Time and choice make the person

I don’t care what color your skin is. I don’t care where you come from! But, I do care how one acts and approaches life. The one thing that we all are is Americans. Everyone in this country of ours has one thing in common that can’t be changed. We all have 24hr in a day. What makes people different is how they use there time. Many, but not all Black Americans spend much of there time whining and crying about how repressed they are.
If we are going to be a society of equality, then black Americans need to quit feeding into racism. Slavery happened some one hundred and forty years ago, but the way most black Americans act you would think that slavery happened to them and not there ancestors. Yes slavery is wrong, but Americans didn’t invent it. Slavery has been around since biblical times and still goes on today.
Blacks celebrate black history month and cherish there heritage. Blacks talk about there history and how they come from Africa. What they don’t mention is how they got to this country. Yes blacks came here on slave ships, and yes white Americans brought them here. But white Americans did not travel too Africa to capture black Africans. They were already captured and were waiting on the slave ships to arrive to be loaded aboard. They were sent too Europe, America and other parts of the world. The people that captured them were Black Africans and Arabs. There own people rampaged small villages and captured them with one purpose. The purpose was to sell them on the slave market for profit. You will never here black Americans tell you that, but it’s true. It is part of history and you can’t change that, the only thing you can do is ignore it as they do.
I get so tired of hearing how whites should apologize for slavery, or give blacks reparation for damage done. Why should anyone living today have to apologize for something that there ancestors did one hundred and forty years ago? If your cousin did harm to someone would you apologize for him, or would you expect your cousin to apologize for his self? But yet are senators and congressman stand on a podium and apologize for slavery. They want to change the names of schools if they are named, or have anything to do with the confederacy. You can’t fly the confederate flag because you might offend someone. I just don’t get it. Has any black man or woman in America been enslaved or beaten today? Has any black man or woman been hung by vigilantes today? The answer to those question is no!
Black Americans need to wake up and get off the pity pot. You get out of life what you put into it. No one but you can change your life style. Black Americans today have the same opportunities as white Americans. Success in life comes down to two things, time and the way that you use it and the choices you make with your time!As I said before. WHAT HAPPENED IN THE PAST IS HISTORY AND YOU CAN’T CHANGE IT! You can choose to ignore it. You can try to get rid of anything that reminds you of it, but it’s still there. It’s history! Black Americans can live in the past with hate and contempt for the white’s for what happened to there ancestors, or live in the future and make something out of the life you have here and now. That is called a choice, and only you can make it
In life you should learn from your mistakes. If you choose to ignore them you will surely repeat them. Black Americans ask your self this question. If my ancestors were not brought to this country how would my life be today living in Africa? You live in the best country in the world and yet so many of black Americans choose not to take advantage of the opportunities that abound in this country. Your ancestors paid the price for your freedom. Would they be proud of the way you use it? Or ashamed for the contempt that you keep in you heart? Black Americans there are 24hrs in a day and it is your choice on how to use them. Live in the past or strive for the future the choice is yours.




Submitted by RichK on Thu, 04/05/2007 - 1:39pm.

Your last sentance is an insightful condemnation on humanity.  Slavery, in any form should never be tolerated.  One has to wonder if we deserve the riches we have today while ignoring the plight, such as slavery, that exists in various places around the world.  Instead of fighting for oil, perhaps we might be accepted as a higher inteligence on this planet if we put the same amount of energy, money, talent and force into eradicating this disgraceful blot on society.




Submitted by smunsey on Fri, 04/06/2007 - 2:16am.

Ebony and Ivory
Live together in perfect harmony
Side by side on my piano keyboard
Oh Lord, why don't we ?

We all know that people are the same
wherever you go
There's good and bad in everyone
We learn to live, we learn to give each other
What we need to survive
Together alive

Ebony and Ivory
Live together in perfect harmony
Side by side on my piano keyboard
Oh Lord, why don't we ?

Ebony, Ivory, living in perfect harmony
Ebony, Ivory, ooh

We all know that people are the same
wherever you go
There's good and bad in everyone
We learn to live, we learn to give each other
What we need to survive
Together alive

Ebony and Ivory
Live together in perfect harmony
Side by side on my piano keyboard
Oh Lord, why don't we ?

Side by side on my piano keyboard
Oh Lord, why don't we ?

Ebony, Ivory, living in perfect harmony
Ebony, Ivory, living in perfect harmony
Ebony, Ivory, living in perfect harmony...

Steven P Munsey A+, MCP, IASO Orange Park | Green Cove Springs munsey13@comcast.net




Submitted by luvlife on Fri, 04/06/2007 - 8:58am.

I have to admit that I enjoyed reading this blog.  You have some very strong point of views.  I agree with you from start to finish. 

 

However I don’t understand why smunsey had to sing a song about it????

 




Submitted by Baxley on Sat, 04/07/2007 - 3:36pm.

Dear Winn,

I'm going to guess you are white by the tone of your blog.  I agree with Luv, you do have strong viewpoints, and thanks to MyClaySun for a chance to discuss this sensitive topic.

