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Racism in America

Which of the following statements do you agree with?

  • America is becoming more and more racist

    Votes: 5 12.8%

  • America isn't becoming any more racist but racists in America are becoming more and more vocal

    Votes: 22 56.4%

  • America is no more or less racist today that it has ever been

    Votes: 14 35.9%

  • America is not a racist country and never has been

    Votes: 3 7.7%
  • Total voters
    39
Scarecrow Akhbar said:
In terms of racism, this statement is meaningless.

That some groups prefer crack to powdered coke is irrelevant, and the prosecution of persons holding one controlled substance over another is not evidence of racism.
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not unless the motivating factor behind the cocaine base-cocaine powder disparity was racism which some claim it was and with strong logic on their side.
 
Scarecrow Akhbar said:
In terms of racism, this statement is meaningless.

That some groups prefer crack to powdered coke is irrelevant, and the prosecution of persons holding one controlled substance over another is not evidence of racism.
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Crack cocaine and powder cocaine should be prosecuted identically and the sentences should be equivalent. And they aren't. Primarily because of who uses/sells them.

But thanks for playing. Nice try.
 
TurtleDude said:
not unless the motivating factor behind the cocaine base-cocaine powder disparity was racism which some claim it was and with strong logic on their side.
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Meanwhile, since there's no evidence to show that racism was the motivation to regulate crack versus coke differently, there's not an issue here.

That black people like the quick hit of smoking crack over snorting coke more than white people isn't evidence of racism, just like preferring Pink Floyd over MC Hammer isn't evidence of racism.
 
TurtleDude said:
Blacks are more likely to rob, rape or murder a white than the other way around. I don't have current statistics but in recent memory, one year featured over 1000 white women raped by blacks and less than 40 black women raped by whites.

interestingly that stuff is never mentioned when the left screams about hate crimes. We all know about those three rednecked racists who dragged that black man to death or the schmucks who beat a gay Matthew Shepherd to death but horrendous black on white crimes (one in tennessee made even hardened criminal investigators sick) rarely get any press.

Is it due to the liberal racism of figuring when whites do it it is worse because they are expected to be "more civilized"

(sort of like american liberals damning South African fascist racists while excusing the far worse genocidal black dicatators like Amin and Macias)
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Whats funny about this is when you have attitudes like this....

The racial murder and rape of White women in America | The Official Website of Representative David Duke, PhD

New Nation News - Black-on-White Crime

Race and Crime in the USA

17 year old black man rapes & kills 8 month old white baby! - Topix

Now lets add to the the way gang bangers are portrayed as hero's etc. Add to that the fact that the civil rights era was not that long ago and a clear picture starts to emerge.

Draw your own conclusion.
 
Scarecrow Akhbar said:
Meanwhile, since there's no evidence to show that racism was the motivation to regulate crack versus coke differently, there's not an issue here.

That black people like the quick hit of smoking crack over snorting coke more than white people isn't evidence of racism, just like preferring Pink Floyd over MC Hammer isn't evidence of racism.
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Is there a good reason to have separate penalties for the same substance, in your thoughtful opinion?
 
Catz Part Deux said:
Crack cocaine and powder cocaine should be prosecuted identically and the sentences should be equivalent. And they aren't. Primarily because of who uses/sells them.

But thanks for playing. Nice try.
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You're just inferring it's because of who uses/sells them. It could very well be because of the addictive properties and ease of distribution of crack versus powder cocaine.
 
1984 said:
You're just inferring it's because of who uses/sells them. It could very well be because of the addictive properties and ease of distribution of crack versus powder cocaine.
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Really. Do you care to prove that there is a substantive difference?

Or, it could be just that we are less sympathetic to inner city crackheads than we are to corporate weasels with the summer sniffles. I'm going to go with Ockham's razor on this one.

The simplest explanation is usually the correct one.
 
1984 said:
You're just inferring it's because of who uses/sells them. It could very well be because of the addictive properties and ease of distribution of crack versus powder cocaine.
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And we all know that is bull****.
 
America is becoming less racist but it is still a problem.
 
None of the above

5) America is not a racist nation and it has come along way.
 
I'll stop using the race card when people stop using the anti-american card
 
Catz Part Deux said:
Really. Do you care to prove that there is a substantive difference?

Or, it could be just that we are less sympathetic to inner city crackheads than we are to corporate weasels with the summer sniffles. I'm going to go with Ockham's razor on this one.

The simplest explanation is usually the correct one.
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Crack is easier to move and distribute and can be sold for higher prices than powder cocaine; it's also more addictive because of the relative ease of use; I'm not saying it SHOULD matter, because I favor decriminalization, but that could very well be a reason, even if it's not a good one. I doubt the drug enforcement authorities have sympathy for ANY drug users, let alone white coke users.
 
Z3n said:
I'll stop using the race card when people stop using the anti-american card
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Wow. That was a ridiculously stupid statement. Don't you have some love not war to make somewhere?
 
Blackdog said:
And we all know that is bull****.
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Crack is easier to move and use; the high is quicker and thus more addictive; it's more destructive in terms of social cost; that could be the reason it has harsher penalties associated with it; I'm not saying it's a good reason, but it very well could be; to automatically assume racism without evidence is, well, bull****.
 
Catz Part Deux said:
Crack cocaine and powder cocaine should be prosecuted identically and the sentences should be equivalent. And they aren't. Primarily because of who uses/sells them.

But thanks for playing. Nice try.
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I've seen plenty of people snorting coke. They show no propensity for violence or demonstrate an urgent need to score another immediate hit.

The concept of Coke Whore never seemed to catch on.

Crack has different physiological effects, becuase it's lower vaporization temperature compared to coke allows it to hit the brain faster.

