 2017 That was one of the best things I've read on the subject in a long time Brittany--it belongs in a book. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delano Posted February 28, 2017 Report Share Posted February 28, 2017 Guest Brittany Thank you for the clarity and precision of situation that is extremely complex. Please post more. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynique Posted February 28, 2017 Report Share Posted February 28, 2017 i totally agree with Troy and Delano. Stick around, Brittany! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delano Posted February 28, 2017 Report Share Posted February 28, 2017 Stick around and post. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel Hopkins Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 On 2/23/2017 at 11:16 PM, Cynique said: the real world is akin to playing a game in which initially conforming to expectations is a ploy to get past the first hurdle. The upper hand is gained by your manipulating whoever was misled enough by your facade to give you an opportunity. The second step in the course of doing your job efficiently, is to take back yourself, and become aloof if being well-liked in the work place requires you to put on an act. I don't think I need to tell you to never underestimate the effectiveness of passive aggressiveness. This comment stayed with me for a week...and today I was finally able to put into words the feeling it left with me with and wrote a blog post called "Hustlers vs Suckers" @Cynique you starred in the post as a Hustler... Here's part of what I wrote : "A woman responded to my post, that in the past, she’s played life another way. She said whatever the person in “authority” believed of her, she went with it and played the hand she was dealt. She called it being “passive aggressive”. I call it being a hustler. A hustler identifies a mark, notices what beliefs he has confidence in and then Wham! plays him like a fiddle! Her actions displayed the difference between a hustler and sucker. The difference is how they see reality. A hustler recognizes that reality is chaotic and in a state of flux. But a hustler also realizes that within chaos, there are patterns. Therefore, she sets a goal. She analyzes her opponent(s), identifies her resources, reviews her options, looks for the angles and plays them as they arise. A sucker has no angle. He just lives in this neat little world of social construction and believes everyone will behave according to the rules of his makeshift world. He becomes an easy mark simply because he thinks his beliefs are real. The woman admitted she didn’t like to work hard and maybe that was her truth. In telling her story, however, she admitted she had patience. For some, patience is hard work. As Robert Greene quoted “Iceberg Slim” in his blog, he noted “Patience and time is the hustler’s creed. “I play for time and see what happens,” says Elizabeth I, the great hustler Queen of England. “ Patience was a virtue for this hustler woman. Playing games for the win takes patience to plot, plan, persevere and ultimately get paid. Hustler, or Sucker? The choice is yours. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pioneer1 Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 Cynique As I said before, the only reason I "went there" with you was for the benefit those viewing the dialouge who may have been interested in how I came to my conclusions concerning Black sexual dominance. I was under no illusion that you would be convinced by what I said and all of a sudden start seeing things my way.....lol...because I KNOW how worried you are about White people's perceptions of Black sexuality. If....scientifically speaking....Blacks are genetically dominant, it seems to me that we would have the POTENTIAL to dominate in all facets of human activity including sexuality. Troy Perhaps the Journal of Medicine and Red Cross are wrong for using racial terms. But what is your reference to judge them by to have come to that conclusion? The scientific community clearly acknowledges the reality of RACE and RACIAL CLASSIFICATION and we just can't make it any other way. I believe Neely Fuller Jr. or one of our great scholars said that power is the ability to define your reality. It really doesn't matter whether race and racial catagories are real or not in actuality. If the White people in power BELIEVE that they are real, and have the power to act on those beliefs....what power do YOU have to re-define that reality and say it isn't so? BTW..... If you think race isn't real but just an artificial construction, then I take it you weren't offended by Rachel Dolenzal's claim of being Black, correct? Infact, perhaps you SUPPORT her claim? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Del Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 @Mel sometimes the game chooses you. Real power starts in the mind and extends and blends from that to this world. Delusions are stunted and only exist in one mind. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynique Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 @Mel Hopkins I'm flattered to have inspired a blog post about me. Del keeps implying that I don't realize what I am. He says I'm a "magnus". You say I'm a "hustler". i don't have a problem with either one of these labels. Because this hustling magnus respects the opinions of both of you. (This thread is so long and goes off on so many tangents that I didn't even see your post until just now. ) @Pioneer1 Yes, I do resent the idea of white people harboring the impression that black women are loose, oversexed 'hos and that this behavior comes natural to them. And I'm sure white opinions about black men being over sexed brutes played a part in them being lynched in the past, and is a misconception that persists today among white women leery about being in the proximity of black male strangers. BTW, Did you see the post by Britanny on the Part 1 segment of this long thread wherein she challenged all of your contentions about race and black sexuality. I'm surprised you didn't respond to it. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delano Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 @Cynique. That was an airtight critique. I would be thouroghly impressed with an equally logical counterpoint. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pioneer1 Posted March 5, 2017 Report Share Posted March 5, 2017 Cynique It's funny how I never hear Italian men or women DOWN PLAY the reputation Italian men have for being sexy or sensual.....infact many Italian women are proud of their men. Nor do I hear Latino men or women DOWN PLAY the image of the "hot Latin lover". But just MENTION Black men and sex in the same sentence and people start doing flips! Oh it's OK for OTHER men to flaunt and promote their sexuality.....but don't let that Black men do it! It's all gotta be kept a secret, under wraps, not even a JOKE about Black men having a large penis or being good in bed is acceptable.....it must be challenged and proof demanded!!! So let me get this straight....... Black men are supposed to down play their sexuality and pretend that they're little limp penis wimps with no sex drive at all because White men may find it offensive and lynch them? Going by THAT logic, perhaps Black men should stay BROKE and sell all of their businesses so as not to offend White men with their money, wealth, and power....lest they burn it all down like they did Black Wall Street in Tulsa Oklahoma! Gimme a break with all that......lol. You just called me an Uncle Tom in another thread for having the ever so SLIGHTEST concern over how the average White man may perceive Black NFL figures who refused to go to the White House......but now here YOU are sitting up here scared as hell over how White men may react if Black men flaunt their sexuality....lol. It's that same mentality that...in MY opinion....is encouraging so many of our young men to be "femininized" and act gay or "sissyish" in school and in the work place today. They've been told in so many words that it's not acceptable for Black men to be proudly and assertively masculine, so they've reconned that the best thing to do is not act like a man at all! Just act like an a-sexual eunuch with no drive and no penis and if you see a woman either act like her or look in the other direction that way they can along at work and in school and everyone will "like" them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Del Posted March 5, 2017 Report Share Posted March 5, 2017 On 03/03/2017 at 5:15 AM, Delano said: @Cynique. That was an airtight critique. I would be thouroghly impressed with an equally logical counterpoint. ... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynique Posted March 5, 2017 Report Share Posted March 5, 2017 @Pioneer1 Many Latina women do resent being labeled as "hot-blooded spitfires", just as blondes hate to be characterized as "dumb airheads", and big-chested women prefer men to look past their bosom. Why? Because such perceptions make a caricature of them. And i repeat black women don't like being arbitrarily viewed as loose and lusty. A common complaint of black men is how unaccompanied white women are instinctively uneasy around them. It reduces them to a subhuman level. Also, I think intelligent black men would rather be judged first by their intellect rather than their overrated sexuality. Further more, being assertive doesn't have anything to do with a large penis and an accelerated sex drive. And most self-respecting black women don't stick with a black man if he doesn't have anything else going for him but horniness. All such males are good for is stud service via a booty call. Also i don't agree that an authentic black man can be feminized. Those that come across as effeminate are probably in the closet. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troy Posted March 6, 2017 Report Share Posted March 6, 2017 @Cynique, @Pioneer1 ignored Britanny's post because there was really nothing he could say to reasonably refute what she wrote. What I don't understand about Pioneer's position is that he is consistently arguing against facts. Pioneer, you seem completely unwilling to accept the fact that race is an artificial construct. Look, you can find many instances of me using the word "trace" but that does not prove that race is a genetically meaningful term, it is a social construct and I use it becaus, unfortunately, it is how people view the world. No, I was not "offended" by Rachel Dolenzal's claim of being Black. I couldn't care less.. Apparently, the people who selected her to run their NAACP chapter did not care either, until it became a farce in the media. Two, I have no way of proving her claim one way or the other. Again, I thought we'd already ascertained that you can't look at someone and determine their race. Surely you are aware of the practice of "passing" in this country, right? I'm not sure why you want to deny the science in this regard Pioneer, why are so fixated on using race? I won't even get in the racial stereotypes you keep advancing, for they are beyond silly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delano Posted March 6, 2017 Report Share Posted March 6, 2017 @Troy I agree with most of your post. People have beliefs that match their experience. Pioneers are leaders not followers. I think thats a term used by a religious group for prosyletizers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troy Posted March 6, 2017 Report Share Posted March 6, 2017 Well, Del I hope we "agree" on the fact that there is no genetic basis for race. The other stuff like my feelings about Rachel are purely subjective. Though I have to believe you are not in favor of using racial stereotypes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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