But a much less racist one is definitely feasible.
My local region in NZ is about 60:35 split between white European and Māori; with other Polynesian and Asian (various, but mainly Chinese) the remainder. That mix carries through to the work place. We aren’t shooting at each other. Nor are we tiptoeing around each other completely avoiding the issues of race. Māori are well represented in our police force (who don’t routinely carry guns) and this is the more likely outcome of waving a gun around while brown: Stuff
New Zealand isn’t a South Pacific paradise by any means. But hell, America, why don’t you talk to us for advice on gun control and not setting yourselves up for a race war?
Even Australia, which is WAY more racist than NZ and has armed cops, doesn’t go around executing black people on a daily basis any more. Still got a whole host of social problems compounded with a shitload of racism, but “less racist than America” is a really low bar to clear.
With warnings that it is pretty right wing, I suggest www.Weaselzippers.us
The comments on a big, ongoing story often contain links to the incident scanner frequencies and fairly up to date details. They were consistently ahead of the news networks during Santa Barbara and Orlando. They are consistently right wing, but worth looking at when something big is happening.
Police unions have been playing that bullshit victim card for a while now. Its disgusting, and orwellian in it’s doublespeek. The weshallovercome really takes the cake though.
The police officers shot in Dallas were victims. That being said, there’s a really nasty “us vs them” narrative that often plays out in law enforcement and with other emergency responders. I hope the more level headed in the professions can rein it in.
I’ve got perhaps a little bit of sunshine on an otherwise dark situation r.e. race in america:
I’m old enough that when I was a kid, asian mom and white dad, I was an outlier. Very lonely (because neither group really accepts you as one of their own), and definitely looked at strange pretty much everywhere. Constantly asked if I was adopted when out with my Dad etc… I was the only one besides my sister growing up who was obviously multiracial.
Nowadays (at least in So. Cal.) there are TONS of biracial or “mutt” kids. Nobody asks if my “Heinz 57” kid is adopted when we’re out together. Currently it seems like you could sit back and watch people stroll by and play “guess the mix”.
So, while racism is still a huge issue, at least on one front it seems to be getting chipped away one mixed family at a time. It’s a lot easier to empathize and not see something different as “other” if there’s some bit of it in your immediate family. So, with each caramel or olive toned kid, society is getting a teeny bit better. I know a genetically 100% caucasian girl whose last name is now “Diaz” who learned to cook a mean mole from her in-laws. I know a slavic gentleman who gives out little red envelopes to the kids in his extended family because of his chinese wife… and the list will continue to extend and grow longer.
Heh, I’m not saying it happens immediately. I’m just saying that it’s an unwinnable situation that at some point inevitably has to be realized as such (see e.g. “Vietnam”, and at some point in the future e.g. “the fucking entirety of the middle east”).
And nobody ever said that the current ruling class is either a) smart or b) willing to learn from history.
But sadly will probably mean being ostracized within “the force” and barred from any sort of upward mobility. I imagine that since this video went viral, this awesome lady’s life has become a lot more difficult.
Paramilitary organizations don’t usually reward independent thought and any questioning of the status quo.
This is (hopefully) much less common now? Neither side of our white European cross Chinese family have expressed anything other than acceptance for us and our mixed race kids. Nor have they had anything other than the odd rare unpleasant comment at school, something which hasn’t affected their ability to cultivate friends.
Yeah, most of my Japanese family married non-japanese. One married an irish guy, my wife’s serbian jewish, another cousin married a nice polish girl. Only the daughter of the most traditional branch stuck with Japanese. So now the family is truly a melting pot.
And nowadays I see 1/2 asian people all over So. Cal. Most are younger than me, but it’snot so unusual anymore.
But… back when my very headstrong Mom notified the family that she was dating a white guy, my grandfather was none too pleased (but came around shortly after getting to know my Dad), but my a-hole uncle fought their relationship all the way to writing a letter to my grandparents begging them to “do something about” the impending marriage. Heh. His firstborn son’s the one that married the awesome Polish girl He strangely doesn’t seem to treat his grandkids with the disdain that he treated my sister and I with…
And… I’ve got a friend whose family is SUPER traditional Japanese, and one of the cousins (GASP) married an African American gentleman. You can imagine how well that one went over initially. But, kids tend to smooth everything over, and now there are elderly 100% Japanese people (the "we’ve been in this country for 45 years or so, and still barely speak English sort) bouncing little caramel kiddies with almond eyes on their knees.
the fear of violence is disproportionate to how many people actually use them for violence.
While your statement is true, people aren’t afraid because an X percentage of gun owners are shooting people, they’re appalled at every act of violence out there.
In other words, it’s not the “responsible gun owners” who are the problem or the ones that need to be stopped.
-Why take their guns away?
It’s not about them.
-But they’re the ones affected.
You keep making it about them.
I really don’t believe that short of outright banning guns, gun control will not make a difference and the reason why reminds me of the anti vaccine movement.
People that understand how herd inmunnity works but are unwilling to contribute towards maintaining that protection.
“responsible gun owners” won’t give up their guns if they feel they are not at risk personally. This is where you get disagreements over what counts as a mass shooting what counts as regular and the likelihood that spherical person A will be caught in a hail of bullets. A couple of days later, another shooting sees X amount of people dead. Too bad they weren’t spherical.
He strangely doesn’t seem to treat his grandkids with the disdain that he treated my sister and I with…