What a Great Day!
June 28th, 2007I won’t lie to you. I’ve personally benefited from Affirmative Action, getting free calculus tutoring in college. If I were white, I would have had to pay for it. But I’m not stupid. If someone throws free tutoring in your face in a subject you’re bad at, you’d be an idiot not to take it, especially when you’re flat broke and you have a kid to take care of.
But I am very much against Affirmative Action, because I’m sick and tired of being seen for my race. I don’t like to be asked my race. I wish they’d just call me American and keep it at that.
I see it coming from a mile away too. They’ll give me that look, and in their heads, they’re wondering how to word it without offending me.
This morning, John Roberts, our Chief Justice, made the decision to limit considering race. It’s about time. “The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race,” Roberts said. That’s exactly how I feel. Stop judging. Stop asking, period. I don’t want to be asked when applying for a job, applying for a school, applying for a loan, or whatever. I am American, and let’s leave it at that.
For those of you who still like our President, props to Bush for appointing Roberts. I love the guy. But I still hate Bush. Sorry Bush lovers.
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More importantly this morning, the Senate blocked Bush’s stupid amnesty bill. Good job, Senators. Now start enforcing the immigration laws that are already on the books.
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Elsewhere in the world, Egypt finally banned female circumcision. It’s a pretty ******* disgusting practice, and I’m glad it’s been outlawed.
Also in Egypt, the mystery mummy has been identified as Queen Hatshepsut. What a trip. All this time, they thought her remains had been lost. If you’re an Ancient Egypt nut like I am, you’ll know who I’m talking about. She was the 2nd and probably most famous female Pharaoh.
Zombie: Book recommendation for you: “The Trouble With Diversity: How we learned to love identity and ignore inequality” by Walter Benn Michaels.
I agree in part that racial discrimination won’t end until it ends. However, I do think that there are hidden, subtle inequalities built on race in our culture that systematically exclude non-white (and female and low/working class persons) from full participation. When you look at AA as an attempt to level the playing field resulting from unearned, white, male, mid/upper class privilege, it does not appear as a handout.
And RE: Egypt. Yeah, they’ve outlawed that before. It’s also technically outlawed in many other countries where it is still performed. There’s a huge gap between legal and customary law. It will take more than legalities to get it to stop. It will take the education of women and men about its dangers and the fact that it is not required by Islamic law as many people believe and are taught. Oh, and they have to learn to stop being so f**king afraid of female sexualtiy.
Oh… and the form of FGM performed in Egypt (excision) is tame compared to what is practiced in other areas of Africa called infibulation. Just an FYI for those unfamiliar.
Jean - I wish there was a cure. You’re the third person I know who have it. I have heard horror stories, and my deepest sympathies to someone with it.
Laura - That book looks like something I’d write. We scream about racial inequality all the time, but ignore the real problem - class. Paris Hilton’s not getting special treatment because she’s white, she’s getting it because she’s from the upper class. I’d be in serious trouble if I were driving around drunk with no lights on with a suspended license.
By the way, I think it was you who told me what female circumcision was. And yes, folks need to stop being scared of female sexuality, even in the US of A. I should do a post on studs vs sluts, how guys who have lots of sex are studs and chicks are sluts. I think that double standard is bullshit. I’m all for horny women, as you know from reading my blog.
I’ve always been against Affirmative Action as well. I could have used it in college, but chose not to, but I probably would have if I had a child. Instead, I worked three jobs. I watched the Roberts confirmation and liked him right away. He’s a true Constitutional Conservative which is worlds away from these so called “Consevatives” running rampant over our country.
Zombie I am trying to teach my six year old that its doesnt matter if you are orange, purple or blue or pink they are people. Kora has this habbit of making sure I know what color they are it just pisses me off. I know shes only six but after about the third crack across the butt or the cheek I would think she would get the idea you dont say that stuff. But you are right people are so racial and it bothers me.
lots of good news indeed. and while some readers correctly make good popints about FGM being so deeply entrenched in a culture that this will not stop it this is at the very least a good step in the right direction.
i can recall discussing the subject with an american male friend of mine who had the aduacity to say it doesn’t matter if a woman can enjoy sex or not so why the outcry when american boys get circumcized routinely. i explained to him how infiublation is often what is meant and the extremeity of that procedure, i also clarified that even if the practice were limited to removal of the clitoris it is not the same as male circumcision because the male equivalent of a clitoredectomy would be lopping off the entire head of the penis, not just removing the foreskin. he was offended by my forthrightness and description. clearly there is fear of female sexuality in the good ole USA too.
