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so i've been reading the forums, listening to the news, interacting with different people. and i've notice that the majority of problems in our country are issues that our government can't fix. i just wanted to go over some things, and get some opinions from you guys on what issues you think should be addressed by our society at large.
i'll start.
Racism/Reverse Racism:
as a minority of mixed ethnicities(black/puerto rican) i find that my "people" are/were becoming intolerant of whites in general. a sort of reversal from back in the day. black women, in particular, seem to hate seeing black men dating white women, feeling like we should stick to our "race". i honestly think that to NOT date interracially is to completely negate everything the civil rights movement stood for. but then it goes back to normal racism. i'm stationed in Ft. Sill, the longest i've been in the south. i notice that interracial dating in general seems to be a big no-no. i don't have a problem with white people not dating blacks or hispanics because they aren't PHYSICALLY attracted to them, thats one thing. but here, they seem to not date us for the simple fact of common stereotypes and good ol' fashioned hate. we need to find a way to get pass this.
religious tolerance/intolerance: look, everybody has a right to voice their opinion. what i have a problem with is people trying to make their opinions into LAW. such as religious people trying their hardest to keep gay marriage illegal. such as our boy Rick Santorum talking about he wanted to ban porn. such as catholics getting pissed about birth control.
i think the biggest part is the gay marriage. lets get one thing straight: gay marriage does NOT effect us in anyway.
its not going to make me marry a dude. its not going to make you marry a dude. you're not going to wake up gay. and you don't have to attend any gay marriage. enough of that. we have to realize that we are ALL americans, we pay our taxes. so gays should be able to have the main part of the constitution: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. its not going to effect my heterosexual marriage whatsoever. i still love women.
Cultural Dividing:
yes, i love my heritage, i love being puerto rican, i love being black. what i do not love? being segregated, or being molded by society that i should think, act, and feel like i'm someone different.
i spent 5 years in Germany, married a german and had 2 kids. one thing i noticed about Germany and Europe: they don't call themselves "white" or "black". they call themselves whatever country they are from. i never heard the term "stupid .". you know what i got called? A Dumb American.
because thats what we are. we need to change the way our society acts and realize that we are americans FIRST. i'm not African-American. i wasn't born in Africa. i only went because the Army sent me. if it wasn't for that, i would've never went, for i have no desire to go. i don't speak african. i speak screwed up american english.
you're not latin american. if you was born in the USA, you're American, with hispanic Heritage, nothing more. we have to embrace who we are as a country, not as individuals. yes, i understand that our country is made of different ethnicities and Nationalities from around the world. be we are AMERICANS. we have to unite, especially since the rest of the world hates us anyway.
feel free to debate whatever i posted, or list some of your own things. i hope i can get some mass participation in this.
“To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public.”
- Theodore Roosevelt
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Just a quick reply ......
I think that love/attraction should determine who someone dates or marries, rather than either person's skin color. I don't think that inter-racial dating/marriage is any better or worse than dating someone of the same race.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
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I agree with most of what you said, but where I am I do see a lot of interracial relationships, the majority being black guy with white girl, and from what I have been told by white friends that have dated black girls, that the black guys are not very accepting and it puts a strain on the relationship when they hung out with her friends rather than his.
As for ALL us being American I agree, but some want to be hyphenated Americans, which I believe also creates a divide simply because they identify themselves as other than pure American.
As for making laws and such, that will be a hard one to break because everyone has their opinion on what is right and wrong. And while you say gay marriage has no affect on others, those others will argue it does and point out ways they feel it does. Right or wrong is all a matter of opinion.
As I said in the Cheerios thread, the racial divide will just slowly dissolve with each generation, you will never govern, rally or riot, racism or prejudice, out of people, in many cases you just seed it deeper.
We don't have to agree with each other, to respect each others opinion.
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I think it doesn't matter what we think. Nor should it.
