What Cosby Said?

Nah. I could call my mom. She's white but crazily insists that 50cents is a half of a dollar. 

I guess if you take on the dominant view and go into denial about racism and it's effects.

Then you also take the dominant view that any whites sticking up for blacks are niggerlovers.

hehehehehehehe

Of course after watching a room full of blackmen with white girlfriends, go ballistic and begin planning a beating of a whiteman who moved in with a blackwoman downstairs.

I understand that there is something else going on.

My comment was not really directed at you and I do not claim that people on this board are as guilty as white racists, but some here - and maybe I should have been clearer as it's not specifically in this thread - swallow the racist propaganda about African Americans a little too easily.
My appologies if you feel I unjustly put you in that corner.

Oh please, no need to get the usual stereotypes out of the closet.
1. I cannot possibly feel the hurt of racism as much, because it's not directed against me, but rather against my wife or my children, but that doesn't mean it doesn't hurt me as well
2. when my wife just arrived in Europe, she was oblivious to racism, even if it stared here in the face. I even had to explain that some people's reactions were borne out of racism, she just thought they were jerks. She adopted that sensitivity quickly though.

The criminalisation of drugs is insane and causes more problems than it solves, but that's another discussion. The war on drugs is nothing but a war against the poor and especially against the black poor.

That behaviour is not only typical for the poor African Americans, but for the poor underclass in general

Could he in any way be considered a typicl product of an African American subculture? I don't see your point here.

Drusilla,

I do sincerely apologies for my mixed raced post,I have nothing against you.

I have never denied the effects of the White Controlled Media of the African American Community.
You've however excused black on black crime by blaming it on the outside world.The black man or woman is never guilty of anything.

I have issues with the way blacks are potrayed on black owned media.
I have issues with black men not giving their children a stable family life because they are in Jail or dead,usually killed by another black person
I have issues with the black community preference of Music over Education,we can't have 10000 rappers but we can have 10000 doctors,lawyers,engineers etc.

I've enjoyed discussing with you,my apologies again

Cheers Sister

No offense taken. Those arguments can get a little heated at times.

It never absolves any individual from responsability, but when looking at what causes a specific behavioral pattern, many all too easily look for individual and/or so called cultural deficiencies, while under certain conditions you will always have a certain number of people behaving in an undesirable way. Lack of opportunities breeds criminal behaviour and that cycle reinforces itself.

That's indeed a problem with the cultural conditioning we're going though, it's not really brainwashing, but the effects are very similar. My wife's Edo and I immediately got interested in the history of her people. It saddens me that (relatively) so few of her people are aware of the their historical accomplishments. You need to have a healthy dose of self esteem to be open to others in a positive way.

The west never had a very profound cultural impact on China, at least nothing even remotely comparable to what happened in Africa.

That's actually reasonably easy to anwer as the population of immigrants is not directly representative of the population at home, they are generally speaking more adventurous, innovative, etc with a healthy dose of initiative.

The lines are not always easy to draw. Adverse conditions on the aggregate, community level do not absolve anyone from individual responsability, but it's not because a certain amount of people manage to escape the trap of poverty and discrimination that those that for whatever reason are not capable of doing so should be held accountable for the full 100%
I guess if somebody with the attitudes, intelligence and stamina of GW Bush would have been born in a poor black inner city family, he would probably have ended up as a crackhead. Now he's president of the US.

No probs cya around do the same to your family 

Nferyn,

It is public knowledge that Mr. Bush was on cocaine early on. Jesus saved him and turned it all around according to the official story.

Laura Bush also killed her ex-boyfriend in a car accident. She was not drinking according to the official story. The fact that they had recently broken up had nothing to do with it also according to the official story.

Bill Clinton of course puffed but did not inhale.

77 percent of all drug users in America are white.

25 percent of white teenagers smoke cigarettes compared to only 4 percent of Black teenagers.

It seems you are more in danger of drug use, if you do not live in the Ghetto.

This must be my favorite threat to date.
Reading the thoughts expressed was as interesting as watching a live debate.

In all there were a number of comments I agreed with from all parties and a few I disagreed with. I suppose it's because I come from a sort of Hodge-podge background my perspective is mixed.

I was born in New York. I am the first North American born in my family. My family is from the West Indies and S. America.
I was raised in relative poverty in foster care and orphanages until I started my trans-continental migration. I spent years living between Toronto, Canada, Texas and Barbados before the age of 18.

There are advantages and disadvantages to growing up this way.
My accent is one where West Indians call me a Yankee, Canadians are not sure where I'm from and American tell me I talk white and immediately presume I am not from here. That aside, I have had the benefit of watching the differences between American Blacks, Caribbean Blacks and Canadian Blacks first hand. I also spent over a decade with my best friends family who are from Uganda and Kenya. This lends to a more expanded perspective of what is possible from our people.

The histories between these 3 countries (US, Canada and Barbados) are similar but there are key differences. The similarities are:
- blacks (and other races) were brought during slavery
- slaves were taught about the pearly white Jesus as a means mind control through fear by slave masters, which they turned into a beacon of hope and held onto till this day
- slavery was eventually abolished
- limitations persisted, blacks were poor
- blacks were pretty much left at the side of the road and left to make heads or tails of themselves.

My point here is that Black Americans aren't the only ones that had to deal with slavery or its residual affects.
I am unsympathetic to the argument that Black American's tightly grip the victim role because of what has happened in the past. This one of the wealthiest countries in the world. There are resources beyond belief that most countries citizens could only dream of. Yet, black Americans can't seem to get in together. I watch impoverished Indian families move her with 3 generations in one home and barely enough money and in a matter of years own things. I watch African families move here and leave behind relative ease and comfort to start over for a chance at what people born here take for granted.

A few of the differences between the countries are:
- the US has had more violence during the Civil Rights Movement
- there was no Civil Rights Movement (as far as race relations go) in Canada
- there was no Civil Rights Movement in Barbados
- Canada is a country of immigrants, that is Canadian history (if you have even been to Toronto, you'd understand the incredible diversity I speak of).

As was stated in another post, people seem to want to work for what they want which is why the came to North America in the first place.
- That doesn't appear to the case for the most part with regards to Blacks in America.
- School is free in the US and Canada, it is not like that everywhere.
- There are more libraries and places of knowledge (museums, etc) than exist throughout the entire West Indies
- There are government programs and community services that provide support and resources

As much as people want to gripe about Cosby being unqualified to speak on the 'Victim Mentality' and laziness of Black Americans because he's isn't or wasn't poor - I completely agree with him.
I know what he's saying is right.
I know it is possible because I have lived it and so have others.
I am a black woman.
I was an orphan.
While in Foster Care, I too was a victim to societies ills.
I grew up in extremely unpleasant conditions.
I have slept outdoors and had no place to go.
I have worked and worked and used everything resource available in this country to get myself together.
I have watched others who have come from worse conditions improve their situations when they get here.
It is up to the individual to take responsibility for themselves and find value to invest in their lives.