Is the USA a nation of bigots and/or racists and/or idiots and hypocrites?

drakeheuer14 said:

Halifax2TheMax said:

drakeheuer14 said:

Halifax2TheMax said:

Just more Trumpian normalization of racism. “Answer me when I speak to you, boy.” More fear of “the other.”

Thank goodness Trump is president or you wouldn’t have anyone to blame in this world for things that are unrelated to him. Is it just fun to unload all your frustrations in the world on him? 

Before being attacked, no, I do not like Trump and I did not vote for him. 

Team Trump Treason is an enabler, he makes it okay to state your fear of the “other.” His immigration policies, campaign rhetoric and his “There are decent people on both sides,” illustrate that. Sorry you don’t have the ability to realize that.

He is a jackass, sure. But the woman’s racist ways were probably well established before his presidency. It’s just funny how in AMT everything comes back to being Trumps fault 

oftenreading said:

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mace1229 said:

oftenreading said:

mace1229 said:

Bentleyspop said:

More idiot racists at work.....

https://twitter.com/CNN/status/992758352139743232?s=19

I don't know why this was surprising to anyone, and, honestly, don't know why it made big news.
Don't get me wrong, I feel bad for the boys. But considering the following;

We live in a society where mass shootings are not rare, this creates the "See something say something" movement.
The boys apparently lacked social norms and appeared odd. They don;t even deny this, they defend it by saying they are "shy."
The parent(s) was convinced they were not part of the tour because they arrived late and apparently did not cooperate with the parents when they became concerned.
I didn't listen to the 911 tape, but nothing from the quotes I read sounded racist. She was convinced they were not part of the tour and was not sure why they were lingering around with such odd behavior.

Now imagine this situation with a different outcome. Imagine they did come to hurt people. How many people would be casting blame on that parent for not saying something? What do you think the outrage would be if the public found out 2 people not part of the tour was following them around with "odd" behavior and something horrible did happen. How often has that been the case ad people cast the blame on witnesses for not speaking up? It happens with nearly every mass shooting. So you have this mother who is convinced these boys do not belong here and are not part of the group. She sees them behaving oddly, they refuse to cooperate with the people in the tour when asked questions. Are you really surprised someone came forward? Do you really blame her? Do you really think it was racially motivated? Ot maybe just paranoid with the violence that is on the news every day?

It seems like the police handed it fine. Asked them just a few questions and let them go on their way. 
If we call everyone racists when they report someone with odd behavior, how do we expect them to say something when they see something? We can;t expect them to be right 100% of the time, but everyone sure is willing to blame others when they miss a red flag.

Odds are very very very low that the parent would have felt they “didn’t belong” if they were white. We also tell kids they don’t have to answer questions from adults they don’t know that don’t have any business questioning them. 

This is straight up racist bullshit. 

Do you have any reason to believe this? Plenty of cops get called for suspicious white people. Do you have any reason to believe this was racially motivated? Other than the fact they weren’t white there was nothing about this story that comes across as targeting minorities. People report white people all the time, shootings have been prevented because of it.

There is nothing about the story that suggests it isn't racially motivated. Nothing about the teens' behaviour that's out of the ordinary for any teen in an unfamiliar situation. Except that they were on a college tour in Colorado, and weren't white, so they must not belong. 

mace1229 said:

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oftenreading said:

mace1229 said:

Go Beavers said:

mace1229 said:

Halifax2TheMax said:

mace1229 said:

oftenreading said:

mace1229 said:

Bentleyspop said:

More idiot racists at work.....

https://twitter.com/CNN/status/992758352139743232?s=19

I don't know why this was surprising to anyone, and, honestly, don't know why it made big news.
Don't get me wrong, I feel bad for the boys. But considering the following;

We live in a society where mass shootings are not rare, this creates the "See something say something" movement.
The boys apparently lacked social norms and appeared odd. They don;t even deny this, they defend it by saying they are "shy."
The parent(s) was convinced they were not part of the tour because they arrived late and apparently did not cooperate with the parents when they became concerned.
I didn't listen to the 911 tape, but nothing from the quotes I read sounded racist. She was convinced they were not part of the tour and was not sure why they were lingering around with such odd behavior.

Now imagine this situation with a different outcome. Imagine they did come to hurt people. How many people would be casting blame on that parent for not saying something? What do you think the outrage would be if the public found out 2 people not part of the tour was following them around with "odd" behavior and something horrible did happen. How often has that been the case ad people cast the blame on witnesses for not speaking up? It happens with nearly every mass shooting. So you have this mother who is convinced these boys do not belong here and are not part of the group. She sees them behaving oddly, they refuse to cooperate with the people in the tour when asked questions. Are you really surprised someone came forward? Do you really blame her? Do you really think it was racially motivated? Ot maybe just paranoid with the violence that is on the news every day?

