Black Like Me

[larryshoat]

Sooooool......anybody wanna talk cattle here on Cattle Today?

Black or white?? :hide:

If they're white they better be smokes, we don't want no pink noses! That sounds really racist when I read it.

Larry

 

[Calman]

Started trying to get a race argument going and it backfired on him.
Where I was raised in the south we we're taught to treat a lady with respect.
If that statement to Hillsdown had been made in the presence of my dad he would have slapt him crosseyed and crooked.
Seriously inyati you are amazingly different. That's a fact!!

Cal

 

[Kingfisher]

When I was really small, I thought clowns were a race of people.

They aren't?!!??!!

No ! You can't call 6ft NFL QB's "midgets" today either!

 

[djinwa]

I get 2 white hens and 2 brown hens every year. When they are on the roost, the browns and whites stay apart.

I've become more aware of our behavior as humans, and it isn't much better than animals.

Racism is just one form of tribalism - the need to join a group and stick to it for security and survival, especially the more insecure among us. It just feels good to consider your group to be superior to the others. Groups people cling to include race, religion, political party, sports teams, etc, etc. I know people who cut off ties with their own kids when they left the family religion. The group takes priority over everything.

Most of our behavior is an effort to fit in with the group, or impress others in the group. Fashion, style, accumulating wealth, or whatever. Fear of rejection causes much anxiety.

One of the worst forms of tribalism is nationalism, which is used to fuel our appetite for war. The evening news paints other countries as barbaric for the way they treat each other, while we bomb them to smithereens. Of course, that makes us more civilized, as it is done from high in the sky, even with a drone pilot sitting 6,000 miles away. For some reason we never see the body parts of little kids on the evening news.

USA, USA, USA!!!!

 

[Kingfisher]

Is it really racism or is it discrimination ? Just saying.....

 

[Bigfoot]

I admit--------I practice nationalism---------Proud of it.

 

[branguscowgirl]

In my view, this is not an argument to choose sides with. It was/is a misunderstanding. Communication is difficult via text alone. I read the OP's first post and my brain concluded an emotion of wonderment and compassion, seasoned with a bit of confusion, about the lives of black folks in that era. I thought it was well written and thought provoking in a positive way. As for over reacting/bashing, I see the score even albeit on the surface it appears some take sides due to gender and not race.

Well said Ouachita. I felt the same way when I read Ron's post, but was staying out of this thread. You said it much more eloquently than I ever could.

 

[inyati13]

Now that we have blown off some steam. Let's have a fair discussion.

First, I responded harshly to Hillsdown, but I am not bridled by my "good old boy" upbringing regarding woman. People are all the same to me regardless of gender, race or class. Regardless, it was a harsh response even to direct at a 6' 6" 200 pound man.

Second, I presented it in the context of my personal life. After all, how entertaining would it have been if I dissected it on a plate and served it up to you like it was a piece of catfish. I have lots of friends on here. I did not get one single negative message. I did get some messages that warned me I have to be more patient. My very, very best friend even told me she thought I was too harsh. Ok, I was. But why?

Why? Because the first message posted by HD clearly indicates she was offended. I am not going to repost it here because I don't want to restart a point by point debate. I could not for the life of me understand why someone unless they support racism, would be offended. That bothered me. I could only conclude that she thought I was being racist. I am very sensitive to being considered racist. That is why I posted a second message very quickly providing an explanation. I stated that I realize that all of us have a certain measure of racism. After that, HD posted a second message and my sensitivity to being portrayed as racist contributed to my harsh reply.

I hope it is clear now that the original post was not racist. I used personal experiences in my life to compliment the book, "Black Like Me". But the point was/is that being a white man, I can only read and learn about the feelings of a black man. I can never have a first hand experience of being a black man. Therefore, they get all my compassion and sympathy.

I apologized to HD. It was just one of those things I am sensitive about. It is like being accused of beating your spouse.

PS: I have thought in retrospect if relating those personal experiences in my life may have offended folks. I mentioned that when I was in college, I avoided black girls. That is because there was a strong influence of racism in my youth. The Uncles on my mom's side were racist. But presenting the experiences of my youth in a factual statement should not give offense. It is like many biographies of great people who discuss unsavory acts in their life. Consider it reporting not supporting.

 

[TennesseeTuxedo]

So this is how I learn I'm not your best friend? :cry2:

 

[inyati13]

So this is how I learn I'm not your best friend? :cry2:

See, I cannot open my big mouth without sticking my foot in it.

TT: trust me, you are a great friend. You just don't have beautiful simmentals!!!

 

[TennesseeTuxedo]

Can't argue that point.

 

[melking]

In my view, this is not an argument to choose sides with. It was/is a misunderstanding. Communication is difficult via text alone. I read the OP's first post and my brain concluded an emotion of wonderment and compassion, seasoned with a bit of confusion, about the lives of black folks in that era. I thought it was well written and thought provoking in a positive way. As for over reacting/bashing, I see the score even albeit on the surface it appears some take sides due to gender and not race.

