tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post467717241390999894..comments2024-03-19T07:10:27.303-07:00Comments on Quark Soup by David Appell: America Needs Some Better AmericansDavid Appellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03318269033139447591noreply@blogger.comBlogger77125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-77498012864881645302021-04-16T22:59:55.353-07:002021-04-16T22:59:55.353-07:00You need to watch the video to understand how red-...You need to watch the video to understand how red-lining is still impacting the black community in the USA.Layzejhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11346550512734519728noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-69796533442164693102021-04-14T20:10:47.748-07:002021-04-14T20:10:47.748-07:00Layzej - I am mystified by your comment. The feder...Layzej - I am mystified by your comment. The federal government banned redlining 53 years ago<br /><br /><i> the Fair Housing Act of 1968 was passed to fight the practice. According to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, "The Fair Housing Act makes it unlawful to discriminate in the terms, conditions, or privileges of sale of a dwelling because of race or national origin.</i>David in Calhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10222355423128534221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-86634850295413336672021-04-14T14:30:46.177-07:002021-04-14T14:30:46.177-07:00"A related guess is that certain government p..."A related guess is that certain government programs had the effect of..."<br /><br />Yeah. Redlining. It concentrated wealth among people of a certain colour. Layzejhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11346550512734519728noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-6004974886571011162021-04-13T16:15:17.581-07:002021-04-13T16:15:17.581-07:00EM -- Your theory is plausible, but it's just ...EM -- Your theory is plausible, but it's just a guess. Another theory is that certain government programs had the effect promoting 1 parent families. A related guess is that certain government programs had the effect of making blacks less self-sufficient and more reliant on government. There's no way to prove whether any of these guesses is correct. We can't re-run history.<br /><br />But, why does it matter? Regardless of how we got here, you and I and most Americans share the goal of fixing the situation. I think it's counter-productive to focus on how we arrived at this situation. Instead we should focus what approaches work, which ones don't work, and which ones are counter-productive.<br /><br />Cheers<br /><br />David in Calhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10222355423128534221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-16108784454051800872021-04-13T15:43:08.495-07:002021-04-13T15:43:08.495-07:00David in Cal
"One of his findings is that cu... David in Cal<br /><br />"One of his findings is that culture tends to persist. E.g. he points out that Chinese immigrants and their descendants in various countries continue to maintain the culture of Chinese people in China."<br /><br /> That explains why they work so hard in school. China has had a functioning bureaucracy for 3000 years, with entrance by competitive examination. That embeds a respect for education very deep into a culture.The<br /><br />Now consider the blacks. They were uprooted from their culture and kept as slaves. They were not educated, treated as subhumans and assumed to be less intelligent than the whites. Many whites still assume that. They were, and are, discriminated against in the job market. That does not send them the message that it is worthwhile to get a good education.Entropic manhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08924031505275303068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-36828792089992245142021-04-13T10:47:44.150-07:002021-04-13T10:47:44.150-07:00EM - Yes, I agree that the differences are cultura...EM - Yes, I agree that the differences are cultural. <br /><br />IMO It's just too glib to say that racism molded the culture. Did anti-white racism cause Asians to outdo whites? Why are Mormons so successful, despite a history of anti-Mormon bigotry? Did anti-gentile racism cause Jews to outdo gentiles? Why do Nigerian immigrants do so much better than many other African immigrants? I don't believe anyone has definitive answers to the question of how a culture forms. Clearly, much more is involved<br />than just racism.<br /><br />However, none of this invalidates my prior comment. It's just wrong to assume that racism is the only cause of difference between races or between any groups of human beings.<br />Cheers<br /><br />P.S. Thomas Sowell has done extensive research on culture. One of his findings is that culture tends to persist. E.g. he points out that Chinese immigrants and their descendants in various countries continue to maintain the culture of Chinese people in China.David in Calhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10222355423128534221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-60317202748562236632021-04-13T10:41:23.018-07:002021-04-13T10:41:23.018-07:00David in Cal
