Comments
Posted by Daniel :: 
:: 
:: May 21, 2003 11:54pm
:: :: May 21, 2003 11:54pmWhat the fuck???? Who the hell is this person and why did they email you? Who ever they are it sounds like they've got serious problems! Although they seem to be very articulate (save for some serious spelling and grammatical errors), I still think they are nothing more than a well spoken troll. Consider the facts: 1) "Out-of-the-blue" email, 2) Your attempts to reply, even agreeably, are deftly avoided and 3) conveniently left open ended (with insults no less). It's funny too because in my research of trolls I've found that they tend to project their very own symptoms onto their victims. Take for instance the ignorance they refer to in those emails. They themselves are ignoring your concurrence merely to add fuel to your fire. It's a sick and depressing thought that these people exist. But the only thing you can do is ignore them.
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Posted by Ryland :: :: 
:: May 22, 2003 12:11am
:: :: May 22, 2003 12:11amIf I had known it was a troll, I would have just let it go, but honestly I felt a little stung, being called ignorant and racist.
Posted by martin :: :: :: May 22, 2003 07:59am
:: :: May 22, 2003 07:59amSo am I going to be punished for not removing the white blinders that prevent me from understanding ignorance and perpetrating humanity? I didn't quite understand that part. Or are my ancestors to be punished for that? Or not removing? Where are we in the time line? If my ancestors are being punished, how far back is that going? I'm scared for my grandparents... they weren't slave-drivers. I can't imagine many of my ancestors were into that sort of thing, really.
But I digress.
This person strikes me as the sort that knows too little language to be actually rhetorical, but who does not want that to stand in the way of their being perceived as eloquent. There are too many errors in word choice, let alone spelling and grammar, to make me take this seriously. If they were talking, it would probably be in the same way that Mike Tyson talks—amusingly exchanging "dinosaur" for "dynasty," or something similar.
As to whether or not it was a diatribe... I got a kick out of the scare-quotes around the "dictionary" definitions. Is this person suggesting these definitions are ironic, rather than fundamental in "the act of making clear and distinct" what it is they are getting at? (See, I can use quotes out of context in my rantings too.)
I would be angry with someone who called me racist, regardless of how solid their founding. I would ask them in what ways I was racist. Upon hearing the sorts of rantings that followed in the subsequent replies (the contradictions, the retraction and denial of retraction, the back-peddling), I would probably do as you did: post to my weblog and move on.
It is hard to say that Blinders—white, black or red—are firmly covering the eyes of one who posts these sorts of ideas to their site and genuinely engages with them. Of course, that might just be my view, resulting (as it does) from the White Blinders of my education.
Cheers,
-me.
P.S. Do space ships really punch holes in the atmosphere? I gathered that they simply passed through it in much the same way we do while walking down here. I don't even want to get started on the doctor thing until this serious threat to our weather is handled!
But I digress.
This person strikes me as the sort that knows too little language to be actually rhetorical, but who does not want that to stand in the way of their being perceived as eloquent. There are too many errors in word choice, let alone spelling and grammar, to make me take this seriously. If they were talking, it would probably be in the same way that Mike Tyson talks—amusingly exchanging "dinosaur" for "dynasty," or something similar.
As to whether or not it was a diatribe... I got a kick out of the scare-quotes around the "dictionary" definitions. Is this person suggesting these definitions are ironic, rather than fundamental in "the act of making clear and distinct" what it is they are getting at? (See, I can use quotes out of context in my rantings too.)
I would be angry with someone who called me racist, regardless of how solid their founding. I would ask them in what ways I was racist. Upon hearing the sorts of rantings that followed in the subsequent replies (the contradictions, the retraction and denial of retraction, the back-peddling), I would probably do as you did: post to my weblog and move on.
It is hard to say that Blinders—white, black or red—are firmly covering the eyes of one who posts these sorts of ideas to their site and genuinely engages with them. Of course, that might just be my view, resulting (as it does) from the White Blinders of my education.
Cheers,
-me.
P.S. Do space ships really punch holes in the atmosphere? I gathered that they simply passed through it in much the same way we do while walking down here. I don't even want to get started on the doctor thing until this serious threat to our weather is handled!