You want to pretend there's no difference between crack and coke?

Be my guest.

My own personal opinion is that there's no extant constitutional authority allowing the federal government to regulate substances. Some damn fool wants to poison themselves for fun, let them.

But, since crack and coke DO create different responses in those who consume them, it's disingenous to claim racism is the cause for the different treatment.

But here's a suggestion. Let's pretend you're right. to make things equal, let's have a moratorium on crack possession until as many white boys on coke have been jailed as blacks.

But I don't want to hear one damned word from the fools pretending crack is racist that the inner cities are now being destroyed by the drug wars that are guaranteed to ensue.
 
1984 said:
Crack is easier to move and use; the high is quicker and thus more addictive; it's more destructive in terms of social cost; that could be the reason it has harsher penalties associated with it; I'm not saying it's a good reason, but it very well could be; to automatically assume racism without evidence is, well, bull****.
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So far you have offered nothing but speculation. Being a police officer, I know it's bull****. Nothing against you, but I know for a fact why crack has higher penalty's. It boils down to race for the most part.
 
Catz Part Deux said:
Drug enforcement authorities don't pass laws. Old white men do.
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I doubt they have much sympathy for drug users either, black or white.

You actually think the people who make these laws think to themselves, "Well, blacks use crack, so let's make that a harsher penalty than coke, which our white brethren are more apt to use."

Seems a bit far-fetched to me...
 
Catz Part Deux said:
Drug enforcement authorities don't pass laws. Old white men do.
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I didn't know Chuck Tax Cheat Rangel was white.

What about the Messiah, is his white half suddenly dominant when he holds a pen in his hand, and the black half only surfaces when he's handling a basketball or a cigarette?

Which half is dominant when he's reading a teleprompter.

Is Nancy Pelosi, she's from the Bay Area, actually a drag queen?
 
Scarecrow Akhbar said:
Meanwhile, since there's no evidence to show that racism was the motivation to regulate crack versus coke differently, there's not an issue here.

That black people like the quick hit of smoking crack over snorting coke more than white people isn't evidence of racism, just like preferring Pink Floyd over MC Hammer isn't evidence of racism.
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you have reviewed the legislative history behind the crack cocaine sentence disparities? The violence-mostly black perpetrators-had a lot to do with it. Whether it was the violence or the race of the perpetrators is a difficult delineation to make though. However, it clearly has a disparate impact even if disparate treatment was not the intent of most of those who voted for the change in 1988

I am not much of a fan of the ACLU due to their hypocrisy (such as opposing gun rights and property rights as well as say the right of association) but on this issue they are correct

Interested Persons Memo on Crack/Powder Cocaine Sentencing Policy | American Civil Liberties Union
 
1984 said:
I doubt they have much sympathy for drug users either, black or white.

You actually think the people who make these laws think to themselves, "Well, blacks use crack, so let's make that a harsher penalty than coke, which our white brethren are more apt to use."

Seems a bit far-fetched to me...
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Yeah, and it's amazing how all fifty seven states decided to treat crack possession more harshly, if the motivation was racism.

What happens to the Looney Leftist Theory that only Republicans are racist when Democrat dominated states like California and New York are so mean to crack addicts?
 
Blackdog said:
So far you have offered nothing but speculation. Being a police officer, I know it's bull****. Nothing against you, but I know for a fact why crack has higher penalty's. It boils down to race for the most part.
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Funny. I was observing a presentation from an undercover narcotics detective today and he said exactly what I'm saying right now. That is, crack is easier to distribute, gets the user higher quicker, and can be sold for a higher profit; why can't that be the reason?

As for speculation, you're the one making assertions with no proof; I'm merely offering an alternative explanation.

I highly doubt that legislators got together and conspired to impose softer penalties on coke-users because they're predominately white. These legislators see pretty much all drug-users as subhuman filth, so I don't know why they'd give a damn if a coke user was white or black.

"Gerald! We can't have our white, coke-using brethren serving similar sentences to those black, crack-using hooligans!!! It's unseemly, I tell you!!!"

Sorry if I'm a bit incredulous...
 
TurtleDude said:
you have reviewed the legislative history behind the crack cocaine sentence disparities? The violence-mostly black perpetrators-had a lot to do with it. Whether it was the violence or the race of the perpetrators is a difficult delineation to make though. However, it clearly has a disparate impact even if disparate treatment was not the intent of most of those who voted for the change in 1988

I am not much of a fan of the ACLU due to their hypocrisy (such as opposing gun rights and property rights as well as say the right of association) but on this issue they are correct

Interested Persons Memo on Crack/Powder Cocaine Sentencing Policy | American Civil Liberties Union
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Okay, this is a reasonable position to take, so long as we can admit the motivations behind it (violence or race) are not clear. The word "crack" tends to elicit images of violence and social ruin; perhaps that is why it's treated differently. Is that a good reason for doing so? I don't think so, but it's not the same as a cabal of white racists conspiring to oppress black people...
 
faminedynasty said:
Laugh it up. This country locks up Black men at a rate 5.8 times higher than South Africa under apartheid. But you're all correct, it's BLACK racism that is out of control in our society. :)
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So... we're supposed to ignore it when black people commit crimes.. just to be fair?
 
1984 said:
I doubt they have much sympathy for drug users either, black or white.
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There's a hellalot of coke snorting amongst elected officials and corporate shot-callers. Not much crack-smoking.

You actually think the people who make these laws think to themselves, "Well, blacks use crack, so let's make that a harsher penalty than coke, which our white brethren are more apt to use."
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No. They think, "Cocaine isn't that bad, after all, I know lots of people who use it, but crack kills."

This ain't rocket science.
 
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