It seems like the police handed it fine. Asked them just a few questions and let them go on their way. 
If we call everyone racists when they report someone with odd behavior, how do we expect them to say something when they see something? We can;t expect them to be right 100% of the time, but everyone sure is willing to blame others when they miss a red flag.

Odds are very very very low that the parent would have felt they “didn’t belong” if they were white. We also tell kids they don’t have to answer questions from adults they don’t know that don’t have any business questioning them. 

This is straight up racist bullshit. 

Do you have any reason to believe this? Plenty of cops get called for suspicious white people. Do you have any reason to believe this was racially motivated? Other than the fact they weren’t white there was nothing about this story that comes across as targeting minorities. People report white people all the time, shootings have been prevented because of it.

Please post a link to a story where the cops were called on a white person for being someplace they had every right to be, bonus points if the caller was black, Hispanic or Asian.

Are you being serious? You really don’t think white people get the police called on them? If you really believe that, this conversation isn’t worth continuing.

At age 48, I could’ve joined that college tour late, and I fully guarantee you no one would’ve called the cops. 

I think everyone is missing a big point. It’s not that they showed up late, they had very odd behavior. They admit to having odd behavior. Yeah, you, me and a million other people could have shown up late, and I bet there’s a good chance at least 1 person would have casually asked “Did you register for a tour?” And we would have answered “yes.”
they showed up late and then refused to answer that very simple question, that’s what was odd. 
Again, I don’t think it warranted 911, but I don’t think this story is as big of a deal as people make it out to be. And this response was a good example. There’s more to the story than showing up late and having the cops called. 911 wasn’t called because they were late. I’m sure people are late every day to tour groups. But then I’m sure they respond to simple questions too
peope are asking like they’ve never been questioned for anything, and only minorities or blacks are. It’s part of everyday life, and responding is what is normal. It is completely odd to be asked a simple question and have the mentality to refuse to answer. Everyone who think questioning them was out of line, have you never been in  first-class chekin lines and someone asks to see your ticket, have you never accidentally cut in line and somewhere asks how long you’ve been waiting, have you never seen a group of people and asked what the line was for to make sure you’re in the right place? It doesn’t matter what color you are, if you stand there and refuse to acknowledge someone asking that simple question they are going to think you’re odd.
Again, 911 not necessary, I just think this story is blown up.

It simply isn't true that they refused to answer any questions. The woman is quoted as saying that when she asked the boys what the intended to study and one of them answered, the other laughed, which made her think that the first was lying. 

Honestly, if I had a dollar for every time my brother laughed at what I said when I was younger......

The point, which you are missing, is that she never even gave them the benefit of the doubt. It sounds to me like she questioned them in a way that made them feel uncomfortable and they didn't want to answer her, nor did they have to. If I don't like the way some busy body in a group is talking to me, I might also move away and not engage with her. I have that benefit, because I'm white, and no one is going to call the cops on me for it. 

The article isnt very clear on that. It does state she asked their major and they laughed, but later in the article it also states “When asked why they didn't respond to questions by people in the group, the boys say Lloyd is shy.”
Everything in that statement is plural. Multiple people and multiple questions. Like I said several times, don't think the Mom did the right think, but I don’t think it’s deserves all this attention either.  So yes,  it’s more reasonable to read that as someone casually asked why they were joining the group and that they refused to answer. That is weird. Not worth calling 911, but justified in calling it odd behavior.
the thing that bugs me about this situation is there is no indication at all, zero, that this was racially motivated. But since it was 2 minorities it’s guilty until proven innocent on the Mom. That seems like the case more and more often.

mace1229 said:

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my2hands said:

mace1229 said:

my2hands said:

In an era where fear, security, and suspicion rule the day,  i'm not so sure this can, or should, be dismissed as simple racism... 

that has pretty much been my point. We live in an era of “if you see something, say something” and constant paranoia of the next shooting.
i think she over reacted, but from the information I’ve seen it’s not a clear cut of racism.

But I don't think we can say some level of racism or stereotyping absolutely did not play a factor here either...

People are consumed with fear, and stereotypes 

I would agree it’s definitely possible. I can’t say it did or didn’t.  
I just think all the comments of “if they were white this wouldn’t have happened” are completely unfounded. There’s nothing at all the suggest that. White people get cops called on the all the time. They get kicked out of restaurants and told to leave places too.
Now I’m not saying racism doesn’t exist and that every scenario where that has happened was justified. I’m just speaking against the mentality of everything is always racist. It was said on this thread flat out white property don’t get cops called on them and asked to leave places, and when it happens to a black person the only explanation is they are racist. That part just isn’t true.

Halifax2TheMax said:

Happens to white people all the time.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/05/07/us/airbnb-police-called-trnd/index.html

No no big deal, right? I’m starting to think this is a new alt-right, white supremacist tactic, the same as swatting but without the weapon or serious crime claim. Just “acting suspicious.” Then hope things go south with law enforcement because, well, we know that never happens either.

mace1229 said:

I blame the media and social media for some of this. It does happen to white people. I couldn't find much information because, guess what, when cops get called on a white person no one cares and it isn't reported.

