Nathan's review
status:
Read in January, 2005
A less than qualified/under-qualified white person gets a job/college admission over a qualified/over-qualified black person. That is racial discrimination. A less than qualified/under-qualified black person gets a job/college admission over a qualified/over-qualified white person. That is Affirmative Action. Simply put, Affirmative Action is racial discrimination.
Will there ever be an end to Affirmative Action policies? Perhaps when all prejudice is eradicated? How could that be accomplished without mass mental reprogramming? As long as people are free they will use their minds freely. People will be free to develop prejudices. People will also be free to put away prejudices. A society of mentally free people is much better than a society full of mental slaves motivated by the crack of the government's whip.
Affirmative Action is defined as any action taken to enhance the "ethnic diversity" of a group, designed to increase employment and educational oppor...more
A less than qualified/under-qualified white person gets a job/college admission over a qualified/over-qualified black person. That is racial discrimination. A less than qualified/under-qualified black person gets a job/college admission over a qualified/over-qualified white person. That is Affirmative Action. Simply put, Affirmative Action is racial discrimination.
Will there ever be an end to Affirmative Action policies? Perhaps when all prejudice is eradicated? How could that be accomplished without mass mental reprogramming? As long as people are free they will use their minds freely. People will be free to develop prejudices. People will also be free to put away prejudices. A society of mentally free people is much better than a society full of mental slaves motivated by the crack of the government's whip.
Affirmative Action is defined as any action taken to enhance the "ethnic diversity" of a group, designed to increase employment and educational opportunities for a group through means of government coercion in the lives and activities of independent and supposedly free people. Ethnic diversity is merely racism in a politically correct disguise
“Diversity” in a work setting or educational setting should only involve a setting in which minds, views, and ideas greatly varied. A working environment, or educational environment, benefits most by "diversity" in this sense. It creates an environment that is creative and innovative. A "diversity" focused on the color of skin or sex only results in the stagnation of growth and innovation. A "diversity philosophy" based on color of skin is racist, counterproductive, and immoral.
Clearly there is a wildly disproportionate number of blacks playing NBA basketball. Should society demand that the NBA include a "desirable" number of whites, Hispanics, Asians, and Native Americans? Can you imagine what kind of an impact such policy would have on professional basketball? Why such an incredibly disproportionate number of blacks playing professional basketball? Merit, time, and hard work. To deny a black person, more skilled and talented, a spot on a basketball team to someone of another race, less skilled and talented, is immoral and counterproductive.
The aim of the diversity movement is to increase tolerance and end racism. Society cannot expect to create that society by teaching people that one's identity may be determined by race or sex. Yes, we should tolerate, embrace, and celebrate diversity. Diversity in thought. Diversity of intellect. Diversity of view points. The purpose of a university is to create an environment where people are able to improve their ability to reason, gain perspective, and build upon their knowledge. This is best accomplished by creating an atmosphere of intellectual diversity not racial diversity. A work place benefits from pooling together diverse thoughts and ideas for progress and innovation. It is intellectual diversity, the diversity of ideas, that benefits society. Not the diversity of race.
In practice, Affirmative Action means adopting racial preferences. It means giving preference in university admissions, job hiring, promotions, etc. If preference is given to one group, it is done so at the expense of some other group. In doing so, those in the other group become oppressed. It is the duty of good government to uphold the rights of individuals, not groups. A government that passes legislation, giving favor to one person at the expense of any other is corrupt. A precedent for enormous atrocities is set. A government that legitimizes the favoring of one group has infringed upon the rights of other individuals. In so doing, the government makes it clear that it is under no obligation to even uphold the rights of the group that it aims to assist. Groups are composed of individuals. By suppressing the rights of one group, to benefit another group, the government has infringed the rights of the individuals in that group. A government that finds it acceptable to infringe upon the rights of any individual no longer needs to uphold the rights of any individual. Your rights are no longer protected. Minority rights are not something to be taken seriously in this country. A minority has no rights that I should respect unless I share those same rights as well. For the government to provide a minority with special rights is to do so at my expense. It is not the duty of government to artificially elevate any person or group. It is the duty of government to ensure that rights are held equally amongst all individuals. If mistakes have been made in the past, then the government must do a better job of making sure that all rights are protected equally with respect to each individual regardless of race or sex. In the past, the U.S. government has made preferences in favor of whites. This was wrong. The government should make up for it, not by reversing its preferences, but by recommitting itself to equality.
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The Pursuit of Fairness: A History of Affirmative Action 
