I first mentioned this post when I wrote – briefly – about Ferguson,
which I have decide I will not write further about.
However, I do want to make the point that Australia has a problem with
racism, and state what I consider will be necessary to fix that evil.
First, should anyone doubt Australia’s racism, I direct them to:
- the SBS TV series “First Contact”, and
- http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/victorians-embrace-diversity-but-believe-some-ethnic-groups-do-not-fit-in-20141207-11zc2u.html.
In my experience, the better educated people are generally, the less
likelihood there is that they will be racist. That does not mean well educated
people are never racist, nor that poorly educated people will be racist – to try
to twist my statement into either of those positions is the fallacy of “Hasty Generalisation”.
Again, in my experience, the issues that educated people are not
concerned about, such as loss of jobs, are still an issue for blue collar works
who are racist. I read
recently that Arthur Calwell
started to educate the Australian population on this and related issues back in
1944. That may be so, but there has been active resistance to that education,
just as there is fear and resistance to all change towards a more evolved,
spiritually mature state of being.
As an example of that, consider the fight to abolish slavery.
That could be considered to have begun in 1315, when France banned slavery (no doubt in response to earlier activism),
although I also note that the Ancient Greek philosophy
of Stoicism (not be confused with the modern
dictionary definition of a stoic) had a few thoughts that weren’t in
favour of slavery. From the Wikipedia article:
A primary aspect of Stoicism involves improving the individual’s ethical and moral well-being: "Virtue consists in a will that is in agreement with Nature."[6] This principle also applies to the realm of interpersonal relationships; "to be free from anger, envy, and jealousy,"[7] and to accept even slaves as "equals of other men, because all men alike are products of nature."[8]
In the 17th to 19th Century, that fight became
more widespread and better organised, with the USA
freeing slaves in 1865, and the British Empire in the
1830s. And yet the fight against slavery continues today …
I consider education is the key to overcoming this evil, but it has to
be addressed to the needs of the target group – i.e., racists. Therefore, in
planning such education campaigns, any person makes a statement along the lines
of they cannot see how someone would be racist, or why issues that have been
addressed previously need to be addressed again, that person needs to be kicked
out of such planning, on the grounds that are manifestly unfit for that project.
In fact, I think the problem is that there are too many such people in
anti-racism movements, and that is why the problem has persisted.
My notion is that suitably trained people should be sent into blue
collar pubs, to work at changing values there, using arguments that are
meaningful to the racists in that pub,
not those who have already been convinced of the wrongness of racism by
possibly different arguments.
These people would need to be well-trained - e.g. in defusing tension,
and self-defence, which I consider necessary for all Australian pubs no matter
what their social class.
They would also need to be credible to their target audience, and that
is where those blue collar workers who are not racist have a major part to
play. Such people are likely better at taking the fears and concerns of the
target people seriously, I suspect.
I’ve called this post In Vino Veritas –
in wine, truth, which is based on the notion that barriers get broken down and
thus one can see people as they really are when they are drunk. Well, I
disagree (e.g., being drunk makes one
susceptible to obsession
or possession
or even just group influences, and many people are open or honest without being
in the extremely dangerous situation of being drunk), but it is an example of that reading out to a target audience that
I am proposing.
PS – I didn’t realise that the
Latin word for “in” was … “in” :)
[2]
Please see here and my post "The
Death of Wikipedia" for the
reasons I now recommend caution when using Wikipedia. I'm also exploring use of
h2g2, although that doesn't appear to be as
extensive (h2g2 is intended - rather
engagingly - to be the Earth edition of "The Hitchhiker's Guide to
the Galaxy").
Love, light, hugs and blessings
Gnwmythr,
Wéofodthegn
(pronounced "new-MYTH-ear"; ... aka Bellatrix
Lux … aka Morinehtar
… Would-be drýicgan
or maga ... )
My "blogiography" (list of all posts and guide as to how to best use this site) is here, and my glossary/index is here.
I started this blog to cover karmic regression-rescue (see here and here), and it grew ... See here for my group mind project, here and here for my "Pagans for Peace" project (and join me at 9 PM on Sunday, wherever you are, to meditate for peace), and here for my bindrune kit-bag. I also strongly recommend learning how to flame, ground and shield, do alternate nostril breathing, work with colour, and see also here and be flexible.
- neither eloquence nor inarticulateness inherently indicates correctness;
- Gnwmythr's Stropping Strap: Occam's Razor only works if the simplest solution is actually recognised as being the simplest, rather than the one that best fits one's bigotries being labelled 'simplest'.
- Our entire life experience, with all the many wondrous and varied people, places and events in it, is too small a sample for statistical reliability about Life.
- May the world of commerce and business be recognised to be a servant, not a master, of the lives of people.
- Being accustomed to interacting via certain rules makes those rules neither right nor universal.
- Like fire to the physical, emotions to the soul make a good servant, and a bad master.
- The means shape the end.
- As words can kill, the right to freedom of speech comes with a DUTY to be as well-informed, objective and balanced as you can be.
- My favourite action movie of all time is "Gandhi", although I've recently come across "Invictus" and might put that one in to that category. However, I loathe the stereotypical action movie - and, for similar reasons, I loathe many dramas, which are often emotionally violent, more so in some cases than many war films.
- All of the above - and this blog - could be wrong, or subject to context, perspective, or state of spiritual evolution ...
Human dignity
is the inherently cumulative holistic combination of human rights,
wellbeing and potential, and all actions or interaction which promote,
realise or facilitate same. The converse also applies: whatever
degrades, diminishes or robs humans of dignity, is inherently
undignified.
The “purpose” of spiritual evolution is not the attainment of “spiritual perfection” - not in the sense of not having to evolve further, at any rate, since there is no such thing. We need to evolve in order to grow - but we can take rest breaks (hopefully well earned :) ) along the way. No, the “purpose” of evolution is, rather, to perfect our ability to learn, and thus grow.
Jesus loves you. Odin wants you to grow up.
Gnwmythr
The “purpose” of spiritual evolution is not the attainment of “spiritual perfection” - not in the sense of not having to evolve further, at any rate, since there is no such thing. We need to evolve in order to grow - but we can take rest breaks (hopefully well earned :) ) along the way. No, the “purpose” of evolution is, rather, to perfect our ability to learn, and thus grow.
Gnwmythr
Jesus loves you. Odin wants you to grow up.
We make our decisions. And then our decisions turn around and make us.
F.W. Boreham
Females, get over 'cute'. Get competent. Get trained. Get capable. Get over 'cute'. And those of you who are called Patty and Debby and Suzy, get over that. Because we use those names to infantalise females – we keep females in their 'little girl' state by the names we use for them. Get over it. If you want to be taken seriously, get serious.
Jane Elliott
The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good [people] to do nothing.
(based on
writing by) Edmund Burke
We didn't inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we only borrowed it from our children
Antoine De Saint-Exupéry
True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar; it is not haphazard and superficial. It comes to see that an edifice which produces beggars needs restructuring.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
There are risks and costs to a program of
action. But they are far less than the long-range risks and costs of
comfortable inaction.
John F. Kennedy
Tags: attitudes, change, education, personal characteristics, personal responsibility, racism, respect, society,
First published: Manadagr, 8th December, 2014
Last edited (excluding fixing typo's and other minor matters): Monday, 8th December, 2014