This is what you should be aiming fo...David in Cal<br /><br />This is what you should be aiming for in your treatment of those with greater malaria and skin cancer resistance; equity not equality.<br /><br />https://skepticalscience.com/fair-or-no-climate-policy.htmlEntropic manhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08924031505275303068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-58817332634884233342021-04-13T05:21:38.023-07:002021-04-13T05:21:38.023-07:00David in Cal
Genetically there are no races. All ...David in Cal<br /><br />Genetically there are no races. All 8 billion of us are part of the same gene pool.<br /><br />All the differences you describe are cultural and racism has moulded the cultures.Entropic manhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08924031505275303068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-67387588135237460262021-04-12T20:04:33.853-07:002021-04-12T20:04:33.853-07:00EM - your comment assumes that blacks are equal to...EM - your comment assumes that blacks are equal to whites and Asians in every respect. But, the reality is that blacks lag Asians by 4 to 5 years in school, on average. The black crime rate is a multiple of the white and Asian crime rates. A larger percentage of black children are not raised by their parents in 2-parent families. A serious analysis must include these and other relevant social factors.<br /><br />I would add that wrongly blaming racism for the differences you point to does significant harm to black Americans. The wrong diagnosis leads to ineffective cures. To improve black Americans' lot, we need to solve the real sources of the problems.<br /><br />CheersDavid in Calhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10222355423128534221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-33511267262791391812021-04-12T16:02:56.349-07:002021-04-12T16:02:56.349-07:00Surely this is easily settled.
If the USA is not...Surely this is easily settled. <br /><br />If the USA is not racist then skin colour would be irrelevant. Black and white should have equal % employment and equal average pay. They should have equal life expectancies, equal access to healthcare and an equal % would be billionaires. They should queue for the same time to vote and have an equal probability of being shot by the police.<br /><br />Any data?Entropic manhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08924031505275303068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-46215537591906450432021-04-12T13:37:40.732-07:002021-04-12T13:37:40.732-07:00The first refuge of someone who lacks facts is the...The first refuge of someone who lacks facts is the ad hominem attack.<br /><br />CheersDavid in Calhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10222355423128534221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-85957814541440231992021-04-12T12:14:40.538-07:002021-04-12T12:14:40.538-07:00David, I won't be goaded into such a discussio...David, I won't be goaded into such a discussion.David Appellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03318269033139447591noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-87462525848022120142021-04-12T09:33:53.921-07:002021-04-12T09:33:53.921-07:00Rejecting the question by calling it "racist&...<i>Rejecting the question by calling it "racist" reminds me of those who rejected the theory of relativity, calling it "Jewish science".</i><br /><br />This is seriously delusional. If Samuel Johnson were alive he might say that the last refuge of a scoundrel is comparing yourself to Einstein.<br /><br />I, for one, am sick of reading Trumpist propaganda here.JoeThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13731366159156041863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-72202471133339277982021-04-11T20:35:18.481-07:002021-04-11T20:35:18.481-07:00David -
I enjoy debating with people on the web ...David - <br /><br />I enjoy debating with people on the web because their responses strengthen my understanding and force me to think more carefully about things. Of course, I realize that opinions virtually never change. However, you're obviously very smart and you're a scientist, which means thinking in an open-minded, objective, fact-based manner. I might be wrong about the relative amount of discrimination against various races today, but I don't think it's improper to ask the question and try to answer it based on facts. Rejecting the question by calling it "racist" reminds me of those who rejected the theory of relativity, calling it "Jewish science".<br /><br />CheersDavid in Calhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10222355423128534221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-23451698160950575202021-04-11T18:10:16.517-07:002021-04-11T18:10:16.517-07:00You used to be a nice guy, David, but Trumpism has...You used to be a nice guy, David, but Trumpism has really warped you.David Appellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03318269033139447591noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-15574407533697264882021-04-11T14:42:22.853-07:002021-04-11T14:42:22.853-07:00David, are you seriously wondering why a mass shoo...David, are you seriously wondering why a mass shooting in Atlanta where a man goes from massage parlor to massage parlor killing Asian women gets more attention than the Uber Eats driver killing?<br /><br />I'm not interested in debating that.