Quote:I think there's instead Political Polarization.  People on both sides have started to view the other side as the "enemy".  You can even see it on this board.  Anyone who doesn't agree with you is 'wrong' and 'uneducated'.  People who don't share the same values as you can't possibly be intelligent.  People have started taking it a slight against them when their ideas are discussed in a negative light.  

Totally stole that for a thread.  There are not enough people in the middle, or those middle people need to get a third party going.  The Logic party

 

Quote:Barack Obama is a tool no matter what his skin color. His actions in cases like the Zimmerman shooting have pushed racial dissension, by offering his input before the facts were known. Now that everyone knows (though they refuse to accept) that Martin was a criminal who justifiably lost his life it makes Obama look like a fool.

 

I take the Gunny Hartman approach to racism, you are all equally worthless in my eyes.

I completely agree he has pushed racial dissension and I don't like the way he is more worried about seasoned criminals dying than military and police veterans who serve their communities instead of weakening them.


With that said the war on drugs needs to leave the court room and instead enter the treatment facilities.  

 

Quote:I'm starting to think liberals are flat out [BLEEP]!

 

I think this is true of anyone on the far ends of the spectrum.  Their needs to be a middle ground and we as a society need to find it

 

Quote:But my question remains.   Has anything caused you to change your own mind about people of another race?    Do you know anyone personally who has had their mind changed about people of another race?  

 

People talk about racial polarization getting worse, but I don't see it.   My mind hasn't changed about people of other races, and I don't know anyone whose mind has changed about people of other races.   I don't know any racists who have given up racism, and I don't know any formerly non-racists who are now racists.  The people I know who are racists are still racists, and the people who weren't racists are still not racists.  

 

I know people protest, and people riot, and burn down buildings, and people say stuff other people don't like, but does that mean anyone has actually changed their mind about anything?  To have polarization get worse, someone has to have changed their mind about something.  

as a white male you see a lot of racism growing up towards blacks, even if it is only in the form of stupid jokes.  Mostly innocent I've never seen anyone take away opportunities from someone due to their color.  Maybe that is a result of living where I do and its different in other places but I have never witnessed it.  In the army I met many severe racists who have completely changed due to positive interactions with fellow soldiers of color so their is that going for us.  The way I see it is I have disdain for anyone who has no respect for another person and threatens them in anyway, those people are scum to me any other reason to hate someone does not exist to me.


I don't think it is as bad as people make it out to be as far as racial polarization is but I know its a bad idea for me to hang out after an Al Sharpton rally ends just like I'm sure its not a good idea to hang out after a trump rally in some backwoods state.


Rioting and protesting in the form it is taking is not good for anyone and the people that are burning down their own communities are wrong in many ways.  I feel bad for the quality individuals in those areas trying to sustain their livelihood in those areas.

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