Is truth racist?
In this politically correct world of ours, one thing seems to be increasingly obvious: those of the political left have decided to ignore truth in preference to politically convenient lies. What do I mean by that? There are certain things in the United States that are simply true -- numerically and irrefutably true -- but to recognize the truth is to be branded "racist."
Fact: African Americans comprise 12% of the population of the United States. African Americans comprise 45% of all murder victims, of whom 91% were killed by African Americans. The leading cause of death for African American men is homicide. For African American women is the second leading cause. Annually, the United States spends over $5 billion on emergency and physical or occupational therapy associated with crime-related injuries and deaths. (Women's Council on African American Affairs, Inc.).
Let's get this African American crap out of the way. If you are an United States citizen, then you are an American -- full stop. Your ethnicity or race is related to a population whose members identify with each other on the basis of common ancestry or geneology, cultural, linguistic, religious or physical traits. Africa is not comprised of peoples of one ethnicity -- there are many races in Africa, from Bantu to Coptic Egyptians, to Berbers to Tuareg tribesmen. The Tutsi are tall peoples with very black skin. The Tuareg are shorter with thin aquiline noses and lighter skin. Coptic Egyptians are separated by religion and physical characteristics from the Islamic Egyptians. They are all African Americans in the way that I am European American. But what would that say about me? I could be of Sicilian origin -- typically dark skinned, black hair and shorter. Or Norwegian, tall and blond. Catholic or Lutheran. From dirt-poor, starving Irish stock or aristocratic French heritage. But generally, I would be "white." As people from West African descent are "black." Those from the Far East, "Asian." If the general description does not fit, then don't use it.
Both the quote of statistics and my rant about ethnicity would earn me a front row seat on the downtown express to damnation if up to the liberal left. But that would not necessarily make the comments incorrect or risible.
The point of this is to talk about sports. Huh? Yes, sports. You see, universities and colleges across this fair nation of ours recruit athletes for scholarships so that the business machine of NCAA sports has its cannon fodder. The supporters of this system loudly claim that this is the "ticket out of the ghettos" for the lucky few. The trouble with this is that it is based on a few lies: (a) scholarship implies a basic ability to read and write, perhaps even to perform elementary math; (b) the recipients of the largess will actually learn something in college; (c) it is right and worthy to spend the funds available on athletes as opposed to poor but intelligent (or at least educated) persons looking to better their lots in life; (d) each of the recipients will stay out of the ghetto thereafter -- itself implying that they will all proceed to good jobs or professional sports after they leave; (e) they will actually be spend any time on academic pursuits. I could go on.
College sports is big business. Huge sums of money are generated from media rights and advertising -- not to mention the Vegas aspect of gambling. Much of it is plowed right back into the machine, but little makes it way back for the purposes universities are established: to promote learning. The kids that get recruited for college are recruited for their athletic ability -- solely -- and not because they are good students that happen to be proficient at some sport. The benefit to the community from which the students are culled is not educated persons that may re-enter that community with knowledge to benefit it, but
Fact: African Americans comprise 12% of the population of the United States. African Americans comprise 45% of all murder victims, of whom 91% were killed by African Americans. The leading cause of death for African American men is homicide. For African American women is the second leading cause. Annually, the United States spends over $5 billion on emergency and physical or occupational therapy associated with crime-related injuries and deaths. (Women's Council on African American Affairs, Inc.).
Let's get this African American crap out of the way. If you are an United States citizen, then you are an American -- full stop. Your ethnicity or race is related to a population whose members identify with each other on the basis of common ancestry or geneology, cultural, linguistic, religious or physical traits. Africa is not comprised of peoples of one ethnicity -- there are many races in Africa, from Bantu to Coptic Egyptians, to Berbers to Tuareg tribesmen. The Tutsi are tall peoples with very black skin. The Tuareg are shorter with thin aquiline noses and lighter skin. Coptic Egyptians are separated by religion and physical characteristics from the Islamic Egyptians. They are all African Americans in the way that I am European American. But what would that say about me? I could be of Sicilian origin -- typically dark skinned, black hair and shorter. Or Norwegian, tall and blond. Catholic or Lutheran. From dirt-poor, starving Irish stock or aristocratic French heritage. But generally, I would be "white." As people from West African descent are "black." Those from the Far East, "Asian." If the general description does not fit, then don't use it.
Both the quote of statistics and my rant about ethnicity would earn me a front row seat on the downtown express to damnation if up to the liberal left. But that would not necessarily make the comments incorrect or risible.
The point of this is to talk about sports. Huh? Yes, sports. You see, universities and colleges across this fair nation of ours recruit athletes for scholarships so that the business machine of NCAA sports has its cannon fodder. The supporters of this system loudly claim that this is the "ticket out of the ghettos" for the lucky few. The trouble with this is that it is based on a few lies: (a) scholarship implies a basic ability to read and write, perhaps even to perform elementary math; (b) the recipients of the largess will actually learn something in college; (c) it is right and worthy to spend the funds available on athletes as opposed to poor but intelligent (or at least educated) persons looking to better their lots in life; (d) each of the recipients will stay out of the ghetto thereafter -- itself implying that they will all proceed to good jobs or professional sports after they leave; (e) they will actually be spend any time on academic pursuits. I could go on.
College sports is big business. Huge sums of money are generated from media rights and advertising -- not to mention the Vegas aspect of gambling. Much of it is plowed right back into the machine, but little makes it way back for the purposes universities are established: to promote learning. The kids that get recruited for college are recruited for their athletic ability -- solely -- and not because they are good students that happen to be proficient at some sport. The benefit to the community from which the students are culled is not educated persons that may re-enter that community with knowledge to benefit it, but
posted by Zaphod at Friday, September 28, 2007
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