![[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]](https://i.imgur.com/hfMNC7T.jpg) "I am undeterred and I am undaunted." --Kevin Stefanski "Big hairy American winning machines." --Baker Mayfield #gmstrong
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Quote:
. what i have a problem with is people trying to make their opinions into LAW.
But your whole post is trying to promote some defacto style of one thinking that nobody is allowed to disagree with. So it's like a law.
They one style of thinking, that " melting pot" stuff, where everyone has to be diverse and let others be how they want to.
Well I'll tell you what, It tears down Society! This advocates tearing down all societies by just mixing them all together until each and every one of them is watered down into nothing.
another point!
You want to promote interracial dating to continue the cival rights movement? All that is going to do is create more racism.
You think Gay marriage doesn't affect you? It affects everyone in every way, because homosexuality is a sin against God! So Gay Marriage brings the Judgment of God against this country!
All I see in this you posted is a massive line of government think!
I'm here to say enough is enough! It's time to have some Free Thinking!
We don't have to put up with this government Jargain! Nobody is facing any segregation, nobody is facing any discrimination.
I have a problem with anyone spewing this mularchy and demanding everyone has to agree with it! It's Mularchy!
Can Deshaun Watson play better for the Browns, than Baker Mayfield would have? ... Now the Games count.
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You think Gay marriage doesn't affect you? It affects everyone in every way, because homosexuality is a sin against God! So Gay Marriage brings the Judgment of God against this country!
If that's the problem, I wouldn't worry. We probably lost God way back when we exterminated the Native population or enslaved a race of people. 
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Quote:
so i've been reading the forums, listening to the news, interacting with different people. and i've notice that the majority of problems in our country are issues that our government can't fix. i just wanted to go over some things, and get some opinions from you guys on what issues you think should be addressed by our society at large.
i'll start.
Racism/Reverse Racism:
as a minority of mixed ethnicities(black/puerto rican) i find that my "people" are/were becoming intolerant of whites in general. a sort of reversal from back in the day. black women, in particular, seem to hate seeing black men dating white women, feeling like we should stick to our "race". i honestly think that to NOT date interracially is to completely negate everything the civil rights movement stood for. but then it goes back to normal racism. i'm stationed in Ft. Sill, the longest i've been in the south. i notice that interracial dating in general seems to be a big no-no. i don't have a problem with white people not dating blacks or hispanics because they aren't PHYSICALLY attracted to them, thats one thing. but here, they seem to not date us for the simple fact of common stereotypes and good ol' fashioned hate. we need to find a way to get pass this.
religious tolerance/intolerance: look, everybody has a right to voice their opinion. what i have a problem with is people trying to make their opinions into LAW. such as religious people trying their hardest to keep gay marriage illegal. such as our boy Rick Santorum talking about he wanted to ban porn. such as catholics getting pissed about birth control.
i think the biggest part is the gay marriage. lets get one thing straight: gay marriage does NOT effect us in anyway.
its not going to make me marry a dude. its not going to make you marry a dude. you're not going to wake up gay. and you don't have to attend any gay marriage. enough of that. we have to realize that we are ALL americans, we pay our taxes. so gays should be able to have the main part of the constitution: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. its not going to effect my heterosexual marriage whatsoever. i still love women.
Cultural Dividing:
yes, i love my heritage, i love being puerto rican, i love being black. what i do not love? being segregated, or being molded by society that i should think, act, and feel like i'm someone different.
i spent 5 years in Germany, married a german and had 2 kids. one thing i noticed about Germany and Europe: they don't call themselves "white" or "black". they call themselves whatever country they are from. i never heard the term "stupid .". you know what i got called? A Dumb American.
because thats what we are. we need to change the way our society acts and realize that we are americans FIRST. i'm not African-American. i wasn't born in Africa. i only went because the Army sent me. if it wasn't for that, i would've never went, for i have no desire to go. i don't speak african. i speak screwed up american english.
you're not latin american. if you was born in the USA, you're American, with hispanic Heritage, nothing more. we have to embrace who we are as a country, not as individuals. yes, i understand that our country is made of different ethnicities and Nationalities from around the world. be we are AMERICANS. we have to unite, especially since the rest of the world hates us anyway.
feel free to debate whatever i posted, or list some of your own things. i hope i can get some mass participation in this.