I would argue that in some neighborhoods a black person is more likely to get profiled or accused or get police called. I would not deny that. But it has been said several times that it just doesn't happen to white people, even as far as people don't call cops on white people. That just isn't true. But the way the media reports every black interaction with police they'd have you believe its true, and the only explanation for every once of these cases is racism.
If you don't believe this, spend 1 day on a ride-along. I believe anyone can do a ride along, I've done it a couple times. I would encourage it, it gives you perspective what and how many calls cops get, how they deal with them, how people treat them, etc. Its a good experience. 
The problem this has created is now anytime someone of color has the cops called on them it is considered racist.

I would consider my behavior better than the average teen and 20-something when I was that age. Never got into big trouble.  But guess what, I've had the cops called on me for breaking into my own home. I played Pokemon Go for a couple days, was in a park playing 4 houses down from where I live and had multiple people call the cops on me, came to my house and questioned me for about 5 minutes. I've had the cops pull me over for off-roading. We thought it was fine, but apparently only emergencies vehicles were permitted. Yes, we were doing something wrong, but we were treated like drug lords for about 30 minutes. The cop was a total dick to us, had us sit with our hands behind our back while he thoroughly searched our car, threatened to hall us into jail every time we spoke. Eventually let us go with a warning after he didn't find any drugs, and asked us to follow him out of the area. As we exited through the only dirt road, he stopped and locked the gate behind him, locking us in. I've been asked to leave restaurants before when we stayed longer than was needed. I've been asked to leave places when I wasn't a paying customer. I haven't been kicked off a golf course, but have seen white people being asked to leave for playing too slowly, it is part of the rules.
Those things are a part of life. I doubt anyone can honestly say they've never been asked to leave someplace, or been rudely treated by a cop or something. 

That stuff happens all the time. And the only issue I have is it seems like when it happens to a minority many people just automatically jump to the conclusion that the only explanation is racism. 

mace1229 said:

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Halifax2TheMax said:

mace1229 said:

I blame the media and social media for some of this. It does happen to white people. I couldn't find much information because, guess what, when cops get called on a white person no one cares and it isn't reported.

I would argue that in some neighborhoods a black person is more likely to get profiled or accused or get police called. I would not deny that. But it has been said several times that it just doesn't happen to white people, even as far as people don't call cops on white people. That just isn't true. But the way the media reports every black interaction with police they'd have you believe its true, and the only explanation for every once of these cases is racism.
If you don't believe this, spend 1 day on a ride-along. I believe anyone can do a ride along, I've done it a couple times. I would encourage it, it gives you perspective what and how many calls cops get, how they deal with them, how people treat them, etc. Its a good experience. 
The problem this has created is now anytime someone of color has the cops called on them it is considered racist.

I would consider my behavior better than the average teen and 20-something when I was that age. Never got into big trouble.  But guess what, I've had the cops called on me for breaking into my own home. I played Pokemon Go for a couple days, was in a park playing 4 houses down from where I live and had multiple people call the cops on me, came to my house and questioned me for about 5 minutes. I've had the cops pull me over for off-roading. We thought it was fine, but apparently only emergencies vehicles were permitted. Yes, we were doing something wrong, but we were treated like drug lords for about 30 minutes. The cop was a total dick to us, had us sit with our hands behind our back while he thoroughly searched our car, threatened to hall us into jail every time we spoke. Eventually let us go with a warning after he didn't find any drugs, and asked us to follow him out of the area. As we exited through the only dirt road, he stopped and locked the gate behind him, locking us in. I've been asked to leave restaurants before when we stayed longer than was needed. I've been asked to leave places when I wasn't a paying customer. I haven't been kicked off a golf course, but have seen white people being asked to leave for playing too slowly, it is part of the rules.
Those things are a part of life. I doubt anyone can honestly say they've never been asked to leave someplace, or been rudely treated by a cop or something. 

That stuff happens all the time. And the only issue I have is it seems like when it happens to a minority many people just automatically jump to the conclusion that the only explanation is racism. 

Please, just stop. The black women weren’t asked to leave because of slow play, they had the cops called on them for slow golf play. Really? You can’t see the distinction? How many white people get asked to pre-pay for their meals? The black guys didn’t over stay their restaurant meal and linger over coffee. They were asked to pre-pay for their meals while no one else was. The lengths you go to dismiss these cases of racism by justifying it by saying it happens all the time to white people yet all you have to show is your personal experiences. Like that’s the barometer. “Well, it happened to me so it must happen to most white people.”  You can’t find instances of similar incidents because by and large, it doesn’t happen to white people based solely on their color. I challenge you to darken your skin and wear an Afro wig for two weeks and go about your regular business and see if you feel like you were treated differently.

Because that wouldn't be racist.
Talk about stereotyping.