What percentage of books you own are by white authors?

[grumbler]

What is race without racism? If race is socially constructed, then the idea falls apart if there's no reason to distinguish between races. And if the 'races' are equal--both in nature and in society--then there's no reason to do so.

That assumes that "socially constructed" = "meaningless" or "irrelevant" which is a bit of a jump.

Who claims that racism is meaningless or irrelevant?

[grumbler]

Sorry, I thought you were actually interested in a discussion not a Socratic dialogue. My apologies.

It's too bad, because it could have been an interesting discussion.  But that's grumbler for you.

Indeed.  Everyone flees the questions about race, because they have no answers.  But that's grumbler for you, avoiding platitudes and going to the uncomfortable heart of the matter. 

Feel free to have your "interesting discussion" in this thread.  I promise not to lance your fantasies or post in this thread again.

[11B4V]

Well that is just an entertainment let down.

[DGuller]

Indeed.  Everyone flees the questions about race, because they have no answers.

That's going to happen when every answer to "what is race" will be unilaterally deemed by you to be the answer to "what is racism".  Pretty much any question in existence can wind up with not having an answer, if the sole arbiter of what constitutes an answer decides that there is no answer.

[The Brain]

In grumbler's defense my impression is that he actually thinks that he's being profound and that he has some significant insight.

[Razgovory]

Akkadians were a Afro-Asiatic people who appear to have arrived in Sumeria a very long time ago.

[garbon]

In grumbler's defense my impression is that he actually thinks that he's being profound and that he has some significant insight.

I'm not sure that is much of a defense though.

[Gups]

In grumbler's defense my impression is that he actually thinks that he's being profound and that he has some significant insight.

I'm not sure that is much of a defense though.

There's no need for a defence. The attack is simply a social construct and does not objectively exist.

[garbon]

In grumbler's defense my impression is that he actually thinks that he's being profound and that he has some significant insight.

I'm not sure that is much of a defense though.

There's no need for a defence. The attack is simply a social construct and does not objectively exist.

[The Brain]

Akkadians were a Afro-Asiatic people who appear to have arrived in Sumeria a very long time ago.

They were awesome golfers.

[Delirium]

I suppose your idea of "race" makes sense in an social system with only clearly identifiable whites and blacks, with all blacks perpetuated as victims.

But this is from the real world, where I spend my days.

I teach English (and history) mostly on high school level to adults. Around 90% of my students did not go to school in this country. A class I remember consisted of:

1 from Mexico
2 from Thailand
1 from Saudi Arabia
3 from Somalia
4 from Iran
2 from Iraq
2 from Poland
2 from Russia
1 from China
1 from Bulgaria/Turkey
2 Kurds
1 from Spain
1 from Chile
2 Swedes, one white and one from Ethiopia

I challenge you to apply your social construct of "race" in this context, identifying the whites and non-whites, what they have in common, and ESPECIALLY what I will learn by interviewing one "non-white" as opposed to a "white" person.

[garbon]

*white whine*

[Jacob]

Delirium, are you under the impression that social constructs provide a clear, consistent, and rational set of rules to apply?

[Berkut]

garbon you are a stereotype of exactly the reason the progressive left is a joke, and not a very funny one.

If someone doesn't agree with you, you accuse them of being racist, or at the very least being ignorant because of their race (which if anything, is YOU being a racist). It's the very reason why debate is not tolerated in places where it ought to be embraced. The accusation of racism is just too easy to make for the intellectually lazy.

[Berkut]

*white whine*

Quoted for posterity.

Maybe he just doesn't fucking agree with you, and that has nothing to do with his race?

Is that possible?