It is my experience that being lazy and expecting someone else to do all the hard work is hardly a "black" thing.  Those people come in all colors and creeds.  "Woe is me" is the mantra for a whole segment of the population.

Trying to defend, or minimize, slavery is just wrong.  So what it dates back to the beginning of time?  It was wrong then too.  Regardless of who and how that Africans came to America, no one can deny that blacks (and any other non-white minority) have been discriminated against.  Yes slavery ended well over a century ago, but government sanctioned discrimination continued all the way up through the passage of the Civil Rights Act (1964), and social discrimination continues today.  ALL people should be expected to pull their own weight and try to achieve all they can in life.

Yes, there have been racially motivated murders recently.  A man was dragged to death behind a vehicle in Texas because of his skin color.

Discrimination is not just a "white" thing either.  All races are guilty of discrimination.  That doesn't make it right.

A current-government apology for slavery helps atone for the crimes of the past.  Government leaders from 140 years ago aren't here to apologize.  To me, it just helps put it in the past. Acknowledge it happened, not ignore it, and move on.  I do agree certain black leaders, Jesse Jackson in particular, seem to relish beating the racism drum at every opportunity. 

What I see around me are that most blacks, like most whites (and reds and yellows and blues) do work hard and there is a certain group of people who always cry "Poor me."




Submitted by winn1955 on Sat, 04/07/2007 - 7:21pm.

Baxley in reply to racism in AmericaI  read your reply and there are many places that I think you missed the point.. First let me make my self perfectly clear. You said in your reply that trying to defend and minimize slavery is just plain wrong. I couldn’t agree with you more!  At first I thought maybe in my writing I left that out. I went back and reread my blog and I specifically state that slavery is wrong.  Yes the civil rights act did take place in 1964. And those laws leveled the playing field. That’s why I said that black Americans have the same opportunity as white Americans.   Yes, there have been racially motivated murders recently. The incident that you refer to happened approximately four years ago.  If you consider that recent that’s Ok. But the important thing is what happened to that man?   If my memory serves me right, the man sets on death row. That tells me that the civil rights act of 1964 is working.  There will always be a few hate mongers in America, but as you see what happened to the man you referred to, Justice was served. And will be for any others that perpetrate a similar crime.As far as apologies for slavery that happened so long ago that’s ridicules!  The government that is in place today had nothing to do with slavery. It’s not there job to apologize for something that they had nothing to do with. It’s there job to see that it never happens again! Social discrimination does continue today. It happens to every one at one time or another. There will always be jerks and A—holes in this world. What matters is how you except there discrimination. It’s one of those choice things that I was talking about. You can dwell on it, or take it for what it is worth and move on.Many things in life depend on the way that you look at them.  Your ancestors paid a horridness price for the freedom that you have today. You can continue looking at it as big tragedy in your life, or you can stop and think how my life would be today if my ancestors had never been brought to this country.  You would most likely still be in Africa struggling for survival as many in Africa do today.   As my title states, Time and choice make the person. And that goes for all humanity. In my blog I should have made that more clear that time and choice apply to all of us. We all have 24hrs in a day and it is up to each one of us how we use . And by the way I am white, sort of  kind of tan     
 




Submitted by Baxley on Sun, 04/08/2007 - 9:11am.

Dear Winn,

My response to your blog is like the issue (racism) itself.  Emotional and quick to condemn or defend, depending on how you feel about it.

I applaud your willingness to talk about racism - most people won't touch the subject with a 10' pole, at least in racially mixed company.  These blogs maybe allow further discussion, and hopefully, more understanding of BOTH sides of the issue.  Because there are 2 sides - the white side and the black side. 

Many (most?) whites feel that they aren't racist, did not live during the period of slavery therefore are not responsible for it, blacks whine and complain too much about discrimination, blacks should "get over it" and ignore discrimination that exists and take advantage of the opportunities that are available to all people.

Many (most?) blacks feel that whites secretly hold racist attitudes in their heart but fake a non-racist front to be polite, that whites in power still make decisions based on skin color, that whites could care less about continuing discrimination because it doesn't affect them.

You get the point - we still have a long way to go.  Yes, someone is on death row because of the horrible murder in Texas, but it still happened. Because the man had a different skin color.  Seems like a pretty lame reason to kill someone.  And the way he was killed was horrible.  4 years ago in this context was pretty recent.  I apologize if I seem to be argumentative with my comments.  Actually I am grateful for a dialogue about America's worst social problem.  Compared to 1964 (43 years ago), things are much improved.  I hope they continue to get better.  For the most part, whites and blacks get along fine.  Frankly, it will be generations before true racial equality actually happens - if it ever does.

As the races - Anglo, African, Hispanic, Asian, Native (did I leave anybody out?) - continue to interbreed, discrimination will continue to fade.  In my own family, a mixed race marriage has opened eyes, and hopefully softened racial tensions.  The children of mixed race marriages bring together 2 families that may have old attitudes about race, but who learn that really we are more alike, and less different than we all think. 

Happy Easter.




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