As an American I am not only given the Right to voice my opinion, I am also subjected to other people's Right to voice theirs. I say "subjected to" because many people are so ignorant about the topics they so strongly vocalise opinions about.
Now, do not misunderstand me. I greatly value our right to voice our opinions. What I do not agree with, as my opinion, is peoples insistence that voicing racist comments is also a right. My understanding of the bill of rights is that as long as you, exercising your rights, do not trample others' rights, it is allowed. If you, in the exercising of your own rights, keep others from theirs, it is unlawful. It is my belief that when people demonstrate person views of racism through voice or action, it impedes others right to equality. On the same note, creating organizations or offering assistance based upon race, is also unconstitutional.
Isn't the whole basis of equality to be equal with no distinction made regarding race? If people wish to make race specific organizations, they should be subject to the laws pertaining to racial segregation. Some organizations have adapted, such as the United Negro College Fund which offers assistance to all races. To discriminate against any race, for any reason, in the United States should be considered an illegal practice. This includes favoring minorities, namely race, by our own government.
I have listened to countless people lecturing that race does make a difference. Or that "everyone" is racist in some way. I do not believe so. Personally, there are only two beliefs commonly exercised that immediately anger me. When people believe they will fail before even attempting something and when they say that one race is better, or worse, that another for whatever reason. I believe people are people and should be judged by their own actions. Jerks are jerks, no matter what color their skin or where they came from.
The only true difference is a persons financial starting point. I say this because not everyone has the same "chances" in life. If you come from a rich and well connected family, your chances of having getting a college education are much greater than someone from a poor family. The laws in our country favor the rich to such an extent that if you are rich and do not need money, you can get a loan easily. Not only easily, but with a much better interest rate. Take two people with the exact same credit score, one being rich the other being poor. The poor person will get a higher interest rate on their loan than the rich person. The poor persons interest rate will be raised without notice, due to the social group they are in. How is this lawful? Because rich people financed the laws pertaining to this.
I know, it is rather obvious that I fall into the poor group. This does not mean that I am in any way wrong. Martin Luther King Jr. is touted as a civil rights activist for helping do away with racial segregation. That was not his goal at all. He believed that alleviating poverty would solve the racial problems. Not that changing the constitution to make every race equal would solve anything. If our economy were adjusted in such a way that everyone stood on fairly equal footing, the racial issues would greatly decrease. I believe this wholeheartedly.
Many people wrongly focus upon the subjugation of black people in our history. Blacks, Asians, Hispanics, Polish, Irish, Native Americans, they were all horribly subjugated. Basically, anyone that was anything other than British were subjugated. As I've said in earlier posts, I am Bohemian. My "homeland" is not even on maps any longer. Should I be bitter and blame the Germans and the Russians? Why? It is in the past. What we do now, as a nation, is more important than what was done to our ancestors in the past.
My family is going through some very difficult financial difficulties at the moment but I do not blame those problems on race. I blame them on our nations focus on allowing the wealthy to write laws securing the wealth of the rich by making sure the poor "stay where they belong". I am not what anyone would consider to be "dumb". I have not had the opportunity to attend college but I have always had a passion for learning. With my socioeconomic status I have not been able to attain an education that would allow me to climb the ladder to a higher standing. Because of many reasons, race and age included, I have been passed over for financial assistance for living expenses and an education. It is actually quite funny, in a sense. Being an able bodied, white, male, with good motor skills and a decent IQ, I have been told I do not need assistance. Even as I have been unable to find employment without a college degree and with my family on the verge of being kicked out of our house.
I am not a greed driven person, maybe to my detriment. My wife and I do not wish to be wealthy, only to make enough money to provide for our family and be free from the stress of unpaid bills and no food in the pantry to feed our family. Whenever I am employed, I am considered a workaholic, but the moment I was laidoff I was considered lazy. Because I could not find a new job. Understand, in my area of Michigan the unemployment rate is nearly double the national average. Michigan's unemployment rate is 15-17%. In my county it is nearly 30%. I have been told many times to relocate. Where to? With what money? I have looked all over Michigan for work. In order to provive the minimum support for my family I need a college degree... in anything. Many job listings out there require a degree to apply but do not care what the degree is in or whether it applies to the work. There are just so many people unemployed in Michigan at the moment that just having a degree in an unasociated field is a minimal requirement. For those of us without a degree it is nearly impossible to find employment.
I degressed from my topical rant a bit there at the end, but I guess I needed to vent a bit.
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