Posted by Ryland :: :: :: May 22, 2003 09:33am
:: :: May 22, 2003 09:33amFollowup: I wrote and told her that I was going to post our e-mail exchange here. This is what she wrote back:
If that's her idea of discussion and debate, I wonder what her book is going to be like?
Thank you for an interesting and rather stimulating discussion. We are only at the tip of the iceberg regarding this debate. Unfortunately the war in Iraq has preempted more serious issues in the 'homeland'. Keep in touch. I am writing a book and hope to have it published in the near future. I'll let you know when it's available.
If that's her idea of discussion and debate, I wonder what her book is going to be like?
Posted by martin :: :: :: May 22, 2003 10:19pm
:: :: May 22, 2003 10:19pmI'm seeing... two covers, one for the front, one for the back. And pages... lots of pages. Most of them blank.
Posted by tj :: 
:: :: May 28, 2003 12:41pm
:: :: May 28, 2003 12:41pmhow can you assume what her idea of a book is? you can't even begin to guess until you technically and thoroughly understand books.
Posted by Sir Craig :: :: :: May 22, 2003 08:31pm
:: :: May 22, 2003 08:31pmMy goodness, people... Welcome to a P.C. trap.
Ryland, I could well imagine that you might feel stung, but if as you say you have said or done nothing to deserve the tired rants of this "victim," the sting should have at best been momentary, if at all. Guilt is one of those things that for years anyone with a single white genome has been told to accept, and perhaps that is what led to the stinging.
But let's face facts: Her racism is no better than anyone else's racism (of course she's racist - she painted White America with the broadest, most tired strokes she could produce). She has long given in to the notion that she is a victim, and to argue otherwise would be foolish and pointless. That she is flat-out wrong will never occur to her because she will never see any opposing viewpoint as anything other than White Oppression.
She will undoubtedly be published, and her book will be the livre du jour for the politically correct set. But it will fade from memory quickly as America focuses on rather more pressing problems (like finding someone that might actually present a challenge to Bush's re-election).
Personally, I gave up guilt a LONG time ago; I laugh when I see the hand-wringing such rants produce among the more liberal. And by the way, reparations are utter and complete crap: Unless you have personally been wronged by the government (such as the Native Amercans or the Asian Americans back in WWII), you deserve nothing. Work like everyone else and stop feeling sorry for yourself.
Maybe she'll see that last paragraph and point and shriek, "SEE?!? THIS IS WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!!! BLINDERS!!!"
Whatever. Grow up...
Ryland, I could well imagine that you might feel stung, but if as you say you have said or done nothing to deserve the tired rants of this "victim," the sting should have at best been momentary, if at all. Guilt is one of those things that for years anyone with a single white genome has been told to accept, and perhaps that is what led to the stinging.
But let's face facts: Her racism is no better than anyone else's racism (of course she's racist - she painted White America with the broadest, most tired strokes she could produce). She has long given in to the notion that she is a victim, and to argue otherwise would be foolish and pointless. That she is flat-out wrong will never occur to her because she will never see any opposing viewpoint as anything other than White Oppression.
She will undoubtedly be published, and her book will be the livre du jour for the politically correct set. But it will fade from memory quickly as America focuses on rather more pressing problems (like finding someone that might actually present a challenge to Bush's re-election).
Personally, I gave up guilt a LONG time ago; I laugh when I see the hand-wringing such rants produce among the more liberal. And by the way, reparations are utter and complete crap: Unless you have personally been wronged by the government (such as the Native Amercans or the Asian Americans back in WWII), you deserve nothing. Work like everyone else and stop feeling sorry for yourself.
Maybe she'll see that last paragraph and point and shriek, "SEE?!? THIS IS WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!!! BLINDERS!!!"
Whatever. Grow up...
Posted by tj :: :: :: May 28, 2003 12:45pm
:: :: May 28, 2003 12:45pmi think anybody can claim to be a victim of something. blacks can claim to be victims of whites because their ancestors made them slaves. native americans can claim to be vicitims because of the whites taking their land. fat people can claim to be victims because of the amount of food forced upon them by the fast food chains. poor people can claim to be victims because of the money the rich people have. alcoholics can claim to be a victim to a disease. etc. etc.
it comes down to how you handle what you've been dealt. do you bitch about it and feel like you deserve something in return? or do you deal with it and try to make your situation better. i've been pretty lucky in life, but i've still had to work to get where i am. welcome to america, where you can be anything you want ... by WORKING for it.
fucking "victims" my ass.
it comes down to how you handle what you've been dealt. do you bitch about it and feel like you deserve something in return? or do you deal with it and try to make your situation better. i've been pretty lucky in life, but i've still had to work to get where i am. welcome to america, where you can be anything you want ... by WORKING for it.
fucking "victims" my ass.
