“You don’t need to say “black democrat”. This phrase undermines a perfectly reasonable intellectual point by making it appear to be a racists point. I know many wonderful black people and many stupid white people. I’m sure you do, too. Skin color has nothing to do with the poor and crappy neighborhoods in Oakland. Liberal policies are the one and only cause.”
Sorry, but I stand by my statement and I have a number of black friends who would agree with what I wrote. When you go through the neighborhoods in Oakland that heavily contribute to the city’s position with respect to violent crime, the common denominator is ethnicity. Sure, there are blacks who are, by virtue of their economic status relegated to live in the high-crime areas. But they don’t do much, if anything to help to drive the criminal element out of their neighborhoods. It’s not unlike the “muslim community” never helping to purge the terrorists from their midst. I’ve worked with a black man by the name of Candell, who runs a “private school” in East Oakland for disadvantaged black kids. He is successful because he demands that the children’s parents be completely involved in their children. And they know if they don’t participate, their kids have to leave the school. That is what it takes to fix the problem, but it’s only a start.
Excellent points all around. I know we agree on most things but, when you start throwing ‘skin color’ into political arguments things get weird and intellectual points get lost to labels and emotions.
I too am disappointed with the decisions of many black people in Oakland (and other major cities). But, I just say “I’m disappointed with their decision” and skip the qualifiers. That’s just me.
Here’s a story I repeat often: My best friend in school was a black kid. We did everything together. When we hit high school he got involved with what I I call “black anger.” He was talking about how everything was unfair and that he had no chance and that white people had it easy. I couldn’t understand his thought process because we both went to the exact same school, had the same teachers, the same problems, got picked on by the same bullies, and my parents were divorced (not his). Still, somehow he felt all frustrated while I was planning on going to college.....and we both lived the exact same experience.
From this experience I learned that people will always find what they are looking for. I looked for and found a positive future. He looked for and found frustration. To this day I tell my kids, “You will find whatever you are looking for in life so, make certain you look for something that makes you happy.
Foot note: My friend ended up being one of those fired up black preachers in East Oakland. We’ve long since gone our separate ways. I went on to college.