You call this whining the "real problems with America"?
The real problem in America resides in the White House.
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Quote:
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You think Gay marriage doesn't affect you? It affects everyone in every way, because homosexuality is a sin against God! So Gay Marriage brings the Judgment of God against this country!
If that's the problem, I wouldn't worry. We probably lost God way back when we exterminated the Native population or enslaved a race of people.
Oh yeah, like we were the only ones who ever did that!  On a serious note, I wouldn't say we lost God. We definitely didn't please him the way we annexed the continent. Wasn't the most 'christian' thing to do, but like every atheist or agnostic likes to say, we aren't a 'christian' nation anyway.
So by your tally, we have two strikes. YOU WANNA ADD ANOTHER ONE AND BE OUT?  
Not me!
WE DON'T NEED A QB BEFORE WE GET A LINE THAT CAN PROTECT HIM
my two cents...
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Quote:
Quote:
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You think Gay marriage doesn't affect you? It affects everyone in every way, because homosexuality is a sin against God! So Gay Marriage brings the Judgment of God against this country!
If that's the problem, I wouldn't worry. We probably lost God way back when we exterminated the Native population or enslaved a race of people.
Oh yeah, like we were the only ones who ever did that! On a serious note, I wouldn't say we lost God. We definitely didn't please him the way we annexed the continent. Wasn't the most 'christian' thing to do, but like every atheist or agnostic likes to say, we aren't a 'christian' nation anyway.
So by your tally, we have two strikes. YOU WANNA ADD ANOTHER ONE AND BE OUT?
Not me!
I love how the sarcastic 'oh, like we're the only ones to ever do that' line is always trotted out to explain away some horrible act of inhumanity.
I agree that we are not a Christian nation.
And that's two strikes by my tally in fantasy land. I don't think there's a God, and if there is, it's probably too busy to care about what we're doing.
And if there is a compassionate God watching over us, I don't think it would really care if gay people got married.
If it did, that's not really the kind of deity I want to rally around, anyway.
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By identifying these things as the "real" problems in America.....you've been had. The government would like nothing more than to have the masses focused on issues like race, sexuality, abortion, religion, etc. It takes the focus off of their power mongering corruption as they destroy the economy and our constitution on their road to dominating control. By time we wake up, we'll be broke and as you put it, "enslaved".
And into the forest I go, to lose my mind and find my soul.
- John Muir
#GMSTRONG
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~ Legend
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Quote:
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You think Gay marriage doesn't affect you? It affects everyone in every way, because homosexuality is a sin against God! So Gay Marriage brings the Judgment of God against this country!
If that's the problem, I wouldn't worry. We probably lost God way back when we exterminated the Native population or enslaved a race of people.
From what I remember about the Bible it says that enslaving people is fine and so is genocide. I'm sure we're just kosher in this loving God's eyes.
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Quote:
Quote:
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You think Gay marriage doesn't affect you? It affects everyone in every way, because homosexuality is a sin against God! So Gay Marriage brings the Judgment of God against this country!
If that's the problem, I wouldn't worry. We probably lost God way back when we exterminated the Native population or enslaved a race of people.
Oh yeah, like we were the only ones who ever did that! On a serious note, I wouldn't say we lost God. We definitely didn't please him the way we annexed the continent. Wasn't the most 'christian' thing to do, but like every atheist or agnostic likes to say, we aren't a 'christian' nation anyway.
So by your tally, we have two strikes. YOU WANNA ADD ANOTHER ONE AND BE OUT?
Not me!
