Rainy Day Thoughts

Posted on by under Bits 'n Pieces, education, Free Press Issues, guns, Personal, Political commentary, Racism & Bigotry, Social commentary

Just a few thoughts on this rainy Sunday afternoon …

No longer should we be shocked or even surprised by man’s inhumanity to man, for we have seen enough instances of it to know it exists.  Humans have great capacity for love, but for many there are too many conditions placed on that love, and their capacity for cruelty and hatred is even greater than their capacity for love.

You may not have heard about the teacher in Pflugerville, Texas (yes, there really is a town by that name, but don’t ask me to pronounce it!) who was fired a couple of weeks ago.  Why?  Because of the conversation he had with his class of 6th grade children …

Teacher: “Deep down in my heart, I’m ethnocentric, which means I think my race is the superior one.”

Student: “So White is better than all?”

Teacher: “Let me finish. I think everybody thinks that. They’re just not honest about it.”

Student: “You said you are a racist, right?”

Teacher: “I did, yeah, I’m trying to be honest.”

When a student asked him to repeat what he had just said, he lashed out …

Teacher: “I said, ‘I am a racist.’ That’s what I said. Do you know what that means?”

My jaw dropped when I read that! Those kids were 12-13 years old! This man was never fit to be a teacher, to be alone with a group of children at all!!!  Does this man believe that being a racist is something to be proud of?  Somebody, presumably one of the students, recorded the incident and when parents found out, naturally they were outraged and reported the conversation to the school board, who promptly fired the unnamed teacher the following Monday. How many more teachers are of the same belief, and while perhaps are not as blatant about it, subtly allow their racism to bleed into their interactions with their classes?

On Wednesday, I was at my local Kroger grocery store picking up a few last-minute things for Thanksgiving dinner.  As I was trying to reach something on a high shelf, a man literally pushed me aside to get by me.  Surprisingly, I remained cool, calm and collected, saying only loudly enough for him to hear me, “Oh, that’s okay … just shove me aside, for I’m sure that you are so much more important than I am.”  He glanced back at me and nodded.  Yes, he nodded!  No, I didn’t throw anything at him, but merely rolled my eyes and muttered an obscenity under my breath.

We have so many different ‘hate groups’ in this country that I’ve lost count of them all, media figures and even church pastors are preaching hate and inciting violence.  Pair that with the gun culture that has suddenly run amok and … is it any wonder that we must look over our shoulders in any public venue, and cross our fingers when we send our children to school in hopes that they will return in one piece rather than in a body bag?

There is a saying that “Politics makes strange bedfellows,” but the opposite is also true … it makes enemies of people who would ordinarily be friends, drives a wedge between people whose goals, hopes and dreams are really the same, but they are blinded by the loud voices telling them that the paths to their dreams are different.  Would that we humans were smart enough to realize that we are being manipulated, not for our own good, but for the wealth and power of the already wealthy and powerful.  Would that we realized that we are all – regardless of skin colour, gender identity, religion, or ethnidity – in this world together and it is only when we pull together that we can make progress toward making the world a better place.

“United we stand.  Divided we fall.” – Winston Churchill

75 thoughts on “Rainy Day Thoughts”

  2. I’ve heard this crap before, like ‘I have the right to offend’
    Rubbish!
    One act of offense leads to another which leads to another. The guy feels he can say that because some smear of human folly got into the Whitehouse through a freak of the US system.
    As for the jerk in the shop, I would not have muttered, he would have got a full face’s worth.

    Liked by 1 person

  3. I agree completely, I for one cannot believe that if you have the morals that expect humans to care for humans of all colours, genders and ethnicity and of course all animals how can you not be on the left side of politics. It does not make much sense for the gun loving LBGT hating anti women’s rights Christian people, the Trump supporters, QAnon and Proud Boys members to be any sort of reasonable people to have a unity with. They represent violence and the undermining of democracy to be replaced with a Christ like dictatorship theology that will be anything but love and protection for all.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Sadly, you’re right on all points. It’s almost as if the ‘left’ and the ‘right’ are two separate sub-species who have nothing in common other than physical features. I have long tried to find common ground, to find a shred of humanity in those who believe that white, straight, Christian males are the only people who have value, but … I give up. There can be no common ground when one’s views are so set in stone that they will not even consider views other than their own. Sigh.

