• This is a political forum that is non-biased/non-partisan and treats every person's position on topics equally. This debate forum is not aligned to any political party. In today's politics, many ideas are split between and even within all the political parties. Often we find ourselves agreeing on one platform but some topics break our mold. We are here to discuss them in a civil political debate. If this is your first visit to our political forums, be sure to check out the RULES. Registering for debate politics is necessary before posting. Register today to participate - it's free!

Is being racist a right?[W:343]

Is being racist a right

  • Total voters
    80
sawyerloggingon said:
All this media blitz on Bundy and The basketball guy has me wondering if we now have thought police in this country. I'm not racist myself but I don't see what the big deal is if you are. We have laws to protect people from racism so your opinion should be a right and you should not be punished for what you believe. IMO firing someone for being a racist is anti American and flies in the face of free speech.
Click to expand...

If being a racist isn't a right, there wouldn't be any skinheads, or other racist groups, they would have been hunted down and destroyed by now. Good thing to have freedom of speech, no matter how much we dislike what someone else says.
 
sawyerloggingon said:
All this media blitz on Bundy and The basketball guy has me wondering if we now have thought police in this country. I'm not racist myself but I don't see what the big deal is if you are. We have laws to protect people from racism so your opinion should be a right and you should not be punished for what you believe. IMO firing someone for being a racist is anti American and flies in the face of free speech.
Click to expand...

Absolutely its a right. You have the right to think anything you want. You have the right to express those thoughts and even to act upon them provided the expression or action does not harm others. That said, EVERYONE ELSE has the right to respond to your words or actions. If you spew racist BS, then society not only has the right but I believe the duty to ostracize you. One of the many beauties of free speech is it lets idiots stand up and self identify themselves.
 
sawyerloggingon said:
All this media blitz on Bundy and The basketball guy has me wondering if we now have thought police in this country. I'm not racist myself but I don't see what the big deal is if you are. We have laws to protect people from racism so your opinion should be a right and you should not be punished for what you believe. IMO firing someone for being a racist is anti American and flies in the face of free speech.
Click to expand...

Sure..it's protected under free speech.
That means the government can't arrest you for what you said. That's what free speech is about. It doesn't mean that you can say whatever you want and are untouchable.
 
iliveonramen said:
Sure..it's protected under free speech.
That means the government can't arrest you for what you said.
Click to expand...

To a point. But don't mind me, I'm just feeling pedantic today.
 
We have choices. We can educate, we can live by example, we can even try to persuade, but we should also realize that we can't control minds and that everyone is entitled to their opinions.
While we often perceive racism where there is none, we often don't notice or even ignore actual racism, regardless of color.
We look at the Bundys of this world distance ourselves from them, while guys like Sharpton aren't that much different. But the Sharptons have a right to their bigotry, while the Bundys don't, I suppose.
Ideally, both the Bundys and the Sharptons getting together in an attempt to unite would be very refreshing, but I won't hold my breath. Taking sides, even milking both sides, is more profitable and exciting.
 
nobody is born racist.jpg
 
sawyerloggingon said:
All this media blitz on Bundy and The basketball guy has me wondering if we now have thought police in this country. I'm not racist myself but I don't see what the big deal is if you are. We have laws to protect people from racism so your opinion should be a right and you should not be punished for what you believe. IMO firing someone for being a racist is anti American and flies in the face of free speech.
Click to expand...

As per usual, your poll answers don't encompass even close to the full spectrum of opinion.
 
Being a racist isn't against the law. Nobody is going to arrest Stirling and Bundy, or throw them in prison for the crime of being racist.

However, racist words and actions have consequences, and both are reaping those consequences now. I won't lose a minute's sleep over either of them. They're both scum.
 
sawyerloggingon said:
All this media blitz on Bundy and The basketball guy has me wondering if we now have thought police in this country. I'm not racist myself but I don't see what the big deal is if you are. We have laws to protect people from racism so your opinion should be a right and you should not be punished for what you believe. IMO firing someone for being a racist is anti American and flies in the face of free speech.
Click to expand...

Which of them was arrested for their thoughts? Neither? Well, so much for the thought police.

Now, as to the question: there is no inherent right to be racist, but there is also no real way to penalize it.
 
sawyerloggingon said:
All this media blitz on Bundy and The basketball guy has me wondering if we now have thought police in this country. I'm not racist myself but I don't see what the big deal is if you are. We have laws to protect people from racism so your opinion should be a right and you should not be punished for what you believe. IMO firing someone for being a racist is anti American and flies in the face of free speech.
Click to expand...
I don't know of any laws protecting people from racism. If there is anything to be protected from.

But yeah you have the right to be racist, you have the right to publicly speak about it.

You don't have the right to force employers or organizations to keep you in spite of your racist tendencies.

So voice your opinion all you wish but you have to deal with the consequences.
 
Your Star said:
Neither of these men are going to jail for their racism. If people want to say bad things about them or not do business with them because of their racism they have that right as well because, guess what, freedom of speech. So yeah, no one's speech is being violated, can we please move past this strawman?
Click to expand...

Say bad things about them, don't buy their product but don't demand they be fired for having beliefs different than yours.
 
GottaGo said:
Doesn't matter if you own the company of not, your actions/verbalization reflect on the company itself, and can become a liability to the company.
Click to expand...
Thren the stock holders have a right to demand you resign because they have a fiduciary interest but not the general public
 
sawyerloggingon said:
Thren the stock holders have a right to demand you resign because they have a fiduciary interest but not the general public
Click to expand...

And these are mutually exclusive because....?
 
sawyerloggingon said:
Say bad things about them, don't buy their product but don't demand they be fired for having beliefs different than yours.
Click to expand...

First amendment right. They can demand that.
 
sawyerloggingon said:
There should not be consequences for free speech or it is no longer free.
Click to expand...

Your ignorance here is obviously quite intentional, because as so many people have pointed out to you -- the govenment has imposed no consequences for his racism.
 
rocket88 said:
Who's losing their job? Bundy's still got his ranch, Sterling still owns the Clippers. Stop the histrionics.

In most other cases, employment is at will. If your racist activity becomes a detriment to the company you'll probably get fired anyway.
Click to expand...

You dodged my question.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom