First ever report on US human rights, what a joke.

[Quantum Windbag]

So that minorities don't have a fighting chance. I guess that would suit you just fine, so discriminatory hiring practices become the norm again.

Newsflash:

the recession that is supposed to be over is hitting older white males harder than any other group.

Older white males hurt more by this recession - USATODAY.com

If I were like you I would exult in the payback and sneer about this. Being a minority who is traditionally worse off than these people should make me rejoice that they are finally getting their due.

Since I am not you, and am actually a man of principle, I prefer to sneer at people who put people down on the basis of the color of their skin, and write ridiculous reports claiming that the US is lacking in basic human rights, when the truth is that even the homeless here have a higher standard of living than the middle class in most of the rest of the world.

While I will agree with you that the homeless have a higher standard of living here than other countries, the U.S. still has a long way to go. My father once made the argument that if Australia had been settled by the French instead of the English, the Aborigines would have been much worse off. That argument is dubious at best because the Aborgines were largely slaughtered. Your argument is also dubious because the homeless in America still get the shitty end of the stick. Comparing the homeless in America to other countries is no excuse.

But that is exactly what this report is doing, comparing conditions here to other countries. In your world we still have a long way to go, in the real world we have come a long way, further than any other country on Earth.

 

[Ozmar]

Newsflash:

the recession that is supposed to be over is hitting older white males harder than any other group.

Older white males hurt more by this recession - USATODAY.com

If I were like you I would exult in the payback and sneer about this. Being a minority who is traditionally worse off than these people should make me rejoice that they are finally getting their due.

Since I am not you, and am actually a man of principle, I prefer to sneer at people who put people down on the basis of the color of their skin, and write ridiculous reports claiming that the US is lacking in basic human rights, when the truth is that even the homeless here have a higher standard of living than the middle class in most of the rest of the world.

While I will agree with you that the homeless have a higher standard of living here than other countries, the U.S. still has a long way to go. My father once made the argument that if Australia had been settled by the French instead of the English, the Aborigines would have been much worse off. That argument is dubious at best because the Aborgines were largely slaughtered. Your argument is also dubious because the homeless in America still get the shitty end of the stick. Comparing the homeless in America to other countries is no excuse.

But that is exactly what this report is doing, comparing conditions here to other countries. In your world we still have a long way to go, in the real world we have come a long way, further than any other country on Earth.

If you are implying that the real world is your world, you are mistaken. Of course America has come a long way. That is no excuse to stop. Are you saying that just because we've come a long way, we can stop and point fingers at the rest of the world for not being as good as us and then just sit stagnant?

You know what happens if a swimmer just stops in the water instead of racing forward? The swimmer sinks. The swimmer also doesn't look back at the swimmers behind him in the race and gloat.

 

[Nosmo King]

How?

How does the fact that there are no jobs available affect the human rights of anyone?

No jobs leads quickly to desperation. Desperation leads to crime. Crime involves the state beyond private property. And, in an advanced, civil society, one would believe that unemployment is a contributing element in a rising crime rate.

How does the fact that everyone on the US can get medical care, despite the claims of the left that this is impossible, negatively affect human rights?

You cannot maintain a productive, healthy work force and consumer base without adequate, affordable health care. The economy cannot sustain the rising health care costs. It drains too many dollars from the remaining economy.

How does the fact that we abolished slavery over a hundred years ago negatively impact anyone's rights?

It doesn't and you damn well know it doesn't. Swing and a miss!

But the state sanctioned Jim Crow laws institutionalized racism in America. It's true that the popularity of overtly racist views have declined in the past forty years. But those laws not only repressed the Black man, woman, and child in America, they made it socially acceptable to be overtly racist. And that racism is passed along family to family, parent to child.

Repression results in not having the networks among employers to secure a good job. Have you ever heard some one complain: "Nah! I didn't get the job! It's all who ya know!"

Pullman porters and song and dance men couldn't possibly lay down a network broad and deep enough to introduce young Black men and women to employers. And that's a violation of civil rights right there. The Blacks did not get the opportunity to participate in the "free market" system.

It takes action by the state to break this sad legacy. As it was the state that sanctioned racism, it's the state that needs to lead the way to wipe it off our culture like the blight that it is.



Please note: rather than appealing to your humanity, I answered in strictly economic terms. I know how to reach the heart of a Conservative.

 

[freakonature]

Again, the list of challenges: high unemployment rates, hate crime, poverty, poor housing, lack of access to health care and discriminatory hiring practices.

Now that you have demonstrated your ignorance as to the conditions of poor Americans, what would YOU say are challenges, impediments and roadblocks to human rights?

Do you not know how to read? That would explain your insistence that any of these belong in a report about human rights.

ALL of these factors contribute to an erosion of human rights! You can't be free if you're the victim of hate crimes or if you're out of work or hungry or poor. That's what Conservatives can't grasp. You got yours and screw everybody else.

Hate crimes are still currently crimes and thus there are already laws on the books to deal with them adequately and argueably in some instances over the top.

If you are currently out of work, then you have the freedom to pursue whatever option are available. There is current legislation protecting you from discriminatory practices and civil suits can be levied if such cases arise. There is no human right to be employed.

Being poor does not entitle you to a plethra of rights that are not bequeathed to those currently more fortunate. I would like to hear the philisophical backing for such a claim.

If I were to cage you and keep you from food, your rights will have been violated. However, if you are currently not captive, but still hungry, you have the right to pursue endeavors that would bring you food as long as it does not impede on the rights of others.

Please explain why if "I were to get mine" lawfully, the rights of others somehow supercede mine based purely upon need regardless of the decisions that built the current situation?

 

[freakonature]

How?

How does the fact that there are no jobs available affect the human rights of anyone?

No jobs leads quickly to desperation. Desperation leads to crime. Crime involves the state beyond private property. And, in an advanced, civil society, one would believe that unemployment is a contributing element in a rising crime rate.

Are we to blame unemployment on the devaluation of morals? You are saying that property rights are impacted by employment. That is a mighty stretch, and a bit ridiculous.

How does the fact that everyone on the US can get medical care, despite the claims of the left that this is impossible, negatively affect human rights?

You cannot maintain a productive, healthy work force and consumer base without adequate, affordable health care. The economy cannot sustain the rising health care costs. It drains too many dollars from the remaining economy.

Can you explain to me the factors that drive the increasing health expenses in the nation? Why do you insist on treating the symptoms?

How does the fact that we abolished slavery over a hundred years ago negatively impact anyone's rights?

It doesn't and you damn well know it doesn't. Swing and a miss!

But the state sanctioned Jim Crow laws institutionalized racism in America. It's true that the popularity of overtly racist views have declined in the past forty years. But those laws not only repressed the Black man, woman, and child in America, they made it socially acceptable to be overtly racist. And that racism is passed along family to family, parent to child.

Repression results in not having the networks among employers to secure a good job. Have you ever heard some one complain: "Nah! I didn't get the job! It's all who ya know!"

Pullman porters and song and dance men couldn't possibly lay down a network broad and deep enough to introduce young Black men and women to employers. And that's a violation of civil rights right there. The Blacks did not get the opportunity to participate in the "free market" system.

It takes action by the state to break this sad legacy. As it was the state that sanctioned racism, it's the state that needs to lead the way to wipe it off our culture like the blight that it is.



Please note: rather than appealing to your humanity, I answered in strictly economic terms. I know how to reach the heart of a Conservative.

Are you saying that state sanctioned racism still exists? Please note that appealing to emotion rather than logic is the way to reach a desasterous conclusion.

 

[Quantum Windbag]

No jobs leads quickly to desperation. Desperation leads to crime. Crime involves the state beyond private property. And, in an advanced, civil society, one would believe that unemployment is a contributing element in a rising crime rate.

We need to outlaw unemployment?

Funny thing, the crime rate did not spike across the board when unemployment went up. Once again the real world trumps what everyone knows.

You cannot maintain a productive, healthy work force and consumer base without adequate, affordable health care. The economy cannot sustain the rising health care costs. It drains too many dollars from the remaining economy.

Point out the people that do not have that adequate health care and you might have a point. The fact is that our social safety nets already cover almost everyone, and the few that are not covered can still get health care. They may not be able to get the same health care as members of Congress, but it is adequate enough to keep most people healthy. The ones that it cannot keep healthy would never find adequate health care anyway.

It doesn't and you damn well know it doesn't. Swing and a miss!

Glad you can admit it.

But the state sanctioned Jim Crow laws institutionalized racism in America. It's true that the popularity of overtly racist views have declined in the past forty years. But those laws not only repressed the Black man, woman, and child in America, they made it socially acceptable to be overtly racist. And that racism is passed along family to family, parent to child.

Repression results in not having the networks among employers to secure a good job. Have you ever heard some one complain: "Nah! I didn't get the job! It's all who ya know!"

Pullman porters and song and dance men couldn't possibly lay down a network broad and deep enough to introduce young Black men and women to employers. And that's a violation of civil rights right there. The Blacks did not get the opportunity to participate in the "free market" system.

It takes action by the state to break this sad legacy. As it was the state that sanctioned racism, it's the state that needs to lead the way to wipe it off our culture like the blight that it is.

Than you blow it. History does not violate people's rights. Legacies do not violate human rights. What violates people's rights is what happens in the here and now. You need to concentrate on the here and now, and not on the past, in order to judge human rights.

Please note: rather than appealing to your humanity, I answered in strictly economic terms. I know how to reach the heart of a Conservative.

You should stick to trying to make me feel guilty. You won't succeed, but at least you won't be making factual errors like the ones you made here. You are also having problems because you are making assumptions about me that are not based in reality, which amuses me.

The truth is that I probably care less about money than you do, and am probably more socially liberal than you as well. I am also capable of recognizing reality, and acknowledge that not everything is a right.