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  4. “pronounce it!”
    Self explanatory, ain’t it? Pfloogerville. Prolly of Swish-German origin.

    “Those kids were 12-13 years old!”
    The time of political awakening and get ideas.

    “This man was never fit to be a teacher, to be alone with a group of children at all!!!”
    Sumsuch discussions and thought experiments we used to have in school all the time during the 70s. And come on, admit it, we blankies are better, our brains are better suited for living in a modern, industrialized society. We have the work ethics, the smarts. Survive some days in the Kalahari without water? Africans far superior to us.

    “Does this man believe that being a racist is something to be proud of?”
    Did he say that? Did he say he’s proud of having a hangnail, diabetes or being overweight?

    “Somebody, presumably one of the students, recorded the incident and when parents found out, naturally they were outraged and reported the conversation to the school board”
    Nobody loves a snitch. You don’t do that! A very important life lesson this student will never learn. 😦

    “, who promptly fired the unnamed teacher the following Monday.”
    School board acting stupid and antidemocratic. Need to be sued up the wazoo! Or if I would say if I were a Froggy: Off with their heads!

    “How many more teachers are of the same belief,”
    What belief? Establishing facts ain’t no belief!

    “and while perhaps are not as blatant about it,”
    The teacher wasn’t blatant about his racism. He just stated he, and everyone else, is one. So matter of factly he just said that all humans are racist. Since when is being correct wrong and a reason to be fired?

    “subtly allow their racism to bleed into their interactions with their classes?”
    Gobbbledigook. Are you a politician or where did you learn to pack the most brutally irrational shit into pleasant rhetoric?

    What I read there in that snippet, was a teacher provoking his pupils to start their own brains, asking uncomfy questions about society and themselves. That’s how paedagogic work should look like everywhere in the world! As I said, we did these things in school all the time. The subject name was ‘civics’ or or ‘social studies” or sumsuch. We were in the same age group as the pupils in your example. Yes, I remember being 14 when I joined the Socialist German Workers Youth. In Germany 14’s the legal age to make such decisions. Religion, political party, clubs, societies …

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    • orca makes some good points actually.

      Now if the teacher were a sexual pretator, I would absolutely agree that he should be immediately dismised but fired over being a racist? logically, this doesn’t make any sense. And what about all those people who think that the white man is evil? Are they also not racist for thinking such reprehensible thoughts? Think carefully about it.

      Liked by 2 people

      • Let’s try a thought experiment shall me.
        A british teacher stands up before their class and says.
        ‘You know class. I hate the USA. I hate that they allow guns to be carried around, and did you know 1.5 million Americans died through gun usage over the past 54 years. I hate that their system of government allowed an inexperienced media-star to be president when he had less votes than the opponent. I hate that he was allowed to lead a riot when he didn’t like the way the next election was going. I hate that they tell women how to run their bodies. Now I have said all, what do you think?’
        You cool with that?

        Liked by 2 people

        • I don’t see the comparison but there are plenty of people who don’t like our country and with some of our actions throughout history, their hatred is understandable.

          Liked by 2 people

          • The comparison being that whereas one made a statement, then hid behind it, the other came out speaking what the other implied. Both are as blinkered as the other.
            And, no I do not accept hatred of a country as understandable. No nation has clean hands or a pure history. Each its own weight of ill-judgement and criminal deeds. The flaw lies in Humanity. To blame a nation, blames everyone in that nation, and that is acceptable.
            There is much in the USA that has annoyed me, there are aspects though I admire and am fond of. I will not, repeat condemn an entire people for the injustices birthed by some.
            To do that leads down a toxic path and we have enough examples of that in history.
            There is only one acceptable Intolerance, and that is Intolerance of Intolerance.

            Liked by 1 person

                    • Stewart Rhodes is the leader of the Oath Keepers, one of the groups heavily involved in the insurrection of January 6th. Kelly Meggs is a member of the Oath Keepers. Both were found guilty of seditious conspiracy and could face up to 20 years in prison.

