h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hi 219823 (nicest handle since THX1138).

"It is a well known fact that all racist sentients on all inhabited planets are ignorant. They are almost always criminally insane if not mentally deficient."

Really? Well-known to precisely whom?

It gets my goat that people should continue to underestimate the sentience of racists and racialists. Now I'm not talking about the easily manipulated thugs that serve their purposes and are thus expendable, but the real racists and racialists, those that create and propagate the lies, distortions and fantasies of racial purity.

These people are neither criminally-insane nor mentally-deficient. To believe so is to make them stronger. Wake up 219823! They are very clever, very committed and capable of courage, love, honour, duty, self-sacrifice, humour and sentimentality. They are also capable of truly inhuman acts, with equal vigour.

You only have to review the last two hundred years of South African history to see this.

I look forward to your reply .

Blessings,
Matholwch /|\.

Domain: Eukarya
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Primates

Man
Family: Hominidae
Genus: Homo
Species: sapiens

Apes
Suborder Strepsirhini

Family Lemuridae - lemurs
Family Cheirogaleidae
Family Indridae - indris
Family Daubentoniidae
Family Galagonidae
Family Loridae - lorises
Family Megaladapidae

Suborder Haplorhini

Family Tarsiidae
Family Cebidae
Family Cercopithecidae
Family Callitrichidae
Family Hylobatidae-gibbons
Family Hominidae - humans, chimpanzees, gorillas, orangutans

http://www.sidwell.edu/us/science/vlb5/Labs/Classification_Lab/Eukarya/Animalia/Chordata/Vertebrata/Mammalia/Primates/Hominidae/Homo/Sapiens/

Judging from their other posts, I suspect that "Researcher 219823" is just a "tad" wrapped up in the hwhole "Life, The Unuvcerse, and Everything" to realize that many people are involved in real discussions in here.

...and I can't type....

Unuvcerse?

Been into the wine, darling? Can I have some?

az

Fill up me glass, would you, while you're at it, there's a dear
Mudhooks, what was all that primate stuff about two entries back?

Sorry, don't drink much and certainly don't drink wine.... makes my feet swell.

I'm not sure why all the primates stuff.... must have gone temporarily insane; got a little crazy with the cut and paste; I have no life; nothing better to do with a Saturday afternoon cause I am trapped in my house with a foot injury; too much medication.... take your pick...

> Really? Well-known to precisely whom?

Basically, the ones that aren't ignorant.





Well got the ball rolling.

Ta ta all.

Yeaaaahhh.... This place was really Dullsville without you.... <<<<< note: sarcasm

If we delve into the past, not that long ago, we find that "race" is a relatively recent concept.
Our ancestors believed that "caste" and "class" were something that you were born into. "Good" people were not like "bad" people.
It took scientists and philosophers to turn that into "good races" and "bad races".
Thus, one could be a "credit" to one's "people" or be typical of "them".

That's why prodigies were such a big deal for such a long time. They had abilities beyond those expected for their "caste", "class" or "race".

This, ignoring the fact that no "class", "caste" or "race" is normally thought of as particularly intelligent, just "clever" or "inventive".

So it is possible for a sensitive, intelligent, socially-responsible person to be bigotted and to select a "class" or "caste" or "them" or two that they would not want their children to breed with.

Because everybody likes to believe that they have the free will to make choices, they sometimes have to creat artificial divisions in order to do so.

Like borders on a map, most division is in the mind or on paper.
Which means it is imaginary.

And it is those with the least amount of imagination who latch onto the fairy tales of race. They like to have things neatly packaged for them so they can wake up to a world that they don't have to think about.

*nods, affirming TRevenge statment*

Ah I stand corrected. Thank you Recumbentman! I think my eyes just got tired while trying to catch up on the debate and I missed the later (apparently even less intelligent and more bigoted posts from PYT). Sorry, shall resume in my observers chair for a bit while I catch up.

Cheers,
minimeas

Ah I stand corrected. Thank you Recumbentman! I think my eyes just got tired while trying to catch up on the debate and I missed the later (apparently even less intelligent and more bigoted posts from PYT). Sorry, shall resume in my observers chair for a bit while I catch up.

Cheers,
minimeas

well, don't be gone too long, minimeas!

I dunno - go away for the week and someone adds 400 posts to the thread - its taken me a while to read them all.

We all have our prejudices, most of them irrantional, what makes us greater or lesser beings is how we deal with them. Thus I try to confront my own personal prejudices and expose them for what they are - can't say I always succeed.

On a somewhat side issue, how does one tackle the issue of race with children? Specifically, my older son is currently identifying himself as having "white" skin (mostly coz he hero-worships his father and wants to be like him in every possible way), while he identifies his baby brother (whose skin is fairer) as having brown skin (and thus being more like me). So far, I've not tried to dissuade him of this, but he's already come across children in the playground (he's only 3.5 yrs old) who have told him he is "brown" in the most demeaning manner. I've tried not to interfere in the issue too much and allowed him to find his own way while being around and supportive if he needs me. But he just doesn't get that some people have prejudices based on skin colour, so I'm not really sure how to tackle the question should it arise (as it inevitably will -- he's ALREADY asked where babies come from -- I'm not ready for this!) of why people talk of being "dark" or "brown" as somehow inferior. Any ideas on how to explain ideas of "us & them" to a (nearly) 4 yr old?

minimeas

Hard one -- but you've GOT to be brave!

If you know your own mind, then anything you want can be explained to a four-year old.

The only position to talk from is one of complete and unthreatened pride.

I wish you courage and clarity.

Have never had kids, so no direct experience there.

But perhaps, as in all things, the best way to teach is by example. You can of course explain things like - 'skin colour doesn't matter a jot' - but if he keeps *experiencing* that it does to some, then he might just get confused.

Oh well, it's not easy being a human, at any age. But it sounds to me like you are a very concerned and loving mother. And that in itself is a lot more than most kids get.

az