I've lost all respect for the term Racist

Or any form of it like bigot, sexist, anti-Semite, etc. Too often in public and on this website I see someone when debating a controversial topic play what is now known as the "race card". These people tend to ignore the very real points and issues that their opponent is making only to try to shut them up completely by admonishing their character. This tactic was made famous with the Obama administration, but it is bleeding over into other forms of bigotry. We have pro-Israel people on this forum calling anti-Israel people anti-Semite like they are one in the same. I've seen racist calls against people not wanting to buy into (illegal) immigration reform. Religious types adopting persecution complexes when separation of church and state is brought up. It's getting ridiculous and we, especially, ATS should be better than that. Feigning offense and shouting "RACIST!" whenever your opponent makes a good point is in poor taste and should be frowned upon.

On top of that, the accusations of racism are starting to breed racism, resentment, and hate. By accusing others like the boy who cried wolf with cries of racist, you are fueling the very racism that you are trying to fight. You are therefore becoming an instrument of racism. I understand the inherent hypocrisy of this statement in the context of my thread, but it must be said. The term racist has become so taboo (it's almost like a cuss word these days), that when someone gets accused of it, their WHOLE lives can be destroyed. If this was a shallow or nonexistent accusation, then you can be sure if they weren't racist before they at the very least don't like you and what you are representing.

Also, by continually drudging up and making people think about racism, you are fueling the divisions between people. You are focusing and giving attention to the negative aspects of human behavior. Human behavior requires reinforcement to be perpetuated. If instead we try to drop the labels it becomes easier to see eye to eye with someone. We forget that there was even a division based on skin color to begin with. Of course this doesn't mean that we can't ALWAYS ignore racism. If it exists, then call it out. That's fine, but think about your actions before doing them. Can the person you are talking to just be disagreeing with your points instead of some imaginary difference between the two of you? Why not try the benefit of the doubt first? I understand that racism exists, there are some very real and hateful people out there, but to pretend like EVERY person who isn't of your race/sex/religion/etc is out to get you is disingenuous, not to mention is racist in of itself. You are becoming that which you are accusing your opponent of.

a reply to: Krazysh0t
How can you tell the difference between someone with a legitimate criticism and a person using a topic to promote their own personal bias?

My understanding is that the word "racist/racism" was developed in the early 1920s by Russian Bolsheviks. The reason for the invention of this word was as a political weapon against dissidents, but specifically to deal with a crisis in the Ukraine at that time. If I recall correctly, large populations in the Ukraine, after the communist revolution, wanted to separate Ukraine from Russia, and more importantly, didn't want to be communist. In a mission to break up any political unity and solidarity, the Russian Bolsheviks started forcefully removing political dissidents in Ukraine and shipped them off to the gulag work camps to be worked to death. However, Russia needed Ukraine since it was and still is the bread basket of Europe. The Bolsheviks started replacing the now work camp imprisoned Ukrainian farmers with other peoples from all across Russia. The Ukrainians hated this for more reasons than one, and were shamed and threatened to the point of apathy for disliking their new Khazar and Tatar neighbors by being called racist.

Racism/racist today is still a tremendously powerful political weapon. It is still used in the same way. To break up political unity, to threaten an individual or group of people into apathy, to destroy careers, to destroy friendships, to force the following of the political narrative being written by those in power.

The worst thing about it is that the word is used so loosely, that the majority of the time, when a person is being called racist or a person is using the word racist, it is incorrectly being used.

I'm probably going to be called racist for typing this... which follows my last sentence perfectly. I am not a racist. I have friends and am friendly to peoples of all races. I take everyone as an individual.

Remember folks, when you see race brought up on television or anywhere else in the main stream media, the liklihood is almost 100% that a political agenda is being played out against YOU that very moment. The purpose of that agenda is to divide you from someone or something.

I will leave you all with something from one of my favorite British musicians/lyricists.

I agree. The race card is one's last chance at trying to win an argument they are aware they are losing. It's kind of like a personal floatation device. A last chance at salvaging something/anything they can as the ship is steadily sinking.

