Racism, Sexism and Stereotypes

Hello, dear readers! It's been a while since I've posted something, but I've been quite busy with college and my thesis and all of that. Yesterday I finished all of my courses (18.5/20 average, fuck yeah!) and now I'm "only" missing my master's thesis to finish my course, yay! 

Well anyway, today's post is about discrimination. Let's start with a widely known quote (which I heard in V for Vendetta), by Gloria Steinem, a famous feminist:

Sex and race, because they are easy, visible differences, have been the primary ways of organizing human beings into superior and inferior groups, and into the cheap labour on which this system still depends.

I don't think anyone can refute the truth spoken in these words. The white male has been a major opressor of non-white races and non-male genders for centuries. Lately, it's improved quite a lot (no more slavery, good job, society) but you listen to stories all the time on the media about race crimes and all of that. The biggest problem with today's media coverage on race crimes is that the white race is still paying for last century's slavery (I am talking mostly about America).

Let's think of the following example: a thief walks into a designated house, expecting it to be empty. He then finds that the family was in the house, kills them all, robs it, leaves. Then he gets caught. If this crime were to be done by a white thief to a white family, media will announce "brutal murder in a robbery gone wrong". Black thief to a black family, same story. Black man to white family, same story. White man to black family "brutal race crime, racist finally caught". It's somethind that really annoys me in the media. The media follow the stereotype of "white people are racist and black people aren't".

It's just the same as when little children go missing. White 6yo girls spend 6 months in the news (remember Maddie? in my country she still pops up in the news once in a while), but spanish and mexican girls aren't even "worth mentioning".

But alas, we diverge! Back to discrimination. Why racism and sexism happen. 

Like Steinem said, it's easy to distinguish someone based on race and sex (and religion, but that's another topic). Why do people use that distinction to classify people in terms of superior and inferior races, I have no clue. I guess that, in mankind's eternal desire for power and control, the majority group could classify minorities as being less powerful, just because they're outnumbered. They could classify women as inferior just because the feminine physique is tipically smaller and weaker (strength-wise) than a male one. They could think less of other races just because they look different. At the bottom of it all, I think most people are just stupid.

Anyway, discrimination leads to stereotypes, which aren't always bad, but which aren't usually good. "Asians are smart", "black people are criminals", "white people are racist", shit like that. I think that stereotypes exist for a reason, in the sense that maybe statistics show that the asian community has better academic results than the american one, or that black communities have higher crime rates that white ones. I don't know if these are true or not, but I'd like to believe that stereotypes do have a proper source. The problem is, I also think you can't judge an entire race for what a small subset of them have/do/are.

I saw an interview on the Ferguson riots, which I can't find right now, but it mentioned the same point I'm trying to stress here. The internet was riddled with jokes about Ferguson (which, I have to confess, I found hilarious, I'm sorry, but I really have a twisted sense of humour) and how black people were just showing how inferior they were compared to white people, because they trashed the town in a protest. And again, I stress my point, whether you think the black community overreacted or not with these protests (which I think they have, to be honest), you can't judge an entire race by this small group of people.

However, one must also recognize that, as critical human beings, we judge people. Based on looks, actions, etc, we judge everyone we see. When I see someone that has adhered to the "swag fashion" (jeans below your ass, multiple caps, that kind of stuff), I can't help but think "this person has some issues". Well, the guy may be actually the coolest guy on Earth, but it's the same principle as to why you dress nicely for a job interview. Your looks count. 

Let's give an example. Imagine a painting showing 3 white men hanging a black man. Is it racist? If you immediatly thought it wasn't, then you might be a racist, because the white men may be hanging him just because he is black. If you immediatly thought it was, you're distinguishing the black race from the white race, so you judge people based on their looks. If you thought that it depends on whether this black man did some crime to deserve being hanged, then you are a wise one.

Obviously, and returning to Steinem's quote for the third time, race and gender are visible, and if you have an opinion like "black people are criminals", then when you see a black person you get wary of them. I think that this kind of logic can't really change for us as a species (the kind about judging someone and reacting to our beliefs, not about believe blacks are criminals), and I think that as long as your reaction does not step into the other person's freedom, it's ok. By this, I mean that if you cross the road in fear of being robbed, then you're not disturbing anyone. If you refuse service to a customer, then you are in the wrong. 

I've been focusing a lot on the thought of "black being criminals", but the same applies the other way around. If I lived in a black community, and the few whites that lived here were drug dealers, hey, I'd be ok with moms crossing the road with their kids to avoid going near me, it's in their right. I wouldn't be ok in applying to a job and being refused on the basis that I'm white.

Nowadays, it's sad that really offensive forms of racism and sexism exist. It's sad that black people have 42 more times the chance of being checked at airports than white people. It's sad that slavery still exists in parts of the world. I can only hope that one day this changes, but I believe it never will, unless we face a radical evolutionary change.

I wanted to address sexism and feminists and all of that, but the post is already too big, so maybe another time. All the best,

David

The Problem With Marxism

Today's world and most societies are ruled by Capitalism. This means, as you (should) know, that the economy (trade, industry and production) are "privately owned and operated for profit". Now, capitalism is (arguably) the economic system that creates more prosperity, but it is also one that is associated with economic instability and is unable to provide the well-being of all people.

As Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels observed, with Capitalism, the gap between the low working classes and the rich business-owning classes will increase and as the "social unrest between the two antagonistic classes intensifies", a revolution will undoubtedly culminate. The outcome of this revolution will be the establishment of socialism, where production is cooperatly owned and is directly for use (in contrast to Capitalism's "production for profit") and the following principle is followed:

To each according to his contribution.

