The simple truth is that, at least for our time on this earth, we all have but one life to live. It logically follows that whatever a person is going to do with that life, or whatever someone or something is going to do for or to that person, must be done during their lifetime if it is to have any meaningful impact on their lives.
The U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights prescribes certain individual rights and freedoms that apply to individuals. If those rights are to have any meaning to an individual they must apply to that individual during their lifetime or they are meaningless.
It should be pointed out that the Ole Seagull was born in 1941, has never owned a slave and doesn’t know of anyone in his family that every did, abhors the very idea of slavery, and, personally, believes that permitting the institution of slavery in our constitution sowed the seeds that are leading to the very destruction of this country today. He believes, with every fiber of his body, that every American, whether classed as an “American Indian or Alaska Native,” “Asian,” “Black or African American,” “Native Hawaiian” or “Other Pacific Islander”, and “White,” should be treated equally during the one life that they will have to live. (Terms quoted above are the “racial categories” the U.S. Census Bureau designated as of 2003.)
He does not believe that his rights, or the rights of any other American to enjoy the full rights and opportunities of being an American, should be based on racial category or modified or abridged for the benefit of any other racial category. Yet, because he is “White,” for most of his adult life he has had to listen to the tripe that his rights and the rights of “White Americans” should be modified or abridged in favor of “Black or African Americans” who apparently feel that they are owed something because of slavery and the way their race was treated in the past.
For the majority of his lifetime, which is really the only practical knowledge and experience he can apply to the situation, “White Americans” have been discriminated against in everything from college admissions, government contracts, getting job positions and promotions to loans, government assistance programs and many other areas. But that’s not the worst part, the worst part is the decades of increasing dribble from “Black or African Americans” that they are entitled to extra advantages etc. and playing the infamous “race card” when they don’t get their way or its to their advantage to do so.
Two recent situations illustrate the point, the Gates situation with the Cambridge police and the CBS Big Brother show. In the Gates case, which has received national publicity, he did something stupid and played the race card trying to mitigate it. In the CBS Big Brother Show, a “Black or African American” woman played the race card during the first eviction vote implying that racism would be a factor if she were voted off the show.
In the interest of making the conversation a two way dialogue may the Ole Seagull ask, “Why is not the conversation about how over the last 40 years ‘White Americans’ have been discriminated against in favor of ‘Black or African Americans?’” The sad thing is that it’s not even socially acceptable to ask the question, but does that mean it should not be asked and discussed if there is to be a full and honest discussion on what “White Americans” owe “Black Americans” today? The truly said thing is that the question even has to be considered.