I love how the sarcastic 'oh, like we're the only ones to ever do that' line is always trotted out to explain away some horrible act of inhumanity.
You're gonna have to forgive me for the improper use of emoticons for that first line, wanted it to be more tongue in cheek than it came across.
I agree that we are not a Christian nation.
And that's two strikes by my tally in fantasy land. I don't think there's a God, and if there is, it's probably too busy to care about what we're doing.
And if there is a compassionate God watching over us, I don't think it would really care if gay people got married.
If it did, that's not really the kind of deity I want to rally around, anyway.
Trouble is, we don't get to choose what kind of deity he is now do we? Far as I'm concerned, moral legislation imposed by a higher power is proof of the presence of God. I can think of 3 out of ten commandments that might make it into 'law' that man would impose on another man (good luck getting him to keep those rules himself), and none of the 3 would have anything to do with 'physical morality'.
I am going camping with my girls at Mohican this afternoon. Will try to respond on the phone if I can.
WE DON'T NEED A QB BEFORE WE GET A LINE THAT CAN PROTECT HIM
my two cents...
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I was reading "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" and she was wearing a T-shirt that said, "Armageddon was yesterday. Today we have serious problems."
I like that kind of humor.
I think whenever people can talk about race without telling someone else they're view point is wrong it's always valuable.
Looking at our history and where we are today IMO, and many other people's opinion, we are all still affected by race. You can deny it or you can blame others for making a big deal about, but in the end all of that is plain proof that we still have race problems.
I don't think it helps to always point out that Al and Jesse are going to make statements because that's what they do, just like other pundits. If you think they're wrong then explain and discuss, but don't try to negate an issue just by pointing out the same thing each time.
The Zimmerman case had people from both sides making statements, not just Al and Jesse.
I hear today that a group of concerned citizens got some money together to buy Zimmerman a new gun.
There are some who could read that gesture as statement. And if you do then say it and talk about it.
People whine on and on about PC, but PC will only be as limiting as you allow it to be. If you want to say something, but you're afraid of being called a racist, well then it's very possible that indeed have some racial issues.
Does that make you a flawed or awful human being? I guess it depends on the statements or on the actions you follow those statements with.
I think there are a lot of problems with this country, but I also think there have always been a lot of problems with this and just about every other country on the planet. Stating your mind about it is probably more healthy than not speaking up or saying you're afraid if you say what you want someone will think you are ______.
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I heard a statistic the other day that prior to Obama's election, about 80% of whites thought this county was in a pretty good place with race relations and about 57% of blacks felt that way. Both have fallen by about 25% to 54% and 32% respectively since he was elected. That is pretty significant. I don't think it's all about Obama, I bet some of it is in response to the Martin case...
The optimist in me wants to believe that this drop in confidence is actually a good thing and that having a black president has actually brought race issues to the forefront and caused people to talk about them and that while this has had a short-term negative effect that it will have a longer term positive effect.....
yebat' Putin
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There is no such thing as reverse racism. It's racist either way.
In a millenium or so, if humans survive that long, we won't be bothered with racism anymore. All of mandkind, or most, will probably have the same skin color. I see it happening in our society already.
"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." Thomas Jefferson.
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There is no such thing as reverse racism. It's racist either way.
In a millenium or so, if humans survive that long, we won't be bothered with racism anymore. All of mandkind, or most, will probably have the same skin color. I see it happening in our society already.
You might be correct but if you think that will solve the problem you are more than likely mistaken. People, since there were people, have found reasons to form groups and hate each other whether it was geographic, religious, skin color, culture, political ideology, whatever... If we were magically all the same color tomorrow, over time groups would form and people would come up with reasons to hate each other...
yebat' Putin
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If we were magically all the same color tomorrow, over time groups would form and people would come up with reasons to hate each other...
yep, the Athenians and Spartans hated each other despite being the same color. that is, until the Trojans came around and they both decided to hate them more.
