Warp <war### [at] tagpovrayorg> wrote:
>   I fear that you are projecting your notions of how "racist people" behave
> and what they think on me, for the sole reason that I dared to mention
> ethnicity as something which could be used for illegal immigration
> statistics. As ironic as that may sound, I call that prejudice.

  Btw, do you know what I find both interesting and sad?

  I consider myself to be the exact opposite of a racist in the sense that
I *couldn't care less* about "race" or skin color or anything. To me it's
exactly as important and irrelevant as hair color, eye color, height, weight
or whatever. If I meet someone, or see someone working on a store, or
whatever, skin color and ethnicity is completely irrelevant to me. I couldn't
care less. At most it can be a curiosity like someone with a strange hair
color or a big nose: Curious, but irrelevant.

  I suppose one could also call me *insensitive* in this respect of not
caring. To me talking about people's ethnicities is exactly as relevant or
irrelevant (depending on context) as talking about their nationality,
gender, age, education, shoe size or favorite food. It matters exactly
as much, no more, no less. I have absolutely no qualms about using
ethnicity as a point of some argument, as I would use anything else, such
as gender, age, religion or political affiliation. I don't care. To me it's
all the same.

  So what's so interesting and sad about this? That if you really, truly
don't care about ethnicity and consider it exactly as important or unimportant
as anything else, and have no qualms in talking about it, be it positively
or negatively, you are usually considered a racist, and all kind of prejudices
about what you really think are assumed of you.

  If people want to call me insensitive, then I suppose that's fair. I suppose
I *am* insensitive because I just don't care. But calling me racist just
because I don't care is plain stupid (not to mention insulting). People who
call me racist are prejudiced, which is kind of ironic.

  But that's the modern western culture today. Either you are a devoted
anti-racism activist, or a white-power supremacist. There is no middle
ground. Especially there is no "I don't care" option.

-- 
                                                          - Warp

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