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Einstein: The Negro Question (1946)

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Re: Einstein: The Negro Question (1946)

#31

> The ancient Greeks also had slaves. They were not Negroes but white men who had been taken captive in war. There could be no talk of racial differences. As Slavic I find this inaccurate and bit offensive :-)

Most people in America would consider a Slavic person white.

There is no scientific definition of "white", it is a social construct that has changed to be more inclusive as various groups integrated into American society.

Re: Einstein: The Negro Question (1946)

#32
post #8
post #3

What, however, can the man of good will do to combat this deeply rooted prejudice? More diversity (in neighborhoods, in workplaces, in schools) would certainly help -- the transition from "us" and "them" to a unified "us." And yet, it's disappointing how segregated America still is today. One fairly in-depth study [1] offers an example of how "today" came to be. (This report is not about any current events, but rathe…

More diversity (in neighborhoods, in workplaces, in schools) would certainly help Maybe instead of forcing segregation, or forcing integration, freedom of association could be tried?

Or maybe self-righteous Zionists like Einstein could try diversifying their own promised land before proscribing said diversity to others?

As it stands, today Palestinian's are in camps, today Ethiopian Jews are deported, and all the while the past sins of the gentiles are ever decried on the airwaves.

Re: Einstein: The Negro Question (1946)

#33
post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

More diversity (in neighborhoods, in workplaces, in schools) would certainly help Maybe instead of forcing segregation, or forcing integration, freedom of association could be tried?

Or maybe self-righteous Zionists like Einstein could try diversifying their own promised land before proscribing said diversity to others? As it stands, today Palestinian's are in camps, today Ethiopian Jews are deported, and all the while the past sins of the gentiles are ever decried on the airwaves.

I assume, before you posted this angry message, that you refreshed yourself on the differences between Labor Zionism and the right wing flavor in power in the state of Israel? And took into account that this was written in 1946?

No?

Okay then.

Re: Einstein: The Negro Question (1946)

#34

Anyone interested in this topic should read Karen Armstrong's Fields of Blood http://www.amazon.com/Fields-Blood-Religion-History-Violence... The first chapter gives a very good rationale for where hatred and subjugation of the 'other' comes from and the book traces how this kind of socialized violence evolved over the ages.

Two hours from hopping on a ten hour train ride, thanks for the reading material!

Re: Einstein: The Negro Question (1946)

#35
post #13

I was always impressed by his stand against zionism. http://www.newdemocracyworld.org/old/einstein.htm

Interesting that his views on race in America are now mainstream, while his views on Zionism are rarely voiced outside the far left or far right. It seems to me that his views are based on a consistent application of principals, while American politics isn't.

Most mainstream Americans' political principles are variations on "defend your side at all costs." An ideology without a (real) problem to solve is a very dangerous thing.

Re: Einstein: The Negro Question (1946)

#36
post #3

What, however, can the man of good will do to combat this deeply rooted prejudice? More diversity (in neighborhoods, in workplaces, in schools) would certainly help -- the transition from "us" and "them" to a unified "us." And yet, it's disappointing how segregated America still is today. One fairly in-depth study [1] offers an example of how "today" came to be. (This report is not about any current events, but rathe…

More diversity (in neighborhoods, in workplaces, in schools) would certainly help

Never heard the term "there goes the neighborhood"? America is segregated today not because of white people, as in fact black people are far more prejudiced and racist than white people (and there is mounds of evidence to support this). But rather because you have a town thats nice, and then black people start moving in and the neighborhood town or city quickly starts going south, fast, almost without fail. Why? Because blacks make up 12% of the US population but commit half of all murders and more than half of all robberies. It's really amazing when you look at the crime statistics out there, and the amazingly consistent correlation between the percentage of black people in a certain area, and how (un)safe and (un)pleasant that area is to live in.

There will never be a unified "us" as long as a significant portion of black people continue to behave the way they do and force white people to flee to safer ground. Plain and simple. The only people who truly support that "diversity" baloney are either people who have never actually had to live with it, or have something to gain from it politically or financially.

Abraham Lincoln supported black colonization for a good reason; unfortunately nobody likes to talk about that when they talk about him though. Obviously forced colonization is a stupid and immoral idea, but voluntary segregation is, unfortunately, what will end up being best for us until more black people start getting their act together.

EDIT: Truth hurts I see. I guess it's much easier for most people to hide comments that offend them rather than responding with an intelligent counterpoint or pointing out where you think they're "wrong".

Re: Einstein: The Negro Question (1946)

#38
post #31

> The ancient Greeks also had slaves. They were not Negroes but white men who had been taken captive in war. There could be no talk of racial differences. As Slavic I find this inaccurate and bit offensive :-)

Most people in America would consider a Slavic person white. There is no scientific definition of "white", it is a social construct that has changed to be more inclusive as various groups integrated into American society.

It does not even compute...

Re: Einstein: The Negro Question (1946)

#39
post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

if you haven't seen this, there's even some math to explain how "today" came to be. http://ncase.me/polygons/

Mathematical models can be used to argue for a wide range of viewpoints. You could also write a model where people have different innate preferences over the lifestyle they want to lead, and so self-sorting is an unambiguously good thing. I understand that everyone wants "math" to be on their side, but it's not really mathematics that is doing the work here, it's your assumptions.

Did you play with it at all? It's somewhat flawed--for example, boosting the "prejudice" level to > 85% often leads to diverse, if not stable, communities. But I think it demonstrates the concept well. If a community starts out segregated, it takes being actively displeased with the lack of diversity to get it to change, because people, without a reason to move, won't move.

Re: Einstein: The Negro Question (1946)

#40
post #12
post #3

What, however, can the man of good will do to combat this deeply rooted prejudice? More diversity (in neighborhoods, in workplaces, in schools) would certainly help -- the transition from "us" and "them" to a unified "us." And yet, it's disappointing how segregated America still is today. One fairly in-depth study [1] offers an example of how "today" came to be. (This report is not about any current events, but rathe…

"More diversity (in neighborhoods, in workplaces, in schools) would certainly help" I'm not so sure. I went to a very diverse and large high school in NJ and what ends up happening is self segregation. All the ethnic groups would mostly end up hanging out with their own types.

I went to a diverse high school as well, and the county I live in now is about 45% white, 40% black, and 15% Hispanic. High School was segregated, Churches are segregated, even stores are segregated to a degree.

I don't know if there is a way to change this. The cultures are very different between white, black, and Hispanic. We even speak different dialects.

Unless you want to start forcing one culture to conform to another, de facto segregation is the likely outcome.

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