First thing I’d like to say is that this series reflects a whole new perspective on the idea of racism for me. It also represents a whole new outlook about what this nation stands for too. And for this I must thank Ms. Deborah over at “My Brown-eyed View” for one of the finest discussion I have ever had on a issue. I would also say that I am most grateful to Ms. Sojourner over at “Sojourner's Place" for joining in and adding to the discussion.
When this nation was founded it was considered to be an experiment in how people were ruled. It meant forgetting old ideas and trying new ones. Trial and error was the means used in an attempt to formalize a nation where the people were guaranteed life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness and every citizen had an equal opportunity to be the President of this nation. A nation formed by the union of thirteen sovereign States and has grown to be a nation of fifty sovereign States. A nation where the central government was intended to be the subordinate state not the dominant state.
But along with this new form of government another phenomenon occurred. A society was created as never been had before, A society that reflects what the world is. A society where every nation of the world is represented among the citizens. A society where every race of the world can call this nation its homeland. A nation where every religion is practiced in tolerance for the beliefs of all of the other religions. It is this that is the formula for bias and prejudice within a nation.
And in spite of the problems that was to come as a natural result of the makeup of this nation, it is as it is today, the most powerful nation in the world. What made this possible? It was a contract that was written to be the foundation of this nation and the men elected to rule were willing to abide by their part of this contract. That contract is called the Constitution of the United States.
It was the individualistic attitude of the people seeking only to better their own lives and the lives of their families that made this nation as it is. It was this same individualistic attitude that brought men together as a collective to aid a fellow man only in his time of need, not by force but voluntarily. This was also a brand new experiment in regards to societies and how it saw itself.
Have we created the ideal form of government? The answer is no. have we created the ideal form of society? The answer is no. Is it still in its experimental stage? I'd say that the answer is yes. The problem lies in the belief of some that this was a failed experiment and they seek to completely change what this nation stood for.
And they are using the oldest trick in the book in order to achieve their goals, group identity. Once an individual is convinced to accept this group identity as their only identity then empathy is their weapon of choice to bring about the changes that they desire of society and government. The identity of the individual is the enemy, leaving only the identity of the collective. Once this has been achieved the people will accept being forced to act as a collective rather than as an individual.
It will be the person who taken on the identity of the collective that will promote the idea that groups have rights. It will be the person who taken on the identity of the collective that will promote the idea that groups are to seek equality. It will be the person who has taken on the identity of the collective that will no longer recognize those who seek to have the identity of an individual as one of their own. If you listen to the theme song of this blog you will hear this in the words of the small group in their attempt to degrade the individual.
We, as the people of this nation, have a choice to make and that choice is the choice of the perception of the possession of power or the reality of the choice of the possession of rights. If you seek the perception of power then take on the identity of the collective and lose your rights. If you seek the reality of rights then take on the identity of the individual and know your vulnerability as a result of the loss of the feeling of power.
It is the powerless that need rights and it must be the powerful that must respect the rights of the powerless. The individual is the least powerful of any society. We elect those who are called to be the powerful. That is the inevitable conclusion that our Constitution reveals as the formula of this experiment that we participate in.
In closing I will only say that the most important thing I have learned is that the term “individual rights” is a term of redundancy but the term “group rights” is a term of self-contradiction.
9 comments:
Much obliged, my friend for the "shout out" in this post.
"I have learned is that the term “individual rights” is a term of redundancy but the term “group rights” is a term of self-contradiction."
Now on that we can both agree! As this country continues to become a "more perfect union" under the realization and true belief that we are "created equal" one's race, ethnicity, religion, or tribe ceases to be a descriptor on which to discriminate.
Griper,
I enjoyed our discussion. It was productive and thought provoking.
I am also going to disclose this personal reality. I will always be keeping an eye out on how racism is used. That has been ingrained in my mind since my childhood. It is also the Marxist inside of my politics. I did a whole lot of anti-racist work during my time in Worker's World Party.
With that watch also comes use of my wisdom as a woman of color. There is a time when those little attacks are not worth the effort to counter. There are also times when it is necessary to stand up and do some serious counter punching. Because without that counterpunching discussions like the one we have had would not occur.
I'd like to read this, but it is unreadable. Perhaps black text on a white background?
It works for Google.com, and I tend to think that they know what they are doing in terms of web design (grins).
To read the very thin dark yellow on black here, I have to copy and paste it in to notepad.
dmarks, I suspect that the problem has more to do with some setting on your computer. If you're as technologically dysfunctional as I am, get a child, grandchild or neighbor kid to look at it for you.
Griper, I think it's been a good series. Isn't a shame that more people can't disagree without being disagreeable?
msladydeborah, you may or may not find this amusing:
I was a union shop steward for about ten years and once a black guy who was a likeable fellow got written up for something that he probably shouldn't have. He was telling me that his first line of defense was going to be his color. I told him to use that as his ace in the hole, not his first line of defense, because us white people get sick of black folks hollering "discrimination" when all too often it's just a matter of them not getting their way about something. (Yes, I know there is REAL discrimination out there, but "crying wolf" only lessens the effectiveness of real claims.) With a little more explanation he saw my point, followed my advice and ended up winning his case.
During the discussion though, I casually mentioned that a lot of folks were like me and didn't like black folks very much, but that in my case, it didn't make me prejudiced. With a look showing both disbelief and the knowledge that I was up to something, he asked, "How do you figure that?"
I replied, "Simple, I don't like white folks either, so I'm equal opportunity!"
Take that for what it's worth to you!
It's the page. Pages with the standard black-on-white )or something close. Or this comment section I am using) don't have the problem. Brownish on black does not work well.
I'm sure there are good views expressed here, if only they were set up to be read.
Griper, your last sentence sums it up perfectly. I am very suspicious of anyone/anything espousing collective rights or collective salvation.
Also have learned that the same folks who preach this have a worldview of "oppressed versus oppressor." You're either one or the other to them.
yup, tis the first thing i look for in a man's argument if speaking politics or religion, karen.
dmarks,
i don't know how the page shows up on your puter but on mine it shows up with a black bg with pale yellow fonts. and it shows up clearly both in IE and mozilla.
but i changed the fonts to white for this series of posts if that helps you.
Octopus said...
Hey Griper, what happened to your comment?
(Looks under desk) Nope, not there.
(Looks in wastepaper basket) Nope, not there.
(Looks behind chair) Shucks, not there either.
Hmm, where have I heard this before?
Whenever I see something like this happen, it brings out resentment towards the writer.
If you hang around with garbage you start to stink!
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