what is it with racism?

Is this an age where multicultural communities are torn apart by our racial differences?
After hearing about a muslim in america taking his hatred out on a bunch of jews he's probably never met before, I have to ask people why it is that we hate a majority because of the actions of a few?
The actions of the Isreali government over the last week or so have been questionable to say the least. But it is not a religion or an idea that has made these mistakes. It's just people. People, no matter what they believe or how powerful or weak they are, make mistakes.
I'm an aphro-american, german mongolian with a north korean upbringing. I guess that makes me special.

Indeed people do make mistakes...

Mankind has an unfortunate, almost genetic, trait...we don't like what we don't know. Some of us more than others, I like to think that I lack that trait utterly...it a false hope, but I like to claim it anyway.

It's not these people who are the dangerous ones...it's the ones who fuel and/or harness that fear/hatred for their own uses who are the truely dangerous ones. These are the ones who must be stopped, because one of these people with even a modicum of personality and charisma gets a hold on the peoples psyche's and...well does Hitler, Pol Pot, or Mao ring any bells? Bad things tend to follow...so don't beware of the sheep, beware of the shepard.

That's rather a unique grouping of heritage there . Special indeed.

Originally posted by seagull
...so don't beware of the sheep, beware of the shepard.

yes...perhaps...but humans are not sheep, and if the sheep didn't follow the shepherd then he would cease to be a shepherd. He would just be a crazy guy with a dog and stick...whistling in the wind.

Humans are inclined to fear the unknown this trait is seese upon by differnt groups who have differnt agendas. The NAZIs took advantage of this trait to turn people against the jews and what is now the Catholic church tried to do away with fact that the earth orbits the Sun.

Originally posted by surrender_dorothy
After hearing about a muslim in america taking his hatred out on a bunch of jews he's probably never met before, I have to ask people why it is that we hate a majority because of the actions of a few?

I just want to point out that Muslim and Jew are religions, not races. And make no mistake about it, this is a holy (religious) war, it's not about race. There is much more hatred between religions than races could ever muster.

I think the whole fight is about being 'right' about religion. After all, race is chosen for us, religion is something we invest in and if we're wrong, there's a lot at stake. So, there's a huge desire and need to prove one's self 'right' about their chosen religion.

But this war is not and never has been about race. It's religion that the world is fighting about.

Originally posted by Benevolent Heretic
But this war is not and never has been about race. It's religion that the world is fighting about.

yeah alright...I guess so. But it's all the same monkey thrush. I've always thought of Jews as a race of people and let's face it the way you dress these days is as much a race as anything. Jewish people dress jewish, muslims have got their own style, punks, goths and all sorts of styles out there seem to define a person for what they look like rather than what they believe.
I watched a news report recently where jewish as well as muslim were calling for a cease fire. But the actions of the state of Israel are getting Jews all the round the world in bother. Similarly the actions of some muslim militant groups are also getting muslims of all shapes and sizes grief.
So, my point is that race, religion, dress sense or whatever. It doesn't necessarily define a persons character or view point. If a muslim fundamentalist attacks a western country then it doesn't mean that all muslims are bad people. I was wrong to catagorise it as a race thing, cheers for pointing that out by the way, but there are parallels.
Perhaps thats why I messed up.

You didn't mess up.

And I totally agree with your points. The separation between peoples and the inability to be tolerant and accept others who are different than us is a huge problem. And yes, there has always been the problem of judging the whole because of the actions of a few.

Very sad and misguided indeed.

I guess my point is that it's important to realize that the shape of the world today has very much to do with religion. In fact, I believe the bottom line is that the Christian extremists (Bush and Co) may very well have used the guise of 'terrorism' to start this Holy War with Israel and the Muslims in mind all along. But that's another thread...

Here's what I was talking about. (Then I'll shut up about it. )

Zionism and Race

Arabs and many Jews are of the same ethnic family, the Semites. Hebrew and Arabic are both Semitic languages. Many Arab Palestinians and Israeli Jews have common ethnic origins, some Jews in Israel having converted to Islam after the Arab conquest, and some ancient Canaanites having converted to Judaism. Jews and Arabs are ethnic cousins, if not brothers. Israeli Jews and Palestinian Arabs are suffering from sibling hatred, not racism.

All I can say, surrender_dorothy, is that in this age the politicians have been using difference to pit all of us against each other. It is a war about religion. I agree with BH on this one. But, I'd also like to add that this is a "cultural war".

The "war on terror" has brought out a backlash on diversity. As a result of "national security", Americans are now being schooled on being suspicious of anything and everyone different.

It makes me very sad. But, because people are scared, they are truly emitting their prejudices and not thinking twice about what they are saying.

You can read that on all the threads attacking Muslims and undocumented workers.


[edit on 31-7-2006 by ceci2006]