Prejudice

There is a lot of talk, just talk, about racism in the US media this week after Barach Obama defended his religious friend and advisor, Jeremiah Wright.

Prejudice and bigotry based on race, ethnicity and religion imply ignorance on the part of the prejudiced. Prejudice and bigotry lead to mindless and routine discriminatory behavior based solely on visual criteria. Actually, bigotry based on economic class is rampant in the US and nobody wants to discuss that at all.

Discrimination is another matter. Discrimination as thought is human and intelligent. Without discrimination in each moment of our lives, we become stupid victims of naivete and stupidity. This is the tragedy of rote political correctness.

Careful observation and investigation of the realities of racial subgroups and ethnic cultural groups is called science. Sociology, behavioral psychology and anthropology are examples. To walk into certain neighborhoods or group-specific settings, whether they are black, brown or white, would be simply idiotic for anyone who did not take time to research and understand the dynamics of those areas. Therefore, there is a need for looking at people in specific group contexts as a matter of self preservation.

Barach Obama shows the consciousness of someone who has struggled with these issues his whole life. As a gay man, I have also struggled with these issues my whole adult life. I have had no choice as an intelligent human being. I have tried to behave in a way open to individuals, despite their color or ethnic markers. Rarely, I find individuals who are capable of stepping out of their assumed markers of identity to meet me half way to mutual understanding.

Practice is hard. It is not for the stupid, the enraged or the cowardly.

Clintons

I am amused by the current Presidential race here in the US. I applaud and support Mr. Obama's vision of change.

After all is said and done, Ms. Clinton is the wife of the man who is basically responsible for the last 7+ years of bumbling fascist government in the US. Yes, while some diehard Democrats still cling to Mr. Clinton's aura of charm and worldly intelligence, those of us with memories who follow politics understand that his sexual indiscretion and lack of cogent support for Al Gore gave us the coup d'etat in 2000, without which there would be no Iraq War or bankrupt treasury leading to the oncoming depression of the US economy.

Perhaps the Clintons think that we are all too stupid to figure out that they cynically took some pleasure in these events. Perhaps Ms. Clinton thinks us too stupid to realize that she needed the last 7+ yrs to get up to speed with a legitimate political resume with which to seek the Presidency. Perhaps the Clintons think us too stupid to realize they ae not 'Centrist Democrats' but self-serving 'Slightly Leftist Republicans'.

It is my practice to be wary of politicians...all politicians.

Dialogue

I recently experienced an informal educational meeting with several peers. The meeting was moderated helpfully by one of us. We each gave a time-limited presentation, which was then critiqued by the group. After my presentation was critiqued, the moderator added a final observation and suggestion. He said, "After each critique, you responded to the person's observations about your presentation. I would like to to not respond and just be silent after feedback."

Naturally (for me), I responded and was basically told to shut up. Had the moderator asked me not to respond to him, I would have gladly granted his wish. I realize now that being told to do something against my hunger for dialogue angered me.

I have to say that the enforced silence and the subsequent anger were helpful experiences. My practice entails making difficult experiences opportunities for learning. "Make poison (anger in this case) into medicine, like the lotus in the mire," to paraphrase the Buddha. There is always a new venue where I can be a novice. This is the excitement of the mind which is open to learning in every moment.