Poll: Race Laws: Should they exist?

[suitepee7]

so, was reading through a post earlier on about black history month, and it got me thinking, "why do we have special rules and laws regarding race, when the purpose of them is to stop race being a factor?"

so, i put the question to you, do you
a) see race laws as helpful to deal with race crimes.
or do you
b) see race laws as a hypocrisy, and the fact that they exist actually reinforce racism.


personally, i see it as b, because it reinforces the idea that race makes certain people different from others, however we are all just people, and i think laws regarding race make it harder to see that we are all essentially the same.

 

[BabyRaptor]

When you have people who think that other members of the human race should be denies basic rights simply because they were born with a different skin color, yes. Somehow, they need to be forced to pull their heads from their asses.

Is racism gone? Well...Have you paid attention to the crap Obama has faced in the past two years?

 

[CM156_v1legacy]

Is racism gone? Well...Have you paid attention to the crap Obama has faced in the past two years?

Forgive me, but disliking something a black man does is not the same for disliking a man for being black. I will concede that some of the anger towards Obama may be based on race. However, my dislike for his policies is more based around me being a crazy Conservative Libertarian.

OT: I think any laws of this regard are not helpful.

 

[DarkSoldier84]

Well, yeah; race laws are there to make sure that street races are illegal (because they're dangerous), so kids who want to race should go to purpose-built race tracks.

Wait... "human" race? Why do I always get the wrong idea?

 

[viranimus]

Well as a wise man once told me about the automotive industry, "It took a law to get em to put in seat belts."

So, if you want people to do something they inherently do not want to do, then yes you need a law. Its pretty much the same way they are eliminating smokers. By passing social laws that impose moral doctrine to mold human behavior by killing smokers financially before they actually get killed from smoking.

EDIT:

think laws regarding race make it harder to see that we are all essentially the same.

See the problem with this is that if you take away these laws, it opens the door down the road for people to go right back to engaging in the behavior the laws were designed to prevent.

Which is why the repeal of "Dont ask, Dont tell" astounds me. I cannot fathom why the homosexual community would be in favor of destroying a law that was designed to further advance their cause, and accepted the "repeal" without any sort of tangible law granting protections being written in its place. Now its entirely possible for the military to go back to the way things were pre 1990s.

 

[TraderEddy]

[deleted]

 

[Grathius22]

Race laws should be abolished because it only further differences people from each other. Color doesn't matter, does it? Then why are there laws separating us from them, when we should all just be one group and not separated?

 

[BabyRaptor]

Is racism gone? Well...Have you paid attention to the crap Obama has faced in the past two years?

Forgive me, but disliking something a black man does is not the same for disliking a man for being black. I will concede that some of the anger towards Obama may be based on race. However, my dislike for his policies is more based around me being a crazy Conservative Libertarian.

OT: I think any laws of this regard are not helpful.

And I didn't mean to imply that EVERYONE who hates him does so because he's black. Sorry if I came off that way.

But there have been plenty of stories of masked racism and even some who've just come out and said it.

 

[Johnnyallstar]

Anything that forces differences between how people are treated, and justify it by their color is racism. Even laws forbidding racism can be racist. Besides, without freedom of speech, how can we determine which people we'd like to endorse and support, and those we'd rather not work with?

The best way to get rid of racism is to first remove the parties that require racism for their political power. Any group that uses race as their main hinge point is hurting not only America, but the world. Example, the NCAAP shouldn't exist anymore. At one point, it was a good thing because it was necessary, but it's time is past, and it needs to go the way of the dodo as it's now doing as much damage as good, if not moreso. As long as there is power to be gained from racism, there will be people abusing it for power.

I'll give a funny example of how I think. In '04 Senator John Kerry was running for president, and he held a rally at my high school. I wasn't a Kerry supporter, but considering how rare having that kind of event so close to home is, I decided to go. I remember right behind the podium where Kerry stood were a half dozen black girls who didn't go to my school carrying a sign saying "AFRICAN AMERICANS FOR UNITY!" Now, it's a benign sign with a well intentioned message, but something about it bugged me. After pondering over it for an hour it finally dawned on me just how hypocritical it was. How can we have unity if we keep splitting ourselves into racial groups? How can we be have true unity as long as we continue group politics? How can we be separate, but equal? I don't think it's possible, and as long as we have these groups that always want to be separate but equal there will never be true unity, because to be truly equal everyone must be treated the same under the law. We must return to being a country of Laws, not a country of Group politics.

 

[erztez]

Well as a wise man once told me about the automotive industry, "It took a law to get em to put in seat belts."

So, if you want people to do something they inherently do not want to do, then yes you need a law. Its pretty much the same way they are eliminating smokers. By passing social laws that impose moral doctrine to mold human behavior by killing smokers financially before they actually get killed from smoking.

EDIT:

think laws regarding race make it harder to see that we are all essentially the same.