I also agree that racist, hateful, bigoted, ignorant people exist. They always will. But the constant cries of racism have watered down the ability to have meaningful discussions about it. People are getting tired of hearing about it incessantly and all sides start feeling like the other sides may very well be out to get them, hurt them, keep them down, etc. when that isn't the case at all.

I often wonder lately if we haven't seen race relations set back 50 years or more and sometimes it feels like all it will take is a small spark to set off a firestorm of race wars/riots the likes of which we have never seen anywhere in the world. I also wonder if that is not what is "expected" to happen... on purpose.

Many people have said it before I - A house divided can not stand. As long as we are infighting about EVERYTHING, there is no way for us to come together for ANYTHING. It's rather convenient for many I would imagine. The PC environment is creating divides constantly and the people buying into it do not take the time to realize what is happening and what cracks they themselves are perpetrating in the name of equality.

People are getting tired of having to constantly monitor their every word, their every action, and being made to feel guilty for things they haven't done, for thoughts they never had, and that's going to boil over at a point. It makes people bitter and it would be nice if we could stop for a second and just think.

You actually had respect for the word?

Seriously though, i do agree with you entirely on this.

imageshack.com...

I apologise if I am over-simplifying things, but if you take a whole bunch of young children from all walks of life, colour and creed in the same room they will play together. Racism is something we are taught, not born with....it only happens when adults interfere

Just my 2p worth

Rainbows
Jane

originally posted by: beezzer

How can you tell the difference between someone with a legitimate criticism and a person using a topic to promote their own personal bias?

You don't. You can have an agenda and still express legitimate criticism. Both are not mutually exclusive.

And EVERYONE has an agenda. Even anti-BS (pragmatism) is an agenda in a world full of #.

originally posted by: beezzer
a reply to: Krazysh0t
How can you tell the difference between someone with a legitimate criticism and a person using a topic to promote their own personal bias?

Good question. I'd say that at the very least it requires a modicum of intelligence and restraint to begin separating the two.

originally posted by: angelchemuel
I apologise if I am over-simplifying things, but if you take a whole bunch of young children from all walks of life, colour and creed in the same room they will play together. Racism is something we are taught, not born with....it only happens when adults interfere

Just my 2p worth

Rainbows
Jane

That's not over simplifying it at all. It's the basic truth. Kids do not see color/differences until they "learn" to see it. To them it is just the way it is and they accept it just as easily as they accept the moon coming out every night. It just does. They usually don't require extra information.

We see racism dwindling because parents of the last few generations have not felt the need to point out differences that make no difference. Too bad every parent from those previous generations didn't feel the need to do the same thing.

This thread is just as bad as what it purports to be against.

Why do I say this?

The other extreme is to deny the existence of bigotry and decry all allegations of bigotry as "pulling the race card" or being part of the "gay agenda" or "the Muslim agenda" or any of the other "agendas." Two sides of the same coin. Just as there are those who would have you believe that everything has some basis in bigotry, there are just as many people who want to deny that anything has a basis in bigotry.

Addressing one side of the issue without addressing the other is equally detrimental as there should be no "sides." For every person "pulling the race card" there is another "playing the victim card."

This tactic was made famous with the Obama administration, but it is bleeding over into other forms of bigotry

Are you actually interested in having less division or do you just want everyone to see things your way?

I don't see the race card being played that often, in the sense of someone shutting down an argument by calling the other person a racist. At least not as often as I hear of the card apparently being played. Could you give me a recent example?

a reply to: JuniorDisco

Sure. Read this thread

www.abovetopsecret.com...

It was played rather quickly in it and the thread spiraled down into hate talk pretty quickly afterwards. I haven't read it since yesterday but I was pretty disgusted with the actions happening in it.

a reply to: Kangaruex4Ewe

Exactly. I get so tired of having to put an argument on hold so that I can defend against accusations of racism or bigotry before getting back on topic. It's getting ridiculous and while I have more patience then most, others may not continue to be as complacent about it.

And you are right, the constant calls of racism are dividing our country worse than ever before. This country probably hasn't seen this much division since the mid 1800's pre-Civil War.

originally posted by: Krazysh0t
a reply to: JuniorDisco

Sure. Read this thread

www.abovetopsecret.com...