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                    • Not a liberal actually. In fact, a true old school genuine state-intervention European socialist. With a set of beliefs that would worry most folk in the USA. Which I accept, USA is not suited to any of the actual variations of socialism.
                      It’s a source of amusement to me when some of the Republican Party accuse opposition of being socialist- when they are actually simply well-meaning liberals who would be criticised by some our UK Left as sell-outs.
                      Liberals I can live with, old school pre-2010 Republicans I can live with (leaving out Gingrich).
                      The current folk in ascendancy in the Republican Party no; no more than the UK’s Jeremy Corbyn’s Momentum mash-up that nearly destroyed the Labour Party.

                      Liked by 1 person

                    • I would have replied to this 12 hours ago Jill, in fact I did but WP had another ‘fit of the vapours’….
                      By good chance I Copied & Pasted:
                      Here we go:
                      “This IS the tough call Jill. One which challenges folk on so many levels, particularly ethical.
                      A lot of socialists and many communists could give you all sorts of suggestions regrading education to ‘teach people the good way’ and legislation to crack down on Hate.
                      The question is (and I am going against my own inclinations here). Where does one draw the line on that score? When do folk who are genuine liberals and progressives start to worry about indoctrination, which may have one of those ‘hidden agendas’
                      The reason why I put that question, is that it is a very difficult thing to turn an entire nation’s mindset along one track, even when that track seems so obvious to be the best.
                      Even ‘The Summer of Love’ was only a myth.
                      We are back to the flaws in Humanity.
                      Which is why I see a lot of us buying time in ragged and maybe not very noble ways, for rawgod’s New Humans to take their place.
                      Even Hope isn’t pure.
                      Give my regards to your pack when you join up with them 🐺🐺🐺”

                      Liked by 1 person

                    • Sigh. Humans are far too complex for their own good! I would not want a homogeneous society where everyone looked, acted, and thought alike. But while I treasure the exchange of ideas both cultural and intellectual, I will never understand how some people can have only goodwill toward all, while others seem to nourish hatred. Some humans build, while others destroy. Some will self-castigate for yelling at the dog, while others will sleep peacefully even after murdering someone. There is a disconnect that I am at a loss to understand. Thanks, my friend, for giving me some food for thought here, and for rescuing it despite WordPress and its contrariness! I shall give your regards to the pack … I think I hear them calling me!

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                    • I admit Jill, that is the big flaw in the system, that it could lead to a surface homogeneous society, while something still ugly simmers.
                      North Korea for instance seems robotic and disciplined. But beneath the surface they put out there is hunger, crime and low grade violence; person on person, not a threat to the state of course. Nothing is currently perfect.

                      Our flaw seems to lie in our failure to evolve emotionally and mentally in line with our mechanical progress. So, everyone (as it were) has a car, but not everyone drives responsibly, and even those who generally do have the odd quirk. So folk, some groups can adapt to the changes, others can’t and kick back. Some of the changes come with their own health warnings.
                      Where do we go. Compassion. Respect. Tolerance. These are the base lines. But how do we ensure these are in place, without forcing everyone into something like Fritz Lang’s Metropolis?
                      We keep on keeping on, and never give up on Hope.
                      Not much I know, but better than the alternatives

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                    • Sure does, I often have to draw away from the news, doesn’t take much to put me in a grim Room 101-solution moods:
                      As Arketre said in one occasion:
                      ‘It’s not about just punishment Kittlin,’ and voice so reasonable ‘It’s also about them suffering retribution,’
                      Both of us try to avoid walking too far down that road….

                      Liked by 1 person

                    • Yeah, I fully understand. But there’s a difference in taking a little break to breathe again, or just putting on the blinders and saying, “Oh well, it’ll all work out” like some people do. By the way … I did play your song today (Saturday), so go check it out and maybe that’ll cheer you a bit!