This principle of distribution is one of the basis of socialism and means that an individual will be compensated for his efforts and contribution in terms of labor, effort and/or productivity, which contrasts with Capitalism's compensation method, where an individual is rewarded merely for owning and contributing service. Eventually, as technologies and productive forces advance, socialism will mutate into communism, a society based on common ownership and the following principle:

From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.

 This slogan was first used by the Socialist Louis Blanc and according to Marxism, it will become possible due to the abundance of goods that a communist society will produce. There will be enough to satisfy one's personal needs, pleasures and daily work needs and all citizens will contribute to the community according to his skills, capacities and age.

This utopia that Marx and Engels describe sounds great in all aspects. One fulfills a roll that one has chosen or has earned and develops his personal skills with the desire to work and contribute to the community. There will be enough for everyone to live happily and confortably. Ha! Funny. Can you see the problem here?

Well, to begin with, this assumes mankind will have resources and materials to sustain itself indefinitely, which as we well know, is a big fat lie. Secondly, and perhaps more important, is the fact that in this utopia everyone is a nice guy that wants to contribute to the community. However, men are a corrupted race, ruled by selfish desires and fears. In this kind of society, there will always be assholes trying to take advantage of the system, trying to take more than they give and disrupting the beautiful utopia that has been established.

The biggest flaw with the utopian society that Marxism describes isn't, curiously enough, the ideas or rules that have been defined. It is not a problem of mankind not being ready for this paradise; it is the utopia that is not ready for mankind.

Show me your opinions and points of view in the comment section down below! Peace out,

Dave

Common Things Not So Common

I came across a post and one of the points of that post was about how a part of Europe ate seating and another ate walking. First of all, what the hell? Who eats walking? Do you go to a restaurant and just order food and eat on your way home? I know that some asian cultures eat on their knees or sitting on the floor (according to anime, at least!) and i know some that have different cutlery from the Western countries. My sister has travaled a lot and she's been to countries where spitting in the floor of restaurants is something common.

This got me thinking about common things that I consider completely normal, but that on other cultures may be thought of as strange or out of the ordinary. I'm from Portugal (yes, Cristiano Ronaldo, i know) and i'm going to write down things that i consider "portuguese customs" and that might be very strange from other countries.

• People eat sitting in chairs, at 12am to 2pm and at 7pm to 9pm
• We use western cutlery
• The time is measured in 0 to 24h and we have Daylight Saving's Time
• Most people want to go to college and their parents pay for it
• People come back home after college and move out when they're between 22 and 30 years of age
• Summer vacation is usually considered going somewhere with a beach (we have a massive coastline)
• Winter vacation is going to Serra da Estrela
• Everyone drinks coffee, at 0.50€ to 1.00€, from 1 to 3 times a day, in a tiny cup
• There isn't the social convention of women sitting in a bar and getting paid a drink; to meet girls, we either talk to them out of the blue and ask for a phone number or someone introduces them to us
• Majority of population is Christian, although we have a fair share of other kinds of beliefs (every once in a while, a Jehova's Witness comes ringing the doorbell)
• Every religion or lack of religion is socially acceptable (well... as long as you don't worship Satan or something)
• Little nudity or swearing on TV; and only after a certain hour with an "Adult Content Sign" on the corner
• 4 TV Channels 
• Commercial breaks last from 5min to 15mins (it's ridiculous...)
• Everyone is a football (the european football, not that ridiculous sport americans call football) fan / hooligan
• Saturday night is spent in a bar drinking beer and (if you're in the mood) in the disco until sunrise
• People are friendly (most of the time!) if you don't look like a fucking creep
• Immigrants and gipsies are all around us and there are lots of stereotypes about them
• Internet is expensive and comes in bundles with TV and Phone (30€ a month for Fiber is a good deal)
• Saturday and Sunday are resting days
• Sunday morning is church!
• The term "sedan" is unheard of 
• The news come on during meal times and everone watches the news
• We only dub movies and cartoons for children; everything else is subbed (go to France or Spain and watch French Rambo....)
• We learn other languages in school. Most people opt for english, some for french/spanish and some for something more exotic
• In school, there are 10m to 20m breaks between classes, which are usually 1h30m each. There is also a lunch break and you pay for your lunch in the school cafeteria
• Most kids go to kindergarten before 4 years of Primary School, which are followed by 5 years of Middle School and 3 years of Secondary School (totalling 12 years of education before college)
• School starts in September and ends in June, with Winter vacation, Summer vacation, Carnival, Easter, etc
• Some kids join Professional Schools instead of going to Secondary School
• We pay for books, but not for classes until we get to College
• School is mandatory until the 9th grade
• Every couple of school years there are final exams to evaluate you
• Grades are INS (Insufficient), SUF (sufficient), BOM (good) and MB (very good) during Primary School, 1 to 5 during Middle School (3 means passing) and 0 to 20 during Secondary School
• People in the military get paid a lot and have tons of discounts (on public transportation and other services)
• There are highways everywhere (with tolls)
• There are good public transport systems (mostly in bigger cities or between districts)
• The country is divided in 18 districts (and 2 archipelagos), which are divided in Concelhos, which are further divided in Freguesias
• People have weird accents among the country (people in the north of portugal pronounce the sound "V" as "B")
• Everybody downloads everything
• Unit of measurement is Meter, Weight is Kilo, and dates are DD/MM/YYYY.
• ATM's let you pay bills, charge your phone (with money), withdraw, etc

Well, for now, I can't think of many more "common" things that might be really different from what happens on other countries. Maybe I'll add up to this list as time goes on. 

Did you find some of these absurd? If so, comment down below with what is done in your country and try to think of things that you've always thought of as completely normal but might not be so.

High five!

David