Since the Supreme Court made a decision this week is anyone here in favor of affirmative action?
Is it a direct violation of the 14th amendement ?
Since the Supreme Court made a decision this week is anyone here in favor of affirmative action?
Is it a direct violation of the 14th amendement ?
The Michigan case is a head scratcher she had a 21 act and a 3.5 gpa.
If I remember reading the 2010 census, the white population accounted for almost 75% of the nation's population, which I think was around 220 million.
Considering the total number of ethnic minorities doesn't even cover for half of that, then yes I would want some type of equal representation. If someone has crap grades then they don't deserve to get in. I still think there should be somewhat of an effort to diverse student body's more, as that's the direction the country is headed altogether.
I'm an ethnic minority, so I may look at this differently than some of you guys.
Forever Fredi
I think it is a violation of the 14th Amendment. I am under the philosophy the best person for the job should be rewarded with that job. I hate filling out those questions about race and gender because I am a white male. They can't hire me then.
In a city like Savannah niners, you'd be surprised in a lot of places it's not about how qualified you are, it's about how big of a network you have and what connections you have and who you know.
A lot of the old Savannah money that's been here for decades is pretty much in an exclusive clique.
Forever Fredi
Jeff I think that's almost the norm everywhere. It's not what you know, but who you know.
When you come to savannah or when we have a beer I'll explain to you why it's 100x worse where I live
Forever Fredi
Deal.Originally Posted by KeithLockhart
some places that is known as "the old boys network". Term actually came out of the Civil Rights struggle = context should be obvious
I think there are demonstrated benefits to diversity within student populations, or in the workplace. I understand that there are disagreements about how those benefits are valued, but I'm in favor of measures to ensure diversity in those settings.
On Keith's point, I think that the more insular a given place is, the more common is that dynamic. Savannah is about as insular as it gets.
I always assumed the term "old boys' network" was derived from the British public school system.
I think I'd need about ten more beers in me before I heard that explanation.
thank you weso1!
Hawk (04-25-2014)
I don't like it. I'd rather spend more time and money on education for the poor. I think in the end affirmative action is harmful to the American workforce.
thank you weso1!
You would need to begin with ten beers before venturing into Savannah as well.
I'm of the opinion that, to keep it simple, a lot of white people will hire a white person over a black person, or won't hire a black person, solely based on race. White people hold most positions of power. I also feel a lot of black people are born in to a disadvantage that aids in making them "not the best candidate," when what's being asked could be done by them just fine with some learning.
If they would just ....
/////
There is an old common joke in the south
Q: What do they call a black Doctor (Mr MD) in Alabama?
A: A ...ger
Just to put my 2 cents worth in, I think Affirmative Actions laws are crazy, just like Hate Crime Laws. There shouldn't be any possible need for either, but the absolute troubling truth of the matter is that they are necessary, because of 100+ years of good people not doing the right thing because the individual victims weren't anyone they gave a sh!t about and more often than they wanted to admit the perp was someone they knew and/or did give a sh!t about. This is one of my biggest problems with authority, leaders, administration, management, elected officials, highly paid spin doctors, etc., they're all about getting the plaudits and the respect and the money of being a "somebody" but when it comes right down to it, they don't have the nads to do the right thing unless they can do it without losing their power base. This is also at the root of the #1 biggest problem with the education quality in the public schools.
50PoundHead (04-25-2014)
I think in the end, this Supreme Court decision is going to hurt poor whites as well as minorities. If you're in a school system that doesn't have the course offerings or college preparatory support systems in place and this is all going to boil down to test scores and legacies, a lot of kids in cash-strapped school systems are going to end up on the outside looking in. The Century Foundation has been advocating a "class based," as opposed to "race based" system of affirmative action, but I don't know if that would pass muster given this decision.
So why are we supposed to believe affirmative action is the best way to solve these problems? Seems like a very lazy solution to the problem. AA obviously has its problems and it really doesn't get to the root of the issue. I just don't think it's the best way to fix the problem. We're competing in an international world these days and weakening the workforce through AA and other policies seems like a bad idea.
thank you weso1!
The solution to a problem so complex is rarely found the first try. It's a much better option than the narrative of "just work harder duh!!!!!!"
You've got to start somewhere. Leaving things the way they were would only make the problem worse. Which some white people don't care about.
I agree that flat-out quotas would be a lazy and misdirected way to go, but as I understand this particular instance, Michigan's race-conscious policy awarded "points" based on race, but that wasn't the sole determining factor in whether or not an applicant was accepted. The question that needs to be answered are what are the goals and mission of higher education. How much latitude should an admissions system have in putting together its student body in attempting to fulfill that mission?
I know a few years ago, their points-based system gave more points for being a minority than it did for a perfect SAT score. I disagree with that method a lot.
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