                      Liked by 1 person

                    • Not just you, though. All of us keep getting some stupid question right under the prompt for “Add Title”. And, nowadays when I try to comment on a post or even just click ‘like’, I have to sign in, even though I’m already signed in to WordPress. AND … Annie lost a post completely a day or two ago … it had already been viewed and commented on, then POOF … it vanished into thin air! And frequently David doesn’t get notifications about my posts, then has to “re-follow” me. Sigh. Oh yeah … and often when I reply to a comment by either Keith or Ned, WordPress will tell me that “You’ve already said that” … even though I haven’t!

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                    • Read it. Swore a lot. Filtered out the language of what would have been my first reply. 🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬.
                      Presumably the klutz who thought of that was the same one who came up with the worse job title in Customer Service ‘Happiness Engineers’…..I mean man, by the very definition when you contact then your bladder is severely agitated with WP, do they really think ‘Happiness’ is gonna help the dialogue?
                      Geez Louise!

                      Liked by 1 person

        • oh absolutely not, I didn’t know that the class was mostly black, that wasn’t mentioned but I have always said and will continue to say that anyone who believes that he or she is better than anyone else simply because of an immutable characteristic like skin color lacks basic decency. This goes beyond the white race though, I’m certain that every race has it’s individuals who believe this way and I wonder if that’s what the teacher was getting at? Was it stupid for him to say that he was a racist? Yes, but look on the positive aspect of that. At least now people know and it’s not in the shadows.

          Wouldn’t you rather know what people think rather than to have it hidden away in the shadows for people to wonder about? just another perspective and I am in no way condoning racism by saying so.

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          • I know that I would not want someone teaching my children who honestly believed, or even purported to believe, that because of his skin colour (or gender, or religion) he was somehow superior to others. Period.

            Sure, I’d rather know what people think, but if they are bigoted, I don’t want them teaching my children. And no matter what they believe, there are certain things that are inappropriate in the classroom.

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        • “A white teacher telling a classroom of mostly Black kids”
          And that makes things different for you? Treating white and black pupils differently is the first – very dangerous – step that leads to apartheid. I’m living in a country now that once was infamous for exactly that. We all have seen how that turned out for the white ruling class.
          Some things must be spoken out, clearly, and for everybody to hear and process. We see how nice the modern kids interact with each other. The ones that never lived during apartheid times, they don’t have any fears of contact anymore. It will take a long time until all are equal, coz they are living in very different environments and there are still many many schools with mostly black or white kids. Slowly but surely they will grow together and develop together. May take some generations … but look how many generations have passed since the American civil war. And you’re still not done with integrating.
          And you, Jill, you don’t want to allow open discussion?

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          • No, Orca, I’m not suggesting that we should tell white kids one thing and Black kids another. However, the point I was making is that was a personal affront, a slap in the face to those children of colour. It was cruel.

            “It will take a long time until all are equal” … yes, because of just this sort of prejudice. We ARE all equal, but for some, our equality is questioned and taken away by those who falsely believe themselves to be superior. Discrimination exists in housing, employment, society, education … just about every facet of life. There should be no discrimination based on meaningless differences. The only thing upon which a person ought to be judged is his behaviour, his actions.

            And where did I say I didn’t want open discussions? As long as it’s a genuine exchange of thoughts, I value such discussions … to a point. But there comes a point where there are better things to do with our time.

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            • “a slap in the face to those children of colour. It was cruel.”

              Fuk that! It was the truth . And that’s all that counts. With his, probably too harsh for American sensitivities, approach, that teacher wanted to start a conversation I guess. He got brains started, and even we, far far removed ppl of the interwebz, are chatting about it.

              Good work, teacher, I say.

              “We ARE all equal,”
              Nope.

              Discrimination exists in housing,”
              If you can’t afford it, you don’t get it. Simples. That’s why I don’t live in a mansion. And I’m white as all fuck! It’s my birthright to live in a palace FFS! 😮

              “employment,”
              You no qualifiied – you don’t werk for me. Very simples.

              “society,”
              You dont’t fit in, you don’t howl with wulfpack – you out!
              Let me give you an example: Let’s say you smart, you a Putin fan grrl – you outcast of American society.

              “education”
              Not a problem in countries that are not the USA. We only discriminate based upon personal abilities. You smart – go to university; you stupid – go work at conveyor belt.