<br /><br />Nor do I feel any need to prove to you that black discrimination in American is vastly greater than white discrimination. The question is insulting and you're a fucking racist for asking it. David Appellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03318269033139447591noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-58751549171921769022021-04-11T13:12:10.812-07:002021-04-11T13:12:10.812-07:00Thanks for your responses, David. I sincerely app...Thanks for your responses, David. I sincerely appreciate your reponses, although I disagree with them.<br /><br />You say there are "vastly greater, overwhelmingly greater discrimination against blacks" than against whites. Of course this was historically the case, but what's your proof that its true today? Many of those who share your belief would say that inequality of outcome proves discrimination. I do not share that belief.<br /><br />Addressing the amount of Uber Eats coverage is a way of ignoring the main contention. IMO the media bias described in the article is just enormous. <br /><br />CheersDavid in Calhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10222355423128534221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-48105571171691892192021-04-11T12:49:57.218-07:002021-04-11T12:49:57.218-07:00David, there is lots of coverage of the Uber Eats ...David, there is lots of coverage of the Uber Eats driver in the MSM, in WaPo, MSN, Newsweek, and many more. Check next time.<br /><br />https://www.bing.com/news/search?q=Mohammad+Anwar&FORM=HDRSC6David Appellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03318269033139447591noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-86231438951753408512021-04-11T12:31:20.019-07:002021-04-11T12:31:20.019-07:00David, some conservatives focus on a few instances...David, some conservatives focus on a few instances of discrimination against whites while ignoring the vastly greater, overwhelmingly greater discrimination against blacks. So it looks shallow and self-serving.David Appellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03318269033139447591noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-522310310821523882021-04-11T11:13:44.802-07:002021-04-11T11:13:44.802-07:00David - this article says more or less what I want...David - this article says more or less what I wanted to say in response to your comment about things racist conservatives say. Please read it before reading the rest of my comment.<br /><br />https://thechicagothinker.com/not-all-crimes-matter-to-the-mainstream-media/<br /><br />IMO not only do liberal media bias their coverage as described in the article, they also bias their coverage to mask black deficiencies, like the fact that ON AVERAGE, black students lag white students by 3 to 4 years, and Asians are a year ahead of whites.<br /><br />Here's where it leads: People like you are implicitly told that one ought to follow this bias in their own conversation, on pain of being tarred as a racist. You assert that Conservatives may talk this way to cover up their own racism. Why should we need an excuse to say true things? It's liberal who dissemble by ignoring these things.<br /><br />Cheers<br /><br />David in Calhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10222355423128534221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-34577701436103576102021-04-10T17:13:35.548-07:002021-04-10T17:13:35.548-07:00David wrote:
"Instead, I will assert that Pre...David wrote:<br />"Instead, I will assert that President Trump's policies were better overall for black Americans than President Biden's policies."<br /><br />How about we see if blacks themselves agree? <br /><br />They voted for Biden by 87%.<br /><br />https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020_United_States_presidential_election#Black_votersDavid Appellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03318269033139447591noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-4846129921264651412021-04-10T11:41:32.144-07:002021-04-10T11:41:32.144-07:00That got me intrigued. After some research I now k...That got me intrigued. After some research I now know how to build a hydrogen bomb👺.Entropic manhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08924031505275303068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-15307281399969775432021-04-10T09:52:45.438-07:002021-04-10T09:52:45.438-07:00No, sorry, I thought perhaps I should have explain...No, sorry, I thought perhaps I should have explained -- John Wheeler, physicist extraordinaire, great teacher and graduate advisor of Richard Feynman (and many others):<br /><br />https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Archibald_WheelerDavid Appellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03318269033139447591noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-28735657942092537822021-04-10T09:40:00.808-07:002021-04-10T09:40:00.808-07:00This Wheeler?
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politi...This Wheeler?<br /><br />https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/watch-epa-nominee-wheeler-says-climate-change-not-the-greatest-crisisEntropic manhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08924031505275303068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28837843.post-51300547168437844532021-04-10T07:43:10.965-07:002021-04-10T07:43:10.965-07:00EM, John Wheeler took your maxim one step further ...EM, John Wheeler took your maxim one step further - don't start a calculation until you know the answer. David Appellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03318269033139447591noreply@blogger.com