racism is used by the left as a symbol for people who are against socialism

anyone who doesnt want more handouts for weak people is labeled a racist

if your not nice enough to gays, or black, or women, or any other weak group then you must be a racist.

It's not only a label. It's a perception. You can be racist whether or not you're called racist. If you're racist it probably has nothing to do with gays or women and everything to do with race. It's normal to be drawn to that which is like you. But it's very stigmatized to express that now.

Bias is natural.
Prejudice is learned (socialized).
Racism is instituted (enforced).

It's normal to be drawn to that which is like you — Lil

It's boring, rather. Discovering what is different from you can be loads of fun

What I say may not make sense but I'm going to go out on a limb and say it any way if only as a test drive of my theory.

When a positron (+) meets its opposite an electron (-), what ensues is annihilation of both - Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD). When one race encounters another, the instinct is, for safety purposes I suppose, to interpret differences as opposites and alarm bells instantly go off - each race will perceive the other as an existential threat. That explains mutual distrust/animosity between races. Racism takes it one step further - one race begins to believe itself to be superior to other races. So far I've been unable to figure out how hostility takes us to supremacy. My best guess is the former boils down to some kind of battle - of raw strength and/or wits - which means there'll (usually) be a clear winner and a loser. A sense of being better (brains/brawn department), synonymous with superiority/supremacy is born out of this. I ain't sure though. Just a wild theory.

Racism seems natural. Certitude, questionable. A pinch of sodium chloride recommended.

No, it's not natural. Our ancestors got on peaceably enough. More traditional societies living today don't seem to suffer from it. Our younger generations today, raised in a more multicultural society, seem to have much less if it.

As far as I can tell, it's pretty much entirely a white person thing, and pretty much entirely directed toward ethnicities who originally hadn't heard of Jesus and couldn't defend themselves against the massive armies of people who had.

But scumbag fathers teach scumbag sons... It'll be around a while yet (viz. the Euro final this weekend gone).

:100: Yeah, by all reliable accounts, racism is a historical aberration (mostly) of the northern hemisphere – per development of capitalism – post-1492 CE exported to and established around the global and is still ongoing ... like anthropogenic climate change.

Yeah, by all reliable accounts, racism is a historical aberration (mostly) of the northern hemisphere – per development of capitalism – post-1492 AD exported to and established around the global and is still ongoing ... like anthropogenic climate change. — 180 Proof

Could you elaborate a little more please. How exactly did money (capitalism) lead to racism?

I didn't say that. African slave trade, resources plundering of the Americas then later Africa & Asia, administrated control of colonies by central states (empires) and classifications of subject peoples in order to "efficiently" exploit, ethnically cleanse or exterminate them/us that in combination had generated mountains of "free" capital which subsequently needed to be invested. Thus, the nonlinear positive feedback relationship with emergent capitalism (vide Smith, Marx). Google & wiki, I often remind you, Fool, are your friends. (Didn't you study history in school or read any post-colonialist political-economics since?) :yawn:

That explains mutual distrust/animosity between races*. — TheMadFool

Between elves and orcs maybe, but humans interbred with literally different races and evolution favors diversity, so its inaccurate on two accounts.

Correction: *species

There are different species in nature, not different "races" except as bureaucratic categories (castes).

not different "races" — 180 Proof

Some of these Republicans make me question everything. :meh:

Such as?

Well people believing in pedophiles coming from space or that Trump is going to get reinstated some time this year is so far off from anything based in reality that I wonder how a human being could come around to believe this.

It's not as if we're in the desert 2000 years ago when everything could be discussed in terms of miracles.

There are different species in nature, not different "races" except as bureucratic categories (castes). — 180 Proof

I read "race" is a human thing, and so I agree. But, while dogs are all the same species (canis lupus) and can interbreed, I think the many different breeds are akin to race. Funny how I don't see dogs discriminating against each other based on breed. Dogs will pack up, fight, fuck, party, any old way. I've never seen two of one breed look sideways at another dog of another breed. Must be a human thing.

There are different species in nature, not different "races" except as bureucratic categories (castes). — 180 Proof

:100:

Intolerance is cultural survival mechanism where there's a lot of competition. Cultures that lack intolerance will be subsumed.

Racism is a particularly materialistic manifestation of intolerance, and becomes problematic where the "inferior" race has genetically dominant genes. It's a recipe for a holocaust.

Intolerance is cultural survival mechanism where there's a lot of competition. Cultures that lack intolerance will be subsumed.

Racism is a particularly materialistic manifestation of intolerance, and becomes problematic where the "inferior" race has genetically dominant genes. It's a recipe for a holocaust. — frank

You'd have to dumb that down for me. I'm not understanding what you mean. Particularly the "subsumed" aspect. A cultural analogy would be, has European Pagan practice been subsumed by Christianity, or has it found a way to live on? Or, like the Paul Rever and the Raiders song "Though I wear a shirt and tie I'm still part redman deep inside."

I don't think we know enough about "higher animals" to be conclusive on this. Obviously not based on race, but there are cases in which families of mammals leave one of there own out by themselves. It's not clear if it's something to do with the excluded one being too weak or something like that, but yes, people take this to just a whole other dimension.