Well said Ouachita. I felt the same way when I read Ron's post, but was staying out of this thread. You said it much more eloquently than I ever could.

What she said. :clap: :clap: He who is without sin, cast the first stone.

 

[inyati13]

In my view, this is not an argument to choose sides with. It was/is a misunderstanding. Communication is difficult via text alone. I read the OP's first post and my brain concluded an emotion of wonderment and compassion, seasoned with a bit of confusion, about the lives of black folks in that era. I thought it was well written and thought provoking in a positive way. As for over reacting/bashing, I see the score even albeit on the surface it appears some take sides due to gender and not race.

Magic statement. You caught it in a bottle. Every now and then, someone comes along and sees through the clouds much more clearly than the rest of us do. I don't want to say more because I will be accused of patronizing you.

 

[TexasBred]

If they're white they better be smokes, we don't want no pink noses! That sounds really racist when I read it.

Larry

Larry you mean you would discriminate against "pink noses"??

 

[john250]

I kinda like that "PINK" underwear some of the girls wear. :hide:

 

[larryshoat]

If they're white they better be smokes, we don't want no pink noses! That sounds really racist when I read it.

Larry

Larry you mean you would discriminate against "pink noses"??

Unfortunately it was the way I was brought up, yes that's right, It was my parents fault.

Larry

 

[Caustic Burno]

My niece was down about a week ago as I have been teaching her how to shoot a 1911
before she goes off to college and living by herself.
Very beautiful and smart girl she said Uncle CB did you know I am a WACK.
I said what is WACK she said half white and half black. I call her Lipton nickname I gave her as baby and it stuck
I said Lipton why in the world did you come up with that, said she got tired of the race questions on the college entrance exams
so under other she went to writing WACK-American.
Told her she is 100% nut.

 

[regolith]

See, I cannot open my big mouth without sticking my foot in it.

:nod: :nod:

I can never have a first hand experience of being a black man. Therefore, they get all my compassion and sympathy.

That statement is offensively patronising. It's evident that I can't rephrase it in a manner that will show you for yourself (I tried, but the 'balance' is different applied that way).
I know this because I belong to a group to which such statements are frequently applied. Each time I hear such a thing I get those prickles of anger... because I don't want any-one's compassion, I just want to be allowed to do exactly what I'd be allowed to do with no comment if I'd been born with the right appendages and been classified male.
(like getting a job working with cattle... like walking home after dark.)

djinwa: very good (and true) post.
I've often thought that the more I discover about psychology the less I like humans and the more intelligent cattle appear.

 

[inyati13]

See, I cannot open my big mouth without sticking my foot in it.

:nod: :nod:

I can never have a first hand experience of being a black man. Therefore, they get all my compassion and sympathy.

That statement is offensively patronising. It's evident that I can't rephrase it in a manner that will show you for yourself (I tried, but the 'balance' is different applied that way).
I know this because I belong to a group to which such statements are frequently applied. Each time I hear such a thing I get those prickles of anger... because I don't want any-one's compassion, I just want to be allowed to do exactly what I'd be allowed to do with no comment if I'd been born with the right appendages and been classified male.
(like getting a job working with cattle... like walking home after dark.)

djinwa: very good (and true) post.
I've often thought that the more I discover about psychology the less I like humans and the more intelligent cattle appear.

Regolith, I understand. While you are spot on and your perception of that statement demonstrates your goodness and maturity, it does not change the fact that we all struggle with racism. The plot of the book "Black Like Me" was written at a time when America was exploring its problem with racism. Up until that point in our history, white americans were not making some of the changes that needed to be made. Please keep in mind and go back to my original post, it is presented from personal experiences that happened many years ago. I have changed. I dated a black woman. It was one of my lifetime experiences that I hold as precious. I not only explored my own sense of race but I was able to explore her's. But the point is, there is not one amongst us who is without racism. There is not a metric to quantify it, but there is a measure of racism in every race on the planet. It is the ones who are proud of it and promote it that have not grown up.

PS: Personally, I appreciate that not all humans were born with that appendage.

 

[herofan]

I described someone to an individual once as, the building inspector, 6 ft. tall, slender, black.... I was interrupted telling me I was a racist. So if I describe someone am I a racist? So is black incorrect?

I was in a carpet store getting a bid on redoing the entire house. I asked the salesman, "Who installs your carpet?" He told me I was a racist and walked away from me.

Why are some many people so sensitive about skin color? What does carpet installation have to do with race?

I understand what you are saying. I still remember watching the news a few years ago, and there was a story about a young boy. they were showing the young boy, his parents, and an African American social worker walking along. The social worker was black and everyone else was white. The reporter wanted to point out the social worker and said something like, "The social worker is the one in the striped shirt, jeans, and baseball cap." He could have described him in a less wordy fashion, but I knew the reporter was scared he would offend someone, but what's wrong with using skin color as a descriptive characteristic?