Posted by Tony :: :: :: Mar 02, 2004 06:15pm
:: :: Mar 02, 2004 06:15pmAnd you really can apply this to everyone. We white conquerors who threw everybody off their land and threw the Africans in chains, for instance. Why did we go and do all that in the first place? Because we were persecuted in Europe for one reason or another. I want my two acres and a mule.
Posted by Peaceandska :: :: :: Jun 05, 2003 08:18pm
:: :: Jun 05, 2003 08:18pm "Perhaps if you were a physicist and understood the ramifications of puncturing holes in Earth's atmosphere (have you noticed the weather lately), you would not blindly support space travel."
I thought this comment was particularly amusing. After giving you so much trouble about being 'ignorant', and trying to have an opinion on something you dont know everything about, he tell you not to comment on anything you don't understand. But then he claims to apprently know enough about physics to concoct this rather absurd theory that space travel is the cause of global warming or some other climatic irregularity. This guy is completely ridiculous. I'm surprised he had enough time to become the leading authority on reparations for slave descendants, what with him having to be a physicist and a medical professional.
I thought this comment was particularly amusing. After giving you so much trouble about being 'ignorant', and trying to have an opinion on something you dont know everything about, he tell you not to comment on anything you don't understand. But then he claims to apprently know enough about physics to concoct this rather absurd theory that space travel is the cause of global warming or some other climatic irregularity. This guy is completely ridiculous. I'm surprised he had enough time to become the leading authority on reparations for slave descendants, what with him having to be a physicist and a medical professional.
Posted by Jonathan :: :: :: Jul 28, 2003 06:03pm
:: :: Jul 28, 2003 06:03pmI stumbled across your site tonight and found this discussion amusing. I believe that everyone has the right to discuss anything and that uninformed discussion is often the starting place for learning. If I had to be an expert before I started my journey of discovery on any topic, I could never begin.
As for the name calling, or even the inference that you or your peers or even your ancestors might be racists, this shows the kind of intolerance that would immediately be lambasted were it the other way round. Just because someone or their section of the community has been wronged, why does it give them the right to be offensive and abusive to me?
If you seek justice, then always be just.
If you want to be accepted, then practice acceptance by accepting me.
If you seek equality, then treat me as an equal.
If you want to be respected, then respect me.
Jonathan
As for the name calling, or even the inference that you or your peers or even your ancestors might be racists, this shows the kind of intolerance that would immediately be lambasted were it the other way round. Just because someone or their section of the community has been wronged, why does it give them the right to be offensive and abusive to me?
If you seek justice, then always be just.
If you want to be accepted, then practice acceptance by accepting me.
If you seek equality, then treat me as an equal.
If you want to be respected, then respect me.
Jonathan
Posted by Ryland F :: :: :: Aug 05, 2003 12:30pm
:: :: Aug 05, 2003 12:30pmIm another ryland, found your site by searching for my name... forward this to the ingrate.
I am against the compensation, i think it is bullshit to ask the descendants of dead people (who were not minors) to be responsible for past heritage crimes. that would be like suing Ryland for his mom and dad having a car accident and killing your parents. GET OVER IT, I'm not racist by any means, but this sort of extensive leeching of the system is what causes to further racism. I HATE when black people accuse me of my ancestors crimes, I have black, hispanic, mexican, and latino friends. But people who throw those accusations about as a stereo-typical ignorance, You want a good stereo type, you are the same person who sits at home on welfare and finds reasons to not go back to work by leeching off the social services, food stamps and when those checks get slim because everyone else joined your bandwagon, you look for a new way to suck blood from this great nations financial turnip. These systems of aid and enabling the public to better themselves with taxpayers funds are excellent, and they are your right to use, but if they are not enough, get over it, I always thought the best compensation for african americans or anyone wanting compensation for my slave holding ancestors actions, is a plane ticket back to your respective "homeland". if you don't want to because this country is "better" for you, then your compensation is the right to stay here and live a better life for your family.