Some people, likely many, like to feel they are better than someone else for X factor. Usually x factor is quite arbitrary, but complex systems get created out of these tendencies.

German Czechs were subsumed. German Jews weren't.

German Czechs were subsumed. — frank

Does subsumed mean disapeared? Became totally Czech and no longer have a German identity?

They lost their Czech identity.

They lost their Czech identity. — frank

Oh. When you said "German Czechs" I was thinking of Germans in Czechoslovakia, like German Americans, not Czech Germans. Either way, that sounds like a loss of cultural identity, not racial identity. Surely their "blood" or any physical characters continue?

I'll put in another plug for this "60 Minutes" story about how moral judgement develops in very young children. It has a lot to say about your question. Thirteen minutes long. I've watched it three or four times and it amazes me every time. There are some ads.

https://www.cbs.com/shows/60_minutes/video/msGw1iFHLOXlVdeZtfO9KBW9Kffq3VUl/born-good-babies-help-unlock-the-origins-of-morality/

Human beings are differentists - they are always seething with bigotries and prejudices and fears. Are these natural or not?

Reminds me of the old Bedouin proverb: “Me against my brother; me and my brother against our cousin; me, my brother and my cousin against the stranger.”

No, it's not natural. Our ancestors got on peaceably enough. — Kenosha Kid

I guess things were peaceful enough under Egyptian, Roman, Aztek, Chinese, Assyrian, Persian and Mongul rule. It's true, slavery was based on being conquered rather than skin color, but as long as you paid your taxes to the Emperor/Pharaoh/King, and your religious practices were accepted in the empire, it was all good.

As far as I can tell, it's pretty much entirely a white person thing, and pretty much entirely directed toward ethnicities who originally hadn't heard of Jesus and couldn't defend themselves against the massive armies of people who had. — Kenosha Kid

Yeah, because prior to Christianity, everyone in the Middle East got along swell. Jews, Samaritans, Assyrians, Babylonians and Egyptians never had any cause to fight each other. Those damn white Christians, like Jesus and Paul, messed everything up /s.

I guess things were peaceful enough under Egyptian, Roman, Aztek, Chinese, Assyrian, Persian and Mongul rule. It's true, slavery was based on being conquered rather than skin color, but as long as you paid your taxes to the Emperor/Pharaoh/King, and your religious practices were accepted in the empire, it was all good. — Marchesk

You're still talking about recent humans, a few thousand years at most. You know we've been around a lot longer than that, right? I mean, a _lot_!

Yeah, because prior to Christianity, everyone in the Middle East got along swell. Jews, Samaritans, Assyrians, Babylonians and Egyptians never had any cause to fight each other. Those damn white Christians, like Jesus and Paul, messed everything up /s. — Marchesk

And here I was talking about _now_ wherein most racism one encounters is by white people, targeted against black people, middle eastern people, Jews, etc. Not a lot of Samaritan-on-Assyrian hate these days, you notice. Also, I know you're straw-man--building, and really badly, so this is largely pointless but I'm pretty sure Jesus and Paul didn't try to colonise Africa. Reading all the words helps.

My opinion - racism is natural because of tribalism (I’m not saying it’s good). I also think people want to breed with people that look similar. I’m white, and I do regret that this beautiful race is eventually going extinct. But I don’t hate other races or wish them harm. I simply wish we could preserve our races (but eventually, whites will disappear). I don’t really care though because I will be dead by then and I have no children

Yeah or check out how population genetics show Bantu's spread across Africa and how they kept pygmies around as a slave population probably for a couple of millennia.

You're still talking about recent humans, a few thousand years at most. You know we've been around a lot longer than that, right? I mean, a _lot_! — Kenosha Kid

The written record doesn't go back much further does it? How would we know whether they were prone to racisme or not?

You're still talking about recent humans, a few thousand years at most. You know we've been around a lot longer than that, right? I mean, a _lot_! — Kenosha Kid

I do, and I'm aware that tribes had warriors and conflicts as well, although I'm sure it all depends on the tribe, time and region. I've also heard there's evidence civilization likely goes back thousands of years further than has been generally recognized.

Not a lot of Samaritan-on-Assyrian hate these days, you notice. — Kenosha Kid

No, but the Middle East still has its issues, you may have noticed.

Also, I know you're straw-man--building, and really badly, so this is largely pointless but I'm pretty sure Jesus and Paul didn't try to colonise Africa. — Kenosha Kid

And here I was talking about _now_ wherein most racism one encounters is by white people, targeted against black people, middle eastern people, Jews, etc — Kenosha Kid

In white predominant countries, notably America and other former British colonies, and historically, Western Europe. I'm guessing things are a little different in other parts of the world.

I'm pretty sure Jesus and Paul didn't try to colonise Africa. — Kenosha Kid

So where do you want to draw the line on Christianity, Constantine?

lso, I know you're straw-man--building, and really badly — Kenosha Kid

No, I just don't agree with your post summarizing historical conflict as largely Western European. That's very recent history.