              “And where did I say I didn’t want open discussions?”
              You didn’t say it expressively but you gave the impression that your mind is closed off.

              “… to a point. But there comes a point where there are better things to do with our time.”
              And you have the authority to define that point? Well, technically you have since this is your bloggy.
              But logically don’t you think you have “better things to do” as soon as you’re running out of facts and sound reasonings, and commentators don’t buy into your highly emotional arguments anymore?

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    • If you believe that ‘blankies’, by which I presume you mean people with white skin, are somehow “better”, then you and I are on completely opposite ends of the humanitarian spectrum and thus there is no point in me responding to the rest of your ‘points’.

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      • No, I don’t think we’re on different sides. Still, whities are way better suited for living in white-dominated society. Which makes us the better people for living in such environments. We’ve learned to cope, to adjust to living in freezing cold temperatures and cold societies, nevertheless being productive.

        As I said, cast me out me in the Kalahari for 2 days without water … and I’m dead. The natives know how to press drops of water from the plants, they survive so they are far superior to me.

        Doesn’t need an racist to see that.

        Liked by 1 person

        • But … why should there be ‘white-dominated’ societies? Different ethnicities, backgrounds and cultures are so much more interesting, we can learn from one another, from our history, our foods, dance, clothing. I just don’t see any group, whether ethnic, religious, or gender as being superior to another. I want them all in my life! Among my top 5 best friends, there are Arabic Muslims, Black people, and LGBTQ people and I cherish those friendships as much as the ones with white people. I don’t want to live in a white-dominated world, I want to live in a diverse world where everyone is valued.

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          • “But … why should there be ‘white-dominated’ societies?”

            Easy explainificaton, as always. Central and North-Easterly Europe was Caucasian (white) for thousands of years. And our population was mixed already. During countless migrations ares were you can find Germany, Poland and such, were like highway rest-stops. If black Africans would’ve passed through they surely would have had an impact on society as well.

            Alas, they didn’t.That’s why you won’t find many Finnish, Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, Dutch, German, Polish, Russian blacks. Who passed through or invaded was lateron the Romans, Mongols, the Osmans, Nappy’s French. and so forth. That’s why most Germany nowadays are quarter jews with Palestinian ethnological background.

            Hard to believe but before I became this blonde flat-chested elf/bombshell I was born with a full compliment of black curls. Probably from my granny’s side, which were jews and fled from Portugal to the much friendlier Germany. At first my parents wanted to return me to the clinic. 😮 Fortunately the black hair fell off after a couple days and was replaced by blond curls. Good compromise. So I’m white af, as most people are in Euro societies.

            First time most Europeans were exposed to dark-skinned people was in WW1 when the Frenchies had some black battalions.
            The Brits did a good job with integration of Blacks. But that didn’t lead to a diverse society neither, just Blacks adjusting to a white lifestyle. Coz in case they didn’t, they stayed dish washers, busdrivers, cleaning personnel.

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            • Oh, just fyi, in my last class at school there were 2 Russian kids, 1 Pole, 1 Spaniard, 1 Argentinian, 1 Swiss.
              No Turks, no Italians, no Sinti/Roma, coz they mostly leave school after 9 years to join the workforce. 😦
              And I never shared any school with Blacks. Not because they were black but there were just too few of them.

              And don’t get me wrong, Germany is a very fair country, where everybody gets the same opportunities to reach higher education. The very few blacks I knew in Germany all were university educated.

              Liked by 1 person

  5. Pingback: Rainy Day Thoughts — Filosofa’s Word | Ned Hamson's Second Line View of the News

  6. I hope the teacher is an outlier (fingers crossed) and not typical, and that’s why it’s news. I hope that the rude Kroger man is also an outlier, and I hope that karma finds him fast and deals with him (although my faith in karma has really declined in the last decade). Full disclosure, though; I’m frequently full of hope and optimism. Not always. Hope sours, optimism declines and slides out of me, but I’m mostly a hopeful and optimistic dude. Fingers crossed that we will pull together, regardless of all the things are used to slice us apart. I’m optimistic it’ll happen.