I am against the compensation, i think it is bullshit to ask the descendants of dead people (who were not minors) to be responsible for past heritage crimes. that would be like suing Ryland for his mom and dad having a car accident and killing your parents. GET OVER IT, I'm not racist by any means, but this sort of extensive leeching of the system is what causes to further racism. I HATE when black people accuse me of my ancestors crimes, I have black, hispanic, mexican, and latino friends. But people who throw those accusations about as a stereo-typical ignorance, You want a good stereo type, you are the same person who sits at home on welfare and finds reasons to not go back to work by leeching off the social services, food stamps and when those checks get slim because everyone else joined your bandwagon, you look for a new way to suck blood from this great nations financial turnip. These systems of aid and enabling the public to better themselves with taxpayers funds are excellent, and they are your right to use, but if they are not enough, get over it, I always thought the best compensation for african americans or anyone wanting compensation for my slave holding ancestors actions, is a plane ticket back to your respective "homeland". if you don't want to because this country is "better" for you, then your compensation is the right to stay here and live a better life for your family.
Posted by Tony :: :: :: Mar 02, 2004 06:30pm
:: :: Mar 02, 2004 06:30pmI want to know about this 600 years figure. I've heard it before, and I understand that Americans weren't the only ones usign Africans as slaves, but for the purposes of reparations paid out by the US government, it seems to me that no more that 228 years of oppression could possibly be attributed to the United States, given that there was no such thing before 1776. Furthermore, slavery was outlawed in 1862, giving you a scant 86 years of slavery. And I doubt you can find a culture that can't come up with that kind of number in its history. Hell, even the Britons were under the Roman thumb for decades. Tell you what. You want a culture that deserves sympathy? Go look at homosexuals. They have been oppressed, beaten, lynched, burned, and generally murdered at least since the existence of Christianity, and before then were often enslaved for the sexual enjoyment of depraved nobles and leaders. And they're still working for equality today. Sure, a lot of people may still be stupid asses that are biased against African-Americans, but it's been a lot longer since the papers carried a black man in a tree than a homosexual in a ditch.
If you feel the need to inflate your numbers for sympathy, you're fighting the less important fight.
If you feel the need to inflate your numbers for sympathy, you're fighting the less important fight.
Posted by Kevin Frederiksen :: :: :: Mar 03, 2004 10:46am
:: :: Mar 03, 2004 10:46amYou are quite correct about the slavery issue. We were subjects of the British crown until 1776, and so the Brits Spanish, French, and Dutch should also take the blame as they all had colonial empires in the Americas until then.
Yes, homosexuals have been repressed, murdered, etc. since the Hebrew Bible became the law of the Jews. Prior to that, it was no big deal. In fact, Alexander the Great traveled with his own "Boy Toy", and nobody blinked an eye. He did have a son with the Princess of Persha, but that was a political marriage. Even the noble Caesers of Rome, were switch-hitters, and it was thought preferable to experience everything you could at least once. I guess so you could say "Been there, done that, got the toga..."
Back to that reparation thing to blacks, I don't think so. The black community has had 40 years of lopsided law in favor of them, and I think they should use that to pull themselves even with the rest of society, or surpass us. So far, for the majority of blacks, that has not been enough. I say "The tools are there within your grasp. We can't be held responsible if you don't use them, or abuse them..."
As far as homosexuals, It's nobody's business but their own. It sould not be the business of the Federal government.
Yes, homosexuals have been repressed, murdered, etc. since the Hebrew Bible became the law of the Jews. Prior to that, it was no big deal. In fact, Alexander the Great traveled with his own "Boy Toy", and nobody blinked an eye. He did have a son with the Princess of Persha, but that was a political marriage. Even the noble Caesers of Rome, were switch-hitters, and it was thought preferable to experience everything you could at least once. I guess so you could say "Been there, done that, got the toga..."
Back to that reparation thing to blacks, I don't think so. The black community has had 40 years of lopsided law in favor of them, and I think they should use that to pull themselves even with the rest of society, or surpass us. So far, for the majority of blacks, that has not been enough. I say "The tools are there within your grasp. We can't be held responsible if you don't use them, or abuse them..."
As far as homosexuals, It's nobody's business but their own. It sould not be the business of the Federal government.