It was played rather quickly in it and the thread spiraled down into hate talk pretty quickly afterwards. I haven't read it since yesterday but I was pretty disgusted with the actions happening in it.

Thanks for the swift reply. Which specific statement are you referring to, though?

Imho racist comments should be punished/banned/deleted but also those who abuse the word and meaning should be. Its disgusting how some ppl use, for example racism as an excuse and manipulator tool on their own agendas etc, they dont seem to care about those who really suffer from racism but indeed they want to win ppl on their sides, who want to side with bad guys right so many ppl might buy it..

originally posted by: Krazysh0t
a reply to: Kangaruex4Ewe

Exactly. I get so tired of having to put an argument on hold so that I can defend against accusations of racism or bigotry before getting back on topic.

That is exactly the goal of labeling.
What you're insinuating sounds alot like political correctness to me, used to discredit your argument.

The only thing even funnier is when anti-PC people resort to using NLP-labeling-techniques themselves, and by doing so discredit themselves without even knowing.

originally posted by: theantediluvian
This thread is just as bad as what it purports to be against.

Why do I say this?

The other extreme is to deny the existence of bigotry and decry all allegations of bigotry as "pulling the race card" or being part of the "gay agenda" or "the Muslim agenda" or any of the other "agendas." Two sides of the same coin. Just as there are those who would have you believe that everything has some basis in bigotry, there are just as many people who want to deny that anything has a basis in bigotry.

Addressing one side of the issue without addressing the other is equally detrimental as there should be no "sides." For every person "pulling the race card" there is another "playing the victim card."

I explicitly stated at the end of the thread that I recognize that racism exists and that we can still use the term to describe a hatemonger. However, we need to exercise restraint, intelligence, and common sense before doing so. Maybe the hate speak could be dismantled by a well crafted counter-argument (proving they weren't racist to begin with).

Are you actually interested in having less division or do you just want everyone to see things your way?

Do you deny that before Obama came on the scene that the cry for racist wasn't so widespread? In order to recognize a problem, one must identify its origins. While racist may have been misused before Obama was elected, it certainly wasn't as widespread in usage as it is now. My feelings towards the Obama administration are irrelevant to this discussion, I just put that in there because that is the time period I recognize as the start point of all of this. If you want to dispute that fact then feel free and do so. I'm not stopping you, if you bring up a good point maybe I'll even amend my OP. Personally, I liked Galvatron's history bit on the origin of the word in Communist Russia.

originally posted by: JuniorDisco

originally posted by: Krazysh0t
a reply to: JuniorDisco

Sure. Read this thread

www.abovetopsecret.com...

It was played rather quickly in it and the thread spiraled down into hate talk pretty quickly afterwards. I haven't read it since yesterday but I was pretty disgusted with the actions happening in it.

Thanks for the swift reply. Which specific statement are you referring to, though?

You are going to have to read the thread for that one. I don't want to name names or anything. You shouldn't have to read far though.

I have been called a racists on here ane other forums because of my position on certain issues and leaders, and an islamaphobe, whatever.

But at the same time the same posters, rant against christians.

I realy don't believe there are that many racist on ats..on the other hand..there are a lot of bigots, and I used that term for the first time in seven years, the other day.

originally posted by: ColCurious

originally posted by: Krazysh0t
a reply to: Kangaruex4Ewe

Exactly. I get so tired of having to put an argument on hold so that I can defend against accusations of racism or bigotry before getting back on topic.

That is exactly the goal of labeling.
What you're insinuating sounds alot like political correctness to me, used to discredit your argument.

The only thing even funnier is when anti-PC people resort to using NLP-labeling-techniques themselves, and by doing so discredit themselves without even knowing.

Well that is the thing, everyone is guilty of labeling another group of people at some point. Whether it is a Republican generalizing all Democrats as Socialists or an atheist saying that all Christians do such and such. I know I've been guilty of this, because I am human. The key is to try to rise above it. This thread is more directed towards attitudes on ATS and not so much at the world at large. We try to deny ignorance here, yet allow such name calling to continue. I understand it is a hard line to draw between making an offhand labeling remark and actually going full blown race card playing so this isn't a request for mods to be more serious and start removing posts and threads. We need to police ourselves first and foremost.