It has come to this - Camelot is Gone

[MrMac]

I had wondered, and maybe was afraid to find out that there were tensions of this sort on campus. With news of Fordham and GWU demonstrations, came the certainty that Davidson could not be far behind. Hopefully, students are taking and making their positions known in ways that do not disrupt the end of the school year activities and the upcoming graduation cememonies.

[TheJaffe]

There seems to be the notion that anything short of 100% approval of everything the Likud party does is tantamount to anti-Semitism. I agree with US efforts at humanitarian aid to the people in Gaza while despising Hamas. Call me what you wish.

I 100% agree with this.

Not that these are in any way the same things, but I like the refusal to allow food, water, and medicine into Gaza as much I like Hamas, which is also as much I like protestors of any political leaning chanting obviously antisemtic statements. Which is 0%. Do not like at all.

And also just for the record and more on topic: I find the statement that all white people are automatically racist to be silly. I find it equally silly to use said silly statement as a means to dismiss the observation that in America there are certain broad societal advantages to being born a white male. In my experience as, and parent to, a white male, I do not find this observation to be remotely controversial nor does it make me uncomfortable. As the man said, call me what you want.

[i77cat]

I spent much of my afternoon today at the Lake Campus. There were discussions of summer work, coming exams, semesters abroad, and how to best maintain your offside carve with suitable speed. The same conversations I've had with Davidson students for many years. By the way, they are still delightful folks.

[stevelee]

There seems to be the notion that anything short of 100% approval of everything the Likud party does is tantamount to anti-Semitism. I agree with US efforts at humanitarian aid to the people in Gaza while despising Hamas. Call me what you wish.

I 100% agree with this.

Not that these are in any way the same things, but I like the refusal to allow food, water, and medicine into Gaza as much I like Hamas, which is also as much I like protestors of any political leaning chanting obviously antisemtic statements. Which is 0%. Do not like at all.

And also just for the record and more on topic: I find the statement that all white people are automatically racist to be silly. I find it equally silly to use said silly statement as a means to dismiss the observation that in America there are certain broad societal advantages to being born a white male. In my experience as, and parent to, a white male, I do not find this observation to be remotely controversial nor does it make me uncomfortable. As the man said, call me what you want.

It is not a matter of all white people being racists individually. It is that structures of government and society have enforced institutional racism.

[MLC67]

This odious construct of institutional racism is so 20th Century, today is not last century Jim Crow America.

[stevelee]

This odious construct of institutional racism is so 20th Century, today is not last century Jim Crow America.

Effects of Jim Crow, redlining, privilege, etc., have not gone away. Neighborhoods that were destroyed aren’t coming back, maybe not even in Portland where they blew up their interstate. Parents still have to have “the talk” with their kids, especially boys. Pretending doesn’t change things.

[MLC67]

Your data-less note is not persuasive. Real numbers prove that police shooting of blacks are not in excess of times they were acting in self defense. Prompting police hatred of blacks is false, divisive and racist.

[stevelee]

Your data-less note is not persuasive. Real numbers prove that police shooting of blacks are not in excess of times they were acting in self defense. Prompting police hatred of blacks is false, divisive and racist.

I won’t try to persuade you of anything. Pointless exercise.

Of course police shouldn’t murder unarmed suspects whatever the race.

[MLC67]

And they don’t.

[i77cat]

Not routinely. But it happens. It has been caught on video.

[MLC67]

It is indisputed that the vast majority of black men (and boys) are murdered by other black men in gang turf battle shootings.

[stevelee]

Most white people are killed by white people.

I’m dubious that turf wars account for the bulk of murders in any population nation wide.

And even if it did, that doesn’t excuse any other murderers, including police.

[MLC67]

No rational person, myself included, ever seeks to excuse any murders. Nonetheless, several comments here have implied that blacks have a basis to fear police violence whenever they are out in public. National law enforcement records belie that canard. What both blacks and whites in today’s America suffer from is the scourge of gun violence, which tragedy is entirely non-racially based.

[MLC67]

Wow! More than ten thousand views of this thread!? Is this supposed readership real or are bots somehow responsible? Mysterious indeed.

[stevelee]

Wow! More than ten thousand views of this thread!? Is this supposed readership real or are bots somehow responsible? Mysterious indeed.

Collecting data for involuntary commitments?