#gmstrong
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If we were magically all the same color tomorrow, over time groups would form and people would come up with reasons to hate each other...
yep, the Athenians and Spartans hated each other despite being the same color. that is, until the Trojans came around and they both decided to hate them more.
There are tribes in Africa now that hate each other and will kill each other for no reason other than that.
There are gangs all over America that will kill each other for nothing less than WEARING the wrong color, not BEING the wrong color.
IMO it's more about group mentality and wanting to belong, and then wanting to be recognized/honored/respected, because you take most of these same people and put them alone, they never even consider doing the things they do when they are with the group.
We don't have to agree with each other, to respect each others opinion.
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If we were magically all the same color tomorrow, over time groups would form and people would come up with reasons to hate each other...
yep, the Athenians and Spartans hated each other despite being the same color. that is, until the Trojans came around and they both decided to hate them more.
There are tribes in Africa now that hate each other and will kill each other for no reason other than that.
There are gangs all over America that will kill each other for nothing less than WEARING the wrong color, not BEING the wrong color.
IMO it's more about group mentality and wanting to belong, and then wanting to be recognized/honored/respected, because you take most of these same people and put them alone, they never even consider doing the things they do when they are with the group.
So really you agree that racism would not be the issue at that point, only patriotism and culture. And if that 's the case. Why is race even a issue at all?
"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." Thomas Jefferson.
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So really you agree that racism would not be the issue at that point, only patriotism and culture. And if that 's the case. Why is race even a issue at all?
The point is that there are always going to be "issues".. race is just one possibility and it happens to be a very easy one to recognize from a distance. It also happens to be one where this country doesn't have a very good track record through history... and old habits die hard.
Plus, as has been pointed out, there are groups on both sides with a vested interest in not letting the race issue go away..
yebat' Putin
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"Plus, as has been pointed out, there are groups on both sides with a vested interest in not letting the race issue go away.. "
Agreed, and they are the racists.
"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." Thomas Jefferson.
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So really you agree that racism would not be the issue at that point, only patriotism and culture. And if that 's the case. Why is race even a issue at all?
To be honest, I don't think racism is as big of an issue that many complain it to be. Now prejudice I believe is still very rampant. The difference being, and maybe it's only in my definition of the 2, is that many things that happen aren't because someone hated someone else because of their color, but had/has a prejudice against them for that reason.
To many they are one in the same, but in my opinion, racism is a seeded hatred for the other for no reason other, and I would bet you will find that 99% of the country has friends/acquaintances of all colors, if they were truly RACIST they would have nothing to do with those others.
We don't have to agree with each other, to respect each others opinion.
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To many they are one in the same, but in my opinion, racism is a seeded hatred for the other for no reason other, and I would bet you will find that 99% of the country has friends/acquaintances of all colors, if they were truly RACIST they would have nothing to do with those others.
An excellent point. All but the truly hardcore racists are going to have friends of all types. That is usually because something outweighs the race factor. It might be that you have a bond over being in the same industry, going to the same church, living in the same neighborhood, rooting for the same team, etc... So race becomes a secondary and irrelevant issue... a true racist would not be able to get over that hump.
yebat' Putin
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So really you agree that racism would not be the issue at that point, only patriotism and culture. And if that 's the case. Why is race even a issue at all?
To be honest, I don't think racism is as big of an issue that many complain it to be. Now prejudice I believe is still very rampant. The difference being, and maybe it's only in my definition of the 2, is that many things that happen aren't because someone hated someone else because of their color, but had/has a prejudice against them for that reason.
To many they are one in the same, but in my opinion, racism is a seeded hatred for the other for no reason other, and I would bet you will find that 99% of the country has friends/acquaintances of all colors, if they were truly RACIST they would have nothing to do with those others.
Yes I agree, prejudice is a bigger issue.
The conversation I was conveying was about race and how humans will eventually evolve into one race was my focus. But yes, prejudice will still be there and will always be.
"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." Thomas Jefferson.
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