Time to END racism

[David Horn]

(07-05-2020, 10:39 AM)Bob Butler 54 Wrote: ... For most of human existence, violence and treating the other poorly were survival traits.  Doing horrible things well increased the chance of passing on one’s gene pool.  If your culture was not good at making war, at securing a territory and resources, one lost out to another culture that was better at these things.  At the same time, helping one’s own tribe cooperate, grow and love was also a survival trait.  Thus, Man in a contradictory beast, quite able to love and hate, and not yet able to outgrow the hate.

What to do about it?  Once in a life time one is apt to live through a crisis heart.  It is a chance to get rid of a few more cultural traits left from the bad old days intent to harm the other guy, to keep him other rather than one of us.

This is one of those times.

The real issue is staying power.  As you noted, and I agree, we're wired to favor our own.  That will not go away unless there is no reason for favoritism.  Can we get there?  If so, how? 

I don't see attacking racism head-on as a viable approach, because that implies that Group X needs to do something for Group Y, and Group X will sacrifice in the process.  Since there is no apparent countervailing benefit to Group X, Group X will resist, at least in part.  Allow to stew for 10-20 years, and we're right back where we started -- or worse.

So the first step, or a parallel one at least, requires reducing the need for conflict. That's a much bigger task.  Flattening the wealth curve through non-racial means is a good thing, but may not be adequate.  On the other hand, what do we have to lose?  Any gain is better than nothing.  Any ideas anyone?