Shakespeare, in Henry IV, Part One, 1596:
‘The better part of valour is discretion; in the which better part I have saved my life.’
Martin Luther King, Selma, Alabama, A.D. 1964:
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
Eric Holder, Attonery General, United States of America, Devlin Barrett, Associated Press:
WASHINGTON-Attorney General Eric Holder described the United States Wednesday as a nation of cowards on matters of race, saying most Americans avoid discussing awkward racial issues. In a speech to Justice Department employees marking Black History Month, Holder said the workplace is largely integrated but Americans still self-segregate on the weekends and in their private lives.
[…]
Race issues continue to be a topic of political discussion, Holder said, but “we, as average Americans, simply do not talk enough with each other about race.”
He urged people of all races to use Black History Month as a chance for honest discussion of racial matters, including issues of health care, education, and economic disparities.
Good idea Mr. AG. I”ll get back to you during White History Month.
As to the actual black socioecomic dispartiy, we can postulate three causes, or combinations thereof.
One, nature, that different outcomes can be attributed to different biology Advance this theory and be denounced as a racisst. Just ask Charles Murray.
Two, nurture, different cultures produce different personal capital which leads to different outcomes. Advance this theory and be denounced as a racist. Ask Bill Cosby.
Three, white anti-black racism, bad black outcome is all the fault of white men. Advance this theory and become part of the world of Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson.
Only the last theory is safe to posulate in public, but it is becoming every increasingly harder to find actual white anti-black racism. Oh sure you can find white racists, but in large part, aside from the United States Senate, they don’t hold positions of power. It is pointless, and often dangerous, to discuss subjects where actual discusssion of the subject is taboo. Openly disucssing racial issues is a losinog proposition, nothing to gain, but much to lose.
Addendum:
Michelle fires it right back at Holder:
Holder doesn’t want an honest dialogue about race. In the Age of Obama, “talking enough with each other about race” means the rest of us shutting up while being subjected to lectures about our insensitivity and insufficient integration on the weekends.
I think Holder ought to stick to what he knows, kidnapping children.
Tags: al sharpton, bill cosby, black history month, black racism, Charles Murray, devlin, different cultures, economic disparities, Eric Holder, hakespeare, health care education, henry iv part one, Martin Luther King, private lives, racial matters, valour, washington attorney general, white history month
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February 18th, 2009 at 19:24
It seems like Holder completely missed the boat. This would have be perfect opportunity to discuss how far America has come in just a few decades. Look at race relations in Europe to get an idea. I think there’s this idea the United States is more racist than our counterparts and it’s not true. We should be celebrating the fact that truly no position of influence is unattainable because of skin color. Instead Holder offered these divisive remarks that are not constructive.
When did we become such a nation of negativity? Didn’t this administration promise us hope and change? We should quit tearing ourselves down and concentrate on the tasks at hand
February 19th, 2009 at 22:44
So Holder thinks we are a Nation of Cowards. I would love to meet with Holder in person to discuss his handling of the FALN. This group was responsible for 120 bombing attacks on US targets. I was the finder of the first bomb set to go off on the front door to Rockefeller Center. The six members of the FALN walked past me before I came upon the bag hanging on the door. I heard that Holder pardoned this group of Terrorists that more than likely would have killed hundreds of people, as the bomb was set to go off at 9:00am on a work day. Cowards, you say. What do you know about Americans. You come from Barbados. Your parents still live there. I would love to see you in action if something were to happen there, but then again, your against any kind of torture, so your family would probably perish while you told your Boss in D.C. how you upheld your stand on torture. Holder, you are nothing but a Left Wing Scumbag, like the rest of your party.
February 23rd, 2009 at 0:16
Just a few weeks ago, with the election and swearing in of Barack Obama, I
was hearing how black people finally felt like they really could be what-
ever they wanted to be. They felt that they had arrived at a long sought
goal. They felt equal!
Now this idiot gets up in front of his staff, a captive audience, and tells
them how we are a nation of cowards. That people segregate at home. What
does he want? Honest conversation? You can’t have it with blacks! Black
people can say just about anything they want about any other race and no
one says a word about it. A white man, a few years ago, used the word
“niggardly”, a real word, and was fired! A black man who was present
thought the man used a racial slur and started a fuss that lead to the man
being accused of being a racist. The mans reputation is forever tarnished
and he didn’t do anything wrong! The black man was wrong and nothing was
done to him!
Honest conversation about race? Not possible, not while such a huge
disparity still exists between what a black person can say and what a
white person can say. In this particular case, the playing field is not
anywhere near level and it’s NOT tilted in favor of white people. So,
Eric Holder, to hell with you. Your the coward.