    Someday.

    Hugs and cheers, M

    Liked by 2 people

    • I doubt there are many teachers who that blatantly proclaim their white supremacy, their racism, but I wonder if there might not be hundreds who subtly send the message through their teaching, but in such a way that it penetrates the children’s minds, but doesn’t attract the attention of the authorities? In all my years, I have only had a similar experience two or maybe three times in a store, but it is offputting when it does happen and I question where has compassion & humanity gone?

      Until … oh, probably the last decade or so … I, too, was full of hope and optimism. Believe it or not, some friends used to call me a “Pollyanna”! I thought humans were far more good than bad. But … gradually over the past decade that optimism has dimmed and faded until today … I find it hard to believe that the human species won’t exterminate itself by the end of this century. Then again, some days I see signs that more people care about others than I thought, and I’m encouraged. So … sigh … I don’t know, but I know I’m not the optimist I once was and part of that is getting older, realizing that when/if change does come, I probably won’t be around to see it. I just hope it happens for the sake of future generations, including my own daughter and granddaughter.

      Hugs and cheers, dear Michael

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  7. Jill, teachers need to strive to be exemplars. The same holds true with religious leaders. We expect more from them because of the roles they play. That is why it is more bothersome when they fall short of the mark. I often see quotes from people where my first question is why they thought it was a good idea to say out loud thoughts that should have been left unsaid. Keith

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    • I fully concur. The other day, I counted no less than 5 stories in the news about different pastors, youth leaders, and other church officials accused of sexual abuse. And for a teacher to tell his pupils that HIS is the superior race??? Unconscionable! But again, how many more are out there? How many use more subtlety and therefore never come to the attention of the authorities? On of my uncles used to tell me, “Engage brain before opening mouth” … best advice I can think of for most people!

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  8. What a horrible thing for someone to do to you? People aren’t at their best balance when reaching high over their heads so he could have actually knocked you over. Luckily that didn’t happen but the next person this jerk physically brushes aside might not be so lucky. some people are so horrible.

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    • You’re right … and my balance these days isn’t that good, either, but luckily I didn’t fall or even stumble. I just don’t understand … if I see someone stretching trying to get something from a higher shelf, I offer to help them, and if I see someone struggling with something heavy, I help. It’s a sad state of our society when, rather than help, one simply pushes another out of their way. Hugs, my friend.

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      • A lot of people see themselves as too busy, too involved in what they are doing to care about others. In Costco now I drive around in an electric cart because the store is too big for me to walk it. You cannot imagine the fun I have with those people who are too self-involved to notice there are other shoppers in the store. They are so easy to aggravate, but they still don’t notice they are aggravating anyone else. There are so many people like that.

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  9. “United we stand. Divided we fall.”

    So if we divide the races, we will stand and they will fall… and disappear!
    The question is, what race are “we”?

    The best solution is interracial children to the point everyone is of mixed race. Then there is no race at all anymore.

    How many people are willing to have children with a person of another race? I know many who will not even have children with a person of another national background, or religion, even if they are the same race.

    We have a long long way to go…

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    • No, I think you got it backward. If we are united, stop separating people by such made-up things such as ‘race’ and religion, if we realize and accept that we are all the same, all in this together, and that if we work together we can solve problems, THEN we stand. If we continue on this “them” vs “us” path, continue to hate based on superficial conditions, then the human species is doomed to extinction, and frankly at this point I don’t see that as necessarily a bad thing. The earth and other species will be better off without us.

      I know a number of people who are in ethnically mixed marriages and have children … it seems to be religion that proposes a taboo on such. We DO have a long way to go, and since we are headed in the exact opposite direction, I don’t think we’ll ever get there.

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      • You missed the sarcasm in the first paragraph after the quote. Too subtle?

        In this global world, we will get there, as long as we learn to look past the differences. We have more and more mixed-race relationships every year because people can look beyond the differences. Love is one of our best weapons on that battlefield, except when we try to control who our children can fall in love with. It helps that television ads are including more “mixed-race couples” in their commercials. I hope we see a lot more if that.

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