Frazgo, I spend my life arguing. Can you possibly understand that? I sincerely doubt it. Not quarrelling, mind you—although that does occur, just as the infrequent wreck is bound to occur to the frequent motorist—but arguing, which means that I seek out people who disagree with me.

If “white racist” is offensive to you, then “stupid people” should be offensive to me—but it is not. And for the record, I spent a fair amount of years as a youth in Okinawa, where by the kids whose grandparents and parents had had ring-side seats to one of the worst land battles of WWII I was daily chased, stoned and beaten for being white. After moving stateside, I was implicitly solicited to join the other side until the Montgomery Police Department broke up a fire fight on Wares Ferry Road between one of the last local KKK club houses (and yes, I did see them ride in pick-up trucks, shotguns in hand, past my house) and the neighbours who had tired of that bullshit. I think I understand a bit better than most folk the term “racist,” and as a person whose profession is the printed word I certainly understand context. Browne’s use of the word “white racist” is clearly one that means to determine people who are white and racist as opposed to blanketing all people as racialist. Can you not understand that?

Perhaps Wil Wheaton can hold your hand and waste hours gently explaining the bleeding obvious. I have wasted more than enough time with such a rudimentary lesson.

As for your annoyance at the term “white racist,” even if it were conveyed to mean that all whites are racist, well, be thankful that the only pain is to your fragile psyche. I have a book of pictures and postcards that exhibit the pain at the hands of racist whites you could have experienced were one black in America not so many decades ago: “Without Sanctuary: Lynching Photography in America.” They have a Web site too: http://www.withoutsanctuary.org. It were not so long ago that the United States Post Office conveyed picture postcards of black people tortured, humiliated and hanged by crowds of people who had two things in common: being white and being racist. Being white, I take offence that people did that, not that they were white. (I eat bleeding heart liberals for breakfast, no matter the colour of their skin.)

Too, I understand the gang problem all too well. To be sure, I wish to see it scrubbed from the land. I lived in the midst of 18th Street for many years, and had to deal with the gang from rampart as well during their CRASH heyday. I can assure you that, like organised religion, gangs will not go away. They will continue to grow, split, victimise lone targets as well as fortified ones and fight amongst themselves as well as with other gangs. The american economy—the rest of the world knows we are in a recession, even by the strict definition—is tanking and folk who are hungry tend to seek ways to not be hungry. The plight of the inner city is reaching out to the suburbs and gangs will follow. Politicians have taxpayers’ money to make sure they have their protection via police and private staff, but the rest of us? We have to rely on what we dare to do for ourselves. For many people, the lure—and too often it is a compulsion not safely ignored—of gang membership is what helps to fill the belly and satiate other deep desires. It will take understanding that rather than quibbling over incorrectly understood terms to even think of addressing the problem of gangs.

The point that everyone is missing is that “white racist” is as offensive to many of us as “illegal immigrant” is to others. The latter is one I never gave much thought to until El Chavo and Browne pointed out their views. I understand their point and thank them for giving me their insights without being rude about it.

Back to the post. I don’t think more meetings is a solution. I thought it was sad to see the bold headline like it was some sort of news we have gangs and the Big V makes it his #1 target. It reads of politics and pandering. It will only fester until people act and stop meeting about it.

BusTard is a complete asshole.

Browne

Frazgo,
One need not have much more than an elementary understanding of grammar and reading comprehension to suss that Browne stating “racist whites” is not at all what you so fabulously misconstrued. That she made a point of clarity to avoid the generalisation of implying all whites as racist is rather easily divined in her phrase, “racist whites.” Had she merely stated “whites” or “white people,” then your misconception would not have been.
Do ME one favour and please consider what you are writing before you make such an embarrassing mistake and I have to take away your crayons.

A broad generalization in my opinion would be me just saying,

“protect themselves from white people from kicking their asses”

me adding an adjective makes that statement not broad.

“protect themselves from racist white people from kicking their asses”

It wasn’t just people. It was people who were racist and white who went after Latinos and black people, not because of drugs or gang terrority, but because they didn’t like dark people in their neighborhood.

__________

I mean come on, I can’t mention US history here.

I’m not saying all white people are racist, like I never said all white people had slaves, but lets admit some stuff happen. I mean that’s what happened. Are you really saying that you feel offended by me bringing up that jim crow, slavery, the internment program where things that were brought up by racist white people instead of just people, because the reason these things happened was because certain people weren’t white.

Black people couldn’t live in certain neighborhoods in LA, because they weren’t white. Latinos couldn’t live in certain places because they weren’t white. Asian-Americans were interned because they weren’t white.

I’m not understading how American history is offensive to you?

No I’m not just calling racist, racist in regards to the US history.

US history is important.

If we pretend that certain things didn’t happen owing to race (and they did) people are not going to understand racism and why it plays out like it does in America.

If a black person does something racist, feel free to say racist black person, I would have no problem with that.

Browne