Quote:
Originally Posted by Scraper Enthusiast
I'll try to address all of your points later, but for the mean time, take a look at the below-linked study. If what you say is correct, then this study below is contradictory to much of what you say. I believe it is contradictory because your opinions are based on a lot of Marxist-social philosophy, not real data or the real world, that is characteristic of many universities schools of anthropology and sociology.
People in Diverse areas less trusting of others
People in ethnically diverse area ‘less trusting of others’ - Times Online |
Differences complicate the lives of people who are only used to and comfortable with their own points of view, religion, and looks. I wouldn't even begin argue that, because it is so obviously apparent in every corner of our world. To say that social narcissim is desirable though, I'm not sure how one could conclude that. In addition, one study from one sample population in one country doesn't hold a bucket of water.
This study was not conducted on children, who have yet to be socialized towards self-absorbtion by the adult population. This study was conducted on adults, who have already been socialzed towards maintaining the status quo(often towards the political gain of those at the very top). The only thing the study "proves", if anything at all, is that people are being "socialized" to only be comfortable with themselves and that in the face of differences, they lack adequate conflict resolution skills. This is undeniable, but like I said, children(whom we all start out as) discriminate ONLY on the basis of what they are most familiar with. White infants raised by black adopted parents are most comfortable with people whom they perceive to look like their adopted parents. In isolation, people are only familiar with those whom they perceive to be most like their parents or themeselves. In a few generations, transracial adoptions will move this reality further away from an issue of "one's own race".
Immersing adults who have already been socialized towards social narcissim into a "multicultural" society, will indeed create growing pains. Possibly, severe growing pains over the course of generations. There are people who have argued that women's rights should revert back to the days when women were simply required to be mere sex slaves to their husbands, barefoot, pregnant, at home, and without political or social power. "Studies" have shown that when women were in this position, they had "more time" to raise their children, and their husbands were often happier. But what of the women? Well studies can hardly determine how happy women were in these situations because
women were often not important enough to study.
So while the women's movement has surely created growing pains in society, for which not everyone has benefited immediately, I don't think MOST men or women today would argue that the integration of women into society should be a thing of the past. We need to find a balance. In this regard, humanity must evolve, to meet the needs of men and women in society and socialize young children towards accepting that people have the right(within the same society) to pursue their own goals and desires, irrespective of their gender.
Even still, most parents today purchase blue toys that concern violence and "action" for their boys, and pink toys that concern nurturing and family for their girls. This is happening less and less often, but people still do it in this country with high frequency, prehaps perpetuating "gender wars" in some segments of society. A balance could be(and has been in some cultures and societies) acheived without "feminizing" boys or "masculinizing" girls, but many parents lack the SKILL with which to accomplish this at the time. That's not to say, "abandon the whole thing".
Likewise, "multiculturalism" encounters much the same issue. Go into your child's bedroom. How many black, Indian, or Chinese dolls did or does your little girl have? If none, then you are socializing her to only accept those whom YOU see to reflect her(even if those white dolls look NOTHING like her-which is a whole different problem. See Barbie.)
You may be doing this intentionally, or not, but the bottom line is, if she's only got a rack of white dolls with two inch waist and blonde hair, you are perpetuating your own adult socialization which is deeply ingrained in you from days that
most(I hear some folks want another war and more pregnant women) of us would like to leave behind. If you want history to be history(and for example, blacks to stop talking about slavery) then both whites and blacks must evolve away from those things inherent during those times: isolationism, narcissim, ignorance, sexism, and violence for self-gain and profit.
I don't know your age, but seemingly multiculturalism has not worked out too easily for you. The women's rights movement didn't work out well for a lot of men. There are still lots of kinks in that system, and often times men get treated unfairly in a quest to treat women better. We are only a century into the women's rights movement(about a generation), not very long at all. Multiculturalism is even younger. Those of us alive today may not be immediate benefactors of this process in the most ideal sense, but we do benefit if we choose to.
I have had quite a few "negative" encounters with people who identify themselves as "white"(as I'm sure you have as well), but some of my nearest and dearest friends are white as well. Some of my favorite family members are European and Carribean. My husband's parents are from two different countries. My children could be split up and divided around the world. My parents were actually born in Southern Europe(and of course, culturally raised European), but I am American. I mean, if someone built the equivalent of what amounts to a "Berlin Wall" in the United States today, seperating the cultures. Who do you think would benefit? How many of us would be seperated from our best friends, favorite co-workers, most beloved cousins or uncles? I mean, you can name everything wrong with multiculturalism or the women's rights movement, put a label on it and call it Marxist, but you are talking about the lives of of real human beings. I have greatly benefited from the diversity of my world(because I have chosen to). I have an up close and personal
understanding, to the best of my ability, of so many different cultures and races. It has allowed me to make peace with the few idiots that I have encountered in my life who may be members of a certain "group"(
a group of no-brainers). Multiculturalism has personally fueled by desire to learn about HIS-story from
her perspective, or from the perspective of those who didn't "write the books".
Being so close to so many people from all around the world hasn't made me feel more hostile, it has made me feel like a resident of this planet. I can't always reconcile my way of life with that of others(including my children, my parents, etc.), but I truly work hard to
understand other people. For my children, I hope it will be even easier to do this(to befriend and understand those whom
society still believes are so different.) I feel sorry for those who can't see outside of themselves, for indeed, this inability likely affects the most personal aspects of their lives(in dealing with their children, friends, parents, etc.). Again, the issue of only being comfortable with those whom you perceive to be like you, is not one of "racism", "sexism", or any other other -ism, save narcissim.
There was a time when some of us didn't even have the right to life. Now that virtually all of us do, let's use our human brains to figure out how to communicate with empathy, understanding, and compassion: something social narcissism and isolationtionism could never begin to faciliate. The "education" of being able to live amongst others in peace is likely the only lasting "education" that human beings need for survival. I gather that if just this concept could be grasped, issues of one culture or people( or group of people within a culture) hoarding the majority of the world's(or culture's) resources causing starvation, death, and disease around the planet would cease.
Welcome to City-Data.com forum! Make sure to register - it's free and very quick! You have to register before you can post and participate in our discussions with 700,000 other registered members. User profiles and some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your free account you will be able to customize many options, you will have the full access to over 15,000 posts/day about local topics and you will see fewer ads. 
There's got to be a smart a__ in every crowd
Linear Mode