See the problem with this is that if you take away these laws, it opens the door down the road for people to go right back to engaging in the behavior the laws were designed to prevent.

Which is why the repeal of "Dont ask, Dont tell" astounds me. I cannot fathom why the homosexual community would be in favor of destroying a law that was designed to further advance their cause, and accepted the "repeal" without any sort of tangible law granting protections being written in its place. Now its entirely possible for the military to go back to the way things were pre 1990s.

U mad?

The only reason governments all over the world are increasing tobacco tax is MONEY.
They're not doing it to help the people, they're doing it to save their collective asses.

Also, the government has fuck all to say about how I live my live/intend to kill myself.
And, repealing "don't ask, don't tell" is only the first step towards the inevitable "don't ask, don't give a fuck" doctrine.

 

[Baneat]

Simple.

Is racism wrong from consequences

Or wrong as an act in itself?

People pick A or B and that's it. You're locked in.

 

[TraderEddy]

[deleted]

 

[Ickorus]

Laws for speciic races are bad for multiple reasons, firstly it acknowledges a difference between races (even if said differences doesn't really exist), secondly it complicates laws, and finally it causes anger from peopleof other races that aren't getting the special treatment which in turn creates more racism, which is totally counter-productive.

Same thing goes for positive discrimination, just because it's positive doesn't stop it from being discrimination. People should be judged on their own individual merits rather than what race, creed, or disability might be.

 

[CrustyOatmeal]

there is a point where race laws flip from being useful to being a hindrance to discrimination. the sad part is that this switch does not occur at the drop of a hat, the switch occurs slowly and with very few clues. it comes down to judgment and if you believe the good is outweighed by the bad. i dont think the race laws have outlived their usefulness quite yet but i believe that time is approaching quickly and i do not know if it will pass us by without us even knowing

 

[viranimus]

U mad?

The only reason governments all over the world are increasing tobacco tax is MONEY.
They're not doing it to help the people, they're doing it to save their collective asses.

Also, the government has fuck all to say about how I live my live/intend to kill myself.
And, repealing "don't ask, don't tell" is only the first step towards the inevitable "don't ask, don't give a fuck" doctrine.

Really? What is this? Did I step into a steaming pile of 4chan speech/logic?

As for the government and money, trust me when I tell you that the government gets just as much money from lobbyists from the tobacco industry fighting tobacco taxation because it is killing their industry.

Beyond that, I apologize. I have no clue what point your trying to get across. So until I see something written in a comprehensible manner, Ill refrain from responding on the final point.

 

[Johnnyallstar]

We must return to being a country of Laws, not a country of Group politics.

That's why we should all moved to Switzerland.

I like the mountains and all, but I'll pass on that. America has the potential, and many of the laws in place, we just have to act like laws mean a damn.

 

[bladester1]

There is only ONE RACE of HUMANS on this planet. People get too caught up with trying to make themselves seem different when they are not.

 

[Harry Mason]

You need to be WAAAY more specific. There is a difference between giving a group direct advantages and giving them protection.

Giving a black person a job over a more qualified white person is giving direct advantages, and is not something I believe in.

Prosecuting a company that will not hire a qualified person on account of their race, or a company that pays it's white employees more than it's black employees, is protection of rights and something I STRONGLY believe in.

Both of these types of laws are "race laws," so I rounded up and said they were useful.

 

[YuheJi]

You need to be WAAAY more specific. There is a difference between giving a group direct advantages and giving them protection.

Giving a black person a job over a more qualified white person is giving direct advantages, and is not something I believe in.

Prosecuting a company that will not hire a qualified person on account of their race, or a company that pays it's white employees more than it's black employees, is protection of rights and something I STRONGLY believe in.

Both of these types of laws are "race laws," so I rounded up and said they were useful.

Basically this. I'm reminded of the Rooney Rule in the National Football League, that requires teams to interview at least one non-white candidate for coaching positions. It was installed in 2003, and while those of us that watch American Football know that there are lots of blacks that play the sport, a whopping 6% of all coaches were black. And after the rule, that figure jumped up to 22%. Maybe it's the stereotype that white people are smarter, but something must have really been wrong for only 6% of the coaches to be black. And now, some of the most successful head coaches have been black (Tony Dungy, Mike Tomlin).

 

[Craorach]

Laws, all laws, should be written from a race/gender/faith/sexuality/whatever Neutral point of view.

It is not illegal for a man to hit a woman.. it is illegal for a person to hit another person.

It is not illegal to kill someone for being black.. it is illegal to kill someone.

What there does need to be is oversight of the criminal justice system to ensure that crimes are not ignored, or misjudged, or otherwise mishandled because of any bias on the part of the system or its representatives.

Edit : Employment law in general needs a massive overhaul. If there is going to be any interference by government in private business it needs a pretty simple model based upon ensuring that the only factors employers can take into account is job suitablity, experience and qualifications. This too however should be from a neutral stand.