I am torn on the issue though I disagree with many of your views. You readily admit you took advantage of AA and defend it by basically saying “wouldn’t you?” then you attack it. It sounds very much like the stereotype of “suddenly rich” blacks (think athletes) changing their voter registration to Republican. If you didn’t have a good job, a wife, and kid, and a house, would you feel the same way? We’ll never know.
Female circumcision is illegal in the US too, but that doesn’t stop people from doing it on the sly.
Alright I have to ask the dumb question but where do they circum size a woman exactly??? I mean yikes. It sounds so painful. We dont have that much more skin down there. Ouch just thinking of it.
I’m glad Egypt has made this practice illegal; it is so awful; I wish I had the guts to go to Africa and visit the villages where they believe that cutting the clitoris of a young girl will prevent her from sleeping with boys, for the love of God there are better ways than torturing these poor girls!
I’m with you on AA. No need for it. Nationality must come first, and insisting that anyone needs the playing field leveled is just an insult and a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Never heard of that queen…my armchair Egyptology clearly isn’t up to snuff.
Just - Yes, good to see a real Constitutional conservative. Nowadays, those who call themselves conservatives in power are far from it.
Tweety - Good to see you’re doing a fine job teaching your kids it shouldn’t matter.
Lime - That in itself is a good post, about what female circumcision can be compared to.
clearly there is fear of female sexuality in the good ole USA too.
There is. And it’s bad for both genders.
Sygyzy - I used about 15-20 tutoring sessions, at $15 each. So that’s up to $300 in taxpayer money. You have a good idea how much I make, and you should know even with three deductions I pay a heck of a lot more than $300 in taxes every paycheck.
Tshsmom - They do it here? That’s sick. If I were running the show and they were foreigners, I’d send them back with no chance whatsoever to come back to the USA, i.e., they’d be shot on sight if they try to come back. If they were nationals, they’d be in jail. I had no idea.
Tweety - Read what Lime said. That’s a pretty good description.
La Cremiere - I’ve always been pro-female sexuality. From my perspective, I’d much rather have a woman who enjoyed sex. This is one of those practices that I’d like to see eliminated from the world.
SME - Nationality must come first, and insisting that anyone needs the playing field leveled is just an insult and a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Yes, it’s an insult to me. I hate being called a minority. And it’s an insult to assume I need a leg up.
There have been several cases, in the news, where young girls have been admitted to our hospitals after a botched circumcision.
We’ve also had several cases of male relatives killing their daughters when they become too westernized, and have “shamed” their families. This behavior is legal in their home country, NOT HERE!!
I had an intelligent comment but I lost it. Let me just say that this was an awesome post as usual.
Oh and I didn’t see the tv special about the mummy, but I did hear the advertisement. “At a time when the most powerful man on earth was a woman.” Talk about your affirmative action. lol
Tshsmom - Those are exactly the people I don’t want in this country. I want us to go forwards, not backwards.
Moni - There were two female Pharaohs that I know of. Hatshepsut even wore a fake beard as the Pharaoh symbol, and groomed her daughter to be a Pharaoh as well, but her daughter died.
People still like Bush? Isn’t his approval rating something horrid - 25% or something? Even though I’m white, I hate the racial question too. On the paperwork that I would have to fill out for my students at school, I refused to fill in the “ethnicity” section, mostly because I didn’t want to assume, and also because I’m embarrassed to ask.
As far as female circumcision, I can’t even fathom that Lime’s acquaintance even could compare female and male circumcision. I don’t know any males who’ve been circumcised who aren’t able to enjoy sex. Hat’s off to Lime for explaining it to the oaf!
Notta - Yeah, it’s something like that. Last time I heard it was under 30%. I’m even surprised it’s that high. I don’t see how anyone with a straight face could call themselves a conservative and say they like what Bush is doing. Your son’s generation will be paying for his deficit for decades.
You don’t have to be non-white to hate that ethnicity section. It’s nobody’s business.
As for female circumcision, I had no idea that the clitoris was removed. That’s just f***** disgusting. Yeah, Lime said it best.